Chapter 726: Silent Daoist Returns to the Sect

Not far from Wen Dao Sect, two figures stealthily approached.

“Big Brother, can I, as a demon, also enter Wen Dao Sect?” Clan Head Jin furrowed his brow, looking worried.

Daoist Buyu stroked his beard and pondered for a moment: “Our sect has always treated everyone equally, without distinguishing between demons and humans. However, Ancestor Hanhai is a different matter. It's possible he might not look favorably upon demons.”

“In that case, you hide here, and I'll go ahead and scout the way.”

“Big Brother, please be careful.”

“Don't worry, I've been roaming the jianghu for so many years; when have I ever had an accident?”

Daoist Buyu was dressed differently from his usual unkempt appearance. Now, he wore a clean, elegant Daoist robe, his topknot was neat, and a few sparse whiskers gently swayed in the breeze.

Daoist Buyu walked steadily towards the mountain gate.

Soon, under Clan Head Jin's gaze, Daoist Buyu's whereabouts were discovered by the major sects who had come to visit. They all poured out of Wen Dao Sect, shouting as they chased after him.

Daoist Buyu fled in disarray, nearly caught several times.

Clan Head Jin trembled at the sight, feeling that human cultivators were even more brutal than their demon race. Despite his fear, a sense of gratitude rose within him. His Big Brother had used himself as bait to draw out the danger and protect him – he hadn't chosen the wrong person to be his sworn brother.

“Big Brother is truly loyal.”

“Later, I’ll talk to the Young Ancestor and see if our two clans can form an alliance. With Dao Lord Hanhai and the Young Ancestor, two Half-Immortals, guarding us, securing a top ten position in the Great Era struggle shouldn't be difficult.”

“Old scoundrel Buyu, if you’re so capable, don’t run!” Every single Integration stage cultivator who had come to visit Wen Dao Sect harbored intricate grudges against Daoist Buyu.

Although they hadn't met the legendary Dao Lord Hanhai on this trip, encountering Daoist Buyu made the journey worthwhile.

“You dare to chase me? Watch out for Ancestor Hanhai settling scores with you afterwards!” Daoist Buyu shouted, not forgetting to scare everyone even as he fled in panic.

Daoist Buyu felt that his luck had been unusually bad for the past six months, plagued by constant misfortune. He was repeatedly found and chased, and now, even right at the sect's entrance, he was encountering so many acquaintances.

“Should I go pay respects at a Buddhist temple?”

Daoist Buyu hesitated, recalling his second disciple Ye Zijin's comment about him in the Buddhist Kingdom: “As if a Buddha has passed away.” He figured Buddhism likely wouldn't bless a master like him.

A flash of saber light grazed his body, and Daoist Buyu instantly snapped back to reality: “Escaping is the priority; I'll think about my luck later.”

“Human and Sword as One!”

Daoist Buyu lightly shouted, merging with his longsword. The longsword transformed into a streak of light, its speed reaching an extreme.

“One Sword Transforms into Ten Thousand Swords!”

The longsword flickered, splitting into tens of thousands of replicas. Each one was identical to the original in length, style, pattern, and even the sword tassel. Even with divine sense, it was impossible to discern which one was the true longsword.

Daoist Buyu was hidden within one of the swords.

“Open the Dharma Eye!”

“Heavenly Eye, manifest!”

“All karma, revealed!”

“Demon-Illuminating Mirror!”

“With perfect clarity!”

People from all sides displayed their unique abilities, determined to capture Daoist Buyu.

However, Daoist Buyu was not so easily caught. His escape method was founded on the Way of the Sword, later enhanced by the guidance of the 'Ancestor of Thieves' and his own insights, leading to his current mastery. Without being at the Tribulation Transcending stage, no one could hope to capture him.

“Master is certainly popular,” Lu Yang mused, standing at the mountain gate. His third senior sister, Gan Tian, stood beside him, watching the dazzling array of flying swords. Even Immortal Fairy was impressed by Daoist Buyu's talent.

Disciples from Wen Dao Sect and the major sects gathered there, their heads swaying up, down, left, and right, following the swarm of flying swords.

Since their elders were chasing Daoist Buyu, regardless of whether they caught him, they wouldn't be returning to Wen Dao Sect anytime soon. Lan Ting and the others also couldn't continue fighting, or they would soon lose track of their masters.

