Old Ma looked at the youngster getting into the carriage with a slight difference of opinion, not knowing who he was or why Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou would bring them back to the sect.

Could it be a promising new sprout they’ve just discovered?

But they should have passed the entrance trial before being able to join the Seek Dao Sect.

Whatever, what does it have to do with me? I’m just a coachman.

Old Ma didn’t think about it any longer and concentrated on doing his carriage-pulling job well.

"Rest assured, Ancestral Master, we will definitely be able to retrieve Jin Chan for you."

"We’ve just received news that the Luoshui Guards, which are the official cultivators from Great Xia, have captured Master Guanqie."

"That fast?" Daoist Xiantian was quite surprised, how did you two find out?

"However, returning the stolen goods is best left to the elders of the sect to handle. We, being younger and less influential, are not suited to come forward in this matter." Your next read awaits at freewebnovel

Daoist Xiantian nodded his head, it made sense.

"Ancestral Master, you might not be quite aware, but the current atmosphere of the sect isn’t quite the same as during your time, it’s more open now."

"The ones currently managing the sect include not only elders but also several disciples."

In just one day, Old Ma brought the three of them to the Seek Dao Sect, surprising Daoist Xiantian greatly. Even if he had been traveling himself, he would only achieve this speed.

Oh no, considering he was prone to getting lost, he might not be able to reach Seek Dao Sect in ten days; that’s why he had previously been eager to save money for flying on a spirit boat.

But what he had not considered was that he was now undocumented and could not ride on a spirit boat.

As some senior and junior brothers returned from their missions, the Seek Dao Sect became livelier than when the two had left, but it had not yet returned to its usual state, as some people were still out on missions to observe conduct.

"Wow, the Seek Dao Sect has grown so much." Daoist Xiantian marvelled, not to mention how much larger the sect had become since its establishment; even the gate was more imposing than before.

Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou took Daoist Xiantian up to the entrance of the Task Hall, "Ancestral Master, please wait here. As you know, your status is special. If we directly take you there, we’re afraid the higher-ups of the sect might not accept you instantly."

"How about this, we two will go in first and explain the ins and outs clearly, then you can enter."

"Alright, I’ll follow your arrangement," Daoist Xiantian laughed cheerfully. Indeed, this matter required a process of acceptance.

...

Dai Bufan had a thick stack of mission reports in front of him, detailing the observation results of conduct.

All the mortals whose conduct needed to be observed had been screened by him, and as it turned out, his eye for people was quite good; most of these individuals met the standards of the Seek Dao Sect.

"This lad who went to visit the prison is not bad, very filial. I wonder if he will come to the Seek Dao Sect."

"This little girl is not bad either; she accidentally found a storage ring and smartly used it for farming. The ambiance of her family, though, is not too good."

"Just don’t know yet how Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou had fared," Dai Bufan muttered. He felt a bit anxious, worried that these two would stir up more trouble.

"There shouldn’t be anything wrong. Recently, there have been no reports of conflicts at the Transcendance Tribulation Stage."

A smile appeared on Dai Bufan’s lips. After these few experiences, he had mentally prepared himself that even if those two caused trouble, leading to battles among the Transcendance Tribulation Stage, Semi-Immortals, or brought back one or two ancient Semi-Immortals, he wouldn’t react too strongly.

Just as Dai Bufan was musing, he heard a polite knock on the door, "Elder Brother Dai, the two of us are back."

"Come in."

The wooden door opened, and Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou walked in, buoyant and elated.

"Have you finished your observation?"

"It’s over,"

"Tell me, what about the three people I asked you to observe? Are their characters up to par?"

Lu Yang and his companion regretfully shook their heads, "Among these three, only one has a character that passes muster."

"Only one?" Elder Brother Dai’s brows furrowed slightly, puzzled. Could his judgement be that poor?

"For instance, that mortal named Xie An, he’s actually Xie Jiu from the boundless Great Power, disguised. A cultivator, disguised as a mortal—the brazenness is utterly shameless!"

"Oh, is that so?" Dai Bufan was slightly surprised, not expecting these two to be so unlucky as to encounter someone from the Transcendance Tribulation Stage disguised as a mortal.

Could it be because he was punished by Senior Sister Yun last time and hadn’t yet recovered his Dao heart?

"What about that Tao Tingfeng?"

Meng Jingzhou shook his head regretfully, saying, "Tao Tingfeng is no good either, this guy has no respect for the law, openly commited crimes, harboring robbers and even helping to keep their loot. When we left, he was being taken away by the Luoshui Guards."

"So the only one with commendable character is Gu Junye?"

"Exactly, this Gu Junye is an extremely rare and promising youth. Not only does he strictly abide by the law, but he also knows how to use it as a weapon to protect himself, studies hard in class, and uses all available time outside of class to exercise his body. He’s also very filial, obeying his mother’s words."

"He meets the criteria you mentioned, Elder Brother Dai, of being honest and down-to-earth, and cultivating earnestly,"

Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou had high praise for Gu Junye.

"His mentality is also good, calm in the face of issues. Even when we informed him he could participate in the Seek Dao Sect’s entrance exam, he didn’t get overly excited,"

"We also found that Gu Junye holds himself to the standards of a cultivator at the Transcendance Tribulation Stage, bearing the world in his heart, and he’s expressed to us multiple times his desire to save the world."

"And he doesn’t hide it; in front of his classmates and teacher, he openly shared this aspiration with us,"

Dai Bufan nodded, "With such character, he truly is a rare find."

"By the way, Elder Brother Dai, haven’t you mentioned that if we find someone who isn’t on the list but still fits the criteria for our Sect, we could recommend them to you?"

"I did say that. Did you find someone?"

"You could say it’s an unexpected gain from our trip outside. However, this person has a somewhat complex background; he’s a Great Yu Cultivator who, for some reasons, had to start over after disbanding his cultivation,"

Lu Yang assured him vehemently, "But you can rest assured, Elder Brother Dai, his character is guaranteed to meet the recruitment standards of our Seek Dao Sect! And he’s very well-known; you will definitely recognize him."

"A Great Yu Cultivator starting over after disbanding his cultivation?" Dai Bufan hesitated slightly, finding it difficult to decide. These two youngsters really know how to find them; if one isn’t careful, this type could be a traitor.

"We brought him back to the Sect specifically because we were afraid you wouldn’t feel reassured, Elder Brother Dai."

"Then bring him in, let me have a look,"

"Right on it."

Soon, Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou brought a handsome young man before Dai Bufan, the youth still smiling somewhat shyly.

"Elder Brother Dai, can you guess who this is?"

"Who might it be?"

Lu Yang introduced him with enthusiasm, "This is none other than the founding patriarch of our Seek Dao Sect, Daoist Xiantian Qi Tongtian."

Elder Brother Dai’s eyes rolled back, and with a clang, he collapsed to the ground, fainted.

"What—what’s going on?" Daoist Xiantian was a bit flustered.

Meng Jingzhou said seriously, "Probably isn’t too strong mentally, never seen the patriarch before, too overwhelmed."