Chapter 155: The Burning Thorns Sect (Patreon)

The Burning Thorns Sect derived its name from a very particular tradition that it had followed for many generations. The small mountain whose gentle slopes the sect’s facilities were built on, was covered by a forest made up entirely from a rare species of tall pine trees. What made trees of this species unique was that, while their bark and wood were very resistant to flame, their needles were quite flammable.

According to their tradition, the sect would let the forest grow and even nurture it only to then, once every decade, set it ablaze in a ceremonial festival. The pine needles, along with all the shrubbery and everything else in the forest would burn to ashes and only the charred, bald trees would be left standing. The largest and best trunks would then be harvested, while the others were left standing to grow out new needles and start the cycle anew.

Over the centuries, this tradition had succeeded in gathering an unnatural amount of flame Qi in the area, making it suitable for the sect’s cultivation. It had also colored the soil of the entire region in a dark grey with ash and soot. Together with the charred black skeletons of the trees that hadn’t managed to survive the last festival, the forest had a unique character that made the mountain seem almost unnatural.

It was out of this forest that a group of eight cultivators dressed in the Burning Thorns Sect’s robes, which matched the dark gray of the soil they were walking on, stepped, to meet Liu Wei who had been waiting in place after crossing the sect’s detection formation. They were unarmed but visibly tense, as if ready to jump back and make a run for it at a moment’s notice.

Liu Wei supposed that they could guess who he was from his cultivation, so he truly couldn’t fault them for it. Here he was, a cultivator strong enough that, currently, their entire sect wouldn’t be able to put up much of a fight, from a sect which they had recently fought a war against, arriving at their doorstep unannounced and alone. They would be fools not to be wary.

A quick sweep of Liu Wei’s soul sense revealed that two members of the group, a bald man with a long black goatee and a youthful woman whose face was half-covered by an ivory mask, were at the peak of the Dao Attunement Realm while the rest where all in the high stage.

Once they had entered comfortable hearing distance, the bald man separated from the group, somewhat timidly stepping forward before stopping a couple of paces away from Liu Wei and bowing, to which the other cultivators quickly followed suit.

“Greetings, esteemed Master! We are not acquainted, but am I right to assume that I am speaking to the venerable Elder Liu Wei of the Lunar Peaks Sect?”

“Yes, that would be me.”

“Yes! Surely such a magnificent presence could only belong to one man! Ah…”, The man began scratching the back of his head. “I apologize. I am deeply honored to stand before such an accomplished and renowned man! I am Tang Luli, currently acting as lead elder of the Burning Thorns Sect in the absence of a patriarch.”

Luli. That meant that this man was a relative of the former patriarch Guyuan Luli, who had been at the head of the force that had attacked their relief force. If memory was serving correctly, the Luli Family had been the Burning Thorns Sect’s leading clan for many generations.

“These”, Tang Luli gestured to the other cultivators behind him, “are the current elders of our sect. We are all humbled by your presence! If I may ask, what brings you to a lowly sect like ours?”

Liu Wei stroked his beard as he examined the group before him. There was no need to reveal his hand here. Doing so would only complicate the investigation for now and if the responsible person was truly among the sect members, they would take even greater care to hide themselves.

Fortunately, the sect’s current situation provided him with the perfect excuse.

“I was in the region for… personal reasons when I heard of your current predicament with the demonic cult. Naturally, I couldn’t my fellow practitioners of the flame hanging like this.”

“I see, I see… Your generosity truly humbles us, Elder Wei!”

Several of the elders seemed to ooze relief at his declaration, though Tang Luli didn’t seem to become any less tense.

“It is only natural that I offer my help as a fellow cultivator of the alliance. I also heard that you have not yet chosen a new patriarch after the unfortunate death of Zang Sha and thought that you could surely use the advice of an older cultivator like me on the matter.”

“You are too gracious, honored elder! Truly, we could not thank you enough for your advice.”

He did his best to sound and look joyful, but didn’t manage to hide the pained undertone enough to escape Liu Wei’s experienced gaze. He reacted by putting on a deliberately sly smile.

These elders may not be of the same caliber as those from his own sect, neither in strength and age, nor in political experience, but they weren’t naïve younglings either; they would hardly believe that he was truly here out of the kindness of his heart – after all, they’d fought on opposite sides of a war not too long ago.

If the little act he was putting on worked as intended however, they would hopefully think that he had come to use their situation as a pretense to intervene in their succession struggle to build his influence or access their resources. That way they wouldn’t interfere with his actual goal in coming here.

The person he wouldn’t be able to fool, of course, if they were truly among them, was the assassin. Perhaps though, he would at least be able to seed some doubt in their mind. People liked to think that things were going their way and few would like the thought that a Dao Contemplation Cultivator was going after them.

“I just do what I can to set a good example for the generations after me. After all, isn’t that what we should all be striving for as followers of the Dao?”

Ironically, Liu Wei was being fully honest here, just doing his very best to make it sound like he was just rattling down hollow platitudes.

“Yes, yes, of course! But it is still commendable to see you follow these ideals so closely. Now, we gladly welcome you into our sect as an honored guest. I fear, however, that we are not prepared to offer you accommodations befitting someone of your station. If you wish, you could take residence in the patriarch’s pagoda for the moment, since it is empty right now.”

Liu Wei shook his head.

“I would never impose on you that way. It would be disrespectful to your former patriarchs and your sect to put myself in the same position that way. I wish only for a place that allows me to cultivate quietly and without being disturbed. Somewhere on the outskirts of your sect would be perfect.”

He didn’t want rumors about the zither he played while cultivating to start spreading, so he truly did want an undisturbed place. First and foremost, though, he needed a place that was difficult for the elders to have monitored, so he could quietly come and go to investigate the sect. He wanted those who had something to hide from him to be on their toes, because that would hinder any coverup operations. The patriarch’s residence, right on top of the mountain and in the center of the sect, would have been very inconvenient for that.

“Of course, honored elder Wei! We shall prepare the most formidable residence we have on the outskirts of the sect, and we shall make sure that nobody disturbs you there! In the meantime, please allow us to serve you some refreshments. Oh, and we will naturally be holding a feast in your honor in the evening. Your presence there would be appreciated by all of our sect members!”

“Then I shall naturally attend.”

“Allow me to thank you in the name of all of our sect members! Now, please do let me guide you inside. We shall issue you a visitor token of the highest rank, so that you can move through our humble sect unobstructed.”

Liu Wei nodded and followed the elder as he turned around. The other elders parted to make way for them before following them back into the forrest.