Chapter 3: The Succession Dispute

The world lay in winter's grip. Frost could not bind the running water, and a waterfall thundered in the distance.

Beneath the stars and moon, a lone rider came galloping in. The fine horse steamed with every breath, while the figure on its back was wrapped in a black cloak.

At a shallow stretch of river, the rider veered onto the bank, splashed through the water to the opposite side, then continued at full speed toward the distant mountain forest.

The woods in the mountains were deep and shadowed, light and darkness intermingling beneath the trees. As the horse plunged into the forest, the rider flicked a hand. A warm pink-white glow flashed from within his black cloak and lit the way ahead.

The glow came from a butterfly beating its wings in swift flight. It was called Little Moon, the name carrying the meaning of a tiny moon. Its body was protected by a hard carapace, and there were bony spines within its wings. In daylight, even strong light revealed nothing unusual about it, but in darkness it gave off a soft radiance capable of illuminating a distance of two zhang without difficulty. Able to fly either swiftly or slowly, it was domesticated by cultivators for illumination.

Little Moon's light came from its wings. The outer surfaces gave off no light; the glow shone only from within. Thus, as its wings beat, the range of illumination expanded and contracted, creating an effect of alternating brightness and dimness. When it landed and folded its wings, however, it could serve perfectly well as a lamp.

Little Moon flew ahead to light the way, the rider galloping behind it.

Suddenly, another streak of light drifted from the forest ahead and blocked the road. It was another glowing butterfly.

The rider reined in sharply. Little Moon flashed back to hover before him. The man beneath the cloak raised his face, revealing a lean, clear-featured old man with three long grizzled whiskers and bright, vigorous eyes. Without a word, he tossed out a command token.

A shadow concealed in the trees caught the token and inspected it, then threw it back. The glowing butterfly that had barred the way was immediately recalled and vanished into the darkness.

The horse surged forward again, following Little Moon until both rider and butterfly disappeared deep into the forest.

The bright moon shone over a place of extraordinary natural grace hidden among the mountains. Strange peaks and sheer cliffs rose all around, with halls and pavilions built atop the heights, their lamps glowing brightly in the night. This was the mountain headquarters of the Shangqing Sect in the cultivation world.

The black-cloaked rider dismounted beneath one of the cliffs and threw back his hood, revealing himself as Tang Mu, Sect Leader of the Shangqing Sect.

A disciple immediately stepped forward and saluted. "Sect Leader!"

Tang Mu tossed him the reins without a word and hurried away. He followed a zigzagging stone stairway cut along the cliff face, touched down only a few times as he bounded upward, and in moments alighted atop the cliff before a cluster of imposing halls. He continued forward at a brisk pace.

Beneath the overhanging eaves stood a woman with her hair coiled in a conch-shaped bun beneath a veil.

Her brows were fine and long like willow leaves, her phoenix eyes bright as black jade. She had a delicate nose, cherry-red lips like opening petals, and a face like a hibiscus blossom, beautiful yet touched with a cool dignity. Her skin was pale and smooth as fine porcelain, her bosom full, her figure graceful beneath a long gray gown veiled in gauze. Her bearing was otherworldly, almost immortal.

She was Tang Mu's daughter, Tang Yi, standing alone in the lonely night as she gazed up at the moon.

The glowing butterfly was hard to miss. Though Tang Mu had recalled it as soon as he reached the cliff top, Tang Yi still noticed.

She turned in surprise and walked toward the steps to meet him. Seeing no one behind her father, she asked in puzzlement, "Father, didn't the senior brothers come back with you?"

Tang Mu's body suddenly swayed. Distracted, he actually caught his foot on a step and fell forward, coughing out a mouthful of blood as he went down.

Tang Yi was horrified. With her father's cultivation, how could he possibly stumble like that? She flashed forward at once to support him.

Only when she drew close did she smell the heavy scent of blood on him. The sleeve under her hand was wet and slightly sticky. She lifted her fingers into the lamplight beneath the eaves and saw blood. Her face changed. "Father, you're injured?"

Tang Mu gave a slight wave of his hand, signaling her not to raise an alarm.

