Chapter 173: A Sudden Outburst
“Then you should know that Qin Ying, the prodigy of the Inner Sect, hails from the Qin clan.”
“This… this disciple has heard as much.”
“Hahaha, Nephew Song, there is no need to be nervous. This disciple of mine is also from the Qin clan. In fact, she is Qin Ying’s younger cousin.”
Senior Sister Qin Ying’s… sister?
Song Yan’s gaze sharpened as he regarded the other party.
Sure enough, his earlier intuition had not been wrong. This Qin Sheng did bear a certain resemblance to Senior Sister Qin Ying.
Yet their bearing was entirely different. Qin Sheng had the demure charm of a girl from a modest family, unlike Senior Sister Qin Ying, who held others at arm’s length.
Qin Sheng felt his gaze and offered a sweet smile, looking innocent and charming. “Senior Brother’s prowess in the Minor Secret Realm that day left this junior sister filled with admiration.”
“If there is ever an opportunity in the future, I would dearly love to receive your guidance!”
Song Yan’s expression remained calm. “I would not dare presume to offer guidance, but sparring would certainly be no trouble.”
Yang Wenxuan observed Song Yan’s reaction, paused, then spoke in a meaning tone. “The Qin clan holds considerable standing within the sect, and they have always been fond of young talents.”
“Nephew Song is already extraordinary in talent, yet it seems you lack any powerful backing. If you were to receive the Qin clan’s support, your path of cultivation would surely be much smoother.”
Song Yan’s heart lurched. Now he understood the other party’s purpose.
Recruitment?
Within the vast Eastern Abyss Sect, there were naturally no shortage of factions and cliques.
Setting aside the sect as a whole, even when Song Yan had been an Outer Sect disciple, he had heard that the Outer Sect alone harbored countless small groups.
To compete for resources, fighting alone was indeed an arduous task.
But those were mere trifles compared to what Elder Yang Wenxuan now proposed.
A thousand thoughts surged through Song Yan’s mind in an instant.
Elder Yang Wenxuan could not possibly be a member of the Qin clan, yet he was now recruiting talent on their behalf.
This clearly meant that he had already taken the Qin clan’s side.
Yang Wenxuan held an extremely high position in the Eastern Abyss Sect, overseeing all matters of sect law and discipline.
If even he had pledged allegiance to the Qin clan, then how many other elders had already been drawn into their fold was impossible to estimate…
“I thank the Elder for his kind intentions…”
Song Yan chose his words with extreme care.
He would never join the Qin clan’s faction. Even with the support of resources, such gifts were never freely given.
He would inevitably have to do something in return for the Qin clan.
Such constraints and entanglements left him feeling ill at ease.
“However, this disciple possesses only mediocre talent. To have already received the guidance of a worthy teacher is my greatest fortune. I dare not ask for more.”
A flicker of displeasure passed through Yang Wenxuan’s eyes before his composure returned.
He spoke slowly. “Nephew is too modest. With your performance at the Sword Tempering Grand Competition, how could you possibly be considered mediocre?”
Song Yan was about to offer a few more words of deflection, but Yang Wenxuan cut him off. “However…”
“This old man does not wish to force anyone. Since Nephew Song has no inclination, then let us leave it at that.”
Song Yan’s heart eased, and he was about to cup his hands in a polite farewell.
But he noticed that Yang Wenxuan’s expression was no longer genial.
The elder spoke with pointed implication. “Still, this old man remains curious. With your triple spirit root talent, and lacking the support of any noble house or senior patron, how did you manage to advance so rapidly in only a few short years?”
Song Yan’s heart tightened. He knew there was more to these words.
He hastened to reply. “This disciple was fortunate to have been favored by Senior Qin Xijun, and moreover to have stumbled upon a few opportunities…”
“As far as I know, the techniques cultivated by Elder Qin Xijun are entirely different from your own.”
Yang Wenxuan suddenly smiled. “What manner of opportunity allows an insignificant cultivator to turn the tables and slay Wang Xi under the Xuan Yuan Sect’s design?”
