Chapter 153: Elders in the Courtyard, Inevitable Doom

Since everyone has already laid their cards on the table, I should no longer conceal anything. Yushang is right: the Yanlan Academy will indeed face a calamity in the near future. Furthermore, this will implicate the elders of the academy, forcing them to come out of seclusion once again to personally resist that destined disaster. However, even if the Yanlan Academy manages to narrowly escape this tribulation, the elders will no longer be able to watch this place—which they hold so dear—continue to be passed down from generation to generation and endure forever in this world.

Xun Mishuang took a deep breath and spoke the truth to the gathered crowd. It seemed she had long known about the earth-shattering upheaval to come. Yet, both she and those two old fellows had chosen to withhold this information, hoping that the younger generation—who had finally managed to cast aside their burdens and live the lives they desired—would not once more sacrifice their longed-for tomorrows for the sake of the Yanlan Academy.

"Shuang'er, did you know about this all along, and did you collude with Master and the others to keep it from us while such a huge crisis befell the Yanlan Academy? As disciples of the academy, how could we remain completely oblivious and stay out of it? If Brother Yu hadn't spoken up today, were you planning to keep hiding it until the day of the disaster? If we do that, how could we ever find peace of mind once something happens to the Yanlan Academy?" Leng Huaiyi, usually so gentle and mild-mannered, raised his voice in a sharp rebuke toward Xun Mishuang. He seemed to harbor resentment that a matter of such gravity had been kept from them until now, leaving everyone without the slightest psychological preparation.

"Aside from causing you boundless grief, what good would coming clean have done? Nothing can change; what is meant to happen will happen. Even with senior martial brothers and the others possessing such formidable cultivation, they were powerless to resolve this. What do you think you greenhorn youngsters could possibly accomplish? The senior brothers simply didn't want this matter to implicate you fine disciples; they hoped the legacy of the Yanlan Academy could be passed down unbroken. You say we disregarded your feelings and acted arbitrarily, but turn it around—weren't you likewise disregarding the senior brothers' intentions, constantly acting recklessly according to your own whims and ignoring the consequences?"

Xun Mishuang was deeply unhappy now as well. Did she think she was joyful? One must know that the person who has to conceal the truth is always the most tormented one of all!

Knowing full well that a devastating tragedy would occur in the near future, not only was she unable to lend a helping hand, but she also had to lie and keep secrets from everyone. When the lies were finally exposed, she had to endure the bitter reproaches of the crowd while still forcing a smile to comfort them, all the while hiding her true feelings. She was terrified that her own poor spirits would influence them and ruin the bigger picture. Did she not want to act regardless of the consequences like them, even sacrificing herself to rescue the senior brothers? But she knew she could not—nor could she allow anyone else in the academy to place themselves in danger. If they too fell victim to the demonic clutches, the Yanlan Academy would truly have no hope of ever rising again.

"No matter what, we are aware of this matter now, Sister Shuang. You no longer need to keep it from us; you might as well tell us the whole truth. Even if everyone truly lacks the capability to prevent this from happening, we need to know the beginning and the end so we aren't kept completely in the dark. At least when that unacceptable outcome eventually arrives, we can be prepared. At least we won't have to watch tragedy unfold right before our eyes, one after another, while standing there foolishly with no idea what is actually going on!"

Meng Youyuan stepped forward quickly, grabbed Xun Mishuang, and asked anxiously, why did misfortune always seem to descend one after another upon them and those around them? Did the heavens truly refuse to let them live out the second half of their lives in peace?

"Youyuan is right. Regardless of whether we possess the ability to alter that tragedy, we must clearly understand what this is all about. Besides, whether your concealment of the truth stemmed from good intentions or genuine care, none of us harbor any blame; we simply feel that no matter how choices are made, these are ultimately our own affairs, and no outsiders have the right to interfere. Only choices made by oneself bring no regrets, and only the path walked by oneself is pursued with persistence. Even if we ultimately fail to change anything, at least we will have tried our hardest, so we won't live out our lives in regret."

At this moment, Lan Bingxian also stepped forward and spoke softly to Xun Mishuang. He understood that the reason Master and Senior Uncle chose to conceal the truth was for their own good. Yet, they had overlooked one crucial point: how could those who only knew how to cling to life and preserve themselves ever possess the qualification or capability to manage this academy in their stead?

"A few years ago, when I was utilizing my prophetic ability to track down the Myriad Spirit Blade and its master, I accidentally foresaw a drastic upheaval in the Yanlan Academy several years into the future. I foresaw that the elders of the academy would all vanish from this world along with this cataclysm. All I knew was that on that day, many individuals with formidable cultivation would gather at the Yanlan Academy to jointly resist a mysterious figure whose form could not be seen. He was so immensely powerful that he defeated everyone without even revealing his true body, causing those people to vanish into thin air in the blink of an eye as if they had never existed at all."

As she reached this point, Xun Mishuang paused involuntarily. One could tell just how terrified she was, as if she had encountered a monster—a terror born deep within her soul that lingered long and refused to disperse.

After quite a while, Xun Mishuang finally wrenched herself free from the grip of fear and slowly continued recounting this bizarre-sounding tale: "Right after that, I immediately shared this premonition with the senior martial brother. Not only did he fail to show any surprise upon hearing it, but he merely smiled coldly and told me not to spread the word, treating it as nothing more than a dream. At that moment, I understood that he had long since been fully aware of everything about to transpire. He was even clearer on it than I, someone skilled in prophecy. His calmness filled me with an inexplicable panic, as if it were the despair of facing death itself—a situation requiring no resistance because even if one struggled, the status quo could not be changed."

