The Bell Tolls, Jie Sect Disciples Assemble

Since Jin Ling joined the Jie Sect, three years had passed in the blink of an eye.

During this time, Wu Dang and Gui Ling had entered the sect one after another, completing the Five Inner Core Disciples of the Jie Sect, and Xian Junyu had successfully bound all four of them.

Over on the Chan Sect side, in these three years, Nan Ji had also bowed to Yuanshi and become the First Disciple of the Chan Sect.

Of course, there were also some ordinary disciples who came to seek a master, but seeing that their conduct wasn't great, Xian Junyu didn't let them in and sent them away directly.

Nowadays, the matter of being gatekeepers was no longer something Xuandu and Xian Junyu did—one was the First Disciple of Renjiao, the other the First Disciple of the Jie Sect.

How could they keep working as gatekeepers forever?

That job had been handed over to the Daoist Children of Mount Kunlun, and the two of them had each returned to their own sects.

After Xian Junyu came back from searching for Spiritual Fruits on Mount Kunlun, he flopped down into his own cave dwelling.

"Damn! The Spiritual Fruits nearby have all been eaten up, forcing me to go farther out to find them. I'm exhausted!"

He complained while lying on the bed.

Mount Kunlun was no ordinary size, and having to gather enough Spiritual Fruits to last a hundred years every time he went out made it a bit tiring, which was only natural.

"The Earth Immortal Realm really is weak. If I were in the Heavenly Immortal Realm or higher, it wouldn't be this tiring!"

"This Duobao is absolutely useless. Three years in seclusion without a single stir, and I haven't gotten any gains from him at all. What a waste!"

In the Journey to the West, Duobao Tathagata was hyped up to the heavens—Great Perfection of Quasi-Saint, comparable to a Saint—but in Xian Junyu's eyes now, he was completely unimpressive.

And then there was the Head of Female Disciples, Jin Ling, the so-called Saint Mother Jin Ling. She'd also been in seclusion for three years, with no movement whatsoever.

Wu Dang and Gui Ling had only been in the sect for a year and a half, so it was understandable that they hadn't stirred. But the first two having no movement in three years—no wonder Xian Junyu wasn't satisfied.

Still, this was all Xian Junyu's own thinking.

Which cultivator in the Primordial didn't take centuries, millennia, or even tens of millennia to break through? A mere three years proved nothing at all.

"Dong! Dong! Dong..."

Just as Xian Junyu was lying there complaining, the Jie Sect's assembly bell rang.

With more people in the Jie Sect, Tongtian no longer notified them personally and had set up something called "Gather by Sound."

"Seriously! I just got back and there's an assembly. What terrible luck. Master really is something—can't he let me sleep a few days first?"

Xian Junyu grumbled under his breath.

Even though he complained, he still headed out. There was no choice—if he was late, Master Tongtian would really discipline him.

After Junior Disciple Sister Jin Ling, he had welcomed Junior Disciple Sister Wu Dang to the dojo, and Master Tongtian had beaten him just for stepping into the dojo with his right foot. After that incident, he'd cursed Master Tongtian plenty.

On the way to Master's dojo, he ran into Duobao and Jin Ling.

"Greetings, Senior Disciple Brother!!"

Meeting the Senior Disciple Brother, the two of them cupped their hands and greeted him at the same time.

"Mm, let's go."

Without getting any system rebates, Xian Junyu couldn't muster any interest in these two, so he just nodded faintly.

Seeing Senior Disciple Brother Xian Junyu so cold, Duobao was puzzled and whispered to Jin Ling:

"Senior Disciple Sister, what's wrong with Senior Disciple Brother? Do you know what's going on?"

Jin Ling was the Head of Female Disciples of the Jie Sect and the Senior Disciple Sister, a step higher in status than Duobao, the Second Disciple.

He hadn't gotten the title wrong.

Jin Ling also whispered an explanation to Duobao.

"Junior Brother Duobao, you don't know? I heard that a year ago, when Junior Disciple Sister Wu Dang entered the sect, Master beat Senior Disciple Brother just because he stepped into the dojo with his right foot!"

