Chapter 108: Peel Off This Talisman, and Master Can Come Out

When Lu Yang returned to Tianmen Peak, the Eldest Senior Sister was still nowhere to be seen, leaving only the puppet to guard their home.

"Did the meeting last this long this time? It must have involved the allocation of spirit stones, right?"

In Lu Yang's memory, only this kind of situation would cause a meeting to drag on for so long. The elders always harbored all sorts of bizarre ideas that they could never implement due to a perpetual shortage of spirit stones; whenever an opportunity arose to secure some, they would naturally contend for them with everything they had.

Just as Lu Yang was lost in thought, he saw eight streaks of flowing light fly out from the Discussion Hall as the eight elders departed, followed by the Eldest Senior Sister stepping leisurely out of the grand doors, indicating the meeting had finally adjourned.

"You're back?"

"Just got back."

Yun Zhi swept her divine sense over Lu Yang, confirming that Huang Doudou was still sound asleep within his mental world. "There are still many suspicious points regarding the Immortal Fairy, points to which even she herself likely does not know the answers. I am going out to visit some friends to see if I can glean any insights. Practice diligently here on Tianmen Peak, and strive to reach the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment as soon as possible."

"Yes."

Saying no more, Yun Zhi soared into the sky, her silhouette blurring until she vanished into an unknown direction.

Once Yun Zhi had departed, Lu Yang looked toward the puppet that had long accompanied him in his cultivation. Eager to try his skills, he engaged the puppet in combat, only to be utterly thrashed and routed in no time at all.

Unable to defeat even the puppet, Lu Yang felt a mounting sense of frustration and sat down properly to meditate and cultivate.

With the Eldest Senior Sister running hither and thither for his sake, he could not afford to be lazy or indolent.

"Disciple, is that my disciple who has returned?"

A phantom-like voice drifted into Lu Yang's ears. He instinctively covered his ears, only to find that he could still hear it perfectly.

The voice possessed an almost inconceivable magic.

"Who's there!" Lu Yang looked around warily. He didn't recall having any master; everything had been taught to him by the Eldest Senior Sister.

Wait, it seemed he did have a master.

"Lu Yang has returned. I am your master, Daoist Buyu."

The current Sect Master of the Grand Pure Sect, Daoist Buyu, who had been missing for a whole decade.

Despite the Sect Master having vanished for ten years, the entire Grand Pure Sect continued to operate smoothly and effortlessly, even recruiting a new generation of disciples; whether the Sect Master was present or not made absolutely no difference.

"Master?!"

Lu Yang was profoundly astonished. He had been under Daoist Buyu's lineage for a year now without ever laying eyes on his master. The Eldest Senior Sister always claimed that their master was in secluded cultivation and lacked the time to see him. Could it be that his master's seclusion had finally ended?

"It is I. Though you have never seen me, I have always been watching over you. That you were able to draw Qi into your body and successfully establish your foundation brings great comfort to this master." The voice was laden with the vicissitudes of time, sounding just like a kindly old grandfather.

"Where are you, Master? Are you unable to come out and see your disciple because of your seclusion?" Lu Yang felt that something was amiss. If his master could see him and speak to him, why had there been no sound at all over the past year?

The voice let out a long sigh, filled with an endless, unspeakable bitterness. "Alas, it is a long story. This master has always been right here on Tianmen Peak, but I am temporarily unable to leave this spot. Some matters cannot be explained in just a few words. Walk along the path I dictate, and you shall see me."

Though Lu Yang harbored doubts, he did not sense any danger. This was Tianmen Peak, after all, and the other party was his own master.

Moreover, the most important point was that the Eldest Senior Sister had never warned him about anything of this nature.

If there were danger, she would have spoken of it long ago.

"First, locate the pine forest halfway up the mountain. Within it, there is a three-hundred-meter-tall ancient pine, the largest tree in the entire forest."

