SSEWC Chapter 61

In the grand and solemn conference room atop the main hall, a crisp sound of a metal object hitting the ground echoed at this moment.

As Yan Qing’an’s long sword touched the ground, He Heng reached out and embraced his waist, guiding him smoothly into his arms. Immediately, he picked up the sword from the ground and handed it to the small demon by his side.

Nie Zong watched his usually aloof junior nephew now obediently nestled in the other’s embrace, feeling a strange yet harmonious atmosphere that was hard to describe.

At this moment, he could feel his own forehead pulsating rapidly.

Seeing the two still standing together without any intention of separating, Nie Zong coughed twice, breaking the awkward silence.

“Cough, cough,” Nie Zong coughed twice, breaking the awkward atmosphere.

Following that, he glanced at He Heng and then turned to Yan Qing’an, saying:

“Qing’an, step outside for a moment. I have something to discuss with him.”

“Master Uncle,” Yan Qing’an immediately looked somewhat worriedly at He Heng, as if afraid that Nie Zong might trouble him once he left.

Seeing this, Nie Zong furrowed his brows and said, “I won’t do anything to him.”

Honestly,

Watching Yan Qing’an protect this little rascal so much, Nie Zong couldn’t help but wonder if he had been enchanted by the other party.

He Heng didn’t mind at all; he smiled and leaned in towards Yan Qing’an’s ear, saying, “It’s okay.”

Then he looked at Nie Zong and said, “I assume Elder Nie has important matters to discuss with me, and he won’t do anything to harm me.”

“Yes.”

Hearing him say that, Yan Qing’an could only nod slightly.

He Heng smiled at him again and said, “You must be hungry after that exertion, Master. Go ahead and grab something to eat; I’ll come find you shortly.”

After saying this, Yan Qing’an’s face turned red all of a sudden, and his long eyelashes trembled slightly. After hesitating for a while, he stammered, “Okay.”

Standing on the side, Nie Zong observed all of He Heng’s subtle actions, silently criticizing in his mind:

This little rascal is quite good at expressing affections for no reason. His thoughts must be quite extensive!

And my junior nephew seems completely enthralled by him. How can this continue?

However, what’s the deal with this overwhelming affection coming from these two?

On the other side, just as Yan Qing’an left the room, He Heng took the initiative to speak,

“Elder Nie, coming all the way from Huayang, I assume you have something important to discuss with me?”

“Hmph,” Nie Zong sneered lightly, walking up to stand face to face with He Heng.

“You should be well aware that you are no longer a disciple of my Huayang Sword Sect, and there is no master-disciple relationship with my nephew.”

With that, Nie Zong’s tone sharpened even more,

“This is the path you chose for yourself. Since you have become the Demon Lord of Nine Nether Yellow Springs, you should no longer entangle yourself with my nephew. Huayang Sword Sect settled its debt to the He family when he saved your life three years ago. I don’t want to delve into the intricacies of your past grievances, but from this moment on, focus on being the Demon Lord, and have no more connections with our righteous path.”

After Nie Zong finished speaking, the atmosphere suddenly fell silent.

Just as Nie Zong was unsure of He Heng’s attitude, he saw the other person smile and raise an eyebrow, “Elder Nie, do you think that as the Demon Lord, I shouldn’t have any dealings with the righteous path?”

At the words, Nie Zong remained silent, but the expression on his stern face spoke volumes.

“Clap! Clap! Clap!”

He Heng applauded.

The next moment, a nearby small demon immediately, with a telepathic understanding, approached a nearby safe. They skillfully retrieved two large black boxes from it.

“So, how about this?”

He Heng took the box from the other’s hands and placed it on the table.

“Snap!” The moment the clasp was undone, an almost blinding golden light filled the entire room.

To prevent his eyes from being blinded, Nie Zong instinctively covered his eyes with his hand. Peeking through his fingers, he saw that the table was adorned with two large boxes of dazzling spirit stones.

“This,”

He immediately became furious,

“What do you mean by this?!”

Is He Heng trying to insult him with money? Does he look like the kind of person who would sell his nephew for two boxes of silver?

This little rascal is truly going too far!

“Don’t misunderstand,” He Heng said nonchalantly, “this is just a token of my sincerity.”

