Chapter 228: Disciple Dousheng Pays Respects to Master

Brahma Nation, Eight Treasure Table.

Bathed in radiant Buddha light, Jin Hai tumbled wretchedly into the depths of the Heavenly Demon Royal Court's royal tent. Behind him, the sky-filling light rapidly converged into a single thread.

Thud!

Jin Hai kowtowed on the spot without a second's hesitation. "Your disciple is incompetent. I failed to investigate clearly beforehand, forcing Master to act and suffer injury. Ten thousand deaths could not atone for my sin."

The Buddha light trembled slightly at his words, as if reflecting the shifting thoughts of the Ascetic Monk. A long time passed, but the punishment Jin Hai expected never came. Instead, he heard a soft sigh. "This trap was laid by Mingyou of the Immortal Gate. It is excusable; the blame does not fall entirely on you."

'Huh?'

Jin Hai froze in genuine shock. He never expected his master to utter such reasonable, human words. Was he really still in the Brahma Nation?

Truthfully, he had already braced himself to take the fall.

After all, in the Brahma Nation, a superior's mistakes were always the subordinate's responsibility. If an Ascetic Monk blundered, it was only natural that the true transmission disciple beneath him suffered the consequences.

Who could have imagined his master would actively shoulder the blame?

There could only be one reason for this—

'It benefits Master?'

Jin Hai absolutely refused to believe his master had suddenly grown a conscience, so he immediately began to analyze the situation. Their failure had essentially aided the immortals—how could that possibly benefit his master?

Thinking it over carefully, this chaotic battle had increased the lifespans of every Qi Refining practitioner in the Immortal Gate. Oh, wait—the same rules applied to the Brahma Nation!

In a flash, Jin Hai experienced a sudden supreme enlightenment. 'Long ago, the Ascetic Monks of the Brahma Nation and the Qi Refining practitioners both shared virtually endless lifespans. But then something happened, and the lifespans of the Immortal Gate's Qi Refining practitioners plummeted to around ten thousand years. The Bodhisattvas in the Great Brahma Heaven immediately reacted.'

'They also lowered the lifespans of the Ascetic Monks.'

Simply put, it was like paying wages. The Immortal Gate used to offer high pay, so the Brahma Nation had to raise their own salaries just to compete.

But then the Immortal Gate suddenly slashed their pay.

Seeing this, the Bodhisattvas of the Brahma Nation didn't hesitate. They followed suit and immediately chopped down the wages of the Ascetic Monks, truly highlighting the "equality of all living beings."

This change had sparked an uprising in the Brahma Nation. Unfortunately, since only the Ascetic Monks suffered, the minor rebellion was quickly and ruthlessly suppressed.

After all, you already have cultivation—how dare you ask for a longer lifespan on top of that?

Do you think you get to hog every good thing in the world?

How can you be so selfish!

'But things are different now. The Immortal Gate's Qi Refining practitioners have recovered a significant chunk of their lifespans. If we demand a lifespan increase over here in the Brahma Nation, it will be much easier to push through.'

Naturally, pushing for this would easily offend the Bodhisattvas above. But an Ascetic Monk was a long way from becoming a Bodhisattva anyway. From the looks of it, his master had lost all ambition to climb the ranks. With no further desires, he simply wanted a longer life. Offending a Bodhisattva didn't matter; at worst, he'd be transferred to an idle post.

In the Brahma Nation, Ascetic Monks enjoyed their own privileges.

Passing the Buddhist examination to earn the rank of an Ascetic Monk cemented an unshakeable status. Even a Bodhisattva from the Great Brahma Heaven couldn't casually strip an Ascetic Monk of their position.

If it weren't such an ironclad guarantee, why would so many Brahma Cultivators fight tooth and nail, risking their very lives to pass the Buddhist examination and become Ascetic Monks?

'So that's what's going on!'

Jin Hai finally understood everything. He immediately looked up at that single thread of Buddha light and kowtowed again. "Your disciple congratulates Master, and wishes Master boundless longevity!"

"Oh?"

A soft chuckle emanated from the light. "You aren't entirely foolish... Relax. I will be sure to mention your contributions to my colleagues."

Jin Hai was instantly overjoyed.

Among cultivators, the Immortal Gate referred to peers as fellow Daoists, while the Brahma Nation called them colleagues. An Ascetic Monk's colleagues were naturally other Ascetic Monks—the very examiners who supervised the Buddhist examination!

With his master's guarantee, many Ascetic Monks would hear his name and remember this favor. If their lifespans truly were extended, when he took the Buddhist examination in the future, wouldn't it be a breeze to find an examiner to leak a question, help him cheat, or even alter his score directly?

His Dao path had hope! His Dao path had hope!

"Many thanks for Master's guidance!"

Jin Hai kowtowed once again.

The Ascetic Monk's voice echoed from the light once more. "Rise. As long as you serve me earnestly, your master will naturally treat you well. Prepare yourself."

"We must win the next Immortal-Brahma Sword Battle."

"Your disciple obeys!"

Jin Hai responded excitedly.

However, the Ascetic Monk suddenly shifted the topic. "Also... that mole you recruited in the Eight Trigrams Furnace. You can reestablish contact with him."

"Ah?" Jin Hai looked up in surprise.

"Wasn't his identity exposed? He's still alive?"

"Of course he is."

The Ascetic Monk's tone was absolute. "I know Mingyou's methods very well. As long as a useful pawn isn't entirely broken, he will use it to the bitter end. He never wastes anything."

"From what I saw, your mole fits that description perfectly."

"In the future Immortal-Brahma Sword Battle, he might become one of the variables."

