Man Gu: Is the Heavenly Court Cult Still Recruiting?

"In other words, Brother Meng, you suffered karmic backlash, making women instinctively detest you, so you came to Huangzhou looking for a cure?" Man Gu said, coming to a sudden realization after hearing Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou's explanation. As expected of Brother Meng, he moved in truly high-end circles! How could an ordinary Golden Core cultivator ever run into karmic backlash? Having finished the whole roasted lamb, the three fellow disciples caught up a short distance away from the other disciples of the Corpse Driving Sect. "What about you? How did you end up at the Corpse Driving Sect? Did you come by yourself?" "Didn't I go back to my clan for my coming-of-age ceremony? After it ended, I mentioned wanting to come to the Corpse Driving Sect to learn corpse-driving arts so it'd be easier to barbecue. The clan chief brought me over himself and stopped by to pay a visit to Sect Master Lu. But Sect Master Lu was in secluded cultivation, so the chief didn't disturb him. He left me here at the Corpse Driving Sect and went back on his own." The sect master of the Corpse Driving Sect was Lu Baqian, an expert at the late Body Integration stage. "I originally wanted to spar with Huang Ming from the Corpse Driving Sect, but apparently he went out on a mission and hasn't returned yet." "I heard the Barbarian clan's coming-of-age ceremony is very dangerous and requires battling Golden Core demon beasts," Lu Yang said, showing proper concern for his junior brother as the current eldest senior brother of their generation. Man Gu gave an honest, simple smile and scratched the back of his head. "It wasn't particularly dangerous. After all, compared to the three of us infiltrating a demonic cult at early Foundation Establishment and then chasing Golden Core demon beasts through a dense forest at late Foundation Establishment, it was nothing." That was true. Compared to those two feats, Man Gu slaying a Golden Core demon beast while at the Golden Core stage was as safe as going home to the Dao Seeking Sect. At that moment, Zhao Po walked over. "My master is usually cultivating, but he happens to be free right now." "Then let's go," Meng Jingzhou said with a grin, feeling that luck was gradually swinging his way. But then he grew wary and asked, "Is your master a man or a woman?" "A man." "That's great!" Man Gu no longer needed to study corpse-driving arts; his requirements were low, as long as it worked for barbecuing. So he tagged along with Meng Jingzhou to see the Grand Elder. Man Gu chuckled cheerily. "Seeing you guys reminds me of something interesting. A barbecue shop opened in Hanshui City called the Try Again Barbecue Shop, sharing the exact same name as ours. But they're a chain, and they even claim their recipe is an ancient secret handed down through generations." "I originally wanted to try it, but I never had the time." Man Gu shook his head with regret. Lu Yang: "..." Meng Jingzhou: "..." "Actually, that shop is somewhat connected to us," Lu Yang transmitted his voice. This wasn't something he could say in front of Zhao Po, or the boy might mistakenly think they were part of a demonic cult. "Before we had a chance to tell you, you went home. During that time, Old Meng and I made contact with the Nine Nether Cult..." As Man Gu listened, his jaw dropped, and he stood frozen for a long time. In the brief time he had spent visiting home, Brother Lu and Brother Meng had actually founded the Heavenly Court Cult! They had even roped in Eldest Senior Sister, the Sect Master, the elders, and Tao Yaoye, and had gotten the Nine Nether Cult to open a chain of barbecue shops! He hadn't even been gone that long—less than two months! Brother Lu and Brother Meng truly were brilliant. "Don't worry, yours counts as a technical investment. You get a ten percent cut of the barbecue shop's profits." After all, the recipe used by the shops was still the ancestral recipe of the Man family. Man Gu didn't care much about profits. As the sole member of the Ancient Barbarian race, the entire clan treated him like a precious treasure. He had never lacked spirit stones; he just rarely found a place to spend them. "Is the Heavenly Court Cult still recruiting?" Man Gu took the initiative to draw closer to his two role