Outside, the weather was bitterly cold, and it was colder still on the mountain. Inside, however, the hall was warm as spring. A huge bronze furnace, somewhat like an alchemical furnace, stood in the center of the room, so tall that anyone beside it had to look up. Its belly was filled with burning charcoal. Heat radiated from it, warming the entire hall, while hot air circulated into the rooms within. Even with the doors open, the warmth inside barely diminished.

Tang Yi helped her father inside and seated him, her face taut with anxiety as she moved to examine his wounds.

Tang Mu raised a hand to stop her. In a deep voice, he said, "Notify the three Elders and all inner disciples immediately. Tell them to come see me. I have an important matter to announce."

Tang Yi said anxiously, "Father, your injuries—"

"Go!" Tang Mu barked, cutting her off. "Quickly!"

Tang Yi bit her lip. Tears welled in her bright eyes. She seemed to have sensed something, but she had no choice. Her long skirt whirled as she turned and sped away.

Before long, several inner disciples came running in first. The sight of Tang Mu shocked them all. Under the lamps, it was obvious that he had suffered grave injuries.

The disciples hurried forward to inspect him. Tang Mu's eldest personal disciple, Wei Duo, was especially frantic. "M-Master... how... how did you get h-hurt this badly? L-let this disciple... t-treat your wounds!"

He had been born with a stutter.

Tang Mu waved him back, refusing to let them do anything. Honest-faced Wei Duo was so anxious that he dropped to his knees beside him and would not rise.

Tang Mu closed his eyes, seemingly without the energy to say anything more.

After a short wait, three Elders who lived in seclusion on the rear mountain descended outside the hall and entered together: two men and one woman.

They were Luo Yuangong, Su Po, and Tang Susu. All looked advanced in years, even older than Sect Leader Tang Mu. The three belonged to the generation of Tang Mu's martial uncles and aunt. After Tang Mu assumed leadership of the Shangqing Sect, they had retired to serve as Elders.

Though the three had already prepared themselves for the worst before arriving, Tang Mu's condition still shocked them. They stepped forward together to examine him.

Unlike the junior disciples, they were not so easily refused, and Tang Mu could only let them.

After probing his condition with their spiritual power, all three wore grave expressions. They now understood why Tang Mu had refused treatment: there was nothing left to save. His injuries were too severe. His internal organs were almost completely destroyed, and only a breath of true qi was keeping him from collapsing.

The three could also roughly guess why Tang Mu had urgently summoned everyone.

"Who did this?" Tang Susu demanded angrily.

She was Tang Mu's paternal aunt. It was she who had personally introduced him into the Shangqing Sect years ago, and she had contributed greatly to his eventual rise to the position of Sect Leader. Now her own nephew had been reduced to this state. How could she not be furious?

Tang Mu said slowly, "Wait until everyone is here."

The others could only wait.

Tang Yi eventually returned with all the several dozen inner disciples who remained in the Shangqing Sect. Once they had formed several orderly rows in the hall according to seniority and status, Tang Mu gripped the armrests and forced himself upright. His voice came out clear and forceful.

"Because of my physical condition, I can no longer lead the Shangqing Sect. All inner disciples are present today. Hear my decree and bear witness. I formally pass the position of Sect Leader of the Shangqing Sect to my junior martial brother, Dong Guo Haoran. None who hears this order may contravene it. The sect rules stand above us; any violator will be severely punished without leniency!"

The disciples merely exchanged glances, but the three Elders were visibly startled. Pass the position to Dong Guo Haoran?

Under the Shangqing Sect's rules, only an inner disciple could become Sect Leader, and the successor was to be designated by the previous Sect Leader. If the Sect Leader met with an accident and was unable to designate anyone, then one of that leader's own disciples would be chosen to inherit the position by vote of all the inner disciples. Only if the Sect Leader had no disciples at all would a successor be selected from a collateral branch.

Dong Guo Haoran was Tang Mu's junior martial brother, so he naturally counted as an inner disciple and was fully eligible to be designated as successor. Yet from the perspective of Tang Mu's own line, choosing Dong Guo Haoran meant passing the leadership to a collateral branch. Combined with certain other factors, Dong Guo Haoran was, in some respects, hardly an appropriate choice.

