It was an elder.
An elder with grayish hair and a slightly hunched back.
He appeared instantly before Gu Qingfeng, a single finger blocking the tip of Murong Li's sword. His face, resembling the withered bark of an old tree, twisted into a rather eerie smile. When he spoke, his voice was especially hoarse.
"My apologies, the Crimson-Letter Sect has its own rules. Since you all have come, please do not break them."
"The Crimson-Letter Sect's rules?"
Murong Li snorted coldly, seemingly not placing them in his eyes at all, and shouted, "This is the territory of the Nine-Hua Alliance! Why should my Murong Clan abide by your Crimson-Letter Sect's rules!"
Murong Li tried to withdraw his sword to execute a sword technique, but at that moment, the elder's finger exerted force. With a *snap*, the flying sword in his hand was instantly broken.
"Old dog! How dare you destroy my flying sword!"
Murong Li was furious, the four golden radiances around his body blazing like raging flames. However, Murong Tai beside him spoke indifferently, "Stand down."
"Elder Brother!"
Murong Li was very unwilling, gnashing his teeth in anger. Murong Tai, however, appeared quite calm, staring at the hunched elder as he said, "Our Nine-Hua Alliance and the Crimson-Letter Sect have always kept to our own domains without interfering. Yet, this Gu Qingfeng killed my cousin. Today, he must die."
"What grievances exist between you, this old man does not know," replied the hunched elder, who did not look at the Murong family members, keeping his head lowered. It was unclear if he was naturally hunched or simply bowing. "This old man only knows that this mountain villa belongs to the Crimson-Letter Sect. Whoever enters the villa must abide by the Crimson-Letter Sect's rules."
"Oh?"
Murong Tai's face still showed no anger, only a faint utterance: "And if I do not abide?"
The hunched elder also replied very flatly, "For those who do not abide, there are naturally rules for that as well."
"Old dog! What are you! Get out of my way! Otherwise, today I'll wipe out your Crimson-Letter Sect along with him!"
"Heh heh..." The hunched elder slowly raised his head, the smile on his wrinkled face growing increasingly pronounced.
At that moment, the sound of clapping suddenly rang out.
"Impressive! Truly impressive! Wipe out our Crimson-Letter Sect along with him? What big talk!"
The crowd looked over to see a group of seven or eight people walking in. Leading them was a handsome, elegant young master. Dressed in blue robes, he walked with leisurely steps, one hand behind his back, the other gently waving a white jade fan, appearing exceptionally dashing.
Many in the hall recognized this elegant young master.
Wu Han.
He was the son of the Great Manor Master of Chixu Manor, addressed as Young Master Wu. Due to his background with the Crimson-Letter Sect, almost no one in the surrounding regions dared to provoke this Young Master Wu. And precisely because of his Crimson-Letter Sect background, he did not even place the Nine-Hua Alliance in his eyes.
"Murong Li, it's not that this young master looks down on you. Don't talk about you, don't talk about your Murong Clan, even the Alliance Leader of your Nine-Hua Alliance wouldn't dare utter such words."
Almost everyone who knew Wu Han was aware that this Young Master Wu, relying on his Crimson-Letter Sect backing, had always acted without restraint. As he walked over, he did not even glance at Murong Li and the others. Instead, he walked to a table at the very front and sat down, continuing.
"Our Crimson-Letter Sect's Founding Patriarch, Monarch Chixiao, dared to annihilate even the Immortal Court back in the day. What is your measly Nine-Hua Alliance!"
"Although the Monarch disappeared three hundred years ago, the Crimson-Letter Sect he left behind is spread across the world, presiding over the underground order of this realm. One person, two elders, three sects, six paths, nine overlords; eighteen furious generals shaking the four borders; thirty-six Heavenly Stars dominating the eight directions; seventy-two Earthly Fiends guarding the frontiers."
"You want to wipe out the Crimson-Letter Sect? Have you asked Lord Blackwater, who guards this Great Northwest Territory?"
"If not for the Crimson-Letter Sect's rule of not interfering with the world's order, how could a mere Nine-Hua Alliance like yours gain a foothold here?"
After Young Master Wu sat down, a maidservant beside him immediately poured wine. He picked up the wine cup, took a light sip, and said disdainfully, "Once you enter a Crimson-Letter Sect mountain villa, if you're a dragon, you coil; if you're a tiger, you crouch. A petty Nine-Hua Alliance is nothing more than a rat in this young master's eyes."
