Helping and Becoming a Disciple

Jiang Yun found his junior brothers outside the hall. After relaying Jieyin and Zhunti's intentions, he instructed everyone to return to their respective cave dwellings for diligent cultivation.

Accompanied by the Mysterious Turtle who had emerged from the hall, Jiang Yun did not re-enter it. Instead, he directly returned to his own cave dwelling. He asked the people from the Northern Sea Dragon Palace to remain calm and await the arrival of those from the Western Sea Dragon Palace. Once everyone was assembled, he would arrange for them to formally become disciples, after which they could cultivate peacefully in their cave dwellings.

For a time, Jiang Yun found himself with nothing to do.

At his current level of cultivation, his physical body, mana, and Nascent Soul had all been honed to a solid state. Four of the Five Qi in his Chest were complete, and the remaining fire qi, through the cycle of mutual generation among the five elements, had reached great mastery. If he hadn't been pursuing the higher quality of Five Qi transformed from Congenital elemental Origin Spiritual Energy to forge a more perfect foundation for himself, he could have broken through the bottleneck and entered the Great Luo realm long ago.

However, when it came to one's foundation, a difference of a hair's breadth now could lead to a difference of a thousand miles later. Among the top great deities in the Primordial Desolation world today, who wasn't meticulously refining their foundation to perfection before breaking through to the next realm?

Of course, some individuals were born with perfect foundations, like the Three Pure Ones. For them, others' endpoints were merely their starting points.

To catch up to their pace, one needed to put in more effort. How could a cultivator not be ruthless with themselves?

Thus, after a short period of idleness, Jiang Yun began to feel restless. Since his own cultivation couldn't advance for the moment, he decided to spend some time helping his fellow disciples.

As the eldest direct disciple, his current cultivation far surpassed that of all other disciples in the Western Teachings, making him stand out like a crane among chickens.

Although Jieyin and Zhunti had founded the sect and accepted disciples, their own cultivation advancement was also crucial. Therefore, aside from a few direct disciples, they couldn't dedicate much focus to the cultivation of other disciples for the time being, leaving them to comprehend the transmitted techniques on their own.

At this juncture, the problems encountered by others in their cultivation required him, the Senior Brother, to help resolve them.

He summoned all his junior brothers and, drawing inspiration from the structure of the Transmission Hall and the Exchange Hall, planned to establish a Lecture Hall and an Aid Hall among them.

Although from the perspective of their Teacher, the Transmission Hall and Exchange Hall served no real purpose within the sect, this didn't diminish the demand for them among many lower-tier disciples, especially the vast proportion of outer disciples.

These outer disciples and a portion of the inner disciples received insufficient attention within the sect, thus obtaining fewer resources. Conversely, some direct disciples or inner disciples benefited from a greater allocation of resources.

The establishment of the Lecture Hall was intended to support these junior disciples who had fewer resources. He would arrange for the more senior disciples to conduct lectures on a rotating basis. Since they couldn't always attend Jieyin and Zhunti's lectures, it would be good for this group of direct disciples to lecture, and any questions could be answered.

As for the Aid Hall, it was designated as a place for interest-free loans, precisely to assist those in need. Disciples with scarce cultivation resources often spent a lot of time and effort searching for them, severely hindering their progress.

Therefore, he decided to take some of the low-level cultivation resources he no longer needed and place them in the Aid Hall. Disciples in need could apply according to their requirements. As long as it was for normal cultivation needs, they could receive them after approval. If they wished to apply again in the future, they would need to repay the resources previously obtained.

Such a rule would allow everyone to benefit from resources in advance. Once their cultivation improved, they would have more opportunities to acquire resources and find it easier to repay their loans.

The registered disciples were very excited upon hearing his idea. This method of "enjoy first, repay later" offered them immense benefits.

Some inner disciples, and even direct disciples, were tempted. After all, they all knew that this Senior Brother was highly cultivated and possessed many valuable items; a single gift from him could be Three Lights Divine Water.

Although they were also valued by their teachers, their teachers couldn't possibly provide them with everything they needed throughout their cultivation journey!

Finally, after a lively discussion, Jiang Yun appointed Pharmacist to manage the Lecture Hall. Pharmacist had a steady temperament and the highest cultivation among the junior brothers. Given his own cultivation, he might not always reside on Mount Sumeru in the future. Pharmacist's cultivation was still relatively low, and he had a long way to go before achieving mastery. Entrusting this task to him was very suitable and would also provide him with valuable experience.

The Aid Hall was placed under Maitreya's management. Maitreya naturally possessed a friendly and approachable demeanor, excelling at interacting with people. His future role as the Future Buddha among the Vertical Three World Buddhas indicated his considerable capabilities. Under his management, the Aid Hall would undoubtedly be able to effectively assist others.

Over the next century, Jiang Yun and several other direct disciples worked together to establish and operate the Lecture Hall and Aid Hall. Jiang Yun himself lectured twice in the Lecture Hall, with all the junior brothers attending, and the results were positive. This eventually reached the ears of Zhunti and Jieyin, who were very pleased. With disciples taking care of tasks, their eldest disciple was truly putting this principle into practice, saving them, the two teachers, a great deal of trouble!

Having such a disciple was truly a relief!

A century passed, and the disciples from the Western Sea Dragon Palace finally arrived at Mount Sumeru.

With both parties assembled, Jiang Yun began arranging the disciple-acceptance ceremony.

After allowing them a few days of rest and choosing an auspicious day, Jiang Yun led sixteen young disciples from the Dragon Race into the Grand Hall.

With reverence and excitement, the group followed Jiang Yun into the hall. They saw Jieyin and Zhunti seated on a high cloud platform. Below the platform, a Golden Lotus slowly revolved, emitting a gentle light of Merit. Behind the two, towering and solemn Dharma Forms appeared, exuding an aura of compassion and majesty.

Jiang Yun signaled for the Dragon Palace disciples to begin their salutations and acceptance ceremony. With joy filling their hearts, they all knelt down in unison, shouting, "We, the junior disciples of the Dragon Palace..., today seek the Great Way and wish to join the Western Saint Teachings. We implore the two Venerables to show mercy and accept us as your disciples. We offer our gratitude!"

Jieyin and Zhunti slowly opened their eyes, which were like deep starry skies, containing infinite wisdom and tolerance. Jieyin gently raised his hand, and a soft golden light shot from his fingertips, landing before everyone and transforming into a Golden Light Great Path. "If you wish to enter my sect, you must cast aside all worldly illusions and focus solely on the Way. Are you willing?" His voice was like a great bell, striking directly into the depths of their souls.

The crowd collectively shouted, "We are willing to obey the Venerables' teachings and sincerely pursue the Way!" Afterward, they slowly walked along the Golden Light Great Path. With each step, the Karmic Force on their bodies seemed to be shed layer by layer.

When they finally reached Jieyin's feet, Jieyin raised his hand again, and strands of Eight Treasures Merit Water enveloped them. Everyone felt their body and mind being cleansed by a warm and pure energy, as if their souls had been instantly sublimated.

After cleansing the Karmic Force from the Dragon Palace disciples, Jieyin transformed the cultivation methods into spiritual light and infused them into the foreheads of each disciple. From that moment on, they officially became registered disciples of the Western Teachings, embarking on the long journey of pursuing the Great Way of the West.