Chapter 20: Has Peak Master Luo Been Possessed?

Luo Chen released the sunflower seeds from his palm, wiped his hands quickly with a handkerchief, and bent down to help Ling Xi to her feet. Without so much as a glance at the contents of the Qiankun bag, he tossed it casually to the Sect Leader, Lu Buwei.

Once Ling Xi stood straight, Luo Chen pulled back his robes and crouched halfway down again. He placed a palm against her lower abdomen, and a surge of scorching spiritual energy flowed from his hand to nourish her dantian.

As the warmth coursed through her, the spiritual energy within Ling Xi’s dantian began to show a faint, purple-tinged clarity, though it was still only the size of a palm.

Her exhaustion vanished instantly, and Ling Xi stretched her arms, feeling refreshed.

Luo Chen brushed the dust from her clothes, swept the frost and snow from her hem, and bent down to straighten the butterfly hair accessory on her head.

"You must have been frozen stiff. Come, have a cup of hot tea to warm up first. I’ll cook you some rock sugar and pear soup when we get back."

Holding Ling Xi’s hand, Luo Chen walked to his seat as if no one else were there. He pressed Ling Xi into the chair and poured her some tea.

He glanced at the leaderboard with little concern; Ling Xi’s score was fixed at 29,000 and did not fluctuate.

His fingers, hidden within his sleeves, twitched slightly. He knew everything now, and the smile in his eyes grew more genuine.

The disciples below had their mouths hung wide open, enough to fit an egg inside.

This was the notoriously temperamental Peak Master Luo!

Elder Hong watched as the leaderboard—verified by crystals—showed that the two disciples from his own peak had earned nothing, while those two good-for-nothings from Danbo Peak had their names hovering above all others.

Looking up, he saw Luo Chen still breaking the rules by pouring tea for a useless brat. It was enough to make him choke with rage.

In all his time as a disciple, he had never once received such attention from his own master, yet that useless Ling Xi was treated with such indulgence.

Elder Hong’s hands, hidden in his sleeves, cracked as he clenched them. His wrinkled face twitched violently, and his murky eyes flashed with jealousy and fury.

"Sect Leader, everyone knows the state of the disciples from Danbo Peak. How could they possibly have obtained so many points?"

Luo Chen swept a glance at Wen Jue. "The floor is quite cool, isn't it? Get up!"

Wen Jue stood up nimbly, immediately grasping his master’s intent. He presented the Qiankun bag with both hands. "Please, Sect Leader, clarify this. I don't mind, but Junior Sister is a girl, and she has already suffered enough grievances."

Lu Buwei inspected the bag Ling Xi had submitted, then glanced at Wen Jue’s. He was overjoyed.

Although the quality of the spiritual plants was mediocre—hardly any were of high grade—they were brimming with spiritual energy. Never before in any previous expedition to the Maze Realm had they gathered such a quantity.

Lu Buwei remained calm on the surface and casually displayed the spiritual herbs and monster cores to the crowd. "If anyone believes these spiritual plants are fake, I can invite the elders and peak masters well-versed in pharmacology to inspect them."

Several eager elders stepped forward, sniffing and examining them with practiced professionalism. Finally, they nodded and gave the Sect Leader a thumbs-up. One flatterer even kept praising the abundance of spiritual energy within the plants.

Elder Hong’s murky eyes rolled, and he cupped his hands, shouting, "Even if the herbs she brought back are real, does Peak Master Luo remember what he said just a moment ago?"

Why was a man picked up by the Sect Leader allowed to sit high as one of the nine peak masters, while he, having worked diligently for half a lifetime, remained a mere outer-sect elder?

The yellowish-white of his eyes turned slightly red, and a trace of blood-red flashed across his dim pupils.

An ordinary person might not have noticed, but Luo Chen saw it clearly.

He had been wondering where an outer-sect elder found the courage to challenge him. So, it was the doing of the demons.

It was his own fault for losing his vigilance; otherwise, a dignified elder would not have been so easily ensnared.

"Not only do I remember, but everyone present remembers!" Luo Chen looked at the crowd, shook his sleeves, and turned to smile at Ling Xi. "Xi Xi, I’m afraid you’ll have to endure a moment of trouble. The Sect Leader has a spirit-testing mirror used to detect artifacts. Don't be nervous; just stand in front of the mirror."

