Chapter Forty-Four: The Secrets Within the Sunlit Sect

He opened the door, and a rush of fresh air greeted him, instantly invigorating Liu Pan's spirits. After drawing a deep breath of the crisp morning air, Liu Pan did not hesitate; with quick steps, he headed straight down the slope of Medicine Peak.

It was not for amusement that he ventured down the mountain so early in the morning—Liu Pan had sensed, with his spiritual perception, that Wang Broadsword was descending as well.

After a night of vigilance, Wang Broadsword had finally made a move. Although Liu Pan had no idea what his purpose was, even if Wang Broadsword was simply heading to Grandleaf Peak for breakfast, Liu Pan was determined to follow.

After all, he had been watched by Zhu Jiangyang all day yesterday, and saw Zhu Jiangyang conversing with Wang Broadsword that evening. If Wang Broadsword didn’t soon take some action against him, Liu Pan would hardly believe it himself.

Descending Medicine Peak, he encountered few sect disciples, owing to the early hour. In fact, even at busier times, it was rare to see disciples wandering about idly. Outer sect disciples had only a single year to strive; if they wished to avoid expulsion, their days could only be spent in relentless cultivation and completing missions to exchange for resources. Liu Pan, who had never completed a single sect task yet was promoted directly to a personal disciple of an elder, was a true oddity.

At the foot of Medicine Peak, though few were around to notice, Wang Broadsword still glanced about before choosing a direction and striding away at a measured pace.

Seeing the direction Wang Broadsword took, Liu Pan’s eyes flickered, and he quietly tailed him.

After nearly half an hour, unease began to creep in—after weaving a good half-circle through the sect, Wang Broadsword arrived at the base of Moonclear Peak. Moonclear Peak—the residence of Elder Li Liao, the Third Elder!

Through his spiritual perception, Liu Pan saw Wang Broadsword produce a jade token and, without hesitation, pass through the formation at the foot of Moonclear Peak. Liu Pan fell silent. He had not expected that the matter he had always tried to avoid since entering Baiyang Sect would finally come to confront him.

From the start, Liu Pan had understood the role Li Liao played in Baiyang Sect: he was, in essence, a restless force. As a third-rank martial master, Li Liao’s cultivation was not as high as the other elders, yet he had an abundance of “virtues.” Barely thirty, the youngest among the elders, and already an entry-level spiritual array master.

Because of his youth, his recent induction as an elder, and all these “virtues,” Li Liao was even less content to remain in the background than his peers—ambition smoldered within him. He yearned to control the entire Baiyang Sect!

An elder who does not aspire to be sect master is not a true cultivator. Everyone strives upward, though their aims differ—some for power, some for wealth.

Li Liao craved the position of sect master.

But to grasp true power over Baiyang Sect was no easy task. It required overwhelming strength, and Li Liao simply did not possess it. Even as a spiritual array master who could challenge mid-stage martial masters, he was still no match for Yang Jiangshui, the sect master in full mastery of the martial path.

Thus, lacking strength, he made up for it in cunning. Unable to dominate by force, Li Liao chose a circuitous path to power. Since Yang Jiangshui’s position rested on both strength and the elders’ consent, Li Liao chose to undermine the foundation—he adopted a strategy of sapping support at its roots.

Publicly, Li Liao had done nothing overt in Baiyang Sect, but in secret, he had been building his own faction. Several lesser elders had quietly sided with him, and more significantly, the elder who managed the disciplinary hall was also under his thumb.

At present, roughly a third of the sect's upper echelon leaned toward Li Liao.

But it was in the middle and lower ranks where Li Liao’s influence was even greater, especially when compared to the other elders. From the personal disciples of each elder down to the newest initiates, the true extent of Li Liao’s reach was never detailed in the book, but Liu Pan could guess—by now, Liu Kuang had almost certainly “submitted” to Li Liao as well.

Although the novel had alluded to Li Liao’s influence in Baiyang Sect, Liu Pan had not expected that his reach would extend even to Elder Lin of the Medicine Hall.

Elder Lin was the sect’s sole alchemy master, his status incomparable to the average elder. Even as the only spiritual array master in the sect, Li Liao’s position was far beneath Lin’s.

After all, pills could directly aid cultivation, whereas Li Liao, as a mere entry-level array master, could not even set up formations to assist in that regard. Thus, one was “useful,” the other “useless”—it was clear in every disciple’s mind who was weightier.

