Standing outside the mountain palace of Shàng Xuán Shān, with the wind and snow blowing in his face, Zhōng Yǐn Yuè struggled hard not to burst out laughing.

Gěng Míng Jī had actually delivered the man Zhōng Yǐn Yuè loved the most right to his doorstep.

After the Elder Council meeting concluded, the elders left one after another. As they departed, each of them exchanged a few words with Zhōng Yǐn Yuè. Among them were a couple who seemed to take pleasure in his misfortune, but most expressed sympathy for the trouble he was in with Gěng Míng Jī.

“You usually follow behind, praising him, but today you suddenly put him in a difficult position. The Sect Leader is still in front, and you made it hard for him to save face; it’s only natural for him to feel upset…” Elder Bái Yú sighed, patting his hand as he spoke. “Shixiong Qián Yào is just a bit impatient; he’s only taking it out on you for the moment. Just don’t provoke him further, and take care of this matter first. In a few days, he’ll discuss the grand ceremony with you.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè could hardly contain his laughter, covering his mouth and trying hard to put on a pitiful expression.

After dealing with this group of elders at the entrance of the Shàng Xuán Shān palace and politely sending them off, Zhōng Yǐn Yuè finally let out a sigh of relief.

“Master, what should we do?” Wēn Hán, who was behind him, looked like he was about to cry. “There are only a few of us in the mountain palace, and we have to prepare for the grand ceremony… This is too much to ask!”

“Alright, it’s already been pushed upon us. Besides, he said he would lend some people. If he doesn’t provide enough, we can find some familiar faces to borrow from,” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè replied. “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

“Yù Luán Elder.”

Just as he finished speaking, someone called out to him from the side.

The voice was soft, like water and willow.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè felt his heart skip a beat and turned around to see Shěn Chàng Xuě standing behind him.

Shěn Chàng Xuě clasped his hands together, smiling gently as he asked, “Shixiong, may I go back to Qián Yào Mountain to find some people for the Elder? I’ll head to Yù Luán Mountain afterward.”

“Ah, okay.” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè stammered a bit, “Thank you for your trouble.”

Shěn Chàng Xuě cupped his hands in a bow and turned to leave.

After he left, Zhōng Yǐn Yuè led Wēn Hán back to Yù Luán Mountain.

The disciples’ accommodations were in the separate palace on the back mountain.

Although there were few people, Yù Luán Palace didn’t skimp on anyone. It was as spacious as the other places, and the separate palace was not small either.

In that large courtyard, only four people lived there, leaving plenty of empty rooms.

However, no one had lived there for a long time, and dust had settled everywhere.

The four disciples came and went, cleaning up the separate rooms quite a bit.

This was for the people from Qián Yào Palace who were coming to stay temporarily, so they had to put on a good show.

To welcome the guests, Sū Yù Yíng even swept the snow in the courtyard.

Halfway through, she walked over to Zhōng Yǐn Yuè, holding the broom, and said, “Master, how many people will Shixiong Shěn from Qián Yào Palace bring? Did Elder Qián Yào clarify?”

“No,” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè replied. “Elder Qián Yào was angry with me and left quickly, leaving Shěn Chàng Xuě behind. I estimate that when he returns to the mountain, he’ll have to listen to Qián Yào’s nagging for a while. How many people to bring should also be arranged by Elder Qián Yào.”

Sū Yù Yíng nodded, “I hope he brings more people. For such a big event as the grand ceremony, it would be better to have more people.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè smiled bitterly, thinking it was unlikely.

Looking at Gěng Míng Jī’s impatient demeanor today, he probably had a very small mind.

For this grand ceremony, he would definitely find ways to make Zhōng Yǐn Yuè suffer and wouldn’t let him off easy.

After a stick of incense’s time, several sword shadows descended upon Yù Luán Mountain.

Shěn Chàng Xuě had arrived. Along with him were only four disciples.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè had expected this, so he wasn’t surprised at all, but Sū Yù Yíng beside him wore a distressed expression.

