Chapter 18 : You Are a Personally Transmitted Disciple

Chapter 18: You Are a Personally Transmitted Disciple

The four women had imagined all kinds of responses from that Qi Refining–stage man—ingratiation, flattery, trying to cozy up, buttering them up—but the one thing they had never expected was for him to recite a poem like this.

Senior Sister Su Muzhi subconsciously glanced toward the blue-violet curtain.

It moved! That curtain, hanging down like rippling water, actually swayed slightly! Her heart jolted—could it be that Master… had her mind stirred by those two lines as well?

True Person Mingzhu’s love for the moon was no secret within the sect.

The peak was named “Moon-Washing,” and seventy to eighty percent of the scenery there revolved around the moon.

She had even widely invited famous scholars to compose moon-themed poems for the pavilions, towers, rock formations, lakes, and springs on the peak.

But… Su Muzhi focused her thoughts.

Over the past several hundred years, countless moon-praising poems had been accumulated, and there was no lack of excellent lines among them.

She would not dare say these two lines were the best, but they absolutely qualified to be engraved onto the white jade pillars.

She could even directly envision, from just these two lines, the scene before that person’s eyes: the rippling Emerald Great Lake merging seamlessly with the firmament above, vast and flawless, while the Fake Moon suspended in midair poured down silvery radiance onto the water’s surface.

Back then, this lake and the artificial firmament with its fake moon had both been created through the expenditure of immense effort by her and her master.

As one of the builders, these two lines were not merely praise—they were the most fitting annotation for the creation into which they had poured their heart and soul.

They even made her, a Golden Core cultivator, feel a faint sense of pride.

Su Muzhi steadied her emotions and glanced at her two junior sisters.

Though the two youngsters were not especially versed in poetry, these lines contained neither obscure characters nor cryptic meanings, and could be appreciated by both the refined and the common alike.

No wonder they, too, had been stunned.

Behind the curtain, True Person Mingzhu finally could not help but speak.

“Very good.” Her voice was still clear and resonant, but carried an added note of solemnity.

“Muzhi, have these two lines… engraved on the jade pillars on both sides of the Moon-Viewing Terrace. Those pillars ought to have an owner by now.”

All three disciples were startled.

The Moon-Viewing Terrace that True Person Mingzhu referred to was the landmark directly beneath the fake moon.

Those two massive white jade pillars were originally meant to bear poems passed down through the ages in praise of the moon, yet they had stood empty for centuries, as not a single poem had ever met Master’s standards.

Who would have thought that one would appear here today?

Just as the four women were about to say something more, Nan Yuchen’s voice came through the Listening Insect again.

“Wow! Senior Brother Long, those two lines of yours… even I can tell how good they are! Did you write them?”

Inside the room, four hearts were instantly lifted into their throats! If this really were his original work… then…

“How could that be? If I had that level of literary talent, I’d have gone long ago to flirt with fairy maidens at the sect’s poetry societies and lived off them. Why would I have worked as a menial disciple for so many years? This was written by a senior named Zhang Ruoxu. I just spoke from the scene before me.”

Hearing this, the four women almost simultaneously let out a breath of relief.

So it was someone else’s work—good, that made things easier.

An outer sect disciple who happened to get his hands on a good poem was far easier to deal with than a peerless genius who could casually produce verses.

“Zhang Ruoxu? I’ve never heard of this senior,” the junior brother said.

That question was exactly what the women also wanted to ask, and they listened even more intently.

“Sigh… that senior was a mortal. He didn’t achieve much in his lifetime and was unknown in literary circles. He only left behind this one poem. After he passed away… I was the only one who knew of it.”

“So that’s how it is! What a pity. If he were still alive, he would definitely have become close friends with Master.”

An indescribable atmosphere of regret filled the room.

The blue-violet curtain before True Person Mingzhu rippled once more, even more clearly than before.

The three disciples also fell silent at the same time.

The ill-fated life of a talented man was always the most moving—especially before a master who loved the moon to the point of obsession.

“Huaisu, you’ve seen this person, haven’t you?” True Person Mingzhu asked.

Hearing her master’s question, Zhu Huaisu immediately replied,

“Yes. I saw him this afternoon at the Spirit Spring Garden. His handwriting was quite good, and he was meticulous in his work, without any oversights.” She paused, not mentioning their chance encounter at the market when buying a statue—such a trivial matter was not worth bringing up now.

“Is that so… Tomorrow, go find him and ask for the full manuscript of this poem. Let him name his price.”

“Th-This… Master, shouldn’t there be some bottom line? What if he demands an outrageous sum?”

“Then… at most, grant him a Cloud Vessel—like the one Yuchen has.”

The three disciples could not help but feel surprised.

A single poem in exchange for a Cloud Vessel—if word of this spread, the down-and-out poets of the Nine-Xia Heavenly Sect, or even the entire Cultivation World, would probably rush to Moon-Washing Peak overnight with their manuscripts in hand.

“However…” True Person Mingzhu had not lost her reason.

“We must see the entire poem before making a final decision. If only those two lines are brilliantly inspired, and the rest is merely forced padding, then there’s no need to indulge him too much.”

“Yes.”

After that, the Listening Insect transmitted some more sounds—mostly Nan Yuchen exchanging greetings with other senior and junior brothers and sisters, and introducing various buildings and scenic spots.

There was nothing particularly noteworthy.

Inside the room, the four women gradually recovered from their initial shock, though they still listened with interest to the junior brother’s energetic voice.

