Chapter 172 The Arrival of the Little Master

Chapter 172: The Young Master Arrives at Last

"Clap. Clap. Clap."

The sound of applause came from nearby.

Fu Mingli turned his head, his eyes wide with fury. "Who dares to cause a disturbance in the sect—"

But when he saw the newcomer, it was none other than the Grand Elder. A cold sweat instantly broke out on the back of his neck.

"It's the Grand Elder!!"

"The Grand Elder, who hasn’t left seclusion in over a decade!!"

"Why is the Grand Elder here all of a sudden? And wasn’t there a long-standing rumor that he had already..."

At the sight of the Grand Elder, Fu Yanqi respectfully sheathed his sword and bowed. "Grand Elder."

Fu Yanqi stepped forward to push the Grand Elder's wheelchair, but the elder stopped him with a single hand. "I can handle it myself."

Seeing the mysterious, rarely seen Grand Elder interact so familiarly with Fu Yanqi—their demeanor even had a father-son vibe—Fu Mingli’s face twisted in fury.

"Junior Brother Yanqi, how are you so close with the Grand Elder?"

The Grand Elder chuckled lightly. "Since childhood, Yanqi’s studies, cultivation techniques, talisman-drawing, hand-seals, and even swordsmanship were all personally taught by me."

At those words, everyone present was completely stunned.

"So, Senior Brother Yanqi truly is the one the Grand Elder sees as the future of the Dao Sect!"

"Since childhood, the Grand Elder always told us to enjoy life. I assumed it was to spare us hardship, but it turns out he never intended to pass on the sect’s teachings to us!"

"Then, that supposed marriage alliance between Senior Brother Mingli and Yi Na must be..."

"I’ve heard that in ancient history, the most useless princesses were used for marriage alliances."

All eyes turned to *Fu·"Most Useless Princess"·Mingli the Kappa*.

Fu Mingli, who had just been the center of everyone’s admiration, now carried only two glaring labels in their eyes: "Discarded."

Fu Mingli had never suffered such humiliation before. He had always been the star, firmly believing he was the most valued disciple in the sect.

He shook his head violently. "No... no! I refuse to believe the Grand Elder would treat me like this!!"

With that, he turned and bolted toward Fu Yixue’s main courtyard.

Once Fu Mingli left, the other disciples started shuffling away sheepishly.

Wu Yue called out, "Wait."

She smiled at the crowd. "I’m not here for past grudges, but today’s scores will be settled—one by one.

What a shame. Since you’re all fellow sect members, I can’t follow the usual Blaze Protocol—otherwise, you’d already be dust in the wind.

Misname me once, ten kowtows.

Today, no one leaves until they’ve kowtowed till they bleed."

"Who the hell are you to order us to kowtow?!"

"Exactly, this is the Dao Sect! You're an outsider, what right do you have to order us around?"

"I won't bow down, what can you do about it?"

The Grand Elder nodded with a smile. "I think it's a good idea."

The hecklers, who’d been jeering, immediately fell silent upon seeing the Grand Elder backing Yanqi up.

The Grand Elder casually raised his hand, and the first row of Dao Sect disciples suddenly felt their knees go weak, collapsing to their knees.

He said gravely, "Kowtow. You stop only when Yan Qi is willing to let you go."

With the Grand Elder's intervention, the Dao Sect disciples present knelt and began kowtowing, some even pleading, "Brother Yanqi, we were wrong."

Fu Yanqi watched these fellow disciples, who had bullied him for much of his childhood, now so easily begging for mercy.

The childhood shadows that had haunted him, the chains of doubt that had held him back—rage, bitterness, doubt—

dissipated like smoke.

At the same time, Fu Yanqi's cultivation realm shattered into a higher realm.

Fu Yanqi said softly, "Enough. Get out."

Upon hearing his words, the Dao Sect disciples, their faces bloodied, fled in terror, leaving only Wu Yue, him, and the Grand Elder.

The Grand Elder waved his hand, dispelling Fu Mingli's barrier around the Sky Pavilion.

He said, "Go take a look inside."

Wu Yue turned back, only to find the Grand Elder had already vanished into thin air.

Wu Yue exclaimed in surprise, "The Grand Elder—so elusive."

Fu Yanqi nodded. "That’s just how he rolls."

Wu Yue hesitated. "Sorry if this is rude, but I heard the Dao Sect suffered a bloodbath back then. The Grand Elder was..."

Fu Yanqi replied, "The Grand Elder isn’t from the main lineage of the Dao Sect. During the Clash of Titans, masters of the Arcane Arts from all sects were decimated.

Reclusive masters came forth, among them the Grand Elder, who belonged to a branch lineage of the Dao Sect from years past.

Later, when the Dao Sect was rebuilt, it was the Grand Elder who helped the Sect Ancestor pick up the pieces.

But the Grand Elder himself was severely injured and has been recuperating for years, never quite healed."

Wu Yue mused aloud, "The Clash of Titans was hell itself.

I wonder—are there any records or documents specifically about the Clash of Titans?"

No matter how hard she dug through her communicator, she had never found any mention of it.

Fu Yanqi pointed to the gate leading to the Sky Pavilion. "The Sect Ancestor locked away all the forbidden truths behind this door, in the Sky Pavilion.

Maybe you’ll dig up the answers you seek there.

I’ll hold the fort. Go in alone."

Wu Yue pointed at herself in surprise, "Should I go in alone? Is that appropriate?"

Just moments ago, even with Fu Yanqi accompanying her, those Daoist disciples had acted as if their ancestors' graves had been disturbed.

Fu Yanqi said, "Since both the Grandmaster and the Grand Elder have given their consent, nothing could be more appropriate."

Wu Yue walked alone through the gate and along a small path.

An exquisite elevated pavilion appeared before her, its design incredibly ingenious, entirely constructed using ancient wood joinery techniques.

Not a single nail was used in the entire structure—every joint relied on interlocking joints.

Ascending a short flight of stairs, the entire pavilion came into view.

As she slowly pushed the door open, she found herself in a small room filled with all kinds of delicate dolls.

To her astonishment, Wu Yue noticed that these dolls bore an uncanny resemblance to the Luo Shen doll she had once received from Yu Wan.

There was even one doll that looked exactly like a miniature version of the Ancient Loulan Princess she had once summoned.

The lifelike and dazzling array of dolls held Wu Yue's gaze for a long time.

Instinctively, she took out the Luo Shen doll Yu Wan had given her from her system (a magical inventory) and placed it among these dolls. Strangely, it blended seamlessly, as if it had always belonged there.

"Ding-ling! Ding-ling!"

Wu Yue looked up in surprise and saw delicate wind chimes hanging from every doorframe.

There were no metal clappers inside the chimes, and the pavilion was so still that not a breath of wind moved.

Yet, the sound of the chimes lingered,

their notes dancing through the beams, their echoes lingering for days, filling the entire Daoist sect.

The chimes rang clear and melodious, beautifully melodic,

as if,

a host of tiny fairies were chattering excitedly, cheering and gossiping without pause.

These dolls had stood silent vigil here for countless years,

and at last,

their long-awaited mistress had finally come.