Has the master gone insane

The discussions grew louder and louder. Some sighed over the bad luck of the Formation Breaking Sect, while others mocked the absurdity of the two elders.

Some secretly guessed whether there was a hidden agenda behind this. Amidst the clamor, even the cultivators passing by outside the teahouse could not help but stop, pricking up their ears to listen to this novelty.

It turned out that last night, Gu Changge's divine sense had already enveloped the surroundings of the Formation Breaking Sect airtightly.

When Yan Cangyun hunched over and sneaked into the Formation Breaking Sect's mountain-protecting grand array, Gu Changge lightly swiped his fingertips in the void, and pale cyan spiritual power wrapped around the array patterns like spider silk.

In an instant, the scene before Yan Cangyun's eyes slightly distorted.

He clearly saw the Grand Elder of the Ten Thousand Dharmas Pavilion, Molingzi, standing in front of the Scripture Pavilion with the Sect Master of the Formation Breaking Sect.

On the unrolled scroll in their hands, the distribution of the Burning Heaven Palace's mineral veins was clearly visible.

The words of their low-voiced conversation drifted over with the wind: "Our two sects will join forces, seize all the mineral veins of the Burning Heaven Palace, and then trample the Burning Heaven Palace's mountain gate..."

At the same time, Molingzi, who had just avoided the patrolling disciples, also fell into an illusion.

He saw Yan Cangyun holding up a token engraved with the emblem of the Formation Breaking Sect, grinning hideously at his confidant: "The deployment map of the Ten Thousand Dharmas Pavilion is in our hands. Tonight, we will burn their Scripture Pavilion..."

Seeing the scenes before them, both of them were burning with rage.

A gust of wind blew past, and the masks of the two fell off at the same time.

When enemies meet, their eyes blaze with hatred.

"Dog thief! Give me your life!"

Yan Cangyun's eyes practically split open in anger. The Burning Heaven Blazing Fire Flag suddenly unfurled, and skies full of fire crows rushed toward Molingzi with magma-like heat waves.

"You're courting death!" Molingzi shouted angrily. The moment his jade sword left its sheath, sword qi slashed toward Yan Cangyun like a waterfall.

The two exchanged blows in the illusion, every move aiming at the other's vital points.

Both of them thought that the Formation Breaking Sect was the other's ally.

Their footsteps were tacitly guided as if pulled by invisible threads, deliberately clashing in the most crucial areas of the Formation Breaking Sect.

Yan Cangyun's fire crows ignited the ancient texts in the Scripture Pavilion, Yun Chen's sword qi split open the array core of the mountain-protecting grand array, and even the stone stele engraved with the sect's history in the martial arts arena was crushed into gravel by their combined forces.

It was not until Yan Cangyun was heavily injured and made to vomit blood by a strike from Molingzi's sword, causing the Blazing Sun Token in his robes to erupt with golden light to protect his body.

Yun Chen's beard was burned away by the sparks. Only then did the two sober up slightly amidst the intense pain, but they still firmly believed that the other had colluded with the Formation Breaking Sect to scheme against them.

The great battle became even more intense, ultimately leaving behind only a ground full of yellow sand, burning ruins, and the dumbfounded faces of the Formation Breaking Sect disciples.

Formation Breaking Sect, Sect Master's Main Hall.

Chen Tieshan slumped in the grand armchair, looking out the window toward the charred Scripture Pavilion, his mouth twitching as if he had suffered a stroke.

He pinched a formation disk that had been shattered by sword qi in his hand, his knuckles turning white from the force. Suddenly, he slammed his hand heavily on the table, causing the tea in the teacup to splash out.

"Outrageous! This is absolutely outrageous!"

He paced back and forth in anger, his round-collared Daoist robe pulled askew. His usually meticulously groomed beard was now sticking out in a messy tangle, making him look like a tomcat with its fur standing on end.

"If you want to fight, then fight! If you want to rob mineral veins, then rob them! Did you two lunatics really have to come to my Formation Breaking Sect to tear down my home?!"

Chen Tieshan pointed out the door, his voice trembling.

"Three chests of unique copies in the Scripture Pavilion were burned! Seven thousand-year-old pill furnaces in the Alchemy Room were smashed! Even the array core of the mountain-protecting grand array was scorched to the point of emitting black smoke—who did I ever provoke?!"

The Grand Elder beside him held his forehead, looking miserable.

"Sect Master, the Patriarch was so angered right after coming out of seclusion that he went right back into seclusion. Before he left, he said... he said you must demand an explanation."

"Demand an explanation? From whom?"

Chen Tieshan plopped down on his seat, grabbed a spirit fruit from the table, and took a fierce bite, the juice dripping down the corner of his mouth.

