Could it be that I am the cruel villain?

It's somewhat bullying.

There's no need to mention Bai Yu; being of middle Core Formation and having been personally trained by Liu Tangxi for three years, if she doesn't make it to the top ten, she might as well cut her throat herself without Liu Tangxi having to do anything.

Lin Jiangxian, on the other hand, was slightly unlucky. In the previous round of sixty-four into thirty-two, she encountered a high Core Formation disciple, before Liang Yu did in a later round, and thus, after a struggle, she was regrettably eliminated.

Although she had mastered a good set of skills, she had joined too late, wasting much of her talents, and there was also a significant realm gap. The cultivation technique and path she practiced were not as domineering as Liang Yu's or Jiang Feng's.

Liang Yu, however, encountered a high Core Formation disciple in today's round. This situation was unavoidable; no matter how she calculated or swapped the lots, it was to no avail because almost everyone by now was high Core Formation or at the peak, with several others having reached Nascent Soul.

Unless...

She faces Jiang Feng.

But Liang Yu is not foolish.

In her opinion, the pressure her senior brother put on her was far greater than the high Core Formation experts.

"Tsk, tsk, there's Liu Shuanghan, and then Liu Tangxi. Swordmaster Peak is really remarkable. The former was the chief of the third generation of our Purple Cloud Palace two hundred and forty years ago, and the latter succeeded the position of Peak Master of Swordmaster Peak. The talents and abilities of the two are very similar. If only that kid Shuanghan hadn't gone mad..."

The old man, who appeared equally aged, was still sighing, but the always benevolent Gu Yuanshan merely frowned.

"Shuanghan is dead."

A sudden shock filled his heart.

Seeing Gu Yuanshan's serious expression, the elder who spoke earlier realized his mistake and immediately closed his mouth.

Sometimes the concept of "death" can symbolize something deeper, not simply "passing away," for instance.

Disassociation.

"Lao Wu, I understand your regret."

The tone suddenly softened.

As the openly oldest person within the sect, most of the other authorities in the sect were either his junior brothers or nephews. In private, he never insisted that the old brothers keep to any rules.

But the earlier words of the other person slightly stung his heart too.

The downfall of Swordmaster Peak requires him to bear half the responsibility, and Liu Jian the other half.

"Back then, it was you who watched Shuanghan grow up, the one who most loved visiting your home was that child, and when the second senior brought him back to the sect, you personally hosted a welcoming ceremony."

"But the heavens envy the talented; the more gifted the disciple, the more prone his mindset is to problems and radical behaviors, something we both know."

"The only thing we can do now is protect this generation of disciples, not letting the junior follow down his old road... Speaking of which, have there been any updates on him lately?"

Couldn't hold back.

Even though he said the person was already dead, he couldn't help but ask an additional question.

After all, this person was once the chief of the entire Purple Cloud Palace, stronger than even his own grandchildren, of the same gifted level as Liu Tangxi. Though he has since disappeared into the Demonic Path, he still causes heartache and regret at times.

Speaking of which, the Purple Cloud Palace has had issues with two consecutive chief disciples.

The current one they mentioned, along with the one involved in the Heavenly Power Peak snitch incident, until now Gu Miyun has been slightly normal, which is one reason the Purple Cloud Palace has been dormant for so long.

"Yes."

Uttered a single word.

Master Gu's ears twitched slightly, signaling the other to continue, as at their current realm, there was no one who could overhear their conversation.

"The last trace of Shuanghan was found about seventeen years ago, within the Yue State. At that time, it was discovered by one of our sect's disciples, who even engaged in combat and then reported the information back to the sect."

"But he seemed to retain some sanity then, appearing quite clear-headed. Although they engaged in a battle like a swim fight, Shuanghan clearly recognized the Purple Cloud Divine Technique, so he refrained from killing and left after injuring the other."

"After that discovery, I remember Tangxi personally went to Yue State trying to find his trail, but after about a year of investigation, she still couldn't capture his whereabouts."