“And to break through to the late stage of Qi Refining within a few years, and furthermore to defeat Kong You, an cultivator of the eighth level of Qi Refining, in open combat?”
Before the words had faded, he suddenly raised his eyes, a sharp gleam flashing through them.
His hand shot up without warning, and a beam of spiritual light hurtled straight toward Song Yan!
The change came far too suddenly. Song Yan had no time to react at all.
Even had he been able to react, how could a mere Qi Refining stage disciple possibly resist a Foundation Establishment cultivator’s assault?
The protective spiritual energy he barely managed to coalesce was instantly shattered.
“Elder Yang, you—!” Several strands of spiritual power wrapped around Song Yan’s limbs, binding him in place.
Xiao He immediately swam out and halted before Song Yan, several streaks of Azure Leaf demonic power condensing rapidly.
“Oh? Your spirit pet is quite loyal.”
Yang Wenxuan’s fingertips twitched slightly, and a wave of spiritual power suppressed it instantly.
The Azure Leaf demonic power dissipated entirely, and that same spiritual force ensnared Xiao He as well.
“Hss—”
The wisp of spiritual energy Song Yan had earlier condensed was seized by Yang Wenxuan and drawn into his palm.
At the same time, the cosmos pouch at Song Yan’s waist was torn away by a tremendous force and landed in Yang Wenxuan’s hand.
“Elder Yang, what are you doing?!”
Song Yan was both shocked and furious. He could not believe that a sect elder would dare lay hands on him so brazenly outside an Inner Sect disciple’s dwelling.
Sword qi surged instinctively. The Untethered Vessel hummed as it left its sheath, positioning itself before him and Xiao He.
His heart sank to the depths.
The other party was a Foundation Establishment elder. If it truly came to blows, he stood no chance whatsoever!
Yet for all his discourtesy, Yang Wenxuan had not actually harmed him.
“Oh?”
“You do possess some backbone. Even facing a Foundation Establishment cultivator, you still harbor the thought of striking back…”
“Heh heh…”
Yang Wenxuan smiled faintly.
“There is no need to be nervous, Nephew.”
“Recently, the demonic cultivators have been rampant. It is this old man’s duty, and I must exercise due caution.”
With that, his divine sense plunged directly into the cosmos pouch.
Song Yan’s expression turned ugly.
Yang Wenxuan’s justification was airtight.
He was, after all, the one who oversaw all matters of sect law. If he detected something amiss, conducting an inspection under the pretext of oversight was perfectly within protocol.
No one would question an elder’s actions on account of an ordinary Inner Sect disciple.
His cosmos pouch contained many personal items, but most critically, the Twin Jade Pearl was also within!
If the other party discovered the secret of the Twin Jade Pearl…
Cold sweat soaked through him as the worst possible scenarios flashed through Song Yan’s mind.
Yang Wenxuan’s expression betrayed nothing, yet inwardly he was perplexed.
“Nothing of note beyond a few spiritual herbs and medicines.”
“There is a Breakthrough Pill for overcoming the bottleneck of late-stage Qi Refining…”
This had been exchanged with merit points during the Changping affair. Yang Wenxuan naturally knew as much.
“His spirit stone assets are somewhat greater than those of an ordinary late-stage Qi Refining cultivator, but that is hardly strange.”
He scanned the contents again and again, yet found nothing unusual or remarkable.
Most of what was stored within, he did not even glance at, for they were items of a Qi Refining cultivator. To a Foundation Establishment elder, they held no appeal whatsoever.
Even the Twin Jade Pearl, he merely swept over with a cursory glance, dismissing it as a damaged formation bead, perceiving nothing extraordinary about it.
The only thing Song Yan felt grateful for was that he never kept many spirit stones on hand, exchanging them all for spiritual materials and resources for cultivation.
Thus the cosmos pouch was not heavily stocked with spirit stones.
The Moon-Foretuning Ancient Lotus seeds, which might have aroused suspicion, had already been lent to Liang Feng.
Just as his thoughts raced, Yang Wenxuan withdrew two items from the cosmos pouch.
The Dark Tribulation Spirit-Bowing Mask, and the Heretic Cultivator’s Chronicle.