Hongjun Intervenes, Calling a Truce

Zhunti nodded at this and said, "Senior brother, which one of us should go beg our teacher... If we just cry on Mount Sumeru, the Dao Ancestor might not necessarily intervene, right?"

Jieyin shook his head. "Junior brother, hurry and cry. Our teacher will help us. After all, he owed the Western Region karma back then—he can't possibly ignore us."

At those words, Zhunti began to sob and wail. "Teacher! You reside high in the Purple Firmament Palace; could you occasionally cast your gaze upon the Primordial Wilderness? The Three Pure Ones of Mount Kunlun have gone too far in bullying us..."

At that moment, Yun Ting suddenly spoke up. "Ahem, Zhunti, you are not allowed to slander my Eldest Uncle and Second Uncle. How did we bully you? I merely passed by, yet you tried to take me out. How could my elders possibly not come forward for me?"

Zhunti refused to accept this. "I already said it: make an oath, and I'll believe you didn't do it. You don't even dare swear an oath, so why should I believe this has nothing to do with you? Even a clay figurine has three parts of earthen temper... Don't you Three Pure Ones go too far in bullying others."

Yun Ting gave a chuckle. "Let me correct you. You are vegetation that took form, not a clay figurine. Given how weak you are among those of the same cultivation level, I suppose you can barely count as a Straw Bag."

The words nearly enraged Zhunti into charging out of the grand formation to fight him to the death... Seeing that even Laozi's attacks found it difficult to break the formation, Yun Ting asked, "Eldest Uncle, where is my father? He excels at formations—why isn't he here?"

Laozi chuckled. "Your father has gone wandering somewhere... Mm, he hasn't returned to Mount Kunlun for quite a long time."

Hearing this, Yun Ting grinned to himself. I have a way. Then he directly withdrew the defenses of the Heaven and Earth Profound Yellow Exquisite Pagoda and slammed headfirst into Mount Sumeru's Mountain Protection Grand Formation.

On an immortal island by the Eastern Sea, Tong Tian, who was preaching to a newly accepted batch of disciples, suddenly felt his Primordial Spirit palpitate. He slowly stopped his sermon and told the disciples, "Your master has an urgent matter to attend to. I will first send you back to Mount Kunlun. We'll speak of preaching again next time." With a wave of his hand, he swept all the disciples into his sleeve, tore through space, and returned to Mount Kunlun, leaving Duo Bao to look after them.

Then, leaving the Thatched Hut in Eastern Kunlun, he tore through space once more and arrived before Mount Sumeru. The moment Yuanshi saw Tong Tian, he berated him, "Third Brother, where did you run off to? Yun Ting was bullied by that bastard Zhunti, and you still haven't acted to break his Mountain Protection Grand Formation?"

Tong Tian hurriedly replied, "Second Brother, don't worry. Leave it to me..." After studying it for a while, he said, "Uh... this formation won't be easy to break. They use the two great spiritual roots, the Bitter Bamboo and the Bodhi Tree, as the formation eyes, linking them to Mount Sumeru's Earth Veins. Forcing our way through would incur considerable Karma. To break it without staining ourselves with Karma, we must ask Zhen Yuanzi, or Taiyi and Di Jun of the Sun Star, to lend a hand and use either the Earth Book or the Chaos Bell to suppress the Earth Veins here."

Yun Ting grinned. "Father, leave this matter to me. I'll make a trip to the Sun Star right away." With that, he transformed into a streak of light and headed for the Sun Star.

Not long afterward, inside the Sun Palace upon the Sun Star, Yun Ting cupped his hands in salute. "Fellow Daoists Di Jun and Taiyi, today I came into conflict with Zhunti of Mount Sumeru. I have come specifically to ask the two of you to join us and lend a hand. Would that be possible?"

Di Jun frowned. "Attack Mount Sumeru? Could the Three Pure Ones really fear that they can't defeat those two, Jieyin and Zhunti? Do they still need the help of us brothers?"

Taiyi, however, said, "Big Brother, the last time little friend Yun Ting fought Zhunti, he even attained enlightenment. This is a benefit delivered right to our door—there's no reason not to take it. As for why he has come to ask for our help this time, there must be another reason."

Yun Ting nodded. "My father said that Mount Sumeru's formation is connected to its Earth Veins, and breaking it could easily taint one with Karma. The Earth Veins need to be suppressed with the Earth Book or the Chaos Bell... Great Immortal Zhen Yuan's Mount Shou is too close to Mount Sumeru. I feared he would not dare offend Jieyin and Zhunti lightly, so I came to the Sun Star to invite you two."

Taiyi burst into laughter. "Big Brother, little friend Yun Ting divided those gourds quite fairly last time. I say we go lend them a hand. What do you think?"

Di Jun nodded. "That bastard Zhunti came to the Sun Star last time to mooch off us and plundered quite a few of our spiritual herbs. This is the perfect chance to teach him a lesson."

And so, Taiyi and Di Jun transformed into rainbows and arrived at Mount Sumeru together, actually getting there before Yun Ting. At the sight of Taiyi holding the Chaos Bell, Jieyin's mentality completely collapsed. He wailed at the top of his lungs, "Teacher! Our Western Region is desperately poor and bitter; it hasn't been easy for us! The Three Pure Ones of Mount Kunlun have come to bully us, and now the Golden Crows of the Sun Star have come to join in as well... If you still refuse to rein them in, junior brother and I may well be beaten to death!"

Within the Purple Firmament Palace, Hongjun's brows twitched furiously as Jieyin and Zhunti's repeated sobbing cries rattled on in his ears. This Yun Ting is rather interesting... Forget it. When they are nearly beaten to death, this old Daoist will intervene and save them. They are future Heaven-Ordained Sages, after all; they cannot be allowed to die so easily.

Back at Mount Sumeru, Taiyi had already acted, using the Chaos Bell to suppress the Earth Veins. At once, the Mountain Protection Grand Formation was left supported only by the source spiritual energy of the Bodhi Tree and Bitter Bamboo. Now, it was much easier to break...