The crowd of onlookers immediately switched sides and began to condemn the disciples of Purple Peak for their shameless behavior.
"With Master Bai backing them, the Purple Peak disciples have been getting more and more outrageous lately."
"Sigh, this is just too much. Causing trouble on someone else's territory... If it were me, I'd be angry too."
Qin Yu and Ye Zhiyao were being pointed at and whispered about by the crowd. Ye Zhiyao's eyes immediately filled with tears. Shaking her head, she said, "I didn't... I just came to apologize. You've all misunderstood me..."
Qin Yu frowned, shielding Ye Zhiyao. "My junior sister only came to apologize. What has she done wrong?"
Li Qiancheng snorted. "And my Little Junior Sister was just cultivating in her cave residence. What has *she* done wrong?"
"I'm done wasting my breath on you. Today, I'm getting justice for my Little Junior Sister!"
With that, Li Qiancheng attacked.
Seeing this, Qin Yu immediately pushed Ye Zhiyao aside and moved to intercept him.
As for Lu Sangjiu... well, she didn't need Li Qiancheng to tell her twice. She had already scurried far, far away.
'Fight Magic with Magic. So you know how to play the innocent victim and make men throw themselves at you? Well, I can play that game too, and provoke my senior brother's protective instincts and fiery temper!'
'Let's see whose backup is stronger! Go, Senior Brother, don't drop the ball now!'
Qin Yu and Li Qiancheng had comparable cultivation levels. One was a Magic Cultivator and the other a Sword Cultivator, both of them formidable fighters, so they were evenly matched.
Lu Sangjiu could tell, however, that both of them were holding back. They probably didn't dare to get too vicious right in the middle of the Seven Emotions Sect.
A fight like this was truly boring. After watching for a moment, Lu Sangjiu couldn't help but call out, "Eldest Senior Brother, both of you, stop fighting!"
'No one's going to die at this rate. If that's the case, what's the point of fighting at all?!'
Ye Zhiyao must have heard Lu Sangjiu's shout, because she snapped back to her senses and chimed in with her own plea. "Senior Brothers, please stop fighting! I came here to apologize, not to cause a fight!"
Unfortunately, their pleas fell on deaf ears, and the commotion ended up alerting the Law Enforcement Hall.
But since they were all Direct Disciples of their respective peak elders, the Law Enforcement Hall didn't know how to handle the situation. They could only pass the problem on to the Sect Leader.
The Sect Leader, Master Qian He, looked down at the four people kneeling before him and felt a headache coming on.
'Like master, like disciple,' he thought. He had just finished adjudicating a dispute for their masters, and now, in the blink of an eye, their apprentices were here.
He couldn't help but vent the frustration he felt toward their masters on these juniors. "The thing this sect forbids above all else is infighting among disciples! You dare to be so brazen within the sect's walls? If you were outside, would you not be satisfied until one of you was dead?"
"We would not dare."
In front of the Sect Leader, the four of them showed an unprecedented level of silent agreement.
After delivering a thorough scolding, Master Qian He's mood improved somewhat, and only then did he ask for the reason behind the conflict.
After hearing them out, he said, "In this matter, you two from Purple Peak were indeed the first to be at fault. However, Red Peak was wrong to attack first. You must all be punished!"
He stroked his beard, pondering for a moment before looking at Qin Yu and Ye Zhiyao. "We've just received news that a demon beast of the Fourth Rank or higher is suspected to be active in the Luoya Mountain region. Several Cultivators have already gone missing. As it happens, Qin Yu, with your Late-stage Golden Core cultivation, you should be able to suppress it. You two will lead a party to investigate."
"This mission will serve as your atonement. There will be no reward."
Normally, Sect missions came with some sort of reward. This trip sounded dangerous, and they'd be doing it for free. It was, indeed, a punishment.
The problem was... Lu Sangjiu's previous cave residence was right near Luoya Mountain!
'I have to hand it to the main character's plot armor,' Lu Sangjiu thought. 'It's supposed to be a punishment, but she's being sent right to a fortuitous opportunity.'
'It doesn't matter if she takes the mission willingly or as a punishment. In the end, the result is always that Ye Zhiyao has to go to Luoya Mountain.'
