Chapter 797: Too Weak, Therefore Misunderstood?

Xie Lingyu took her seat with composed grace, casting a sidelong glance at Chu Xingchen — perfectly at ease, looking for all the world as though this were his own sect’s hall.

Long before the two helmsmen met face to face, most of the issues and the bottom lines had already been negotiated within an inch of their lives. In a sense, this gathering was largely a ceremony going through the motions.

After all, if the two helmsmen squabbled to each other’s faces and traded snide remarks, whoever won the argument would only become the rest of the world’s laughingstock.

Once this ceremony concluded, the Buddhist sect’s actions would officially count as a joint effort with Chu Xingchen — a proclamation to the world that the Buddhist sect remained a proper, upright, righteously run sect.

Chu Xingchen traded courtesies with effortless fluency, praising the Buddhist sect’s resplendent gold and its wealth of talent — truly one of the fine places under heaven.

And Runan would praise back just as neatly: Fellow Daoist Chu, youth prodigy, heaven-ordained hero, a zenith star of a boy bent on holding up the tilting sky.

Fine words had become the prefix of each man’s every sentence; the period at the end was always “what a pity we met so late — why ever couldn’t we have known each other sooner?”

Of every five sentences, four and a half were flattery.

Naturally, Xie Lingyu got swept into a compliment or two from Runan as well. She nodded her acknowledgment, though her fine words plainly came nowhere near those of the two shameless masters of the trade.

Her gaze drifted slightly around the hall, sweeping over the assembled Buddhas as her mind sorted out each one’s name and title — Karma Buddha or Secular Buddha, which was which.

Before long, Xie Lingyu spotted something rather telling — the faces wearing a warm smile were, almost to a one, Karma Buddhas; the placid ones, sparing even a flattery-smile, were mostly Secular Buddhas.

Thinking it over, the reason was likely this: whatever Chu Xingchen had actually promised, the fact remained that he had been shielding the Radiant Buddha all along.

The Mahayana Buddhist Teachings affair hung over these Secular Buddhas like a sword by the hair.

After all, no one wanted to wake up one morning and find the Buddhist sect he had striven half a lifetime inside had swept him out the door in a blink — mocked as a fake monk who had only ever joined for the power and prestige.

It might be the true reason — but saying it aloud would grate on the ears.

Once an unspoken understanding leaves the mouth, it amounts to shouting insults.

But with the great tide flowing as it did, nobody did indeed prove so blind as to trash a negotiation that looked amiable on the surface.

The warm smile on the Honored Buddha’s face never once broke.

Chu Xingchen reined in his temperament as well, wearing an expression of “the Buddhist sect truly is a venerable senior of the world.”

Matters long since settled were brought up one by one. Runan had no need to confer with the other Buddhas — he simply smiled and nodded, and with a brief exchange gave his assent.

One after another, the earth-shaking decisions that could renew the order of heaven and earth reached their close amid a negotiation wrapped in flattery.

The Buddhist sect carved out the share of profits in which it would partake.

Chu Xingchen was to cooperate in a series of the Buddhist sect’s promotional efforts.

The meeting ended with a single line from Runan — “The radiant Dao is glorious; let us strive to walk it together” — and drew its curtain.

Xie Lingyu had barely contributed a few sentences all meeting. She lifted her eyes to find Chu Xingchen once again producing an Image-Recording Stone — and Runan, still perfectly obliging.

Chu Xingchen’s next moves would, as a matter of course, tie him to the Buddhist sect for some time to come.

Xie Lingyu quietly drew in a breath.

Who knew how things were faring over at Loving Family Peak.

Lately there was truly no one to keep Chu Xingchen’s pack of disciples in hand. She hoped they were managing to get along.

Back at Zhuji Peak, counting the girl and the dragon both in, it had been only three of them.

There were indeed some things she needed to study properly.

Loving Family Peak.

Today was the first time Qian Qing laid eyes on the San Dong that Li Yingling had spoken of.

A tiny sprite in a glittering little dress, wearing a smile that seemed never to stop.

