Chapter 175

Chapter 175: Beat Yang Ye to Death!

An imperial decree!

Everyone from the Literary Academy was now looking at the chubby man， their gazes carrying a hint of disdain. For an opportunist like him， no one really thought much of him.

Ye Tianming looked at the chubby man before him and smiled，“Thoughtful of you.“

Seeing that Ye Tianming hadn’t refused， the chubby man was immediately overjoyed and hurriedly said，“It’s all part of what I should do. I don’t have many other talents， but I’m good at writing all kinds of speeches. If the Sect Master ever needs anything， feel free to come find me anytime.“

Ye Tianming nodded and smiled，“Alright.“

With that， he turned to look at Zou Ru beside him，“The Literary Academy’s overall strength is lacking and needs to be improved. First， arrange for everyone to settle down here. After some time， I’ll open the Buddha-Demon Path and then select some outstanding sect disciples to go train there.“

The Buddha-Demon Path!

The moment those words were spoken， the Literary Academy disciples in the crowd instantly erupted with excitement.

That was the sacred training ground of the Buddha-Demon Sect!

If they could go in and train， their strength would surely undergo a qualitative leap.

Zou Ru was also a little excited and quickly nodded，“Alright.“

With that， he paused， then added，“Sect Master， should we notify the other academies? And the Three Great Halls?“

Ye Tianming shook his head，“No need.“

Zou Ru was a little puzzled.

Ye Tianming smiled，“As long as we become strong enough， there will come a day when they’ll be begging to join us.“

Zou Ru understood. He bowed deeply， then turned to go arrange things for the Literary Academy members.

With the Literary Academy joining， the Buddha-Demon Sect instantly became much livelier.

And those Literary Academy disciples， upon learning they had a chance to train in the Buddha-Demon Path， were all willing to stay， because there was something to look forward to.

But as for a sense of belonging， there was certainly none. Over the years， they had long since stopped thinking of themselves as members of the Buddha-Demon Sect.

In the days that followed， Ye Tianming spent each day teaching Cang Han to read and write， while he himself also read every day. The books he was reading now were all collected by Zou Ru. He didn’t just want to enrich himself— he also wanted a more detailed understanding of the real world and the major powers within it.

As for cultivation， he was no longer in a hurry.

Because reading is itself a form of cultivating the Dao. Within books lies a world of infinite wonders， and beyond books， the Dao follows nature.

Inside the hall， Ye Tianming was reading while Cang Han was practicing her writing. After two days of practice， she was already able to write her own name properly.

At that moment， Cang Han suddenly put down her brush and walked over to Ye Tianming’s side，“Brother， you’re reading again.“

Ye Tianming nodded，“Once you’ve finished practicing， you should read more too. I’ve picked out a few books for you.“

Cang Han hesitated for a moment， then said，“Brother， reading is so tiring. I don’t want to read.“

As she said this， she looked at Ye Tianming with a little unease.

Ye Tianming put down his book and turned to look at Cang Han， smiling，“Why don’t you want to read?“

Cang Han asked in return，“Why should I read? It doesn’t make money， and it doesn’t make you stronger……“

Ye Tianming thought for a moment， then smiled，“Reading doesn’t necessarily lead to a bright future or fame and success， but at the very least it can help you speak with measure， play with restraint， talk with virtue， and act with room to spare.“

With that， he paused， then added，“Also， if reading can’t make money or make you stronger， maybe it’s just that you haven’t read enough.“

Cang Han smiled，“Brother， you must have read a lot of books.“

Ye Tianming shook his head，“Not that many. Not as many as my teacher.“

Cang Han was a little surprised，“Brother， you’re so capable— you actually have a teacher?“

Ye Tianming nodded，“My teacher is incredibly capable. Very， very capable.“

With that， he gently ruffled Cang Han’s little head and smiled，“You should read more too. It’ll help you a great deal in the future， understand?“

Cang Han quickly nodded，“Okay!“

Just then， a chubby man walked in— it was the same man who had helped him write the imperial decree earlier.

The chubby man walked up to Ye Tianming， bowed deeply， then took out a scroll and handed it to Ye Tianming，“Sect Master……“

Ye Tianming was a little curious，“What’s this?“

The chubby man said respectfully，“These are some of the original rules and regulations of the Buddha-Demon Sect that I managed to find. There are over 360 entries in total， but most of them are too outdated and no longer suitable for the present. So I’ve done some trimming， but there are still many issues I’m not sure about， so I’ve come specifically to consult the Sect Master and ask you to help review them.“

Ye Tianming looked at the chubby man and smiled without saying a word.