"Senior Disciple Brother is probably in a terrible mood right now..."

Stepping into the dojo with his right foot got him beaten?

What kind of ridiculous reason was that...

Duobao was left speechless. This Senior Disciple Brother was really unlucky.

"What are you two muttering about?" Xian Junyu said with a blank expression, staring at them.

"Nothing, nothing... nothing at all..."

Stared down by Senior Disciple Brother, Duobao and Jin Ling immediately shut their mouths.

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They thought Xian Junyu was in a bad mood because he'd been beaten, but that wasn't it at all. His bad mood was entirely because he hadn't gotten any system rebates from them.

If they knew that was the reason, they'd probably be mortified.

Three years without any major gains—wasn't that perfectly normal?

Just then, Wu Dang and Gui Ling also flew over.

"Greetings, Senior Disciple Brother, Senior Disciple Sister, and Senior Disciple Brother Duobao!!"

The two of them greeted and cupped their hands one by one, without any trace of arrogance.

"Mm, Junior Disciple Sister Wu Dang, Junior Disciple Sister Gui Ling!!!"

After replying, Xian Junyu led his junior brothers and sisters flying toward the dojo, silent the entire way.

Gui Ling, the latest to join, saw her senior siblings weren't speaking, so she didn't open her mouth either.

Instead, it was Wu Dang who spoke first.

"Senior Disciple Brother, do you know why Master has summoned us this time?"

The moment Wu Dang spoke, Duobao and Jin Ling both stared at this junior sister in shock.

Senior Disciple Brother had just taken a beating precisely because he brought you along, and he's still nursing his anger—yet you dare to speak now? Junior Disciple Sister Wu Dang is truly bold enough!

Both of them silently raised a thumbs-up, while Gui Ling curiously glanced back and forth at the odd group.

They expected Senior Disciple Brother to give Junior Disciple Sister Wu Dang a cold shoulder, but reality was nothing like that.

Instead, Xian Junyu said calmly, "How could ones like us presume to fathom the Saint's Will? Junior Sister need not ask further; just go when called."

"Yes, Senior Disciple Brother!"

With that, Wu Dang asked no more.

But Duobao and Jin Ling exchanged a surprised glance, then wore puzzled expressions.

Wasn't he supposed to be fuming because he got beaten for bringing Junior Disciple Sister Wu Dang into the dojo? Why did he seem not angry at all, so indifferent?

Oh, I see. Senior Disciple Brother can't bear to blame Junior Sister, so he's keeping it calm.

What a magnanimous spirit—truly admirable!

Xian Junyu had no idea what they were thinking. In his view, even if he really did get beaten because of a junior sister, as Senior Disciple Brother he wouldn't hold it against her.

Of course, that only applied to the few junior sisters. If it were Duobao who got him thrashed by Master, just watch whether he'd beat Duobao black and blue.

Most importantly, this time it wasn't because of Wu Dang at all—Master had simply been looking for an excuse to hit him...

Soon, the five senior brothers and sisters arrived at Master Tongtian's dojo.

Tongtian sat high on a stone platform, with two Daoist Children awakened from Mount Kunlun standing left and right beside him. On the ground below lay five meditation cushions.

"Disciple Xian Junyu..."

"Disciple Duobao..."

"Disciple Jin Ling..."

"Disciple Wu Dang..."

"Disciple Gui Ling..."

"..., pay respects to Master!!!!!"

Led by Senior Disciple Brother Xian Junyu, the five siblings performed the grand kneeling bow.

Watching his five great personal disciples, Tongtian was deeply satisfied.

"Rise!"

He raised his hand slightly and lifted the five up from a distance.

"Thank you, Master!!!!!"

The five thanked him in unison—proper etiquette had to be observed, and Xian Junyu didn't overstep on this point.

Tongtian's gaze swept over Duobao, Jin Ling, and the others, finally settling on his eldest disciple.

Seeing his Master on the high platform staring at him, Xian Junyu quickly pointed at his left foot and said:

"I stepped into the dojo with my left foot today, not my right. If Master intends to blame this disciple for that, then this disciple refuses to accept it!"

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