The gray sky parts the clouds, casting a beam of sunlight.
In the early spring after the rain, desolate outskirts with faintly light smoke, misty and hazy, the sun is upon the pear blossoms.
A glance across the land reveals sparse and scattered green grass.
This scene seems to foretell that all things will thrive under the nourishment of spring rain, becoming robust and flourishing!
Chen Yun looked at his unscathed body in disbelief, the feeling of that knife piercing into his heart felt so real and genuine, not like a dream. Yet why did he not feel any pain in his chest now, let alone a tear in his clothing?
As if, just now, I had a dream that was both real and absurd!
But now, the dream... has awakened!
It might be because of that strange sensation surging within him that Chen Yun ignored Zhongli's presence standing before him, lost in thought, and merely silently recalled the changes in his emotions between life and death just now.
"I, a youth, have cut off worldly attachments, declared my resolve in the face of life and death's great terror, and the future... is limitless!"
A mighty voice resounded in his ears.
Chen Yun looked up.
What he saw was Zhongli fanning a small grass fan, his face revealing a smile as if bathed in spring breeze.
He Xiannu also laughed and said, "Your enlightenment has awakened the Dao heart."
Zheng Wenshu clapped his hands and laughed heartily, "Congratulations! Congratulations, Brother Chen, for your enlightenment!"
Only Wang Laozhi sighed and looked at them with a sour expression.
However, he still sincerely congratulated, "Congratulations to Brother Chen for declaring his resolve."
Cai Rujin and Wang Zixi were the same.
Even in their words, there was still a hint of envy in their eyes.
Upon hearing this, Chen Yun suddenly came to his senses.
He finally understood why he had experienced that great terror of life and death just now.
It seems that Zhongli was enlightening himself!
Thought arrived, Chen Yun quickly knelt down and bowed his head, "Thank you, Master, for enlightening me."
"Get up," Zhongli said casually, without any of the airs of an accomplished master.
Only then did Chen Yun stand up and greet the others, including He Xiannu, Zheng Wenshu, and Wang Laozhi.
At this moment, Zhongli suddenly asked with great interest, "Chen Yun, tell me, when did you discover the probe?"
"Ah?" He Xiannu was taken aback, "Master, did he find out?"
Zheng Wenshu also seemed confused, "No way, we were so careful, how could we be discovered?"
Wang Laozhi, Cai Rujin, and Wang Zixi, despite not speaking, had an air of confusion in their eyes.
Today, for this test of transmission, Master Zhongli brought almost all of his personal disciples out, not to mention that the plan was flawless; at least nothing seemed amiss.
Of course, after hearing Zhongli say that Chen Yun had already discovered that it was a test, everyone was in disbelief.
Let alone He Xiannu, Zheng Wenshu, and others who couldn't believe it.
Even Chen Yun found it quite astonishing; how could Zhongli know that he had discovered the test?
Although he couldn't understand it, he still truthfully said, "Master, long before Miss Jin's second test of me, I had already discovered that something was wrong."
Hmm, to this day, he still doesn't know who transformed into Jin Qiaoqiao.
He Xiannu said with some dissatisfaction, "That's impossible. I didn't reveal any flaws during my second test, how could you detect it?"
Everyone looked at Chen Yun, eager to hear how he discovered it.
Oh, you transformed into Jin Qiaoqiao.
Chen Yun finally breathed a sigh of relief, otherwise, just thinking about himself almost chomping down on Zhongli made it too cold.
He took his time and said, "At first, I really didn't notice anything out of the ordinary. However, over the past few days, I heard from the guards in Xigou that there has been some trouble with demons lately in town, so I had been keeping a close mind. That day you happened to come looking for me, I had a vague feeling something was wrong……"
"Where was it wrong?" He Xiannu pressed further.
Chen Yun explained, "Typical people who lose their money will immediately search for it. But you searched the transmission hall over a dozen days later, which is the first thing. Second, after you failed to get the small jin gold beads and left, I had a meeting with Wu Xunsheng, who was to buy soap at my home. The steward of his household came to me and said that they hadn't seen your figure on their way, so at that time, I instinctively suspected that you might be an evil spirit……"
He Xiannu said, "You've already determined it based on these two points?"
"Of course not," Chen Yun shook his head, "I was just suspicious at first. So after finishing my work that day, I hurried to the Jin family to return the money. But when you came along and acted ambiguously, ask yourself, in this world, how can a woman value her chastity and yet show such a carefree demeanor after just a couple of meetings? Especially since the woman you transformed into is from an official family."
He Xiannu looked somewhat annoyed, "So I had so many loopholes."
Zhongli laughed, "Xiu Gu, since you have not experienced anything between men and women, it's not surprising that you have such flaws."
Zheng Wenshu and Wang Laozhi nodded in agreement.
Cai Rujin and Wang Zixi also smiled.
Saying this, Zhongli looked at Chen Yun again, "What about today's test?"
Chen Yun replied modestly, "Master, I really had not noticed anything wrong before. But Jin Qiaoqiao's appearance made me think of a series of things. After visiting the Jin family and discovering some clues, I gradually became sure that today's test was most likely a test by a high person."
Zhongli glanced at He Xiannu with a half-smile, "Look, it's all your fault again."
He Xiannu looked utterly helpless, having no desire to respond at all.
Zhongli finished speaking and asked again, "Chen Yun, are you saying that before Jin Qiaoqiao appeared, you didn't know it was a test?"
Chen Yun admitted, "Yes, it was something I only figured out after careful consideration."
Zhongli's eyes held a thoughtful look, as if he had understood something in his heart.
He Xiannu couldn't help but ask curiously, "Why did you detect something wrong when I appeared?"
