Chapter 127: Past Events

Although Xu Qianfan was the leader of the Kongtong Sect, whenever an expert from outside came to challenge them, it was always Lin Tieqiao who stepped forward to meet them. The Kongtong Sect was a major school of martial arts; those who dared to challenge them were naturally no mere nobodies. Many of these opponents possessed martial arts skills that had long since surpassed Xu Qianfan’s. Over the years, Xu Qianfan knew better than anyone how many times Lin Tieqiao had shielded him from blades, risked life and limb to defeat opponents, and saved him from death. To kill Lin Tieqiao would have been equivalent to cutting off his own arm.

As for Zhao Shouyi, although he held the rank of an elder in the Kongtong Sect and possessed extraordinary martial arts, he remained childlike in spirit despite his great age. Beyond his obsession with martial practice, he spent his days in aimless mischief, either visiting friends or wandering the world of martial arts, rarely staying at the Kongtong Sect. Sometimes he would even don rags to perform street acrobatics or hawk dog-skin plasters. On other occasions, if he saw thieves stealing at night, he would quietly follow them; once the burglars had moved the goods out of a house, he would secretly move them back for the victim. Only after the thieves had spent half the night working for nothing, crying out that there was a ghost, and fled in a panic, would he walk away laughing. How could such a person ever harm a fellow disciple? Thus, if anyone were to claim that someone benefited from Lin Tieqiao's death, the truth was that no one had gained anything at all. The mystery lay precisely in that fact.

When "Ghost Sword" Han Qinghua openly appeared in Hengzhou, the various uncles of the Kongtong Sect finally remembered that he should have been included in their initial list of suspects. Some speculated that because Han Qinghua had an isolated and unapproachable personality, and Lin Tieqiao was silent and aloof, perhaps the two had harbored a long-standing grudge. However, after reflecting on the past, everyone felt this was unlikely. The three most favored disciples of Elder Ciji had been Han Qinghua, Xu Qianfan, and Lin Tieqiao. Though their personalities were vastly different, Xu Qianfan was vibrant and shared deep friendships with both, whereas Han Qinghua and Lin Tieqiao were neither good at socializing; they held no affection for one another and instead kept a respectful distance. While they lacked friendship, they also lacked enmity.

Therefore, the motive for Han Qinghua to kill Lin Tieqiao seemed insufficient. Yet, amidst the cacophony of speculation, a more terrifying thought emerged: that Han Qinghua had returned to seize the position of Sect Leader! They reasoned that Han Qinghua must not have died when he fell from the cliff all those years ago, but had instead survived by sheer luck. When he returned to the world of martial arts ten years later, he was shocked to hear that his master, Elder Ciji, had long since passed away and that Xu Qianfan had succeeded him as leader.

He must have been filled with resentment. He wanted to reclaim the leadership, but seeing Xu Qianfan and Lin Tieqiao working in unison, he realized that although his own martial arts were superior, he might not be a match for both of them combined. That was why he devised such a venomous scheme: to sneak in while most of the Kongtong experts were away from the mountain, kill Lin Tieqiao when he was off guard, and then openly force Xu Qianfan to abdicate. Yet, some unknown complication must have occurred after he killed Lin Tieqiao, causing Han Qinghua to disappear for another ten years.

Now that Han Qinghua had openly surfaced—forcing Xu Qianfan to flee to the ends of the earth without daring to return to the sect—he would surely ascend the mountain with great fanfare to forcibly seize control of the Kongtong Sect. Whoever served as leader when Han Qinghua arrived would be the first to face his wrath. Knowing Han Qinghua’s ruthless nature, no one dared to accept the position. In the end, they collectively nominated Qingyuan. Terrified, Qingyuan tried to decline, but the uncles gathered the disciples for an assembly and used a gold-urn lottery to determine the leader. Since the uncles had already conspired in secret, Qingyuan was elected unanimously.

With no other choice, Qingyuan had to steel himself and accept the symbol of the leadership: the Ancient Bronze Sword. It was said that the founder of the Kongtong Sect, Daoist Qingyun, was originally a grave robber. During one excavation, he accidentally broke through into an ancient tomb from the Spring and Autumn period. It turned out to be the burial site of the "Yue Maiden," the legendary swordswoman who had once demonstrated her skills to King Goujian of Yue. Inside the coffin, he found a bronze sword and a scroll of white silk covered in sword techniques. Believing it to be a sign from heaven, Qingyun turned over a new leaf, abandoning grave robbing to focus solely on the sword. He lived in the mountains, indifferent to worldly affairs, and practiced for thirty years. It was only when he was over fifty that he descended the mountain. Coincidentally, a martial arts tournament was being held across the eighteen provinces of Jiangnan, and with his single bronze sword, Qingyun defeated all the experts, gaining instant fame. He later retired to Mount Kongtong and founded the sect. After his death, the bronze sword he had used became the heirloom of every successive leader. However, no leader dared to carry such a precious artifact on their person; it was usually kept in a secret chamber, brought out only for significant ceremonies after ritual bathing and incense.

After Qingyuan took office, none of the uncles would listen to his commands. The Kongtong Sect was a century-old institution with vast wealth; the land at the foot of the mountain, the shops in nearby towns, and the porter businesses were all sect assets. Taking advantage of Qingyuan’s ignorance of the sect’s holdings, the uncles had carved up the deeds and contracts, leaving the Kongtong Sect with nothing but the barren mountain itself.

The original lands and businesses had become the private property of those uncles. Not content with just the wealth, they used the pretext of "training disciples" to take their own inner-circle followers down the mountain. Qingyuan was well aware of their motives: having seized the assets, they intended to roam the world to build reputations and lay the groundwork for establishing their own sects. Once the time was right, they would openly break away from the Kongtong Sect. But knowing their intentions, what could Qingyuan do? In terms of martial arts, he was inferior; in terms of schemes, he was outmatched. He could only sigh in helplessness.

Lin Qingli was furious upon hearing this and shouted, "Senior Brother, how can you be so spineless! Issue the leader’s decree, summon them back to the mountain, and I will confront them myself!"

Qingyuan replied miserably, "If I weren't so spineless, would I be in this position? Even if I issued the decree, they wouldn't come. I once entrusted Qingbai and the others to deliver a decree to the uncles, but... they tore it up right in front of them and subjected them to all sorts of humiliation."

After a long silence, Qingyuan whispered, "At this point, I don't even want them to come. If they did, I would only be afraid. But this won't last much longer. Next September marks the centenary of the founder Daoist Qingyun’s passing—only one year and eight months away. Even if we don't invite them, they will come. They intend to use the memorial ceremony to force me to disband the Kongtong Sect."

Lin Qingli asked in surprise, "No matter what, they are disciples of the Kongtong Sect. Why would they do this?"

Qingyuan answered, "In truth, they have always been jealous that our master became the leader, but they were no match for him in martial arts or strategy, so they submitted to him. Now that he is gone, they want to establish their own sects. But as long as the Kongtong Sect exists, they will forever be mere offshoots. Therefore, they can only find peace once they have disbanded the sect entirely."