Chapter 41

In the Back Courtyard.

Lei Jun lowered his raised hand.

The entire courtyard, and even the Immortal Mountain outside,

had changed

in a very short time,

according to his wishes.

The Immortal Mountain was mainly made up of Stone Steps,

which stretched down from Mountain Peak Academy all the way to the foot of the mountain.

As for the Academy...

Compared with the little courtyard before,

the Academy now

was not only a little larger, but its various areas were also more clearly divided.

Before,

all the cultivators had been mixed together,

with no order at all.

Now, they had been separated according to their attributes and the Dharma Gates they cultivated.

Everything was orderly.

For example, the cultivators who originally belonged to the Innate Three Clans

had been settled in places suited to their respective attributes.

The Dragon Clan.

Those like Zulong and Yinglong

were naturally in the water.

The Phoenix Clan had settled on the branches.

The Qilin Clan's beasts roamed the ground.

But it had to be said,

no matter how magnificent their true forms were, they had to keep them in check here.

First, the Academy was only so large.

Second,

not a single place in the Academy was ordinary.

What would showing off their true forms accomplish?

No one would be amazed.

To some extent,

these Spirit Beasts were just like...

pets Lei Jun kept?

Just as he had once kept Fierce Beasts.

Large Spirit Roots

could be used as scenery.

Small Spirit Roots

could also be used as potted plants.

It could be said

that not a single place in the entire Academy was ordinary.

Everywhere

was imbued with unimaginable power.

But none of that

was the most important thing.

The most important things were the Academy in the Front Hall

and the Small Residence in the Back Courtyard.

The former

was where Lei Jun taught the Dao. Any cultivator who passed the trials could come there.

The latter

was where he rested.

Not to mention the Innate Deities still on their way—even among the cultivators already in the Academy,

few could enter.

For now,

there were only two.

Both had some connection to Lei Jun.

One was Youying, the Laurel Tree.

Lei Jun had grown used to lying beneath the tree, comprehending the Dao while gazing out at the Universe of Great Thousand Worlds.

Besides,

she had made a suggestion before.

But the main reason was still her temperament.

In two words:

Uncompetitive!

She was very gentle and calm.

She had no ulterior motives, and revered him without going so far as to fear him excessively.

There was a difference between the two.

If the latter were too strong, conversation would be dull. Then there was Little Fox.

She was Youying's opposite.

She was far too reverent.

Of course, that also had to do with her humble origins.

It could be said that, in the entire Academy,

her starting point

had been the lowest.

But when it came to cultivation, she was the strongest after Lei Jun!

Even Zulong, after his transformation,

was no match for her.

Why?

The reason was simple.

She was the first to be resurrected in the Academy, and the only one who had cultivated Lei Jun's complete Dharma Gate.

That meant she had cultivated all the way from Qi Refining to the Three Lifetimes Body!

By comparison,

everyone else had only cultivated one of the many Daos Lei Jun possessed.

These Daos

were merely things Lei Jun had cultivated along the way while practicing Zuxi.

For example,

he had cultivated a wisp of Immortal Spirit Qi.

In practice,

that was equivalent to cultivating the Immortal Dao.

As for Yin-Yang Qi,

that naturally meant the Dao of Yin-Yang.

That was also why, when Lei Jun broke through to a new realm, Strange Phenomena appeared, and the cultivators sensed an opportunity.

It was also the true reason the Academy had come into being.

As for what purpose letting Little Fox enter the Back Courtyard served,

in truth...

she was also a "housekeeper."

Lei Jun had resurrected her first back then, and it was not as though he had no such intention.

It was just that, at the time,

there had been no need for one.

After that,

no other being could enter the Back Courtyard.

This was completely different from before.

Previously,

the Small Courtyard had no clear division between front and back.

Even cultivators near the gate

could sense Lei Jun's Dao Body

and gain insight from it.

That was no longer possible.

The Back Courtyard was separated by a barrier. No matter how powerful they were, they could only remain in the Front Hall.

Although they could still cultivate through the books now that they could no longer directly comprehend his Dao Body,

and it was even easier that way,

quite a few cultivators still felt disappointed and dejected.

Because,

compared with being in the Celestial Venerable's presence,

the difficulty of gaining insight was nothing at all.

If they could,

some of them even hoped to return to how things had been.

But all they could do was think about it.

