Inside the teahouse.
"The Dao Seeking Sect boasts a peerless prodigy by the name of Meng Jingzhou!"
"Now, this Meng Jingzhou is truly extraordinary—he is none other than the eldest young master of the Meng Family, the number one clan under heaven, renowned across the jianghu as Eldest Young Master Meng!"
"There is hardly any need to extol Eldest Young Master Meng's natural gifts, for he possesses a single spiritual root found only once in a million!"
"Were it anyone else blessed with such talent and background, they would have long settled into complacency, content with the present and devoid of ambition. But Eldest Young Master Meng was different! He willingly relinquished the luxurious life of the Meng Family and journeyed to the Dao Seeking Sect. Enduring trial after rigorous trial, he finally earned his place as a disciple of the sect."
"Relying on no external crutches, Eldest Young Master Meng devoted himself wholly to the pursuit of immortality. Such steadfast resolve is truly admirable!"
"One day, Eldest Young Master Meng went out on a mission, accompanied by a female disciple of an immortal sect. The two traveled thousands of li in pursuit of a wicked flood dragon. After three fierce battles, they finally slew the beast at Jade Water Pool."
"Yet that wicked flood dragon was no easy foe. In its death throes at Jade Water Pool, it unleashed a cloud of poisonous mist. Seeing that neither of them could dodge in time, Eldest Young Master Meng shoved the female disciple aside, taking the brunt of the poison himself."
"Eldest Young Master Meng temporarily suppressed the toxin with his cultivation. But as the battle drew to a close, the poison could no longer be contained."
"Only then did they realize that this wicked beast was in fact a lustful flood dragon, and what it had released was no ordinary poison, but an aphrodisiac vapor!"
"Whosoever is afflicted by this toxin loses all reason, driven to seek out the opposite sex to vent their desires until the poison dissipates. Such has been the rule since ancient times."
"Yet what manner of man is Eldest Young Master Meng? His Dao heart was rock-solid! Facing feminine beauty, he did not waver in the slightest! He chose to endure swelling and blisters across his entire body rather than vent the desires in his heart!"
"In the end, by sheer willpower, Eldest Young Master Meng forcefully overcame the lust dragon's poison!"
This storyteller was a newly risen talent surnamed Jin. Rumors in the jianghu claimed that the previous storyteller who narrated the *Legend of the Dao Seeking Sect* was nearing the end of his lifespan and had found a successor.
Of course, this was merely a rumor, and the storyteller surnamed Jin had publicly denied it multiple times.
Even so, he was indeed qualified to inherit the mantle. His stories were gripping and widely praised, his skill second only to that of the previous storyteller.
"To learn what happens next, listen to the next installment!"
The storyteller surnamed Jin slapped his gavel, bringing the day's performance to a close.
Dressed in a long riding jacket, he hurried backstage in high spirits to find Daoist Buyu.
"Big Brother, how did I do?"
Holding a horsetail whisk, Daoist Buyu sat in spotless robes. Setting down the teacup beside him, he said calmly, "Not bad. You've improved."
"It seems you have quite a talent for this. Your eloquence was lacking before only because you hadn't found the right opportunity to practice."
"Thank you for cultivating me, Big Brother!" Clan Head Jin looked at Daoist Buyu with gratitude. Without Daoist Buyu, he wouldn't be where he was today.
He was currently focusing on singing Meng Jingzhou's praises so that the Meng Family might show some leniency when demanding their money back.
"However, there are still areas where you require training."
"Please enlighten me, Big Brother!"
"Your ability to adapt to changes on the fly is lacking. Training this skill will require a certain price."
Clan Head Jin wore a resolute, ruthless look. "Big Brother, to become stronger, there is no price I won't pay!"
Daoist Buyu was very pleased with this attitude. Those destined for greatness needed the resolve to burn their bridges behind them. "Then follow me to swindle the world!"
"Back in the day, the reason we, the Nine Scions of the Dao Seeking Sect, could smoothly deceive the Nine Nether Cult was thanks to years of accumulated deception skills!"
