Three Bargaining Chips

Shen Ye was not particularly shocked. Instead, he sighed. "Flowers planted with care may refuse to bloom, while willows planted by chance grow into shade. Those people from the Jiashen Rebellion were quite lucky—no, perhaps for them, it was a misfortune instead!"

"Virtue unequal to one's position—obtaining an opportunity beyond one's own station will instead invite a backlash from one's fortune." Zhang Zhiwei's tone was distant. "Even so, young friend, do you still want this opportunity?"

"If I wish to bring peace and order to the world, then in this age, who but me could do it?"

"Hahaha! Young friend, you truly are a man of great ambition. This old man is ashamed of his own inferiority!" Zhang Zhiwei laughed heartily. In a daze, he seemed to see the high-spirited figure of Grandpa Chulan from years ago in Shen Ye!

"I spoke rashly and made the Heavenly Master laugh," Shen Ye said modestly.

After laughing for a while, Zhang Zhiwei fixed his bright eyes on him. "Allow this old man to ask you one final question. Why do you wish to enter that Inner Landscape?"

Shen Ye answered without hesitation, "To seek the Dao!"

Zhang Zhiwei rolled the words over in his mind. "Seek the Dao?"

Shen Ye nodded. "The more I cultivate, the more I understand how insignificant I am! Zhuangzi said, 'My life has limits, but knowledge has none. To pursue the limitless with the limited is perilous indeed!' A human life lasts only a few short decades. To cross the sea of suffering and reach the other shore, one must find the right path from the very beginning! That is why I wish to immerse myself in the origin of heaven and earth, improve my comprehension, Enlighten Mind and See Nature, and find my own path!"

Zhang Zhiwei was deeply shaken. "I never expected that, in today's restless society, there would still be someone as devout in pursuing the Dao as you, young friend!"

Shen Ye's gaze was crystal clear, without the slightest guilt of lying. "I ask the Old Heavenly Master to grant my wish!"

Zhang Zhiwei let out a long sigh. "If you win the Grand Heavenly Offering Ritual, passing the Heavenly Master's Degree to you would be only proper. What is more, you have offered this old man two bargaining chips that are difficult to refuse!"

Shen Ye smiled. "It seems the Old Heavenly Master has already noticed."

"Haha, though these old eyes of mine cannot claim to see through all worldly affairs, they are not yet so dim that I cannot see." Zhang Zhiwei smiled. "You must have already planned to leave Longhu Mountain after obtaining the key, thereby avoiding a conflict between the Heavenly Master's Residence and the Wang Family. That is one. You concealed Lingyu's relationship with that young lady, and even took the initiative to help Lingyu remove his inner demon. That is two!"

Shen Ye nodded slightly. "The Old Heavenly Master's eyes are indeed sharp, but to be precise, there should be three bargaining chips."

"Three?" Zhang Zhiwei was rather surprised. "What is the third?"

Rather than state it outright, Shen Ye looked out the window. Flames flickered from time to time, and even sounds of fighting carried over. "The Quanxing people should have made their move!"

"Petty scoundrels, incapable of anything great!" Zhang Zhiwei shook his head, clearly holding those people in contempt.

"Though they are indeed a group of petty scoundrels, this time the Old Heavenly Master has underestimated them. Their true goal is actually the truth behind the Jiashen Rebellion!"

"The truth behind the Jiashen Rebellion? Those bastards dare lay a hand on Jinzong?" Zhang Zhiwei's expression changed drastically. The power that suddenly erupted from within him made even Shen Ye's heart tremble.

"Rest assured, Old Heavenly Master. I have already had someone protect Old Tian there." Shen Ye spoke calmly. "This is the third bargaining chip I offer!"

Zhang Zhiwei had always felt guilty toward his junior brother. With his junior brother's safety involved, even nearly a century of cultivation could not keep his heart calm. He smashed through the wall with one palm and leaped out, leaving only a sentence echoing through the room: "If things are truly as you say, young friend, then this old man owes you an enormous debt of gratitude. But this old man is anxious, so allow me to go take a look first!"

This sudden turn of events startled the two Daoist priests guarding outside the hall. However, they had also heard the Old Heavenly Master's final words and did not think the two had fallen into some conflict.

At that moment, Shen Ye walked out of the hall and stood by the hole in the wall.

The two Daoist priests hurriedly asked, "Layman Shen Ye, what exactly is going on?"

"The reasons are difficult to explain in a few words." Shen Ye casually brushed them off, then looked at Hua Yue waiting below. "Yue'er, how many little rats are outside right now?"

Hua Yue looked around. "Thirteen. But after the Old Heavenly Master broke through the wall, the commotion here attracted a few more."

"Rats? Could it be..." The two Daoist priests' expressions suddenly changed. At that moment, a sinister laugh echoed from the surrounding forest.

"Old Yuan, we've been underestimated!"

"Hehe, they are the next generation's Heavenly Master, after all. Of course they would look down on stinking sewer rats like us!"

More than a dozen figures emerged from the forest, but Shen Ye only paid attention to two of them: an old man and a fat man.

The old man appeared to be their leader, rolling a string of prayer beads in his hand. "Prospective Heavenly Master, your status is noble. Surely you would not stoop to our level?"

