Chapter 416: Calculated Plot

The old Attendant reorganized those invitations, matched them one by one with the resumes of those Sect Elders and reclusive veterans, and placed them together.

The resume was on the bottom, and the opened invitation was on top.

This Longyu Hall was the place where the apprenticeship ceremony was held.

Everyone qualified to take on disciples would submit a copy of their own resume here.

Now, many Elders and veterans all wanted to take on Duan Rong, so the power of choice naturally fell into Duan Rong's hands. He had to choose a master for himself from among these people.

These individual resumes, along with the extra conditions offered on the invitations, were all the information he could use for reference.

The old Attendant finished organizing everything, checked it once more, and after confirming there were no errors, he left the back hall to serve tea in the front hall. Seeing that the time was about right, he instructed those few young Attendants to serve well, while he himself paced to the side door of the back hall.

Usually at this time, he would sit at the doorway and only stand up when he saw a figure. But today, he was waiting outside the door early.

The old Attendant stood outside the doorway, and when the draft blew through the hall, it made his sleeves and beard dance.

About half an incense stick later, Duan Rong and the other three were led by someone, dragging their heavy ceremonial robes, walking toward this side, exhausted.

They were all at the True Qi Realm Great Perfection, so if it were really physical labor, it wouldn't truly tire them out; the key was that the various tedious rituals along the way really made one dizzy and brain-fogged. Plus, they hadn't slept all night and hadn't eaten breakfast, so they were truly worn out in body and mind.

As soon as Duan Rong and the other three arrived at the doorway, they saw an old Attendant with graying hair and a spirited expression standing at the door, smiling brightly to welcome them.

The old Attendant welcomed the four of them into the room with a very respectful attitude, then bowed to them in that small hall before smiling and looking up to ask, "May I ask, which one is Master Duan Rong?"

Duan Rong was wearing heavy, thick ceremonial robes and was feeling somewhat dazed by the rituals of worship. Seeing the old Attendant ask him, he replied, "I am Duan Rong. I wonder, old sir, what is the matter?"

Upon hearing this, the old Attendant looked deeply at Duan Rong, immediately bowed deeply again, and his voice seemed to suddenly deepen a few degrees as he called out, "Master Duan, please follow me!"

Duan Rong's gaze flickered. The old Attendant's tone of voice had changed when speaking to him alone. Before, the old Attendant's smiling respect was a kind of performance, but Duan Rong could tell that at this moment, the old Attendant seemed to have a kind of heartfelt, submissive respect for him.

Moreover, why would he single him out to go over?

The other three also looked at Duan Rong with curious expressions.

Duan Rong followed the old Attendant behind the screen. Just as he reached the front of the screen, the old Attendant seemed to remember something, suddenly turned his head to look at the other three, and said coldly, "You three, wait here and do not walk around at will. Once I am finished, I will hold the ceremony for you. I will accept you into the Sect on behalf of the founding ancestor of the Taiyi Sect!"

Upon hearing this, the three of them had somewhat unpleasant expressions.

Previously, the three of them had been hoping to be accepted into the Sect by the manager of that Hall.

Listening to the old Attendant's tone, it seemed there was no chance.

The so-called accepting them into the Sect on behalf of the founding ancestor of the Taiyi Sect was nothing more than having them kowtow three times before the ancestor's portrait. This ceremony was simply prepared to dismiss those Inner Sect Disciples who had no master.

The old Attendant led Duan Rong to a desk behind the screen and smiled, "Master Duan, these are the Elders and veterans who wish to accept you into their fold!"

The old Attendant's eyes brightened, and he paused before continuing, "Here are the introductions, as well as the conditions they have offered. Master can study them slowly. This old man will be serving in the back; if Master has any questions, you can call me at any time."

"Master, these ceremonial robes are heavy. Would you like this old man to help you remove the outer layer first? That will make it easier for Master to review them!"

Duan Rong said, "Can these ceremonial robes be removed already?" The History Supervisor who taught them the etiquette had told them that they could only take off the ceremonial robes after descending Cuiwei Peak and entering the Separate Courtyard.

The old Attendant smiled meaningfully and said, "You can, Master, no one can see us here. When you have finished reviewing and go to the main hall, this old man will help you put them back on."

Duan Rong said, "Then I will trouble you, old sir."

"Master, you are too kind."

As the old Attendant spoke, he removed the hem, chest piece, vest, and ceremonial hat of Duan Rong's robes one by one.

Duan Rong let out a long, turbid breath and immediately felt much more relaxed.

The old Attendant placed the removed parts of the ceremonial robes neatly on two grand chairs, while Duan Rong had already picked up an invitation and some materials at the desk and began to read.

