This time it was quite fierce; it crashed right through the window of Yù Luán Palace and fell onto the ground, startling Zhōng Yǐn Yuè, who was sitting on a cushion, lost in thought about life.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè was speechless and had no choice but to walk over, pick it up, brush off the snow on its body, and check it thoroughly. After confirming it wasn’t hurt, he let it go.

The sect leader summoned him again, so Zhōng Yǐn Yuè headed back up to Shàng Xuán Mountain Palace.

The sect leader returned the draft of the Tiān Jué Grand Ceremony to him, saying he had reviewed it and had invited a few elders to discuss it in the afternoon. The draft was good, and they were very satisfied, asking Zhōng Yǐn Yuè to arrange everything according to this draft.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè accepted the order and returned to Yù Luán Palace.

By the time he got back to the palace, it was already night. He stepped over the threshold and entered the separate palace where his disciples stayed.

Seeing him, Lù Jùn, who was sweeping the snow, was startled. “Master! What brings you here?”

“I came to talk to you all about something,” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè said. “Call the others to the front hall.”

Lù Jùn agreed and hurried off to gather everyone.

The separate palace was used for the disciples to eat and live, but it wasn’t all just dormitories. There was a front hall, which served as a common area.

The front hall was spacious.

As soon as you stepped over the threshold, there was a place prepared for the mountain gate’s master. It had a tall crane screen, and in front of the screen was a wooden chair.

In front of that chair was an open space reserved for the masters, making it convenient for them to come and check on the disciples.

Behind the screen was a study area for reading scriptures and practicing cultivation. If there was nothing going on, the disciples could come here to study.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè hadn’t been seated in the chair for long when his four disciples arrived.

He didn’t rush to get to the main topic. Once everyone was present, he asked, “Have you seen your senior brother Shěn?”

The four disciples were taken aback.

After exchanging glances, Wēn Hán said, “We haven’t seen Senior Brother Shěn all day.”

“Is that so?”

“Maybe he went to finish his assignments?” Wēn Hán speculated. “Although Elder Qián Yào asked him to assist the master with the grand ceremony, Senior Brother Shěn is usually busy with his studies and can’t neglect them just because of the ceremony. He must have gone back to Qián Yào Mountain to study.”

As the number one mountain gate in the world, disciples of Tiān Jué Men had no time to spare. Each elder set different assignments for their disciples, but they were all quite heavy.

Reading scriptures, practicing swordsmanship, cultivating spells, meditating, and paying respects to ancestors—there was a mountain of tasks.

Everyone was busy, except for Elder Yù Luán, who didn’t treat his students like students and let them roam around every day.

The four of them from Yù Luán Palace were free to wander around every day.

“True,” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè said, rubbing his fingers and pretending to be casual. “Well, it’s no big deal; I was just asking. I called you here today because there’s been progress on the ceremony.”

“The date is set for the nineteenth of next month, but there’s no rush for now. We’ll start preparing at the beginning of next month. After all, I still need to prepare some things myself before the arrangements. Once we start setting up the venue next month, we’ll need hands to move things around, so I might have to trouble you all quite a bit.”

“There aren’t many of us on Yù Luán Mountain. The people outside aren’t my disciples; although I can use them, I don’t want to trouble them too much. I hope you all can put in your best effort. Don’t worry; your hard work won’t go unrewarded. After the ceremony, I’ll definitely reward you with some good things. It’s only natural that hard work brings benefits.”

Hearing this, the four disciples beamed with joy and bowed, saying, “Thank you, Master!”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè had nothing else to discuss, so he waved his hand, signaling them to leave.

Just as the disciples turned to leave, Zhōng Yǐn Yuè called out, “Ah, wait a moment.”

The disciples turned back. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè raised his hand and pointed at Bái Rěn Dōng. “You stay.”

Bái Rěn Dōng was taken aback.

The other three looked at him, blinking in confusion.

With only Bái Rěn Dōng left, the other three murmured quietly as they left the front hall, wondering what Bái Rěn Dōng had done to be singled out by Zhōng Yǐn Yuè.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè sat back in his chair, leaning against the backrest, with his left leg crossed over his right. He closed his eyes for a moment, not speaking.

Once the sounds of the three outside faded away, he opened his eyes.

Bái Rěn Dōng stood in front of him, hands clasped behind his back, looking anxious, his eyes flickering.

It seemed he was the most puzzled one, probably replaying everything he had done this month in his mind.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè felt a mix of emotions. He placed his hands on his knees, fiddling with a string of white jade beads, sorting through his chaotic thoughts.