Ultimately, even if Li Liao could control half—or even two-thirds—of Baiyang Sect, he could never command the entire sect. For all his caution, Yang Jiangshui had long been aware of everything.

If you wish to keep your secrets, best do nothing at all. The larger the covert faction, the more leaks and clues inevitably surface. In fact, several elders had already noticed something amiss and reported it to Yang Jiangshui, who, after careful consideration, only smiled and dismissed their concerns.

In Yang Jiangshui’s view, Li Liao’s power grab was merely the impetuousness of youth and inexperience; after more time steeped in the sect’s traditions, his restlessness would naturally subside.

The position of sect master represented not just authority but also duty and mission.

Yang Jiangshui had not acted against Li Liao, partly because of Li Liao’s unsettled mind, but more importantly because Li Liao was a spiritual array master.

For Baiyang Sect, the strongest force in the southern frontier, this meant little on the grand scale of the martial continent, where they were but ants. Yet even ants yearned for strength. To a prestigious sect, a junior array master was nothing, but to a two-star sect like Baiyang, he was a precious gem. For if an entry-level spiritual array master advanced just a little, he could set up a basic Essence Gathering Array!

With such an array, the entire sect would be transformed.

It was in consideration of the sect’s future that Yang Jiangshui chose to “indulge” Li Liao. Li Liao was simply too young, and unlike the other elders, his temperament was not steady. If pressed too harshly, he might leave—and that would be a tremendous loss for Baiyang Sect.

Alchemy and array go hand in hand. For a sect to truly prosper, both an alchemist and an array master were essential.

As the author, Liu Pan had always known these hidden currents in Baiyang Sect. It was precisely this knowledge that left him with little fondness for the sect, or for Yang Jiangshui and Li Liao in particular.

Power, schemes, human hearts, humanity.

One feigned ignorance, the other was simply ignorant.

Liu Pan’s dislike stemmed from the fact that Li Liao, in order to “eliminate dissidents,” had not hesitated to kill sect disciples, and even two unwitting elders had perished as a result. Even knowing this, Yang Jiangshui remained silent, still indulging Li Liao for the supposed greater good of the sect’s future, choosing to turn a blind eye.

Some might find Yang Jiangshui’s actions understandable. After all, to gain something, one must always pay a price. If Li Liao, after this, could break through to mid-stage martial master and set up the Essence Gathering Array, then perhaps it would all be worth it.

Yet Liu Pan could not accept this. Though he was the author and had crafted all these plots, he wrote them only as pitfalls to hook readers. He had never imagined he would one day find himself inside the story, so he had never cared whether his plotlines defied all human decency.

Now, transported into his own novel, breathing the air of this world, Liu Pan truly experienced the weight of humanity.

Though he had not witnessed the slaughter for power in Baiyang Sect, as its creator, Liu Pan could easily envision it.

As a civilized youth from 21st-century Earth, how could Liu Pan possibly accept such inhumanity?

Yet, accept it he must! For he was the author—he had written it all.

Indeed, ever since entering Baiyang Sect, Liu Pan had always avoided its dark underbelly. This was why he was so sensitive to Li Liao’s gaze—he desperately wanted to avoid being drawn into this inhuman vortex. What he longed for most was to leave the sect, and, once strong enough, return to destroy everything inhuman festering beneath its surface.

But fate had denied him the chance to leave and return later.

If before, Liu Pan had only harbored suspicions at Li Liao’s repeated glances, now, sensing Wang Broadsword’s arrival at Moonclear Peak and his decisive entry through the formation, Liu Pan understood—this matter had come knocking at his door.

Through his spiritual sense, Liu Pan watched Wang Broadsword pass through the formation and ascend a secluded path up Moonclear Peak.

A choice—how to choose? At the very instant he sensed Wang Broadsword reach the summit and report to Li Liao, Liu Pan knew he must make his decision.

Submit, or resist?

To submit? To "submit" as Liu Kuang had done in the novel?

To submit meant aiding Li Liao—Liu Pan, as Elder Lin’s personal disciple, might well be forced to act against Elder Lin. How could he betray Elder Lin?

Even if not, even knowing the truth, how could he knowingly abet evil?

Then to resist? Liu Pan frowned—how should he resist?