"You!"
Murong Li's eyes turned crimson, his fists clenched tightly, glaring deathly at Young Master Wu.
Young Master Wu's voice came again: "Miss Liu will soon take the stage to perform. This young master is in an excellent mood today. Everyone, keep quiet. This is not advice, but a warning."
The Crimson-Letter Sect was the Crimson-Letter Sect.
Presiding over the underground order of this realm, who dared disobey?
Just as Wu Han said, once you entered a Crimson-Letter Sect mountain villa, dragons coiled and tigers crouched. No one was an exception.
Luo Jinheng, Mingtao, and the others from the Spirit-Capital Sect, Wen Huayu, Liangong, and the others from the Bingxuan Sect—despite wanting to obliterate Gu Qingfeng on the spot—now had no choice but to temporarily set aside their hatred. One by one, they could only find seats and sit down.
They were like this, and the Murong Clan of the Nine-Hua Alliance was no exception.
Murong Tai stared at Gu Qingfeng, just stared, then uttered a single word, "Sit." He turned and left.
Murong Li glared at Gu Qingfeng, enunciating each word through gritted teeth, "I'll let you live a little longer for now! Hmph!"
With that, he also followed Murong Tai to find a seat and sat down.
At this moment, Gu Qingfeng was still sitting there leisurely. He took a sip of Little Tipple, glanced at the Spirit-Capital Sect group, then at the Bingxuan Sect group, looked again at the Murong Clan of the Nine-Hua Alliance, shook his head, and chuckled, "These little brats nowadays are quite arrogant, much more impressive than I was back in the day..."
Beside him, Fei Kui remained bowed, head lowered, pouring wine. To be honest, he had been scared out of his wits for a while now. If not for seeing Gu Qingfeng's leisurely demeanor, Fei Kui wouldn't even be able to stand steadily. After all, those were the Spirit-Capital Sect, the Bingxuan Sect, and the Nine-Hua Alliance!
"And you."
The voice of Young Master Wu sitting at the front came again. He seemed to be speaking to Gu Qingfeng, but did not look at him, not even a single glance. He merely said, "Who you are, I have no interest in knowing. What grievances you have with them, I similarly have no interest in knowing."
Young Master Wu's voice was filled with an unrivaled arrogance. "The reason you're still alive right now isn't because your face is big, nor because your abilities are great. It's only because you're in a Crimson-Letter Sect mountain villa. That's all."
He paused, then added, "I heard your Dao title is Chiyan. Starting today, remove the 'Chi' character. How could someone like you bear the weight of the character 'Chi'!"
Young Master Wu raised his wine cup, holding it before his eyes without drinking, as if admiring the patterns on the cup. He spoke, "Remember, in a Crimson-Letter Sect mountain villa, this young master can protect you. Similarly... I can also kill you at any time, because in my eyes, you are nothing!"
On the western side of the tavern, Gu Qingfeng sat with his legs crossed, squinting his eyes as he watched, his expression somewhat peculiar, like a mix of amusement and exasperation. He rubbed his chin and asked, "Fei Kui, tell me, who exactly founded this Crimson-Letter Sect?"
Fei Kui glanced around, looking left and right, swallowing hard before replying in a low voice, "Young Lord, didn't this humble one tell you before? It was founded by the Monarch."
"Are you sure it was Monarch Chixiao, Gu Tianlang?"
"In our world, besides the venerable Chixiao, who else could bear the title of Monarch?"
"That's not right!"
Gu Qingfeng was very puzzled. He had never founded any Crimson-Letter Sect. Just which bastard was using his name to engage in such activities?
"Young Lord, what do you plan to do?"
"Do about what?"
"Just now, Young Master Wu said you should remove the 'Chi' character. Actually... even if Young Master Wu hadn't said it, this humble one has been wanting to tell you. The character 'Chi' is too special. Using it as your Dao title might be taboo... After all, it was the venerable Monarch's Dao title... And in the eyes of the Crimson-Letter Sect, the character 'Chi' has always been revered. Although there's no explicit prohibition against others using it, everyone voluntarily avoids it..."
"......"
Gu Qingfeng looked at Fei Kui, utterly speechless. He shook his head, truly not knowing what to say.
.