Clan Head Jin thoroughly agreed. After all, he had been the very first victim of that deception.
"You must keep in mind at all times the legal threshold for 'an extraordinarily massive amount of fraud.' That is your bottom line."
Seeing Daoist Buyu speak with such gravity, Clan Head Jin grew nervous as well. He swallowed hard. "And what happens if we breach that bottom line?"
"Life imprisonment!"
As if struck by sudden enlightenment, Clan Head Jin nodded vigorously. "I'll remember!"
"Different regions have different regulations regarding what constitutes an 'extraordinarily massive amount of fraud.' I will teach them to you one by one."
"Thank you for the guidance, Big Brother!"
Just as the two were about to say more, a sudden premonition of imminent doom seized them, as if a razor-sharp cleaver were resting against their necks, threatening decapitation at any second.
Danger!
The bustling street, the jostling crowd, the waiter calling out his wares, a child's dropped sugar painting... all of it slowed to a crawl, as if time itself had ground to a halt across the entire world.
Only a graceful, enchanting figure stood apart from the frozen world, walking forward with measured steps toward them.
The graceful figure pressed the dropped sugar painting back into the child's hand, then came to a halt before the two men.
"I happened to pass through this city and sensed the mark I left behind, so I came over to check on things. Who would have thought I'd find an unexpected harvest?"
"Ph-Phoenix Ancestor?!"
Clan Head Jin was the first to recognize Jiang Lianyi, followed immediately by the villainous Daoist Buyu.
Cold sweat broke out across both of them. They hadn't provoked the Phoenix Ancestor, had they? Yet from her demeanor, this didn't look like a friendly visit at all!
Jiang Lianyi had been passing through the area when she sensed the mark she had left on Clan Head Jin. She had been curious as to why the head of the Qiongqi Clan would appear in Great Xia.
Following the trace of the mark, she had unexpectedly found Daoist Buyu.
"Found you."
Feeling Jiang Lianyi's gaze on him, Daoist Buyu felt his scalp tingle with dread.
He had always acted with propriety and restraint—when had he ever provoked this grand deity?
What was more, he had never even met her before!
As if anticipating his confusion, Jiang Lianyi retrieved a book from her storage ring that looked exceedingly familiar to Daoist Buyu.
*Dragon Phoenix Transformation*.
"I hear you wrote this book?"
*Damn it, I forgot about that book!*
Clan Head Jin stared at his sworn brother in utter shock. Even he had heard of *Dragon Phoenix Transformation*—it was a forbidden book that had infuriated both the Dragon and Phoenix Clans to no end. The author had always been a mystery, but it turned out to be him?!
"No need to answer. Your expression says it all." Jiang Lianyi burned *Dragon Phoenix Transformation* to ashes.
Lu Yang had kindly warned her that his master's mouth was full of lies and not a single word could be trusted.
Jiang Lianyi leisurely rolled up her sleeves.
"Defaming my Phoenix Clan is a crime punishable by death."
"Considering that Lu Yang is my senior brother, and you are Lu Yang's master, it seems we can only settle our relationships separately—lest I hold back and hit you too lightly."
"I am currently also serving as a guest elder of the Dao Seeking Sect. For a guest elder to beat the Sect Master is an offense against a superior, which defies propriety."
"Fortunately, Elder Sister told me that those who achieve great things must not be constrained by minor trifles, and that rigid formalities should be temporarily set aside."
Daoist Buyu listened in total bewilderment. What was this about Lu Yang being her senior brother? Wasn't that just an act? And what was this about a guest elder of the Dao Seeking Sect? When had the Dao Seeking Sect ever appointed a guest elder?
A flurry of question marks flashed through Daoist Buyu's mind.
Even more bewildered than Daoist Buyu was Clan Head Jin. Putting together the Phoenix Ancestor's words, he felt as if he had just guessed the true, hidden identity of the Dao Seeking Sect.
"W-Wait! Don't hit me yet! I still have questions... Argh!"
Chapter 665