CHAPTER 46: RIPPLES WORTH WATCHING

Du San leaned in closer, clearly savoring the gossip. "Ah, but the real rumor—the one everyone’s whispering about—is even crazier."

Xiao Ning raised his cup, expression unchanged. "Oh? Let’s hear it."

Liu Qing sighed and shook his head. "You mean that absurd tale?"

Xu Jie gave a crooked grin. "That’s the one. No one with half a brain believes it, but everyone still tells it."

Du San smirked, tapping the table. "They say the Shadowclaw Sect wasn’t attacked by some Nascent Soul elder, or even a Heavenly Tribulation monster—but by a Divine Transformation realm cultivator."

He lowered his voice theatrically. "Appeared out of nowhere, descended from the clouds, and unleashed a heaven-sundering technique straight onto their main peak."

Xiao Ning’s expression remained placid, but behind his eyes, a flicker of cold amusement passed.

Liu Qing snorted. "And the punchline? They say the sect repelled him."

Du San barked a laugh. "Right? Some nameless Divine Transformation cultivator shows up, tears the sky in half—and gets pushed back with his tail between his legs!"

Xu Jie raised his cup. "Supposedly it was revenge. An old grudge, or maybe for some disciple Shadowclaw killed. Either way, he failed."

Liu Qing rolled his eyes. "They say an ancient formation hidden in the mountain activated on its own. Others claim a reclusive elder woke up from centuries of closed-door cultivation and sent him packing with a single blow."

Du San chuckled. "One version even says the attacker realized his mistake and left in shame. As if a Divine expert would apologize."

Xu Jie shook his head. "How convenient."

Liu Qing smirked. "A sect with a history darker than midnight suddenly has secret saintly protectors and divine sealing arrays? Sounds like wishful thinking to me."

Du San laughed. "But that’s the point. It’s a good story. That’s why everyone repeats it."

Xu Jie nodded. "Teahouses and spiritual restaurants can’t get enough. A mysterious enemy, a desperate defense, a dramatic last stand—it sells."

Xiao Ning lowered his cup, half-lidding his eyes. "And this version... is popular?"

Du San shrugged. "Doesn’t matter if it’s true. It makes people feel safe. That’s enough."

Xu Jie added, "And it serves the sect. Who’s going to pick a fight with a place that repelled a Divine Transformation cultivator?"

Liu Qing nodded. "Even if the truth is dirtier than a pig demon’s bathwater, the tale buries it clean."

Xiao Ning gave a faint smile but said nothing.

Du San misread the silence and grinned. "Personally, I don’t buy a word. If a Divine cultivator came, you’d see craters from here to the edge of the Violet Sea. Why bother with Shadowclaw anyway?"

"Exactly," Liu Qing said. "To cultivators at that level, mortal sect grudges are beneath notice."

Xu Jie murmured, "Unless... it wasn’t random. Maybe there’s something in Shadowclaw worth a Divine’s attention."

Xiao Ning raised a brow. "Such as?"

Xu Jie hesitated, then leaned in. "Who knows? A sealed inheritance, a hidden relic... even a broken fragment of a Divine artifact would be enough."

Xiao Ning’s gaze drifted toward the balcony, where lantern light shimmered across the Spirit River below.

"This tale... it’s really spread that far?"

Du San grinned. "You can’t walk into a brothel or street stall without hearing it. If you haven’t heard it by now, Senior... you’ve been buried under a rock."

Xiao Ning smiled faintly. "That may not be far from the truth."

Sensing no threat from the strange guest, the three relaxed slightly. Du San took another drink.

"So, Senior... what’s your take? Do you believe it?"

Xiao Ning paused, then replied softly:

"Only fools believe the surface of a lake reflects the whole of it. But... the ripples are always worth watching."

Before long, the laughter and chatter around the table faded into a distant murmur, but Xiao Ning’s gaze remained fixed on the lanterns swaying quietly beyond the balcony.

A glimmer of thought flickered behind his eyes.

"The Heaven Locking Wheel Formation... even the Temptation Array buried beneath the ancestral altar..." he murmured inwardly, fingers gently brushing the rim of his jade cup. "At most, they can trap a late-stage Nascent Soul. Against that woman... they’d hold for no more than a breath."

His thoughts turned cold.

Could it truly be... that the sect harbors a Divine Transformation expert?

That notion felt laughable. As the former Sect Master, he would have been the first to know. In his years of hidden planning and careful manipulation, he had scoured every inch of the sect’s foundation.

Every elder, every sealed talisman, every buried jade slip—he had memorized them all.

"Impossible," he thought, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly. "Unless... someone of that level was drawn in after my fall. Or..."

A more unsettling possibility whispered into his mind.

"...Unless these rumors are merely a veil."

His pupils contracted.

"A trap?"

He set the cup down with deliberate slowness.

"That woman... She must have learned of my return."

"Did she coerce the core members? Or perhaps tear the truth from their souls by force?"

The image of certain high-ranking elders came to mind—those whose loyalty was shallow, built on fear rather than belief. If their lives were in danger, could he truly expect silence?

A cold light passed through his eyes.

"She wants to burn the roots before the tree can regrow... How thorough."

His lips curved into a faint smile, but there was no warmth in it.

"That woman... truly ruthless."

He didn’t fear pursuit—but what he detested was being outplayed.

Still, if she was behind this tale, then revealing it so widely was reckless. No, not reckless—calculated. If everyone was looking toward the heavens, no one would see what stirred beneath the surface.

"A misdirection tactic. Spread a lie so grand, even the truth hides beneath it."

Xiao Ning closed his eyes for a breath, then opened them—calm once more.

"Regardless," he muttered silently, "I must return."

Xiao Ning glanced back at the three cultivators seated around the table.

"The three of you..." he said mildly, "are rogue cultivators, aren’t you?"