Chapter 166: Meeting the High-ups

When Dai Bufan woke up again, he saw Lu Yang, Meng Jingzhou, and Immortal Master Xiantian squatting on the ground, heads together, looking at him. He was certain that everything that had just happened wasn't a dream.

"Senior Brother Dai, you're finally awake!"

"Don't call me senior brother. I don't dare to have a junior brother like you," Dai Bufan said, getting up and looking gloomily at the two rascals, Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou.

I sent you out to pick some disciples, and you two, on the other hand, brought back the Founding Ancestor himself.

Dai Bufan was always known for his composure and calm demeanor; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to manage the Mission Hall or the vast intelligence network. However, he felt that his emotional fluctuations had significantly increased ever since he met Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou. His head was still spinning.

"Come on, Senior Brother Dai, let me help you up." Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou helped Dai Bufan to his feet, one on each side, and reseated him in the chair.

"Are you really the legendary Founding Ancestor, the lost Immortal Master Xiantian?" Dai Bufan still couldn't believe it. Although Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou had never lied to him before, this matter concerned the Founding Ancestor, so he couldn't afford to be mistaken. After Immortal Master Xiantian dissipated his cultivation and re-cultivated, his appearance changed greatly, and it didn't match the statue of the Founding Ancestor left in the Wen Dao Sect.

Immortal Master Xiantian waved his hand apologetically. "It's an exaggeration to call me 'legendary.' My Daoist title is indeed Immortal Master Xiantian, but unfortunately, my identification token was destroyed in a recent battle."

"A recent battle? And your current cultivation level..."

"I lost the fight, and my injuries were too severe. I could only dissipate my cultivation and re-cultivate to seek a sliver of hope. Luckily, I survived." Immortal Master Xiantian said it lightly, but in reality, the situation at the time was extremely perilous. Dissipating one's cultivation for re-cultivation is inherently not a guaranteed success. To ensure the highest success rate, it's best to do it during one's peak, but for someone like Immortal Master Xiantian, doing it while severely injured greatly increased the chance of failure.

"Founding Ancestor, you know your status is special, and I can't make this decision alone," Dai Bufan said, looking troubled. "How about this: I'll take you to Senior Sister Yun and ask her to decide?"

"Alright," Immortal Master Xiantian agreed, being an easygoing person.

Dai Bufan respectfully invited Immortal Master Xiantian to Sky Gate Peak to see Yun Zhi. Before leaving, he turned back and glared at Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou. "You two follow along too!"

Lu Yang secretly shook his head, thinking that Senior Brother Dai was indeed a hot-tempered person with poor temperament. He wondered how he had managed to cultivate to the Integration Stage. In contrast, he himself, despite being harassed daily by Immortal Fairy in his spiritual space, could still cultivate diligently. The difference was clear.

***

Sky Gate Peak.

True Monarch Gantian, who had already finished consolidating her realm, had also been asked by Senior Brother Dai to go on a mission. Currently, Yun Zhi was the only one on Sky Gate Peak. Unusually, Yun Zhi was not cultivating. Instead, she sat on an emperor's chair, sipping tea. Four emperor's chairs were arranged around a circular stone table, making the table seem out of place. As Yun Zhi sipped her tea, she pondered whether to acquire a matching stone table.

"Senior Sister Yun," Dai Bufan greeted, cupping his hands together.

"Hmm?" Yun Zhi put down her teacup and looked at the four with slight confusion: Junior Brother Dai, Junior Brother Meng, the youngest junior brother, and an unfamiliar young man.

"There's something Senior Sister Yun needs to decide," Dai Bufan said, twitching his lips as he tried to maintain a serious expression while explaining the unfamiliar young man's identity.

"So, this person is our Founding Ancestor, Immortal Master Xiantian Qi Tongtian?"

Yun Zhi was also stunned upon hearing this; she hadn't expected the Founding Ancestor to still be alive. She pondered for a moment, then seriously asked, "Founding Ancestor, do you wish to be the Sect Master?"

