Meng Chen truly could not bear to refuse Daoist Ran Deng's request. After all, he had always been a warmhearted person who enjoyed helping others.
Just as Meng Chen was about to set off for Biyou Palace, Yuanshi Tianzun waved his hand. "Disciple, let your master go instead! Daoist Ran Deng sincerely wishes to join my Chan Sect. Since we are holding an initiation ceremony for him, I should personally preside over it."
Yuanshi Tianzun was worried. After all, Biyou Palace was Intercepting Teaching territory. Master Tongtian would not do anything to Meng Chen, but those Disciples of Intercepting Teaching might not necessarily listen to Master Tongtian.
If Meng Chen clashed with Disciples of Intercepting Teaching inside Biyou Palace, then no matter how mild Master Tongtian's temper was, he would have to punish Meng Chen.
Yuanshi Tianzun felt that before the internal affairs of the Intercepting Teaching were settled, Meng Chen should not appear alone in Biyou Palace.
Hearing Yuanshi Tianzun say this, Meng Chen felt somewhat regretful. As the Eldest Senior Brother of the Chan Sect, he had a duty to help his junior brothers overcome the difficulties of joining the sect and dispersing their cultivation. Unable to help his future junior brother disperse his cultivation, he felt deeply ashamed.
"Teacher is right. This disciple has overstepped his place."
Under Daoist Ran Deng's profound gaze, Meng Chen withdrew into the crowd.
At this moment, Daoist Ran Deng's heart had turned to ashes. He had originally thought that with his cultivation, joining the Chan Sect would at least earn him the position of an elder or sect-protecting guardian.
Who would have thought that Meng Chen, that hypocrite, would appear and force him to abandon his cultivation with just a few words?
At Biyou Palace, Yuanshi Tianzun's sudden arrival greatly puzzled Master Tongtian. Master Tongtian knew that Yuanshi Tianzun was being pestered by an annoying nuisance. Why had he come to Biyou Palace instead of dealing with that nuisance?
Yuanshi Tianzun spoke frankly. "Third Brother, I have come this time to borrow a treasure from you."
"Borrow a treasure? We are brothers. Why use the word 'borrow'? Besides, Second Brother has the Pangu Banner in hand. Those two from the Western Church should not be your match, should they?"
Master Tongtian frowned slightly, a trace of doubt flashing through his eyes. "Second Brother, could it be that you have encountered a powerful enemy?"
Yuanshi Tianzun sighed softly. "It is for Daoist Ran Deng. Third Brother also knows that I do not accept those who come seeking a master with existing skills. I kindly advised Daoist Ran Deng to seek another path, but his Dao heart is simply too steadfast."
He paused before continuing, "In order to join the Chan Sect, he is willing to give up the Da Luo Dao Fruit he struggled so hard to cultivate. He wishes to begin again with the cultivation of a Golden Immortal and cultivate the Daoist arts of my Chan Sect anew. Seeing how wholeheartedly he seeks the Dao, I can only fulfill his wish."
"W-what?"
Master Tongtian's eyes widened, thinking he had heard wrong.
A Great Luo Golden Immortal was willing to abandon his Da Luo Dao Fruit just to take Yuanshi Tianzun as his master. Most outrageous of all, Yuanshi Tianzun was actually prepared to grant his wish and borrow the Hunyuan Golden Dou to erase Daoist Ran Deng's Da Luo Dao Fruit.
"One cannot judge a person by appearance. Who would have thought that Daoist Ran Deng's heart for the Dao was so steadfast? It seems Daoist Ran Deng is truly wise beneath a foolish exterior! Fine, I will certainly help with this!"
"Indeed! Daoist Ran Deng so admires my Chan Sect that I truly cannot bear to refuse him."
After Yuanshi Tianzun departed, Master Tongtian summoned the Disciples of Intercepting Teaching and told them the story of Daoist Ran Deng's pursuit of the Dao. He hoped to inspire them and make their Dao hearts more steadfast.
When Yuanshi Tianzun returned to Jade Void Palace, Daoist Ran Deng immediately knelt respectfully, his face filled with fervor as he looked toward Yuanshi Tianzun.
"This disciple pays respects to Teacher. I beg Teacher to disperse this disciple's cultivation!"
Yuanshi Tianzun looked at this disciple with satisfaction. "This seat's word is as good as gold. Since I have promised to accept you into the sect, I will not go back on my word. Once your cultivation is dispersed, there will no longer be a Daoist Ran Deng in heaven and earth. There will only be Wu Liangzi of my Chan Sect."
