"I'll go and check!" After a momentary daze, Old Du made a dash for the Valley of Crime.
A while later, a gust of wind arrived. However, it was Old He this time.
The Valley of Crime was a rather important place in the sect, so one of them was required to stay there. Old He knew the situation better than Old Du. Therefore, he came here to explain everything.
"Masters, Uncle-Masters, another disciple named Su Lingwen has just comprehended the second stele as well."
"Another disciple? Maybe reading that stele is not that difficult. Is it possible that you just overestimated that disciple named Yun Shu, Senior Brother?" said Lin Rulie with sarcasm.
Obviously, he was belittling Yun Shu's talent.
"Yun Shu taught Su Lingwen. That's why she could crack the stele," Old He explained.
Hearing that, all the senior leaders of the sect present gasped in astonishment.
Comprehending a stone stele was already an extraordinary achievement in itself.
But the disciple named Yun Shu could also teach someone else the profound mysteries hidden inside it. He was even smarter than they had initially thought.
Based on this fact alone, it could be said that Yun Shu's talent was beyond their imagination!
"Haha! Good! He's indeed a good boy! Senior Brother, just leave the kid to me. I promise I'll turn him into one of the best cultivators in this world!" said Hai Wuchang to the chatty old man.
However, before the chatty old man could respond, Lin Rulie faked a cough and then said, "Senior Brother, since you value Yun Shu's talent so much, you shouldn't be his master. And it's the same for Hai Wuchang and Cao Qingying as well."
"Oh? Give me a reason." The chatty old man looked a bit pissed.
"You forgot the Dragon Island?" Lin Rulie said briefly.
However, the chatty old man's brows instantly twisted into a tight knot.
"In the last message sent by the Purple Cloud City, the Dragon Island will appear very soon. If Yun Shu becomes your student, Senior Brother, are you confident enough to make sure of his safety under the pressure brought by the Snow Peak, the Purple Cloud City, and the rest of the sects?" Lin Rulie asked in a low voice.
The chatty old man didn't answer the question immediately.
Lin Rulie continued, "Based on the previous experiences, once we land on the island, it will already be optimistic to expect a narrow escape. If you really like the kid, the most rational way to treat him is to hide him. Becoming a student of yours, or either Hai Wuchang's or Cao Qingying's, will bring that kid more harm than good."
The chatty old man, Cao Qingying, and Hai Wuchang all remained silent.
After a while, that chatty old man finally sighed. "You're right."
Seeing that, Lin Rulie decided to strike while the iron was hot. "So we can let Yun Shu spend a few more years in the Valley of Crime. After we are done with the Dragon Island, we'll release him!"
Lin Rulie still wanted to keep Yun Shu in the Valley of Crime.
"You reminded me just in time. You're right. The kid should remain as low-key as possible. But keeping him in the valley isn't a good idea either. We can…" murmured the chatty old man.
He walked back and forth several times and then said to them, "We can declare to the public that we saw spirit light descending tonight, which is an auspicious sign by Heaven! To obey Heaven's will, we'll grant amnesty to all the disciples in the valley except for the felons. In this case, no one will notice Yun Shu!"
Lin Rulie's face suddenly turned pale. His words had the opposite effect.
"Please be cautious, Senior Brother! You're talking about releasing all the misbehaving and convicted disciples in the valley for the sake of that one kid!" Lin Rulie hurriedly exclaimed.
"Because of his talent, it's worth it. It'll still be worth it even if we were to release ten times more people," said the chatty old man with great determination.
"I agree!" Hai Wuchang nodded.
"Me, too!" Cao Qingying agreed.
There was nothing else Lin Rulie could say to change the situation. He thought he could prevent Yun Shu from coming out of the valley, but obviously, it had turned out otherwise.
"But whose student he's gonna be…" Lin Rulie ground his teeth and said.
The chatty old man waved his hand. "It's not a good time for Yun Shu to be our student right now. You're correct on this. But his talent will be wasted if he stays in the outer sect. Any of you got something to suggest?"
He turned to look at Hai Wuchang and Cao Qingying.
"Why don't we send him to the Artifact Hall? Under the protection of that old man in the Artifact Alliance, even the Snow Peak has to more or less restrain themselves. Yun Shu will be able to cultivate himself without any disturbance." After giving it some thought, Hai Wuchang proposed.
However, Chen Buran didn't agree with her. "This isn't proper, Senior Brother! The Artifact Hall doesn't even accept most of the inner sect disciples! That boy isn't qualified!"
The chatty old man snorted. "Most inner sect disciples don't match up with Yun Shu in terms of talent."
Then he nodded at Hai Wuchang. "Good idea. Although the Artifact Hall is in the Fire Mystic Sect, it's also a member of the three major immortal alliances. The Snow Peak will need to behave themselves facing the Artifact Hall! Alright, with this, the decision's been made!"
Both Chen Buran and Lin Rulie were pissed, though. What kind of place was the Artifact Hall?
In the Fire Mystic Sect, the Artifact Hall was almost an independent division. Although it was in the sect, it took direct orders from the Artifact Alliance.
The three immortal alliances were the Artifact Alliance, the Pill Alliance, and the Hunting Alliance. Their combined power surpassed most of the sects.
Becoming a member of one of the alliances was a much more noble thing than becoming an inner sect disciple in the Fire Mystic Sect!
Joining the Artifact Hall would be Yun Shu's first step toward becoming a member of the three immortal alliances.
Chen Buran and Lin Rulie had tried everything they could to prevent Yun Shu from coming out of the valley, but their words had pushed him into the noblest division within the sect.
What an irony! It was too late for them to change anything now.
"Since the decision has been made, I'll leave now." Chen Buran directly stated
"Me, too." Lin Rulie bowed and also left.
After Lin Rulie left the square, he saw Chen Buran standing by the roadside with his hands behind his back. It seemed that he was waiting for him.
"Senior Brother Chen, you are…?" Lin Rulie smiled and asked.
"Don't fake that smile. You can't be happy right now, either, Junior Brother Lin," said Chen Buran in his symbolic sarcastic tone.
"What else can I do? Our Senior Brother is determined to protect that boy." Lin Rulie shook his head.
"I'm not gonna give up. Yun Shu is Yun Wanli's son! They can't get what they want!" Chen Buran said with intense hatred. Obviously, there was bitter enmity between him and Yun Wanli.
"What else do you plan to do? You'll target that boy?" Lin Rulie was a bit surprised.
"I'm not that silly. Senior Brother looks easygoing, but if he gets provoked, I wouldn't be able to handle it. Besides, I don't have to do this on my own. I'll ask people in the Artifact Hall to take good care of Yun Wanli's son…" said Chen Buran viciously.