"Vivienne, return to your cave abode."
Chu Lingwei still wanted to go out and see what was happening, when she heard her master's telepathic message.
"Yes."
Chu Lingwei responded and immediately returned to her cave abode, listening to the sounds outside.
"Little junior sister."
Suddenly, her eldest senior brother's voice reached her.
Chu Lingwei looked up and saw her eldest senior brother, whom she hadn't seen in days, walking in wearing white.
"Eldest senior brother, you're out of seclusion?" Chu Lingwei stood up and looked at her eldest senior brother, whose expression was normal. She couldn't help but step forward. She always felt that her eldest senior brother had lost a lot of weight.
"The mountain protection formation has been activated, something important must have happened." Leng Xingzhi nodded, looking at the mountain protection formation outside, which showed no signs of quieting down.
"Eldest senior brother, under what circumstances would the mountain protection formation be activated?"
Chu Lingwei knew that every sect had a mountain protection formation, which was a defensive measure to prevent sudden enemy attacks. The mountain protection formation combined the sect's most advanced formations and was not easily broken.
Only when facing a life-or-death tribulation would the mountain protection formation be activated.
"Possible enemy attack." Leng Xingzhi said, looking outside.
"But why are you still standing here?"
Chu Lingwei was not foolish. The activation of the mountain protection formation this time was definitely not an enemy attack. If it were an enemy attack, her eldest senior brother would have been the first to fight, not stand here.
"Little junior sister, your courage is growing by the day?"
Leng Xingzhi turned around, a smile on his face. Now she dared to scold even a Domain Lord realm expert, what else would she not dare to do in the future.
Chu Lingwei's face turned red from his teasing, and she turned her head away, letting out a soft "hmph." "Eldest senior brother, it's not that my courage has grown, but that Eldest senior brother probably thinks I'm easy to fool."
This was a remark with a double meaning.
After Chu Lingwei spoke, she kept an eye on Leng Xingzhi's expression.
Unfortunately, her eldest senior brother's expression management was impeccable, and Chu Lingwei discovered nothing.
"Eldest senior brother, what's going on outside?" Chu Lingwei was curious, wondering if it was Qiu Zhuoli again who had returned to attack the Xiuling Academy.
This was somewhat unlikely.
He feared even the Old Ancestor Chonghua. With the addition of all the cultivators in Xiuling Academy, he had no reason to do so.
"A treasure has been lost from the academy." Leng Xingzhi did not hide anything and said softly.
"What treasure? Who has such great ability to steal things from our Xiuling Academy?" Chu Lingwei found this explanation hard to believe. Xiuling Academy was what kind of place? Even a Domain Lord realm expert could not enter the mountain unnoticed.
Leng Xingzhi shook his head, having no intention of telling Chu Lingwei.
"If a treasure is lost, shouldn't we go out to search for it? Instead, activating the mountain protection formation is a bit unusual." Chu Lingwei walked to her eldest senior brother's side. The mountain protection formation above their heads was still constantly changing its runes. With each change, the formation would reassemble itself.
Seeing that her eldest senior brother did not speak, Chu Lingwei asked no further questions but stared outside, waiting for them to find the treasure.
Two quarters of an hour later, the mountain protection formation above their heads slowly faded.
Chu Lingwei quickly walked out of her cave abode and looked towards Xiuling Academy. The formation had faded.
"This should mean everything is fine now, right?"
Chu Lingwei turned her head and looked at her eldest senior brother, who had followed her out.
Leng Xingzhi shook his head.
"Vivienne, Xingzhi, come quickly."
Leng Xingzhi's expression sharpened, and he brought Chu Lingwei to the entrance of Bei Chenfeng's cave abode. She saw her second senior brother Nangong Luo and third senior brother Su Yan were already there.
"The mountain protection formation was activated just now, I assume you all know." Bei Chenfeng looked at his four disciples standing below, his voice very soft, much softer than usual.
"This matter must not be spread."
"Yes."
After Bei Chenfeng finished speaking, a period of silence followed.
Chu Lingwei's heart was pounding. A bold idea suddenly occurred to her: had the phantom cat telling her to sever her connection with space something to do with the loss of their academy's treasure?
If that were the case, Chu Lingwei would want to die.
"Feng'er."
Old Ancestor Chonghua walked out with a smile, looking at his grand-disciple. The smile on his face was even more gentle, and he nodded with satisfaction, "Not bad."
"You are Vivienne?"
Old Ancestor Chonghua's gaze fell on Chu Lingwei, and even his voice was filled with a smile.
"Chu Lingwei pays her respects to the Old Ancestor."
Chu Lingwei took a step forward and knelt down.
"Good child, get up quickly."
Chonghua helped Chu Lingwei up and took out a storage bag from his pocket. "This is the Old Ancestor's见面礼 (meeting gift) for you."
"Thank you, Old Ancestor."
Chu Lingwei accepted the storage bag and held it in her hand.
"Your body has not fully recovered yet, do not rush your cultivation for now," Old Ancestor Chonghua examined Chu Lingwei's body and said solemnly.
"Yes."
"Master, they've arrived."
Bei Chenfeng interrupted Old Ancestor Chonghua and said softly.
As soon as these words were spoken, Chu Lingwei sensed over a dozen auras appearing at her master's door. These people did not conceal their auras, which was why Chu Lingwei could sense them.
"Xingzhi, take them away."
Bei Chenfeng instructed.
Chu Lingwei followed Leng Xingzhi out of her master's cave abode and secretly glanced at those people. They were all people she had never seen before. No, she had seen three of them just outside the city moments ago, fighting Qiu Zhuoli alongside her master.
These people were likely the esteemed elders of Xiuling Academy.
"Eldest senior brother, why are those people..." Nangong Luo also frowned. What exactly had happened in the academy? Why had these reclusive old monsters all appeared at once?
"Don't ask what you shouldn't."
Leng Xingzhi led them to Chu Lingwei's cave abode. "After today, there might be some changes. It's best if you don't leave Wuhui Mountain."
Chu Lingwei was greatly alarmed. It seemed that what had happened tonight was more serious than she had imagined.
"Yes."
"Yes."
"Yes."
That night, Leng Xingzhi and the others did not leave Chu Lingwei's courtyard. Chu Lingwei watched her second and third senior brothers play chess. Her eldest senior brother sat on the side, silent.
As dawn broke and the first rays of sunlight appeared, Chu Lingwei suddenly felt that the spiritual energy of Wuhui Mountain had become fresher.
"Alright, everyone, return to your residences."
Leng Xingzhi stood up and disappeared before them.
"Eldest senior brother."
Chu Lingwei called out softly. Before her voice could even be uttered, her senior brother had already vanished.
"It seems Eldest senior brother is determined to emerge from seclusion only after breaking through." Nangong Luo came to Chu Lingwei's side and said softly to comfort her.
"Is that so?"
Chu Lingwei did not think so. She felt that her eldest senior brother was pretending today. He must have been injured.
"Little junior sister, there's something I must tell you." Nangong Luo sighed, looking helpless.
"What is it?"
"When the mountain protection formation was activated just now, it was precisely when I was about to concoct pills." Nangong Luo thought of what had happened last night and felt very dejected.