Public Trial

Yuanshi Tianzun was not in the Jade Void Palace; his throne sat empty. This was not unusual—Yuanshi Tianzun could not remain seated in the Jade Void Palace at all times; he had his own affairs to attend to.

True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue, seeing that Yuanshi Tianzun was not in the Jade Void Palace, no longer felt afraid.

In his thinking, Yuanshi Tianzun was a sage, and the Jade Void Palace was his Daoist temple. There was no way Yuanshi Tianzun did not know that Meng Chen had brought him here by force. Yuanshi Tianzun's failure to appear meant he had no intention of punishing him.

"Eldest Senior Brother, don't waste your efforts. Why would the Teacher punish me, his disciple, for the sake of a few outsiders? If you stop now, it's not too late."

However, True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue had misread the situation.

If Yuanshi Tianzun truly intended to shield True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue, he would not have absented himself from the Jade Void Palace. By not appearing, he was handing True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue over to Meng Chen for judgment.

No matter how reluctant Yuanshi Tianzun was to punish True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue, he would not slap his own face, for True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue had indeed violated the sect's rules.

Yuanshi Tianzun had only just authorized Meng Chen to enforce the rules; he would not overturn his own decree immediately after. Aside from Sage Zhunti, no sage would do such a thing.

Next door, Our Lady of Wudang had locked Daoist Duobao in the Du Tian Divine Fire Prison for a hundred thousand years, and Master Tongtian had said nothing, had he?

Just as True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue was smugly pleased, White Crane Disciple stepped into the hall with a grave expression. He bowed to Meng Chen: "Little Master, the Master says that while he is absent from the sect, all affairs of the Chan Sect are to be handled entirely by Little Master."

True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue was stunned speechless. This was something he had never anticipated.

Not only did Yuanshi Tianzun fail to show himself, but he had also handed all authority over the Chan Sect to Meng Chen—was he trying to make Meng Chen the acting leader of the Chan Sect?

"White Crane, go tell the Master that the Eldest Senior Brother is colluding with outsiders and protecting them. The Chan Sect cannot be given to him, cannot be given to him!"

True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue broke down. If he weren't currently suppressed, he would have grabbed White Crane Disciple by the robes, shaking him while roaring like a mad cult leader.

White Crane Disciple, however, did not even glance at True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue. As a mere disciple, he only needed to maintain good relations with the future leader. As for the other Chan Sect disciples, if he was in a good mood, he would give them a smile; if not, he would be an emotionless wooden figure.

"Little Master, the Master specifically instructed that disciples who violate the Chan Sect's rules must never be tolerated or indulged. Our Chan Sect is the leader of the Immortal Dao; we must set a good example for all immortals under heaven."

Hearing White Crane Disciple's words, True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue gave up all hope. Even Yuanshi Tianzun had said so—there was no hope for him.

Meng Chen clasped his hands toward White Crane Disciple: "Thank you for your trouble, Disciple. Please convey to the Teacher that this disciple will not bring shame upon the Chan Sect."

White Crane Disciple represented Yuanshi Tianzun, so he was worthy of Meng Chen's bow. But White Crane Disciple himself could not bear it. Thus, he returned the bow.

He knew how to handle people—curry favor with the current boss, but not offend the next one either.

The golden rice bowl of being the Chan Sect leader's disciple was one he had to hold steady. He was just a crane in the clouds; he could not afford to lose this job.

After White Crane Disciple left, Meng Chen gave True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue a deep look, walked to the entrance of the Jade Void Palace, and struck the Jade Void Bell.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Meng Chen intended to execute True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue openly and justly. Naturally, he had to summon all Chan Sect disciples and conduct a public trial before the entire sect.

The meaning of the sect's rules was not to punish those who broke them, but to warn those who had not yet violated them. If everyone had already broken the rules and caused damage to the sect, what point was there in punishing this one person?

As soon as the Jade Void Bell rang, none of the Chan Sect disciples dared to delay. They rushed to the Jade Void Palace as fast as they could.

They initially thought Yuanshi Tianzun was summoning them. But when they entered the Jade Void Palace, they saw only Meng Chen standing below Yuanshi Tianzun's throne and True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue suppressed by the Seal of Infinity. All the Chan Sect disciples were dumbfounded, unable to understand what Meng Chen was doing.

Wu Liangzi saw that True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue had actually been suppressed, and his heart skipped a beat.

From his experience, he could clearly sense something was wrong. Meng Chen had not only suppressed a fellow disciple but had also brought him to the Jade Void Palace—the implications were thought-provoking.

True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue saw so many fellow disciples arriving and wanted to beg for their help, but Meng Chen waved his hand, and True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue's mouth sealed shut.

"This..."

The other Chan Sect disciples were alarmed at the sight.

Meng Chen's face was stern. He stepped forward twice: "All junior brothers, and Junior Brother Wu Liangzi."

Wu Liangzi nearly cursed at that. Why such differential treatment? He was a Chan Sect disciple now too!

"I am sure you are all wondering why I have suppressed Junior Brother Clear Void. It pains me deeply that this has happened. Our Chan Sect is the model for all immortals; in the future, we are to lead all immortals under heaven. Unfortunately, there are those who insist on tarnishing the Chan Sect's reputation."

True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue felt no shame. He stared at Meng Chen with a stubborn, unyielding gaze, as if he wanted to devour him alive.

Meng Chen continued without pause: "Junior Brother Clear Void committed heinous acts to refine elixirs. He infiltrated the Zhu Yu Clan, the Blue Silver Grass Clan, and several other Plant Spirit clans, stealing their immortals and refining them into pills. Later, when many immortals of the Plant Spirit Race demanded their clansmen back, they too were persecuted by Junior Brother Clear Void."

These words only made Guang Chengzi, Yu Ding Zhenren, Cihang Zhenren, and Yellow Dragon True Man frown; the other Chan Sect disciples looked utterly bewildered.

These disciples had no idea that True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue's actions violated the sect's rules. Or rather, they did not regard the Plant Spirit Race as the "kind and good beings" mentioned in the rules.

The Chan Sect did not forbid killing—punishing evil did not break the rules.

However, these disciples, like True Lord of Clear Void and Virtue, did not consider the immortals of the Plant Spirit Race as true immortals. Deep down, they saw them as walking medicinal herbs.

Seeing this, Meng Chen felt only disappointment. They said the Disciples of Intercepting Teaching were a mixed bag, but how much better were the Chan Sect disciples? As the Eldest Senior Brother of the Chan Sect, he had a long and heavy road ahead.

Still, he was very satisfied with Guang Chengzi and the other three, especially Guang Chengzi.

The negative evaluations of Guang Chengzi in past lives mostly stemmed from his slaughter of the Jiuli Tribe. But from Guang Chengzi's standpoint at the time, he was not wrong!

The Jiuli Tribe had only half human blood, and their hearts still leaned toward the Wu Clan—how were they innocent?

The Jiuli Tribe was a pawn the Wu Clan had planted among humanity. If that pawn was not destroyed, the Wu Clan could infiltrate humanity at any time.

In Guang Chengzi's view, only by utterly annihilating the Jiuli Tribe could the Wu Clan's pawn be destroyed and their fantasies of the Human Emperor's throne be cut off.

Killing the people of the Jiuli Tribe and sending them to meet their beloved Goddess Houtu—wasn't that a good thing?

Guang Chengzi had morals when morals were needed, and was decisive when slaughter was required. No wonder Yuanshi Tianzun favored him the most.