Outside the gates of Vulture Peak, all living beings watched helplessly as that figure walked step by step toward the Buddhist School's sacred ground.
Gu Changqing's steps were steady and unhurried. Buddha light flowed around him, and his bearing was solemn and majestic.
The face that always wore a flippant smile now held a faint smile that could almost be called compassionate.
The Wine God Gourd still hung at his waist, but its swaying no longer suggested the drunken fool he had once been. Instead, it conveyed... the composure of an enlightened monk.
The sight left those watching with all five flavors mingling on their tongues, a hundred emotions tangled in their hearts.
"He really has... been converted by Saint Jieyin."
A cultivator murmured, his voice filled with complicated emotions he could neither explain nor name.
"The Wine Sword Immortal joined the Buddhist School, just like that?"
"The Interception Sect... is finished."
Some sighed, some shook their heads, and some remained silent. Others had a flicker of barely concealed gloating in their eyes.
Chan Sect disciples hurried over upon hearing the news. Watching from afar, their faces displayed a spectacular array of expressions.
Guangchengzi stood among the clouds without a word, but irrepressible delight surged within his deep eyes.
Gu Changqing, oh, Gu Changqing...
He silently repeated the name, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
So even you would live to see this day.
Although Heavenly Venerable Yuanshi had not come in person, his divine sense enveloped the area, and nothing outside Vulture Peak escaped his perception. When he saw Gu Changqing step into Vulture Peak, a long-absent smile finally appeared on his stern, rigid face.
"Jieyin... if you truly can convert this boy, I will have to look at you with new eyes."
Meanwhile, the Interception Sect disciples