Chapter 416: Chapter 67: Great Vow and Prophecy
He refused Guu Donglin’s help, took off his scholar’s robe, and wrapped it around his waist.
Then, he said calmly, "Teacher, this disciple is going down to wash up."
Guu Donglin stared at Nangong Cheng with a frown, not saying a word.
Nangong Cheng said calmly, "Don’t worry. As long as you do not permit it, Teacher, this disciple will never again speak of seeking death in this lifetime."
Hearing this, Guu Donglin’s expression flickered, but he was still worried. He turned to Academician Bai and said, "You take Qing Lian down and make sure he gets cleaned up properly."
"Understood, Dean," Academician Bai replied.
The moment he finished speaking, Nangong Cheng, having received his answer, floated up, left the sinkhole, and vanished from everyone’s sight.
Guu Donglin watched Nangong Cheng’s disappearing figure for a long time before coming to his senses. He floated up and looked at Zhang Deming, saying, "It seems I have neglected you, little brother."
Zhang Deming replied, "For a senior such as yourself to say so is to flatter this junior too much."
Guu Donglin paused for a moment. "It is my fault. My mind is not at ease today, so I will take my leave first. As for your matter, little brother, I will certainly give you a satisfactory answer tomorrow."
Zhang Deming heard this, nodded, and said, "This junior understands. I am in no hurry. A day or two more will be fine."
Upon hearing this, Guu Donglin gave some instructions to a few academicians and headed in the direction Nangong Cheng had left, apparently still worried.
The old Monk, Master Fuyuan, along with an apathetic-looking Huineng, also jumped up from the bottom of the pit.
Everyone bowed in unison. Fuyuan and Huineng gave a slight nod in return. Fuyuan looked at Zhang Deming and said, "Young Benefactor, this old monk has matters to attend to today, so I must take my leave."
Zhang Deming nodded. "Yes, Master Fuyuan, please take care of your business. There’s no need to worry about me. This junior will just wander around the Academy today."
The two then exchanged bows. Master Fuyuan, along with the ever-inconspicuous Priest and Huineng, also turned and left.
After they had left, the academicians on site began to move. The disciples waiting outside were let in one by one to start handling matters in the Underground Palace below.
Some demonic cult disciples were dealt with as needed, while some of the Children who still had hope were rescued. In a short while, the bustling chaos turned into orderly activity.
Just then, an academician stepped forward and said to Zhang Deming, "This way, fellow Daoist. Let me show you to the guest rooms first so you know the way. Afterward, you are free to wander the Academy as you please."
Zhang Deming nodded and followed him.
...
From its layout, the Huayue Academy should have originally resembled an ancient academy from his past life.
However, due to influence from the Outer Realm—plus the fact that Huayue City seemed to have considerable dealings with it—the Academy was at the forefront of the times.
Therefore, one could already see signs of new trends here, somewhat similar to the Celestial Spirit Sect’s Array Department.
But the Array Department was like a campus, whereas this place was an actual campus.
Well... a campus for Cultivators!
Among the Miscellaneous Arts of the Hundred Paths Elegance Sect, Zither, Chess, Calligraphy, and Painting stood as representatives. The Painting Dao was built on lofty concepts, the Zither Dao depended most on innate talent, and the Chess Dao was the most broad and profound. The Calligraphy Dao, however, often emphasized one thing: purity.
Calligraphy is a Great Dao with numerous schools of thought. But to achieve anything, purity is key, because many schools of the Calligraphy Dao are founded upon this very concept of purity.
Whether one was wild and unrestrained, free and easy, or detached from the world, as long as one could maintain that purity held within the heart, there was hope of reaching the pinnacle of the Great Dao. Otherwise, it would be difficult.
A literary seed is nurtured, a Literary Gallbladder rises, and a Literary Heart is hidden within the Dao. As long as one maintained that purity, even with lesser talent, one could still achieve something in the Calligraphy Dao.
Therefore, as Zhang Deming walked through the Huayue Academy, he felt a sincerity and a rare, child-like innocence that was seldom found in this world.
A place like this was truly rare in this world.
Of course, these disciples with accomplished Cultivation were no naive fools. Anyone chosen by the Huayue Academy to cultivate here couldn’t possibly be a naive fool.
The reason they were this way was simply that, here, they were willing to interact with each other in this manner.
Zhang Deming was led through a number of places before arriving at the guest rooms.
As one of the three major powers in Huayue City, the Huayue Academy occupied a large area, and the guest accommodations were excellent.
Zhang Deming was assigned a high-class room. The academician chatted with him for a while before leaving a few disciples behind and departing. By now, the sky had almost completely darkened.
...
Early the next morning, with nothing to do, Zhang Deming gave his room a quick look-over. Then he headed into the Academy with a few disciples trailing behind him and began to stroll through this ancient version of a campus.
Because of Zhang Deming’s special status as an honored guest brought back by the Dean himself, his passage was unobstructed wherever he went.
After wandering through most of the Academy, Zhang Deming came to a pond filled with lotus leaves, which looked quite elegant.
A small child, about ten years old, was sitting by the edge of the pond, hugging their knees. Their chubby, exceptionally cute little face was currently scrunched up into a frown.
The small child sat with their left arm wrapped around their curled-up legs, continuously picking up stones with their right hand and tossing them listlessly into the pond, a look of displeasure on their face.
Zhang Deming stared, momentarily stunned. The main reason was that the child was just too cute.
Among all the children he had ever seen, only Qian Xiaogong could compare.
"Oh, for heaven’s sake, my little ancestor, how did you end up here again? Didn’t I tell you to be careful and stay out of trouble today?" A disciple hurried over, rushing forward when he saw the small child.
The child frowned slightly and said, "I’ve told you countless times, I’m not a little kid anymore! I know what I’m doing. Stop following me, or else I’ll..."
"SHHH... Keep your voice down!" The disciple immediately glanced toward a corner of the pond before continuing, "Little ancestor, we should get going. Today is not the day for you to be throwing a tantrum."
With that, he actually hoisted the cute little child onto his shoulder and hurried away.
