Yi Renmei was practicing transformation arts under the guidance of her second senior brother, Luo Wuyu. Having diligently practiced this spell for a whole year, she finally transformed into a large wild goose-finch this time, and flew triumphantly and ecstatically into the sky.
Luo Wuyu called out from behind with concern, "Be careful not to be caught by other birds and beasts." The goose-finch circled around Luo Wuyu once before soaring into the sky. Luo Wuyu beamed with joy, unable to close his mouth. "Renmei has grown up too, and the Peak of Yunxiao now has hope."
Yi Renmei soared above the seven main peaks, flying right over Luzhu Peak at that moment. "I have completely mastered this method of channeling vital energy." Li Ping raised his head to look at the sky and happened to see the large wild goose-finch transformed by Yi Renmei. "Let's grab a bite to eat on the way to the confinement room."
Wang Yun looked in the direction where Li Ping had thrown a stone and saw the finch fall down. "Too far, didn't kill it. Watch me." Wang Yun hurled another stone, and upon hearing a miserable shriek from the finch, the two quickly ran after it. The finch fell into the bushes and reverted to Yi Renmei's appearance. "That hurts like hell! Which bastard did this?" Yi Renmei brushed aside the branches and saw the two of you looking around as if searching for something. "What are you two doing?"
The two of them stared at Yi Renmei for a long time, noticing that her attire was different from theirs, carrying the rich and elegant air of a noble family's child. Doubt filled their minds, but unfortunately, their stomachs were growling with hunger. "We are looking for another goose-finch," Li Ping said.
"I saw it! Did you guys use stones to knock it down?" Seeing her previously radiant and flushed face suddenly turn angry, Wang Yun felt that Yi Renmei at this very moment was even more beautiful and captivating than before.
"This is our signature water-skimming skill that we've practiced bitterly for ten years. Impressive, right?" Wang Yun said smugly. Yi Renmei was instantly bursting with rage. "That goose-finch was me!" The two men instantly turned as pale as death, quickly took to their heels, and couldn't help shouting, "There's a monster!"
"You guys stop right there!" Yi Renmei chased after them. Li Ping turned his head and saw Wang Yun, lagging behind him, about to be grabbed by Yi Renmei. "Channel your energy into your feet!" Li Ping shouted. Just as Yi Renmei's hand was about to brush Wang Yun's shoulder, Wang Yun suddenly pulled off an afterimage from beneath her grip, causing Yi Renmei to grab empty air. She looked over and saw that Li Ping had already hidden more than twenty meters away from her.
"Not bad," Yi Renmei said cheerfully. "I'm going to use my full strength now too." The two moved through the forest with complete agility and ease, just like a pair of rabbits. Every time Yi Renmei was about to catch them, her path would be blocked by a tree. "How can they be this agile?" Seeing the footwork they used while channeling their cultivation, Yi Renmei could tell at a glance that it had been honed through a thousand trials, being both extremely simple and swift. "What Cultivation Formula is this?"
"Let's lead the monster to Lei Yunshen," Li Ping said.
Lei Yunshen had gathered all the disciples of Luzhu Peak at the martial arts practice ground in the center of the courtyard. All the disciples stood in neat square formations, practicing their Sword Technique under Lei Yunshen's direction. Seeing Sect Master Yi Lüchuan walking over, Lei Yunshen stopped and stepped forward to greet him politely. "I'm just here to see how these disciples are learning. Do as you please."
"Sect Master, your frequent visits make me feel immense pressure. Is there something I haven't done well?"
"No. It's just that looking at your more than three hundred disciples—let alone the Seventh Realm, not even the Sixth Realm has been reached—I am quite curious about how you usually instruct them."
"Your subordinate has never slackened for a single moment. I simply teach them the exact way my former masters taught me."
"You have been the peak master at Luzhu for nearly ten years. Many of these disciples were raised by your own hands, and you could say half of them are like your own sons. You should know their character and talents inside out."
"Although they may not have much ability right now, I guarantee that in a few more years, they will certainly make contributions to the Peak of Yunxiao."
As the two were talking, they heard the shouts of Wang Yun and Li Ping. Numerous disciples stopped and looked over together, only to see the two shouting about a monster, followed closely by a young and beautiful woman. Everyone burst into hearty laughter for a moment.
"What are you two doing? The Sect Master is right here, and you have no manners at all," Lei Yunshen said.
"Sect Master, that woman is a monster," Li Ping managed to gasp out after catching his breath.
Lei Yunshen recognized Yi Renmei. "That is the Sect Master's niece."
