Longevity Begins From Raising Disciples

But he was disappointed.

That faint, elusive gaze was like a still pool of water, silently watching, without any cause or effect.

Today, Chen Ye deliberately took Qing Jun away from Cangli Courtyard to this secluded back mountain, wanting to lure out the hidden observer.

But...

Chen Ye released his Divine Sense, meticulously scanning the mountain stream, bamboo forest, and even the fish and silt at the bottom of the water.

”Nothing.”

Chen Ye retracted his Divine Sense, his brows furrowing deeper.

Even after leaving Cangli Courtyard, that feeling of being watched still showed no sign of activity.

”Could I be overthinking this?”

Chen Ye shook his head in self-mockery.

He was a dignified late Foundation Establishment cultivator, possessing a proficiency panel, with a Divine Sense far exceeding those of the same level, still within the Inner Sect of Lingyin Sect.

If he couldn’t detect the other party’s presence, if even the Lingyin Grand Array and the four Elders couldn’t detect it.

What kind of terrifying level must the cultivation of the hidden observer be?

Nascent Soul?

Or perhaps... it wasn’t a human watching at all?

”Master! The fish is burnt!”

Qing Jun exclaimed in surprise, hurriedly pulling a fish emitting a burnt odor from the fire, her little face wrinkled up,

”Master lied, how is this top craftsmanship, it’s clearly charcoal!”

”Cough...”

Chen Ye snapped back to reality, looking at the unbearably burnt fish, his old face turning red,

”An accident, purely an accident. I was just thinking about the future development plans for Baopu Peak and got distracted.”

”Excuses! Master just wants to be lazy and make Qing Jun do the grilling herself!”

The little girl pouted angrily, but couldn’t bear to waste the hard-to-find ingredient.

She carefully peeled off the charred fish skin, revealing the barely edible tender fish meat inside, taking a bite with an ’ah’ wolfing it down.

”Hot hot hot!”

Qing Jun hissed from the heat but couldn’t bear to spit it out, mumbling,

”But... it still tastes good! It has master’s flavor! So delicious!”

Alright.

This little girl really isn’t picky.

Chen Ye chuckled.

Forget it.

Prepare for whatever comes.

”Come, I’ll grill you another one this time, I guarantee it won’t burn.”

Chen Ye smiled, picking up another prepared spirit-tailed fish, setting it over the fire again.

While master and disciple joyously enjoyed their picnic in the back mountain.

In Lingyin Sect, deep within Dubhe Hall.

This was the most solemn and dignified place of the sect, enshrined with the true spirit tablets of past martyrs since the founding of Lingyin Sect.

Usually, besides the Sect Master and a few powerful elders, few others would set foot here.

At that moment,

The eternal lamps before the ancestral tablets flickered inexplicably without wind.

The ghostly ancient candle flames not only failed to illuminate the great hall more brightly, but seemed suppressed by an indescribable grand force, causing all the flames to bow in the same direction, as if in submission.

Looking in the direction where the myriad flames bowed revealed a nameless tablet, long hidden in the deepest darkness.

...

Meanwhile, on the back mountain of Baopu Peak.

Chen Ye, flipping the grilled fish, paused momentarily.

”It’s gone?”

Chen Ye was slightly moved.

The feeling of being watched, lingering for over half a month, disappeared completely at that moment, leaving no trace behind.

It was as if the hidden observer had fallen into an even deeper slumber.

”Master, master! Is it done yet? Qing Jun smells something delicious!”

The little girl squatted by the fire, chin in her hands, eagerly watching the spirit-tailed fish sizzling with oil, crisp and golden brown.

Anything made by master is the best-tasting thing in the world!

Even the burnt fish earlier was delicious, let alone this perfectly cooked one!

”Almost done, almost done... By the way, did you notice anything unusual in the Grotto Heaven this time?”

Chen Ye handed the grilled spirit-tailed fish to Qing Jun, casually asking.

”Wow! Thank you, master!”

Qing Jun cheered, taking the fish, then wondered,

”Master, what’s wrong? You’ve asked Qing Jun many times, and Qing Jun has told you everything she knows!”

”It’s nothing, just a bit curious...”

Chen Ye didn’t want to worry his disciple, so he laughed it off.

The little girl unhappily bit into the grilled fish, mumbling:

”Master, that’s not fair! You’ve asked Qing Jun many questions, but Qing Jun doesn’t know, what were you doing then, Master?”

Uh...

Doing what?

”Of course, doing... doing serious things.”

Chen Ye almost slipped, keeping a straight face,

”Back then, master was really busy!”

”Really?”

The little girl squinted in doubt, the expression just like when master squints,

”Qing Jun... feels like master is hiding something. By the way, why did Qing Jun see Aunt Mao... when she came out, what do you think master?”

The more she thought, the more something felt off.

Why was Aunt Mao in Hunyuan City?

When returning to the Listening Wind Pavilion with master, why was Aunt Mao there?

Moreover, all the traces in the Listening Wind Pavilion indicated Aunt Mao had been staying there.

Originally, Qing Jun was unsure,

But seeing that repressed look on her senior sister’s face again, she realized she guessed right!

Chen Ye quickly grilled another fish, tearing off the meat to stuff little Qing Jun’s chattering mouth.

He feigned a wounded look, turning the tables:

”What else could it be?”

”Master, in the outside world, experienced much blood and storm, like plotting with Gu Tangyin, competing in culinary skills with a chubby Taoist, even getting assassinated by demon cultivators!”

”In the end, it’s fine if you don’t pity master, now you’re even questioning master as if I’m doing something wrong to you!”

The little girl was dumbfounded.

Uh...

Maybe she really was being too harsh?

She lowered her head, sulkily tearing off a strip of fish, tiptoeing to feed it to master:

”Alright, alright, it’s all Qing Jun’s fault... But this time Qing Jun also encountered demon cultivators in Luoxiao Grotto Heaven.”

”Back then, we encountered four waves of demon cultivators; they were so weak and still dared to cause us trouble. Who knows why they came to the Grotto Heaven...”

”Qing Jun thought they were up to something world-shatteringly bad! In the end, nothing happened, was it possible they were completely eliminated by Huayue Mansion’s people?”

Wait.

Chen Ye paused suddenly.

So... what did these demon cultivators come to the Grotto Heaven for?

Why did the demon cultivators come to assassinate him back then?

Emotion Crossing Sect clearly knew his true strength, and his apparent strength was already the sixth layer of Foundation Establishment, yet they sent a sixth-layer Foundation Establishment assassin to kill him?

”But various signs suggest these demon cultivators came for our master-disciple pair. Could it be that the feeling of being watched is connected to these demon cultivators?”

Chen Ye pressed the doubts in his heart,

he watched his carefree disciple gnawing on the grilled fish, lazily leaning against a green stone, stretching his body in the mountain breeze.

No matter what happens in the future.

As a master, he will definitely protect his disciple...