C4 He Said That It Was a Pity That It Was a Pity That He Did Not Do It

Amidst the dismal clouds and howling black winds, the Yin Yang Sect was nestled within a sorrowful mountain landscape, yet it flourished with its own vibrant splendor. The towering buildings were impressive, but it was the sight of young men in colorful brocade garments that truly hinted at the opulence of this place.

Suddenly, the deep toll of a bell echoed in the distance.

"Is that the Yin Yang Joy Bell? What's the big news within the sect?" a drowsy young man in brocade attire mused as he rose from his intricately carved bed, attended to by two stunning beauties who helped him dress and freshen up.

"Young Master, the bell's pattern suggests a joyous occasion," replied the woman combing his long hair.

"A joyous occasion? Well, then there's no rush," the young man replied with a lazy yawn, contemplating a return to his bed for a bit more sleep.

"Young Master, you mustn't miss the sect assembly," the woman gently reminded him.

"I never said I wouldn't attend. I'll just arrive a little later. Go ahead and tell them I practiced late into the night and overslept," the young man said nonchalantly, wrapping his arm around one of the beauties and playfully nibbling at her earlobe.

"My dear, you've bathed in secret with the Resurrection Lily again. But such tricks won't kill me," he teased, turning to the girl he had been teasing and gazing affectionately at her trembling face. He pinched her nose fondly and added with earnest, "You'd better come up with a better plan to end me, because once I achieve my Golden Core breakthrough in a couple of days, it won't be so simple."

The servant girl bowed her head, her heart seething with unspoken resentment against this demon who, despite his youthful appearance, was well over fifty.

"Congratulations, Young Master! Your talent is unparalleled, and soon you will achieve the Golden Core," the women in the radiant bedroom chorused, bowing in reverence, including the servant girl.

"Cultivation is such a bore. Let's embrace the joys of the moment," the young man declared with a hearty laugh, pulling the servant girl closer with his left hand while reaching for the plain-clothed woman with his right.

"Young Master, I shall head to the grand hall now," the woman said, excusing herself.

The woman in plain clothes slipped away quietly, as graceful and swift as a bird in flight, her sleeves billowing as she soared off.

"I truly regret teaching her the art of lightness," the young master muttered, a hint of resignation on his face. He then scooped up a strikingly beautiful woman and tossed her onto the ornately carved bed, their laughter filling the room.

Stepping out of the embroidered gateway, the woman's face had lost its previous serenity, now etched with the pain of deep-seated hatred.

"Murong, you old devil, I, Chu Yunrou, swear I'll personally reduce you to ashes one day."

Despite her overwhelming desire for vengeance against the devilish Murong, Chu Yunrou was forced to bow to his will and endure his dominance.

When she eventually gained his favor, he imparted to her the Lightness Movement Technique. Lacking in innate talent, she nonetheless practiced with unwavering diligence. In a matter of months, she had harnessed the technique to glimpse the threshold of the Dao and achieved the initial stage of the Qi Refining Realm.

It was the most rudimentary level, yet it earned her a place as Murong's favored one. Her unwavering loyalty further secured her a position of power, charged with subduing the novices.

With a gentle wave of her sleeve, Chu Yunrou couldn't match Old Demon Murong's hundred-foot ascensions, but she far surpassed the Order of Duality's disciples who were confined to the earth beneath their feet.

"Master, who is that senior sister above us? Has she found a Dao partner yet?"

"Silence! She is the untouchable consort of your Martial Uncle Murong. Do you have a death wish?"

"It's outrageous that even a Dao servant can ascend to the Dao. I wonder how many spiritual pills she has consumed."

On the mountain trails, the sight of Chu Yunrou gliding through the sky like a celestial being never failed to evoke questions and awe.

At the grand hall of the Order of Duality, a massive bell large enough to embrace a hundred people stood at the entrance. The early arriving disciples sat in a circle around it, some whispering amongst themselves, while others were fixated on the intricate patterns adorning the bell.

The resonating aftereffects of the recently struck Yin Yang Joy Bell still lingered, causing the patterns to quiver and form mesmerizing images that varied from one observer to the next.

"I've broken through! I've made it!"

A Qi Refining disciple who had eagerly arrived early to witness the bell-ringing ceremony was ecstatic, suddenly standing up with his face beaming with excitement.

"This young one has quite the aptitude," remarked an elder with a venerable appearance in the hall.

"Yet he's focused on a technique of slaughter; what future can there be in that?" inquired the elder with long eyebrows and beard, who had been sitting with his eyes closed at the head of the hall. Upon hearing the praise, he briefly opened his eyes before closing them once more.

"Senior Brother speaks the truth," responded the previously contradicted bearded elder, unfazed. He continued, "I'm curious about what Junior Brother has discovered. He's been absent without a trace, and yet he insists we hold a sect meeting first."

"He possesses the Master's Yin Yang Token; his word is law," chimed in a female practitioner sitting nearby, her tone laced with irritation.

"Sister Lu, let it be. It's been three years since our last sect meeting. Inviting the disciples to discuss the Dharma and seek the source is beneficial," the Sect Leader interjected, raising an eyebrow.

Hearing this, Sister Lu held her tongue, while the bearded elder, accustomed to the odd dynamic between the couple, found nothing amiss.

"Greetings, Sect Leader, esteemed Elders," said Chu Yunrou as she gracefully landed outside the hall and swiftly entered to pay her respects.

"Where is my disciple, Murong Xuan?" demanded the female cultivator, her gaze on Chu Yunrou sharp and unwelcoming. The weight of her Golden Core presence bore down on Chu Yunrou, causing her to collapse helplessly to the floor.