Upon hearing this, Daoist Ran Deng trembled inwardly. His heart ached. He had cultivated for so many years to achieve what he had today, yet Yuanshi Tianzun and Meng Chen, this master-disciple pair, had forced him to cripple his own cultivation.
What was even more hateful was that this master-disciple pair even intended to change his Daoist title.
That was right. He could see it now. Everything he had suffered had been arranged by Yuanshi Tianzun and Meng Chen. One wanted to use him to establish authority and dissuade others from kneeling before Jade Void Palace, while the other would stop at nothing to suppress him, terrified that he would threaten his position after entering the Chan Sect.
Having fallen into the hands of this master-disciple pair, Daoist Ran Deng accepted it!
"Thank you, Teacher!"
"Mm! Your master will disperse your cultivation now. The process will be somewhat painful, so endure it."
Yuanshi Tianzun held the Hunyuan Golden Dou and suspended it above Wu Liangzi's head. The Hunyuan Golden Dou shone brilliantly as a vortex emerged, sucking Daoist Ran Deng into the Hunyuan Golden Dou.
Inside the Hunyuan Golden Dou, Wu Liangzi felt as though he had entered a tumbling washing machine. His cultivation and physical body began to separate.
As his cultivation was extracted, Wu Liangzi's agony intensified. Every moment, he felt as though he were trapped in a hell of needles, with countless steel needles piercing his entire body.
The moment his Da Luo Dao Fruit dissolved, streams of the River of Time surged from his body and returned to the River of Fate. In the end, even his Spacetime Anchor Point was drawn out.
Wu Liangzi's aura grew weaker and weaker, his mana gradually running dry. He had reached an unprecedented state of weakness.
Once, he had been an immortal and indestructible Great Luo Golden Immortal. Now, he had become a mere Mystic Immortal, a character no different from an ant.
Wu Liangzi's mentality nearly shattered, but he still remembered his mission and Sage Zhunti's promise. He was meant to become the Third Sect Master of the great saintly Western Church. If he could not endure even this humiliation, how could he become the Third Sect Master of the Western Church?
As Meng Chen watched Wu Liangzi's delighted expression from the side, he could not help but admire him, even though Wu Liangzi was his enemy.
Wu Liangzi's ability to endure was even greater than Goujian's, but the more someone could endure, the more dangerous he was. Therefore, Meng Chen would rather offend him beyond reconciliation than let him go.
Meng Chen could not give Wu Liangzi the chance to win over Cihang, Manjushri, Samantabhadra, and Juliusun.
He had already regarded the future Chan Sect as his own possession. Cihang, Manjushri, and the others were all outstanding Workers he had chosen in advance. If Wu Liangzi led Cihang, Manjushri, and the other two into the Western Church, it would be no different from poaching his people.
He would absolutely not permit Wu Liangzi to do such a thing.
Having successfully dispersed his cultivation, Wu Liangzi wept tears of joy. "Teacher, this disciple can finally join Teacher's sect."
"Mm!"
Yuanshi Tianzun looked at Wu Liangzi with satisfaction. "From now on, cultivate together with your senior brothers Yun Zhongzi and Immortal Elder of the South Pole."
Upon hearing Yuanshi Tianzun's words, Wu Liangzi nearly fainted from rage. He had knelt outside Jade Void Palace for three years and given up all his cultivation, only to become a nominal disciple?
Yet he could not defy Yuanshi Tianzun's words. He bowed deeply. "This disciple Wu Liangzi pays respects to Teacher."
"Good!"
With a wave of Yuanshi Tianzun's hand, a jade slip flew before Wu Liangzi.
"Since you have entered the Chan Sect, you are qualified to cultivate the Chan Sect's techniques. This technique is called the Jade Clarity Grand Yi Heavenly Immortal Formula, and I specially created it for you. After dispersing your cultivation, your foundation has been damaged. If you wish to attain the Great Dao, you must cultivate the Jade Clarity Grand Yi Heavenly Immortal Formula to stabilize your foundation. You must not greedily cultivate other techniques of My Teaching. Do you understand?"
Wu Liangzi received the jade slip with trembling hands. On the surface, his face was full of devotion, but his heart was filled with sorrow.
The Jade Clarity Grand Yi Heavenly Immortal Formula sounded like a decent name, but he was a dignified Primordial Saint, and now he could only begin cultivating from an ordinary technique. He had even been strictly forbidden from cultivating other techniques. In his eyes, Yuanshi Tianzun was suppressing him.
However, this was the price of shamelessly insisting on joining the Chan Sect, even going so far as to morally pressure Yuanshi Tianzun!
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