Zheng Wenshu also asked, "Yes, what clues did you find in the Jin family?"
Seeing everyone looking at him, Chen Yun began to unravel the mystery step by step, "Because I had always suspected that you were a demon. After you bound me and calmed me down, I started to associate all the things together."
Zhongli listened very seriously and he was eager to understand the entire process.
Chen Yun continued, "Firstly, it's certain that there were hints about you, Sister He. But I recalled that the first time you appeared, it was a dozen or two days before I heard the guards say there was trouble with demons in town. Therefore, I judged that Qiaoqiao was not a demon. Secondly, usually our incantation hall runs out of Zhuo mo and Huang zhi paper which require Brother Ning to buy them on his way back from the mountain. But just after Brother Cai came by and made an excuse to send me down from the mountain, this is another clue."
Cai Rujin smiled awkwardly.
"Secondly," Chen Yun said in order, "I have always been indifferent and don't like to interfere with other people's affairs. When I entered Xigou City and saw the commotion up ahead, my instinct was to avoid it on the other side of the street. However, no matter where I went, disaster still followed."
Zhongli admitted openly, "My intention was to chase you because my heart and Sister He were worried about your behavior. Little did we know that you had already discovered something wrong."
Wang Laozhi couldn't help but ask, "Can you really be sure it's a test just based on these things?"
"It's not that, at that time, I just felt that a few facts were too coincidental. If Sister He is not a demon, why would her behavior be so abnormal? And why would Brother Cai find an excuse to send me down the mountain and then encounter such misfortune? It was precisely because of these uncertainties that I suspected that my transmission hall's elders might be secretly testing me."
Chen Yun pointed at the empty expanse of the wilderness, "It was only after I entered the Jin family that I was truly certain. The great hall had all my Daoist proverbs, and there were occasional Confucian proverbs, but there were none from Legalism."
Wang Zixi, who usually spoke little, was piqued by the curiosity, asking, "What's wrong with that?"
Chen Yun asked in return, "Brother Wang, do you dislike Legalism?"
Wang Zixi thought it over carefully and said, "I can't say I dislike it, I just don't like the way Legalists behave."
Chen Yun nodded, "Generally speaking, people of our Daoist tradition are not fond of Legalist thought. And Qin State was founded on Legalist principles. If the master of the Jin family were a high official from Qin, he would certainly not have no banners of Legalist thought in his house."
Zhongli's face was breaking into a broad smile as he listened, "Is there anything else?"
"Indeed there is," Chen Yun said, recalling everything, "Qin State honors the right, but Jin Xiangguan sits on the left, and Qiaoqiao holds the right seat. This clearly goes against common sense and actually aligns with Daoist traditions where left is honored. Combining my previous suspicions and these clues, I can roughly determine that today was indeed a meticulously planned test by my transmission hall's elders."
Zhongli laughed heartily at He Xiannu and said, "Xiu Gu, I thought your test had many flaws. Little did I know that even with me personally testing you, so many hints were still revealed."
Hearing that the ancestor also got "pitted", He Xiannu didn't feel as bad anymore.
She said smilingly, "Master, it's not that we had many flaws. It's just that Chen Yun is very careful in his thoughts. If others had been in his place, they certainly wouldn't have discovered so many hints."
Zheng Wenshu nodded in agreement, "Yes, even I, if I were in that situation, might not have known either."
Wang Laozhi sighed and said, "When our master first enlightened me, the test wasn't as complex as it is now. However, I still couldn't detect it at that time. Fortunately, I passed the test eventually."
Cai Rujin and Wang Zixi were staring at Chen Yun with a look of amazement. They had always known Chen Yun was intelligent, but they didn't expect him to be this perceptive.
Zhongli ignored everyone and asked Chen Yun seriously, "You have long seen through the test, so the things you said just now were not spoken from the heart?"
Chen Yun said sincerely, "The things I said before were half true and half false. However, when Jin Xiangguan's dagger was pointed at me, I felt my life slipping away. At that moment, I thought I had guessed wrong. But in the midst of life and death, every word I said was from the heart. Nothing could shake my resolve. I just wanted to pursue Daoism and achieve immortality."
Speaking of this, he collapsed to the ground again and implored with sincerity, "Master, be kind. Please take Chen Yun into the Daoist door."
This time, He Xiannu, Zheng Wenshu, Wang Laozhi, Cai Rujin, and Wang Zixi all remained silent and simply cast their eyes upon Zhongli.
It is only Zhongli who has the authority to decide whether Chen Yun can become a disciple.
Will the Master accept me into the Daoist door?
What should I do if the Master doesn't accept me?
The anxious Chen Yun who was kneeling on the ground couldn't help but worry.
Just when he was on edge, Zhongli whispered softly, "Fine."
Ah?
Really accepted me as a disciple?
Chen Yun's heart was filled with overwhelming joy. He quickly bowed again to express his gratitude, "Thank you, Master, for accepting me as a disciple."
Zhongli smiled slightly, "From now on, when you follow me to cultivate the Dao, you mustn't play tricks like you did today. Otherwise, you will be severely punished. Chen Yun, do you understand?"
Teacher?
Do you mean that I have become your disciple, Zhongli?
Chen Yun was first taken aback, then nearly fainted with happiness.
At first, Chen Yun thought that as long as Zhongli agreed, it would be acceptable to become disciples of Cai Rujin and Wang Zixi.
But who would have thought that today Zhongli would be willing to personally accept Chen Yun as a disciple!
I'm set for success!
This time, I'm made for success!
Chen Yun tightly repressed his overwhelming joy and raised his head with vigor, "The disciple will adhere strictly to the Master's teachings and never dare to show off his small intelligence again!"
