“Disappointed? Master said she was disappointed in me?”

Guan Xuelan’s words caused a smile to spread across Gu Xiu’s face. It was a smile etched with bitterness, but beneath it lay a profound sense of relief.

“Well, Gu Xiu, Master is holding you accountable and you actually have the nerve to laugh!” Lu Qingyao barked from the side. “Master, he is mocking your authority. He must be punished severely!”

Guan Xuelan frowned, her gaze flickering with annoyance. However, after a moment of hesitation, she asked, “Gu Xiu, why are you laughing?”

“I simply thought of something amusing,” Gu Xiu replied.

Guan Xuelan’s expression turned glacial. “At a time like this, you still have the mind for such things? Do you truly feel no remorse?”

“Master, I must ask: why should I feel remorse?” Gu Xiu countered.

“You—”

“Is it because I refused to give Junior Brother this broken bamboo pole?”

“That…”

“Or is it because my presence in the sect hinders Junior Brother’s inheritance of the Sect Leader position?”

“What… what are you saying?” Guan Xuelan was stunned, her eyes wide with disbelief. Even Lu Qingyao gasped, covering her mouth. They hadn’t expected Gu Xiu to drag the unspoken truth into the light of day.

“Before I entered the forbidden land all those years ago, you promised that if I returned safely, the position of Sect Leader would be mine,” Gu Xiu spoke slowly, pulling a jade token from his robes. “At the time, to show your sincerity, you entrusted me with the Sect Leader’s Jade Token.”

Guan Xuelan remained indifferent. “At that time, you had the bearing of a leader. But look at you now…”

“I’m a cripple now. Is that it?” Gu Xiu finished with a thin smile.

Guan Xuelan narrowed her eyes. “Gu Xiu, you know your own state. What right do you have to cling to that token?”

Lu Qingyao, lacking any restraint, sneered, “What’s the difference between you and a shameless cur at this point?”

“Qingyao, hold your tongue!” Guan Xuelan snapped.

“Master, even if you punish me, I must speak!” Lu Qingyao was reaching a boiling point. “Gu Xiu, do you think the current Qingxuan Holy Land is still just the old Qingxuan Sect? Do you think someone like you has the qualifications to lead us? You are a cripple! Your cultivation, your talent, your very foundation—all ruined! A third-rate rogue could kill you on a whim! Can’t you see the reality? Your best end would have been to die in the forbidden land and remain a hero in our memories!”

“I said, be quiet!” Guan Xuelan finally roared. She unleashed the crushing pressure of a Mahayana stage cultivator. Lu Qingyao, a mere Golden Core, was instantly forced into silence, though her eyes still burned with undisguised hatred.

Facing that look, Gu Xiu finally understood. So, that’s how it is.

Guan Xuelan glanced at him and said coolly, “Gu Xiu, your sister’s words were unpleasant, but—”

“Master,” Gu Xiu interrupted softly, “I actually find my sister’s words to be like a great bell, ringing with clarity. They are… enlightening.”

He raised his head, his gaze sweeping over the three people before him. Jiang Xun still wore his mask of innocent apology. Lu Qingyao glared with resentment. Guan Xuelan remained as cold as stagnant water.

Gu Xiu smiled, the last trace of nostalgia vanishing from his heart. “I had always planned to wait until Junior Brother Jiang reached the Golden Core stage. I intended to sacrifice my life to force-sever the bond with this Sect Leader’s Jade Token to pass it to him.”

Guan Xuelan looked surprised. Lu Qingyao let out a cold snort, clearly not believing a word.

Gu Xiu didn’t care. “But now… my thoughts have changed. I’ve realized that I value my life.”

Guan Xuelan’s brow furrowed tightly. Even Jiang Xun couldn’t hide a flicker of venomous disappointment in his eyes. Gu Xiu ignored them, producing a piece of paper he had prepared long ago.

“What is this?” Guan Xuelan asked.

“The Sect Abandonment Oath.”

Guan Xuelan’s hand trembled slightly as she reached for the paper. She looked at him, and for the first time, a trace of emotion broke her mask. “You wish to leave the sect?”

“Yes,” Gu Xiu nodded. “Once this oath is signed, I am no longer a disciple of the Qingxuan Holy Land. Our connection will be severed. Naturally, the bond with the Sect Leader’s Jade Token will break instantly, saving you the trouble of worrying about it.”

