Why do I have so many masters?

Although they had already seen the green mountains where Qingfeng Edge resided, there was still a considerable distance from the formation to the foot of the mountain. Even though the road was relatively smooth, it took almost half an hour on horseback for everyone to reach the destination.

Upon arriving at the foot of the mountain and observing it, although the mountain was not very tall, it was quite prominent. At the base of the mountain, there was a courtyard with a woman bearing a sword on guard duty. She wore white Vigorous Attire, her complexion quite stern, lips thin and pale, which made her appear indifferent and aloof.

She had been meditating inside the house, but on hearing the sound of horse hooves, she had just stopped her Inner Strength and strolled out.

Her hand was already on the hilt of her sword.

Upon seeing that the visitors were Wang Anfeng and the others, her expression finally relaxed.

A smile appeared first, and then she saw Tuoba Yue following behind. Her brows furrowed slightly but she didn't show any reaction. However, when she saw Wang Anfeng, Baili Feng, and others, a layer of frost formed over her features. Only after Gong Yu spoke and explained a thing or two, did she ease up, still frowning, she said,

"Since it was Senior Ren's intent, naturally, I dare not obstruct."

"But, take care of your eyes!"

"Otherwise, even if I am to be punished by the Great Elder, I will make you learn what rules mean!"

Her words were sharp, quite inhospitable, causing Wang Anfeng and Baili Feng to feel stifled.

The group left their fine horses temporarily at this location and followed behind Gong Yu up the mountain steps. It was unclear what material the steps were made of, but wherever they stepped, a layer of jade light would appear, rippling out and then fading away, quite mystical.

But Baili Feng was not in the mood to appreciate this beautiful scene.

Having just been guarded against as if he were a thief, the young man was harboring a sense of anger. Although his nature was bold, he did not like to suffer losses. He had almost lost his patience, wanting to snatch up his Mo Blade and yell at the woman, "What the heck, screw your mother."

Because he was concerned about maintaining the face of Fufeng Academy, he ultimately didn't act out, but he still felt uncomfortable. After walking a few steps, he slowed his pace and sidled up to Wang Anfeng.

He first covertly glanced at Gong Yu.

Having traveled together for several days, Baili Feng knew that although this senior appeared cold and distant, she was actually a good-hearted person. Even though he knew it was somewhat impolite to speak out, he felt so uncomfortable that he couldn't hold it in, as he never was one to restrain himself. Thus, beside the youth, he whispered his complaint,

"Anfeng... that senior just now was too much."

Wang Anfeng glanced sideways at him and saw his friend frowning, muttering,

"After all, we are guests here to offer birthday congratulations."

"It's one thing not to receive us well, but to treat us as if we were thieves."

"Tell me, where in the world does such reasoning exist?"

Wang Anfeng chuckled, looking up to see that Gong Yu had not shown any unusual reaction, signaled Baili Feng to keep his voice down. The young military man felt somewhat gloomy. Wang Anfeng shook his head, but then he remembered what Master Yuan Ci had said and laughed softly, venturing a joke in a low voice,

"After all, the woman down the mountain is a tiger..."

"And you men are all big pig trotters."

Unexpectedly, a clear voice interjected, causing Wang Anfeng and Baili Feng to be startled.

Turning their bodies to look, they saw a girl in a white robe who had walked up beside them at some unknown point, her jade hairpin holding her hair, her eyes clear and distinct. When not smiling, her expression was cold, but her smile revealed two shallow dimples, quite approachable. It was Ji Gu, a disciple of Qingfeng Edge, who had been traveling with them.

This was the first time in several days she had spoken with the two men.

Despite having a reason, speaking ill of someone behind their back ultimately left Wang Anfeng and Baili Feng feeling somewhat embarrassed. However, the girl appeared confident and straightforward, her gaze not concerned with Baili Feng, but intently on Wang Anfeng, filled with curiosity.

Ever since she had seen the youth in the blue shirt playing the zither at the foot of the city a few days ago, she had been curious about Wang Anfeng.

Having mostly stayed in the mountains, she had not interacted much with outsiders, and the atmosphere surrounding Wang Anfeng and the others had also made it difficult for her to join the conversation.

Now, having returned to the Sect gateway and feeling more relaxed, and finding a topic she could discuss, she spoke without thinking. Realizing what she had done, she blushed slightly, her face flushing with a subtle pink, her eyes brightening. She boldly walked shoulder to shoulder with the two men, saying,

"Uncle Master Xuán wasn't always like this, she's really a good person."

"It's just that after she left the mountains and entered the Jianghu, she encountered some incidents and began to harbor great wariness towards men."

Wang Anfeng and the others could already guess where the story was going from here, but since this was the first time in several days that they could speak with this disciple from the Hidden Sect, they simply used this opportunity to make conversation. Both parties were interested in making a connection, so the conversation was quite delightful.

By the time they ascended the mountain, they had already become quite familiar with each other.