Jin Hai was bewildered. "Your disciple doesn't understand," he said quietly. "A cultivator at the Tribulation Transcending Second Layer—even if he masters a Major Divine Ability—how could he possibly be a variable?"

"Because he cultivated the divine power of the Origin-Governing Battle-Axe-Wielding Fate-Governing Qi. Furthermore, inside the Eight Trigrams Furnace, he inherited all the qi destiny of an Immortal Gate true transmission disciple who was on the verge of becoming a Qi Refining practitioner. Yet his cultivation is locked, preventing him from ever breaking through to the Tribulation Transcending Third Layer... This guarantees he will reach the absolute pinnacle of the Tribulation Transcending Second Layer!"

The Ascetic Monk recited the details as easily as listing his own family treasures.

He had witnessed everything that transpired within the Eight Trigrams Furnace. With his profound Dao attainment, operating from a higher vantage point, he could effortlessly deduce Wang Ping's predicament.

"Ordinarily, a pawn like that wouldn't be very useful."

The Ascetic Monk's tone grew heavy.

"But within the same Realm—in the Immortal-Brahma Sword Battle, on the battlefield for Tribulation Transcending Second Layer cultivators—he is a piece capable of dictating victory or defeat."

.............

In front of the Ever-Suppressing Six Harmonies Cauldron, Wang Ping let out a long breath.

'So that's it. This is how they plan to handle me.'

'My cultivation is locked tight, unable to advance an inch. My Divine Powers are unbroken, and my movements are impossible to hide!'

'It makes sense. If Mingyou has been watching me this whole time, he must already know—just like the Heaven-Stealing Thief—that I can change my identity whenever I restart.'

He was guarding against him!

Even as the victim, once Wang Ping finally unraveled Mingyou's grand scheme, he had to marvel at it. It was a truly flawless calculation!

'He used me as a pawn to kill Kunyun, harvesting Wood Qi to extend his own lifespan. At the same time, by forcing me to kill Kunyun, he ensured my Divine Powers would stagnate and my cultivation would be forever locked... I came from the Eight Trigrams Furnace. As a piece of Human Firewood, a mere furnace attendant, I clearly stumbled into an opportunity that granted me a special resurrection ability.'

Without a doubt, this was a hidden threat.

'But with this entire setup, my restarts and resurrections can no longer escape his sight. My cultivation is permanently capped, leaving me completely at his mercy.'

The hidden threat within the Eight Trigrams Furnace had been cleanly eliminated!

Not to mention that on top of all this, he had transferred all of Kunlun's qi destiny to him, guaranteeing that his strength at the Tribulation Transcending Second Layer would far surpass his peers.

'In the Immortal Gate, experts at the Tribulation Transcending Third Layer mostly remain in seclusion. They fear tangling themselves in karma and prematurely triggering their life tribulation. As a result, cultivators at the Tribulation Transcending Second Layer are usually the ones running errands everywhere.'

Under these circumstances, a cultivator with invincible Divine Powers was basically the perfect, reliable pawn for Mingyou. Whenever a problem required a Divine Powers cultivator, Mingyou could simply dispatch him. He would never have to worry about his pawn breaking through to a higher Realm and escaping his control.

The perfect tool.

Wang Ping's hands trembled as the realization set in. He had a million curses he wanted to spit out, but he didn't dare speak the man's name aloud. He was so furious that smoke practically billowed from his ears.

'This Biyang's beast!'

[Careful. He's coming.]

The Treasure Cauldron Spirit's sudden voice transmission jolted Wang Ping back to reality. He looked up to see a brilliant lantern light igniting the vault of heaven, followed immediately by a single faint thread of light cascading down.

A second later, a young Daoist stepped out of the light.

Clad in black and white robes, he wore a Fish-Tail Crown and held a Whisk in his hand. With a faint smile on his lips, he appeared before Wang Ping without the slightest warning.

"Not bad."

The young Daoist chuckled. He looked exactly as Wang Ping remembered from You Xuexin's memories. "I wasn't mistaken. You truly are a rare talent."

"Not only is your comprehension superb, but your destiny and luck are quite impressive as well. To gain the assistance of the Ever-Suppressing Six Harmonies Cauldron... I presume your resurrections and the method you just used to shatter the Great Shun's national destiny both stem from it? You have courage and ambition. It's just a pity that Kunyun fell short at the very end."

Wang Ping kept his eyes lowered, not daring to speak a word.

The young Daoist continued to study him, a brilliant light flashing in his eyes. Under that gaze, Wang Ping felt as if his very body were being dissected.

"Mm... your future is promising."

"With your current strength, you should be able to reach near the nine-hundredth step if you challenge Dao Proving Mountain. If you fully digest everything you've gained, even the nine-hundred-and-ninety-ninth step is within your grasp."

The young Daoist continued, "As for Xuexin, her failure was born of her own incompetence. I will not hold it against you. You may continue to use her as your protector wisdom consort; the support of a true spiritual root will do you good."

His tone was completely flat, as if he were discussing a total stranger.

After all, the master-disciple relationship within the Immortal Gate had always been so brutally pragmatic. A master would draw close when a disciple was bathed in glory, but the moment the disciple stumbled, the master would simply turn his back and walk away.

"However, Xuexin was my true transmission disciple. I had intended for her to represent me in the future Immortal-Brahma Sword Battle once she cultivated her Divine Powers. Now that she has become your protector wisdom consort, I am short one true transmission disciple. How do you propose we resolve this?"

Wang Ping understood his meaning instantly.

He instantly suppressed all of his negative emotions, lowered his head, and bowed deeply with cupped fists. "Your disciple Dousheng," he said in a heavy voice, "pays his respects to Master."

Only then did the young Daoist break into a satisfied smile.

"Excellent."

"From this day forward, you are the third True Transmission under my command."