Grand Celestial Venerable could hear everything. He was standing right outside, but Grand Celestial Venerable did not want to respond.
The woman waved her hand, "Since you don't want to, then go back and think carefully about whether you are suitable to stay at White Floating Mountain. After all, a melon that is forced off the vine may quench thirst, but it is neither sweet nor interesting."
"Mm." Chen Xia nodded in agreement, ended his spectator perspective, and walked back halfway before vanishing.
This woman is quite fierce, to actually open a multi-player competitive mode.
Awesome.
If not for Chen Xia having cultivated for hundreds of years and gained some composure, he might have fallen for it.
In addition to spectating, the most important thing about him splitting off part of his divine sense to come to this minor world was to find an opportunity for enlightenment.
For cultivators of the world to gain enlightenment, they have to go through events and have emotional experiences.
Chen Xia does not need to experience it himself, watching is enough, just like when he observed that tree for fifty years.
If he could watch this story in its entirety, he should gain something from it.
If there was nothing to be gained, it could only mean the story was not captivating enough.
Chen Xia hoped it would be a fascinating story. At least the opening fight scene was exciting enough that it was worth him making this move.
The daily cultivation at White Floating Mountain was very dull. There were no cultivation techniques, only waiting for the woman to call out their name before entering the great hall.
Because Chen Xia was newly arrived and had rejected the woman, he did not get a summons from her. Instead, he got a new task - moving coffins.
He had to move the coffins to the house at the farthest edge of White Floating Mountain, which was the house where Yun Miao was imprisoned.
Moving a coffin the size of a vat alone was no easy task. It was a somewhat unreasonable demand.
Fortunately, Chen Xia's abilities were superior. Carrying the coffin, he vanished and reappeared right outside Yun Miao's room. With a kick, the door flew open and he tossed the coffin right in.
"Your delivery, please confirm receipt."
Yun Miao had been meditating. Seeing the sudden coffin, her expression froze for a moment before she slowly shook her head and sighed.
"So soon?"
"I said it was express delivery." Chen Xia explained.
"That's not what I meant." Yun Miao explained defensively, and did not continue. She was silent for a moment before sighing again and looking at Chen Xia.
"You're a new disciple, right?"
"You could say that." Chen Xia nodded, leaning slightly against the doorframe.
"What do you think of Master?" Yun Miao asked again.
"Not bad, very ambitious, a heroine." Chen Xia gave a fairly good assessment.
"Mm." Yun Miao nodded, "That's what I thought at first too, but it's different now. She has cultivated heterodox arts, using disciples as furnaces, taking their essence and lifespan."
"Can't expect something for nothing, right?" Chen Xia explained on the woman's behalf, then shook his head again, "But absorbing lifespan is a bit excessive."
Every inch of time is an inch of gold. She's sucking their gold!
"It already goes against our late teacher's original intentions." Yun Miao said with a pained sigh, "It's not that I'm stubborn. If I just disapproved, I could have left without getting involved in this mess."
"But teacher took me in and treated me like his own child. He always wanted to build an orthodox sect in the realm, sheltering the common people."
"After Master took over the sect, she may not have been too vicious, but she did kill many disciples who opposed her, and her doctrines are too heterodox, not following the rules."
This was an ideological conflict between the two.
As an observer, Chen Xia did not want to get involved or care about their issues. He yawned and left them to it.
Yun Miao placed her hands on her knees in the lotus position and bowed her head to Chen Xia, speaking heavily,
"I've told you so much, not to ask anything of you or want you to take sides, but just one request."
Before Yun Miao could continue, Chen Xia already knew what she was going to ask.
Yun Miao lowered her head further and made her request in a sad tone, "If I die, it doesn't matter, that's just my fate. But Xiao Chan'er is only five years old and has nothing to do with this."
"On the second day of the new year, an auspicious day, I plan to resolve this thoroughly and completely clean up the sect."
"I've left some valuable items that should be worth pawning for some money, enough for food and clothing."
"If you're willing, please come find me on the second day of the new year."
Chen Xia had slid down to sit on the threshold. He asked back, "Aren't you afraid I'll take the money and not help?"
"Heh, true." Yun Miao nodded and laughed mockingly at herself. "I'm just desperately grasping. Sorry about that."
Leaning his cheek on his hand, Chen Xia commented, "Looks like your perspective isn't completely broadened yet."
If her perspective had broadened, she wouldn't be stuck on this issue, but would choose to join and help complete her teacher's dying wish by making this the strongest sect in the realm through other means.
As long as you're strong enough, you're the most orthodox sect.
But this sort of logic was definitely beyond the two hundred something year old Yun Miao. She was already determined to die and had decided to trade her life for her master's.
Yun Miao's eyebrows furrowed, her expression unreadable as she softly replied, "Maybe so."
But she just couldn't stand to see White Floating Mountain become like this. She was an ordinary cultivator with a limited lifespan, only two to three hundred years.
Perhaps her experience was too shallow.
Chen Xia looked at this junior cultivator, slowly standing up, and nodded,
"Taking care of a little girl is no problem, I have experience."
Yun Miao's face lit up and she bowed to Chen Xia, "Thank you, fellow daoist."
She didn't call him junior martial brother, but used the term fellow daoist, clearly elevating Chen Xia's status.
But she could never imagine the person before her was actually the Grand Celestial Venerable she had revered for nearly two hundred years.
That is to say, all cultivators in the world were Chen Xia's juniors.
Chen Xia did not care about such trifles. He twisted his waist, feeling too bored and wanting to leave.
Yun Miao, who had been sitting cross-legged, suddenly stood up again and bowed once more. Her tone was more respectful as she bent at the waist with clasped fists and sincerely said,
"I pray Grand Celestial Venerable bless you."
Hearing this, Chen Xia really could not keep a straight face.
I'm blessing myself?