Tang Susu was the first to lose patience. She said sharply, "Sect Leader, please reconsider. Dong Guo Haoran has been entangled with Prince Ning, Shang Jianbo, for years. Shang Jianbo's wild ambitions have already provoked the resentment of cultivators throughout the realm. It was precisely because of this that, when Senior Brother intended to pass the leadership to Dong Guo Haoran years ago, our martial elders stopped him and had the position passed to you instead. Now you mean to circle back and hand it to Dong Guo Haoran after all? Do you not understand that once he takes power, he may bring disaster upon the Shangqing Sect and see the entire sect destroyed? How can a matter this grave be treated like child's play?"

Tang Mu replied calmly, "On my way back, I heard that Shang Jianbo was assassinated and killed. The matter of Shang Jianbo is therefore already in the past."

Shang Jianbo was dead?

Prince Ning, Shang Jianbo, was the current emperor of the State of Yan's own younger brother. He was also the Grand Marshal, one of the Three Excellencies, and held supreme authority over the State of Yan's military forces. A seasoned and formidable commander, he was a man of truly immense rank and power. He had actually been assassinated? That was an earthshaking event. How had no news reached them yet?

The aged Tang Susu drew herself upright. "I object!"

Tang Mu turned his eyes toward her. "Why? Does my decision violate any sect rule?"

"It does not," Tang Susu said. "But since the founding of the Shangqing Sect, the position of Sect Leader has by custom always passed to a personal disciple. There has never been a precedent for handing it to a collateral branch. It isn't as though you have no disciples under you. Why pass it outside your own line? There should at least be a reason."

Tang Mu closed his eyes and sighed. "Every disciple who accompanied me on this journey has perished."

Silence fell over the room. Seeing Tang Mu return in such a state with none of the disciples who had left with him, everyone had already suspected as much. Now that the suspicion was confirmed, they could not help wondering what on earth had happened.

Tang Susu pointed at Wei Duo. "Wei Duo is your eldest disciple. How can the Sect Leader simply disregard him?"

Tang Mu remained unmoved. "Wei Duo is loyal, honest, and good-hearted. He can serve as a worthy assistant, but he is not suited to command. He cannot shoulder the responsibilities of Sect Leader."

No one objected to that. Wei Duo's stutter alone would indeed damage the Shangqing Sect's dignity if he became Sect Leader. Even Wei Duo himself lowered his head on hearing the judgment.

Tang Susu pointed at Tang Yi next. "Then what about Tang Yi? The Shangqing Sect has no rule forbidding a woman from becoming Sect Leader."

Tang Mu said, "Tang Yi is my daughter. The Shangqing Sect is not my family's private property. As Sect Leader, how could I harbor selfish motives and pass the position down through my own household generation after generation?"

Tang Susu raised her voice. "One does not avoid the worthy merely because they are kin. Who would dare refuse to accept her?"

Tang Mu answered evenly, "It would be improper."

Tang Susu finally lost her temper. "So in the end, the Sect Leader is simply determined to hand the position to Dong Guo Haoran. Why? Is there some ulterior purpose here that cannot bear the light of day?"

Tang Mu's eyes snapped open. His gaze swept toward her, and his tone hardened. "To Elder Tang, are the Shangqing Sect's rules something that may be observed or ignored at convenience?"

Tang Susu choked into silence. Her fists clenched, and she trembled with anger. Never had she imagined that her own nephew would speak to her this way in public. It was the first time he had ever treated her with such force, and before all these disciples he had left her no face at all.

"My decision is made." Tang Mu took out the Sect Leader Token and handed it to Luo Yuangong, who stood nearest. "My junior martial brother Dong Guo Haoran is not present. Under the sect rules, the Sect Leader Token is therefore to be held jointly in trust by the Elders. When my junior martial brother returns, the position of Sect Leader will formally pass to Dong Guo Haoran. All disciples of the Shangqing Sect, high and low, are witnesses. Let there be no mistake!"

[End of Chapter 3]