Chapter 124: Homecoming and a Missing Disciple

Time slipped by like sand through one’s fingers; over ten days vanished in an instant.

Compared to the anxious anticipation of the outward journey, the return was far more relaxed.

On the road, Chu Huaizhou watched as Xia Baiqian remained her sly little fox self. Occasionally, she would feign an accidental release of a Gu insect, startling Bai Li. Then she would engage in some overly familiar antics with her.

As for him, after the hot spring incident that restored his memories, he unexpectedly felt that Baiqian was the most likely repository of his morality. Otherwise, how else could he explain that he recovered his memories through her?

Chu Huaizhou had a bold conjecture. Perhaps during his tribulation period, he had vaguely sensed that he would be targeted by someone, but he wasn’t certain. So he prepared in advance, placing a part of his soul and memories in the person closest to him. Could that be the case?

But seeing Baiqian’s reaction, it didn’t seem like she knew about such a thing. He wasn’t too sure either. Until new developments arose, he would let it be.

So Chu Huaizhou could only resign himself to this.

Bai Li remained unaware, feeling as powerless as a sleeping husband. But she was a Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox after all! A Mahayana-stage spirit beast! After multiple incidents of “accidental Gu insect releases,” Bai Li finally sensed something was off.

With a tiny paw propping up her chin, she looked at Xia Baiqian suspiciously and asked, “Ha! Baiqian, you’re not deliberately releasing Gu insects just to see me scared, are you meow?”

They had just arrived at the gate of the Tianyuan Sword Sect. Before even entering, they could see the bustling scene inside. Among the endless peaks, countless outer and inner disciples were diligently practicing swordsmanship and cultivation. Various sounds filled the air, a testament to the sect’s thriving prosperity. Ha, this was his sect! The number one sect under heaven! The Tianyuan Sword Sect!

With a *pop* — as effortlessly as a raindrop falling on water, Chu Huaizhou and his companions passed through the protective grand formation. As soon as they entered, an inexplicable sense of peace washed over them. Indeed, no matter how good it was outside, home was always the most comfortable.

Chu Huaizhou made no effort to conceal his pressure—or rather, the pressure that Bai Li pretended to give him. The cultivators within the sect naturally noticed this unusual aura quickly. Looking up, they discovered it was their great Sect Leader!

“Ahh, am I seeing things? That person in the sky has an incredibly profound aura, with edges hidden—it must be the Sect Leader!” “Yeah, I heard that not long ago, Sect Leader erased the Nether Sect Leader with a single sword strike! Reckoning the time, he should be back around now!”

A sword-wielding youth with star-bright eyes saw the Sect Leader’s figure and nodded frantically, feeling immensely proud to have such a Sect Leader.

“What? I heard that Sect Leader sliced off half of the Nether Sect with one sword strike,” another disciple corrected with confusion. “No, no, I heard that Sect Leader descended like a heavenly god and flattened the entire Nether Sect with one sword stroke—how magnificent!” Yet another sword-wielding disciple said proudly, chest out. None of them doubted the truth of the matter.

Some female disciples, seeing the figure in the distance—though they couldn’t make it out clearly—unconsciously put a finger to their lips. With another hand reaching down, they whispered shyly, “Sect Leader~ Handsome, dashing, romantic, elegant, upright, and transcendent—Sect Leader~” “If I could meet the Sect Leader up close, I’d even be willing to become his disciple!” A female friend beside her shook her head helplessly. “Sister, you want it all. I’ll just settle for being the Sect Leader’s disciple.” “Sister, you’re also dreaming too big.”

The disciples were fervent, speaking one after another, all praising Chu Huaizhou’s greatness without exception. Chu Huaizhou naturally absorbed most of the comments, feeling quite pleased. Who said good advice was hard to hear? This good advice was fantastic. He just didn’t expect that among the disciples, there were even some who had crushes on him. It seemed that before losing his memory, he had been like a being detached from the mundane, close to godhood.

Chu Huaizhou gathered spiritual energy in his throat, amplified by the Nine Radiance Profound Abyss Ring and Bai Li. He spoke to those below: “Disciples of my Tianyuan Sword Sect, you are truly first-rate in this world. I hope you will all be even more diligent and focus on the fundamentals. Remember, sharpening the axe does not delay the cutting of wood.”

Upon hearing this, the disciples below exploded into a frenzy, jumping up and down. “Ahhh! The Sect Leader actually guided me! Sect Leader!!! I will train hard in the Chu Family’s Thirty-Six Basic Sword Techniques! Bring glory to the sect! Sect Leader!!! I have recorded the Sect Leader’s words with a memory orb; I will listen to them repeatedly when I return! Sect Leader!!”

Chu Huaizhou had intended to encourage everyone to cultivate well and progress daily. He hadn’t expected such a commotion. To prevent the impact from spreading, he quickly returned to his own Heavenly Sword Peak.

On the towering peak that reached the clouds, there was a clearing where small spirit beasts were kept. In the middle stood a courtyard and dwelling. The backyard had a large hot spring. Small but complete—this was Chu Huaizhou’s humble abode.

However, given that the round trip plus other matters had taken over a month, why hadn’t Ye Feng returned yet? He wouldn’t accept missions particularly far from the sect. A round trip of half a month should be enough. What mission could take over a month and still be unfinished? Could it be… that he ran into trouble?

Chu Huaizhou recalled that he hadn’t yet looked into the matters concerning this newly accepted disciple. So he hurriedly went to the Mission Hall and obtained the scroll Ye Feng had accepted. Grade D Commission: The Case of Missing Children in Ping’an County. Urgent report from Ping’an County office: Successive disappearances of young boys and girls within the county, with no clues and the culprit undetected… Suspicion of special demons or actions of a demonic sect; request for aid from an immortal sect. Number of personnel required: At least three people, one of whom must be above Foundation Establishment. Commission reward: 50 low-grade spirit stones.

Seeing this familiar item, memories surged in Chu Huaizhou. He recalled the hard days when he used to take missions everywhere to support the three big girls at home. Those days, there was no such thing as personnel requirements. You’d never know the difficulty of the mission until you actually reached the destination. Sometimes the reward might be only 10 low-grade spirit stones, but the work was life-risking. Now they even had background checks, sufficient investigation before setting the difficulty. Sigh, he didn’t have such conditions back then.

Looking at the distance, relying on Xia Baiqian’s Gu insect mount, it would take about two hours to get there. Based on the background check, it should be fine; just that demonic sects or demons are more covert. Investigation would be troublesome. Don’t be afraid of those demonic sects—they also come in different grades. The ones active around immortal sects are mostly newly established, because older ones have been destroyed. You might ask if there are any with overwhelming backgrounds that survive? Suffice it to say, with Chu Huaizhou’s hand slightly exerted, no demonic sect could survive.

He replaced the scroll, planning to rest for a few days and quietly await Ye Feng’s return. However, Baiqian heard this and tried to activate the tracking Gu insect she had left on Ye Feng. To her surprise, she discovered that the insect had lost contact several days earlier.

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