Chapter 1617: Master of Content Review

Zhang Xi looked up in confusion. The sky was clear and cloudless; the weather was perfectly fine.

After a moment, the old monk finally lowered his head and said to the young novice beside him, "Jie Se, give the item to this benefactor."

"Yes!" The chubby young novice then handed over a jade plaque. "We were invited by the Imperial Preceptor to attend the ceremony."

Zhang Xi thought to himself, *This little chubby monk smiles quite kindly, yet he has such a monastic name.*

Upon taking the jade plaque and examining it, he was immediately filled with reverence and bowed to the old monk. "So it is Master Jian Huang of Wuyou Temple. This junior apologizes for the offense."

The old monk pressed his palms together. "Form is emptiness, and emptiness is form. The young benefactor did not know me, and this old monk is not a great figure. What offense could there be?"

"Master is too humble," Zhang Xi said, bowing respectfully. Wuyou Temple was a transcendent sect in the martial arts world, and in terms of its foundation, it surpassed the True Yang Sect.

Wuyou Temple was an orthodox Buddhist sect. However, in the last century, the True Yang Sect had become the state religion, and Buddhist influence had declined, which was why its fame was not as prominent.

But as the chief disciple of Guanyin Peak, Zhang Xi usually received personal instruction from his peak master, so he knew more about the world's secrets than ordinary people.

This Master Jian Huang was the abbot of Wuyou Temple, and his cultivation was unfathomable. At its peak, Wuyou Temple had the Four Divine Monks: Zhen Ru, Yuan Qi, and countless other disciples of the 'Jian' generation. However, in the last century, the imperial court had grown strong, and a major upheaval had occurred in the Buddhist sect. So many years had passed, and it was unknown how many people were left.

This time, the abbot had only brought one young novice with him, which indicated that Wuyou Temple was indeed experiencing a decline in talent.

Next, Zhang Xi sent people to escort them up the mountain, but they politely declined, stating that "Buddhists keep everything simple."

The master and disciple then walked up the mountain. Along the way, the young novice couldn't help but grumble, "Master, the monastic name you gave me is truly bad. Those True Yang Sect disciples who were sent to greet guests at the entrance were clearly strictly trained and usually wouldn't laugh unless they couldn't help it. But when they heard my name just now, they all burst out laughing."

The old monk said solemnly, "Jie Se, you are too attached to appearances. In Buddhism, 'form' refers to all matter that has shape and occupies space, not what ordinary people consider to be lust, indulgence, or desire. There is a Buddhist saying, 'Form is emptiness, and emptiness is form.' The reason I gave you this name is to constantly remind you to see through illusions."

The chubby young novice looked at him suspiciously. "Then why are you laughing now?"

"You're mistaken, I'm not laughing." The old monk touched his face, smoothing out the curved wrinkles on it.

"You clearly are laughing," the young novice said, somewhat annoyed. "I know it's because your grand-master named you Jian Huang back then, which led to you being ridiculed for many years. You've held onto that resentment, so you're passing it down from generation to generation, making us suffer too."

"Nonsense, I'm not, I didn't." After his instinctive denial, the old monk immediately pressed his palms together. "Amitabha, this old monk is too attached to appearances."

Meanwhile, Zu An and his group were led to an annex. Although not large, the pavilions and towers were exquisite and antique. In the center, there was a pond filled with various exotic flowers and plants, and beside it, rock gardens and lush green trees. In terms of elegance and tranquility, it was no less impressive than the Imperial Garden in the palace.

After the True Yang Sect disciples left, Xie Daoyun couldn't help but pat her chest and say, "I was almost scared to death in the Reception Hall just now. Thankfully, the Imperial Preceptor's attention was on you. It would have been awkward if he had discovered me."

Zu An smiled. "Speaking of which, it's thanks to Master Yan's powerful talismans that your aura was concealed and wasn't detected by the Imperial Preceptor."

Zhang Zijiang was somewhat puzzled. "Why is Miss Xie unwilling to be discovered by the Imperial Preceptor? Is there some animosity between the Libationer or Master Yan and the Imperial Preceptor?"

"Of course not..." Xie Daoyun hesitated, unsure how to explain at once.

"Miss Xie must have her reasons for this, General Zhang, you need not ask further," Zu An interjected, helping her out of the predicament.

Zhang Zijiang chuckled. "I was presumptuous. I'll go arrange the accommodations first."

After saying this, he gave Zu An a knowing look and then excitedly ran out.

Zu An was puzzled. What was that guy so happy about?

Xie Daoyun remarked, "Speaking of which, the Imperial Preceptor is truly an extraordinary man, with an aura that captures one's heart. It's really hard to imagine that such a person could have any problems."

"Are handsome people necessarily good people?" Zu An smiled. "But the Imperial Preceptor certainly has a strong appeal to women. Just now, I heard many women outside the square going crazy for him. I didn't expect that Sister Ling'er would also like this type."

"I don't like his type at all!" Xie Daoyun retorted, flustered. "I was just giving a purely objective evaluation. Besides, he's not the most handsome person I've ever seen."

"Oh?" Zu An became interested. "May I ask who is the most handsome person Sister Ling'er has ever seen?"

Xie Daoyun's face flushed. "I won't tell you."

Zu An chuckled and didn't mind. What bothered him now was the death of Gold Medal Seventh, and whether the Daoist Grand Competition on Purple Mountain had any connection to the Emperor's Fengshan Ceremony. Unfortunately, after pondering for a long time, he lacked enough information to make progress on either issue.

At this point, the rooms for the group who ascended the mountain were arranged. As the highest-ranking official, Zu An was naturally assigned the central, largest room. Zhang Zijiang and the other personal guards were stationed around him, and a spot was specially reserved for Wang Bolin, just for appearances.