"Huh? Me, the Sect Master?" This time, it was Immortal Master Xiantian's turn to be stunned. He had assumed that the current sect was like those during the Great Yu era, where people would stop at nothing to seize the Sect Master position. He even worried that if he returned to the Wen Dao Sect, the sect members wouldn't want an "Emperor Emeritus" above them, and would make things difficult for him or even try to eliminate him. He hadn't expected this junior to directly offer him the position of Sect Master.

"No, no, no, that won't do," Immortal Master Xiantian waved his hands repeatedly. "Leaving aside the fact that I'm just a mortal now, even if I recover to the Integration Stage, I wouldn't have the ability to manage such a large sect." The Wen Dao Sect's current scale was vastly different from when it was first established; how could he possibly manage it all?

"No worries. The youngest junior brother also served as Sect Master for three months. Managing the Wen Dao Sect is quite easy."

Immortal Master Xiantian was even more surprised. Had the standard for being a Sect Master become so low that even a Nascent Soul stage cultivator could hold the position? No, that's not right. This junior could defeat a Soul Transformation stage cultivator while still in the Foundation Establishment stage. Now that he had cultivated to the Nascent Soul stage, his true combat strength must be comparable to the Integration stage, right?

"I really can't be the Sect Master. You don't have to treat me this way; just consider me an ordinary disciple of the sect," Immortal Master Xiantian said. He only wanted to focus on cultivation, shed his past, and return to the Integration Stage.

"Oh, and Senior Sister," Lu Yang seized the opportunity to say, "the Founding Ancestor's Golden Cicada Exuviation is currently with the imperial court. Could you help us get it back?"

"What is the Golden Cicada Exuviation?"

Lu Yang recounted the Founding Ancestor's experiences since he woke up, naturally omitting the part where he and Old Meng had hung the Ancestor. Presumably, that memory wasn't too pleasant for the Founding Ancestor, so the Ancestor didn't mention it here.

Yun Zhi nodded. "I see. This matter shouldn't be difficult."

"Does the Founding Ancestor wish to meet the sect's high-ranking officials?" Yun Zhi asked again. Given the monumental news that the Founding Ancestor was still alive, it was only right and proper that the sect's higher-ups be informed.

Immortal Master Xiantian gladly agreed, thinking it would be good to meet the sect's outstanding juniors.

***

Soon, eight elders of the Wen Dao Sect gathered in the deliberation hall. The indescribably beautiful Sixth Elder was an exception; if her true form were to arrive, she might suffocate Immortal Master Xiantian. Only a projection of her was present. The eight elders proved to be experienced individuals; not only was their cultivation higher than Dai Bufan's, but so was their capacity for acceptance.

"This is our Founding Ancestor?"

"He's so young."

"He doesn't look like the statue."

"Nonsense, how could he look the same after dissipating his cultivation and re-cultivating?"

"Should we replace the Founding Ancestor's statue? It looks quite old."

"Look at you, Eldest. You're always digging up graves but never unearth the Founding Ancestor. Look at young Lu and young Meng; they went out once and found the Founding Ancestor."

"Who's digging up graves? I call it research and study. The tomb owner has even tacitly approved."

"If the tomb owner could speak, it would be you lying in the coffin, Eldest."

Suddenly, the Eighth Elder seemed to remember something. She quietly approached Immortal Master Xiantian and whispered, "By the way, Founding Ancestor, are you still accepting disciples?"

"Huh?" Immortal Master Xiantian hadn't even processed her question before the Eighth Elder enthusiastically began to promote herself. "Founding Ancestor, please don't let my lower elder ranking mislead you. That's only because I joined the sect late. I am, after all, a grand master of the Integration Stage and proficient in the Way of Talismans. If you just nod, you'll immediately gain a disciple who requires no teaching process and is already at the late Integration Stage."

"What do you think of me?"