San Dong came running with a medicinal herb hoisted on his shoulder, and the first thing he said upon seeing Qian Qing was:

“You must be the Qian Qing that Eldest Senior Sister mentioned?”

“I am… and you’re San Dong?”

“Mm! I am San Dong, the sect’s Grand Guardian!” San Dong nodded with a smile, his pint-sized body packed full of conviction. “You’re the sect’s guest now. San Dong will protect you!”

San Dong, too, had now reached Foundation Establishment. If it came right down to a fight, Qian Qing very likely couldn’t beat the flower spirit in that pint-sized form.

Qian Qing recalled — hadn’t Li Yingling said San Dong was timid? But the word “protect” had come out of him so decisively. Not timid in the least.

San Dong lifted the herb in his hand. “Eldest Senior Sister told me to take you for a stroll. Whenever you’re free, come wander with me — I’ll tell you all about our sect along the way.”

“Alright.” Qian Qing kept step with San Dong and, watching the flower spirit’s bouncy gait, asked in a small voice: “Do you know Yuankong?”

San Dong nodded as he answered. “I do. A monk. Only, San Dong doesn’t talk to him much.”

At this, Qian Qing asked nothing further and followed along down the mountain.

Only, after a few steps, San Dong suddenly quit the path altogether and started leading Qian Qing into the mountain forest.

Qian Qing was utterly baffled and instinctively hurried after him. But before she could ask what was happening, San Dong volunteered first:

“Our sect has tons of people! Besides the ones you met today, there are others too — like Cui Hao, the big nice-guy; Yun Li, who only knows cultivation with his head stuck down; and quite a few outer sect disciples.”

“But they’re all very nice people. They’re all very good to San Dong.”

Qian Qing nodded along. “Mm… I can tell.”

Hearing this, San Dong’s smile burned even brighter. Then he fished a spirit fruit out of his spatial ring and, offering it toward Qian Qing in both hands, said:

“Here — Yanyun brought this one to San Dong last time. San Dong couldn’t bear to eat it. This time, the guest eats first! Yanyun said this thing is really good — eat it and get a big boost.”

Qian Qing hesitated and did not take the spirit fruit, though its clean, sweet fragrance made her throat work just from the looking. She asked:

“Something this precious… surely it shouldn’t go to me.”

San Dong’s tone came out simply, naturally: “A friend is the most precious thing of all.”

Qian Qing looked into San Dong’s guileless eyes, smiled from the heart, and took the fruit held out to her in both small hands.

San Dong nodded, satisfied, and went on leading Qian Qing toward the super-beautiful scenery he had discovered.

It was the little white tiger’s resting place. A pretty little stream ran through it, along with a small field of flowers San Dong had planted there specially.

Let the guest have a look first. If everything was fine, then once the Sect Master and everyone else came back, San Dong would take the Sect Master and the others to the secret base he had built all by himself.

San Dong strolled along quite idly, now and then picking up a sprig from the roadside and taking a bite of it.

Qian Qing could keep up with San Dong’s steps at first, but very soon the flower spirit’s little form began flickering and darting through the terrain.

Sometimes one blink and he was far off ahead, as though not giving a single thought to the fact that she was a mortal.

Only when San Dong caught sight — for the third time — of Qian Qing’s helpless gaze sweeping the surroundings, unsure which way to go, did it finally dawn on him.

San Dong zipped back to right in front of Qian Qing, looked her carefully up and down, and then asked in amazement:

“Aren’t you a cultivator?”

Qian Qing heard this soul-stabbing question and could only nod helplessly:

“I’m not… Don’t you cultivators see that I have not a scrap of spiritual power in me?”

A touch of apology came over San Dong’s face:

“I thought you were a great power like Yanyun or the Sect Master. When I look at them, I can’t sense their spiritual power either.”

“Sorry, sorry… San Dong didn’t think of it. From now on, San Dong will walk slowly.”

Qian Qing gave a heavy nod.

Too weak, and therefore misunderstood?