He didn’t leave, but it seemed he believed half of what Zhōng Yǐn Yuè said. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè’s persuasion wasn’t a complete failure. However, Shěn Chàng Xuě made a valid point. Now that he calmed down and thought about it, even if Shěn Chàng Xuě could leave, as the Elder of Yù Luán, Zhōng Yǐn Yuè had to stay here. Everything had to be planned out carefully. Since he was already here, he might as well settle in. Now that he had crossed over, the situation was set in stone, and he had to play the role of this Elder of Yù Luán well…

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè pondered all the way back to Yù Luán Palace on his sword. Even though he understood everything in his heart, he still felt a bit defeated. He sighed as he pushed open the door, and as soon as he entered the palace, he saw his four children neatly gathered around the stove, warming themselves by the fire. Yù Luán Palace was quite large, with a square low couch deep inside that could accommodate dozens of people sitting around it. In the center of the couch, a section was hollowed out, which could be used to build a fire. At this moment, the four disciples were sitting there.

Seeing him return, Wēn Hán quickly got up from the couch: “Master, you’re back.” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè responded lightly, acknowledging him. Sū Yù Yíng also stood up from the other side. The two of them came over, one helping him take off his fur cloak, while the other picked up a feather duster from the wall to brush off the snow that had accumulated on him during his journey. Being attended to like this made Zhōng Yǐn Yuè feel quite uncomfortable. But he remembered that this was how things were here, a matter of teacher-student etiquette, so he couldn’t refuse. The two disciples welcomed him into the room.

Wēn Hán said, “Master, did you go to find Shěn Shīxiōng?” “Yeah, I had something to discuss with him.” After Zhōng Yǐn Yuè finished speaking, he pushed Wēn Hán’s back gently, turning his head towards the fire, signaling him not to ask too many questions and to just sit quietly by the fire. Wēn Hán understood. He hung Zhōng Yǐn Yuè’s fur cloak on the wall and obediently returned to the stove to warm himself. The snow on Zhōng Yǐn Yuè’s body was also brushed off, and Sū Yù Yíng put away the feather duster and followed him back. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè walked slowly inside.

The palace was lit with candles, still quite bright, and with the fire illuminating the room, he could see his four little disciples clearly. The children looked to be around fourteen or fifteen, sitting silently around the fire. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè stood by the couch, looking at them, silently recalling their names from memory. Wēn Hán had a heroic face, being his top disciple and the eldest among this group. He was a bit slow-witted, but not a bad person. Sū Yù Yíng was fair-skinned with bright eyes and white teeth, very pretty, and was the second disciple. Usually, these two were the ones he was closest to.

The other two sat a bit further in and didn’t say anything. One of them, who looked rather plain and unremarkable, was called Lù Jùn, the third disciple. As for the one next to him, dressed particularly simply, with his head down and shivering by the fire… Zhōng Yǐn Yuè couldn’t help but frown and looked at him a few more times. This child had his head buried low, hugging himself and trembling, with his hands hidden in his sleeves, but the few fingers that were exposed were already frostbitten, blue and purple, with cracked skin, looking like he had already suffered frostbite. Even warming himself by the fire didn’t help. This was the main character—Bái Rěn Dōng.

At this moment, he hadn’t awakened his extraordinary spiritual root yet; he was still an unrefined mortal body. Last year, Lìng Zé brought him back to the mountain and handed him over to Yù Luán. Although Yù Luán accepted him as a disciple out of courtesy, he was essentially treated as a servant, called upon to do chores, even sent out to sweep in such heavy snow. The other three had already adapted, with spiritual energy circulating in their bodies to keep warm, but this kid had nothing, going out in just a thin garment to sweep, and it was a miracle he hadn’t frozen to death. This Yù Luán Daoist really wasn’t a good person. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè secretly cursed.

In the original text, it was described that Elder Yù Luán loved nothing more than to flatter other elders. He would flatter those above him while bullying and exploiting those beneath him. Seeing the frostbite on Bái Rěn Dōng’s hands made Zhōng Yǐn Yuè feel pity, and he recalled that part of the plot that almost made him furious. Shěn Chàng Xuě had died, and this little brat thought it was only natural. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè felt both angry and sorry at the same time. After a moment of silent entanglement, he turned back and walked to the purple wood medicine cabinet against the wall, opened one of the drawers, took out something, and called out, tossing it over.

