Meeting an old acquaintance, Mo Tiange felt surprise mingled with delight. Although she had fled Yunwu Mountain in a sorry state back then, she was now the personal disciple of a Nascent Soul cultivator from the Xuanqing Sect, the second-ranked sect in Tianji. There was no need to fear the Jiang Family of Yunwu Mountain finding out, so she calmly acknowledged her identity.
That Jiang Family—she would personally deal with them sooner or later! For now, letting them know through Liu Yidao's mouth that she was still alive and living well, just to anger them a little, wasn't a bad thing either.
Having not seen each other for twelve years, after a brief exchange of reminiscences, Mo Tiange invited Liu Yidao to her residence for a visit.
Seeing her living within Dao Lord Jinghe's cave abode and hearing the gate-keeping disciples address her as 'Martial Aunt,' Liu Yidao's face showed astonishment. He couldn't help but ask, "Junior Brother Ye, why do they all call you Martial Aunt?"
Mo Tiange smiled but before she could answer, a maidservant interjected, "Martial Aunt Mo is Perfected Lord Jinghe's personal disciple, so of course we address her as Martial Aunt."
As Mo Tiange's status rose and she secured her footing within the Xuanqing Sect, the maidservants had all become obedient. Not only did they dare not make things difficult for her, they even vied to curry favor.
Hearing this, Liu Yidao was greatly shocked. When he encountered this "Junior Brother Ye" in the Xuanqing Sect, he had originally thought she was just lucky to have joined the sect and succeeded in Foundation Establishment. He hadn't expected her to hold such a status.
Mo Tiange waved a hand, dismissing Qingqi who had come to serve tea, and invited Liu Yidao to sit. "Senior Brother Liu, please have a seat."
The two sat as host and guest in the small hall. After drinking tea for a while, Liu Yidao couldn't resist asking, "Junior Brother Ye, what have you experienced these years? Not only have you advanced to Mid-Stage Foundation Establishment so soon, but you've also been taken as a disciple by a Nascent Soul senior?"
Mo Tiange smiled. "It was just my good fortune." She paused, then said, "In the past, everyone thought my Spirit Root was just a Five Spirit Root, merely coincidentally balanced in strength. It wasn't until I came to the Xuanqing Sect that I learned it was actually a special type of Spirit Root. Later, I was accepted as a nominal disciple by Dao Lord Jinghe, and after Foundation Establishment, I became a formal disciple."
She summarized her experiences in just a few sentences, but Liu Yidao sighed with deep emotion. "Back then, when you suddenly disappeared, and later Branch Master Jiang declared you a traitor who killed Jiang Chengxian, I was utterly shocked. After that, I never heard any news of you. I thought... So you actually came to the Xuanqing Sect." He then asked, "By the way, Junior Brother Qin and Junior Brother Jiang both disappeared with you. Later, the sect was extremely tight-lipped about it, and I couldn't find out any information. I always suspected they were involved in this matter. Junior Brother Ye, is that the case?"
Mo Tiange hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Yes. Back then, I fled Yunwu Mountain because that Jiang Chengxian acted improperly towards me. Senior Brother Jiang saved me and was implicated because of it."
"Junior Brother Jiang saved you?" Liu Yidao was shocked once more. No wonder he reacted this way. Back then, Jiang Shanghang hardly gave them a second glance. That he would save her and offend his own family was truly unbelievable. Additionally, the fact that she had left Yunwu Mountain under such circumstances also surprised him greatly.
Seeing Mo Tiange nod, he digested this truth for a moment before asking, "What about Junior Brother Qin then?"
Mo Tiange fell silent. After a long while, she said, "Senior Brother Liu, just consider that this person never existed in this world."
Liu Yidao was taken aback. "What do you mean?"
"This person never existed in this world to begin with." Mo Tiange curled her lips into a smile, not wishing to explain further. "By the way, why does Senior Brother Liu not seem very surprised about my true gender?"
