<h4>Chapter 264: If You Don’t Leave Me, I Won’t Forsake You</h4>


    Outside Seven Blood Eyes, killing intent roiled high into the sky.


    Inside Seven Blood Eyes the attitude was somber and respectful. Up above, the various peaklords all had tranquil expressions on their faces.


    Xu Qing heard the enraged shout from beyond the spell formation, but he didn’t look over his shoulder. He kept his head bowed and held the cup of tea up in front of him.


    Master Seventh also ignored what was happening outside. It was as if he didn’t care at all, and was only concerned about his new apprentice, who was still in the middle of the apprenticeship ceremony. He waved his hand, and the teacup in Xu Qing’s hands flew over to him. However, Master Seventh didn’t drink. He simply put it on the table next to him. It was the ‘tea of gratitude,’ which was not to be consumed.


    Meanwhile, Second Highness and Third Highness stood off to the side, looking very respectful. However, at one point, Third Highness caught Xu Qing’s eye and winked.


    “Offer the tea of the past!” the Captain said. He handed Xu Qing a second cup of tea, and Xu Qing took three steps forward and held it up in front of him. At the same time, shouting could be heard outside the sect.


    As the furious cultivators from the Soaring Cloud Sword Sect arrived, they didn’t slow down at all. Instead, they unleashed raging sword energy, creating dazzling beams of blinding light that shot right toward Seven Blood Eyes.


    The Seven Blood Eyes Formation activated and blocked the millions upon millions of streams of sword energy, and massive booms rang out, shaking the seven mountain peaks. Apparently, something about the spell formation was different than before. It seemed to be rejecting the authority of the Seven Sect Coalition, and treating the Soaring Cloud Sword Sect as an enemy.


    The peaklords ignored what was happening, and thanks to their cid expressions, the disciples from the other peaks remained calm, and focused on the ceremony taking ce on the Seventh Peak.


    Within the violet temple, Master Seventh continued to ignore what was happening outside. Waving his hand, he took the second cup of tea from Xu Qing. This was called the ‘tea of the past,’ and by taking a sip, it would indicate that the Master was willing to ept a new apprentice. Master Seventh held it up, put it to his lips and drank, then set it down on the table.


    “Offer the tea of faith!” the Captain said, and he gave Xu Qing a third cup.


    Taking a deep breath, Xu Qing took three steps forward, knelt, and held the cup up.


    Intense booms rang out from the formation, like heavenly thunder. A 30,000-meter blood-colored stream of sword energy mmed into the Seven Blood Eyes Formation. At this point, the formation couldn’t stand up to the force, and it shattered.


    Then the sword energy turned into an old man in a golden robe. As he appeared above Seven Blood Eyes, the countless streams of sword light behind him resolved into the forms of Soaring Cloud Sword Sect disciples. Every single one pulsed with killing intent. Every single one seemed arrogant and domineering.


    “Sir Bloodsmelter, you....” The old man who had smashed the formation was none other than Patriarch Soaring Cloud. As he spoke, he sent his divine will streaming through the sect, which was when he caught sight of Xu Qing offering a cup of tea to Master Seventh atop the summit of the Seventh Peak. His words trailed off. He had lived for many years, and was the patriarch of an entire sect. He knew exactly what he was looking at.


    “You’re epting an apprentice?” The killing intent in his eyes was as cold as ice, as though everyone he was looking at was already dead. “You injured my grandson, stole my sect’s lifemp, and now you’re holding an apprenticeship ceremony! Sir Bloodsmelter. I am very, very curious what gives you the courage to do something like this!”


    Smiling enigmatically, Sir Bloodsmelter replied, “If there’s something you’d like to talk about, Soaring Cloud, please wait until after my son-inw finishes epting his new apprentice.”


    The six peaklords in the clouds didn’t look rmed at all by what was happening.


    Seeing that, Patriarch Soaring Cloud’s pupils constricted, and his heart sank. The feeling he was getting from Seven Blood Eyes waspletely different than anything in the past!


    Inside the violet hall, Master Seventh wasn’t paying attention to the drama outside.


    Xu Qing knelt and offered the third cup of tea. All eyes in the sect were on him.


    As the killing intent raged outside, Master Seventh calmly said, “Let’s forget about the ceremony for a moment, Kid. I want to ask you a simple question, and I’d like your sincere answer. Deep in your heart, do you really want to be my apprentice?”


    Xu Qing looked up into Master Seventh’s eyes, and quietly answered, “Yes, Master.”


    Master Seventh smiled broadly. “Good, my apprentice. If you don’t leave me, I won’t forsake you!”


    With that, he put his index finger and thumb into the tea, then flicked his fingers. As the tea sprayed out, the ceremony of apprenticeship waspleted! Bells tolled inside Seven Blood Eyes. But this time, the bells weren’t just those from the Seventh Peak. The bells on all seven of the mountain peaks tolled, shaking everything.


    “As of today, we have a Fourth Sib,” Master Seventh said. “It’s truly a happy asion. Now, let’s go outside and see what that moring is about. Apparently, someone has the gall to talk about taking away my apprentice.”