Upon reaching the top of the mountain, they could immediately see a large Stone Sword standing in the center of the martial training ground, with the characters "Qingfeng Edge" engraved on the spine of the blade, sharp and unrestrained, seemingly about to spring forth. By this time, the night had grown quite deep, and there were no disciples on the training grounds.

The Qingfeng Edge Sword Sect was adorned with red candles and lanterns everywhere, a vision of celebratory festivity because of the Great Elder's birthday.

At this moment, two welcoming disciples walked forward, each bearing a sword, but their right hands held red lanterns, dispelling the surrounding darkness. They had been informed by carrier pigeon from the mountain base that guests were arriving and had been waiting here.

Seeing the group ascend, they came forward to pay their respects, bowing to Gong Yu with a salute, addressing him as "Uncle Master."

Gong Yu nodded slightly, then turned around and said,

"Since it's late today, you should first rest in the guest rooms tonight."

"Tomorrow morning, you can go and meet the Sect Leader of our Sect."

Although Wang Anfeng and his three companions were quite low in strength, being from Fufeng Academy and having the entrustments from Elder Ren and Master, as well as bearing books, they should also pay a visit to the Sect Leader.

It was just uncertain whether the Great Elder would appear.

Thinking of the Great Elder, who was almost like his own grandmother, Gong Yu's face softened slightly.

Wang Anfeng and his companions, having traveled a long distance, felt somewhat weary, even with their Inner Strength sustaining them, thus naturally they had no objections. After offering a fist salute to Gong Yu, they followed the two lantern-bearing welcoming disciples and disappeared from view in moments.

Gong Yu turned to look at his three fellow disciples and said indifferently,

"You all may return as well."

"During this time as you traverse the Jianghu, write down your thoughts and experiences. Tomorrow I shall review them. Every encounter may one day save your lives; do not take them lightly."

"Yes, Uncle Master."

Gong Yu nodded, turned to leave, but at that moment, thought of something. His steps paused, then he turned back around and called out:

"Ji Gu."

The young girl who had just been chatting with Wang Anfeng looked slightly stunned and greeted with a fist-palm salute:

"Disciple is here."

"You just now recklessly discussed the private affairs of your elders, as a punishment you are to copy the sect rules..."

Ji Gu's heart slightly relaxed, as she had already prepared herself when she spoke.

But it was just thirty repetitions of the sect rules.

The girl didn't seem to care much, but Gong Yu's typically indifferent lips seemed to twitch slightly.

His voice remained calm.

"Three hundred repetitions."

With no outsiders present, the three young women of Qingfeng Edge no longer maintained their usual aloofness but appeared like typical girls of fifteen or sixteen.

Ji Gu stunned for a moment, not having the chance to plead for mercy before Gong Yu had already turned away with his sword.

A slight smile played on her lips as she said lightly:

"No sleep for you tonight."

............

Qingfeng Edge, the Sect Leader's study.

Though the night was deep, a dim red candle still brightly lit up the study.

A woman sat before a desk, focused intently as she read through the letters on the table.

The Qingfeng Edge attire tended to be plain and simple, but the white robe worn by this woman was different from that of ordinary disciples, with blue silk at the cuffs and collar, decorated with intricate golden thread patterns, featuring three layers overlapping, adding a touch of authority. A phoenix poised as if to fly housed her jet-black hair tied up.

She occasionally wrote something down, occasionally furrowed her brows in thought. Fine lines were now visible at the corners of her eyes, and some white hair peeked out at her temples, yet she still possessed an unhurried and dignified charm.

After all, it was the Great Elder's seventieth birthday. Enjoy exclusive content from empire

A Grandmaster of the Upper Third Rank.

Although the Qingfeng Edge was a hidden sect, it still had many acquaintances from the Fufeng Academy, the Heavenly Mountain Sect, and various other Jianghu knights and hermits who would gather at Qingfeng Edge in eight days. As the Sect Leader, she still had many affairs to handle.

After addressing a few minor issues, she put down the brush in her hand.

The woman rubbed her temples, feeling a rare sense of fatigue.

Being over fifty, drawing a sword to fight was no issue, but handling these sect affairs drained her energy more than in the past.

The woman sighed softly and took a sip of strong tea.

The tea, freshly brewed and boiled just moments ago, had already cooled.

Deep in the night, alone, with only the faint glow of a dying candle and the chill of the tea.

This collection of moments inevitably made her feel lonely, and she suddenly remembered the days before she had taken control of the Divine Weapon Wufeng.

She could still ride freely across the Jianghu, still indulge her whims.

How did it happen that she was now over fifty?

It seemed only yesterday she was galloping across the Jianghu, yet today she found herself sitting in a study, managing the affairs of the sect.

Thinking of these mundane tasks, she felt somewhat resentful in her heart.

If this continued, she would lose more hair.

With a sigh, she finished the cold tea in her cup and was about to continue reading when a gentle knock came from the door.

"Master, your disciple Gong Yu requests an audience."

PS: The first update is here.