As soon as Su Luo stepped out of the main peak, she went straight to find the Sect Master of the Tianyiji Sect. As luck would have it, the First Elder was also in the grand hall, and the two of them looked as though they had just finished discussing matters.
Su Luo bowed to both of them, briefly recounted what had happened, and then looked up at Sect Master Liu with eyes full of anticipation.
Spirit stones! Her spirit stones!
Sect Master Liu sat high upon the grand hall's throne, wearing a kindly smile for Su Luo while inwardly cursing Qingyazi to high heaven.
That wastrel Qingyazi! To think he had the nerve to tell him to give Su Luo two thousand high-grade spirit stones as compensation! With Qingyazi busy cultivating day in and day out and completely ignoring sect affairs, how could he possibly know what a massive expense two thousand high-grade spirit stones was?!
However, with not just Su Luo present in the grand hall, Sect Master Liu could not afford to let his expression sour. He quickly put on a pretense of trying to persuade her to stay, only to heave a heavy sigh when she politely declined.
"Ah... What a pity. Junior Sister Su, I watched you grow up with my own eyes. How can you just up and leave like this?"
Su Luo lowered her head with a desolate look, keeping silent.
Standing nearby, the First Elder heard the Sect Master's words, rolled his eyes, and let out a cold sneer.
What a pity? Not a single person in the Tianyiji Sect would feel any pity for Su Luo. What was there to regret about a good-for-nothing without any talent? These people were far too hypocritical.
Sect Master Liu carried on his little performance, sighing, "Very well. If you ever need help in the future, just come to me."
Su Luo nodded, mentally treating his words like so much hot air.
"No matter what, you were once a disciple of the Tianyiji Sect. Now that you are leaving, it is only right to give you some compensation." Seeing Su Luo staring fixedly at him, Sect Master Liu cleared his throat, raised a hand with a flick of his wrist, and caused a storage bag to materialize before Su Luo, suspended in mid-air.
Of course compensation would be given, just to prevent anyone from saying the Tianyiji Sect mistreated its disciples. But two thousand high-grade spirit stones was simply too much! Su Luo was a naive girl, so he figured a token amount would suffice.
Besides, since Su Luo was leaving the sect and had no backing, if he simply acted as though the full compensation had never been discussed, surely the girl wouldn't dare bring it up to him, right?
"There are two thousand mid-grade spirit stones in here, Junior Sister Su. Please accept them."
When Sect Master Liu finished speaking, Su Luo's expression did not change in the slightest, but the First Elder beside them frowned slightly.
The message he had overheard clearly stated two thousand high-grade spirit stones—how had it suddenly turned into two thousand mid-grade ones?
Seeing that Su Luo made no move to take the storage bag, simply standing there and staring at him, Sect Master Liu's eyes flickered.
"Junior Sister Su, why aren't you taking it? Could there be some problem?"
Su Luo did not miss the trace of unease that had just flashed across his eyes, and the corners of her lips curved upward.
Clearly, Qingyazi had told the Sect Master to give her some high-grade spirit stones as compensation, yet somehow it had been downgraded to mid-grade spirit stones?
Fortunately, she had already prepared her response: "There is no problem at all. I am simply too moved. I never expected that even after leaving the sect, Sect Master Uncle would still give me five thousand mid-grade spirit stones as compensation. This makes my heart feel so warm..."
In reality, Su Luo was swearing up a storm inside.
"That old miser Sect Master Liu! How dare he dock my pay!"
This Sect Master Liu was the executive head of the Tianyiji Sect, the stingiest man alive, who valued spirit stones more than his own life. In her past life, when another disciple left the Tianyiji Sect, Sect Master Liu had begrudged the money so much that he cut the payout in half.
That former disciple hadn't dared to demand the rest, but she certainly did! Whatever belonged to her, she would take back down to the last coin!
And with the upright and unyielding First Elder right here to watch, with him keeping an eye on things, even if she demanded the full amount, Sect Master Liu could do nothing to stop her.
With that thought, Su Luo lowered her head and rubbed her eyes, putting on a deeply moved expression as expressions of gratitude tumbled from her lips like water from a broken dam.
"Many thanks to Sect Master Liu. Su Luo will gladly accept this kind gesture. Once I am out in the world, Su Luo will be sure to spread the word far and wide about the Tianyiji Sect's virtues, telling everyone how generous the sect is even toward a disciple who has left its fold. After all, you actually gave me a whopping two thousand—mid-grade spirit stones!"
Su Luo spoke loudly, deliberately emphasizing the words "two thousand mid-grade spirit stones," causing the complexions of both Sect Master Liu and the First Elder to shift dramatically in unison.
Giving two thousand mid-grade spirit stones to an ordinary inner sect disciple was certainly a generous sum, but if the outside world found out that the Tianyiji Sect had only given Qingyazi's personal disciple two thousand mid-grade spirit stones, there was no telling how mercilessly they would be mocked!
Next, Su Luo tilted her head in feigned confusion.
