Chapter 104: The Silent Daoist's Past

Lu Yang quietly took two steps back, demonstrating that he had absolutely no intention of removing the talisman. This way, if his Senior Sister were to suddenly appear, he could easily disassociate himself from any trouble. The adage "a gentleman doesn't stand under a crumbling wall" likely applies to this exact situation.

Although the talisman left by his Senior Sister showed no spiritual energy fluctuations and removing it posed no apparent danger, Lu Yang simply didn't dare to touch it. He would have to be insane to remove that talisman.

"Master," he thought, "it's not that your disciple is unfilial. It's just that I only have one life, and there's an immortal in my spiritual realm. If Senior Sister were to beat me to death, it would be two lives for one body—it's simply not worth it."

Seeing Lu Yang's hesitation, as he raised and lowered his hand, Daoist Buyu understood his apprehension perfectly. Lu Yang was not the first person to react this way, and Daoist Buyu wasn't surprised. He chuckled, "It's perfectly normal that you don't know me. You can inquire about me with other elders; once you have a more complete understanding, you'll realize that what I'm saying is true. However, don't tell them that Xiao Yun imprisoned me. She has managed the Wendao Sect for ten years, and some elders might not be on my side."

Lu Yang found his master's words reasonable. He knew Daoist Buyu as his master but had never truly considered what kind of person he was. Thinking this might be an opportunity, he left the pine forest.

After Lu Yang departed, Daoist Buyu scratched his head. He had asked several people to remove the talisman, but no one was willing. "Is something written on the talisman that frightens them so much?" He strained his neck, trying to get a better look, but still couldn't make out the talisman's appearance.

Lu Yang returned to the Mission Hall, only to be told that the First Elder was out on business and not currently in the sect. With no other option, Lu Yang headed to Word Transmission Peak, the residence of the Second Elder. Word Transmission Peak was responsible for teaching fundamental cultivation knowledge; Lu Yang himself had spent a month there intensively studying when he first joined the Wendao Sect. However, he had never met the Second Elder.

"Excuse me, Senior Brother, is the Second Elder present?" Lu Yang asked the disciple on duty at Word Transmission Peak.

The disciple gave Lu Yang a peculiar look. "You're looking for the Second Elder? You should go to the medicinal garden. He's usually lying at the entrance there."

Lu Yang was taken aback, realizing that the Elder Ba who had previously made him dig soil was, in fact, the Second Elder. After thanking the disciple, he proceeded to the medicinal garden, where Elder Ba was indeed present.

"Oh? Back to dig soil again?" Elder Ba asked with a cheerful chuckle.

"No, I just wanted to ask about my master."

"Ah, Old Ninth? Of course I know him," Elder Ba said, immediately perking up.

"Old Ninth?"

"That's right. From the First Elder you know, through to the Eighth Elder, and then your master, Daoist Buyu—we were all trained by the same master. Your master is the youngest and joined the sect last, which is why he's ranked ninth. Old Ninth is a real chatterbox; his mouth never stops. Have you seen the 'Introduction to Crosstalk' book on the first floor of the Scripture Pavilion? That's his donation."

Lu Yang nodded, remembering clearly. He had been quite bewildered for a long time when he first saw the "Introduction to Crosstalk" in the Scripture Pavilion, initially thinking he'd wandered into the wrong place.

"Eventually, our master grew so tired of Old Ninth's constant talking that he bestowed upon him the title 'Daoist Buyu'—the Daoist of No Words—hoping it would encourage him to speak less."

Lu Yang asked, "Did it work?"

"Not at all. Old Ninth claimed, 'Confucius didn't speak of strange powers or chaotic spirits, so as long as I don't, it's fine.' Then his mouth just kept on babbling. That wretched mouth of his just needed to be sewn shut. However, Old Ninth's cultivation talent is the strongest among the nine of us. Of course, he can't be compared to Yun Zhi; I doubt there have been many with Yun Zhi's talent throughout history.

"After our master retired, the nine of us discussed who should become the Sect Master. Eight of us unanimously agreed that Old Ninth should take the role, arguing that with his gift for gab, he'd surely excel. Old Ninth vehemently refused, so we invoked the 'Jianghu rule': the strongest decides. To our surprise, Old Ninth agreed. So, the eight of us collectively ambushed him, gave Old Ninth a good beating, and thus compelled him to become the Sect Master."

Lu Yang recalled his master's earlier comment about "experiencing a bloody battle." Well, it wasn't entirely inaccurate.

"Our judgment, it turns out, was spot-on. Old Ninth possessed remarkable management talent. He brought the sect into perfect order, completely dispelling the previous air of stagnation. Of course, this might also be attributed to his personality. Then, about ten years ago, Yun Zhi suddenly approached us and announced that she would be managing the sect from then on. We figured it was only a matter of time before the younger generation took over anyway, so we just let her manage it. As for Old Ninth's whereabouts, we weren't concerned. He's nearly two thousand years old, and his mind is sharper than any youngster's. He's probably bouncing around somewhere; there's no way he could get lost, is there?"

For powerful cultivators like Elder Ba, their perception of time differed greatly from ordinary people; a decade was not considered a long period for them.

After bidding farewell to Elder Ba, Lu Yang headed to Body Tempering Peak to find the Third Elder. Meng Jingzhou was already at Body Tempering Peak, and with his assistance, the Third Elder was quickly located. The Third Elder was playing chess with the ancestor of the Azure-Eyed Water Buffalo clan in a field. The Third Elder had a short, stout build. If Lu Yang had encountered him outside the sect, he would never have guessed he was a top-tier body cultivator. Lu Yang knew that the Third Elder harbored immense, terrifying power. To him, moving mountains or filling seas was as simple as a flick of a finger. His self-created "Six Forms of Heaven Shaker" was highly revered by all body cultivators, who yearned to learn even a fraction of it. Countless individuals desired to become the Third Elder's disciples but were unable to. Lu Yang also tried to find the ten water buffaloes he had previously summoned among the herd in the fields, but quickly realized they all looked identical, making them impossible to distinguish.

"You're asking about Old Ninth? Ha! Then you've come to the right person! I found him on the mountain and practically raised him myself!" the Third Elder exclaimed, clearly implying that Lu Yang was fortunate to have found him.

Meng Jingzhou quietly interjected from the side, "Master, the phrase is 'raised him up,' not 'fed him up.'"

The Third Elder impatiently waved his hand. "It's the same meaning! Don't quibble over words like Fourth Elder does all the time. Old Ninth is famously clever, you know. He was the first among us nine to master the 'Size as You Wish' spell. 'Size as You Wish' allows you to enlarge or shrink your body, right? Well, Old Ninth pondered if it could be modified to enlarge specific body parts instead. Not by much, just an inch or two, for convenience and requiring less spiritual power. He figured it would be extremely popular between men and women—men for certain parts, women for others."

"Old Ninth pursued this idea, and you know what? He actually figured it out!" The Third Elder slapped his thigh, utterly amazed by Daoist Buyu's ingenious concept. "Later, he penned a new spell called 'Size as You Wish (Local Version).' The moment it was released, people scrambled to get their hands on it, and we earned an immense amount of spirit stones. Back then, when my martial brothers and I went out to eat, we'd order the most expensive dishes without a second thought, and wouldn't even bother picking up spirit stones if they fell on the ground."

"Unfortunately, those good times didn't last. The Great Xia Dynasty soon intervened, ordering the spell to be pulled from sale."

"Why?"

"They declared it obscene material."

Lu Yang thought, "Well... they're not exactly wrong."