Of course, he also played a little trick, specifically assigning Wang Bolin to a room further away from Zu An.

Only Xie Daoyun was left feeling awkward. After waiting for a long time and realizing no arrangements had been made for her, she had to ask, "General Zhang, what about me?"

Zhang Zijiang pointed to Zu An's room. "Of course, you'll be staying with Lord Zu?"

"Ah?" Xie Daoyun's small face instantly turned completely red.

Even Zu An, who was writing a letter at a desk some distance away, couldn't help but look up and gaze over with confusion.

Zhang Zijiang then explained in a serious tone, "The main reason is that your current identity is Lord Zu's personal guard. Naturally, you need to stay close to him to attend to his daily needs, and if anything happens at night, you'll need to be available immediately for instructions, errands, and messages. If you stay separately, the True Yang Sect disciples will definitely suspect your identity if they see you. Plus, your skin is so fair that if they already suspect something and look closer, it'll be easy to realize you're a woman. You've also appeared at the Prince of Yan's mansion before, so it wouldn't be hard for the Imperial Preceptor to figure out it's you."

Xie Daoyun felt a bit flustered. "But... but..."

She hadn't considered this aspect at all before; otherwise, she would never have suggested disguising herself as Zu An's personal guard.

Zhang Zijiang laughed heartily. "Don't worry, Miss Xie. You'll be staying in the outer room, separated by a partition. You'll only need to go over to receive orders when the commander needs something. I don't imagine Lord Zu will trouble you in the middle of the night."

After saying this, he subtly winked at Zu An.

At the same time, he greatly admired himself. *I am so clever, this flattery is simply divine.*

*When a single man and woman are in the same room, like dry tinder and a blazing fire, won't it just ignite?*

*What good would a partition in the middle do?*

*Lord Zu will surely know what to do.*

*He must be praising my resourcefulness right now.*

*Hmph, you, Wang, only know how to do things foolishly. How can you compare to me?*

Seeing Zhang Zijiang's proud expression, Zu An was speechless for a moment. So, that wink he gave earlier was all for this trick.

Just as he was about to say something, he saw Xie Daoyun nod. "General Zhang makes a good point. I'll stay here then."

*Anyway, there's a door panel separating us, similar to how maids live in a mansion. And Brother Zu is a true gentleman; I don't imagine he would do anything improper in the middle of the night.*

Although she kept telling herself this, her face was still as red as the evening glow in the sky.

Sensing her embarrassment, Zu An walked over and suggested, "The scenery outside seems quite nice. Perhaps we could go for a stroll together and see if there's anything unusual anywhere on Purple Mountain."

"Okay," Xie Daoyun sighed in relief, thinking, *Brother Zu is so considerate, specifically helping me out of this situation.*

Zhang Zijiang smiled. "I still have some arrangements to make here, so I won't join you."

*What a joke, interrupting the leaders' alone time would negate all the flattery I just gave.*

Zu An and Xie Daoyun left the annex. Along the way, figures moved about, clearly disciples from various sects. It was a rare opportunity, and everyone was either curiously exploring the scenery of Purple Mountain, exchanging cultivation insights with each other, or reuniting with old friends.

There were also some hot-blooded male disciples lingering around female disciples from other sects, drawing angry glares from the male disciples of those sects.

Overall, the atmosphere was quite friendly. For now, no one dared to cause trouble in such a place; firstly, it would disgrace their sect, and secondly, it could easily lead to disqualification from the upcoming Sect Grand Competition.

At this moment, two women were approaching from not far away, conversing in voices only they could hear:

"What's so special about this Purple Mountain? Back in the day, I charged in and out here seven times..."

"Alright, alright, I know you're amazing, Master, but you've boasted about this eight hundred times already."

"Have I really said it that many times?" The older woman paused slightly.

"Of course," the younger woman was about to say something when her eyes suddenly lit up. "Master, look! It's Ah Zu!"

The older woman instantly shuddered, feeling an immediate urge to turn and flee.

He took deep breaths of fresh air, his chest heaving.

Confusion, bewilderment, and various other emotions flooded his mind.

Where was this?

Then, Shi Yu subconsciously observed his surroundings, becoming even more disoriented.

A single dormitory room?

Even if he had been successfully rescued, he should be in a hospital room now.

And his body... why wasn't there a single injury?

With doubts, Shi Yu's gaze quickly swept across the room, finally settling on a mirror at the head of the bed.

The mirror reflected his current appearance: around seventeen or eighteen years old, and very handsome.

But the problem was, this wasn't him!

His former self was a handsome young man in his twenties with an extraordinary demeanor, who had been working for some time.

Now, this appearance looked like that of a high school student...

This change left Shi Yu in a daze for a long time.

Don't tell him the surgery was a success...

His body and appearance had both changed; this wasn't a matter of surgery at all, but rather immortal magic.

He had completely transformed into someone else!

Could it be... he had transmigrated?

Besides the mirror at the head of the bed, which was clearly placed in a bad feng shui position, Shi Yu also found three books nearby.

Shi Yu picked them up and saw the titles, which instantly rendered him silent.

*Beginner Breeder's Essential Beast Rearing Handbook*

*Post-Natal Care for Spirit Beasts*

*Guide to Appraising Beast-Eared Girls of Different Races*

Shi Yu: ???

The titles of the first two books were normal enough, but what was up with the last one?

"Cough."

Shi Yu's gaze sharpened, and he reached out, but his arm quickly stiffened.

Just as he was about to open the third book to see what it was, a sharp pain shot through his brain, and a flood of memories surged forth.

Icefield City.

Spirit Beast Breeding Base.

Intern Spirit Beast Breeder.

Beast Tamer?