Shěn Chàng Xuě walked a few steps toward him and bowed, “Disciple Shěn Chàng Xuě from Qián Yào Palace, greetings to Elder Yù Luán.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè quickly helped him up, “No need for such formalities.”

Shěn Chàng Xuě straightened up but lowered his head again, “Elder, Master has asked me to convey a message. Master said that for the preparations of the grand ceremony, not many people are needed at this stage. The Elder should draft a proposal outlining the ideas for the ceremony and how the venue should be arranged, and submit it for the Sect Leader and the other elders to review. Once everything is settled and can be implemented, Master will then assign many disciples to the Elder for any tasks.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè understood.

The implication was that he had to write a planning proposal first!

Damn it, why do I still have to write this kind of thing even after crossing over!

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè rubbed his forehead, wanting to curse Qián Yào again.

But with Shěn Chàng Xuě standing in front of him, he couldn’t muster any anger.

Shěn Chàng Xuě’s gentle smile made Zhōng Yǐn Yuè hesitant to look him in the eye.

“Alright, I understand.” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè had no choice but to say, “I’ll write it. But when I’m writing this, you all…”

Staying here is useless, right?

That sounded too much like chasing guests away, so Zhōng Yǐn Yuè only said half a sentence.

Shěn Chàng Xuě wasn’t foolish; he understood the unspoken words.

Shěn Chàng Xuě lowered his eyes and smiled lightly, “Elder, don’t worry. Master called me here, so I can certainly help the Elder. In previous years, whenever it was time for Master to prepare the grand ceremony, I was always there to assist.”

“Sometimes when Master was too busy, he would let me step in and help share the burden. I heard that the Elder is completely unfamiliar with the grand ceremony; if the Elder is willing, I can help alleviate your worries.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè immediately turned around, facing away from Shěn Chàng Xuě.

Shěn Chàng Xuě was taken aback, his smile fading as he stared at him in a daze.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè took a deep breath, feeling overwhelmed.

Shěn Chàng Xuě wants to help him alleviate his worries!!!

Oh my god!!!

Shěn Chàng Xuě wants to help him alleviate his worries!!!

Is this heaven?!

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè’s heart raced, silently shouting in his mind for a full ten times.

After thanking his ancestors and even the unrelated CCTV, Zhōng Yǐn Yuè wiped his face and pretended to be calm as he turned back around.

But he couldn’t suppress the corners of his mouth.

His expression twitched as he said, “Then, I’ll have to trouble you.”

Seeing Zhōng Yǐn Yuè’s obviously struggling expression to hold back laughter, Shěn Chàng Xuě couldn’t help but chuckle, “Disciple obeys.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè turned around and waved to Wēn Hán and Sū Yù Yíng, signaling them to hurry and welcome him inside.

The two understood immediately.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè turned to leave, and they stepped forward, “Shixiong, please come in!”

---

After settling the group of disciples from Qián Yào Palace, in the afternoon, Shěn Chàng Xuě knelt in front of Zhōng Yǐn Yuè’s low desk, simply explaining the past processes of the Tiān Jué Grand Ceremony in an easy-to-understand manner, as well as how to write the proposal.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè understood.

He had been a twenty-five-year-old corporate slave outside, and he had written plenty of planning proposals before. After hearing the general process, he immediately drafted a rough version in his mind.

He could do it; he had ideas in his head, so writing it out was natural.

So he called for a disciple to bring out the ink, paper, and brush, and without further ado, he was ready to start.

Wēn Hán was grinding ink on the side while Zhōng Yǐn Yuè spread out the rice paper, preparing to write.

As soon as the brush touched the paper, Shěn Chàng Xuě’s eyes narrowed, and he immediately noticed something was off.

He silently raised his hand, took the ink block and inkstone from Wēn Hán, and spoke gently, “Let me do it.”