"From the Burning Heaven Palace? Or from the Ten Thousand Dharmas Pavilion? Those two old geezers probably still think they are in the right, dead set on believing that my Formation Breaking Sect is colluding with the other party!"

The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. Suddenly, he slapped his thigh.

"I finally understand! These two did it on purpose! They know our Formation Breaking Sect is easy to bully, so they used us as a battlefield! Once I repair the grand array, I will definitely make them taste the power of the Thousand Mechanisms God-Trapping Array!"

Despite saying so, as he looked at his devastated sect, he ultimately let out a long sigh, deep helplessness welling up in his eyes.

Who could he blame for the Formation Breaking Sect not being as powerful as the Burning Heaven Palace and the Ten Thousand Dharmas Pavilion?

He probably had no choice but to swallow this bitter pill in silence for now.

At the same time, Qingxuan Sect, Sect Master's Main Hall.

Xuanyangzi held the newly received communication jade slip. Looking at the words "The Formation Breaking Sect suffered heavy losses, Chen Tieshan wants to cry but has no tears" on it, he first coughed violently twice, then could no longer hold back and burst out laughing.

Shi Wanshan leaned over and snatched the jade slip. The more he read, the brighter his eyes became. Finally, he slapped the table, laughing so hard he couldn't stand straight.

"Hahaha! That old boy Chen Tieshan! That's what he gets for robbing our spirit herbs last time! Now look what happened! Having half his sect dismantled by two lunatics, serves him right!"

Li Muran, Peak Master of the Pill Cauldron Peak, stroked his beard with a smile on his lips.

"It's quite strange when you think about it. Yan Cangyun and Molingzi have fought for so many years, so why did they choose to make their move at the Formation Breaking Sect? And they specifically targeted their Scripture Pavilion and Alchemy Room. It almost seems like... someone gave them a push from behind."

Xuanyangzi picked up his teacup, hiding the sharp glint in his eyes, and said slowly, "Who knows? Perhaps it is the will of Heaven."

Forging a blood feud between the Burning Heaven Palace and the Ten Thousand Dharmas Pavilion, scamming the Formation Breaking Sect in passing to avenge the stolen spirit herbs, and allowing the Qingxuan Sect to safely enjoy the show... it was truly brilliant.

Shi Wanshan was still hollering.

"I say, this is retribution! He spent all day scheming to reap the spoils without lifting a finger, and now he's become someone else's stepping stone! Next time I see him, I definitely have to ask if it hurt to see those three chests of unique copies burn."

The peak masters roared with laughter, and the atmosphere in the discussion hall was unprecedentedly relaxed.

On Bamboo Peak, bamboo shadows danced.

Gu Changge leaned back in a bamboo chair, his divine sense taking in both the laughter in the Qingxuan Sect's main hall and the gloomy clouds over the Formation Breaking Sect.

When he heard Chen Tieshan's phrase, "Who did I ever provoke?", he finally could not hold back and let out a low chuckle.

Sunlight fell on his face through the gaps in the bamboo leaves, reflecting a smile that carried a hint of slyness, like a child who had secretly hidden some candy.

"Master?"

Xiao Ruobai had just finished practicing the Nine Postures of Warring Heavens, a thin layer of sweat still on his forehead. Seeing Gu Changge laughing with his eyes closed, he couldn't help but be taken aback.

"What's wrong with Master lately? He often bursts out laughing inexplicably."

"Could it be that staying on Purple Bamboo Peak has made Master mentally unstable?"

Xiao Ruobai muttered in his heart, but his footsteps involuntarily drew closer. Looking at the irrepressible smile at the corner of Gu Changge's mouth, the more he thought about it, the stranger he found it.

Ever since Master took him in as a disciple, he would occasionally space out and laugh.

The more he thought about it, the more worried he became. He couldn't help but probe tentatively, "Master, have you... encountered a bottleneck in your cultivation and suffered qi deviation?"

Gu Changge was just savoring Chen Tieshan's tearless, miserable appearance. Hearing this out of the blue, he nearly choked on his own saliva.

He opened his eyes and looked at his disciple's earnest worry. The slyness in his eyes instantly turned into helplessness.

"What on earth goes through that head of yours all day?"

Gu Changge flicked his forehead with a bent finger.

"Your master is perfectly fine. I am much more normal than a brat like you who manages to trip over his own feet while practicing fist techniques."

Xiao Ruobai rubbed his forehead, yet he breathed a sigh of relief. Grinning, he said, "That is good then. This disciple thought... thought that staying on Purple Bamboo Peak for so long had left you troubled."

Could it be that my talent is just too extraordinary, and Master is simply overjoyed? Xiao Ruobai thought to himself smugly.