"Master, you've misunderstood. I didn't... I was just..."
Xian Junyu was still planning to put up a token defense and save his Master some face.
But before he could finish, he saw that the sly smile on his Master's face had vanished. His eyes narrowed as he stared fixedly at him.
He immediately stopped fooling around. As long as his Master wasn't angry, he could still act cheeky, but his Master was clearly displeased now. If he kept it up, he would truly be going too far.
"You don't need to pretend here. I already knew three thousand years ago that you had left the cave abode. Besides, your Second Martial Uncle personally told me that you went to him to learn Artifact Refining!"
"Your Second Martial Uncle already told me that, yet you're still pretending to be confused. If you wanted to learn Artifact Refining, then learn it. Do you really think your Master is so narrow-minded?"
Tongtian said with a speechless expression.
His eldest disciple's actions made him seem like a petty man incapable of tolerating others, which was truly infuriating.
Earlier, after receiving his Eldest Brother's message, the Three Pure Ones Brothers had gathered and briefly discussed the matter of Rotating Preaching. During that time, his Second Brother had even brought up Xian Junyu's cultivation.
He said that Tongtian had used pills to increase Xian Junyu's cultivation, ruining his foundation, and even harshly berated him for misleading his disciple.
Thinking of his eldest disciple's miraculous abilities, Tongtian had accepted the blame. This had only caused Yuanshi to misunderstand things even more.
Upon hearing this, Xian Junyu was also somewhat dumbfounded.
His Second Martial Uncle had been with him all these years. How could he have had time to tell his Master about this? Could it have happened when he was talking while reading?
"Uh... hehe, this disciple was just afraid that Master would misunderstand. Having such a good Master, yet going to learn from someone else..."
"That wouldn't be very good in the end..."
Since his Master had already made it clear, he stopped pretending.
At worst, he would take a beating or be confined for a while. In any case, he had already learned Artifact Refining, so he accepted whatever punishment came.
"You knew it wasn't a good idea, yet you still went. That's knowingly breaking the rules!"
"It's only Artifact Refining. Your Master knows it too. Seeking far away when something is close at hand is foolish. More importantly, how can the path of Artifact Refining compare with the Great Dao of cultivation? Neglecting the important for the trivial is even more foolish!"
Tongtian pointed out three mistakes Xian Junyu had made in succession.
He also knew Artifact Refining, though he was not as proficient as his Second Brother Yuanshi. But that was not the main reason he was angry.
After all, he truly was inferior to his Second Brother Yuanshi in Artifact Refining. There was nothing more to say about that.
What angered him most was that Xian Junyu had given up three hundred years of comprehending the Dao and instead turned to comprehending the auxiliary path of Artifact Refining.
Giving up the Great Dao of cultivation to refine artifacts was simply too foolish.
"Neglecting the important for the trivial?"
"Master, this disciple knows he was wrong. As for the punishment, I have no complaints..."
After understanding the main reason for his Master's anger, Xian Junyu immediately admitted his mistake.
The path of Artifact Refining indeed could not compare with the Great Dao of cultivation. Without System Bro, he would never have given up cultivation, but he had special circumstances.
Besides, he knew that his Master was doing this for his own good. He accepted the punishment that was about to come, and did so willingly.
"Punishment? When did I say I was going to punish you?"
"However, you were indeed in the wrong this time. It wouldn't make sense not to punish you. For the next three hundred years, you aren't allowed to go anywhere. Stay in my Daoist Sanctuary and focus on cleaning!"
"You like Artifact Refining, don't you? Fortunately, I have some materials here. I want you to refine five Houtian Spiritual Treasures for me over these three hundred years. No problem, right?"
Tongtian said calmly.
Originally, he had not wanted to punish Xian Junyu. But if he did not teach him a lesson, he was afraid Xian Junyu would make the same mistake again, so he decided to administer a small punishment as a warning.
The main purpose was not punishment, but to make him remember that he must not make this kind of mistake again.
"No problem!"
