Chongming Xianzong

Chapter 465 Right and Wrong Are Hard to Distinguish
The two found a secluded military tent, opened the spirit seal, and dismissed their attendants.

"When did you find out, Brother Dao?" Kang Dabao asked in a desolate tone, his brows furrowed, his expression complex beyond words.

A gentle breeze stirred within the tent, brushing against Qin Sufu's hair. As stray hairs lightly brushed against his cheeks, a ray of warm sunlight slanted down from the glass curtain wall above the tent. This halo of light seemed to linger on him, clinging to his body, unyielding to the wind.

The phrase "a gentleman as handsome as jade" is indeed very fitting to describe him.

The Great Master Kang had envied his close Daoist brother's handsome face countless times before, but now, even though his mindset had matured considerably, a trace of envy still seeped into his heart.

"I thought my brother would be like me, occasionally confused," Qin Sufu said, his voice low and weary.

Kang Dabao's expression relaxed, and he stammered, "That was my intention, but..."

Qin Sufu interjected, "I suspect it's Brother Pei who has passed away, isn't it?"

"."

Kang Dabao remained silent, his face filled with sorrow. Qin Sufu did not press further. He simply sighed, closed his eyes, and said, "Your disciple is so alike of his mother. When I first met him, I felt a strange sensation that I have never forgotten."

And every time I visited, Brother Pei would refuse to see me. How could I not know after a while? After all, this is the only time I've ever done this in my life.”

Upon hearing this, Kang Dabao's eyes flashed with pain. At the same time, Pei Yi's weary voice floated in his ears: "Junior brother lost his mother at the age of three. After his stepmother gave birth to his younger brother, she treated my younger brother and me even more harshly. She didn't care about our biological father or our clan."

In the winter of the sixth year, the weather was extremely cold, and the ice on the Daling River was more than five feet thick. My younger brother fell ill with a high fever that wouldn't go down. We had no money at home and couldn't find a doctor, so my stepmother asked me to go out and break the ice to catch carp so that I could cook soup to help my younger brother get better.

Even though I was wearing a cloth robe, the cold wind was still biting. After digging for three days without finding any carp, I fell seriously ill. My father still didn't care, and my stepmother continued to beat and scold me. At that time, my younger brother, who was only four years old, went to the door of every household in the clan and kowtowed. After much difficulty, he finally managed to get a pot of hot porridge to keep me alive.

After that, my parents continued to rarely inquire about us. My younger brother and I always had only coarse grains and wild vegetables to fill our stomachs. Occasionally, when a kind person in the clan took pity on us, we could barely manage to have a full meal. This situation only improved when my junior brother ascended to heaven at the age of seven and became a disciple of our master.

My younger brother has no spiritual roots and cannot cultivate, yet because of me, he has gained the support of various families in the clan, enjoying fertile lands, mansions, gold, silver, and children, and his life is relatively stable. Even when Master took me, his junior brother, away from the sect temporarily, I did not forget to bring my younger brother's family with me. But I never expected that this time, it would harm my younger brother and his wife.

The year after Que'er was born, my master and I glimpsed a spiritual opportunity on the road and left behind a group of mortals to search for the treasure. Unexpectedly, we were tricked by three seriously injured evil cultivators who, on a whim, lured us away from the mountain and wanted to use the mortals from the Pei and Li families as food for healing.

In just a few breaths, hundreds were killed or wounded, the screams of agony filling the air. At this moment, however, a cultivator bravely intervened.

Kang Dabao remembered that when Pei Yiyan arrived here, he paused and then said in a low voice, "Qin Sufu helped with the axe, killed the evil cultivator, and saved the lives of everyone present."

However, he didn't want to be poisoned by the evil cultivator's "Fragrance Powder" during the fierce battle. Unable to dispel it in time, he desperately sought a woman to dispel the poison and prevent it from seeping into his heart. His sister-in-law was thus abducted. His younger brother, brave and resolute, did not retreat, but in his attempt to stop him, he was grazed by the sharp light of a rising magic weapon, and his body was never recovered.

