"Quiet!"
Yan Changkong waved his hand and said in a low voice:
"The diary's been revealed again. Watch closely. Our ancestor definitely isn't the sort of person who lacks ambition!"
Great Elder Chen Xiu hurried forward a few steps as well and said, "Exactly. The path of cultivation is incredibly difficult."
"Talent, willpower, and opportunity are all indispensable."
"Since Ancestor Lin Feng became an unparalleled Great Emperor, he certainly wouldn't be someone who sought comfort and abandoned cultivation for romance."
Both Yan Changkong and Chen Xiu were absolutely confident of that.
In truth, their reasoning wasn't wrong at all.
After all, countless prodigies with peerless talent and extraordinary aptitude had repeatedly hit one wall after another on the path of cultivation. Forget becoming a Great Emperor—many couldn't even reach Body Integration.
It was easy to imagine how much harder the quest for the Dao and cultivation became the further one advanced.
Lin Feng was already a Great Emperor. There was no questioning that.
So even if he'd had a brief period of slacking off along the way, it couldn't have been the main theme of his life. Otherwise, how could he have become a Great Emperor?
As their voices died away,
Xuanqing Sect fell quiet once more.
Everyone raised their eyes, eagerly watching a newly revealed page of the diary on the light screen.
Diary of the Immortal Great Emperor, Page Eleven:
[It's been half a month since I returned to the sect.]
[I miss Ruoyu. I have no heart for cultivation at all. I wonder if she misses me too? Sigh, I think I've fallen in love...]
[Those long legs really haunt my dreams!]
[I gained quite a bit from this trip, but I shouldn't do anything so dangerous again. It was enough just to try it once.]
[At least until I reach Golden Core, I'm not joining any more of the sect's trials, competitions, or expeditions. I'll keep my head down and live quietly as a nobody, hehe!]
[Staying steady is what matters most.]
[A senior brother recently told me that there are a few excellent brothels in Cloud Sky City, not far from the sect. They're the perfect places to unwind.]
[He asked if I wanted to go with him, but I firmly refused!]
This diary entry didn't reveal much.
As Yan Changkong read it, his heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled little by little.
Firmly refused!
That's a good choice of words, he thought. Looks like our ancestor is gradually getting over his romantic troubles and is about to devote himself to cultivation.
Yan Changkong glanced around and said, "See? Ancestor Lin Feng is a cultivator with ambition and integrity. He wouldn't seek an easy life."
"Even after a temporary setback, he can quickly get back on track!"
He focused on the positive, not mentioning a single word about the diary's admission that Lin Feng had no heart for cultivation.
The Great Elder silently took notes nearby, thinking that he'd learned something.
Next time something like this happens, I should handle it the same way.
Seeing that even the sect master had spoken, the disciples all nodded to themselves. Their sect master still commanded a great deal of authority in their eyes.
The restless hearts of the young disciples gradually calmed.
The light screen flickered and shone again. The final diary entry was revealed.
Diary of the Immortal Great Emperor, Page Twelve:
[The reason I refused...]
[Was that I don't know that senior brother very well. I'd feel a little awkward going with him, and there'd be too many eyes around. I've decided to go by myself!]
[Cloud Sky City is pretty lively.]
[I've recently visited every pleasure house in the city. Overall, Drunken Spring Pavilion is the best. The ladies are the gentlest, and the service is the most unique!]
[I can't praise it enough. I give it a million likes!]
[Especially their original techniques, 'Inverting Heaven and Earth' and 'Flying Trapeze.' They're impossible to forget!]
[The night is long, and sleep eludes me!]
[All right, that's enough writing for today. Drunken Spring Pavilion, here I come again!]
[Since cultivation is dull, balancing work and rest is the way to go!]
The diary ended there.
Yan Changkong finished reading, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape. He was dumbfounded.
"This..."
He groaned inwardly. How am I supposed to spin this?
He looked at the new disciples below. Every one of them was flushed with excitement, eagerly discussing it among themselves. They looked ready to go try it out that very moment.
The chatter grew louder and louder.
"Hahaha, Ancestor Lin Feng really knows how to have fun! How can we cultivators not follow in our ancestor's footsteps?"
"Exactly. Let's go experience Drunken Spring Pavilion later!"