"Quanxing's Yuan Tao?" One of the Daoist priests recognized him, and his face changed drastically. "Everyone, be careful! The enemy is very strong!"

Yuan Tao's expression turned strange. "Say, did you forget something? The one up there is a ruthless man who can kill both Wang Ai and the Four Maniacs!"

The two Daoist priests froze. Right—when viewed that way, weren't they the ones with the advantage?

Shen Ye crossed his arms and looked down at them. "Since you know that, you still dare appear before me?"

Yuan Tao fiddled with his prayer beads and laughed. "This old man believes escaping will not be a problem for me. As for the few young fellows beside me, they seem unconvinced of your strength."

Upon hearing Yuan Tao say this, a young man dressed in black beside him finally could not hold back. "Keep dawdling, and the Old Heavenly Master will be back! Hey, you up there, make us a copy of the Heavenly Ascension Talisman, along with the cultivation method for Spirit Binding and General Dispatching. You've already offended the Wang Family. If you also fight Quanxing to the death... Aah!"

Before he could finish, the black-clad youth let out a scream.

Everyone turned to look, only to see a "Shen Ye" emerge from behind him.

Before they could react, another four "Shen Yes" closed in from all directions.

Yuan Tao, who had appeared calm and composed all along, finally changed expression and could not help cursing, "Puppets? You little brat, just how many trump cards have you been hiding?"

At the same time, in Old Tian's room.

Nadou Tong's Xu San and Xu Si, along with Zhang Chulan and Feng Baobao, stood before Old Tian and confronted a young Daoist with several freckles on his face.

"Tsk, tsk. I thought we would only lure out a few little rats, but we ended up hooking a big fish. Isn't that right? Quanxing's acting sect leader, Gong Qing!" Xu Si's voice was lazy, but his eyes held a trace of lingering fear.

If Old Tian had died at Quanxing's hands, how much turmoil would the Old Heavenly Master's fury bring about?

Gong Qing looked surprised. "Why did you know of my actions? Logically speaking, even Gao Ning and the others did not know I was hiding here!"

"We have no obligation to explain anything to you!" Xu San said coldly. "If you don't want to die, get lost now!"

"Get lost?" Gong Qing wore an amused expression. "I thought you planned to capture me!"

"Capture you? There will be plenty of chances in the future!" Xu Si said calmly. "Don't think of taking Old Tian hostage amid the chaos!"

"As expected of Nadou Tong's North China Region heads. You really are clear-headed!" Gong Qing sighed, then turned toward the door. A figure radiating a terrifying aura drifted down and landed outside.

"What a pity, it's too late. Still, perhaps this ending is not so bad!" Gong Qing muttered. He suddenly struck his own forehead with a palm, killing himself!

"To actually force Quanxing's acting sect leader into suicide... is this the deterrence of the current Heavenly Master?" Xu San and Xu Si's pupils contracted. Even they had only heard of the Heavenly Master's reputation and had never truly witnessed him make a move.

"Hmph! That bastard got off easy!" Zhang Zhiwei snorted coldly, then looked at Tian Jinzhong. "Jinzong, are you all right?"

"Little Yu..." Old Tian first looked at Gong Qing's corpse and sighed, then shook his head. "I'm fine. It is thanks to Chulan and the others."

"Haha, it's thanks to Little Martial Uncle Shen Ye for notifying us." Knowing Shen Ye would become the Heavenly Master, Zhang Chulan changed his form of address without the slightest mental burden. "By the way, Master, weren't you passing on your cultivation?"

"He told me what was happening here. I was still worried, so..." As Zhang Zhiwei spoke, he suddenly looked toward the Heavenly Master Hall.

Golden light burst in all directions, flames shot into the sky, and deafening roars carried into the distance.

"Quanxing again?" Zhang Zhiwei's face darkened. After leaving behind the words, "Take care of Jinzong," he rushed toward the Heavenly Master Hall.

With his cultivation, moving at full speed, he returned to the Heavenly Master Hall in little more than a dozen breaths.

Then, he saw corpses strewn across the ground, along with six Shen Yes.

After briefly learning what had happened, Zhang Zhiwei looked at Yuan Tao, whose eyes remained open in death, and could not help sighing. "Why bother? Running over here in the middle of the night just to throw your lives away!"

Then he looked at the real Shen Ye. "If the Wang Family knew you had this ability as well, they would probably lose even the courage to seek revenge. Come, this old man will formally pass the Heavenly Master's Degree to you!"

Some readers may say that the protagonist's claimed background is that of an ancient tribe, yet he quoted famous sayings from Mencius and Zhuangzi in his conversation with the Old Heavenly Master. Wouldn't that arouse suspicion?

Answer: He would definitely study after coming out, of course. Otherwise, how could he speak the language of later generations?

Will the Old Heavenly Master die after passing on the Heavenly Master's Degree?

Answer: Based on Zhang Chulan's remarks, after the Old Heavenly Master passes on the Heavenly Master's Degree, he may die, lose his cultivation, or suffer some other ill fate. But this is only skirting the edge and not a genuine transmission, so there should not be much of a problem. At least, that is how I have set it up (òó).