“As far as I know, the largest and once-every-four-years grand competition in the cultivation world will be hosted by Huayang Sword Sect next year. However, due to the declining influence of the sects over the years, it seems that the economy of the six major sects has not been thriving. The number of new disciples admitted each year has been decreasing.”

“Previously, my master, as the top sword cultivator of Huayang Sword Sect, once he breaks through the tenth layer of the Nine Yang Sword Technique, he is likely to become the first cultivator in nearly a decade to re-enter the realm of immortality. At that time, he could indeed revitalize the sect’s glory. However,”

“Now, everything seems impractical. With the sects in conflict, it’s probably difficult for Elder Nie to gather the funds needed to support the grand competition in a short time. Even the promotion for next year’s recruitment might be a bit challenging.”

As he spoke, Nie Zong’s brows furrowed, and his expression turned unpleasant.

As the head of the Huayang Sword Sect, he had never entertained the idea of using Yan Qing’an to revitalize the sect. The fate and development of a sect have their own course, and Yan Qing’an, as his nephew, is a highly talented cultivator. Naturally, he hopes that Yan Qing’an can achieve his own ideals and fulfill all the goals that cultivators strive for throughout their lives.

He Heng’s words sounded noble, but he failed to consider who was responsible for Yan Qing’an’s inability to cultivate the Unfeeling Dao.

He Heng had noticed Nie Zong’s displeasure earlier, but he continued nonchalantly, “I know that part of the reason my master couldn’t cultivate the Heartless Dao is because of me. That’s why I want to do my best to mend the relationship with the righteous path.”

“Master Nie, take a good look,” He Heng suddenly raised his voice and turned around, pressing a mechanism in the corner of the wall.

The next moment, the stone wall in front of them made a thunderous sound and slowly moved aside, revealing the dazzling pile of golden spirit stones inside.

“The two boxes just now were just my earnest money.”

“Master Nie, I’m not using money to insult you or to bribe you. I want to formally join the Huayang Sword Sect as an investor.”

“Not only that, I will also financially support future events jointly organized by the six sects. As a reasonable response, I hope the cultivation world will once again accept the demon realm and the local monsters. Let us achieve trade freedom in the six realms as soon as possible. Additionally, I hope my master can preside over the next sect competition.”

“Even if he hasn’t cultivated the Heartless Dao and can’t break through the tenth layer of the Nine Yang Sword Technique, he is still the strongest sword cultivator today. So, what do you think of my proposal? Is it suitable?”

At this moment, Nie Zong was somewhat at a loss. He couldn’t come up with any arguments against the proposal.

The main point was that the suggestion was indeed a win-win situation, and Nie Zong couldn’t find any drawbacks.

For the demon realm, they wanted to open up a larger cooperative market, and cooperation with the righteous path was the best strategy for sustained development. For the Five Schools and Six Sects, the influx of funds meant more fresh blood, addressing the biggest problem the righteous path was currently facing.

As for Yan Qing’an, even if He Heng hadn’t made such a request, Nie Zong would have had him preside over the next sect competition. In terms of both strength and character, there was no one more suitable in the entire Huayang Sword Sect.

Seeing Nie Zong’s brows furrowed and his struggle to respond, He Heng took the initiative to ease the situation.

“Elder Nie, as for your concern about whether I should be entangled with my master again, perhaps you can ask him for his thoughts before making a decision.”

“After all, we are both adults. Wouldn’t it be better to let him choose for himself?”

After He Heng spoke, the atmosphere once again fell into silence.

The conversation lasted for about fifteen minutes. After it ended, the tightly closed door was pushed open from the inside, and He Heng and Nie Zong walked out one after another.

Yan Qing’an had casually eaten something to fill his stomach earlier, and now he was leaning against the bench outside, half-supporting his head with his hand. His long eyelashes trembled, and it seemed like his eyelids were about to close. He looked genuinely exhausted.

However, the moment he heard movement, he subconsciously turned his gaze towards He Heng, his expression carrying undisguised concern.

Seeing this, He Heng quickly walked over to him, “Tired?”

“Not really.” Yan Qing’an shook his head, looking up at him, “What did you talk about with my Master Uncle?”

“Nothing much,” He Heng smiled at him and, with a sidelong glance towards Nie Zong, said, “It’s just that Elder Nie may have a few words he wants to discuss with your master privately.”