The old Attendant finished putting away the robes, brought over a cup of tea, placed it in the middle of the desk, and then smiled and retreated.

Duan Rong read very quickly; after looking through a few, he already understood what this meant.

After all, he was only half a step away from stepping onto the Altar. He still remembered the reaction of the woman playing the zither, whom his master called Hanyan, when she saw him about to step onto the Altar back then.

He could be certain of one thing: the test in the Yougu was aimed at Mental Power, which was a test of Divine Soul strength.

And at that time, his Womb Treasury Sutra had already reached the eleventh level, and within his Spirit Sea, he had condensed that phantom sitting cross-legged in the Cangqiong.

His Divine Soul strength might still be relatively weak among the powerful, but in the secular world, or among ordinary disciples, it was likely already at a terrifying level.

In other words, one could also say he was a genius rarely seen in a hundred years.

Because Mental Power was the core of cultivation!

These people naturally all wanted to accept him into their fold! Wouldn't a disciple with real strength be a great arm for oneself?

The relationship between master and disciple is sometimes actually no different from that of father and son.

Duan Rong read for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn; at this moment, only three invitations remained before him: one from Zhu He, one from Yang Sixuan, and one from Lin Youjian.

He was no longer considering the others.

He had to choose his master from these three people.

All three of them had a connection with him. Except for Zhu He, he had met the other two.

But he listed Yang Sixuan and Lin Youjian as candidates, which actually had nothing to do with whether he had met them or not.

Yang Sixuan was also half a step away from stepping onto the Altar back then, and he was the confidant of the current Sect Master Chu Qiushan. Calculated this way, his status as the head of the Zongzheng Adjudication Division was secondary.

As for Lin Youjian, when testing in the Yougu back then, Duan Rong had met her once on the Altar. He considered Lin Youjian because of her cultivation technique. That kind of Sonic Force that could penetrate the Divine Soul with zither music was truly something Duan Rong yearned for.

Duan Rong pondered for a moment, then sighed softly, raised his hand, and moved Lin Youjian's invitation to the side.

Although he yearned for Lin Youjian's musical cultivation technique, this point alone was not enough to be the reason for him to take her as his master.

For a practitioner, strength and realm are the foundation. If he were obsessed with external things like music or Sonic Force, he would be too attached to appearances; this would be abandoning the root to pursue the tip.

Using this as a standard for choosing a master would be like dreaming a pipe dream.

At this moment, only the invitations of Zhu He and Yang Sixuan remained before Duan Rong.

He looked at these two invitations, his gaze flickering.

On the invitations of both Zhu He and Yang Sixuan, there were only two words: Duan Rong.

Clean and simple, without any additional conditions.

Although Duan Rong did not choose them because of this, he also appreciated their style.

Only at a vegetable market would people hold promotional events, right?!

However, between these two, Duan Rong clearly found it somewhat difficult to ponder and hard to scrutinize.

If viewed from the perspective of risk, choosing Zhu He was somewhat adventurous.

The struggle for the next Sect Master position involved two factions: one was Zhu He, and the other was Lv Zhongtang and Ge Rusong.

The winning faction would naturally ascend to the position of Sect Master, while the losing faction would likely face suppression and liquidation, or at the very least, all sorts of difficulties.

The risk of choosing Zhu He lay in: what if Zhu He lost?

It was not as if such a possibility did not exist; was Zhu Shizhong, who held the position of Secretariat Chancellor in the secular world, not murdered?

When Duan Rong was handling cases in Shenyun Prefecture, he could sense that the strength of both factions was not to be underestimated.

Once he chose Zhu He as his master, it would be equivalent to being stirred into the vortex of this Sect Master struggle.

And the benefit of choosing Yang Sixuan was that he could avoid this kind of strife.

Yang Sixuan was a confidant of the current Sect Master Chu Qiushan and did not belong to either of these two factions; in other words, no matter who became Sect Master, Yang Sixuan would not be suppressed. With his own cultivation talent and his relationship with Chu Qiushan, this upcoming storm should not affect him. This was also the reason Duan Rong considered him.

Of course, Lv Zhongtang and Ge Rusong were directly excluded by Duan Rong.

He would either choose Yang Sixuan to avoid this strife, or if he were to intervene in this Sect Master struggle, he would definitely choose Zhu He. He could faintly sense that Zhu He had a greater chance of winning.

Just as Duan Rong was there, unable to make a move, some of the more impatient ones among the Elders and Sect Elders in Longyu Hall were already getting restless.

