The person who blocked him was Li Tianhen, the Sect Master of the Four Gods Sect. Si Nansheng recognized him instantly, yet everything before her eyes felt somehow wrong.
In her past life, she had also been punished in this grand hall, but back then, Li Tianhen had not been here!
"Li Tianhen, are you trying to meddle in the personal affairs of our Shengtian Sect?" Feng Zeyan asked with an unpleased expression, looking at him with a blustering front.
"Sect Master Feng, you are mistaken. In my view, since this child dares to swear an Inner Demon Vow, she cannot be a bad child.
Why not give her a chance to prove her innocence? Since your little disciple lying on the floor is telling the truth, what is there to fear about letting her swear an Inner Demon Vow?"
Li Tianhen looked at Feng Zeyan and spoke calmly. Feng Zeyan's expression instantly turned extremely ugly, clearly suppressing the fury in his heart.
"Besides, how old is this child? Her cultivation is so low, Sect Master Feng, with a full-force strike like that, did you truly intend to take this child's life?"
Finished speaking, Li Tianhen swept his gaze across the people gathered in the hall one by one, asking with a smile that did not reach his eyes.
"Fellow Daoists, what do you think?"
Hearing this, the people in the hall instinctively nodded in agreement, and someone spoke up on behalf of Si Nansheng.
"Sect Master Li is right. Sect Master Feng, placing all the blame on this child and listening to only one side is biased indeed!
Furthermore, your attack just now was far too heavy. Did you really intend to take this child's life?"
"How could I possibly want her life? I merely wanted to discipline her," Feng Zeyan said uneasily.
"Discipline? So Sect Master Feng's idea of discipline is a full-force strike? Those who know would know she is your disciple, but those who don't might think she is your sworn enemy," Li Tianhen said lazily.
"Li Tianhen, you would do well not to meddle in the affairs of our Shengtian Sect."
Feng Zeyan's tone carried a heavy threat, but Li Tianhen did not care in the least, acting as if he had noticed nothing at all.
Li Tianhen smiled coldly and was about to say something when he noticed Si Nansheng staring fixedly at him.
Her gaze was crystal clear; where was there even a shred of grievance?
"Thank you, Senior Li, for speaking up for Nansheng, but Master does not believe me," Si Nansheng pouted with a wronged expression.
"Since none of them believe you, why not leave?" Li Tianhen raised an eyebrow, looking at Si Nansheng.
"Her? A good-for-nothing, once she leaves the Shengtian Sect, where could she possibly go?" Shen Jingyuan looked at Si Nansheng with disdain.
He certainly did not believe Si Nansheng would ever be willing to leave. No matter what, she was a direct disciple in the Shengtian Sect; without it, she was nothing more than a useless piece of trash.
"Do Master and Senior Brother view Nansheng the same way Second Senior Brother does?" Si Nansheng blinked her large, watery eyes and looked innocently at Feng Zeyan and Su Heng.
To Si Nansheng's question, no one gave an answer, and a look of deep disappointment instantly washed over her face.
"Senior Li, are you still in need of a disciple?" Si Nansheng took a deep breath and looked aggrievedly at Li Tianhen.
Li Tianhen looked at Si Nansheng in silence for a moment. "…… I am."
"Then would you mind taking in a useless disciple?" Si Nansheng asked again.
"I don't mind. Although the Four Gods Sect isn't large, supporting a little good-for-nothing is no problem at all." Ignoring the gazes of the others, Li Tianhen smiled at Si Nansheng.
He looked at her, wanting to see what kind of character this twelve-year-old child possessed, and just how far she could go when faced with the hostility of the entire sect.
Hearing Li Tianhen call her a little good-for-nothing, Si Nansheng felt no sense of insult. Instead, she detected a hint of indulgence—an unprecedented, uniquely hers kind of indulgence.
"Then once I sever ties with the Shengtian Sect, may I join the Four Gods Sect?"