Seeing her change the subject so quickly, Liu Yidao naturally understood she didn't want to elaborate. As a cultivator who had risen from the mortal world, he certainly had the skill to read expressions. He didn't press further and answered with a smile, "Junior Brother Ye truly had no flaws back then, and no one else suspected you were a woman disguised as a man. However, those of us who lived with you day and night would notice some oddities. At the time, Junior Brother Xu..." Mentioning Xu Jingzhi, Liu Yidao's expression dimmed momentarily, but he quickly smiled again. "Junior Brother Xu once secretly told me he always felt something was strange about you, Junior Brother Ye..."
She hadn't expected the two of them to have discussed such matters privately. Even though so much time had passed, Mo Tiange still felt a bit curious. "Oh?"
Liu Yidao shook his head with a smile. "Once he mentioned it, we all had that feeling, but none of us thought too deeply about it."
"Really? What was strange about me?"
"For example, Junior Brother, you never grew taller..."
Mo Tiange was startled, then couldn't help but laugh. "There was nothing I could do about that..."
Liu Yidao nodded. "At the time, Junior Brother Qin said you, Junior Brother Ye, had a feminine face for a man, and there was nothing surprising about it. We thought about it and agreed you did resemble a woman quite a bit. Now it turns out to be true, so I wasn't very surprised."
"He actually said that..." Mo Tiange murmured to herself. No wonder he hadn't seemed surprised at all back then. So he had known all along. Actually, it made sense—what could possibly be hidden from him?
Seeing her expression, Liu Yidao hesitated for a long time but still couldn't resist asking, "Junior Brother Ye, what exactly happened to Junior Brother Qin..."
"He's fine." Mo Tiange smiled, though a trace of coldness flickered within that smile. "Better than you could imagine. Better than both you and me."
She emphasized these three instances of "fine" heavily in her tone. The coldness in her smile flashed by so quickly Liu Yidao almost thought it an illusion, then immediately heard her say, "Let's not talk about this. Senior Brother Liu, I've been away from Yunwu Mountain for so long. Could you tell me what happened after we parted?"
Liu Yidao swallowed his questions and nodded. "Of course."
He thought for a moment and said, "Let's start from when you left Yunwu Mountain. At that time, I gained the favor of my current master, who accepted me as an inner sect disciple and gave me a Foundation Establishment Pill. After my injuries healed, I went into seclusion for half a year. Unexpectedly, my luck was good, and I truly achieved Foundation Establishment. When I emerged from seclusion after Foundation Establishment, I learned the news about several junior brothers. Junior Brother Xu met an accidental demise, and the three of you disappeared simultaneously. Back then, I shared a residence with the four of you, and in the end, only I remained..." A look of loneliness appeared on Liu Yidao's face. Coming from a loose cultivator background, he valued friendship more than sect-bred cultivators. When such an accident occurred back then, he had been concerned for a long time. Precisely because of this, seeing Mo Tiange still alive had moved him so deeply.
"Regarding the disappearance of Junior Brother Jiang and Junior Brother Qin, the sect offered no explanation. But for you, Junior Brother Ye, you were branded a traitor, accused of killing Junior Brother Jiang Chengxian out of greed for wealth. I naturally didn't believe it, but I couldn't find you, so I had to let the matter rest. Now, knowing the truth, I realize how shameless the Jiang Family truly was. Fortunately, they later received their comeuppance!"
At this point, Mo Tiange was puzzled and pressed for details. "What comeuppance did they receive?"
Liu Yidao said, "I don't know which mighty expert the two Jiang uncles offended. One night, Branch Master Jiang was severely injured, and the other Uncle Jiang was also sought out and similarly severely wounded. The Jiang Family declined from then on and later had to relinquish the position of Branch Master." Seeing the mix of shock and dawning comprehension in Mo Tiange's expression, Liu Yidao couldn't help but ask, "Could it be Junior Brother Ye knows who it was?"
"...I probably have an idea." Mo Tiange quickly regained her composure. "Senior Brother Liu, how have you been faring in Yunwu Mountain lately?"
