Chapter 734: Are You Willing to Sever This Inner Demon?

Forget Huang Lie and the others. Even Gong Lince, Sect Leader of Zijin Cave, had never seen this newly arrived female disciple before.

"Sect Leader, Wen Mo'er is here." Yue Yuan, who had brought her in, gave the reminder, then stepped aside so the person behind him could present herself to Gong Lince.

Gong Lince was seated behind a desk, reading through a stack of papers. He looked up. The beautiful disciple who entered his sight surprised him slightly, and he could not help thinking that the sect actually had a woman this beautiful without his even knowing it.

Zijin Cave was enormous and had too many people. He had neither the time nor the energy to know every disciple below him individually. Nor was he someone an ordinary disciple could meet whenever they wished.

The instinctive appreciation stirred by her beauty was suppressed almost as quickly as it arose. A man who had reached his position had to restrain certain private desires.

He had already been given a report on the disciple Yue Yuan had selected. He knew she was said to be beautiful and excellent in every respect. Those same qualities had also brought her no shortage of trouble.

Beauty coupled with good qualifications naturally attracted the covetous eyes of influential men within the sect. Outstanding disciples sought to court and marry her. Some men who held authority were moved as well, abandoning ideas of remaining unmarried for life and preparing to burden themselves with a lifelong companion.

According to Yue Yuan's report after making his selections, Wen Mo'er was somewhat unwilling to recognize the situation. Faced with powerful men, she refused to yield. Or perhaps she was simply proud. Among all the outstanding disciples who longed for her, there was not a single one she considered worthy.

Then again, perhaps she truly possessed nothing but the ambition to soar toward Heaven. Perhaps she only wanted to cultivate properly and had no wish to stir up feelings between men and women.

That, at least, was what Wen Mo'er herself claimed. She wanted only to cultivate wholeheartedly and had no desire to consider romantic affairs.

She yielded neither to softness nor force. Zijin Cave was, after all, a proper sect, and its rules protected her. For the moment, no one could truly do anything to her. Those people wanted to force her to submit, not kill her.

But she had offended people precisely because she refused to be sensible about it. How difficult could it be for influential disciples within the sect to make trouble for her? She had therefore been squeezed into an obscure corner and reduced to miscellaneous chores. Prestigious assignments had nothing to do with her, while people repeatedly found excuses to dock her cultivation resources. Even so, her aptitude for cultivation truly was good. In spite of everything, she had still cultivated to the Foundation Establishment Realm.

Despite being treated this way for years, she had never submitted.

Because the woman had offended quite a few people, Yue Yuan had not wanted to offend them on her behalf. So when Gong Lince asked him to screen suitable disciples, he had excluded her.

The other lists of female disciples Yue Yuan submitted, however, drew nothing but Gong Lince's disdain once he read the detailed reports. He had even tossed out the phrase "common rouge and powder," leaving Yue Yuan torn between laughter and tears. What Sect Leader spoke of his own disciples that way? They were recruiting a disciple for a task, not choosing imperial beauties!

Two lists in succession failed to satisfy Gong Lince. At last Gong Lince asked him whether a sect as large as Zijin Cave truly could not produce a suitable candidate, or whether Yue Yuan simply had not tried hard enough.

Yue Yuan had no choice.

Now that the Sect Leader had taken the matter seriously, if Gong Lince later investigated and discovered that Yue Yuan had deliberately concealed someone, there would be no excuse. Yue Yuan therefore mentioned Wen Mo'er.

Gong Lince immediately became interested and asked why he had not reported her earlier. Yue Yuan explained that the disciples below spoke poorly of her character, and he had feared she might spoil Gong Lince's plans.

No matter who was chosen, Gong Lince intended to make the final judgment himself.

He wanted this move to succeed in a single strike.

So Gong Lince had ordered them to bring her over for him to see, which was how the present scene had come about.

"This disciple Wen Mo'er pays respects to the Honored Cave Master!" Wen Mo'er saluted gracefully, carrying herself with a certain neither-humble-nor-arrogant composure.

Gong Lince looked her up and down for a moment and nodded inwardly. As far as appearance went, there was absolutely nothing to criticize. She passed.