After announcing the punishment for Ye Zhiyao and Qin Yu, Master Qian He turned to Lu Sangjiu and Li Qiancheng. "As for you two... you're sentenced to sweep the main gate for one month!"
Lu Sangjiu: "..."
'We're both being punished, but the heroine gets sent straight to a lucky break while I have to sweep the gate???'
She was indignant, but Li Qiancheng beside her seemed rather cheerful. After all, it was only sweeping the gate. For a Cultivator, it was an incredibly easy task that wouldn't even take fifteen minutes a day. To put it bluntly, it was just a token punishment.
This showed that the Sect Leader was still fair and knew that they were the ones who had been wronged.
Li Qiancheng shot Qin Yu a smug look, which earned him a furious, teeth-gritting glare in return.
However, just as Li Qiancheng was about to thank the Sect Leader, he heard Lu Sangjiu cry out, "No, Sect Leader! This is too unfair!"
Everyone was stunned. They hadn't expected Lu Sangjiu, who had gotten off lightly, to actually protest the Sect Leader's decision as unfair.
Master Qian He had initially thought she seemed quiet and well-behaved, giving him a decent impression. But upon hearing her words, his expression immediately darkened.
He looked at Lu Sangjiu coolly. "Oh? You say my judgment is unfair? Then what would you have me do?"
Li Qiancheng, thinking that Lu Sangjiu didn't even want to accept this minor punishment, grew anxious and tugged at her sleeve.
Just then, however, Ye Zhiyao suddenly spoke up from the side. "Junior Sister Lu, don't talk back to the Sect Leader. If you're unwilling to accept the punishment, you can wait for me to come back, and I will sweep the gate in your place."
Qin Yu looked at Ye Zhiyao with a helpless sigh. "Junior Sister, you are simply too kind."
Lu Sangjiu: "..."
'I really can't handle this kind of "kindness,"' she thought. 'Whoever wants it can have it!'
'After all, if she really wanted to take the punishment for me, Ye Zhiyao could have just told me privately later.'
'Saying it out loud in front of everyone like this—wasn't she just trying to show everyone how willful and unreasonable I, Lu Sangjiu, am, while she, Ye Zhiyao, is beautiful, kind, and considerate?'
Sensing the Sect Leader's increasingly displeased gaze, Lu Sangjiu quickly spoke up. "Senior Sister Ye, you misunderstand. It's not that I'm unwilling to sweep the gate."
With that, she turned to Master Qian He with a serious expression. "Sect Leader, although I did not attack, it was my fault for failing to stop my senior brother. I cannot bear to let him be punished on my behalf."
"Besides, if we're all to be punished, then it should be an equal punishment for all... I wish to be punished in my senior brother's place. I will go with Senior Brother Qin and Senior Sister Ye to Luoya Mountain and atone for my transgression with merit!"
Her speech took everyone by surprise, and the way they looked at Lu Sangjiu began to change.
Master Qian He's gaze was no longer filled with displeasure. Instead, it held a hint of warmth. "It is good that you have such righteous intentions, but you only recently achieved Foundation Establishment. I fear a trip to Luoya Mountain would be too dangerous for you."
Lu Sangjiu stated resolutely, "One must bear the consequences of their own actions. I cannot bring shame upon my master, nor can I burden my Eldest Senior Brother!"
Li Qiancheng hadn't expected Lu Sangjiu to defend him so staunchly. He was deeply moved and immediately added, "Sect Leader, I am willing to be punished alongside my Little Junior Sister!"
"My Little Junior Sister is right! We can't let others look down on us. So what if it's Luoya Mountain? As long as I'm there, I will naturally protect my Little Junior Sister and keep her safe!"
Lu Sangjiu cried, "Eldest Senior Brother!"
Li Qiancheng exclaimed, "Little Junior Sister!"
With tears welling in their eyes, the two of them looked just short of embracing and weeping. The bond between senior brother and junior sister was truly enough to move the heavens and shake the earth!
Qin Yu: "..."
'Are these two insane?'
Master Qian He, however, was moved. "Excellent! It seems Xingyun did not misjudge when he accepted you two as his disciples. Very well, I shall grant your request!"