Bái Rěn Dōng looked up, and something flew over in an arc. He raised his hand to catch it, and a bottle of medicine landed perfectly in his palm. “Frost medicine.” Bái Rěn Dōng shifted his gaze to Zhōng Yǐn Yuè. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè’s expression was indifferent, looking down at him with a cold gaze. “Apply it yourself. If you don’t want to die, don’t go out to sweep the snow again.” Bái Rěn Dōng was stunned, nodding his frozen neck after a while. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè took a ceramic kettle and walked up to the couch, placing the kettle over the fire.

With the master present, the four disciples adjusted their sitting positions, obediently kneeling in front of him. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè sat in front of them and raised his hand. With a wave of his spiritual power, the tea set on the distant desk flew over in an orderly manner. Wēn Hán asked, “Master, are you going to brew tea?” “Yeah.” Wēn Hán nodded and then said, “Master, when should we go sweep the snow outside?” “Let’s talk about it after it stops. Why are you so concerned about it? We’re not going out today.” “But Master said… it must be cleaned up, and if it’s not clean, we’ll keep sweeping.”

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè fell silent. To be honest, that was indeed what he said. This was what the original owner said… There was actually half a sentence that followed, which was, “If it really can’t be cleaned, then go sleep in the storeroom.” As everyone knew, once this was said, it meant he was going to punish the students. The punishment methods were extremely frightening. Sū Yù Yíng murmured softly, reminding, “Besides, it’s also the rule set by the sect leader that we must clean the snow in front of the mountain palace.” So the original owner had the right to make his disciples act as snow-sweeping machines as soon as it snowed, sweeping all day long. The snow kept falling, making it impossible to get clean. Using a feather duster as a command.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè said, “The sect leader was just worried that no one would sweep, so he casually set the rule. It’s not like he checks all the time, and he hasn’t checked at all. Once the snow stops, we’ll sweep it all together. Don’t worry about that little bit of snow.” “Besides, the sect leader knows we have few people. If it really comes down to it, I can explain. The kids don’t need to worry. In this cold winter, you should be huddled inside. Don’t think about it; I’ll brew tea for you.” The expressions of the several disciples changed immediately, some in fear, some in shock, and some in disbelief—these few sentences probably left them utterly stunned. This was not the kind of dialogue one would expect from Elder Yù Luán!

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè pretended not to see, busying himself with the steps of brewing tea from memory. He thought for a moment; since he had changed so much, he still needed to give these kids an acceptable reason. After all, it wouldn’t be easy for Shěn Chàng Xuě to extricate himself, and everyone in the mountain gate wanted him dead. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè might need to rely on his identity as an elder to help him in the future. Before that, he had to establish a firm foothold and not make any mistakes. So now he needed to find a way to back down.

With that thought, Zhōng Yǐn Yuè sighed and earnestly laid the groundwork for himself: “A few days ago, I read some books and realized that I have some major issues in my conduct.” “People need to self-reflect often. In the future, if I do anything wrong, don’t hesitate to tell me directly.” As soon as these words came out, his disciples were immediately moved to tears. “Master, you’re too humble!” “How could Master ever be wrong? You’ve treated us so well today!” “Master, I dare to say you’re not! Please punish me!” How did even the one asking for self-punishment come out! The reactions of these kids were too big, surrounding him and chattering excitedly, leaving Zhōng Yǐn Yuè with a headache. Even the main character, Bái Rěn Dōng, had a flushed face, clutching the medicine he had given him and saying, “Master! You are the best master in the world; I can’t thank you enough!”

You can just stop there!! Zhōng Yǐn Yuè felt annoyed just looking at him. At that moment, a sudden thud came from the palace window. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè turned around to look but didn’t see anything at the window. The kids all quieted down. In the silence of the snowy day, such a sound made one feel uneasy. Just as they were puzzled and anxious, a weak bird call came from outside the window. “Damn it!” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè instinctively exclaimed, quickly scrambling to get up and run outside to open the window. Looking down, he saw the messenger hawk used by the sect leader face down in the snow, flapping its large wings and struggling.