There was an old man in the hall wearing a green robe with his hair bun combed very neatly; he suddenly looked at Lin Youjian not far away and said, "Youjian, didn't you say you only accept female disciples? Why have you come today?"

Lin Youjian smiled slightly.

Given her temper, if someone else had asked her this, she would definitely have retorted. But this old man was a Sect Elder and had quite some attainments in music, so Lin Youjian still held some respect for him in her heart, and she said with a smile, "It's lively today, can't I come and take a look?"

Lin Youjian had indeed said she would not accept men. However, she had seen that person named Duan Rong; although he didn't look like much, he seemed like an honest and well-behaved child, and coupled with his extraordinary talent, if he were willing to take her as his master, she would really be willing to teach him.

In fact, Lin Youjian had suffered emotional trauma in her early years and felt quite resentful toward handsome men; that Duan Rong could catch her eye was precisely because he did not look like much.

In the hall, Zhu He, Yang Sixuan, and Lin Youjian all had calm expressions.

Zhu He already had four disciples, two of whom were in the Qi Cyclone Realm.

Although Yang Sixuan did not yet have any disciples, he did not pay much attention to the matter of taking on disciples.

Lin Youjian already had that precious treasure Jiang Hanyan, and that Jiang Hanyan was also promising, having already broken through to the Qi Cyclone Realm.

Ge Rusong sat there with a cold expression, though he was truly concerned in his heart; he picked up his teacup from time to time to take a few sips, and the Attendant serving the tea had already changed his tea twice.

The only disciple currently under his tutelage was the good-for-nothing Jiang Zhe.

In his earlier years, he also had a proud disciple in the Qi Cyclone Realm, but in an operation to surround and capture the Filthy Blood Sect, that disciple of his was actually killed by the Filthy Blood Sect Master Fu Yi.

Later, he discovered that this matter was also related to Zhu He's second disciple, Wu Shidao.

Wu Shidao knew in advance that Fu Yi was present during that operation, so he aborted the action but did not notify them in time, leading to their entire force being wiped out.

This incident was also the beginning of his break with Zhu He.

He held Wu Shidao accountable for this, but the matter was suppressed by Zhu He.

In Longyu Hall, some people were already starting to be unable to sit still, and just at this moment, the old Attendant was seen leading Duan Rong toward this side.

Duan Rong was dressed in heavy ceremonial robes and performed the ritual of three kneelings and nine kowtows outside the hall.

Many people were already unable to sit still, and seeing such cumbersome etiquette at this time made them even more annoyed, but this was the Ancient Rites, so they had to wait.

After Duan Rong finished the ritual, the old Attendant led him into the hall.

Just as Duan Rong stood still in the hall and had not yet spoken, an old woman in the hall said, "Alright, this old woman has long been waiting impatiently. Little Duan, just say it directly, who have you chosen as your master? Don't waste any more words!"

Duan Rong gave the old woman a well-behaved bow and said, "Yes!"

Then his gaze swept across, fixed on Zhu He, and he suddenly knelt down and said in a clear voice, "Disciple Duan Rong wishes to take Master Zhu He as my teacher!"

Zhu He's originally steady expression suddenly blossomed into a smile.

"Good, good, good, good disciple!"

In the back hall, after repeated consideration, Duan Rong ultimately chose Zhu He.

Because he remembered one more thing.

When he was in Shenyun Prefecture, the Grand Master of Palace Revenues Zhu Zhengfu had a private conversation with him and even gave him a rare treasure—a hand-copied manuscript of poems by Gao Qingqiu.

The Spirit Tool of that box of manuscript poems had reached the high level of the Thirteenth Tier!

At the time, he was a bit strange as to why Zhu Zhengfu would give him such a great gift.

And some of the words during that banquet, which Duan Rong could not truly understand the meaning of at the time, were now suddenly clear.

That something about... saying the Ancestor praised him for his meticulous mind, his broad and magnanimous nature, and that he would surely be an unparalleled talent in the future... and something about obtaining the talents of the world and teaching them...

That meant he was extending an olive branch to him!

So, it was waiting for him here?

With that foreshadowing, plus the fact that he had accepted Zhu Zhengfu's generous gift, if he didn't choose Zhu He, he would really be offending him.

This old fellow really had deep calculations! I'm afraid that when he transferred him to Shenyun Prefecture to assist in the case, he had already thought of this.

This was setting up a trap, and he was walking right into it?

Moreover, this was an open scheme, and he couldn't help but walk into it!

However, Duan Rong felt that since this old guy had such deep calculations, the possibility of winning the Sect Master struggle should be very high.

This bit of risk was still worth taking.

After all, having a Sect Master as a master seemed to be quite good.

(End of this chapter)