Chapter 563 - 43: Master

The mountainside surrounding the newly built Heaven-Reaching Hall had been cleared bare, but in less than half a day, it was once again covered by a dense forest. The path leading up the mountain had also vanished, and a separate, grand array kept the hall hidden.

Therefore, even the disciples of Qianmu Temple would be unable to find it unless they were assigned the task of guarding Heaven-Reaching Hall.

At that moment, by the main gate of Heaven-Reaching Hall, Yuan Zheng Taoist and Yu Cheng Taoist were speaking face-to-face with smiles. The disciples responsible for guarding the hall had discreetly retreated to the square in front of it.

"All members, except for Monk Le Yuan’s disciple, have received their Communication Tokens."

Yuan Zheng Taoist was taking this matter very seriously. He owed much of his current standing to the support of this gathering. Now that Wang Ping had entrusted it to him, it was in his nature to be eager to hold a meeting as soon as possible.

"What about the Yang Family?"

Yu Cheng Taoist posed the question. The Yang Family he mentioned was a military aristocratic family from Shangjing City. Before the battle of Shangjing City, they had chosen not to side with Wang Ping, nor with Xia Yao. Instead, they moved their entire clan to the Yunhai Grassland, removing themselves from the heart of the conflict.

Yuan Zheng Taoist nodded and said, "It has been delivered to them as well. The Yang Family made the right choice. Now they have established a firm foothold in the Yunhai Grassland and hold a significant position in the Post-Xia Court."

"Their family has always been this cautious. They avoid anything unpredictable but spare no effort in studying what can be calculated."

"That is why they survive, but they can never become the very best."

Yu Cheng Taoist nodded and changed the subject. "Le Yuan’s disciple has already cut ties with us, hasn’t he?"

Yuan Zheng replied with a sigh of resignation, "Nothing gets past you. I thought that kid was unreliable from the start, so I wasn’t in a hurry to let him join the gathering. It turns out he truly is unreliable, and he even looks down on us!"

Yu Cheng didn’t have much to say about it, nor did he pass judgment on the disciple. He simply stroked his long beard and said calmly, "We must have someone in Zhongshan Country. They have always eyed Zhongzhou covetously. In the future, Changqing will need intelligence from there. Have you begun looking for someone?"

Yuan Zheng gave him a reassuring look. "I already have three targets. I’ll investigate and win them over a bit more to ensure there are no mistakes."

After saying this, he couldn’t help but add a reminder, "Changqing has his own path now. You’re the one you should be worried about. You need to merge with the ’Luck-Borrowing Talisman’ as soon as possible. You might still be able to make a final push for the Third Realm."

Yu Cheng Taoist was visibly stunned by these words and fell into a brief silence. When he emerged from his thoughts, he looked up at the azure sky and said, "I vaguely remember the day I first joined Qianmu Temple. From that moment on, I cultivated diligently. Every day was spent either practicing my techniques or meditating to achieve a state of deep concentration."

"Later, after I succeeded in my Qi Cultivation, I was sent by my master to the Daoist Scripture Hall to gain experience. It was then that I witnessed the true suffering of the mortal world. I saw Evil Cultivators causing harm everywhere and the Demon Race brazenly kidnapping children. That was also when I met Fellow Daoist Gu Heng. Together, we swore an oath to restore peace to the world. Heh..."

"That was the most fulfilling period of my life. Every day, we went about, naively thinking we were vanquishing demons and subjugating devils. Yet, by the time our training period ended, we had not brought peace to the world. I often thought of that oath later, and it felt like nothing more than a jest. We made many similar jests when we were young."

Although Yu Cheng Taoist dismissed it as a jest, his tone revealed that he still attached great importance to the matter—one of humanity’s greatest contradictions.

At this point, he turned to look at Yuan Zheng and asked, "I remember that not long after I achieved my breakthrough, you came to visit us with your master, didn’t you?"

Yuan Zheng replied in a low voice, "Yes."

Yu Cheng continued, "Later, we met up with Gu Heng and adventured through the Western Continent together. The people there were insane. My most vivid memory is of Gu Heng provoking a tribe that practiced the ’Five Thunders’ magic of the Yuqing Sect, all for a Human Skin Drum. The three of us nearly died there. In the end, we retreated all the way to the territory of the Spiritual Snake Race in Hu Mountain Country. Luckily, the Spiritual Snake Race had friendly relations with my Qianmu Temple."

An unconscious smile appeared on Yuan Zheng’s face. "Yes, that kid Gu Heng despised evil as if it were his mortal enemy when he was young. He never went out adventuring again after he took over as the Sect Leader of Sanhe Temple, did he?"

Yu Cheng nodded. "Duty called. Back then, Sanhe Temple was nowhere near its current size. In the entire sect, besides his master, he was the only one who had achieved a breakthrough."

After saying this, he shook his head slightly, unwilling to reminisce any further about what followed. He let out a long sigh. "All these years, since the day I entered Qianmu Temple, I’ve never had a chance to properly see the world. It seems I’ve been busy every single day. Now, Qianmu Temple is stable, even stronger than it was in my master’s time."

He seemed to have more to say, but Yu Cheng Taoist fell silent.

After a long silence, Yu Cheng Taoist continued, "Every day, there are disciples who descend the mountain and never return. Sometimes, I envy them. So, if things prove impossible in the end, my greatest wish is to go down the mountain for a walk, visit some places I’ve never been, and then find a beautiful, scenic spot to pass on."

Yuan Zheng’s brow furrowed slightly, but he could not find the words to respond and simply remained silent.

Yu Cheng Taoist also stopped speaking.

The two of them stood in silence for a long, long time. It was not until a group of disciples from the Fire Institute flew hurriedly past in the sky that Yu Cheng was shaken from his reverie. Gazing after the departing disciples, he asked, "How is the background check on Fellow Daoist Ruan Chunzi coming along?"

"It’s done. He’s something of a maverick in the True Yang Sect. It’s a miracle he was able to cultivate to the Third Realm. He has an extremely high reputation among the outer disciples of the sect and was even nominated to be the Vice Sect Leader, but he has always been at odds with the True Yang Sect’s upper echelons. The only cultivator he’s friendly with is Miaoyu of the Star God Alliance, who is also a cultivator of unique character."

Yuan Zheng Taoist spoke softly but quickly, "He’s a very reliable person. Even the cultivators in the True Yang Sect who are at odds with him, at most, just curse him for using precious herbs to brew his wine."

Yu Cheng nodded. "In that case, let’s recommend him to join the gathering in both our names. Wen Yang’s fate is currently unknown, and we need intelligence from within the True Yang Sect. I have a premonition that Changqing will inevitably have conflicts with the True Yang Sect in the future. Ruan Chunzi is undoubtedly the most suitable person for the job. It doesn’t matter if he has his own agenda, as long as it doesn’t conflict with ours."

"Alright. I’ll go invite him now?"

Yuan Zheng asked.

Yu Cheng grunted in agreement. "I’ll leave the matter of the gathering to you. I won’t be joining the festivities."

"You’re not going?"

Yuan Zheng, who had been about to leave for the Fire Institute, paused mid-stride.

Yu Cheng gave a carefree smile. "I gave Qianmu Temple’s spot in the gathering to Changqing a long time ago. Have you forgotten?"

"Changqing won’t be coming this time either, will he?"

"He is at a critical point in his cultivation, so he probably won’t come. He may also have noticed that many eyes are upon him, so for a long time to come, he won’t make an appearance unless it is absolutely necessary."