Chapter Fifteen: Quarrel

  Since inexplicably forming a heavenly bond with Shangguan Ling and Yun Mo, two women, and tragically falling under the curse of the Yin-Yang Great Curse, one of the Four Great Legendary Curses, Tang Qing's state of mind has undergone drastic changes. With the endless Heavenly Tribulation ahead and the legendary curse behind, these two extremely distorted existences crazily squeezed his endurance to the limit. In the end, he neither resisted nor endured, but chose to let go.

  After a sigh of relief, Tang Jing's mood also underwent a subtle change, which made him realize four words.

  Follow nature.

  Going with the flow, not taking initiative, not forcing, not refusing, not being responsible, everything is at ease, this is going with the flow...

  The next morning, Tang Jing was still fast asleep when a sudden knock at the door woke him up.

  "Thank you! Thank you!"

  Tang Jing lay sideways on the bed, dazedly opening his eyes, but only opened a slit, and responded with a "Who is it."

  "It's me, Biyi, hurry up and get out of bed, Master wants you to go on an errand."

  Tang Qing yawned, rubbed his cheeks, and put on his clothes. After opening the door, he looked up at the sky and said, "It's just dawn, not even the sun has risen yet..."

  "Master has something important to discuss with you, come quickly with me."

  Bi Yi's expression didn't look too good, with a hint of worry and some anxiety.

  "What's so important that it can't wait till later?" Tang Qing seemed like he hadn't slept enough, yawning repeatedly until after stretching his waist, the sleepiness only slightly dissipated.

  "I don't know the specifics, but when we get there, except for my master asking you questions, don't answer anyone else's questions, got it?" As a direct disciple, she had naturally heard about the big event that had occurred within the sect. Moreover, she was the disciple of the sect leader, but she really didn't understand what kind of person this guy was. Her master not only gave him the Huixu Dan, but now he even wanted to appoint him as a direct disciple.

  Biqi also became a direct disciple after winning the Jinwu Grand Competition five years ago. She was well aware of the depth of the water here, and the interests of countless people were at stake behind her back. With only one month left before this year's Jinwu Grand Competition, Master suddenly appointed a direct disciple, which would inevitably provoke those backstage forces.

  Tang Jing nodded, although he didn't know what specific thing it was, but he also guessed eight or nine out of ten.

  The sky gradually enters the night.

  The seven elders of the Qingyu Gate sat in the two rows of eight long chairs, with seven of them already seated. They were all sitting upright in their seats, and the atmosphere inside the main hall was extremely solemn. It seemed that they had just experienced a fierce verbal battle among themselves, and the seven elders still hadn't calmed down, their faces red and ears flushed as they glared at Shangguan Qiusuo.

  Shangguan Qixue was also sitting upright in her chair, wearing a dark flower long dress with a pale gold trim and a faint red underskirt with scattered flowers. Her beautiful face was cold and detached, her eyes gleaming with an icy light. Her chest rose and fell unevenly, her anger still simmering, apparently the earlier argument had also infuriated her.

  It has been four or five days since Shangguan Ling and Yunmiao left, and she had been thinking about the consequences of this matter all these days. After much thought, she still felt that she couldn't place her hopes entirely on Long Jie. If their fate was not meant to be, then pressure would come from all sides - from a royal family, an ancient clan, a large sect, and so on!

  How can Ling'er and Mo'er bear it?

  Shangguan Qixue doted on Ling'er and also doted on Mo'er. In her opinion, if the heavenly fate couldn't be resolved, then she had to face it head-on. At that time, the identity of that Tang kid would be very important. Unfortunately, this kid was a Jianghu vagabond who was as clean as a whistle. As a result, Shangguan Qixue could only disregard everything and pave the way for Tang Jing, making him a superior person. The first step to becoming a superior person was to become an official disciple of Qingyu Gate. Only by becoming an official disciple would there be a chance to climb higher. Therefore, even though she knew that this time she had stirred up a hornet's nest, she still made Tang Jing an official disciple of Qingyu Gate.

  "Master of the gate, all you elders, Tang...Tang Qing has arrived."

  Bi Yi led Tang Qing into the grand hall, reported, and then retreated and left.

  As soon as Tang Qing walked in, the seven elders in the hall fixed their eyes on him, sizing him up from head to toe, wanting to see through this young man.

