It was another warm spring, and all the disciples, old and new, of the White Feather Sword Sect pushed open their doors in the morning sunlight, beginning their day of cultivation.
When Gu Xianying pushed open the doors of the Sword Pavilion, it was chaotic and incredibly boisterous inside, which was not unexpected. After all, among the disciples who joined the White Feather Sword Sect, very few actually intended to cultivate diligently.
The White Feather Sword Sect had been established for thousands of years, and countless masters had emerged from it. For many years, it had been the leader among all sects in the land, once a cultivation holy land that youths vied to enter.
But now, times had changed. In the past few hundred years, no new young masters had appeared, and the White Feather Sword Sect had declined as a result.
Nevertheless, the White Feather Sword Sect's long-standing reputation remained, and many wealthy young men were still constantly sent here. This wasn't because one could cultivate powerfully here, but because it was a renowned orthodox sect where one didn't need to expend too much effort cultivating.
These rich scions were the most difficult to deal with. Their powerful family backgrounds had to be taken into account; they couldn't be scolded or punished. Many within the Sword Sect were powerless against them. The Sect Master had tried many methods, but none were effective, and in the end, he had no choice but to seek Gu Xianying's help.
The boisterous laughter and clamor in the Sword Pavilion vanished in an instant due to Gu Xianying's appearance.
There were only five disciples in total in the pavilion. The moment they saw Gu Xianying, they became as silent as cicadas in winter. They all bowed their heads, feigning an air of tranquility, showing none of the difficulty in training that the elders had described.
Of course, there was a reason for this.
Gu Xianying's status in the White Feather Sword Sect was somewhat special.
She was not an elder of the sect, nor was she considered an ordinary disciple. Every year, she was responsible for guarding the most important Sword Pavilion in the sect, and she didn't even need to obey the Sect Master's commands.
This was because her seniority was even higher than the Sect Master's, or rather, higher than anyone else in the sect.
The disciples of the White Feather Sword Sect didn't know how many years she had truly lived, nor did they know how profound her cultivation truly was. They only knew that over hundreds of years, countless generations of Sword Sect disciples had come and gone, yet only Gu Xianying still guarded the Sword Pavilion, and even her appearance had never changed.
Even cultivators with profound cultivation could achieve longevity; living three or four hundred years was a common occurrence, not worth mentioning. But for someone to live as many years as Gu Xianying, and still maintain such eternal youth, was truly exceedingly rare.
And precisely for this reason, even the wealthy scions who joined the Sword Sect, fearless of heaven and earth as they were, still had to be utterly respectful and obedient when facing Gu Xianying.
“Grand-Grand-Martial-Aunt!” Seeing Gu Xianying enter, several disciples quickly stood up and called out.
Gu Xianying's gaze swept lightly over each of them. A faint, unreadable smile played on her lips as she nodded gently in response.
Having been with these disciples for over half a year, Gu Xianying already knew exactly how to make them wary.
These fellows feared neither soft nor hard approaches; stern reprimands or gentle persuasion were both useless. Only by appearing profound and making them unable to grasp her intentions would they show some apprehension.
Gu Xianying’s temperament was indeed very peaceful and leisurely. Compared to the disciples or instructors in the sect, she preferred sitting under a tree, drinking tea and basking in the sun.
But having agreed to the sect master, she would not quit halfway.
She maintained a profound and inscrutable expression, slowly turning her head to look at the young man standing by the window.
This young man was named Ye Ge. He was the second senior brother among these disciples. His father was the richest merchant in the world, and his mother was a renowned master whose fame shook the heavens. He himself had no other talent than an endless supply of money, and his temper was so foul that no one could control him. He was the most difficult fellow to deal with among these disciples.
At this moment, the young master was lazily propping his hand on the window, exchanging flirtatious glances with a junior sister among the group.
Sensing Gu Xianying’s gaze, he couldn’t ignore it and had no choice but to turn his head. Only then did the smile on his face recede a little.
Gu Xianying said nothing. To deal with a young fellow like this, the best method was to overwhelm him with her aura.