In a sense, Hongjun had been rather selfless.
For example, he had now told Qing Xuanzi about the wondrous uses of the Blessing Seed.
He had endured endless desire before telling Qing Xuanzi about its wondrous uses.
Qing Xuanzi was stunned after hearing this.
What was this, a Heavenly Dao bug?
Didn't that mean he was invincible?
Without the Heavenly Dao forcing him onward, Qing Xuanzi felt invincible.
He was extremely confident that no cultivation art in the primordial world could compare to the Five Grand Primordial Arts.
For instance, the thirty-six petals his flower had opened were enough to prove the point.
Gradually, Qing Xuanzi steadied himself and called the Three Thousand Congenital Humans over.
"You have all become immortals. In a hundred years, pass down your teachings, then return here to hear the Dao. I will lecture on the Dao for five hundred years."
As Qing Xuanzi's voice rang out, the Three Thousand Congenital Humans were overjoyed. They had only just entered the Immortal Dao.
This was exactly what they lacked.
When they thought of Qing Xuanzi, a Great Luo Golden Immortal whose flower had opened thirty-six petals, teaching the Dao for five hundred years after a hundred years, their hearts burned with excitement.
After bidding farewell one by one, they hurried off to find their respective successors.
They passed down everything they possessed and painstakingly guided them for a hundred years before coming to the mountaintop and quietly sitting cross-legged.
Once the hundred years were up, Qing Xuanzi did not waste any time and began lecturing on the Dao.
Though Qing Xuanzi's lecture did not bring falling heavenly flowers like a saint's, he was still a Great Luo Golden Immortal whose flower had opened thirty-six petals.
He expounded the insights into the Great Dao that he had comprehended from the Five Grand Primordial Arts.
It caused quite a spectacle of heaven and earth.
Many nearby demons gained intelligence because of Qing Xuanzi's five-hundred-year lecture.
Grateful to Qing Xuanzi, these enlightened demons voluntarily left the Demon Clan and became protectors of the human race in the future.
Qing Xuanzi's five-hundred-year lecture alone led to the magnificent sight of three thousand Great Luo immortals emerging from the human race a hundred thousand years later.
It was also these Three Thousand Congenital Humans who, under Qing Xuanzi's deliberate guidance,
became the foundation upon which the human race would later stand tall in the primordial world.
Five hundred years later, Qing Xuanzi's final words on the Dao came to an end.
The Three Thousand Congenital Humans did not awaken immediately. It was not until a hundred years later that they all woke up.
Just as the Three Thousand Congenital Humans were thanking Qing Xuanzi for transmitting the Dao, a voice Qing Xuanzi hated sounded from midair.
"Junior Brother Qing Xuanzi, congratulations on attaining Great Luo Golden Immortalhood with a thirty-six-petaled flower."
"Zhunti?"
Qing Xuanzi felt terrible all over. Had this clingy pest come for him so soon?
The reason Qing Xuanzi disliked the Western Sect brothers stemmed from the future. Buddhism had left far too bad an impression on him.
In Qing Xuanzi's eyes, Buddhism was about making people submit. No matter what happened, as long as they listened to Buddha, everything would be fine.
It made humanity lose its will to strive forward.
As for their habit of poaching people and benefits everywhere, Qing Xuanzi did not mind as long as it had nothing to do with him.
Yet he had run into them at this very moment. From the looks of it, they were most likely here for him.
One look at Zhunti's wolfish gaze was enough to tell.
No, perhaps the Three Thousand Congenital Humans were also his prey.
"Junior Brother, I see that you are destined for the West. Why not come to the West and join my senior brother in comprehending the Great Dharma? Would that not be wonderful?"
He had just been thinking about how this fellow poached people everywhere when he heard Zhunti's enthusiastic pitch.
"Thank you for your concern, Senior Brother, but I am doing quite well cultivating here. If you have no other business, please leave."
Qing Xuanzi did not leave him the slightest bit of face and directly began sending him away.
After all, this fellow had never cared about face anyway.
"Junior Brother Qing Xuanzi, even a Great Luo Golden Immortal with a thirty-six-petaled flower needs a stable environment in which to grow, does he not?"
Zhunti's usual tactic emerged. If persuasion failed, he threatened; if that still failed, he would forcibly convert them.
These were Zhunti's three signature moves.
Unfortunately for him, he had encountered Qing Xuanzi, Hongjun's Closed-Door Disciple.
If Qing Xuanzi did not wish to do something, no one in the primordial world besides the Heavenly Dao and Hongjun could force him.