"Not bad." Mentioning this, Liu Yidao's expression brightened with joy. "My master has already advanced to Core Formation. Currently, the Jiang Family no longer calls the shots in Yunwu Mountain. I'm doing quite well."
Judging by his expression, he truly was doing well. Mo Tiange felt happy for him too.
The atmosphere between the two finally took on the joy of a long-awaited reunion. Seizing the opportunity, Liu Yidao added, "There's another piece of good news. Junior Brother Ye will surely be pleased to hear it."
"Oh?"
Liu Yidao tried to act mysterious, but his burly, rough appearance made the attempt rather comical. In the end, he couldn't hold back himself and said directly, "That Zixia Sect, which originally thought it could become a major power after devouring the Yunwu Sect and the Golden Blade Sect, ended up suffering heavy losses among its disciples from the three sects due to the Foundation Establishment Pill incident. Not long after, their Nascent Soul Patriarch also had a cultivation mishap. Currently, the three sects' strength is greatly diminished. Forget becoming a major sect—they can't even control us and the Golden Blade Sect anymore."
"So, currently, the Yunwu Sect and the Golden Blade Sect have essentially broken away from the Zixia Sect?"
"Pretty much." Liu Yidao nodded. "The Zixia Sect only dared to treat our two sects that way because they had a Nascent Soul cultivator as backing. Now that their Nascent Soul Patriarch is practically no different from being deceased, and their internal elite disciples have suffered heavy losses, how could they spare the effort to deal with us? Junior Brother Ye, you're not an outsider, so it's fine for me to say this: we and the Golden Blade Sect have already joined forces. When the time is right, we'll deal with the Zixia Sect together!"
A fire of hatred burned in Liu Yidao's eyes. Back then, as one of five in the same residence, he had considered himself the senior brother and cared for the others. The fact that Xu Jingzhi was killed during the struggle for a Foundation Establishment Pill had also left a smoldering anger in his heart. Now that there was a chance for revenge, he was naturally in favor.
"Senior Brother Liu, even if I cannot go to East Kunwu, you must exert some effort on my behalf as well." Mo Tiange said coldly. "The debt for Senior Brother Xu's death went unpaid back then, but it will be repaid sooner or later!"
"Exactly!" The two exchanged a smile. Liu Yidao couldn't help but say, "Junior Brother Ye, you look very beautiful now. Why did you disguise yourself as a man back then?"
Mo Tiange's skin had thickened by now. Coupled with the fact that the one complimenting her was Liu Yidao, whom she had always regarded as an elder brother, she showed no trace of shyness and simply smiled. "Back then, I had no backing in the Yunwu Sect and my aptitude was poor. I was worried about being arbitrarily arranged into a dual cultivation partnership, or even taken as a concubine, so I..."
"Oh, I see." Liu Yidao understood. "No wonder you thought that way. Female cultivators without backing or good aptitude are indeed easily assigned arbitrarily. It's even possible they could be used as cauldrons..."
Mentioning this, Mo Tiange thought of something else. "By the way, Senior Brother Liu, how are Senior Sister Murong and Senior Sister Wang?"
At the mention of them, a trace of melancholy finally appeared on Liu Yidao's face, but he quickly smiled again. "Junior Brother Ye, you needn't worry about them either. Junior Sister Murong has the full support of her family. Although she didn't succeed in Foundation Establishment the first time, she recently achieved it. As for Junior Sister Wang and Junior Sister Shen... The former sect leader of the Zixia Sect lost power, and his son met with an accident. Junior Sister Shen is now free. Although Junior Sister Wang... still remains married to that man, because she has always been very capable, she has now risen to prominence within the Zixia Sect as well. Our plan to coordinate from within and without this time involves contacting Junior Sister Wang and Junior Sister Shen—oh, they have both achieved Foundation Establishment too."
"So that's how it is..." This was actually better than she had imagined. It seemed Wang Qianyi's liberation from her bitter fate was also within sight.