CHAPTER 55: BAI YILAN

For a long moment, silence reigned beneath the high pavilion.

Then Xiao Ning’s voice broke it—calm, yet tinged with cool amusement.

"Second Nascent Soul?"

He turned toward them, lips curled in a faint smirk.

"Do you three believe such a thing truly exists?"

The three elders stiffened, unsure how to respond.

Xiao Ning stepped closer. "Even if such a technique were real, it would require immense luck, an unshakable dao heart, and many rare materials lost to time. You think I—your Sect Master—would risk soul annihilation... just to fool a few enemies?"

He chuckled softly, yet his gaze pierced through their thoughts like blades.

"But then again..."

His eyes narrowed.

"Who’s to say what is or isn’t possible?"

The three Nascent Soul Elders lowered their heads instinctively. His words were vague. Neither a confirmation nor a denial.

But sometimes... silence said more than truth ever could.

Xiao Ning turned slightly, as if remembering something.

"Oh, right. Elder Qian—inform the five Core Formation Elders to come to me the moment they form their Nascent Souls."

Elder Qian bowed slightly, as if already expecting such a command. "Understood, Sect Master."

"Any other instructions?"

Xiao Ning was silent for a moment. Then his eyes narrowed slightly. "There is no need to monitor the Azure Dragon Sect for now. As for Bai Yilan... tell her not to expose herself."

The moment those words left his mouth, even Elder Qian—so often unreadable—could not help the faint flicker of surprise in his eyes.

If any outsider had heard this exchange, they would’ve been struck speechless. After all, Bai Yilan was not some nameless spy lurking in the shadows—she was a Nascent Soul Elder of the Azure Dragon Sect itself. And not just newly advanced, either. She had long reached the middle stage!

To think that such a powerful figure, renowned across the southeastern cultivation world, was actually a deep-planted agent of the Shadowclaw Sect...

That was no longer espionage. It was a quiet earthquake.

"Are you certain?" Elder Qian asked with a rare flicker of astonishment in his eyes.

Xiao Ning nodded without hesitation. "The Azure Dragon Sect won’t move against us again. That grudge has been resolved."

These words caused all three elders present to stiffen. Zhou Mu, Wu Li, and Qian Xu exchanged glances, disbelief etched across their faces.

Resolved? That deep of a feud?

Without waiting for questions, Xiao Ning’s figure blurred and vanished without sound.

Zhou Mu’s brows drew together. "How could a grudge like that simply be... resolved?"

Wu Li let out a dry chuckle. "Did we not wipe out the entire Jiang Clan? That boy was their direct heir. If it were me, I wouldn’t forget such a thing for a thousand years."

Qian Xu shook his head. "It’s not our place to question. Since the Sect Master has spoken... then so it is."

***

Far away, deep within the inner mountains of the Azure Dragon Sect, stood a secluded pavilion nestled amidst plum blossoms and flowing mist.

Within that still courtyard, a solitary figure sat cross-legged atop a cushion of cloud brocade.

A stunning woman in twilight-hued robes remained motionless, her long hair cascading down her back like a river of starlight. The quiet aura around her was neither icy nor warm—it was balanced, controlled, and deceptively gentle.

Suddenly, her eyes flickered open.

With a fluid motion, she reached into her storage ring and drew out a worn out talisman, her spiritual sense touched the talisman, and a moment later, her brows drew together ever so slightly.

"...Strange. Ever since Jiang Chen returned, there has been no word of him. And now... the sect has ordered me to lie low? That the grudge has been resolved?"

Her voice was calm, but her heart churned like an undercurrent beneath still water.

Bai Yilan was no ordinary member of the Azure Dragon Sect.

Over the past century, she had risen from a guest elder to a pillar of the sect’s middle echelon, she was one of its pillars—an elder known to many, revered by more. Within the sect, she had formed her own faction, commanding the loyalty of countless disciples. Among her admirers were even two fellow Nascent Soul Realm cultivators.

If she ever chose to make a move... to seize power or fracture the sect from within... she had the confidence that many would follow.

But none of that mattered.

Her true loyalty had never wavered—not even once.

She remembered clearly the night her clan was exterminated, the fire that consumed her home, and the icy despair that settled in her young heart. It was the Shadowclaw Sect’s former master who found her that night, bloodied and barely alive. He brought her back, nursed her wounds, and made her his disciple.

Years later, when she broke through to Core Formation, he personally guided her path.

And when she had the strength to wield vengeance, it was he who helped her destroy the Blue Spirit Sect—the so-called righteous Nascent Soul sect responsible for her clan’s slaughter.

Since then, no matter how high she rose in the Azure Dragon Sect, she had never once forgotten her roots.

Just as her thoughts darkened, the sect token at her waist pulsed with light.

A notice appeared within her divine sense:

—Summons from the Sect Master. An emergency inner court meeting will convene shortly.

Bai Yilan narrowed her eyes but she said nothing. Slowly, she rose to her feet, stowing the talisman once more.

The clouds over the Azure Dragon Sect parted quietly as several beams of light streaked across the sky—each one bearing the condensed presence of a Nascent Soul Realm expert. Within moments, they began to descend around the central jade platform of the inner court, forming a loose ring around the main altar.

The inner court meeting had not been held for over ten years.

And now, eleven figures gathered.

Each one a cultivator who had long surpassed the mortal coil—respected, feared, and spoken of across the Violet Sea World with reverence.

These were the true pillars of the Azure Dragon Sect—Nascent Soul cultivators, beings who could split mountains with a palm and reduce cities to ash in moments.