Chapter 132: THAT LITTLE UNGRATEFUL CUR

"This disciple greets the Sect Master!" Gu Jun’s voice was stiff with utmost reverent terror. In the entire Nine Valley Sect, Fu Hanzheng was a supreme existence who stood above the clouds. Even being permitted to breathe the same air as him was an honor beyond measure for a mere outer disciple.

Fu Hanzheng did not reprimand him. His gaze merely swept over Gu Jun before lingering on Li Yan’s head.

Seeing the peach wood hairpin pinned neatly among his disciple’s ink-black hair, the pale-blue jade bead catching the dim evening light, a faint, imperceptible twitch tugged at the corner of Fu Hanzheng’s lips. It seemed his little disciple, even while half-dead from exhaustion, still had the leisure to indulge in earthly vanity.

"You may rise," Fu Hanzheng said smoothly. His tone carried a natural magnanimity, yet the invisible pressure made Gu Jun’s knees tremble. "Since you have checked on your companion, you should return to the Outer Hall to register the completion of your mission. Lingering here past nightfall will only cause the discipline elders to raise questions."

Gu Jun knew when he was being tactfully dismissed. He did not dare hesitate for a single breath.

He gave Li Yan a quick, worried glance, then bowed deeply to both of them once more. "This disciple obeys the Sect Master’s command. Yanyan... I will come see you tomorrow morning."

Li Yan nodded slightly, his phoenix eyes curving into a soft crescent. "Go. Don’t let Elder Mo catch you loitering, or he’ll deduct your contribution points."

Gu Jun bowed again and backed out of the room, softly pulling the wooden doors shut behind him.

Once the sound of Gu Jun’s hurried footsteps faded completely into the twilight, the gentle air around Fu Hanzheng shifted. The casual warmth on his face receded, replaced by the profound, weighty gravity of a thousand-year-old cultivator.

He walked to the bedside and sat down on the wooden chair Gu Jun had just vacated. Without a word, he lifted Li Yan’s right wrist, pushing back the wide sleeve to reveal the sinister, ink-black discoloration clinging to his flesh.

"Master..." Li Yan whispered, his fingers curling slightly.

"Do not move," Fu Hanzheng instructed in a quiet, measured voice.

He reached into his inner robes and withdrew an ornament roughly the size of a thumb.

It was a piece of warm, translucent mutton-fat jade, exquisitely carved in the shape of a soaring phoenix coiling around an ancient seal script.

The jade possessed no dazzling radiance; rather, its spiritual light was completely restrained within, giving it the appearance of an ancient, sleeping relic.

"This is the Sealing Phoenix Jade," Fu Hanzheng said, his fingers brushing over the intricate carving. "It is an ancient heaven-rank spiritual artifact that this Master acquired in a secret realm centuries ago. Its sole purpose is suppression. It can seal rogue bloodlines, conceal blood vitality, and mask all spiritual fluctuations from prying divine senses."

Fu Hanzheng gently tied the jade around Li Yan’s blackened wrist with a braided cord woven from spirit silk.

The instant the jade touched Li Yan’s skin, a cooling sensation swept through his entire arm.

Hiss—!

The burning, throbbing pain that had plagued Li Yan’s wrist vanished almost instantly. The withered, violet-black discoloration under the skin seemed to encounter its natural nemesis; it rapidly retreated beneath the surface, completely suppressed by the artifact until the skin on his wrist once again appeared smooth, pale, and fair as carved mutton-fat jade.

To any outsider’s eyes, his arm looked entirely unblemished. Li Yan let out a long breath, staring at the jade in astonishment. "The bloodline... it stopped clamoring."

"It is merely suppressed, not eradicated," Fu Hanzheng warned sternly, fixing Li Yan with a penetrating gaze. "As long as you wear this jade, the Devouring Phoenix bloodline will not awaken again on its own. Furthermore, even if the grand elders of the core peaks probe your body with their divine senses, they will only perceive a mild deficiency in your blood vitality, nothing more."

Fu Hanzheng paused, his brows drawing together slightly.

"However, Yanyan, you must understand the ways of the cultivation world. In a sect of tens of thousands, a genius is envied, but a cripple is devoured alive. If word leaks out that you cannot circulate spiritual Qi or advance your realm, the wolves will come from every corner to tear you apart. Those who dislike you, in particular, will not hesitate to use your lack of progress as an excuse to drag you back into their claws."

A cold, bitter sneer curled on Li Yan’s lips. "This disciple understands. To everyone, a practitioner who cannot cultivate is worse than a stray dog. If they believe I am ruined, they will immediately try to turn whatever value remains in me..."

"Indeed. Therefore, we must establish a cover story that no one can easily question," Fu Hanzheng said calmly, having already thought through the matter thoroughly.

"From tomorrow onward, the official word from this Master’s courtyard will be that you suffered severe cold-miasma poisoning and extreme meridian fatigue while hunting the Rank Nine demonic beast in Baidun. To prevent the venom from taking root in your foundation, this Master has personally ordered you to temporarily suspend all internal Qi cultivation and realm breakthroughs."

Fu Hanzheng’s lips curved into a calculating, enigmatic smile.

"Instead, you will be undergoing an ancient, arduous path of ’Bone Tempering and Meridian Cleansing’—focusing solely on physical body cultivation and martial arts. If anyone asks why your spiritual cultivation does not progress, you will tell them your Master is forging your physical vessel to absolute perfection before allowing you to step into the next realm. If anyone dares to question it, tell them to come find this Sect Master to argue!"

Hearing those words, a spark of bright amusement flickered in Li Yan’s eyes.

What a brilliant excuse!

In the cultivation world, some eccentric grandmasters indeed forced their chosen disciples to halt internal cultivation to temper their physical bodies to the extreme. By using this explanation, not only would his inability to advance his realm seem completely deliberate, but it would also display the Sect Master’s immense favor and high expectations for him!

"Master is truly wise," Li Yan smiled, bowing his head respectfully. "This disciple obeys the Master’s arrangement."

"Rest well tonight," Fu Hanzheng patted his shoulder gently, his expression softening once more. "Tomorrow, your true physical training begins. Do not think that because your cultivation is paused, this Master will go easy on you."

After leaving a few bottles of nourishing spirit pills on the table, Fu Hanzheng turned and departed, leaving Li Yan alone in the quiet chamber.

Meanwhile, across the vast expanses of the Nine Valley Sect, night had fully descended upon the peaks of the Inner Sect.

Inside an opulent, grand courtyard reserved for prominent inner disciples, the silence was suddenly shattered by the sharp sound of fine porcelain violently smashing against the polished marble floor.

CRASH!

"Bastard! That little ungrateful cur!"

Li Wei stood in the center of the lavishly decorated hall, his chest heaving violently, his face warped with uncontrollable, poisonous fury.