Just as the atmosphere became calm, that Senior Brother Long suddenly asked,

“Junior Brother Nan, the person you just greeted—was that Senior Brother Chu Yuanbai?”

“Yes. Senior Sister has always thought highly of Senior Brother Chu, so she let him cultivate on the peak as an inner sect disciple. I’ve heard there are plans to take him on as a personally transmitted disciple. Hehe… when that happens, I’ll end up having to call him martial nephew instead.” Nan Yuchen joked about the generation gap, then asked with some confusion, “Why did you bring up Senior Brother Chu?”

At this moment, Su Muzhi, who had been eavesdropping in the room, was also very focused on this topic.

Chu Yuanbai was a disciple she thought very highly of, and she indeed had intentions of taking him on as a personally transmitted disciple, but… for this person to suddenly mention him—could there be some problem?

The two junior sisters also straightened up abruptly, their gossiping spirits burning fiercely! The matter of Senior Sister and her prospective personally transmitted disciple was a hot topic on the peak!

“Senior Brother Chu’s character is very good. He often helps us lower-ranked disciples wholeheartedly. When I broke through to the Qi-Refining Fourth Layer, he even provided protection for me free of charge.”

Hearing this, Su Muzhi felt her tension ease slightly, and even a trace of satisfaction appeared on her face.

However, Long Tao then abruptly changed his tone.

“But… when you were greeting him just now, it felt like he wasn’t exactly hostile toward you, but there was definitely a sense of distance. Junior Brother Nan, you’ve always said that you don’t get along well with the inner sect disciples. I used to think you were exaggerating, but now I really see it.”

Those words were like a bolt of thunder, exploding within the souls of the four women.

Didn’t get along with people?!

This phrase instantly shattered the filter in their minds of a “slightly silly but universally loved junior brother”!

Just as Senior Sister was about to say something, Nan Yuchen’s helpless bitter laugh came through the Listening Insect.

“Hehe, I’ve gotten used to it. At first, I thought it was just jealousy from the male disciples, but later… I realized that the senior sisters… also kept their distance. Sigh… I guess it’s just like what you warned me about before, Senior Brother Long—the person who framed me has probably… pretty much ruined my reputation.”

Framed?! Reputation ruined?!

Snap! The teacup in Third Senior Sister Chen Qianyun’s hand was crushed outright.

Shock and anger appeared on her face.

The junior brother… had been suffering grievances all this time? That alone would be one thing—everyone encountered grievances on the cultivation path—but being secretly framed by someone was absolutely intolerable.

And Su Muzhi, a Golden Core cultivator, also showed displeasure.

Her junior brother, the treasured darling of Moon-Washing Peak, her master’s final disciple, the future prodigy of the Nine-Xia Heavenly Sect—being ostracized, framed, and having his reputation ruined on their own turf?! This was simply preposterous!

The four women all focused their attention completely, afraid of missing anything, while Long Tao’s “exasperated” voice rang out again.

“You still don’t want to say that person’s name? Sigh… even if you don’t want to tell me as an outsider, you should at least tell your master and senior sisters. Like we said last time over dinner, just use a bit of lie-detecting methods and that’ll be enough. They can handle something this small.”

“But… after thinking it over, I realized that this all happened because of my own problems, which let that person exploit an opening. If I complain about it, Master and the others might be disappointed in me.”

At this moment, the younger Zhu Huaisu and Chen Qianyun truly wanted to rush out, run up to the junior brother, and pry open his wooden head.

And Long Tao seemed to know exactly what they were thinking, as his complaint followed immediately.

“Sigh… you silly kid. No wonder even after reaching Foundation Establishment, your master still hasn’t let you go out on trials alone. With the way you are, you’d help count the money even after being sold off by someone.”

Behind the curtain, True Person Mingzhu could not help but nod in agreement.

This was precisely her greatest concern! She wanted to hear what other reasoning this outer sect kid still had to offer.

“Junior Brother Nan,” Long Tao’s voice suddenly became serious, “you are a personally transmitted disciple. Do you know what that means?”

“Th-This… it means being personally taught at the side of True Persons and elders?” Nan Yuchen answered weakly with a questioning tone, feeling as if he were facing an elder.

“Yes—and why do you think that’s done? It’s for protection! To put it plainly, geniuses like you are important assets of the sect. Making you personally transmitted disciples is precisely so you won’t be bothered by those petty schemers, so you can cultivate with full focus! If anything really happens, you go complain directly and let your master and elders handle it.”

Yes! Exactly right! The three senior sisters almost wanted to shout it out in unison.

Aren’t senior brothers and sisters supposed to protect their juniors and clear away this kind of filth for them?! Even True Person Mingzhu behind the curtain felt the pent-up frustration in her chest disperse by more than half.

This boy truly understood her protective instincts!

And through the Listening Insect, Long Tao’s “lecture” continued.

“But look at you—your greatest advantage goes completely unused, and you let people bully you right to your face. Then what’s the difference between you and an ordinary inner sect disciple? Problems that elders can solve shouldn’t be shouldered by you alone! A personally transmitted disciple who won’t complain is like a Golden Core cultivator who can’t fly—utter nonsense! Go complain to your master and senior sisters, act spoiled if you have to, remember this! The only things that will ever truly disappoint them are moral corruption and slack cultivation!”

At this moment, the four women in the room could not have agreed more with these words.

They only wished that this surnamed Long disciple would say even more—he was practically speaking on their behalf, shouting out everything they wanted to say to the junior brother but hesitated to voice for fear of hurting his pride or seeming overly protective.