Two-Faced and Hypocritical

Xuan Qing had intended to seek out Sect Master Tongtian at the Supreme Clarity Hall, but to his surprise, he found the hall empty. Upon inquiring with the water and fire attendants, he learned that Sect Master Tongtian had just gone to the Grand Pure Hall.

Clearly, Grand Pure One Laozi did not wish to see his two brothers quarreling and wanted to act as a mediator to ease the conflict between Primordial Lord of Heaven and Sect Master Tongtian.

"Disciple Xuan Qing seeks an audience with First Martial Uncle!"

Xuan Qing, familiar with the way, arrived at the Grand Pure Hall. After being ushered in by Xuandu, he first glanced at Grand Pure One Laozi, then at Sect Master Tongtian and Primordial Lord of Heaven, and respectfully bowed, "Greetings, Teacher, greetings to both Martial Uncles! May Teacher and both Martial Uncles have eternal life!"

"You are dismissed!"

Grand Pure One Laozi nodded slightly, "Good, you have reached Grand Unity Golden Immortal! Just right, among Tongtian's disciples, you are the most sensible. You be the judge of this matter!"

Xuan Qing was startled, then realized that Grand Pure One Laozi was entrusting him with the task of mediating the conflict. After careful consideration, he said, "Teacher, Second Martial Uncle, to harm the brotherly affection of billions of years for a trivial matter is rather not worth it. I beg you to listen to your disciple's words!"

Sect Master Tongtian snorted upon hearing this, "This is none of your business. If my disciple makes a mistake, it is I who should punish them. How can I let others do it for me?"

Primordial Lord of Heaven glared at Sect Master Tongtian, "Tongtian, don't be ungrateful! I am doing this for your own good. Don't you even look at your disciples? Besides a few like Duobao, what kind of demons and monsters are they?"

"Enough!"

Grand Pure One Laozi frowned, seemingly annoyed, "I called you two here not to listen to you two bicker!"

As the elder brother, how could he not know the temperaments of Primordial Lord of Heaven and Sect Master Tongtian? Primordial was arrogant, and Sect Master Tongtian was precisely the type who would not yield to force but would soften to kindness.

Neither was willing to back down!

This was what led to the current situation.

Xuan Qing quickly tried to smooth things over, "Teacher, Second Martial Uncle, this matter is merely a dispute among disciples. It is not worth escalating to this extent."

He looked at Sect Master Tongtian, "Teacher, 'teaching without discrimination' is indeed a great benevolent act, but human hearts are complex. Some disciples indeed need rules to restrain them. Second Martial Uncle is also well-intentioned. My Intercepting Sect does not have an Innate Supreme Treasure to suppress its destiny. If it is harmed by those with ulterior motives, damaging the reputation of the Intercepting Sect, it would tarnish Teacher's prestige!"

As he spoke, he looked towards Primordial Lord of Heaven again and said cautiously, "Second Martial Uncle, I know you are worried, and what you said to Teacher just now was just a moment of anger!"

Sect Master Tongtian's expression softened considerably upon hearing this, but he still said proudly, "What do you know?"

As for Primordial Lord of Heaven, his emotions were unreadable, and he simply stood still.

However, Xuan Qing could clearly feel that the subtle pressure in the Grand Pure Hall had lessened considerably, and a smile appeared on the Grand Pure One's face.

Seeing this, he continued, "Teacher, and Second Martial Uncle, I often interact with Junior Brother Gongming, as well as Junior Sisters Yunxiao, Qiongxiao, and Bixiao. I understand what it means to say one thing and mean another. Junior Brother Gongming is straightforward, and Junior Sister Bixiao is unrestrained. They occasionally have conflicts, but it does not harm their sibling affection. Teacher and Second Martial Uncle are Saints. Surely your magnanimity is not less than that of a few juniors!"

Sect Master Tongtian immediately mumbled, "Who is saying one thing and meaning another?"

It's you, of course!

Xuan Qing thought to himself, but dared not speak it aloud, merely smiling at Grand Pure One Laozi.

Grand Pure One Laozi, understanding his intent, immediately said, "Yes! You two, after so many years of cultivation, can your magnanimity really be less than that of a few juniors?"

