Chapter Eighteen: The Imagined Red Dust Peak and the True Red Dust Peak
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When Mu Susu heard Xiao Chenxin’s voice, the nerves that had just drawn taut relaxed at once.
“Grand Martial Uncle, please stop joking. These techniques are secret arts of the Radiant Light Sacred Land, and they are meant for training. If someone teaches them directly, the process of enlightenment is lost.”
“Mm. Enlightenment is very important!”
Mu Susu turned around and looked at Xiao Chenxin with complete sincerity.
Of course, she knew what he was trying to do.
The instant his palm pressed against her shoulder, she had sensed a faint strand of spiritual energy enter her body. That strand was the “guide” Xiao Chenxin had placed within her.
It could guide her as she practiced the technique, correcting any mistakes or omissions in the circulation of her spiritual energy.
Such personal instruction was usually reserved for direct disciples.
It should have been something to celebrate.
But because the person before her was her Grand Martial Uncle, Mu Susu did not dare accept it.
Although her Grand Martial Uncle held an exalted position and was so warm and approachable that people could not help but like him, he did not possess much experience in cultivation. It would be better not to let him act recklessly.
If the spiritual energy were guided incorrectly, it could cause minor damage to one’s meridians—or, in a more serious case, destroy one’s Dao foundation and even leave lasting consequences for future cultivation.
There was no room for carelessness.
Mu Susu stared earnestly at Xiao Chenxin. When she saw him withdraw his hand with an unchanged expression, she could not help feeling worried.
“Grand Martial Uncle, please don’t be angry. I only… I only…”
As she spoke, Mu Susu lowered her head further and further.
She knew very well that Xiao Chenxin had acted out of kindness, and that not just anyone could receive guidance from their Grand Martial Uncle.
But she truly did not dare.
What if her Dao foundation were ruined?
Just as Mu Susu was filled with trepidation and had no idea how to explain herself, Xiao Chenxin swallowed hard.
He quietly shifted his gaze toward the distant bamboo grove and said, “Ahem. Your shoulder strap has slipped.”
Those simple five words dealt Mu Susu a devastating blow.
Her face instantly turned from pale white to brilliant red. The blush spread rapidly from her cheeks to her ears, until at last her entire body seemed ripe enough to burst.
“Ah!”
Mu Susu’s cry of alarm startled countless birds into flight.
Xiao Chenxin calmly watched the birds rise from the bamboo grove, then flicked a finger.
A streak of sword energy burst from his fingertip.
Boom!
The sword energy skimmed past a bird and “borrowed” ten feathers from its body.
“Come here.”
Xiao Chenxin suddenly opened his hand, and ten streams of spiritual energy burst from his palm.
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Guided by his spiritual energy, the broken feathers drifting down from the sky all fell neatly into his hand.
Holding the ten feathers, Xiao Chenxin extended them toward Mu Susu without turning his head.
“If you find your Grand Martial Uncle’s skill acceptable, come find me at Red Dust Peak.”
With that, Xiao Chenxin had no intention of staying any longer.
If he remained, he would inevitably be branded as an old lecher.
And if that really happened, he would have no face to remain in the Radiant Light Sacred Land.
After Xiao Chenxin left, Mu Susu stared blankly at the feathers in her hand. She had even forgotten to adjust her shoulder strap.
Aside from the slight differences in their natural shapes, the ten feathers were identical in every other respect.
Their lengths and thicknesses were the same—even the number of barbs on each feather matched perfectly.
That casual flick of his finger had displayed at least several centuries of cultivation.
“So Grand Martial Uncle is actually this powerful?”
Mu Susu was utterly stunned.
Forget anyone else—even if she possessed half his strength, she would already be able to stride arrogantly through the Radiant Light Sacred Land.
His talent was formidable enough that he could cause trouble anywhere within the sect.
Yet despite possessing such terrifying strength, Grand Martial Uncle usually acted like a kind and harmless man.
