Lei Jun looked at Wang Guiyuan, "Daoist..."
Wang Guiyuan smiled, "Lei, no need to be so formal, just call me Senior Brother.
With your character and talent, even if you didn't attend next year's Transcension Ritual, you'd certainly qualify for the one after, and enter the Celestial Master Mansion.
Speaking of which, back when I was at the Tao Boy Court, I also cultivated in the Sixth Division."
"Is that so..." Lei Jun replied, "Then I'll be counting on your guidance from now on, Senior Brother Wang."
Wang Guiyuan handed the letter to Lei Jun, and said, "I'll be coming back to the Sixth Court often from now on, if you run into any trouble in your daily life or cultivation, I'll try to help you out."
Lei Jun thanked Wang Guiyuan first, then read the letter Elder Yuan had left behind.
The general gist was that Elder Yuan, after initial observations, felt that while Lei Jun's Root Bone and natural talent weren't remarkable right now, he had many other qualities worth noting. Regardless of Xu Yuanzhen's opinion, Elder Yuan himself would be willing to take Lei Jun on as a disciple.
However, accepting Lei Jun as his own disciple was simply the desire of Xu Yuanzhen and Elder Yuan—what was Lei Jun's own wish?
It wasn't that Xu Yuanzhen didn't want to introduce Lei Jun to her master, the Celestial Master, but compared to Elder Yuan, the Celestial Master was even more obsessed with closed-door cultivation. He had been in seclusion for ten years since the last retreat.
No one knew when the Celestial Master would emerge—let alone next year's Transmission Ceremony, it was anyone's guess if he'd be out by the one after.
Therefore Xu Yuanzhen had decided to introduce Lei Jun to Elder Yuan instead.
*Still, people always seek to rise: in the Celestial Master Mansion, if there's even a slim chance of becoming a direct disciple of the Celestial Master, who would willingly settle for just being the disciple of the Celestial Master's junior?*
*Since Xu Yuanzhen didn't personally accept disciples, it was up to Lei Jun to decide whom to choose as master.*
*Maybe Lei Jun was willing to wait for the Celestial Master to exit seclusion...*
After reading the letter, Lei Jun's first thought was,
*If you put it that way, by normal standards, nobody should keep pushing to be the Celestial Master's disciple, right? Even just for show, you'd kneel and beg for their acceptance as master, stat.*
*But...*
Lei Jun stared at the handwriting, pondering quietly, and did not answer right away.
Reading the words, it was as if a warm pair of eyes gazed right back at him, full of encouragement.
Lei Jun, who'd already lived in this world for some time, dared to say this wasn't an illusion.
The written words of a high-level cultivator brimmed with emotion, encompassing everything.
Lei Jun put down the letter and looked up at Wang Guiyuan before him.
Wang Guiyuan smiled, "Before my master left, he also spoke to me about you, Lei.
He said, cultivation is no easy path. Only by facing your true heart can you press forward with resolve."
Lei Jun said, "Senior Brother, you jest, I honestly feel at a total loss right now, no idea what to do."
Wang Guiyuan glanced at Lei Jun.
No matter how one looked at it, the tall youth before him was clearly someone with his own mind.
Still, Wang Guiyuan didn't say much more, just smiled and shook his head,
"Lei, you're teasing me. My master used to say, there's no need to rush your decision—who knows, the Celestial Master could leave seclusion before the Transmission Ceremony? You can decide when the time comes.
Normally, whenever he's on the mountain and not in seclusion, if you have questions during cultivation, apart from asking the teachers at the Tao Boy Court, feel free to go to him.
Right now, since my master isn't here, you can also come to me. My own cultivation and experience can't compare to his, but I'll do my best to help you."
Lei Jun replied, "Thank you, Elder, and thank you, Senior Brother."
The glowing orb in his mind had no reaction for now, no lots appeared to point to his fate.
*It seemed to suggest Elder Yuan and Wang Guiyuan were speaking genuinely, and wouldn't turn on Lei Jun just for aiming high at the Celestial Master.*
*Or maybe, Elder Yuan himself didn't really want a disciple, only going through the motions for Xu Yuanzhen's sake.*
*Or perhaps, it just wasn't the right time yet—maybe it had to wait until the Transmission Ceremony was near?*
In the following days, Lei Jun would ask Wang Guiyuan for guidance whenever he had questions, and Wang was true to his word and taught him with great care.
Unlike teachers who had to split their attention among many Tao Boys, Wang Guiyuan basically gave him one-on-one special tutoring.
With an excellent mentor and a steady supply of Purple-Gold Ganoderma essence for Primordial Qi, Lei Jun's cultivation continued to progress rapidly. He formed his eighth Qi Sea and broke through to the eighth layer of Qi Refinement.
As time passed and he approached a year since entering the sect, Lei Jun gradually moved past the stage where everything seemed new.
Repeating the same lessons and cultivation every day, a sense of monotony started to creep in.
*But after slowly working through the dullness, Lei Jun finally began to truly grasp and experience a hint of Tao Containment—peaceful and serene.*
Until one particular day, that peace was abruptly shattered.
"The Tao Boy Court has been robbed!"
The news arrived just as Lei Jun and the others finished evening class.
The court quickly broke out into chaos.
"What's going on? What's happening? Who did it, who did it?"
"Heard someone from the Second Branch stole something from the First Branch, they've already figured out who it is and are trying to catch him now."
"Did they catch him?"
"Not yet, apparently he ran into the woods."
A teacher soon arrived to gather everyone, officially announcing, "Tonight you all have an extra exercise, work together to search the mountain. Get ready to depart, quickly!"
Though the incident alarmed those up at the Celestial Master Mansion too, in the end, it was left to the Tao Boy Court to handle directly.
All the divisions mobilized, splitting into teams and entering the mountain, setting blockades and nets—like a giant hunt—to begin the search.
Lei Jun's group was led by two True Inheritors of the Celestial Master Mansion, with twenty Tao Boys, posted at major locations near North Mountain, watching the area and searching from afar.
One of the leading young Taoists looked just fourteen or fifteen, about the same age as most Tao Boys.
But as a nineteen-year-old Tao Boy who had only joined a year ago, Lei Jun and the younger Tao Boys still had to take orders from this youth.
*It's one thing in normal times, but during incidents like this, the gap between Taoist and Tao Boy was painfully obvious. I really had to raise my cultivation and make it to the Transcension Ritual as soon as possible...* Lei Jun thought to himself.
The team kept searching and intercepting, but found nothing.
The two Celestial Master Mansion True Inheritors leading the group began to disagree.
The young Taoist waved his hand, "Just holding this position is useless, we should sweep northeast or northwest together!"
The other, an older Taoist said, "Junior Brother, our orders are to hold this area. Best not to leave our posts."
The young Taoist replied, "We can split into two teams, you and I each take one. One team stays put, the other sweeps the flank!"
Lei Jun and the others stood quietly off to one side.
But suddenly a flash of light erupted in Lei Jun's mind.
The glowing orb, silent all this time, now projected words,
[Chasing the traitor, there is a hidden truth. Splitting up—life or death determined by fate.]
Then, three lots flew out of the orb, each inscribed with its fortune:
[Moderately good lot, join the search, press forward without complication. Obtain a Sixth-Rank Opportunity. Auspicious.]
[Perfectly neutral lot, hold position, neither push nor move. Wait for the trouble to pass, neither gain nor loss. Neutral.]
[The worst lot, join the search, but change targets midway. Caught in a deadly trap—certain death. Dire!]