Chapter 45: CH-45: Returned, finally away from choas? not so much!

The battle outside the Sword Sect continued for quite some time after the white crane had left the forest, yet eventually, the intensity of the clashes began to decrease as the Blood Moon Sect cultivators gradually retreated from the battlefield.

The Sword Sect elders initially believed that their opponents were simply attempting to reorganize themselves, but after several more moments passed without another attack, they finally realized that the Blood Moon Sect had completely withdrawn from the surrounding area.

Nobody knew exactly why they had suddenly retreated.

Some of the elders believed that the Blood Moon Sect had suffered too many casualties, while others suspected that they had simply achieved whatever objective they had come here for.

Jian Yulan, however, wasn’t interested in their reason.

Her first thought after realizing the enemy had retreated was to find her disciples.

Especially Gu Changsheng and Dong Mulan.

The moment she heard that several disciples had gone missing during the chaos, her expression became colder than before, and she immediately began searching through the sect.

"What do you mean they disappeared?"

Her voice wasn’t particularly loud, yet the elder standing before her couldn’t help but feel a chill run through his body.

"They were heading towards the western passage with the other disciples, but somewhere along the way, they became separated from the main group."

Jian Yulan’s eyes narrowed.

"Separated?"

"Yes, Elder Jian, we believe an illusion may have been involved, but we haven’t been able to determine exactly how they were taken outside the sect."

The moment she heard those words, the surrounding spiritual energy seemed to become slightly heavier.

"Outside?"

"Yes."

Jian Yulan’s expression became increasingly grim as several possibilities flashed through her mind.

The western passage was heavily guarded, and the Blood Moon Sect had been attacking the sect from outside, yet somehow someone had managed to lure several disciples away from the main group and take them beyond the sect’s defenses.

If the Blood Moon Sect had deliberately targeted them, then this wasn’t merely an attack on the Sword Sect anymore.

They had directly targeted her disciples.

"Where are they?"

"We are still searching."

The elder had barely finished speaking when a familiar voice came from behind them.

"There is no need."

Everyone turned around.

Elder Ye slowly walked into the area, his expression unusually calm considering the circumstances.

Jian Yulan immediately looked towards him.

"Where are they?"

Elder Ye rubbed his chin for a moment before answering.

"I found them."

The surrounding elders immediately looked towards him, while Jian Yulan’s expression changed slightly.

"You found them?"

"Yes."

"Where?"

"They were outside the sect, in a forest."

Jian Yulan’s eyes narrowed.

"How did they get there?"

Elder Ye paused for a brief moment before giving the simplest answer he could think of.

"I went looking for them."

Jian Yulan stared at him.

"That doesn’t answer my question."

Elder Ye sighed inwardly.

He had known this would happen.

"I found the attacker and dealt with him."

The surrounding elders immediately became serious.

"An attacker?"

"Yes."

Elder Ye nodded.

"One of the Blood Moon Sect cultivators had apparently used an illusion to separate them from the others and lure them outside the sect."

Jian Yulan’s expression became colder.

"And?"

Elder Ye’s expression remained calm.

"I killed him."

The surrounding elders exchanged glances.

Jian Yulan stared at Elder Ye for several moments before asking another question.

"Was he strong?"

"Strong enough."

"Then how did you kill him?"

Elder Ye casually shrugged.

"I hit him."

Several elders remained silent.

Jian Yulan’s eyebrow twitched slightly.

"That is not an explanation."

"It is technically an explanation."

"Elder Ye."

Jian Yulan’s voice became colder.

Elder Ye immediately sighed.

"He was strong, but not strong enough to survive after I caught him off guard."

That answer was much more believable, at least on the surface.

Jian Yulan still didn’t look completely convinced, but she didn’t continue questioning him.

"Take me to them."

"Of course."

Elder Ye nodded before turning around.

However, before leaving, he glanced briefly towards the surrounding elders.

"The attacker is dead, so there is no need to pursue anyone outside the sect."

