Gao Fei, with hands clasped behind his back, leisurely strolled back to Repentance Cliff. He turned around, glanced down the cliff, and faintly discerned a few figures. "Assigning people to spy on ! Is it any use?"
"I told you so! You shouldn't have done that. Got yourself into trouble, didn't you?" Xuan Jizi's voice echoed in his mind.
"What trouble?" Gao Fei huffed. "What I did was clean and efficient; they won't find any evidence! Without evidence, they can't touch !"
"Aren't you worried they might resort to desperate asures?"
"Desperate asures?"
"One is the Pavilion Master of the Artifact Refining Pavilion; the other is the wife of the Great Elder. They're both important figures in the Tianyang Sect; they can take you down easily if they want to."
"I'm not afraid of them!"
"Repentance Cliff is unguarded. If they sneak up and take you out, no one would even know."
"Dammit! You're just trying to scare !"
"Better to be safe than sorry! What if what I said cos true?"
"…So what should I do?" asked Gao Fei.
"I have three strategies," stated Xuan Jizi. "Firstly, go find Song Qingfeng and ask for his protection, or move in directly with Song Qingfeng. Under the sa roof as Song Qingfeng, no one would dare to touch you."
"And the second strategy?"
"Second, leave the Tianyang Sect and find a hidden place to lay low until your cultivation improves further, then make your reappearance. It's the safest option."
"Keep talking."
"Third, if you kill all your enemies, you will be able to sleep soundly without worries."
"…Is that even possible? Jia Yunfeng is a Golden Core Stage cultivator, and Jin Dalong's family is also of status, not to ntion a Great Elder in closed-door cultivation… Even if I had three heads and six arms, I couldn't kill that many people, could I?"
"Then you only have the first and second options."
"I don't want to leave the Tianyang Sect for now," Gao Fei shook his head. "If I leave, it'll be in an open and dignified manner, not sneaking away like a coward – I don't want to be laughed at as a coward."
"So, you've chosen the first strategy?" Xuan Jizi asked.
Gao Fei nodded. "Song Qingfeng values highly; if I ask him for help, he'll definitely not stand by and watch die."
"Since you've made your decision, I won't say any more."
"How's the research on Xiaoleiyin Temple and Demon Sky Tower coming along?"
"It's almost done. Give a few more days and I can wrap it up. You don't know how tired I've been these days trying to study Xiaoleiyin Temple and Demon Sky Tower…"
"Alright, stop complaining and get back to your research."
...
Song Qingfeng did not disappoint Gao Fei; he sent several experts to Repentance Cliff to protect Gao Fei. Thus, Jia Yunfeng and Lin ixiu no longer had a chance to make a move.
Every advantage has its disadvantage. While Gao Fei's safety was ensured, he lost his freedom… Sneaking down the mountain unnoticed was now impossible…
It was ti to rest properly after all the trouble he had caused!
Gao Fei settled his mind and focused wholeheartedly on his cultivation.
Several days later, Gao Fei's cultivation had reached the seventh layer of the Inedia Stage, which greatly pleased Song Qingfeng when he heard the news.
A few people were not pleased, among them Jia Yunfeng, Lin ixiu, and Jin Dalong. The higher Gao Fei's cultivation, the tougher he would be to handle.
After several days of investigation, they found no solid evidence. Watching Gao Fei lead an increasingly comfortable life day by day, they were fuming with anger.
That afternoon…
Lin ixiu approached Jia Yunfeng to discuss the marriage between Jin Dalong and Jia Xue.
"Uh…" Jia Yunfeng hesitated with an expression of indecision. "I think… this matter requires long-term consideration…"
"What do you an?" Lin ixiu's face darkened. "Are you thinking of calling off the engagent?"
"Madam Lin, please don't get excited," Jia Yunfeng gestured soothingly. "Let explain… Personally, I like Dalong very much, and I've always wanted him to be my son-in-law, but…" He paused.
"But what?" Lin ixiu asked sharply.
Jia Yunfeng sighed. "Dalong has sustained an injury there… In future, it's very likely that he… I don't think it's suitable for him to marry with his condition…"
"Bang!"
Lin ixiu slamd the table and stood up, glaring at Jia Yunfeng. "Say that again!"
"I know that what I'm saying… might anger you, but… I also have to consider my daughter's future. I can't ss up her life, can I?" Jia Yunfeng said helplessly.
"My son will get better!" Lin ixiu declared loudly. "I will cure him!"
"Cure him?" Jia Yunfeng's mouth twitched. "Madam Lin, not to be discouraging, but the chances of Dalong's injury being cured are slim…"
"Shut up!" Lin ixiu was furious. Pointing at Jia Yunfeng's nose, she began to curse loudly. "Curse my son again and I won't be polite! Just because my husband is in closed-door cultivation, don't think you can look down on us mother and son!"
"I didn't an that at all!" Jia Yunfeng quickly waved his hands.
"Enough nonsense!" Lin ixiu waved her hand decisively, "I'll ask you one last ti, are you really going to call off the engagent?"
Jia Yunfeng shrugged his shoulders, spread his hands, and made a helpless gesture, "Yes."
"Fine! Don't you regret it!" Lin ixiu gave Jia Yunfeng a fierce glare and then stord off furiously.