"Although what I heard earlier was that Elder Qingyazi said he wanted to give me some high-grade spirit stones as compensation, I suppose I must have misheard. After all, how could Sect Master Uncle intentionally give me fewer spirit stones than I'm owed? Am I right?"
Sect Master Liu: "..."
This truly was a fatal question. Should he answer or not?
At that moment, Sect Master Liu finally realized he had severely underestimated Su Luo.
The girl clearly knew she was supposed to receive high-grade spirit stones, yet he had deliberately skimped on her. Instead of confronting him directly, she threatened to broadcast his conduct to the entire world, and she was doing it right in front of the First Elder while offering backhanded praise about how he would never shortchange her on spirit stones!! It had driven him into a corner from which he could neither advance nor retreat!
As expected, the First Elder could no longer bear to watch. He slammed his hand down on the table, turned to glare coldly at the Sect Master, and delivered a sharp reminder.
"Junior Brother, know when enough is enough. Do not treat people like fools."
With the Patriarchs of the Four Great Sects currently in secluded cultivation, no matter how powerful the Tianyiji Sect was, they still had to guard against the Sword Flight Sect and the other two sects hovering like tigers eyeing their prey. If word of this got out and opponents managed to seize upon it as ammunition, there was no telling how viciously they would be ridiculed!
With that, the First Elder flicked his sleeve angrily and strode away without ever looking back.
The sting of those words burned fiercely on Sect Master Liu's face. He gritted his teeth and cursed inwardly.
"That stubborn old mule didn't give me an ounce of face!"
He knew the First Elder was warning him lest he push the girl too far and drive her to spread rumors that would utterly ruin the Tianyiji Sect's reputation—especially since plenty of outsiders were waiting to watch them make fools of themselves!
Sect Master Liu turned his gaze back to Su Luo, his eyes filled with a fresh trace of scrutiny.
The girl had always possessed a poor reputation and a timid, cautious nature. Why had she grown so bold now that she was leaving the sect? To think he had assumed she was naive and easy to bully; she was not someone to be trifled with after all!
It seemed he had no choice but to hand over the goods honestly and figure out some way to smooth things over...
Su Luo seemed to have guessed what was going through his head. "Sect Master, the hour is late, and I still need to head down the mountain. I thank you once again for your kind intentions."
With that, quick as lightning, she snatched the storage bag before her and swept it into her own storage bag with a brisk *whoosh*.
Sect Master Liu: "..."
Moving with such lightning speed—was she honestly terrified he might demand those two thousand mid-grade spirit stones back?!
He took a deep breath, clenched his teeth, and with a heart aching as if bleeding, had no choice but to retrieve another storage bag and push it forward.
"There must have been a mistake in the Second Elder's message, and I misread it. Since the Second Elder mentioned high-grade spirit stones, the amount cannot be shorted. Here are two thousand high-grade spirit stones. Take them... and keep them safe. Once you are outside, if anyone asks, this will let them know that the Tianyiji Sect never mistreats any of its disciples!"
A single misstep brings eternal regret! He should have just honestly given them from the start; now he had ended up having to fork over an extra two thousand mid-grade spirit stones on top of everything!
"Then I am most grateful to Sect Master Uncle!" Su Luo's eyes gleamed with light as she grabbed the storage bag and swiftly stowed it into her own, smiling from ear to ear with crinkled eyes.
"When I go out into the world, I will definitely sing the praises of the Tianyiji Sect's generosity and virtue, and I will never let down your expectations!"
Sect Master Liu's heart was bleeding; unwilling to lay eyes on this infuriating wretch for another second, he immediately waved his hand to chase her away.
"I have matters to attend to and will not detain you further. Fellow Daoist Su, make haste down the mountain."
Su Luo raised an eyebrow.
It seemed the old miser was truly angry—he had even stopped calling her "Junior Sister"~
"Then please take care, Sect Master Liu. Su Luo takes her leave."
With that, Su Luo turned and strode out of the grand hall. Employing Sword Flight, she soared toward the sect gates without ever looking back.
On her way out of the Tianyiji Sect, she hummed a tune, glancing down at the scenery below with high spirits, only to catch sight of Ning Wanshuang and her two companions.
Ye Danqing and Qin Xiu were still the same as ever, guarding Ning Wanshuang like a pair of knights, chattering incessantly around her, completely oblivious to the fact that the person they were shielding behind them was an utter lunatic.
Su Luo shook her head, not wishing to dwell on it.
Never mind, these people had nothing to do with her anymore. Besides, she was flying high and fast; surely these people wouldn't notice her...
Alas, things did not go as she wished.
Almost the next second, Ning Wanshuang raised her head as though sensing something, looked straight up at Su Luo, and called out to her.
"Senior Sister Su?"
"‽"
Su Luo was so startled by that familiar "Senior Sister Su" that she nearly tumbled right off her sword.
Ye Danqing and Qin Xiu turned their heads in the direction of the voice as well.