One of the elders nodded.

"Understood."

Jian Yulan, however, had already begun walking.

"I’ll see them myself."

Elder Ye followed behind her, quietly sighing.

He had successfully kept the existence of the Cloud Piercing Sect’s guardian beast hidden.

For now, that was enough.

He didn’t want anyone to know that the guardian beast of the Cloud Piercing Sect had personally intervened.

If the Sword Sect discovered that such a powerful existence had come here and killed a Blood Moon Sect cultivator, questions would inevitably arise.

And Elder Ye had absolutely no desire to explain why a guardian beast had been silently observing everything from the beginning.

Especially because the answer would inevitably lead to another question.

Why had she arrived so quickly?

That was something Elder Ye preferred to keep to himself.

...

Meanwhile, Gu Changsheng and the others were already being treated inside one of the Sword Sect’s medical halls.

The atmosphere inside was considerably calmer than outside, although the sight of several severely injured disciples lying around made it difficult for anyone to truly relax.

Gu Changsheng was lying unconscious on one of the beds, his body wrapped in layers of bandages while several healing formations slowly circulated spiritual energy around him.

His condition was considerably worse than most of the others.

His injuries were severe, and one of his eyes had been completely destroyed during the fight.

Fortunately, the Sword Sect possessed excellent healing resources, and the elders had immediately provided him with several healing pills and spiritual medicines.

Dong Mulan was lying on another bed nearby.

Compared to Gu Changsheng, her injuries were considerably lighter, although she was still unconscious.

A few scratches and bruises covered her body, while several spiritual medicines had already been applied to her wounds.

Ye Che was in a similar condition, although his injuries were more severe than Mulan’s.

Su Mingyue and Ning Rongrong were also recovering nearby, both having suffered injuries but nothing life-threatening.

An Jian, however, had received perhaps the most disturbing injury among them.

One of his hands had been severely damaged, and although the Sword Sect’s healers had managed to stabilize it, restoring it completely would require considerable time and resources.

Jian Yulan stood beside his bed, staring at the injury in silence.

Her expression was terrifyingly calm.

Too calm.

The healers in the room were trying their best not to make unnecessary noise.

Everyone knew Elder Jian’s temperament.

And everyone could tell that she was furious.

"Who did this?"

Her voice was quiet.

The healer beside An Jian swallowed nervously.

"We don’t know, Elder Jian."

"I know that."

Jian Yulan’s eyes remained fixed on An Jian.

"I am asking what kind of technique caused this."

The healer immediately began explaining what they had discovered.

"It appears to have been a physical attack reinforced by spiritual energy, but the force was considerably greater than what an ordinary Qi Refinement cultivator should be able to withstand."

Jian Yulan’s hand slowly tightened around the hilt of Whisperer.

Her killing intent began leaking out once again.

"Blood Moon Sect."

Elder Ye, who had just entered the room, immediately spoke.

"Calm down."

Jian Yulan turned towards him.

"They did this."

"Yes."

"And you want me to calm down?"

"Yes."

Jian Yulan stared at him.

Elder Ye rubbed his chin.

"I understand that you are angry, but the attacker is already dead."

Her eyes narrowed.

"You killed him?"

Elder Ye nodded.

"Yes."

Jian Yulan remained silent for several moments before finally looking away.

"Then I owe you."

"You can repay me by not immediately running outside and killing yourself."

"I wasn’t planning to."

Elder Ye raised an eyebrow.

"You were absolutely planning to."

Jian Yulan ignored him.

Her attention returned to An Jian.

The little boy was still unconscious, his face unusually pale compared to his usual serious expression.

For a brief moment, Jian Yulan’s eyes softened.

Then she noticed the damaged hand again.

The softness disappeared.

She looked like she wanted to personally visit the Blood Moon Sect and ask them whether they had a preference for how they wanted to die.

Elder Ye noticed her expression and immediately spoke.

"Don’t."

"I haven’t said anything."

"You didn’t need to."

