Outside the Hall of Punishment.

"Brother Chen?"

Zhao Ting saw Chen Xun coming out and hurriedly asked.

It can be hard to make great work when its stolen from bit.ly/3iBfjkV.

Chen Xun, however, was lost in the Wordless Tome, humming a tune as he descended the mountain.

Zhao Ting was taken aback and was about to chase after him to bring him back when Chu Ningshang walked out of the Hall of Punishment and said, "Zhao Ting."

Zhao Ting halted his steps, quickly turned around, and saluted, "Master."

Chu Ningshang nodded, deeply watching Chen Xun's retreating figure down the mountain. Her lips moved as she asked, "How did you and... your friend meet? Could you tell me about it?"

Zhao Ting thought his master wanted to understand Brother Chen's condition, so he said, "Master, actually, your disciple and Brother Chen met by chance. It was like this..."

Then, Zhao Ting recounted in detail the scene when he first met Chen Xun, leaving nothing out, even quoting Chen Xun's words about possessing spiritual potential and having the makings of an immortal cultivator.

Zhao Ting finally sighed, "On the second day after meeting Brother Chen, he suddenly went mad, but fortunately, he still vaguely recognizes me."

Chu Ningshang slowly nodded, her eyes flickering as she looked at Zhao Ting, appearing as if she wanted to say something but stopped.

Zhao Ting was bewildered and nervously asked, "Master, is there a way to cure Brother Chen's condition?"

Seeing Zhao Ting's worried expression, Chu Ningshang sighed inwardly. She didn't know whether Zhao Ting's association with this Chen... senior, whom even the Sect Master treated with caution, was a blessing or a curse.

In fact, Chu Ningshang herself had many doubts.

For instance, who exactly was this Chen senior? How did the Sect Master know him? And so on...

Chu Ningshang closed her eyes and said, "Zhao Ting, you need not worry about your friend. Have you ever thought that your friend might not be an ordinary person?"

With that, she left the bewildered Zhao Ting and turned back into the hall. She needed to heal from the backlash she had just suffered, though she hadn't shown it in front of Zhao Ting.

Outside the Hall of Punishment, Zhao Ting remained bewildered. He really didn't understand. It took him a long time to remember something and smile wryly.

"Oh right, I forgot to tell Master earlier, Brother Chen's family is a renowned cultivation clan. It makes sense that Master could see that."

...

In Chen Xun's first year at the Dao Heaven Sect.

Every day consisted of eating, sweeping, sleeping, eating, sweeping, and sleeping.

Apart from sleeping, Qian Laifu followed Chen Xun without fail every day, showing concern and repeatedly trying to persuade Chen Xun to move to a better place, but Chen Xun dismissed him each time.

The disciples at the mid-mountain of the Servants' Peak gradually noticed something unusual... because the Steward treated this mortal, Chen Xun, exceptionally well, to the point of being abnormal.

Someone eventually heard that Chen Xun was a friend of the Purple-Robed Disciple Zhao Ting, which shocked them and made everything clear.

No wonder.

But speaking of which, in a sect with such strict hierarchy, would anyone really do this? Especially a Purple-Robed Disciple.

It wasn't until later, when many disciples personally saw Purple-Robed Brother Zhao Ting sitting on the mountain path chatting with Chen Xun, that they fully believed it. They couldn't help but marvel at how, despite being a mad mortal, Chen Xun was fortunate to have such a sincere and unwavering friend as Brother Zhao Ting.

During this time, Zhao Ting also began to show his talents. With his innate gifts and the sect's resources, he achieved Spirit Infusion in half a day, reached the third layer of Qi Refining in ten days, and completed Foundation Establishment in a hundred days, creating a legendary tale!

His talent shocked the Dao Heaven Sect, especially the disciples of the Servants' Peak, who deeply felt the pressure of his extraordinary aptitude.

A hundred days to Foundation Establishment!

The achievement that a Purple-Robed Disciple reached in just a hundred days was a lifelong dream unattainable for a Servant Disciple.

People are different, and this is reality.

And Zhao Ting was undoubtedly a genius.

A hundred days to Foundation Establishment was unprecedented even among the Purple-Robed Disciples of Heaven Profound Peak.

This demonstrated Zhao Ting's extraordinary talent.

Chu Ningshang listened to the other elders' praises and felt proud.

Especially on the day of Foundation Establishment, when Sect Master Nangong Yao personally attended and smiled, giving Zhao Ting an evaluation, "You are excellent."

Speaking of Nangong Yao.

As the Sect Master, despite being busy, Nangong Yao would sneak to the thatched hut west of the Servants' Peak every now and then throughout the year to visit Chen Xun, always bringing fine wine.

Although Chen Xun spoke madly, his occasional astonishing remarks provided Nangong Yao with significant inspiration and enlightenment, causing Nangong Yao to feel his own realm subtly loosening.

Nangong Yao was deeply grateful, increasingly viewing Chen Xun as a high-level figure, far beyond his own reach.

After each lesson, Nangong Yao would bow deeply to Chen Xun, eventually addressing him as "Master."

In Nangong Yao's heart, Chen Xun's status grew higher and higher, becoming more like a teacher on his path of cultivation.

And the Servants' Peak, which Nangong Yao had never set foot on before, magically became his sacred place for learning and enlightenment.

With Nangong Yao's frequent visits to the Servants' Peak, although discreet, the disciples didn't notice, but the core elders gradually became aware...

Fourth Elder Chu Ningshang was not surprised, having known about Chen Xun's uniqueness earlier. However, the Sect Master Nangong Yao's enthusiasm for this senior still shocked her, making Chen Xun even more mysterious in her eyes.

By the end of the first year.

Some disciples of the Servants' Peak reached their limits and left the Dao Heaven Sect, returning to the mundane world.

In contrast, Zhao Ting's realm had reached the Mid Foundation Stage, advancing at an astonishing speed.

One evening, Nangong Yao visited the thatched hut west of the Servants' Peak again.

Although it was winter, the Sacred Mountain where the Dao Heaven Sect was located never saw snow, always enjoying spring-like weather, with the sound of insects in the mountains and fields.

Chen Xun sat on the ground, shaking his head and muttering to himself.

Nangong Yao sat cross-legged beside him, not minding the mess, listening intently to Chen Xun's ramblings. Occasionally, his eyes would light up, and he would nod, saying, "Master is right."

When Chen Xun yawned and turned into the thatched hut, snoring loudly, Nangong Yao came back to his senses, slowly stood up, bowed towards the hut, and walked away.

As usual, Nangong Yao prepared to take off from the dense mountain path to leave the Servants' Peak.

Just as he was about to leave, his eyes flickered, and he said irritably, "A bunch of sneaky people, come out already!"

The air fell silent.

With a rustling sound, a group of core elders emerged from the nearby bushes, looking embarrassed.

The elders glanced at each other, some coughing, others shifting their eyes, all looking guilty.

Nangong Yao turned around, looking at Liu Yunjian and the other elders, and said calmly, "With your hiding skills, you thought you could fool me? You elders are quite bold, daring to join forces to follow me, hmm?"

Yes, all nine core elders were present.

Liu Yunjian, seeing the other elders looking at him, had no choice but to cough and say, "Ahem, Sect Master, you've misunderstood. We wouldn't dare follow you. We just thought we hadn't been to the Servants' Peak before, and the scenery this evening was nice, so we decided to come up as a group to enjoy the view. Ahem, meeting you was purely coincidental!"