The chubby man knew his intentions couldn’t be hidden from this young Sect Master before him， and immediately knelt down，“Sect Master， because of my constitution， I was ostracized by my family from a young age. Later， through a stroke of luck， I managed to join the Literary Academy. But because I cannot cultivate and my strength is weak， I’ve never been given any real responsibilities…… I know that doing all this will make the people of the Literary Academy look down on me， that they’ll laugh at me. But I just want a chance!“

Ye Tianming gently raised his right hand， and the chubby man was lifted to his feet. He took the scroll from the chubby man’s hands， opened it and looked through it for a moment， then raised his head to look at the chubby man，“What’s your name?“

The chubby man quickly said，“Jiang Zuo.“

Ye Tianming nodded，“The sect is in a state of ruin and needs to be rebuilt from the ground up. We do indeed need a set of rules and regulations for management. However， you should understand that the Buddha-Demon Sect has its own set of rules， and the Literary Academy， having been separated for so long， has also developed its own. The two……“

The chubby man suddenly and hurriedly produced another scroll and handed it to Ye Tianming，“Sect Master， this is the Literary Academy’s current set of rules and regulations. I’ve already marked the parts that overlap with the Buddha-Demon Sect’s， and I’ve also marked the parts that differ. One look and you’ll have a clear picture. As for which ones to discard and which to keep， please let the Sect Master decide.“

Ye Tianming took the scroll and looked through it. After a moment， he looked at Jiang Zuo，“Have you already prepared the ones for the Three Halls and the other academies as well?“

Jiang Zuo was a little surprised，“How did the Sect Master know?“

Ye Tianming smiled，“I need an assistant by my side. It’ll be you.“

Thud!

Jiang Zuo suddenly knelt down and kowtowed deeply，“This subordinate will give everything， even his life.“

Ye Tianming helped him up，“Clearly， you’re very familiar with the various academies and the Three Great Halls. I need you to help me formulate a complete set of rules and regulations， as well as a future plan for the academy. I’ll give you the overall direction for the future academy plan， and you help me fill in the details.“

Jiang Zuo quickly said，“This subordinate understands.“

Ye Tianming smiled，“Go get to work.“

Jiang Zuo bowed deeply and turned to leave， but after a few steps， he suddenly turned back to look at Ye Tianming，“Sect Master， will you laugh at me? Look down on me?“

Ye Tianming smiled，“Are you afraid of being laughed at?“

Jiang Zuo thought about it and nodded，“A little.“

Ye Tianming said，“In this life， it’s nothing more than letting others have a laugh at you sometimes， and occasionally having a laugh at others. Why bother caring?“

Jiang Zuo was stunned.

Ye Tianming continued，“As for being looked down on— if you don’t want people to look down on you， then you have to show your strength and prove yourself. Otherwise， never mind others， even your own parents might look down on you. Respect is something you have to earn for yourself， not something others hand to you. Understand?“

Jiang Zuo bowed deeply，“This subordinate understands.“

With that， he paused， then added，“If the Sect Master has any other plans， you can share them with me so I can make arrangements in advance.“

Ye Tianming said，“Get a thorough understanding of the major powers， especially the Guanxuan Domain.“

Jiang Zuo was slightly taken aback， then said，“Sect Master， this subordinate will need money.“

Ye Tianming opened his palm， and a storage ring flew over to Jiang Zuo，“There are ten thousand star core crystals inside. Use them for now， and I’ll figure out the rest later.“

Jiang Zuo took the storage ring，“That’ll be enough for now. This subordinate will not betray the Sect Master’s trust.“

With that， he withdrew and left.

After Jiang Zuo left， Cang Han said quietly，“Brother， I feel like that person just now is really capable.“

Ye Tianming turned to look at Cang Han and smiled，“Capable in what way?“

Cang Han said，“He seems to be able to tell what you need， brother， so he caters to your preferences……“

Ye Tianming smiled，“Cang Han， you’re pretty capable yourself.“

Cang Han’s little face immediately flushed red， then she said again，“But I feel like， if he ever meets someone more capable than you in the future， he might……“

Ye Tianming smiled faintly，“In the human heart there is good and evil， there is sycophancy and flattery， there is lofty pride， there is scheming and manipulation， there is hypocrisy and pretense…… In this vast mortal world， the hardest thing to fathom is the human heart! And there’s no need for us to try to fathom it. What we need to do is act with a clear conscience……“

Cang Han nodded， half understanding and half not.

Ye Tianming smiled，“Come on， I’ll take you somewhere.“

With that， he led Cang Han out of the great hall. He took her hand， and in the next moment， he transformed into a streak of sword light and shot up into the sky.

High in the air， Cang Han was so frightened that her little face instantly turned pale. She quickly threw her arms around Ye Tianming， squeezing her eyes tightly shut.

Ye Tianming burst out laughing.

Soon， he brought Cang Han to an ancient city. This was Tianyue City， which had originally been part of the Buddha-Demon Sect’s territory but was now under the control of the Tianji Academy， one of the Seventy-Two Academies.