Today, when Shěn Chàng Xuě mentioned it, he remembered how strange the protagonist’s reaction had been at that time.

If he really was a heartless ingrate, feeling that Shěn Chàng Xuě deserved it, then why did he freeze for so long?

But he did say that it was only natural for Shěn Chàng Xuě to do those things for him.

Thinking of this, Zhōng Yǐn Yuè recalled how he had been furious, bombarding the author in the comments section, while a few rational folks argued with him, saying he hadn’t read the story properly. The protagonist was clearly influenced by Qián Yào and had gone astray.

He actually knew that Shěn Chàng Xuě’s death was unjust, but the twisted education from Qián Yào made him feel that his thoughts were ridiculous. The protagonist still needed to experience events to understand that Qián Yào was not a good person and that the ideas he had been fed were completely wrong.

At that time, Zhōng Yǐn Yuè was too angry to believe it.

Now, he was somewhat reluctant to believe it. After all, no matter how you looked at it, this little brat did say, “It’s only natural for Shěn Chàng Xuě to do these things.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè frowned.

He still found the protagonist somewhat displeasing.

Bái Rěn Dōng was dressed in the same white robe as the other disciples, but he still carried an air of a street urchin that hadn’t completely faded away, making him look out of place in his celestial attire.

His face was thin and wary, filled with fear.

It was strange; although he looked anxious facing Zhōng Yǐn Yuè, there was still a hint of wild dog-like vigilance in his eyes, as if he were afraid someone would take something from him.

Even if that someone was Zhōng Yǐn Yuè, whom he was supposed to call Master now.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè felt increasingly that this was a little ungrateful wolf cub that couldn’t be raised. He also became a bit wary.

This person probably wouldn’t be tamed no matter how he was raised; he would end up helping Qián Yào against Shěn Chàng Xuě, right?

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè felt a surge of irritation. He sighed and patiently asked, “Have you finished the frozen medicine I gave you a while ago?”

Bái Rěn Dōng replied in a low voice, “Replying to Master… I haven’t used it all yet.”

“Hmm.” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè’s tone was indifferent. “Ask me for more when you run out.”

Bái Rěn Dōng was taken aback, quickly bowing in gratitude. “Thank you for your concern, Master!”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè waved his hand, not wanting to say anything else. Just as he was about to let him go, a voice suddenly came from the entrance. “Elder Yù Luán.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè looked up and was surprised to see Shěn Chàng Xuě.

He still wore a gentle smile, standing at the threshold of the front hall, bowing to him.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè was both surprised and delighted, quickly standing up. “What brings you here?”

“I finished my assignments, so I naturally came back,” Shěn Chàng Xuě said, straightening up, his hands still clasped together, speaking politely. “I’ve visited the elder several times, and I apologize for the intrusion, but I still have something on my mind that I’d like to ask the elder about.”

“Feel free to ask; there’s no need to feel like you’re intruding,” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè said. “Come in. Bái Rěn Dōng, you can go back now.”

Bái Rěn Dōng responded and bowed, glancing back at Shěn Chàng Xuě.

He was dressed in the same white robe, with the same golden crane pattern on the cuffs, looking elegant and refined, while he felt like just a beggar of a wild dog.

Bái Rěn Dōng bit his lip. It wasn’t surprising; Shěn Chàng Xuě was the chief disciple of Qián Yào Palace, renowned for his swordsmanship, ranking high within the entire Tiān Jué Men.

Bái Rěn Dōng was naturally self-conscious and felt he couldn’t hold his head up in front of Shěn Chàng Xuě, so he quickly lowered his head and hurriedly walked out.

Shěn Chàng Xuě stepped over the threshold and walked in, suddenly grabbing Bái Rěn Dōng’s arm.

Bái Rěn Dōng was startled, nearly jumping up.

He looked up sharply to meet Shěn Chàng Xuě’s smiling face.

“So, this is Junior Brother Bái,” Shěn Chàng Xuě said with a smile.

Bái Rěn Dōng was momentarily dumbfounded, blinking a couple of times before stammering, “Yes…”

“I’ve heard your name for a long time and have always wanted to meet you, but I never had the chance,” Shěn Chàng Xuě continued, his smile growing warmer. “You don’t need to rush off; stay a while. I have something I want to discuss with you too.”

With that, he turned to Zhōng Yǐn Yuè. “I apologize for the rudeness; I hope the elder will allow it.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè was also taken aback. He blinked a couple of times before saying, “Ah, of course… no problem.”