"Dispense with the formalities," he said mildly.

Wen Mo'er straightened and stood with her hands folded before her. She did not dare stare directly at him, keeping her head slightly lowered as she waited for instructions.

Just then, the thunder of hooves outside grew louder. Gong Lince looked toward the tent entrance.

Yue Yuan understood. He quickly went out to look, then returned and reported, "Sect Leader, His Highness's army is preparing to depart."

Gong Lince rose and walked out from behind the long desk. As he passed Wen Mo'er, he suddenly stopped and asked, "Have you heard of Niu Youdao of Nanzhou in Yan?"

Wen Mo'er's bright eyes lifted toward him for an instant, then quickly lowered again. She replied respectfully, "I've heard a little. This disciple is cut off from outside news and knows very little."

Gong Lince pointed at the pile of papers on the desk. "Read what's there. Elder Yue and I are going to see Prince Yong off."

"Yes!" Wen Mo'er bowed slightly in acknowledgment.

Gong Lince swept his sleeve and strode away.

Niu Youdao? Yue Yuan muttered the name inwardly and glanced at Wen Mo'er. A thoughtful look entered his eyes, as though he had guessed something. Then he hurried after Gong Lince.

The tent fell quiet and empty, with only the noise from outside drifting in. Wen Mo'er looked around, then walked gracefully to the desk and picked up the stack of papers. The first thing she saw was the name "Niu Youdao." Reading through the documents in sequence, she realized they were a specially compiled dossier concerning him.

She did not know why the Sect Leader wanted her to read it. But for Gong Lince to have personally summoned her here meant he must have some task for her, and perhaps it had something to do with this Niu Youdao. She therefore calmed herself and carefully read and pondered the contents...

Nanzhou's iron cavalry assembled. Shang Chaozong intended to hurry back to Nanzhou and take command, and all the important figures in the army appeared to see him off.

Yan's three major sects had no objections. The situation was no longer merely a private grievance between Nanzhou and Zhao. Zhao might invade Yan, directly threatening the interests of the three major sects. Shang Chaozong was returning to resist that threat on Yan's behalf. Naturally, they would not oppose him.

After the inevitable exchange of courtesies and farewells, Shang Chaozong and Feng Ruonan both swung onto their horses. Under everyone's gaze, they led Nanzhou's iron cavalry away in a thunderous charge, leaving billowing dust behind them.

Huang Lie and the other Dachan Mountain cultivators accompanied them as escorts.

After the send-off dispersed, Dachan Mountain Elder Huang Tong sidled up to Huang Lie again and said quietly, "Sect Leader, I made inquiries about that woman. People from the other sects have never seen or heard of her either. No one knows who she is in Zijin Cave. Zijin Cave's own disciples are keeping their mouths tightly shut and refuse to disclose anything casually. If even Xiaoyao Palace and Lingjian Mountain know nothing about her, then she cannot be anyone important in Zijin Cave. Otherwise, those two sects couldn't possibly be unaware of her."

Huang Lie frowned. "Then that makes it even stranger. Someone who can come into an army on campaign to meet Gong Lince personally, and who is ferried here on a flying mount, cannot possibly be a nobody."

Huang Tong looked around and lowered his voice. "Could she be Gong Lince's secret lover? Maybe that's why they're keeping her hidden."

Huang Lie gave him a sidelong look. "Look where we are. Do you really think Gong Lince would disregard his dignity to that extent?"

Huang Tong spread his hands as if to say that, for the moment, he had no other way to explain it.

...

"Sect Leader. Elder." When Gong Lince and Yue Yuan returned, Wen Mo'er, who had been waiting quietly inside the tent, saluted again.

Gong Lince glanced at the papers, now neatly stacked again on the desk. "You've read them?"

"Yes." Wen Mo'er bowed slightly.

Gong Lince looked back and gestured to Yue Yuan, signaling for him to leave.

"..." Yue Yuan was speechless. He had wanted to find out exactly what was going on, only to be told to avoid the conversation.

There was nothing he could do. He withdrew.

Gong Lince returned behind the desk and sat down. Glancing at the name on the papers, he placed one hand over the stack and asked, "How would you evaluate this man?"