"Together, together!"
"I never liked places of pleasure, but the ancestor's right. Since cultivation is dull, balancing work and rest is the way to go. My outlook was too narrow before. I want to try it too!"
"That's right. The ancestor tried it all for us. It'd be a shame not to go. If he gave it a million likes, how could it be bad?"
"What a move, Inverting Heaven and Earth! Flying Trapeze! Tonight, I'll take them on myself..."
Yan Changkong gaped. No matter how hard he racked his brains, he couldn't think of how to turn the tide.
At that moment, the Great Elder edged closer, tugged gently at his sleeve, and whispered:
"Sect Master, now that today's diary entry has come out, Drunken Spring Pavilion will surely be packed. I'm afraid business will be booming for quite some time."
"Just like what happened with Xuanqing Sect, plenty of cultivators will come from far away to experience what the Great Emperor once experienced..."
Yan Changkong frowned. "What does that have to do with us?"
Drunken Spring Pavilion wasn't owned by Xuanqing Sect. They had no connection to it, and even if business boomed, they wouldn't get a share.
Chen Xiu's eyes flickered. Lowering his voice further, he said, "I mean, should we book a few of the best private rooms in advance?"
"..."
Chen Xiu continued, "Wouldn't that be a better way to learn from Ancestor Lin Feng's spirit?"
Yan Changkong pondered for a moment, then glared at him and said:
"How would one or two private rooms be enough? Book a few more. We have plenty of spirit stones right now, anyway!"
"I'll send someone to take care of it at once!"
"And the people from Jade Pool Holy Land, the Liyue Immortal Dynasty, and the other major powers are still in Qing Province. We've been discussing an alliance, and we have to host them for a few banquets. Arrange Drunken Spring Pavilion's best service for them!"
Chen Xiu's expression turned solemn. "The Sect Master is wise!"
The Cultivation World wasn't just about fighting and killing. Social graces mattered too!
Yan Changkong nodded and simply dismissed all the disciples.
In a situation like this, even if he had nine mouths, there was no way to turn public opinion around.
He returned to the main hall, feeling a little heated himself.
Yan Changkong muttered, "I've been run off my feet lately. It's time to unwind. A balance between work and rest, after all."
Meanwhile,
in a prosperous city in the Southern Region of Qing Province, less than three hundred miles from Xuanqing Sect,
lay Cloud Sky City.
Drunken Spring Pavilion was a renowned pleasure house in the city, sprawling across tens of thousands of acres.
"We've struck it rich!"
A middle-aged beauty in pale green gauze robes, still full of charm, beamed and exclaimed:
"Even the Great Emperor had nothing but praise for Drunken Spring Pavilion. This time, won't our name spread across the entire Cultivation World?"
Drunken Spring Pavilion wasn't an ordinary brothel. A cultivation sect stood behind it.
Even some of the women in the establishment were cultivators.
Of course, those who ended up at Drunken Spring Pavilion were generally fair-skinned, beautiful women whose talents were limited and whose prospects on the path of cultivation were dim.
The middle-aged beauty's robe revealed a sweep of snowy-white cleavage, a deep valley that seemed to have no end.
She was none other than Liu Xiaoxiao, the current manager of Drunken Spring Pavilion.
Liu Xiaoxiao's eyes glittered. She laughed so hard that she swayed like a flower in the wind, then suddenly ordered, "Bring every storyteller in the city here at once. We're going to make up stories too!"
"We'll offer a Great Emperor Package..."
"And those two special techniques, Inverting Heaven and Earth and Flying Trapeze—every girl needs to master them!"
The more she thought about it, the more excited she became. The recent sensation surrounding Xuanqing Sect was still fresh in her mind.
Liu Xiaoxiao herself was a Nascent Soul cultivator. She'd even paid to obtain information about the Great Emperor.
She'd also paid to visit the Former Residence of the Great Emperor.
Back then, she'd been terribly envious. She'd never imagined that such an opportunity would fall into her lap now.
Unlike Xuanqing Sect,
they were just a brothel. Nobody would come after them; at most, people would come to see what it was like.
Liu Xiaoxiao clenched her fist and said, "This time, Drunken Spring Pavilion will surely become the number-one brothel in the Cultivation World!"
Before you continue