Or...

try to find a way to enter the Back Courtyard?

How they might manage that, however, remained a mystery.

Wangshu was one of those who thought this way.

But after feeling disappointed for a while, she quickly rallied.

"Not being able to stay here like Sister Youying means I still haven't earned recognition!"

"I have to keep working hard!"

Meanwhile,

in the Back Courtyard,

Lei Jun looked at Youying.

He said,

"Are you sure you don't need anything?"

"If it's within My power, I can grant it. For example... I could let Wangshu return here!"

"I've never been stingy about granting others opportunities. You should know that!"

"Or is it..."

"that you think there are some things even I can't do?"

The Laurel Tree's branches swayed gently,

as if "shaking her head."

Then,

a clear female voice rang out.

"Celestial Venerable, being able to remain by Your side here is already the greatest blessing Youying could ask for!"

"Youying is only a tree. There is nothing she needs."

"Being able to stay by Your side is enough!"

"As for Wangshu..."

Youying paused, then continued.

"If she is in the Front Hall, it means she has not earned Your recognition! Even if I helped her come here, I would only be addressing the surface of the problem."

"What would being in the Back Courtyard matter? If she had Your recognition, surely it would be the same even in the depths of Chaos, wouldn't it?"

"Besides..."

"No matter the reason, I will obey Your will. Even if You asked Youying to suffer Dao's Fall, she would not hesitate!"

"From now on, Your will shall be all that Youying thinks and desires!"

At these words,

Even Lei Jun was somewhat moved.

After a while,

he finally smiled and said,

"It seems..."

"Passing the Dao Diagram on to you back then was the right choice."

Lei Jun spoke,

his gaze piercing through space-time,

and settling on the group of Innate Gods, who had now drawn close to the Immortal Mountain.

He said slowly,

"Ever since the Origin came into being, all beings under Heaven have had to face all kinds of trials."

"The Three Paths of Heaven, Earth, and Man are no exception."

"Let alone the countless beings of the world."

"Youying..."

"Do you think that if they pass this trial, I'll take one of them as my disciple?"

Youying fell silent for a moment,

then replied,

"Celestial Venerable..."

"You probably just want to test them, don't you?"

"Becoming your disciple can't be that easy. One trial is nothing—ten or even a hundred wouldn't be too many!"

"Hahaha!"

Lei Jun laughed heartily and shook his head.

"The number of trials isn't what matters. What matters is whether someone suits my wishes."

"If I'm satisfied, why would I need so many trials?"

"One is enough!"

Hearing this, Youying was stunned.

Only then did she ask,

"So, Celestial Venerable, will you take one of them as your disciple this time?"

"Youying, you're wrong again!"

Lei Jun stopped keeping her in suspense...

"I do intend to take a disciple, but it has nothing to do with them or with the trial on the Stone Steps."

As he spoke,

Lei Jun changed the subject

and said bluntly,

"Youying..."

"Would you be willing to become the first disciple under my tutelage?"

In an instant,

Youying froze.

Become Celestial Venerable's disciple?

It wasn't that the thought hadn't crossed her mind just now. She simply hadn't dared to entertain it.

As it happened,

long ago, before she had even taken human form,

she and Wangshu had wondered about it.

Did having received the Dao Diagram from Lei Jun make them his disciples?

They had quickly reached a conclusion.

It didn't.

They weren't even Disciples-in-Name!

But that didn't mean Youying didn't want to become Lei Jun's disciple.

On the contrary,

she had yearned for it so much that she hadn't dared to hope.

What could compare to such a blessing?

This was it!

What did the Academy matter in comparison?

It was, after all, something Lei Jun himself had created.

And so,

the moment she recovered, Youying reacted quickly.

She hurriedly cried,

"I'm willing!"

In her haste, she had even changed the way she referred to herself.

That showed just how excited she was.

Lei Jun

merely smiled faintly.

Then he spoke again.

At the same time,

he sent out a spark of opportunity, which sank into the trunk of the Yuegui.

"Since that's settled,"

"you shall practice my Dao..."

"The Dao of Lianxi!"

"This path can have just one realm or countless realms. It all depends on your comprehension. Every cultivator's method of practice is different."

"You need only remember that this is the true path of cultivation!"

"No matter how powerful the others are, they're nothing but illusions!"

These words

shook Youying to her core.