    In response to those words, Patriarch Soaring Cloud let loose an enragedugh. As he did, a middle-aged cultivator next to him stepped forward, his expression very unsightly. In appearance, he looked very much like Master Shengyun. Turning into a blood-colored sword, he shot with incredible speed toward the violet hall on the Seventh Peak. As he moved, he pulsed with the fluctuations of a Nascent Soul cultivation base. Though those fluctuations surpassed those of an ordinary Nascent Soul cultivator, they obviously weren’t at the peak of that level.


    In the blink of an eye, that blood sword reached the violet hall, and was about to pierce inside of it. However, that was when Master Seventh chuckled and stood. Taking a single step, he emerged from the hall, then casually waved his hand in the direction of the sword.


    The blood sword instantly shattered, and a bloodcurdling shriek echoed out from within. The middle-aged Nascent Soul cultivator was sent spinning off to the side like a kite with its string cut. Virtually every part of his body then exploded, turning into chunky, bloody mist that spread out into the air.


    Only his nascent soul survived. Flying out in rm, he looked in terror at the violet hall, where Xu Qing, the Captain, Second Highness, and Third Highness... walked out into the open with Master Seventh.


    The Nascent Soul cultivator that Master Seventh had so casually shredded to pieces had a very high rank in the Soaring Cloud Sword Sect. In fact, he was one of their grand elders. He was also the only son of Patriarch Soaring Cloud, and Master Shengyun’s father. That was why he had charged in with such rage. But now he was in an incredibly pitiful state. In fact, his nascent soul was dull and dark, as though it might copse at any moment. He was astonished down to the core of his being. He knew without a doubt what kind of cultivation base was required to shatter his body with the wave of a hand. What was more... it obviously hadn’t been a killing blow, otherwise it wouldn’t have been so easy for him to escape in nascent soul form.


    “You’re not in Nascent Soul, you’re in Spirit Trove!!” blurted Master Shengyun’s father. As he backed away, the disciples of the Soaring Cloud Sword Sect were visibly shaken.


    Only Patriarch Soaring Cloud didn’t have a physical reaction. Looking closely at Master Seventh, he said, “How very deceptive of you. Not even I noticed. And you’re no ordinary Spirit Trove cultivator. You already have three secret troves! Even still, that’s not enough. What else do you have, Sir Bloodsmelter? Put it all out in the open.”


    Master Seventh said nothing. Smiling, he stood outside of the violet hall and looked up at Sir Bloodsmelter.


    Sir Bloodsmelter looked back down, his eyes full of praise. Then he looked at Patriarch Soaring Cloud, and his eyes glittered with malice. “Let’s fight a bit before I do that!”


    All of a sudden, Sir Bloodsmelter’s gaze turned into a host of blood-red lines that shot toward Patriarch Soaring Cloud.


    Patriarch Soaring Cloud snorted coldly and waved his hand, sending sword energy raging toward Sir Bloodsmelter. When they shed, wild colors shed, and rifts spread out in the sky. As they rose higher and higher, booms rang out like heavenly thunder. At the same time, the dracolizard in the clouds roared at the Soaring Cloud Sword Sect disciples, and the six peaklords released the fluctuations of their cultivation bases, causing everything to shake violently.


    That, coupled with the image of Master Seventh standing with his hands sped behind his back atop the Seventh Peak, took a lot of air out of these disciples who had supposedlye to inflict violent punishment on Seven Blood Eyes. Among the group were some Nascent Soul cultivators, except now their skin was crawling as they looked fearfully at Master Seventh.


    The difference between Nascent Soul and Spirit Trove was like the difference between one-me power and six-me power. If Master Seventh wanted to, he could wipe them out of existence, and none of them would even have a chance to flee. That difference made all the Soaring Cloud Sword Sect disciples nervous. After all, though the Soaring Cloud Sword Sect did have a Spirit Trove cultivator, it was their sect leader. And since the patriarch had led this expedition, the sect leader had remained behind to watch over the sect.


    Never could any of them have guessed that Seven Blood Eyes wouldn’t just have a Void Returning patriarch. They also had someone stronger than the Nascent Soul. A Spirit Trove expert!


    It wasn’t just the Soaring Cloud Sword Sect disciples who were shaken. The disciples of Seven Blood Eyes were also astonished. That said, when they thought about the traditions of the Seventh Peak, they realized that this development wasn’t that unusual after all. The peaklords had known all along, so they weren’t surprised. As for the disciples gathered on the daoist altar, including Xu Qing and the other apprentices, they exchanged awkward nces.


    “I have the feeling the old man is still being deceptive about something,” Third Elder Brother murmured.


    The Captain chuckled. “He is, Third Sib. Believe it!”


    Xu Qing looked at the Captain and then Third Elder Brother. Off to the side, Second Elder Sister had a jade slip that she was using to send voice messages to someone, excitedly exining what was happening. [1]


    Grinning, Third Elder Brother looked at Xu Qing and said, “What did I tell you, little Junior Brother? The first time Iid eyes on you I knew we were connected by destiny. And wouldn’t you know it, I barely had time to snap my fingers, and here you are my Junior Brother. Although, I do admit I’m surprised you took down Master Shengyun. When the Seven Sect Coalition started throwing challenges around, the grand highnesses from the other peaks threw most of their matches. The only exception was the First Peak.”


    1. Now that Xu Qing’s status has changed, Third Highness and Second Highness will be referred to as Third Elder Brother and Second Elder Sister. ??