"However, Qin Sufu, perhaps out of concern for his reputation, or out of guilt, or perhaps out of a sense of goodwill, did not kill the mortals who witnessed the incident. But he did not expect that the young patriarch of the Pei family would climb the mountain every year to deliver spring vegetables and winter fruits to me, and once witnessed Qin Sufu discussing the Dao with us, thus remembering his divine face."

Pei Yi raised his eyes and cast his gaze upon Sect Leader Kang, sighing with melancholy:
"I told him not to tell anyone about this, not even our master, so as not to cause him unnecessary trouble. Senior brother, you must have encountered this old man, who longs for his homeland, when he came to the sect leader to complain about this evil thing when you passed by Shandugang once, right?"

Kang Dabao's expression was solemn, and he nodded in agreement.

Pei Yi's face showed no emotion, only his voice trembled slightly:
"Then, senior brother, do you think junior brother should hold this grudge?"

"So, senior brother, do you think junior brother can rest assured?"

"So, in your opinion, is Qin Sufu right or wrong?"

-----

A sharp glint flashed in Kang Da's eyes as the image of Pei Yi dying with resentment flashed through his mind, forcing him to suppress his inner turmoil. Even though he knew he had no right to ask such a question, he still spoke firmly: "Brother Dao, do you think you are wrong?"

Qin Sufu was slightly surprised, but in an instant, the worry between his brows vanished. He did not answer Kang Dabao's question, but simply asked in a calm voice, "Whether you believe it or not, brother, I have only done this once in all my years of cultivation."

"Isn't it wrong to do it once?!"

"So you can't even do it once?!" Qin Sufu roared, his voice so powerful it could almost shatter the camp walls outside the tent.

Caught off guard, Kang Dabao's momentum was diminished by Qin Sufu's shout. Just as he was about to speak again, Qin Sufu said, "After harming that woman, I followed Shan Gong to restrain the rogue cultivators and comfort the common people. I have saved so many people who deserved to die that I can't even count them myself!"

If I were to lose my life there, who would do these things?! Would you, a peddler who only knows how to talk to people in a certain way and is only good at sweet-talking, do them?!

Kang Dabao was caught off guard by Qin Sufu's outburst and didn't know how to respond. Qin Sufu, however, had been holding this matter in for who knows how long, and now that it was exposed, it was unstoppable. "If I hadn't saved him back then, would your disciple have even grown up?!"

"If I hadn't saved him back then, would I have never suffered from this heart disease all these years?!"

"If I hadn't saved him then, wouldn't I have gained a brother and lost an enemy?!"

"If I hadn't saved you back then, would it be your place, Alliance Leader Kang, coming all the way to question me now?!"

Kang Dabao's imposing manner vanished, and he was rendered speechless by the questioning. However, Qin Sufu did not stop there; he continued to ask:
"If I had only harmed an ordinary woman, not Pei Yi's sister-in-law, would you and he have come to thank me afterwards, or would you still hold a grudge against me?"

"If I had only harmed an ordinary woman back then, not Pei Yi's sister-in-law, would I have been free of these superfluous thoughts and had all my inner knots untied, or would I still be suffering from this torment of conscience all these years?! Wasting my spiritual practice?!"

Although Qin Sufu spoke softly, Kang Dabao's mind was shaken by these questions, and he remained silent for a long time, unable to answer.

After a long while, Master Kang realized he could not stay any longer. So he bowed again, turned his back, and left.

"Please wait a moment, Sect Leader Kang,"

Kang Dabao paused, slowly turned around, and saw that although Qin Sufu's eyes were still bloodshot, the anger on his face had subsided considerably.

When Qin Sufu saw Kang Dabao turn around, he let out a long sigh, as if he had finally released all the pent-up frustration in his heart. He took a deep breath and forced a warm look between his brows: "If Sect Leader Kang still recognizes me as his brother in the future, then I will not forget you, my little brother."