Jian Yulan gave him a cold look.

Elder Ye simply sighed.

"You are going to make this more complicated."

"They attacked my disciples."

"And we survived."

"That doesn’t mean I should forgive them."

"I didn’t ask you to forgive them."

Elder Ye paused before adding.

"I am asking you to think."

Jian Yulan remained silent.

After a while, she finally nodded slightly.

"Fine."

Elder Ye relaxed somewhat.

At least she wasn’t immediately charging outside.

That was progress.

He then glanced towards the beds.

"Most importantly, they are alive."

Jian Yulan looked towards Gu Changsheng and Dong Mulan.

Her gaze lingered on Gu Changsheng’s bandaged face.

"His eye..."

"He will survive."

Elder Ye’s voice became quieter.

"The healers are doing everything they can."

Jian Yulan clenched her fists.

"He was supposed to leave safely."

Elder Ye didn’t answer.

There wasn’t much he could say.

The situation had developed far beyond what anyone expected.

They had been dealing with the Blood Moon Sect outside the sect, believing the protection formation would keep the disciples safe, yet somehow the enemy had managed to exploit an illusion and isolate several of them.

It was a painful reminder that even the strongest defenses had weaknesses.

Suddenly, Dong Mulan stirred.

Her fingers moved slightly before her eyes slowly opened.

"...Changsheng?"

Her voice was weak.

Jian Yulan immediately turned towards her.

"Mulan."

Dong Mulan blinked several times, seemingly confused as she looked around the room.

Then her eyes widened.

"Where is Changsheng?"

"He is here."

Jian Yulan pointed towards the nearby bed.

Dong Mulan immediately looked over.

Gu Changsheng remained unconscious, his body covered in bandages.

Her expression immediately became worried.

"Is he..."

"He’s alive."

Jian Yulan answered before she could finish.

Dong Mulan let out a faint breath of relief.

"He’s okay?"

"He will recover."

Dong Mulan nodded slowly before closing her eyes again.

"That’s good..."

She then paused.

"Can I eat?"

The entire room became silent.

Jian Yulan stared at her.

Elder Ye stared at her.

Even the healer looked confused.

Dong Mulan slowly opened one eye.

"What?"

Elder Ye rubbed his forehead.

"She just woke up from being beaten half to death and the first thing she asks about is food."

Jian Yulan’s expression twitched slightly.

For the first time since the battle began, the terrifying atmosphere around her seemed to crack.

"...She’s definitely Gu Changsheng’s wife."

Elder Ye couldn’t help but laugh quietly.

"Unfortunately, yes."

Dong Mulan frowned.

"I heard that."

Elder Ye immediately stopped laughing.

The room slowly returned to its usual silence, but this time, the atmosphere wasn’t nearly as heavy as before.

They had survived.

The Blood Moon Sect had retreated.

The attacker responsible for separating them from the sect was dead.

And although Gu Changsheng and the others would need considerable time to recover from their injuries, they were alive.

For now, that was enough.

Outside the medical hall, however, Jian Yulan quietly looked towards the distant darkness beyond the Sword Sect.

Her expression once again became cold.

She knew this wasn’t over.

The Blood Moon Sect had retreated without achieving an obvious victory, yet something about their attack felt wrong.

They had attacked the Sword Sect.

They had separated several disciples.

They had targeted Gu Changsheng and An Jian.

And then, just as suddenly as they appeared, they had withdrawn.

There was a reason.

Jian Yulan didn’t know what it was yet.

But she intended to find out.

Elder Ye, standing behind her, looked towards the same darkness and quietly sighed.

He had a similar feeling.

Whatever the Blood Moon Sect had truly wanted from this battle, it certainly wasn’t simply the Sword Sect’s destruction.

And somewhere far away, beyond the mountains surrounding the Sword Sect, the Blood Moon Sect had already disappeared into the darkness.

Their retreat had been quiet.

Almost too quiet.

As though the battle itself had never been their real objective in the first place.