Lu Yang easily found the ancient pine Daoist Buyu spoke of. He remembered the puppet once gathering pine nuts here to make him sweet corn with pine nuts, which had been absolutely delicious.

"Tap the ancient pine lightly three times, pause for three seconds, then knock heavily three times."

Lu Yang followed the instructions. Suddenly, the space on the eastern side of the ancient pine distorted, as though someone had pulled away a sheet of camouflage cloth to reveal the truth beneath.

A large swath of pine trees on the eastern side vanished, replaced by a pitch-black cave dwelling. At the entrance hung a glittering golden talisman that was impossible to miss, and it was from this very cave that Daoist Buyu's voice resonated.

Lu Yang called out tentatively, "Master?"

"Ah, good disciple. We finally meet." An elderly man with the air of an immortal stepped out from the cave, a fly-whisk resting upon his arm, looking as elegant and ethereal as a banished immortal. He appeared somewhat excited upon seeing Lu Yang; was this his youngest disciple?

Daoist Buyu stopped at the mouth of the cave, refusing to take a single step further.

"Master, what happened to you? Are you trapped here? When Eldest Senior Sister returns, I will ask her to rescue you!" Lu Yang said urgently.

"Don't, don't, don't." Daoist Buyu hastily stopped Lu Yang. If Yun Zhi hadn't left Tianmen Peak, he wouldn't have dared to call Lu Yang over in the first place.

"You must absolutely not tell your Eldest Senior Sister about meeting me."

"Why is that?"

Daoist Buyu looked up at the ceiling of the cave, his gaze complex. "A man lives his life for nothing more than the words 'fame' and 'fortune.' As the Sect Master of one of the Five Great Immortal Sects, my power is immense, so naturally, many people wish to sit in my position."

"I can understand that. Back when I fought for this seat, I also went through a bloody battle to stand out among my fellow brothers."

"I thought that becoming the Sect Master settled everything, but I never imagined I would be betrayed by the person closest to me." At this point, Daoist Buyu showed an expression of deep anguish, as if he could not bear to recall the past yet was forced to do so.

"Your Eldest Senior Sister possesses peerless talent. When I abdicate, the position of Sect Master would surely be hers. Yet, she actually could not wait for the day of my abdication. Breaking her promise to me, she imprisoned me here and became the Acting Sect Master herself, managing all affairs of the sect."

"How has the sect developed over these ten years? Has your Eldest Senior Sister proceeded according to my grand blueprint?"

Lu Yang was startled. He had heard several senior brothers and sisters mention that the sect had been flourishing and brimming with vitality over the past decade, with the Eldest Senior Sister deserving the vast majority of the credit. Could all of this truly have been within his master's blueprint?

When Lu Yang conveyed this faithfully, he received a somewhat comforted response from Daoist Buyu: "Little Yun has done quite well. Even without me, she can manage the sect properly. It is only a pity..."

"A pity for what?"

"A pity that I am not the one managing it personally. If it were me, there would be even better management methods."

"Then can you come out?"

Daoist Buyu smiled bitterly and attempted to step out of the cave. The moment his front foot crossed the threshold, ten thousand streaks of purple lightning erupted instantly at the entrance. Daoist Buyu was entirely bathed in the bolts, scaring him into a hasty retreat as he used his fly-whisk to extinguish the sparks on his body.

"You see it now, right? I cannot come out."

"Then how can I rescue you, Master?"

"There is a golden talisman written by Little Yun at the entrance of the cave. As long as you peel it off, I will be able to come out."

Lu Yang looked at Daoist Buyu suspiciously. "Is it really that simple?"

"It is just that simple. Little Yun once said that if anyone peels off the talisman, it proves that I am not fated to be imprisoned here forever; conforming to the mandate of heaven, she would naturally let me out."

Lu Yang leaned closer to inspect it, only to find that the golden talisman bore none of the usual strange incantations. Instead, there were only seven large characters left by the Eldest Senior Sister:

Let's see who dares peel this off.