“Hmm?” Yan Qing’an was slightly puzzled, not quite grasping what these two were scheming.

“No worries, Master. I’ll be waiting outside for you.” He Heng gestured towards the direction outside and walked out, creating space for the two to talk privately.

After He Heng left,

“Qing’an.”

Nie Zong walked in front of Yan Qing’an, “I ask you, are you willing to preside over the sect competition held by Huayang Sword Sect next year?”

In the current cultivation world, major sects had an unspoken rule that the host of each sect competition would be a candidate for the future sect leader.

By saying this to Yan Qing’an, Nie Zong was implying that he wanted him to inherit the position of sect leader in the future.

Upon hearing this, Yan Qing’an hesitated for barely a moment before giving a straightforward response, “Since Master Uncle trusts me and is willing to entrust such an important matter to me, I am naturally willing.”

But the next moment, Nie Zong changed the tone of his words, his voice suddenly becoming serious,

“What if I say you are not allowed to see He Heng anymore? You should know that the righteous and demonic paths have always been incompatible. As the future sect leader of Huayang Sword Sect, you should distance yourself from him.”

“Master Uncle!”

Yan Qing’an interrupted Nie Zong before he could finish, “I can’t agree to that request.”

Perhaps due to fatigue, Yan Qing’an seemed a bit weary, and his voice sounded a bit tired.

However, at this moment, he widened his eyes and looked at Nie Zong with great seriousness:

“I can’t fully agree with what you just said. I’m not sure how you would handle this if our opinions differ. But I can only say that no matter whether we can reach an agreement or not, I cannot agree to your request.”

Yan Qing’an understood why Nie Zong had biases against He Heng, but he couldn’t explain to Nie Zong that He Heng and his previous disciple were not the same person.

And Yan Qing’an wasn’t confident in persuading Nie Zong. All he could do was stand firm on his position.

After he finished speaking, a sudden silence fell over the atmosphere. Nie Zong lowered his eyes, and the expression in his eyes became dark and unclear.

Just when Yan Qing’an thought that Nie Zong would remain silent, he heard a soft sigh.

“Ah.”

Looking at Yan Qing’an’s stubborn expression, Nie Zong sighed with some relief.

Finally, he helplessly smiled, patted Yan Qing’an’s shoulder, and said, “Forget it, forget it. Young people nowadays have their own ideas. This old bone of mine shouldn’t interfere anymore.”

Yan Qing’an was taken aback, “Master Uncle, I didn’t mean that.”

But Nie Zong shook his head and sighed, “I know, I know. Since this is your choice, I won’t interfere anymore. Think it through for yourself.”

With that, he turned his head to the other side of the hall, where He Heng was leaning against the door, looking in their direction. It seemed like he was waiting for Yan Qing’an.

Yan Qing’an clearly noticed this and, in the instant he caught sight of He Heng, took a step forward instinctively, almost unable to resist walking toward him.

Nie Zong sighed and said to Yan Qing’an, “Ah, go ahead.”

At this moment, he felt a bit like the “vicious sect leader” who separates a couple.

Yan Qing’an hesitated for a moment, “Master Uncle, what about you?”

Nie Zong waved his hand at him, “I’m fine. I’m a grown man. Can’t I find my way back? Alright, stop dawdling. It’s getting dark now. I need to have dinner. You guys go and do whatever you need to do.”

Watching Nie Zong’s somewhat awkward demeanor, Yan Qing’an couldn’t help but smile wryly. After bidding farewell to Nie Zong, he walked slowly towards He Heng.

After parting ways with Nie Zong, the two of them had some food, and after a simple wash, they went to bed.

In the warm bedroom,

Yan Qing’an lay in the soft bedding, surrounded by a warm and familiar aura. He quickly felt drowsy.

Resting his head on He Heng’s chest, as his eyes were about to close, he mumbled unclearly, “What did you say to my Master Uncle earlier? Why does it feel like his attitude changed so suddenly?”

He Heng kissed his forehead, “Master, I didn’t say much to him. After all, words can only express so much.”

“Ah?” Yan Qing’an was puzzled.

He Heng said, “I gave him some money. After all, there’s hardly anything money can’t solve. If it’s not enough, I’ll give him more.”

 

 

 

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