Chen Changqing's voice echoed above Immortal Burial Cliff.
The entire gathering fell utterly silent.
He wanted no reward.
This young man had actually turned down a Tribulation Immortal's promise.
This was an opportunity of the highest order in the Nine Provinces.
Even if Chen Changqing had asked to become Shushan's Sect Leader, Daoist Wuzhen would probably have agreed without hesitation.
Chen Yuan also froze where he stood.
He opened his mouth, wanting to warn his disciple not to be foolish.
But he swallowed the words before they left his lips.
He knew Chen Changqing's temperament all too well.
This young man never made a losing deal.
Since he dared to refuse, he surely had plans of his own.
Daoist Wuzhen watched Chen Changqing quietly.
An inscrutable light flickered in his deep eyes.
He had lived for nearly ten thousand years.
He had seen more than his fill of deceit, greed, and selfishness in the cultivation world.
Who could remain unmoved before such a heaven-sent opportunity?
Yet this teenage boy before him had truly paid no heed to his promise.
There was nothing but composure and calm on that youthful face.
Not a trace of pretense.
"Good."
"Good, good, good."
Daoist Wuzhen suddenly burst into laughter.
His laughter brimmed with delight and admiration.
It shook even the surrounding space into a faint tremble.
"Your duty."
"Well said—your duty."
"With a disciple of such magnanimity and spirit, how could our Shushan fail to flourish?"
Daoist Wuzhen strode up to Chen Changqing.
He reached out with his perfectly reconstructed hands and gave Chen Changqing's shoulder a heavy pat.
"Your refusal of a reward speaks to your breadth of vision."
"But as your Grandmaster, after receiving such a tremendous favor from you, wouldn't I become the world's laughingstock if I refused to part with