models. "Recruiting? Of course we are! Our Heavenly Court Cult needs geniuses like you!" Lu Yang laughed. Even if Man Gu hadn't brought it up, Lu Yang would have mentioned it. With that, all of the top five from Lu Yang's cohort had joined the Heavenly Court Cult. The group reached the deepest part of the Corpse Driving Sect, where the atmosphere grew increasingly chilly and gloomy. An elderly man sat deep within the luxurious yet cavernous hall, his eyes cold and devoid of emotion. "Master, these two are the visitors from the Dao Seeking Sect I mentioned to you, Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou. You should have already met Fellow Daoist Man Gu." "Greetings, Grand Elder!" Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou bowed respectfully, greeting him as juniors. "Alright, there's no need to stand on ceremony between us. Old Buyu's disciple and the kid from the Meng Family—both of you have ties to me, so to speak," the old man chuckled, warmth returning to his aged eyes. "My surname is Gai. You may simply call me Elder Gai." "This is a letter for you from the Fourth Elder." Lu Yang stepped forward and presented the letter of introduction written by the Fourth Elder for the Corpse Driving Sect. "It has been a long time since I last saw a letter from Xie Shanren. His calligraphy is pleasing to the eye and worth a fortune; this letter alone would qualify to be auctioned off... Hmm? You opened this letter?" Elder Gai's brow furrowed in displeasure. He thought these juniors lacked manners—how could they casually unseal a letter exchanged between elders? "It wasn't us who opened it; Valley Master Shuang opened it," Lu Yang explained helplessly. "That she-devil?!" Hearing Valley Master Shuang's name, Elder Gai's hand trembled. He immediately scanned the letter repeatedly with his divine sense, terrified that Shuang Feiyan had left a curse on it to screw him over. There was precedent for such things. "Thank goodness, the letter is safe... What happened? Take your time and explain." "The Fourth Elder sent the two of us to Huangzhou to seek a way to resolve a curse. He told us to come to your esteemed sect first to ask for guidance. As this was our first time in Huangzhou, everything was unfamiliar to us. Hearing that the Seven Emotions Valley's curse arts were remarkable, we decided to visit the Seven Emotions Valley first..." Elder Gai's eye twitched uncontrollably. Truly, newborn calves knew no fear of tigers! As Old Buyu's disciple, taking Xie Shanren's letter of introduction to see Shuang Feiyan was practically begging to die! Especially since at the end of the letter, Xie Shanren had referred to Shuang Feiyan as a "she-devil"—that was a private nickname nobody dared utter to her face! For this kid to stand before him in one piece meant he possessed extraordinary luck. "Old Lu can resolve this curse of yours, but you'll have to wait a bit. Old Lu is currently in secluded cultivation attempting a breakthrough to the Tribulation Transcendence stage. Once his breakthrough succeeds, your curse won't pose any trouble at all." "Breaking through to Tribulation Transcendence?!" Everyone was thoroughly stunned. Sect Master Lu was of a similar age to Daoist Buyu and the various elders of the Dao Seeking Sect. In fact, the elders and sect masters across the major factions were all from roughly the same generation, secretly competing to see who would break through to Tribulation Transcendence first. No one had expected Sect Master Lu to take the lead. Lu Yang was the first to recover. Stepping forward, he clasped his fists and offered, "Should I inform our sect's elders so they may join in celebrating Sect Master Lu's achievement?" The Dao Seeking Sect and the Corpse Driving Sect enjoyed friendly relations. By all reason and courtesy, Sect Master Lu breaking through to Tribulation Transcendence was a grand occasion, and the Dao Seeking Sect ought to send representatives to extend their congratulations. Neither he nor Meng Jingzhou held enough standing to congratulate him on behalf of the Dao Seeking Sect. Elder Gai waved his hand. "No need. Before going into seclusion, Old Lu specifically instructed me not to tell anyone about his breakthrough to Tribulation Transcendence. He wants to give everyone a surprise. I'm telling you this now, so don't you go telling anyone else."