Among the four groups, only Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou's group had decided a winner, and it was an internal struggle.

While observing the fight, Meng Jingzhou pointed to his gleaming bald head and said, “Old Lu, use your Longevity Art.”

Lu Yang activated his Longevity Art, placing his large hand on Meng Jingzhou's head. Miraculously, hair began to sprout, truly embodying the saying, 'An immortal touches my crown, granting me eternal life with braided hair.'

The flying swords soared further and further away, and Qiu Jin'an and the others also flew into the extreme distance, eventually becoming just small dots.

“Then let’s part ways here,” Bai Ming and the others quickly bid farewell, chasing after the figures of their masters.

Wen Dao Sect disciples waited at the entrance for about a quarter of an hour before Daoist Buyu, disheveled and covered in dust, flew back to the sect on his sword.

It was unclear whether the dirt on him was from being caught and beaten on the ground, or from escaping through the myriad attacks.

In any case, he had, by some effort, returned safely.

“Hahahaha, there’s no need to welcome me so much, everyone can disperse now,” Daoist Buyu waved his hand, as if he weren't the one who had just been in such a sorry state.

Daoist Buyu was still the Sect Master, and his authority remained. When he told everyone to disperse, they dispersed, showing no sign of welcome.

“Gan Tian has advanced to the Integration Stage True Monarch. Not bad, not bad. It seems her trip to the Demon Domain was quite fruitful.” Daoist Buyu was slightly surprised by Gan Tian's cultivation speed. According to his estimation, she should have taken another two or three years to reach the Integration Stage.

This indicated an unexpected gain during her journey in the Demon Domain.

“Little Lu is already at the Nascent Soul mid-stage, and Little Meng is too.” Daoist Buyu clicked his tongue in wonder. They truly were Great Era seeds! His own cultivation speed had been fast enough back then, but he never expected today's young people to cultivate even faster than him.

“By the way, has the Phoenix Ancestor visited our sect?” Daoist Buyu asked, causing Lu Yang's body to stiffen.

“Master, why do you ask?”

“A while ago, the Phoenix Ancestor came to me with the *Dragon-Phoenix Transformation* and beat me up. I thought to myself, I didn't even leave my name on it, so I guess someone must have told the Phoenix Ancestor.”

Lu Yang chuckled awkwardly: “The Phoenix Ancestor is incredibly resourceful; perhaps she knows karmic divination and figured it out herself.”

“Is that so? I also heard that the Phoenix Ancestor claims to be one of us from the Heavenly Court Sect. What’s that all about?”

Just as Lu Yang was struggling to explain the situation to his master, Meng Jingzhou volunteered, saying, “Simply put, Old Lu awakened the sleeping Phoenix Ancestor, and she now recognizes Lu Yang as her senior brother.”

Clearly, such a simple explanation exceeded Daoist Buyu's comprehension.

Daoist Buyu temporarily skipped over the incomprehensible matters and eagerly asked, “What about Ancestor Hanhai? Is he truly still alive?”

“Not only is Ancestor Hanhai alive, but another Ancestor is also still alive.”

“Who?” Daoist Buyu thought through all the Ancestors but couldn't recall any who should still be alive.

“Daoist Xiantian. Old Meng and I happened to encounter Daoist Xiantian, who was cultivating from scratch after dispersing his cultivation, while on a mission outside. So we brought him back.”

Daoist Buyu fell silent for a moment: “Is there anything else I don’t know about?”

Lu Yang counted on his fingers and thought: “There's nothing else really. Just that Old Meng and I encountered Venerable Void and Venerable Nightmare when we went out on a trip. Seeing that we couldn’t defeat them, we asked Senior Sister to help.”

“Then there’s also the Great Yu Alliance, led by Dao Lord Wanfa, who targeted the immortal sword in my possession. They tried to sneak into the sect and rob us, but they were all captured in one go.”

“I reckon most of the Great Yu cultivators are now on our Prison Peak; there aren’t many left outside.”

Daoist Buyu was silent for even longer. He knew about Venerable Void and Dao Lord Wanfa, but he had no idea that all these matters were related to Lu Yang.

He had lived for two thousand years, yet the events he instigated couldn't compare to his young disciple's accomplishments in a single year.

“Little Lu, have you considered taking over as Sect Master now?”