Ye Tianming brought Cang Han to a clothing shop and handed her over to the shopkeeper，“Help her pick out twenty outfits.“

The shopkeeper smiled，“Sure thing.“

With that， she took the still-dazed Cang Han by the hand and led her into the inner room.

Before long， Cang Han was brought back out， and at this moment she had undergone a complete transformation. She was dressed in a light-colored skirt， her hat had been removed， and her full head of dark hair cascaded down， draped loosely over her shoulders. Perhaps because she wasn’t used to it， she looked a little self-conscious， her hands tightly clutching the hem of her clothes.

Gentle and lively， understated and refined!

Her looks weren’t particularly striking， but she wasn’t plain either— she had the appearance of an ordinary person.

Ye Tianming smiled，“Do you like it?“

Cang Han lowered her head slightly， her eyes full of smiles，“Mm.“

Ye Tianming laughed，“Let’s go!“

With that， he took Cang Han by the hand and headed outside.

Being pulled along by Ye Tianming， Cang Han’s little face immediately turned red. She felt a little shy， but she didn’t refuse— instead， she took the initiative to hold his hand tighter.

Once they were on the street， Ye Tianming walked up to a nearby vendor and bought two skewers of candied hawthorn. He took one and handed it to Cang Han，“Try this.“

Cang Han took the candied hawthorn and bit right into it， her brow instantly furrowing. Ye Tianming quickly said，“You have to peel the candy wrapper off first……“

With that， he carefully peeled the wrapper off for her.

Cang Han watched Ye Tianming carefully peeling the wrapper for her， and tears suddenly began to stream down her face，“Brother， why are you so good to me?“

Ye Tianming was stunned.

This was the same question he had once asked his own teacher.

Ye Tianming pulled his thoughts back and smiled，“My teacher once told me that much of the suffering we endure is not our own fault， but the fault of this world. He said that in this world there are wicked people， but there must also be good people. When you meet a wicked person， you should meet wickedness with punishment. But if you meet a good person， then you should meet goodness with goodness……“

With that， he gently ruffled Cang Han’s little head and smiled，“Little Han， you are kind.“

Cang Han blinked，“Am I kind? I…… have stolen things before. But it was because my great-grandmother was so hungry. I……“

Ye Tianming smiled gently，“Then when you earn money in the future， pay back ten times what you stole to the person you took from. Can you do that?“

Cang Han quickly nodded，“Yes! Yes I can!“

Ye Tianming nodded，“Then that’s just fine. Remember， everyone makes mistakes， but there’s no need to be too hard on yourself……“

With that， he took Cang Han by the hand and walked off into the distance.

Along the way， Cang Han suddenly said，“Brother， I really hate my parents. I hate them for abandoning me…… If they ever came looking for me， I definitely， definitely wouldn’t forgive them…… If your parents came looking for you， would you forgive them?“

Ye Tianming ruffled Cang Han’s little head，“Brother has no parents…… Even if I did， they wouldn’t come looking for me…… The people in this world who cared for me， they’re all gone……“

In a certain special space-time corridor， a man dressed in a white robe，Eyes like stars， blazing with color， his gaze radiating dominance， his entire being exuding an unparalleled air of bold and sweeping grandeur.

This person was none other than Ji Dian， the current young patriarch of the Ji Clan.

Ji Dian stood with both hands clasped behind his back， his presence as immovable as a mountain， exerting an overwhelming pressure.

An elder suddenly appeared behind Ji Dian，“Young Patriarch， a message just came in from over there.“

Ji Dian smiled and said，“So who’s the strongest fighter in the Yang family of Guanxuan Domain?“

The elder replied respectfully，“Our people report that it’s the one from the Yang family who created the Demonic Bloodline， known by the title Azure-Robed Sword Master， by the name of Yang Ye.“

Ji Dian said，“Send word to Guanxuan Domain— this young master is about to descend upon their world. Tell them， this young master isn’t here to fight anyone else， just this Yang Ye. Have them summon their ancestors and wait for me in advance!“

The elder said，“We would like to accompany the Young Master….“

Ji Dian’s brow furrowed，“What would you lot go there for?“

The elder hesitated for a moment， then said，“Rumor has it， this Azure-Robed Sword Master seems to be no ordinary figure…….“

Ji Dian let out a scornful laugh，“Yang Ye? Just hearing that name tells you he’s second-rate， not a shred of style. Nothing like this young master— Ji Dian， the pinnacle of the Grand Dao. Now that’s got style， doesn’t it?“

The elder quickly said，“It absolutely has style!“

Ji Dian swept a glance over the elder and the others， his bearing bold and magnificent，“All of you stay right here. No one is to follow. This young master will personally beat this Yang Ye to death with his own fists and shatter the backbone of his Yang family!“

With that， his figure shuddered， tearing through the stellar river in an instant， vanishing at the edge of the universe.