What did he mean, only this path was real and all the others were false?

What about those who cultivated the Dao of Fate, Karma, time, or space?

Did those paths count for nothing either?

For a moment,

Youying couldn't understand.

But that was all right.

She only had to trust what Lei Jun said.

Nothing else mattered.

"Youying... I'll keep your words in mind, Master!"

Lei Jun nodded.

He said nothing more.

A trace of feeling showed on his face.

By this point,

it had to be said that he was a little late.

By comparison,

someone else would probably have taken countless disciples by now.

But Lei Jun had only just taken his first.

Still, it had to be said

that Lei Jun was choosy for a different reason than Yuanshi.

Yuanshi valued talent.

Those without enough talent

found it difficult to become his disciples.

Lei Jun was different.

He valued character more.

No matter how talented someone was, he wouldn't take them as a disciple if their character didn't suit him.

In truth,

Youying's temperament was indeed well suited to practicing Lei Jun's Dao.

After all,

many cultivators shared a tranquil, detached disposition.

That was a great help in cultivation.

So

Lei Jun wasn't worried about whether Youying would understand his Dao.

As for why he wanted a disciple...

Aside from passing on his teachings,

having one would make things easier whenever something came up.

For example...

managing the Primordial Wilderness?

Lei Jun's attention couldn't remain fixed on the Primordial Wilderness forever.

Once he realized

that beyond the Primordial Wilderness lay an immeasurably vast world, with countless other Primordial Wildernesses beyond it,

Lei Jun had begun thinking about training someone to manage it.

At first,

he had thought of Hongjun as the one to manage it.

But that fellow

would later merge with the Heavenly Dao and couldn't serve as a messenger for Lei Jun's will.

So

he had to look elsewhere.

Clearly,

his own direct disciple was a good choice.

With that in mind,

Lei Jun had wanted to take a disciple for a long time.

Only back then,

he had planned to take Youying as a Disciple-in-Name.

The Fusang Tree, still on the Solar Star and just short of taking human form, was to join her.

Unexpectedly,

his plans had changed, and Youying had gone from a Disciple-in-Name to a direct disciple!

The Dao she practiced

was also the genuine Dao that Lei Jun himself cultivated.

As for the others,

he had held something back from each of them, to some extent.

Take Little Fox, for example...

In truth,

she only practiced the Dao of Qi Refining.

"Primordial Qi" and "qi" differed by just one character, yet the difference between them was as vast as Heaven and Earth.

Perhaps at first, it wouldn't show.

Their strength might even seem the same.

But one could lead to the ultimate, to the Supreme, and to the other shore.

The other could only...

go around in circles.

It might seem to grow stronger without end, yet it could never undergo a true transformation.

That was, transcendence!

In other words,

only now did the Primordial Wilderness have a being who truly practiced Lei Jun's Dao.

The others

had only learned parts of it.

Their practice was incomplete.

As for whether there would be other beings like Youying...

Then it would depend on their own fortune.

Lei Jun thought.

Lei Jun once again turned his gaze toward the area beyond the Immortal Mountain.

More precisely,

it was the area around the Immortal Mountain.

At this moment,

after Tongtian, more cultivators who had sensed an opportunity appeared near the Immortal Mountain.

Although these cultivators varied greatly in strength,

without exception,

they were all Innate Gods, and all were renowned.

These cultivators—

the strongest among them were in no way inferior to Tongtian.

They were also at the Peak Da Luo realm.

However, unlike Tongtian, they had never received an opportunity from the sword grass.

Tongtian was currently

on the verge of a breakthrough.

But even before breaking through, he was already beyond what the Peak Da Luo realm could compare with.

Besides those at the Peak Da Luo realm,

there were also those in the early Da Luo realm.

Of course,

whether they were at the early stage or the peak,

they made little difference to Lei Jun.

The same was even true of the Immortal Mountain and the sword grass.

There was nothing that could be done about it.

The mere Da Luo realm was simply this weak.

After all,

this was not the Mythical Da Luo realm.

"Even I am not one."

"Right now, I have merely taken one step onto the path that leads through myth."

"I am still a long way from truly becoming a myth."

Lei Jun thought.

If even he was like this, it was even more impossible for the others.

They might even find it difficult to recognize this fact.

But then again,

if they could recognize it, they would not have come here.