Upon hearing the punishment his Master had given him, Xian Junyu accepted it without hesitation.
To him, this was not a punishment at all. Refining Houtian Spiritual Treasures was practically being handed experience. He could already refine Houtian Spiritual Treasures; as long as he had enough materials, refining five would not be difficult.
"Now that the punishment is settled, let's talk about something else. I guessed that you learned Artifact Refining because you wanted a Spiritual Treasure. What do you want one for? Your Master doesn't intend to interfere!"
"However, this matter reminded me that it's time to give you a Spiritual Treasure to use. I gave you one before, but you refused it. You won't do that again now, will you?"
Upon hearing this, Xian Junyu nodded.
He did indeed need a Spiritual Treasure for protection. However, he looked down on ordinary Houtian Spiritual Treasures. He knew that his Master had many Spiritual Treasures, but there were not many that caught his eye.
Seeing that his eldest disciple truly wanted a Spiritual Treasure, Tongtian considered it briefly. He raised his hand slightly, and a Spiritual Sword appeared in his palm.
"I estimate that you won't be interested in an ordinary Spiritual Treasure. As the eldest disciple of the Interception Sect, you represent your Master's dignity. I'll entrust this sword to you!"
As he spoke, Tongtian pushed the Spiritual Sword toward his eldest disciple.
Looking at the Spiritual Sword within arm's reach, Xian Junyu froze in place.
The Spiritual Sword's spiritual power, fluctuations, and might were astonishingly rare in the world. As an Artifact Refiner, Xian Junyu could tell at a glance that it was extraordinary.
This was definitely not a Houtian Spiritual Treasure!
His Master was an Immortal cultivator, and he had roughly guessed what this Spiritual Sword was.
"T-This is... Master, this is?"
Seeing his eldest disciple's expression, Tongtian explained proudly:
"This is my Immortal Slaying Sword. I estimate that you've heard its legends. Today, I'll let you wield this sword!"
After receiving the Immortal Slaying Sword, Xian Junyu was still extremely shocked.
The Shangqing Tongtian Saint possessed an Immortal Slaying Sword Formation that could battle the Four Saints. It could not be broken without four Saints. The Formation Diagram contained four swords: the Immortal Slaying Sword, the Immortal Slaughtering Sword, the Immortal Trapping Sword, and the Immortal Severing Sword!
The Dao Ancestor once praised this treasured sword:
"Neither copper nor iron, nor steel, It was once hidden beneath Mount Sumeru. Without the reversal of yin and yang to temper it, Could water and fire not hone its edge? It slays gods with a deadly edge and destroys immortals, Wherever it traps immortals, red light rises. Its transformations are endlessly wondrous, And even Great Luo Immortals bleed upon its blade."
The Immortal Slaying Sword focused on the word "sharp." It was mainly used to injure cultivators' physical bodies, and its offensive might was incomparably powerful.
With such an Xiantian Spiritual Treasure in his hands, how could he not be shocked?
"This... this Immortal Slaying Sword is Master's treasured sword, and even the supreme treasure that guards the sect. How could this disciple possibly be worthy..."
Although he liked the Immortal Slaying Sword very much, Xian Junyu still wanted to refuse. It was not that he did not want it, but with his current cultivation,
he was simply unworthy of wielding this Xiantian Spiritual Treasure that guarded the sect.
"There's no need to say more. Your Master has already decided. You will wield the Immortal Slaying Sword!" Without giving his disciple a chance to speak, Tongtian turned around and vanished.
It was as if he had never appeared at all.
Seeing this, Xian Junyu helplessly put away the Immortal Slaying Sword. He knew his Master's temper. Once his Master made a decision, he would not change it.
Although he was not worthy of using an Xiantian Spiritual Treasure, since his Master had bestowed it upon him, having such a treasure to protect himself was not a bad thing.
After his Master left, Xian Junyu found a room in his Master's Daoist Sanctuary. He closed the door and began absorbing the cultivation returned by the system.
Before you continue