Hundred Vegetable Mountain was a paradise for the Race of Grass and Trees. Grass and Tree Immortals from all races gathered there, under the protection of the Five True Lords of Hundred Vegetable Mountain.
The Five True Lords of Hundred Vegetable Mountain were True Lord Chaotian, True Lord Caiwen, True Lord Ziqie, True Lord Bailuo, and True Lord Donggua.
These five True Lords had once been annual herbaceous plants growing on Golden Ao Island. After listening to Sect Master Tongtian expound the wondrous Dao, they had cultivated into immortals.
They had later joined the Interception Sect and become Outer Disciples of the Sect of Interception.
Because the five True Lords were native lifeforms of Golden Ao Island, Sect Master Tongtian had granted them special permission. He had not only established a cultivation ground for them, but also allowed them to return to Golden Ao Island at any time.
Grateful for Sect Master Tongtian's guidance and for his kindness in accepting, teaching, and cultivating them, the five True Lords had established a cultivation ground on an immortal mountain by the Shore of the East Sea called Hundred Vegetable Mountain.
Because the five of them were Grass and Tree Immortals, they were especially protective of the Race of Grass and Trees.
For countless years, they had used their status as Disciples of the Sect of Interception to protect the land, keeping the human, immortal, and spirit realms of Hundred Vegetable Mountain in peace and harmony.
One day, True Lord Chaotian received a message from Kui Niu, the mount of Sect Master Tongtian, who was exceptionally well-informed.
Kui Niu and True Lord Chaotian had hit it off immediately, and they had become close friends.
"Fellow Daoist Chaotian, things have changed within the sect. The master has taken a new Core Disciple, and he..."
Kui Niu had followed Sect Master Tongtian for countless years and understood his intentions very well.
Sect Master Tongtian valued his master-disciple bond and would not do anything to Daoist Duobao. Nor would Daoist Duobao's standing in his heart diminish.
However, when it came to matters of the Interception Sect, Sect Master Tongtian would handle them impartially.
Public matters were public, and private matters were private. Sect Master Tongtian kept them clearly separate.
Kui Niu could clearly sense that the Interception Sect's fortunes were about to change.
As True Lord Chaotian received the news, his expression gradually grew grave.
The shift in the sect's situation had been beyond his expectations. Daoist Duobao, who had seemed to be doing so well, was about to fall—and be pushed out by a newcomer.
True Lord Chaotian couldn't make sense of it.
"Perhaps I should meet Senior Brother Fang Yang. As a Disciple of the Sect of Interception, I ought to make something of myself."
And so, True Lord Chaotian made up his mind. Since he refused to collude with Daoist Duobao, he was a nobody in the Interception Sect.
The Interception Sect had gained a new decision-maker, and the future of him and Hundred Vegetable Mountain might well change.
By then, Fang Yang had returned to Qingcheng Mountain, where a visitor was waiting for him.
Saint Mother Wudang had arrived outside Qingcheng Grotto-Heaven early and was waiting for Fang Yang.
Fang Yang was surprised. Why had Saint Mother Wudang come to Qingcheng Mountain instead of building her Vacuum Homeland?
Even so, Fang Yang warmly welcomed Saint Mother Wudang.
"Senior Sister came because of the Myriad Worlds Pursuit Order, didn't she?"
It wasn't that Fang Yang didn't understand tact. He simply didn't need it.
With Sect Master Tongtian, such a powerful backer, he had no need to dissemble with anyone below the level of a saint.
Why not be straightforward? A pile of empty words would only waste breath and serve no purpose.
The smile on Saint Mother Wudang's face faded slightly. "Since you know why I'm here, Junior Brother, I won't beat around the bush. I came to persuade you to rescind the Pursuit Order."
"Mm."
Fang Yang nodded lightly, inviting Saint Mother Wudang to continue.
Saint Mother Wudang sighed softly and said, "Junior Brother, I understand what you're trying to do. I understand that you want to reform our sect. But your methods are too extreme. You've issued a Pursuit Order against the sect's disciples. What face will your fellow disciples have left?"
Fang Yang remained completely unmoved.
They hadn't cared about losing face when they damaged the Interception Sect's fortunes or squandered Sect Master Tongtian's Merit of Heaven Opening. But now that they were being hunted, they suddenly cared about their dignity?
As disciples of the Three Pure Ones, they should have the courage to kill—and the resolve to face being killed.
If they were willing to kill, but unwilling to face the consequences, what kind of cultivators were they?
"Senior Sister, I don't understand what you mean. When did a bunch of furred and horned, wet-born and egg-born creatures become my fellow disciples? Every one of us under the Three Pure Ones has deep Root Nature and is virtuous and complete—a True Immortal. Those wretches who abandoned their identities ceased to be disciples of the Three Pure Ones long ago."
Fang Yang shook his head, rejecting Saint Mother Wudang's advice.
It wasn't that he didn't understand Saint Mother Wudang's position; he simply wasn't willing to accept it.
He only meant to send those furred and horned, wet-born and egg-born creatures into the Human Emperor Banner, then subcontract their services to Haotian Shangdi, earning Merit to repay what they had consumed from the Interception Sect.
Of course, it would be even better if he could root out the spies sent by the Underworld, the Western Sect, and the Devil Dao, and sell them all to Haotian Shangdi as well.
No one who schemed against the Interception Sect could escape unscathed.
Even if this batch of disciples all ended up in the Human Emperor Banner, Fang Yang wouldn't care.
They were all freeloaders who had never brought the Interception Sect any returns.
No matter how vast the Interception Sect's resources were, it couldn't afford to raise so many people for nothing.
Even those with ability merely cultivated without doing any work. They, too, ought to be sent into the Human Emperor Banner.
As long as they had Sect Master Tongtian's illustrious name behind them, would the Interception Sect have any trouble attracting new disciples?
Even when an old woman died, the brothel would keep running. Once the red-clad girls were gone, there'd still be green-clad ones!
Saint Mother Wudang's expression stiffened. She hadn't expected this Junior Brother to be so impossible to reason with, refusing even to heed her advice.
"Junior Brother, you should know that Master cherishes his disciples above all. I know you haven't been in the sect for long and don't share a bond with its disciples. You may not care about your fellow disciples, but you must consider Master's feelings. What would he feel, watching his disciples slaughter one another?"
Fang Yang chuckled at her words.
What Saint Mother Wudang said was no different from what a sycophant in a worldly dynasty might say.
There was nothing wrong with being filial to one's teacher. Blind obedience, however, was wrong.
A disciple shouldn't simply obey their master in all things. Besides, Sect Master Tongtian had never given such an order.
"Senior Sister, you're mistaken. Master cherishes disciples who uphold the sect's rules, understand its doctrines, and intercept a glimmer of life for all beings—not parasites who betray their own, disgrace the sect, and undermine its fortunes."
"Master promoted me to Core Disciple and passed on his supreme Dao. As his disciple, I should ease his burdens and make the Interception Sect into a true Saint Great Sect."
Saint Mother Wudang felt a headache coming on. She and Fang Yang simply couldn't see eye to eye.
She understood his reasoning, but she didn't have the courage to act on it—and she also had to consider Daoist Duobao's opinion.
"What about Senior Brother? Are you really going to make an enemy of him?"
Fang Yang's expression didn't change. He said coldly, "No matter who it is, no one can harm the interests of our sect. I'll kill anyone who dares undermine its foundations!"
His tone was firm, without the slightest hesitation. Saint Mother Wudang couldn't hear the faintest trace of hope in it.
Her heart sank. She knew she wouldn't be able to talk him around. In the future, a great battle would erupt among the Interception Sect's Core Disciples.
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