Seeing someone offering a stepping stone, Sect Master Tongtian was no longer aggressive. Primordial Lord of Heaven immediately said, "Wasn't I worried about Tongtian being dragged down by his disciples?"

Seeing Primordial Lord of Heaven back down, Sect Master Tongtian also stated, "This matter is indeed the fault of my disciples. I will discipline them properly!"

"That's more like it!"

Grand Pure One Laozi smiled, "Our billions of years of friendship, can we really be a laughingstock for juniors?"

To be honest, Yuan Shi and Tongtian often quarreled in the past, and he had played the role of mediator many times. But now, it seemed Xuan Qing was also a good candidate.

He also knew that there were differences in their understanding of the Great Dao, and someone was needed to mediate. That was why he had asked Xuan Qing to judge this matter.

Now, it seemed he had not misjudged the person!

Although Xuan Qing was not suited to his philosophy of inaction, he was extremely skilled at observing people's expressions and words. With just a few sentences, he had provided a way for both Primordial and Tongtian to save face.

Thinking of this, he earnestly said to Sect Master Tongtian, "Tongtian, teaching without discrimination is good, but you can't accept just anyone!"

Then, he looked at Primordial Lord of Heaven again and said, "Yuan Shi, don't be so aggressive. If Tongtian's disciples make mistakes, it is naturally his responsibility as their teacher to punish them!"

"Yes!"

Both nodded.

As Xuan Qing had said, as Saints, how could they not understand this principle? The reason for their quarrel was nothing more than their own pride.

Primordial Lord of Heaven was indeed well-intentioned, but he had used the wrong method, leading to the opposite of what he intended.

Tongtian also knew his own shortcomings. The reason he refused to admit his mistake was simply because he felt that what Primordial Lord of Heaven had said was too disrespectful to him.

These two were contradictory individuals, saying one thing and meaning another, with outward appearances not matching their inner selves.

After a few lighthearted remarks, Grand Pure One Laozi became serious, "Tongtian, have you thought about how you will test your disciples and how you will prevent those with ulterior motives from infiltrating the Intercepting Sect?"

"This..."

Sect Master Tongtian did not know how to answer. For the moment, he had not really thought about it. The doctrine of teaching without discrimination meant that the Intercepting Sect would inevitably take in many disciples.

Seeing this, Xuan Qing immediately said, "Your disciple has a plan that can help Teacher solve this problem. However, it will require Second Martial Uncle to lend this disciple a magical artifact!"

"Oh?"

Upon hearing this, Primordial Lord of Heaven showed a hint of curiosity, "Please, speak freely!"

Xuan Qing bowed, "I heard from Junior Brother Yuding that Second Martial Uncle possesses a treasure called the Jade Void Glazed Lamp. Within the lamp is a divine fire called the 'Golden Fire of Karma Washing,' which can probe all spirits and reflect karma and karmic debts! I wish to borrow the power of this treasure to conduct an assessment of the disciples in the sect every hundred years. Those with heavy karma will be directly expelled from the Intercepting Sect. As for those who have made mistakes but show remorse, they will be suppressed under Kirin Cliff for ten thousand years as punishment!"

He then added, "Of course, it would be even better if the two Martial Uncles could offer some suggestions to Teacher and establish sect rules to govern the conduct of the disciples!"

Regarding sect rules, Xuan Qing could offer some opinions, but he could not set them himself. Firstly, his strength was insufficient, and he lacked the necessary prestige. Secondly, the Intercepting Sect was founded by Sect Master Tongtian. If he were to set the sect rules, it would be overstepping his bounds and would inadvertently incur unbearable karma.

For example, if a certain rule of the sect was out of date and caused karma, that karma would be attributed to him, and his small frame couldn't bear it.

If it was set by Sect Master Tongtian, as the sect master and a Saint of the Heavenly Dao, he would have the final say, and the minor karma would be within his capacity to bear.

"Good!"

Grand Pure One Laozi nodded.

The Primordial Lord of Heaven also affirmed Xuan Qing's idea: "This is indeed a good idea. The Jade Void Glazed Lamp isn't of much use to me, so I'll gift it to Tongtian to observe the words and actions of his disciples!"

New book, please collect, please follow