"What happened after that? Didn't you try to find a way to understand this matter? If it were me, even knowing that Master wouldn't allow me to meddle, I would still rack my brains to get to the bottom of it. After all, the stakes are far too high. Moreover, the outcome is far too cruel and unacceptable; surely one must exert some effort of one's own to change something!"

Yin Boxuan gazed softly at Xun Mishuang. Although this senior martial uncle of his was exceptionally cold toward people, she would never turn a blind eye to a matter of such magnitude. After all, this concerned the senior brothers who had raised her and the Yanlan Academy, which was like a home to her. No matter how indifferent she was to other things, she would never abandon this.

"Following that incident, the senior brother constantly assigned me trivial yet meaningless tasks, as if deliberately interrupting my pursuit of the truth and preventing me from exposing it. However, paper cannot wrap up a fire, and I still accidentally overheard a conversation between the Dean Senior Brother and the Senior Martial Uncle, which confirmed that my premonition was not unfounded. Yet, from their conversation, I sensed that even they themselves had no idea who this mysterious entity wishing to destroy them actually was. Once they vanished into thin air, where would they be taken? Would their lives end because of it, or would they follow that mysterious figure to another world? None of this was certain. But they did know that once they went, there would be no turning back. This was a conspiracy, and as mere chess pieces, they had only to obey, with no agency of their own."

When Xun Mishuang said this, her mood was extremely heavy. Even beings as powerful as the senior brothers could not control their own destinies—what meaning was there in living like that? Were they truly brought into this world merely to be toyed with and manipulated by those supreme powerhouses?

"It's not that they didn't know who that mysterious person was; rather, they refused to admit the truth—a truth that would shatter the faith they had held for years. It would only make them realize they were nothing more than playthings, and that everything they currently possessed was merely a beautiful dream spun by those powerhouses. When the time came, that dream would be reclaimed, and even their very sense of self would be taken back."

Yu Xiaoran, who had remained silent for a long time, finally could not help but speak up. It seemed the world was not as simple as he had imagined, and the legendary figures were far from being as lofty as he had envisioned. Who could know what filth was hidden beneath their seemingly kind and pure exteriors?

"I suspect this matter is also related to Wang, and might even serve as the fuse for everything he has done. No wonder I've always felt that everything we've experienced these past few days is connected in some ineffable way, though I can't quite put my finger on the exact link. It's just a pure intuition that all these events are happening for the exact same purpose—merely to fulfill that ulterior conspiracy and realize the wild ambitions of certain individuals."

Yan Xuesu also boldly chimed in with a guess. Although she felt it was somewhat inaccurate to pin everything entirely on Fuyou Ming, she still believed these events were more or less inextricably linked to him.

"I always feel that we might be overlooking some important factor. What on earth is the root cause of all these calamities? There has to be a reason! Furthermore, I feel that when that mysterious entity makes the Dean and the others vanish, it might not necessarily be to kill them; it's quite possible they are being taken away from this place. If he wanted them dead, a mere flick of the wrist would have sufficed to behead them all. Why go to such elaborate lengths to make these people vanish from the world in an instant? Although I have no evidence to prove my current thought, I still believe the Dean and the others are temporarily out of danger."

Lan Wu also slowly voiced her thoughts. In comparison, she actually felt that they themselves were in greater danger right now than the Dean. After all, that cataclysm was an event of the future, whereas their own crisis was imminent and threatened their lives at any moment!

"Regardless of how you look at it, merely sitting here daydreaming and doing nothing will be of no use whatsoever. It would be far better to first resolve the stubborn ailments of that old fellow Fuyou Ming and that stinky brat before worrying about the Yanlan Academy and those old fogies! I feel there is no immediate danger here, and we still have plenty of time to help the academy weather this difficulty. But don't forget, Fuyou Ming is getting very impatient to control us. If we don't take the initiative now, let alone helping the Yanlan Academy, we won't even be able to protect ourselves. For now, the only course of action is to patiently wait for the competition to arrive, then enter that mysterious realm. Once we find what we are looking for, we can have a direct showdown with Fuyou Ming. Trust me, the Yanlan Academy and those old fellows will be in no trouble for the time being."

Xiao Yin comforted those who were endlessly worried about the Yanlan Academy while simultaneously reminding them not to forget what they ought to be doing right now.

"On this point, I can indeed vouch for the fact that the upheaval at the Yanlan Academy is a future event, which does not conflict in terms of timing with your confrontation against Fuyou Ming. Therefore, you still have ample time to accomplish other tasks, and the Yanlan Academy can be temporarily entrusted to my protection. After all, as you all know my identity, protecting the Yanlan Academy is inherently my responsibility. Rest assured, I will definitely hold the fort until you return. I believe the senior brothers would think the same way, because only upon your return can they leave with peace of mind."

Xun Mishuang looked at the crowd, who remained deeply anxious on behalf of the Yanlan Academy, feeling a profound sense of solace. She had not expected them to care so deeply about this place. After all, some of them had no real connection to the Yanlan Academy whatsoever, yet they still showed such wholehearted dedication and treated it as a matter of course. The senior brothers truly had not chosen wrongly; entrusting the Yanlan Academy to these individuals was indeed the correct decision. Regardless of which of them would eventually take over the academy in the future, she would do her utmost to assist them in ensuring this place endured forever in the world.