His first sentence had been cold and fierce; the second was gentle, with the tone of someone coaxing a child to take medicine.

The disciples below nearly had their eyeballs pop out. A massive question hung over their heads: Didn't Peak Master Luo only care about sword manuals or beating people up?

Had he truly not been possessed?

Luo Chen’s sharp, smiling gaze swept across the crowd, lingering on a few individuals before settling on Elder Hong.

Lu Buwei rummaged through his sleeves and finally pulled out a shattered mirror fragment from the Qiankun bag at his waist. He held the fragment in his left hand and channeled spiritual energy with his right.

As the energy met the mirror surface, silver ripples stirred. The ancient bronze rust on the edges faded, and the cloudy glass cleared instantly, becoming brighter than a diamond ring.

The mirror shard flew up, scattering golden light. Ling Xi’s black hair seemed gilded, her butterfly accessory reflected the radiance, her robes fluttered without a breeze, and a divine glow emanated from her entire being.

A thin red thread was visible on her slender white wrist, flickering with white spiritual light, and spiritual power surged wildly.

Aside from that, there was no other fluctuation of spiritual energy.

Elder Hong pointed incredulously at the butterfly accessory on Ling Xi’s head. "That is definitely a magical artifact! How could a common hair accessory have such an effect?"

"It is indeed not a common material. It is made primarily of Five-Metal Crystal Essence. It was just gathering dust in my hands, so I thought I’d let Xi Xi wear it for fun."

The elders on the platform took a deep breath, clutching their chests, terrified that a rush of blood to the brain might kill them.

That was a legendary, priceless forging material. If crafted into an artifact, it would be at least Heaven-grade, and if handled properly, even the mythical Spirit-grade was possible.

To use such a treasure as a mere hair accessory—what was he thinking?

It was heartbreaking! An utter waste of heaven's gifts!

Lu Buwei’s hands, hidden in his sleeves, moved restlessly, pinching his own arms until he nearly tore off a piece of flesh.

He looked at the plain silver-edged ribbon on his own disciple’s hair, and a thousand waves of resentment stirred in his heart.

Hmph! Just because you're rich doesn't mean you have to show off like this! It makes it look like I’m abusing my disciples.

Thinking of the two pitiful little ones on Ningjing Peak, Lu Buwei finally found some balance—at least his own disciples returned without getting battered.

Elder Hong’s wrinkled face twitched violently. Wisps of black mist seeped from the corners of his eyes, and veins bulged on his forehead.

Recalling the meager offerings he had received over the decades, he kicked a table away. "Why! How can you be so extravagant when you won't give me a decent share of the offerings!"

He stared fixedly at the butterfly on Ling Xi’s head, pushing the spiritual energy in his body to the limit, his withered, pine-like fingers moving in a blur.

Luo Chen closed his five fingers. The chair beside him shook, and as his fingers spread, the chairs flew toward Elder Hong.

A powerful pressure surged between the chairs, pinning Elder Hong from above.

Elder Hong collapsed to the ground, unable to move, cold sweat drenching his back as reason finally overcame his jealousy and hatred.

"I’m sorry, Peak Master Luo! I’m sorry, Junior Niece Ling! I was momentarily possessed by a ghost. Every mistake is mine; I only hope you will give me another chance to turn over a new leaf."

Elder Hong’s voice trembled like a sieve. Unable to move his body, he was filled with regret.

A lean camel is still bigger than a horse; how had he dared to incite the other disciples against Danbo Peak?

Suddenly realizing something, a flicker of guilt passed through his fear.

"You’ve realized it? Then I won't bother Elder Hong any further."

Luo Chen smiled faintly, gave the Sect Leader a meaningful look, and took Ling Xi’s hand to return to their peak to cook the rock sugar and pear soup.

He left the rest to Lu Buwei.

If he couldn't even handle this small matter, he wasn't fit to be the leader of one of the four great sects of Qingchuan.

Sui An, realizing what was happening, shouted at the top of his lungs, "Junior Sister! Wait for me! I have something to tell you!"

The disciples cast strange looks at him.

This scene felt all too familiar.