"Half a year ago, another disciple witnessed him. However, this time they observed from afar; it seemed Shuanghan was fighting with someone, clashing violently, blood dyeing the sky, and a strong stench filling the air."

"Who knows what truly..."

Chatting while sighing.

The journey of Purple Cloud Palace has been filled with hardships. Two generations of chiefs, each an outstanding talent, each a prodigy with unparalleled abilities, all of whom were leaders capable of ushering the sect towards prosperity.

Yet the conclusion for each was tragic.

One went mad and insane, occasionally lucid, occasionally crazy, his hands stained with his fellow disciples' blood. After escaping the sect, he committed countless murders outside, forcing the Purple Cloud Palace to expel him and declare him dead.

The other was likewise nurtured for years but turned out to be an infiltrator from Xuanyin Sect, who massacred countless disciples within the Grotto Heaven. After being exposed, he immediately fled into Xuanyin, leaving the Purple Cloud Palace unable to recover for over a century.

For these elders, the psychological blow and drained willpower were far greater than any loss the sect suffered, much greater indeed.

The resources lost by the sect could be reclaimed later with effort, but the tragedy of a disciple groomed for decades being regarded as a child and then erring truly inflicted heart-wrenching pain.

Decades, even centuries of effort, destroyed in an instant, causing incalculable damage to the sect, which is why the Heavenly Power Peak's previous Peak Master ended his life by breaking his meridians to apologize.

The child he raised betrayed the sect and ruined the sect that nurtured him to a state it couldn't recover from for centuries; such a heavy blow indeed can drive one mad.

"Sect Master, if Shuanghan could regain his senses, do you think..."

"Give it up, Lao Wu, it's unrealistic."

Openly denying.

Sighing.

The "Liu Shuanghan" they mentioned was undoubtedly the master senior Liu Tangxi once mentioned.

The former chief of Swordmaster Peak and the disciple that Liu Jian picked up then taught to read, the first phrase he learned being "Swordmaster Peak."

The elders were in conversation while Liu Tangxi, sitting in the corner, turned her head, always watching the Sect Master's direction. Women's intuition is always accurate; she could judge the content of their discussion through their lip movements and expressions.

"Senior Sister, who do you think will win?"

The voice of a young man beside her brought her back to reality.

Below, the two were still fighting intensely, while the disciples in the stands erupted in cheers and shouts, supporting their favored peers.

However, compared to the neatly unified shouts from the Chi Xiao Peak crowd, the Swordmaster Peak's side appeared somewhat desolate, as they had far fewer people.

Jiang Feng, Lin Jiangxian, Bai Yu, Su Yi, and Lu Luo were all present, as they were all from the same sect, and each had to come to watch and show support. Among them, Lu Luo looked the most excited. To be honest, if her legs weren't still unable to stand, she might have flipped the wheelchair over.

"Junior Sister Liang, go for it! Smash that toad!"

The sharp voice made everyone sweat profusely, even making the face of the disciple fighting darken for a moment. His appearance was indeed somewhat flat, resembling a toad.

He increased his strength slightly, letting his Spiritual Energy pour out madly, repeatedly trying to distance himself and maneuver. It was clear that after the initial probing, he had started realizing how to handle an opponent of lower realm.

The method he chose was almost identical to Jiang Feng's—using overpowering strikes to forcibly separate, avoiding close combat with Liang Yu, and trying to win through his richer reserves of Spiritual Energy and Daoist Skill foundation.

However, his escape ability was slightly inferior to Jiang Feng's, but at a glance, it's hard to tell who would emerge victorious.

At the high Core Formation realm, almost all had been out for several years of training, having taken on hundreds of missions in the Immortal Pavilion and slaying countless demons outside, each with rich experience.

When faced with her junior brother's question, Liu Tangxi merely glanced at the two contestants in the field.

"Mutual destruction, both leave together."