Even someone as insignificant as Liu Ruyan had dared to curse him to his face.
And Ye Chen, who had appeared from who knew where, had even dared provoke him and attempt to extort the Radiant Light Sacred Land.
If they possessed even one ten-thousandth of Grand Martial Uncle’s humility, they never would have done such things.
After a moment of reflection, confusion flooded Mu Susu’s mind.
Why did Grand Martial Uncle behave this way?
Could it be that he actually enjoyed being bullied?
Wouldn’t that mean he was simply asking for it?
At that thought, Mu Susu hurriedly shook her head.
Anyone in the world could be like that—but Grand Martial Uncle certainly could not.
He must have his own difficulties, or perhaps some secret.
With that thought, Mu Susu clenched her fists and hurried straight toward Red Dust Peak.
She was determined to ask her Grand Martial Uncle for a clear explanation.
…
Inside a small pavilion, Xiao Chenxin sat silently beside the pond, casually tossing a fishing line without a hook into the water.
He had barely finished when Mu Susu arrived.
“Grand Martial Uncle, are you free?”
“There are some things I would like to ask you about.”
Xiao Chenxin turned to look at her. His gaze wandered for an instant before he hurriedly shifted it away, pretending to be wholly absorbed in fishing.
He swallowed hard and feigned composure.
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“Come over and speak.”
Mu Susu quickly went to Xiao Chenxin’s side and crouched beside the pond. She secretly glanced at him before asking, “Grand Martial Uncle, you’re so powerful. Why don’t you show it?”
“Liu Ruyan and Ye Chen would never dare cause trouble for you.”
Before making his move that day, Xiao Chenxin had already thought of how he would answer such questions.
He had obtained the Innately Immaculate Supreme Saint Physique, so the improvement in his cultivation could not remain hidden forever. Sooner or later, it would be exposed.
Rather than wait for that day, he might as well explain matters to a few people close to him first.
When the time came for him to offer an explanation, they would be able to serve their purpose.
“I have never wished to stir up the mortal world.”
“But as the master of Red Dust Peak, I must naturally see through the mortal world.”
“If I do not enter the mortal world, how can I see through it?”
“Mu Susu, let your Grand Martial Uncle ask you this: if I never entered the mortal world, would what I saw through be the true mortal world—or merely the mortal world within my own heart?”
At Xiao Chenxin’s words, Mu Susu’s eyes widened.
Was that really the explanation behind Red Dust Peak?
She raised her puzzled eyes, her expression full of curiosity.
“But Grand Martial Uncle, I heard my teachers say that Red Dust Peak was only created to make up the numbers. When the Radiant Light Sacred Land was first established, there was one mountain peak left over. It was originally intended to house the outer disciples, so it was named Red Dust Peak.”
“Isn’t that the truth?”
At her explanation, Xiao Chenxin’s heart gave a violent twitch.
Good heavens!
So the master of Red Dust Peak was nothing more than the keeper of a “gathering place” for servant disciples and outer disciples?
The more he thought about it, the more he felt that this matter had to be explained properly.
Servant disciples?
Red Dust Peak was obviously meant for seeing through the mortal world. It was absolutely not a residence for outer disciples!
He began improvising on the spot.
“Ah, you don’t know the whole story. What you heard is false. It is merely a carefully woven lie passed down by successive Sacred Lords.”
“In truth, Red Dust Peak was not only meant for seeing through the mortal world—it was also meant to shoulder the banner of saving all living beings beneath the heavens.”
“It is only because the world is peaceful now and Red Dust Peak is no longer needed that this purpose was abandoned.”
Xiao Chenxin spun one fabrication after another with complete confidence. As a Holy Maiden, Mu Susu would certainly never investigate the matter personally.
And no matter whom she asked, their explanation could never sound more credible than the one given by her Grand Martial Uncle.
After all, he was the most senior member of the Radiant Light Sacred Land.
Even if someone wished to argue, he had only to invoke a sect secret. Who would still dare question him?
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