A Sect Abandonment Oath was a finality. It meant all debts, all gratitude, and all ties of heritage were cut. Regardless of what happened to the sect, the signer would be a stranger. Most who left the sect retained some sentiment; only those seeking a clean break used the Oath.

Lu Qingyao couldn’t hide her excitement. Jiang Xun masked it better, but his eyes shone with delight. The eyesore was finally leaving.

Only Guan Xuelan looked displeased. “Is this your way of rebelling?”

“Rebelling?” Gu Xiu asked, puzzled.

“You know I would not normally agree to let a core disciple leave, yet you produce this. If not a threat, what is it?” she questioned coldly. “Do you think my punishment is too severe? Do you feel wronged? This tactic of ‘retreating to advance’ is quite clever.”

Gu Xiu was baffled. “Retreating to advance?”

“Is it not obvious?” Guan Xuelan sneered. “You are hailed as a hero. If you leave now, the world will accuse us of ‘kicking away the ladder.’ You are using the Oath to threaten my reputation.”

Lu Qingyao’s disgust deepened. She had thought he was being sensible, but he was just being manipulative. Despicable!

Gu Xiu sighed. Even after everything, his master’s first thought was her own reputation.

“Master truly has an extraordinary imagination,” he whispered.

“Hmph! Your behavior over the last three years has been a constant disappointment,” Guan Xuelan declared. “I held onto a faint hope for you, but your jealousy runs too deep. Fine. You will not go to the Water Prison. You will spend three years at Reflection Cliff to ponder your transgressions.”

Gu Xiu didn’t move. “This disciple wishes to sever ties with the Qingxuan Holy Land entirely. I ask Sect Leader Guan to grant this request.”

“You dare continue this threat?” Guan Xuelan’s eyes flashed with Mahayana level fury.

A terrifying pressure crashed down upon him. Gu Xiu staggered, his bones creaking, nearly forced to his knees. But he stood firm. He bowed respectfully. “I ask Sect Leader Guan to grant this request!”

“Do you think I am so easily manipulated?” Enraged, she intensified the pressure. Gu Xiu spat out a mouthful of blood. She snorted, and the force struck him like a hammer. His white hair cascaded around him, but he remained unbowed.

He wiped the blood from his mouth. “I ask Sect Leader Guan to grant this request!”

“Fine… Very well!” Guan Xuelan snapped. The pressure dissipated instantly, leaving him reeling. She snatched the paper and materialized a brush with her Qi. Before signing, she looked at him one last time. “If you believe I can be threatened into submission, you are mistaken. I ask one final time: do you truly wish to abandon our sect?”

Gu Xiu didn’t hesitate. In the visions he had seen, this sect was a cage that sucked the marrow from his bones. “I ask Sect Leader Guan to grant this request!”

She signed.

Instantly, the paper erupted in a brilliant golden light. It rose into the sky as the Heavenly Rule manifested to witness the severance. Gu Xiu felt something being stripped from his soul—the fortune of the sect. The Jade Token flew from his hand, landing in Guan Xuelan’s grasp.

To others, this was the loss of a great destiny. To Gu Xiu, it was the breaking of shackles. He felt an unprecedented sense of relief. The tiger was returning to the forest; the dragon was entering the ocean.

“Many thanks for granting this request, Sect Leader Guan!” Gu Xiu bowed. “By the rules, those who leave must return all treasures and have their techniques nullified. My treasures were returned three years ago, and my cultivation was ruined long ago. We are even. I take my leave.”

He turned and walked away without looking back.

Lu Qingyao was elated. Jiang Xun appeared troubled. “Master… Senior Brother Gu was just confused. We should…”

“Enough!” Guan Xuelan waved him off, her voice like ice. “He wanted to threaten me. He must learn that I do not yield. Issue a decree: from this day forward, Gu Xiu has no connection to the Qingxuan Holy Land. No disciple is to offer him shelter or aid. Let us see how he survives without our protection.”

Her voice carried through the air, reaching Gu Xiu just as he stepped beyond the main gate. He merely smiled.

At that exact moment, deep within the Ask Heaven Pavilion, a woman in dark robes suddenly coughed up blood. Her face turned ashen.

“What happened?” she gasped, her eyes full of terror. “Five hundred years of the sect’s fortune… why did it just vanish? Have we invoked the wrath of the Heavens?”