“Did you come from Harry Potter? You can’t just crash into the window to deliver a message!?” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè cursed under his breath, reaching out to pull it out of the snow. This was a long, slender, pitch-black eagle. It looked majestic, but its two glaring eyes made it look rather foolish. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè brought it inside, closed the window, and brushed the snow off its body. This black eagle was the messenger hawk of the sect leader of Tiān Jué Men—Shàng Xuán Elder. The hawk was named Fú Rì. Usually, any messages that needed to be conveyed to the other six elders were delivered by this Fú Rì.

After cleaning it up, Zhōng Yǐn Yuè placed it on the table and removed the letter tied to its leg. Unfolding it, he saw just one sentence. 【The Tiān Jué Grand Ceremony is approaching. On the fifteenth of the Cold Moon, all elders are requested to move to Shàng Xuán Mountain Palace.】 Zhōng Yǐn Yuè’s heart skipped a beat. He recalled the content from the book. He didn’t say a word; after reading it, he rolled the paper into a long strip and placed it on the nearby candle, burning it. He then opened the window and let Fú Rì go. Closing the window, he turned back to see four pairs of eyes blinking at him by the fire.

“Master,” Sū Yù Yíng asked softly, “What did the sect leader want with you?” “He’s not looking for me; he’s looking for all the elders.” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè returned to the fire, continuing to brew his tea, his expression calm and unruffled, “After the Cold Moon, the next fifteenth will be the grand ceremony of the sect, and many matters need to be discussed.” “Oh right, the date is approaching.” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè didn’t respond. Wēn Hán and Sū Yù Yíng began to murmur about the past grand ceremonies. The so-called Tiān Jué Grand Ceremony was also the grand ceremony of Tiān Jué Men. Every year, after the Cold Moon, on the fifteenth of the first month, coinciding with the Lantern Festival in the mortal world, there was also a grand banquet in the mountain gate. But this was not just a banquet.

Zhōng Yǐn Yuè’s gaze drifted to Bái Rěn Dōng, who was silently applying the frost medicine to himself. It was during this grand ceremony that Bái Rěn Dōng awakened his extraordinary spiritual root. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè’s expression darkened slightly as he wiped his face. Forget it. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè temporarily gave up on thinking and picked up the tea bowl, dividing the brewed tea: “Stop chatting and drink tea.” Receiving the tea he handed over, Sū Yù Yíng asked curiously, “Master, what does ‘chatting’ mean?” “…It means talking, conversing.” “Oh, oh.” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè wiped the sweat from his brow.

Watching Sū Yù Yíng take a sip of tea, Zhōng Yǐn Yuè asked, “Is it good?” Sū Yù Yíng took another sip. This time she drank quite a bit, puffing her cheeks and nodding. Zhōng Yǐn Yuè chuckled. His disciples were all good kids. When Shěn Chàng Xuě was held back, they were among the few who stood up to say that it was wrong. Sū Yù Yíng even stood up and shouted at Qián Yào, but in the end, she was held back and beaten by the other party’s disciples and thrown out. The original owner, seeing this, not only felt embarrassed but also praised the other side, saying she just needed more education.

Thinking of this, Zhōng Yǐn Yuè said, “In the future, if anyone disrespects you just because you’re my disciples, fight back.” “Eh?” As soon as these words came out, the four disciples were stunned. After all, the original owner used to say every day, “Those outside are all senior brothers and sisters; whatever they say, you must obediently accept it; that’s etiquette.” If you can’t do it, then get out of Yù Luán Palace, get out of Tiān Jué Mountain. They had been conditioned to endure, so when this contradictory statement came out, they couldn’t react.

“If others don’t respect you, you don’t need to continue to uphold those hierarchical etiquettes,” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè said, “If you fight someone and get summoned, I’ll clean up after you. Just drink and remember what I just said.” The four disciples nodded awkwardly, lowering their heads to drink tea. “The grand ceremony is coming, and we’ll be busy afterward.” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè sighed, “They’re calling us all to Shàng Xuán Palace for an elder meeting… At that time, there will have to be a disciple serving tea behind us. Given my status, I’ll inevitably be ridiculed again on the fifteenth. Yíng’er, you don’t have to go; Wēn Hán, you come with me.” Wēn Hán quickly picked up the half-finished tea bowl, burying his head deeply and kneeling on the ground to bow: “Disciple obeys.” Zhōng Yǐn Yuè waved his hand, letting him get up.

He also picked up the tea bowl with one hand, drinking while covering half of his face, finally feeling relieved in his heart. Damn, this was exhausting, playing this role. No wonder actors get paid so much.