Wen Mo'er hurriedly said, "This disciple would not dare make reckless judgments."

Truthfully, for someone in her circumstances to suddenly be summoned personally by the Sect Leader and even brought here specially on a large flying mount, apparently for an assignment he himself intended to arrange, left her feeling flattered and unsettled no matter how composed she tried to remain.

At least she understands propriety. Gong Lince nodded faintly, adding that assessment inwardly. Then he said, "It doesn't matter. Say what you truly think. You will not be punished for it."

"Yes." Wen Mo'er bowed again. After organizing her thoughts, she said in a pleasant voice, "This disciple is ignorant and ill-informed. I have lived in an obscure corner of the sect and only heard Niu Youdao mentioned by chance. What I knew before today truly did not amount even to the surface of the matter. Only after reading the organized account on the desk did I learn that Shang Chaozong could rise to power in Nanzhou largely because of this man's contribution. During the war between Yan and Song, when the Myriad Beasts Sect intervened, he was also able to turn the tide. Amid clouds and waves that changed without warning, he truly possesses the ability to overturn clouds and summon rain. He has repeatedly rendered outstanding service to Nanzhou yet never claims the credit. He appears to be a capable man who dislikes publicity and prefers to remain behind the curtain... This is only this disciple's shallow opinion. If I have spoken wrongly, I ask the Sect Leader to instruct me."

"You don't dare say too much, but what you've said is correct enough." Gong Lince picked up the stack of papers and waved them lightly. "This is only what we already know, what we have managed to collect and organize. Niu Youdao lives in seclusion and rarely appears, leaving others unable to grasp his movements. He commands no obvious force in Nanzhou, yet he was able to contend with Tianyu Sect and Dachan Mountain and hold Nanzhou firmly under his control. That sort of foundation was not built in a single day, nor can it be established through only a handful of incidents. How much else has he done behind the scenes? We simply do not know."

He tossed the papers back onto the desk. "Even now, he remains hidden without showing himself. He suddenly reaches out, then suddenly withdraws, and every strike lands where it matters. Most of us in the cultivation world devote our energy to cultivation. We pursue gratitude and vengeance directly, fighting and killing, speaking through hard strength. We are not particularly skilled at matters involving too many twists and turns. A man like him, who can balance cultivation with worldly affairs and possesses real ability to plan and control the larger situation, is rare."

"Wen Mo'er, there is an old saying in the army: ten thousand soldiers are easy to obtain, but a single general is hard to find. Do you understand what I mean?"

Wen Mo'er seemed to realize something. Hesitating, she asked, "Sect Leader wishes to recruit him?"

Gong Lince did not answer directly. He straightened slightly and smiled. "I hear there are quite a few outstanding disciples in the sect who admire you. Why have you refused to marry? Could it be that among all the disciples of my great Zijin Cave, not one is worthy of you?"

Wen Mo'er's ten fingers twisted uneasily together before her abdomen. "There have been some. They think too highly of this disciple. I possess neither talent nor virtue. What they fancy is nothing more than this bag of skin. It is this disciple who is unworthy of them. I would not dare mislead someone with my looks."

Gong Lince said, "I hear you have suffered no small amount because of this. You must understand that, as a disciple of Zijin Cave, you possess secrets of the sect. For that reason, disciples have never been permitted to marry outside lightly."

Wen Mo'er said, "This disciple is devoted to the Dao and wishes only to cultivate in peace. I have never thought about marriage, nor do I wish to marry."

"Devoting yourself to cultivation is a good thing. There are too many people in the sect burdened by selfish thoughts and distracting desires. What we lack are disciples like you. I am very gratified." Gong Lince's tone then shifted. "But the path of cultivation cannot remain forever ignorant and untouched. Sooner or later, everyone must pass through trials of the heart. Truly letting go is easier said than done. If you have never taken something up, how can you speak of putting it down? Only someone who has experienced it can dare say she has let it go."

He looked at her steadily. "For a woman to pass her entire life without marrying is, in the end, a great regret for which there can be no remedy. If you have never tasted the sweetness, bitterness, sourness, and pain of love between a man and woman, it will inevitably become a trial of the heart for you. Are you willing to sever this inner demon?"

[End of Chapter 734]