Wang Yun said with a straight face, "So the Sect Master is a monster too."
"How is the Sect Master a monster?" Lei Yunshen demanded.
"Why wouldn't the Sect Master be a monster?" Wang Yun retorted.
Lei Yunshen was so furious that sweat broke out on his forehead. "I told you both to go to confinement, why did you run here instead?"
"Didn't we tell you, there's a monster," Li Ping said.
"I keep telling you she isn't one," Lei Yunshen said with extreme impatience.
"You say she isn't, so she isn't? What reason do we have to believe you?" Li Ping shot back. Lei Yunshen was burning with rage; if Yi Lüchuan hadn't been standing right beside them, he really would have slapped both of them flat onto the ground.
Seeing Lei Yunshen's neck swell red with anger, Yi Renmei said, "Look, this is her monster form." With a sudden twist, Yi Renmei transformed into a wild goose-finch. The surrounding air suddenly froze. When Yi Renmei transformed back, she saw that all the disciples behind her had faces as pale as death. Someone let out a piercing scream of "Monster!"
Everyone panicked and fled in all directions, some being shoved to the ground and falling, some being trampled, and others sent flying by collisions. No matter how loudly Yi Lüchuan shouted for them to stop, they ran about in every direction as if they had lost their minds. When Yi Renmei began to hear the miserable screams of the people lying on the ground, she realized she had taken this prank way too far, and shouted loudly, "Don't panic! Don't run! I'm not a monster!"
Seeing that the situation was turning ugly, Yi Lüchuan swiftly grabbed Yi Renmei in a reverse lock and pinned her arm.
"See that? The Sect Master has captured the monster!" Lei Yunshen shouted at the top of his lungs, and the surrounding panic suddenly came to a halt.
Seeing his numerous fellow disciples lying on the ground wailing like ghosts and howling like wolves, Wang Yun couldn't help happily remarking, "How magnificent."
Lei Yunshen glared at him, and Li Ping pulled Wang Yun away toward the exit. They had barely walked a short distance before Lei Yunshen called out to them. Two fierce slaps flew across the air, sending both of them crashing to the ground. The two people who had been following from behind hid to the side upon witnessing this scene. Yi Renmei tried to charge forward, but Yi Lüchuan held her back.
"Look at the fine mess you two caused!"
"How can you blame this on us? It was that Sect Master's niece who was playing tricks," Li Ping said.
"That's right! They were the ones fighting each other desperately, chasing and pulling at each other, and that's how it turned out," Wang Yun said.
Lei Yunshen grabbed both of them by the throat. "Do you two think you're getting bolder lately? That pile of firewood couldn't stop you, so you can go over to the neighboring Qingyang Peak and dig up medicinal herbs for me. The same old rules apply: if you don't finish digging the herbs, you aren't allowed to eat."
"There are many poisonous herbs and venomous insects on Qingyang Peak, and the Sect Master has issued a strict order forbidding disciples from going there," Li Ping said.
"Suddenly you're very obedient to the Sect Master's orders," Lei Yunshen said, tossing a herbal manual to the two of them. "Stay in the confinement room for half a month, learn everything in here by heart, and harvest them for me according to the book—twenty kinds at a time, and not a single one can be missing."
Watching Lei Yunshen walk away, Wang Yun said, "I really want to slaughter him. That pile of firewood made me starve for three years, and if Young Master Li hadn't taught us how to use the Night Hook Moon, we wouldn't have been able to handle that pile of firewood even now. And now he's dug up another batch of herbs. Is there no end to this?"
"Forget it, this is actually perfect timing. I've been wanting to go to Qingyang Peak anyway to get some medicinal herbs and sell them down the mountain. I heard they're worth a lot. Once we gather enough silver, we'll sneak away from this ghost place."
Watching the two slowly walk away, Yi Renmei looked at Yi Lüchuan, finding it hard to believe what she had just heard. "Is this really how Lei Yunshen instructs his disciples? How deep is the hatred between them?"
"He wants to devote himself to researching alchemy, so he makes these disciples do hard labor for him and chop his firewood. It seems he hasn't been able to buy medicinal ingredients lately."
"And you just let him carry on like this? You saw what the scene was like just now—a mere prank turned into this. If there really were a monster, it would be catastrophic."
"We can't find anyone else to instruct this group of disciples. The Peak of Yunxiao has already become a place despised by everyone in the pugilistic world. It used to be a place of dreams for everyone cultivating immortality, but alas, only five hundred years have passed—far too short a span in the Immortal Sect."
"Second Uncle, let me be the Peak Master here. I'll definitely be better than Lei Yunshen."