  Tang Qing stood in the grand hall, his expression calm and composed, neither arrogant nor humble. His eyes narrowed slightly as he swept the room with a tranquil gaze that passed over each person present.

  "Is this the personal disciple you want to appoint?" The Fourth Elder, dressed in a magnificent robe, stroked his goatee and gazed at Tang Jing with a cold smile. Suddenly, he let out a cold snort and shouted, "I'd like to see what kind of talent this kid has that would make Master Upper Official appoint him!" After speaking, he stood up and walked over to Tang Jing's side, reaching out his hand to feel his bones from top to bottom.

  "With such qualifications, the difference in root bones is comparable to that of a rotten wood!" The four elders said with a gloomy and strange tone after feeling Tang Jing's root bones, "The master of the Upper Palace really has sharp eyes, actually picking out a talent as exceptional as this!"

  The rest of the elders also flocked to touch Tang Jing's bones, either shaking their heads or sneering, or ridiculing and mocking Shangguan Qiyue.

  "Since the establishment of Qingyu Gate, all personally appointed disciples must meet two conditions. First, they must have a good family background. Second, they must be exceptionally talented and courageous. I ask you, Master of the Upper Official's Gate, does your appointed disciple have a good family background?"

  Among the many elders of Qingyu Gate, whether in terms of cultivation or talent and family background, these four elders, Lü Huaye, were among the best. Therefore, not a few elders also looked up to him as their leader. A few years ago, the master of Qingyu Gate suddenly passed away, and the four elders originally thought they could sit stably in the position of master. Unexpectedly, someone from above appointed a woman, but because Ouyang Qixue was appointed by those above as the new master, he couldn't show too much dissatisfaction. However, this time Ouyang Qixue actually appointed her own personal disciple, which made the four elders furious. It's worth noting that for this five-yearly Jinwu Grand Competition, they had been planning for a long time.

  Shangguan Qixue did not respond.

  The four elders glanced at Tang Qing, their disdain evident on their faces, and one of them continued, "This person is not even an ordinary talent, let alone a genius. With such mediocre roots, how could the master of the Upper Palace have chosen him as his personal disciple? If this gets out, won't people laugh at our Qingyu Gate for being blind?"

  The four elders finished speaking and gave a glance to the other few elders, whereupon the fifth elder stood up and said, "This person's innate talent is extremely poor, and he doesn't have even half a bit of cultivation. If the master were to personally appoint him as his direct disciple, it would become the biggest joke in the history of our Qing Yu Men."

  The rest of the elders stood up one by one and argued with Magistrate Umpire Snow.

  "Song Changlao, as the outer gate's transmission elder," Fourth Elder said with a cold smile, "I wonder how you view this matter."

  Song can be said to be the lowest status in Qingyuemen, but also the most indifferent to fame and wealth. He is neither a member of the four elders' party nor a member of Shangguan Qixue's party, always maintaining his neutrality.

  Song Chang stood up, took a look at Tang Qing, shook his head and said, "As the master of Qing Yu Men, he naturally has the qualifications to appoint a personal disciple. However, this child's talent is indeed mediocre, far from being qualified to become a personal disciple. If the master insists on appointing him as a personal disciple and cancels the Jin Wu Grand Competition, it would be unfair to many outer door disciples."

  "Elder Song's words are indeed correct." The four elders chuckled and said, "If the master of the Upper Gate had not arbitrarily deprived them of their only chance, where would he have placed the more than 100 disciples who were registered under his name? They practiced day and night for the sake of the once-in-five-years Jinwu Grand Competition. Alas... I truly feel sorry for them!"

  At this time, Shangguan Qixue, who had been silent all along, finally spoke up, "When did I ever say that I wanted to cancel the Jinwu Grand Competition held once every five years?"

  "Hum! Since Master Upper Official has already personally appointed his own disciple, is there still a need to hold the Jinwu Grand Competition?"

  Shangguan Qixue's face was expressionless, and with a wave of her hand, she rolled up one of the scrolls on the table. "I have already reported this matter to the 'Upper Faction' and they have agreed to increase the number of direct disciples in Qingyu Gate to eleven. Therefore, the Jinwu Grand Competition will continue to be held a month later!"