After an unknown amount of time, Ye Yun slowly woke up. He stared blankly at the roof tiles for a long while before slowly sitting up. Memories surged through his mind like a tide, and when he thought of his parents, whose whereabouts were unknown, his gaze dimmed.
"You're awake. That's good." A voice suddenly came from the doorway, and someone walked in.
Ye Yun looked up and recognized Song Daren, whom he had seen on Tongtian Peak. Seeing Song Daren's tall, burly frame and rugged features, Ye Yun froze slightly. How did I end up on Great Bamboo Peak? Did I take Zhang Xiaofan's place?
Filled with doubts, Ye Yun asked, "Senior Brother Song, where are Xiaofan and the others?"
Though Song Daren was a big man, he was thoughtful and attentive. He walked to the bedside, reached out to touch Ye Yun's head, and said gently, "Junior Brother, don't worry. Xiaofan is next door. Lin Jingyu is now a disciple of Dragon Head Peak, while you and Xiaofan are disciples of our Great Bamboo Peak. From now on, we're family."
Ye Yun was stunned. He could not understand how a single sleep had turned him into Tian Buyi's disciple on Great Bamboo Peak. But after thinking it over, he accepted it. He had finally gotten his wish and become a disciple of the Qingyun Sect. Great Bamboo Peak had few disciples and not many rules, making it undoubtedly a very suitable place for him. So he called out, "Senior Brother Song."
Song Daren smiled and nodded. "Good, good. Junior Brother, you've been asleep for a full day and night. You must be hungry, right?"
Ye Yun was still growing and got hungry easily. At Song Daren's words, an intense wave of hunger immediately washed over him, and his stomach began to rumble, forcing him to set aside his questions about what had happened.
Song Daren laughed. "Come, Junior Brother. Let's get something to eat first. When Xiaofan wakes up, I'll tell you both about our sect. Then we'll go together to pay respects to Master and Mistress and meet your other senior brothers."
Although Ye Yun had read the original novel and knew that Great Bamboo Peak's buildings were not much different from those of the other peaks aside from being somewhat larger, the thought that he might live here for ten or even dozens of years made him carefully inspect his surroundings.
Ye Yun and Zhang Xiaofan had both fallen into a deep sleep because of Dao Xuan's Spirit Calming Pearl. Thus, when Song Daren was preparing to take Ye Yun to the kitchen for food, Zhang Xiaofan in the next room woke up as well.
When Ye Yun followed Song Daren into Zhang Xiaofan's room, he saw Zhang Xiaofan sitting blankly on the bed. Song Daren walked over and touched his head, and a scene very similar to what Ye Yun had just experienced unfolded before his eyes. However, Song Daren called Zhang Xiaofan Seventh Junior Brother—Tian Ling'er was not included in the ranking—which meant Ye Yun should be eighth, the youngest junior brother of Great Bamboo Peak. There was nothing to be done about that; he was simply younger.
On the way to the kitchen with Zhang Xiaofan and Song Daren, Song Daren introduced the situation at Great Bamboo Peak. Ye Yun knew some of it already, but too much time had passed and he had forgotten parts of it. Besides, these were not things people would normally make a point of remembering, so he listened very attentively.
Much like in the original novel, Tian Buyi's first six disciples had been named in order after ren, yi, li, zhi, xin, and shu. The first five each had the character da added before them, while shu would sound ambiguous with da added to it. Their mistress, Su Ru, had therefore named him Du Bishu instead, meaning "gambling always loses," as a warning not to become obsessed with gambling.
Having read the original novel, Ye Yun knew that Song Daren had deliberately said this to ease some of Zhang Xiaofan's sorrow. It seemed to be working well: much of the grief on Zhang Xiaofan's face had already faded. As for Ye Yun, he had nothing to grieve over in the first place, so naturally he did not wear a mournful expression.
Ye Yun had originally been full of expectations for the food in this world, but upon reaching the kitchen, he was utterly disappointed. Pickled vegetables, steamed buns, and millet porridge—this was their meal. It tasted decent enough, but the variety was pitifully limited. Still, it was understandable. Though cultivators lived much longer than ordinary people, they spent their lives studying the Dao. Where would they find the time to study different dishes?
Perhaps because of the friendship they had formed back in Cao Miao Village while catching sparrows and roasting them, Zhang Xiaofan was especially close to Ye Yun. He even insisted on sitting beside him while eating, which made Ye Yun very happy. As long as he stuck close to Zhang Xiaofan, he would not have to worry about missing out on good things.
After eating in the kitchen, Ye Yun followed Song Daren and Zhang Xiaofan to Great Bamboo Peak's main hall, Shou Jing Hall.
Just as the original novel described, everyone from the Great Bamboo Peak branch of the Qingyun Sect had gathered in Shou Jing Hall. Red bricks paved the floor, while red tiles and stone pillars filled the hall. A large Taiji symbol was carved into the ground at its center. Overall, the place was quite plain, but perhaps because it had been nourished by spiritual energy all year round, even the red bricks seemed a little more crystalline and a little less rough.
Two chairs stood at the front of the hall, occupied by two people. The short, plump man was Tian Buyi. The other was a graceful and dignified beautiful woman in her thirties, who had to be their mistress, Su Ru. A little girl stood beside Su Ru. Her features were delicate, her bright eyes watery and lively, and she was utterly adorable. She had to be Tian Ling'er, the senior sister from the original novel who had caused Zhang Xiaofan so much heartache.
As for the other five male disciples, they stood in a row below, some tall, some short, some sturdy, some thin. At that moment, all their gazes were fixed on Ye Yun and Zhang Xiaofan.
Song Daren stepped before the hall and respectfully said, "Master, Mistress, this disciple has brought the junior brothers."
Tian Buyi nodded at his words. His gaze fell upon Ye Yun, and his eyes were filled with satisfaction. His gaze toward Zhang Xiaofan was also gentle, which left Ye Yun rather puzzled. He remembered that in the original novel, Tian Buyi had been extremely dissatisfied with Zhang Xiaofan, finding fault with him in every way during the apprenticeship ceremony. It was only after spending more time with him that Tian Buyi gradually accepted him because of his kind nature.
As Tian Buyi happily examined his two disciples, Su Ru glanced at Zhang Xiaofan a few times and gently said, "Daren, the two of them have slept for a full day and night. They must have been hungry long ago. Take them to get something to eat first."
Song Daren replied, "Reporting to Mistress, I already took the junior brothers to the kitchen to eat."
Su Ru nodded, glanced at Tian Buyi, and said nothing more. Tian Buyi nodded approvingly and said with a smile, "Begin."
Zhang Xiaofan did not understand what was going on and stood there blankly. Ye Yun knew, but he was only a five- or six-year-old child now, and acting too unnaturally would not be good, so he did not move either. Just then, Song Daren quietly whispered from behind him, "Junior Brother, hurry and kneel to kowtow and acknowledge Master."
At those words, Ye Yun immediately knelt and sincerely kowtowed nine times without the slightest perfunctoriness. Though each kowtow was not loud, every one of them truly struck the floor. He gave those nine kowtows willingly, without the slightest resistance. Never mind the saying that a man's knees were worth gold—respecting one's teacher and honoring the Dao had always been a traditional virtue of Huaxia's children. Not to mention that this was crucial to whether he could return home, Tian Buyi's identity as his master alone was enough to deserve these nine kowtows.
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