Just as he was about to refuse outright and tell Zhunti to try it,
"Agree to him, then demand Jie Yin's Twelve-Petal Golden Lotus of Merit." Hongjun's voice transmission arrived.
Hongjun had been worrying over what treasure he could give Qing Xuanzi as a congratulatory gift.
Then he saw it. Oh? Those two from the West were plotting loudly enough to shake heaven and earth.
They actually dared scheme against Qing Xuanzi. Did they not know that he was my Closed-Door Disciple?
In that case, taking their Golden Lotus could count as punishment.
Qing Xuanzi was startled. Agree to him? And only ask for the Twelve-Petal Golden Lotus of Merit? That was letting them off too easily, wasn't it?
Then Hongjun's voice transmission came again:
"Make them swear a Heavenly Dao Oath: if one day they drive you out of the Western Sect, you must take the Three Thousand Congenital Humans and leave the Western Sect. From that day onward, they may not force the human race to join the Western Sect. Otherwise, they shall sever themselves before the Heavenly Dao."
The moment Qing Xuanzi heard this, he understood Hongjun's plan. Hongjun wanted to reclaim the Twelve-Petal Golden Lotus of Merit in their possession for him, but had no excuse.
That was why he had arranged this.
Hehe, having the greatest thigh in the primordial world to rely on really felt good.
"Senior Brother Zhunti, it is true that I need a stable environment to grow. Also, do you want these Three Thousand Congenital Humans to join the Western Sect as well?"
Qing Xuanzi wore a smiling face, but inwardly he thought, If I don't swindle you to death, then I'm not Qing Xuanzi.
When Zhunti heard this, his face bloomed like a chrysanthemum. He nodded frantically. "Exactly, exactly! Junior Brother Qing Xuanzi truly understands my heart."
Seeing Zhunti's smiling face, Qing Xuanzi nearly threw up last night's meal. If he had not still been planning to swindle Zhunti thoroughly, he would have chased him off with a broom already.
"Actually, the human race is weak. What Senior Brother Zhunti says is not impossible. However, this junior brother has one condition. If you agree to it, I will go with you."
Qing Xuanzi said with a grin, his expression like a wolf deceiving a little lamb.
"Junior Brother, you are being too polite. Forget one condition—even a thousand or ten thousand conditions, I would agree to them all."
Zhunti's chrysanthemum face nearly split apart. His smile was like someone who had won five million. Without even thinking, he agreed immediately.
Of course, no one knew what he was actually thinking inside.
"My condition is simple. If I bring the Three Thousand Congenital Humans into the Western Sect, you and Senior Brother Jie Yin must swear to the Heavenly Dao:"
"First, if you and Senior Brother Jie Yin betray the Daoist Sect, I will take the Three Thousand Congenital Humans and leave the Western Sect. From that day onward, you may not force my human race to join. Otherwise, you shall sever yourselves before the Heavenly Dao."
"Second, if one day you or Senior Brother Jie Yin drive me out of the Western Sect, I must also take the Three Thousand Congenital Humans and leave the Western Sect. From that day onward, you may not force my human race to join. Otherwise, you shall sever yourselves before the Heavenly Dao."
Qing Xuanzi's demands instantly jolted Zhunti awake from his fantasies.
He cried inwardly, How does this little fellow know that we will betray the Daoist Sect? Senior Brother and I have not even discussed it yet.
Zhunti did not dare agree to Qing Xuanzi's first condition.
So he laughed and said, "Junior Brother Qing Xuanzi, do you not think the first condition is unnecessary? How could our Western Sect possibly betray the Daoist Sect? The Dao Ancestor would not allow it."
"Exactly. The Western Sect certainly will not betray the Daoist Sect, so that condition of mine is practically free. Isn't that a good thing?"
"Well, well, Junior Brother Qing Xuanzi, since it is an invalid condition, I think it would be better to remove it. As for the second condition, I will certainly agree. I can swear a Heavenly Dao Oath immediately."
Zhunti thought, The first oath absolutely cannot be made. Wouldn't that be putting a noose around my own neck?
As for the second condition, it did not matter. What a joke—after going to all the trouble of bringing them over, how could I possibly drive them away?
It seemed Qing Xuanzi was either not very bright or had taken a liking to our Western Sect.
In truth, Qing Xuanzi had deliberately set the first condition to frighten Zhunti.
Now that his goal had likely been achieved, it was time to let them swear the oath.
"Fine, forget the first condition. Go call Senior Brother Jie Yin. Once the two of you swear the oath, the Three Thousand Congenital Humans and I will go with you."
Qing Xuanzi deliberately emphasized "three thousand" and "congenital," hoping to muddle Zhunti's mind and make things easier.
Before you continue