"You may."
At this answer, Si Nansheng flashed a brilliant smile at Li Tianhen.
"Thank you, Senior Li. It turns out that once I leave the Shengtian Sect, Nansheng still has somewhere to go." Overwhelmed with gratitude, Si Nansheng instantly teared up.
To everyone else, she looked like an abandoned little pitiful creature.
"Si Nansheng, what on earth are you playing at? With so many seniors present, saying such things—aren't you just making things difficult for Master?"
Eldest Senior Brother Su Heng looked angrily at Si Nansheng. The words she had just spoken to Li Tianhen were a resounding slap across Feng Zeyan's face!
She had not even left the Shengtian Sect yet, and she was already finding a way out for herself.
"Nansheng didn't want to leave either, but none of you believe me, and Second Senior Brother even wants to dig out my Spirit Root to give to Junior Sister Liu.
Once my Spirit Root is dug out, I will be a cripple with no face left to stay in the Shengtian Sect. Since Senior Li is willing to take me in, naturally I must choose to leave with him."
With reddened eyes, Si Nansheng staggered over to him and drew a small wooden sword from her Storage Ring.
"This is the last time I will call you Eldest Senior Brother. You carved this small wooden sword with your own hands and gave it to me when I first entered the Shengtian Sect. You said that as long as this small wooden sword remained, you would forever be my Eldest Senior Brother, and I could come to you with any trouble.
Today, this small wooden sword is still here, but I no longer need you. I am returning this to its rightful owner, and I also ask that you return my jade pendant—it is the only thing my parents left behind for me."
With one hand, Si Nansheng held out the small wooden sword toward Su Heng, while with the other, she directly removed the jade pendant hanging from his waist.
"Si Nansheng!" Su Heng gritted his teeth as he glared at her.
How could she dare?
In the past, didn't she cherish the small wooden sword he gave her above all else?
She wouldn't even let the other senior brothers touch it, yet today, she was actively returning it to him?
And that jade pendant—it was something she had joyfully gifted him, yet now she was demanding it back in front of so many people.
"My things, I am taking back myself. It is only right," Si Nansheng glanced at him and said slowly.
"Si Nansheng, don't you regret this!" Su Heng said, snapping the small wooden sword right in half and throwing it to the ground.
He expected Si Nansheng to be heartbroken just like she used to be, but to his surprise, she didn't even spare it a single glance.
A cold laugh echoed in Si Nansheng's heart. In her previous life, Su Heng had also broken this very sword with his own hands, and back then, she had cried and begged him not to do it.
Yet he had told her that she was unworthy of possessing his things.
Now that she no longer cared for it, why was the grand eldest direct disciple of the Shengtian Sect flying into a rage?
"What are you doing? I haven't taken anything of yours." Seeing Si Nansheng walk up to him, Shen Jingyuan furrowed his brow into a tight knot.
"Of course, I don't intend to take anything back from you either. When I first entered the Shengtian Sect, you did give me some welcome gifts, but later on, you took them all back to give to Liu Xuewei.
Now, the only thing I have left is a fire-attribute Sword Technique you gave me. Unfortunately, I am a Water Spirit Root; I can't use it at all, nor have I ever learned it. Now I am returning it to its rightful owner, and I no longer owe you anything."
Si Nansheng shoved the Sword Technique into Shen Jingyuan's arms and turned away, not even leaving him a parting glance.
Shen Jingyuan looked down at the manual in his hands. He had given it to her back then merely to coax her; in truth, it was just an ordinary Sword Technique he had practiced himself.
He never expected her to keep it all this time, nor did he expect her to return it to him in full view of everyone!
Overcome with sudden rage, he slammed the Sword Technique straight down onto the ground.
Si Nansheng was doing this on purpose, deliberately making him lose face in front of so many people.
Walking up to Li Tianhen, Si Nansheng handed the jade pendant in her hand over to him.