Wēn Hán was stunned, “How can this be? Shěn Shixiong is from Qián Yào Palace…”

“No need to fuss over that.” Shěn Chàng Xuě smiled at him, “It’s getting late; it’s time for a meal. You should go check. I’m a bit hungry. After talking for so long, I should bring some fruits for the Elder.”

Wēn Hán suddenly realized and thought it made sense, so he hurriedly left to check on the separate palace.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè didn’t notice anything wrong and continued to hold the brush, writing word by word.

Shěn Chàng Xuě didn’t say much either. He silently ground ink for Zhōng Yǐn Yuè, and the two of them quietly worked on their own tasks for a while.

Shěn Chàng Xuě’s gaze fell indifferently on the rice paper, and after following Zhōng Yǐn Yuè’s brush strokes for a while, he finally spoke slowly and softly, “Elder.”

“Mm?”

“You’d better practice your writing more.” Shěn Chàng Xuě kindly reminded him, “If you draw talismans like this, it could lead to fatalities.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè: “……”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè’s hand holding the brush paused.

He moved the brush away and carefully examined the line he had just written.

It was all jagged and messy, like a hen pecking at the ground.

Indeed… it was a sight to behold.

“Also, don’t write in front of the disciples.” Shěn Chàng Xuě added, “Elder Yù Luán has a good hand.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè didn’t want to talk.

He remained silent for a long time before finally managing to squeeze out a sentence, “It is a bit… ugly.”

Shěn Chàng Xuě let out a light laugh from his throat.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè’s face turned bright red, “Don’t make fun of me!”

“Disciple wouldn’t dare.” Shěn Chàng Xuě continued grinding ink, casually reminding him, “Elder Yù Luán’s writing is well-known within the sect. If the Elder submits such a piece of writing, others will surely notice something is off.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè set down the brush, crumpling the paper he had just written into a ball, making a crinkling sound in his hand, “After this morning, they must have noticed something was wrong with me.”

“Now they’ve only noticed a significant change in temperament, which can still be explained away.” Shěn Chàng Xuě said lightly, “A significant change in temperament is not a problem, but we fear that people will see that the Elder is no longer the Elder. If discovered, it would certainly raise suspicions of possession. If it gets more serious, they might even suspect the Elder is a demonic cultivator or a ghost cultivator.”

“At that time, the Elder might face imprisonment and torture.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè shivered at the thought.

Like most cultivation novels, this world also had settings for demonic cultivators and ghost cultivators.

Demonic cultivators, ghost cultivators, and beast cultivators were all targets of public scorn, constantly at odds with righteous sects like Tiān Jué Men. What Shěn Chàng Xuě said was entirely possible.

“I know the Elder is not a bad person, and I believe what the Elder says.” Shěn Chàng Xuě continued, “Disciple is willing to help the Elder avoid risks, so I hope the Elder will heed my advice.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè: “What advice?”

“How about the Elder says that your hand is injured, and thus this proposal will be written by the disciple?” Shěn Chàng Xuě smiled gently, “Naturally, the Elder should practice writing well as soon as possible.”

“…Isn’t that too much trouble for you?”

“Not at all.” Shěn Chàng Xuě replied, “This way, I can spend more time with the Elder. To be honest, Chàng Xuě has some things he still wants to ask the Elder in detail, which might end up being a bother to the Elder.”

He spoke politely, and in just a few sentences, he had turned the situation around to himself.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè couldn’t push back any longer and had to agree.

Shěn Chàng Xuě set down the ink block and began to arrange the items on the desk in front of him.

Shěn Chàng Xuě smiled at him, “So, please explain how to write this proposal and how the grand ceremony is planned to be arranged.”

When he smiled, he was truly beautiful, and Zhōng Yǐn Yuè felt his heart flutter, causing all the thoughts he had prepared to scatter.

He agreed to the conversation, stammering for a moment before finally organizing his thoughts and speaking out loud.