"Master has been tirelessly devoted to his practice. He's recently sensed a breakthrough approaching the Golden Core state and was thus engaged in his cultivation late into the night. He's currently resting but will join us shortly," Chu Yunrou managed to explain, pinned to the ground, unable to lift her head, inwardly seething at the cruelty of the master and disciple yet careful not to let her anger show.

"Oh? So my disciple still senses the imminent formation of his Golden Core?" A fleeting smile crossed the female Taoist's face, but her anger quickly resurfaced. With a flick of her wrist, a sickly sweet gust of wind emanated from her sleeve, sending Chu Yunrou crashing against a pillar in the hall. "It's all because of you and your ilk, dragging down my disciple's progress. Had it not been for such interference, he would have already achieved the Golden Core. With such an extraordinary talent in the Order of Duality, we would have long been celebrated as a distinguished sect throughout Qingyun Province."

Chu Yunrou couldn't muster a rebuttal, her heart's violent impact causing internal damage. A mouthful of blood spilled uncontrollably onto the ground, leaving her complexion ghostly pale and her appearance utterly worn.

"Senior Sister, let it be. If you actually kill her, that might just impede your prodigious disciple's advancement," the long-bearded elder intervened.

"Hmph, a bunch of lustful devils. Don't think I'm oblivious to your desires. Perhaps I should just hand this servant girl over to you?" the female Taoist said icily to her junior brother.

"Enough, what a spectacle," the Sect Leader declared, opening his eyes and exuding the dignity of his supreme status. The female Taoist then withdrew her oppressive aura, allowing Chu Yunrou a chance to tend to her wounds.

"Why is it that the moment I return, there's such commotion? Senior Brother, you're clashing with Senior Sister again. You know, as they say, 'a quarrel on the bed ends on the bed.' If you're in need, just ask. Be it the Thirty-Six Strikes or the Seventy-Two Body Positions, my collection of ancient secret techniques is at your disposal," one of them remarked amidst the chaos.

Just then, a robust laughter echoed from the heavens. The disciples outside the hall craned their necks to see a dense cluster of clouds rolling in from the distance, the source of the uproarious laughter.

"Disciple, behold the grandeur of our Order of Duality. Does it meet your expectations?" The clouds settled at the entrance of the main hall, revealing two silhouettes. The speaker was a skeleton adorned in lavish attire, his teeth clacking together to produce speech.

"We welcome the return of the Skeleton Ancestor to the Order!" The disciples outside prostrated themselves, their voices thundering in unison.

"It's decent," the youth beside the skeleton casually replied, his interest piqued by the enormous Yin-Yang Joy Bell. He strode over and reached out to touch it.

"No!" The skeleton, brimming with excitement at the prospect of introducing his three senior brothers to the talented disciple he had found, was taken aback by the youth's audacious move towards the Yin-Yang Joy Bell.

However, it was already too late to intervene. The youth's hand had made contact with the bell's surface.

"This is your prodigious apprentice? I had assumed he might measure up to my own pupil, but it seems you've returned only to offer more sacrifices to the divine bell," the female Daoist said with a cold laugh. She knew the moment the boy's hand touched the Yin-Yang Joy Bell that he was as good as dead.

The skeletal elder had no time for verbal sparring with the female Daoist. In an instant, he was at the youth's side, his heart racing with urgency.

The Yin-Yang Joy Bell was far more than a mere communication device for the Order of Duality. The sect's archives revealed that the bell was the personal magical instrument of the founding master. Before his ascension, unwilling to see the sect ravaged by war, he forwent the chance for reincarnation and enlightenment, merging his life's cultivation and essence with the bell to safeguard the Order.

For thousands of years, the bell had stood before the grand hall, and the Order of Duality had faced several existential threats. Those who had sought to destroy the sect had instead bolstered the bell's formidable reputation with their lives. Anyone who dared to touch it, regardless of their level of cultivation—even a Nascent Infant Elder—could not escape the grim fate of being drained of soul and body, reduced to mere bones.

The bell's untouched presence over the millennia had been a testament to its protective power over the Order of Duality.

This was precisely why the Skull Fiend was so deeply concerned. He hadn't yet unraveled the mystery of his disciple's identity; he couldn't simply stand by and watch him perish. With a thought, a white bone saber materialized in his hand, poised to sever the arm that the youth had extended towards the bell.

"What are you doing?" the youth exclaimed, his head snapping up just in time to see the Skull Fiend's blade descending upon him.

"You're unharmed?" The Skull Fiend stared at the boy in disbelief. How could the bell, which could consume even a Nascent Infant Patriarch, have no effect on him? Perhaps the bell was sated with offerings and had lost its devouring power? Elated by the possibility, the Skull Fiend was about to attempt to refine the Yin-Yang Joy Bell but cautiously stayed his hand.

"Come here," the Skull Demon commanded, pointing to a disciple of the Order of Duality who was kneeling on the ground. He couldn't remember when he had admitted the disciple into the sect; with so many under his tutelage, only the exceptional ones stood out in his memory. This one looked somewhat familiar, but beyond that, he left no impression.

"Master, did you call for me?" The disciple was ecstatic, having believed his lackluster talents had long since led to his abandonment by his master. Yet now, his master had returned and sought him out first, in front of many senior brothers who were more accomplished than he was. He wondered whether his master intended to bestow upon him elixirs of immortality, secret techniques, or perhaps to test his cultivation level. Regretting his indulgences, he wished he had drunk less and avoided the company of female cultivators, which had hindered his progress. He feared a reprimand was imminent.

"Hmm, come forward. Do as your senior brother does; press your palms against it," the Skull Demon instructed, his face devoid of emotion.

Just then, the Sect Leader and two others approached.