Master Kang trembled, and without agreeing, he bowed his head again and said, "I hope that you will never forget the teachings of Master Shan over the years, and never forget the orphaned boy that our master carried out of the water."

Qin Sufu's fierce expression suddenly hardened, and then his confidence vanished. He remained silent, watching Kang Dabao's figure disappear from the front of the tent.

The sun gradually set, and the halo that had surrounded him had dissipated at some point, leaving only a solitary figure standing silently in the dark military tent.

Ten days later, Xiao Huanshan
Despite his busy schedule, Master Kang still managed to leave the front lines of the land reclamation project and return to the mountains. Without informing anyone, he went alone to Pei Yi's coffin.

He stood to the side, suddenly recalling the scene when he, along with Han Yundao and Duan Anle, reunited with the Pei family uncle and nephew at Yushan Market, and sighed inwardly.

Of all the people present, only Duan Anle remained by his side.

Besides Kang Rongquan, who had returned from Wild Fox Mountain, Yuan Changsheng, who had rushed back from the front lines of the Pitu Temple, and Ye Yaoling, whose injuries had not yet healed, the person who had been guarding the coffin was also Xiao Wumeng, the close follower of the Great Master Kang.

That little boy from back then is now nearing sixty, and his loyal and adorable appearance is long gone. The Great Sect Leader Kang is now a Foundation Establishment True Cultivator, comparable to a Pseudo Core Formation cultivator, and has no need for an old, mortal Martial Grandmaster to serve him.

However, Kang Dabao never revoked the title of the sect leader's personal attendant, which was enough to allow Xiao Wumeng to live a carefree life on Xiaohuan Mountain, which was full of cultivators.

"Sect Leader, you're finally back!" Wu Meng bowed with red eyes. Sect Leader Kang forced a smile and said in a low voice, "Junior Brother Pei told me last time that your eldest grandson, Wu Meng, was found to have spiritual roots at the Ascension Ceremony a few years ago and is currently cultivating at the Yu Lin Hall. That's wonderful. You should return home and enjoy your grandson's company."

“Yes,” Wu Meng’s face was still filled with sorrow, but Kang Dabao stopped talking to him and instead moved closer to Pei Yi’s coffin, scrutinizing the latter’s face.

Inside the coffin were several preservative herbs, carefully selected by the Kuai family, all of which were flavors that Pei Yi had preferred during his lifetime, without any conflicting effects. When Pei Yi's disciples saw their sect leader return to the clan, they could no longer hide their sorrow, each with tears in their eyes, a truly moving sight.

Kang Dabao remained silent for a while, and no one could discern the change in his heart. They only heard him ask in a deep voice, "Did Junior Brother Pei leave any unfinished words in the letter before he passed away?"

Kuai was already sobbing uncontrollably and behaving improperly. Ye Zhengwen frowned and did not answer. Only Kang Rongquan, the senior brother who was leading the group, came forward to respond.

"Before he left, Master said that the Li and Pei families were originally sinners of the sect, and it was only thanks to the sect leader's benevolence that they were able to return to the sect and share in its glory. Master said he had figured it out and asked the sect leader to prioritize the overall situation and not to delay the important affairs of the sect because of the Pei family."

Seeing the doubt on Kang Rongquan's face as he spoke, Kang Dabao knew that Pei Yi hadn't told anyone a word before leaving. He felt relieved and muttered, "Why did my junior brother speak such strange words before leaving?"

After a sigh of disappointment, Kang Dabao continued, "I went in place of my junior brother. I asked him, but he couldn't answer; he asked me, but I couldn't answer either. I went there full of resentment and returned full of disappointment."

"Senior brother, I lack the ability to discern right from wrong in this matter. I can only promise junior brother that, from now on, under Chongming's jurisdiction, unless there are circumstances beyond our control, there will be absolutely no way for evil cultivators to survive."

After saying this, Sect Leader Kang only kept Pei Yi's face in his mind, and then he did not speak to anyone in the hall again. He turned around and rushed to the front line of the land reclamation without looking back.

(End of this chapter)