"You're angry? I'm even more angry!" Jia Yunfeng huffed, "You pity your son, I pity my daughter too! Even if I am a bastard, I can't marry my daughter to a cripple, can I? Isn't that evil? Can I do evil? Definitely not!
You just can't hang around where you're not wanted! Dream on about marrying my daughter; there's no way!"
…
No sooner had Lin ixiu relayed Jia Yunfeng's decision to break off the engagent to Jin Dalong, than Jin Dalong began to cry, his tears a symbol of utter heartbreak.
"Don't cry! I'll find you a better wife so other day," Lin ixiu consoled him.
"I don't want anyone else, I just want Jia Xue!" Jin Dalong cried, "I don't want anyone but Jia Xue! I like Jia Xue! I like her!!!"
"What's the use of you liking her? She doesn't like you!" Lin ixiu said angrily, "They've called off the engagent, why the tears? Stop it! You can't let them look down on you!"
"I want Jia Xue... I want..." Jin Dalong, like a child, thrashed and wailed in agony on the bed, ignoring Lin ixiu's attempts to console him.
"Are you trying to anger to death?" Lin ixiu gasped angrily, "Can't you understand? Is a woman worth this!"
"Without Jia Xue, life is aningless to ."
"You..."
"My manhood is gone, and so is Jia Xue, what's left for to live for! I might as well be dead!"
"What are you blabbering about!"
"I don't want to live! I don't want to live!" Jin Dalong banged his head against the wall, with great force.
"You're crazy." Lin ixiu quickly grabbed Jin Dalong, "Calm down! Don't do this! Okay, okay, I'll listen to you, I'll go talk to Jia Yunfeng again, convince him to let his daughter marry over."
After calming Jin Dalong, Lin ixiu left with a gloomy face.
Lin ixiu, with a heavy heart, went to find Jia Yunfeng, spoke all the nice words she could muster and promised many things, but she couldn't sway Jia Yunfeng and finally left with an ashen face.
This ti, Lin ixiu played it smart; she didn't tell Jin Dalong the harsh truth but instead offered comforting lies to appease him.
Conceal it for a day, and then, if it becos impossible to hide... we'll cross that bridge when we co to it.
"Dalong's father! When will you co out of closed-door cultivation?" Lin ixiu murmured to herself, "If you don't co out soon, our mother and son will be bullied to death!"
…
Perhaps Lin ixiu's murmurings had an effect because the next day, the Great Elder, Jin Chaoyang, ca out of closed-door cultivation.
"Old Jin! You've finally co out!" Lin ixiu rushed forward, clinging tightly to Jin Chaoyang, then burst into tears.
"What's wrong?" Jin Chaoyang was stunned, "Why are you crying? Did soone bully you?"
"…My son was injured…" Lin ixiu sobbed.
"Is it serious?" Jin Chaoyang asked anxiously.
"Serious, very serious… my son has… beco a cripple…" Lin ixiu cried out loud.
"Cripple? What do you an by cripple?" Jin Chaoyang was in a rush, "Clarify! What exactly happened!"
"A few days ago, Dalong was attacked, and when he woke up, he found that his manhood was gone…" Lin ixiu recounted the incident.
The more Jin Chaoyang listened, the angrier he beca, his face turning an iron shade of blue, "Did you catch the culprit!"
"No... we didn't find anyone... but there is a suspect..."
"Who?"
"Gao Fei."
"Gao Fei? Who's that?"
"Gao Fei has only recently joined the Tianyang Sect and his cultivation speed is incredibly fast; he reached the Inedia Stage in just over two months," Lin ixiu explained Gao Fei's background.
"That fast?" Jin Chaoyang was shocked, "Such a cultivation speed is simply defying the heavens!"
"Gao Fei is now the apple of the Sect Leader's eye, no one is allowed to harm him!" Lin ixiu said resentfully.
Jin Chaoyang fell silent for a mont, "I'll go see the boy first, and we'll discuss Gao Fei later!" Having said that, Jin Chaoyang strode away. As the Great Elder of Tianyang Sect, second only to Song Qingfeng, he considered things differently than Lin ixiu. While she could cry and make a scene, demanding answers from Song Qingfeng, Jin Chaoyang couldn't.
The relationship between him and Song Qingfeng was delicate; unless it was absolutely necessary, he didn't want to quarrel with Song Qingfeng.
"Son! Dad's here to see you!" Jin Chaoyang pushed open the door and entered.
"Dad? You've finished your closed-door cultivation?" Jin Dalong was surprised, "Did you succeed?"
Jin Chaoyang shook his head, "Everything was going smoothly at first, but I still fell a bit short... However, I've found the right direction now, and I will definitely succeed in my next seclusion." Jin Chaoyang had failed to reach the Nascent Soul Stage, and he was considerably disheartened but did not show it in front of his son.
It's better to keep the disappointnt to oneself than to let your loved ones worry.
"You didn't succeed?" Jin Dalong's face was filled with disappointnt.
Jin Chaoyang bent down and examined his son's body ticulously; his frown grew deeper—the situation was dire, his son was essentially ruined, and could never again be a true man.
The thought of the Jin family facing extinction weighed heavily on Jin Chaoyang's heart!
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