CHAPTER 1844: 1172 PANGU TEMPLE

"In the past, the ordeal was imperfect, and now being counterattacked by Sha Qi, falling again into the calamity of killing, is indeed the retribution for taking a shortcut during the ordeal."

"Moreover, during the Enshrinement Calamity, the Saint’s behavior set a precedent since the creation of the Mystic Sect, allowing disciples to replace themselves to undertake the killing ordeal by accepting them as apprentices."

"This action by the Saint is truly harmful; the day when chaos arises in the Mystic Sect, it will all stem from the Saint."

"The encounter of the Chan Teaching immortals was never not a backlash of the Mystic Sect’s Fate. Instead of blaming me, the Saint should reflect on himself and consider how many bad precedents he set for the Mystic Sect over the years."

At Jiang Chen’s realm, hardly anything between Heaven and Earth could be concealed from them. The causes and effects of anything would be clear with just a glance.

Just like today’s encounter of the Chan Teaching immortals, on the surface caused by the advancement of the Four Swords of Immortality, but fundamentally, it originates from Primordial Heavenly Sovereign.

It was his reckless actions that led to the backlash of the Mystic Sect’s Fate. But since he is a Saint, untouched by karmic force, the power of this backlash could only fall upon his disciples.

"Having the disciples undertake the killing ordeal on one’s behalf deviates from the original intent of the Mystic Sect. Primordial Heavenly Sovereign’s sinister idea to handle the backlash he faces today is truly deserved."

Secretly, numerous Great Divine Transcendents of the Mystic Sect listened to Jiang Chen and voiced their agreement.

In the past, during the Investiture of the Gods battle, the Saint of Taiqing and Primordial Heavenly Sovereign seemed to have won, yet they actually lost the hearts of the people.

Due to this matter, the Great Divine Transcendents of the Mystic Sect changed their views, shifting from admiration to dislike, with many being dissatisfied with the two.

If not for this, even the Saint of Taiqing, acting as the acting head of the Mystic Sect, wouldn’t have to personally handle everything and couldn’t even find someone to assist.

Especially Primordial Heavenly Sovereign, after the Investiture, almost all but a few Great Divine Transcendents severed ties with him.

Truly because the method he devised for his disciples to weather the ordeal back then was too sinister, fundamentally not aligning with the teachings of the Mystic Sect.

Disciples were meant to spread the Tao. But to Primordial Heavenly Sovereign, they became tools to endure the ordeal instead.

Disciples learning from their Master to aid in overcoming the ordeal is right. But such matters should be initiated by the disciples themselves. If unwilling, they should not be coerced.

But treating disciples like the immortals of Chan Teaching—to only bear the ordeal for oneself—this is not accepting disciples, but clearly seeking tools.

The action of the Chan Teaching immortals indeed set a bad example for future cultivators. If later generations learn this way of accepting apprentices, does it not deviate from the true purpose of taking disciples?

Disciples taken in to endure the ordeal in the future, how can they then inherit the doctrine and spread the Tao to the world?

Knowing that their Master took them as disciples, teaching them skills, not for spreading the Tao but for enduring the ordeal on their behalf.

Can such disciples share the same heart with their Master? Betraying the Master’s sect might just be a matter of time.

The method Primordial Heavenly Sovereign devised to help his disciples with the ordeal was ultimately harmful.

Directly ruining the master and disciple relationship, making it less intimate than before, thus rifts between master and disciple increased gradually.

The atmosphere of the Prehistoric World was tarnished in this way.

The other Great Divine Transcendents of the Mystic Sect naturally felt great dissatisfaction with Primordial Heavenly Sovereign upon seeing this.

For the sake of personal interests, not only did it spoil the atmosphere of the Prehistoric World, but also affected the reputation of the Mystic Sect. If Primordial Heavenly Sovereign wasn’t a Saint, he would have been scorned long before.

Previously, no one spoke out because no one led the charge. Now with Jiang Chen leading, people no longer spared Primordial Heavenly Sovereign any face, one after another accusing him, making him utterly humiliated.

In the distance, the Saint of Taiqing appeared, intending to say something in explanation, but in the end, not a single word came out. He merely walked over to Primordial Heavenly Sovereign, silently leading him away.

Others didn’t know why Primordial Heavenly Sovereign became like this, but the Saint of Taiqing knew. The fact that Primordial Heavenly Sovereign could think of such methods akin to the Demonic Way was entirely due to the influence of the Demon Ancestor.

The Evil Corpse was demonized by the Demon Ancestor Luo Hou, becoming the Second Generation Demon Ancestor. Even though Primordial Heavenly Sovereign’s cultivation was unparalleled, he was still inevitably influenced. Though slight, it changed his character, leading to increasingly extreme actions.

During the Investiture of the Gods, Primordial Heavenly Sovereign repeatedly made unwise moves, all results of being influenced by the Demon Ancestor, causing a drastic change in his temperament.

The Saint of Taiqing was well aware of this but didn’t know how to explain it to others.

He couldn’t possibly tell others directly that Primordial Heavenly Sovereign, a dignified saint of the Mystic Sect, had a drastic change due to being schemed by Demon Ancestor Luo Hou, right?

If this got out, the blow to Mystic Sect’s reputation would be too great. Therefore, the Saint of Taiqing dared not speak out, only trying to find a way himself to help Primordial Heavenly Sovereign suppress the demonic thoughts within.

Again, during the Investiture, it wasn’t his intention to side with Primordial Heavenly Sovereign, but he had to support him. The Upper Qing Saints didn’t need his help; they’d still be Upper Qing Saints.

But if Primordial Heavenly Sovereign lost him, he might as well turn into the Primordial Demon Ancestor. Therefore, even at the risk of falling out with the Upper Qing Saints, the Saint of Taiqing first aimed to stabilize Primordial Heavenly Sovereign.

...

After Primordial Heavenly Sovereign was taken away by the Saint of Taiqing, the other Great Divine Transcendents, having no spectacle left to watch, also gradually departed.

The advancement of the Innate Nine Swords, however, still had a long way to go before completion. Advancing from an Innate Spiritual Treasure to an Innate Treasure is a substantial change, and without a few hundred years, it would not be done.