Just a Look

Tao Lingling didn’t wake up until two and a half hours later.

When she opened her eyes, her first reaction wasn’t the soreness in her body, but… she had overslept.

Tao Lingling immediately shot up from the bed and hurried to the main house, only to see Jiang Yuyao and Xue Yingdong still arguing.

“If you’re not going to manage the Heart-Sword Hall, can you please not occupy the position and do nothing? Can you let someone more capable take over?”

“It’s not that I didn’t offer it to you, but you didn’t want it.”

“Am I crazy? There’s already so much trouble. If I become the Hall Master, what then? No one is as heartless as you!”

“Then don’t come picking fights with me. Just keep worrying.”

Tao Lingling couldn’t be bothered with what they were arguing about and directly asked, “Where is my Master?”

Xue Yingdong turned her head and glanced at her.
Seeing her misty eyes and disheveled hair, it was clear she had just woken up.

“You’re Gong Jingzhi’s direct disciple? Waking up at this hour, tsk…”

“Where is my Master?”

Tao Lingling had no time to waste arguing with her, nor did she want to tell her how tired she was from cultivating.
It wouldn’t bring her anything practical.

“She went to give a lecture.”

As soon as Xue Yingdong said this, Tao Lingling’s mind went blank.

She remembered that in her past life, her Master had encountered something very unpleasant during her first lecture.

Her cultivation was completely gone, while the disciples had some level of cultivation.
This was the first point, leading to contempt.

She had turned from a man into a woman, with a captivating face, which caused resentment.
She tied up her hair, wore makeup, and presented herself as a woman.
This was the second point, a matter of morality.

Most of the disciples in the Heart-Sword Hall were untalented and immoral.
Even the best batch was only obedient on the surface, and the atmosphere in the lecture hall was dead.
And how sharp was her Master’s ability to see through people’s hearts?
How could she not see that the disciples had opinions about her?

What’s more, her Master was originally from the Sky-Sword Pavilion, which made her even more disliked.

After her Master’s first lecture, she hadn’t smiled for a long time.
For her, failing to fulfill her duty of teaching was a greater blow than anything else.

‘It’s over, it’s all over. How much pampering and sweet talk will it take to make up for this?’

‘You little bastards, if you dare to make my Master sad, I’ll suck you all dry in the future!’

Tao Lingling ran towards the outer sect without stopping.

Perhaps it was good luck, but she saw Bai Peilan standing outside the door at a glance.

Tao Lingling recognized her.
In her past life, this woman had caused the most trouble, always reporting to the Sword Immortal, saying things like “don’t let Master delay her disciples,” “she doesn’t take disciples,” “she has no contributions, why does she get the same amount of resources as I do,” and so on.

Anyway, she was not a good person!

“Hey, where is my Master?”

Bai Peilan was taken aback, wondering which disciple was so disrespectful.
Taking a closer look, she saw that the other person was wearing the uniform of a direct disciple.

“You are Elder Gong Ning’s direct disciple? She’s giving a lecture inside.”

Tao Lingling quickly looked inside the door, but the scene within left her stunned.

“—Since the Great Abyss, the core of our human race has no longer been centered around the heavens. And now, in the Great Yan, the human race has truly entered its own era. Countless people have created cultivation techniques, lowered the threshold for cultivation, and more and more people are able to embark on the path of cultivation. Does anyone know what this change has brought?”

This question was very tricky.
Those who benefited from the times often didn’t realize it.
Moreover, cultivation sects only taught cultivation and wouldn’t teach these strange things.
Very few could answer.

But the disciples below were still discussing it animatedly.

“The Spiritual Pivot Administration!”

Gong Ning’s eyes lit up.
There was nothing more pleasing than having a difficult question she had posed be solved by someone.

“I am very happy that someone was able to answer this question.
This disciple, please come forward and receive a Qi-Nourishing Pill.”

That’s right, what Gong Ning used to motivate the disciples was precisely this extra reward.

The disciple was a girl.
After hearing this, she excitedly trotted to the front of the stage.

“What is your name?”

“Replying to the elder, this disciple’s name is Cui Xiaoyan.”

“I’ll remember you.
Here, catch your Qi-Nourishing Pill.”

After receiving it, the disciple didn’t leave, but instead shyly said, “Elder Gong Ning, you’re so beautiful.”

This left Gong Ning not knowing how to respond, but she still smiled magnanimously and replied, “Even if you praise me, I won’t give you any more.”

The hall erupted in laughter again.

Outside the door, Bai Peilan sighed, “Elder Gong Ning is truly generous.
She has already given out five Qi-Nourishing Pills in one lecture.”

The resources distributed to each outer sect elder were fixed and would not change based on how many direct disciples they had, because direct disciples couldn’t consume the sect’s resources and had to be supported by their elders.

Poor elders like Bai Peilan even had to go against their conscience and skim a little from the resources to feed their own direct disciples.

Only Tao Lingling was unhappy, “Hmph, my Master usually gives me Qi-Nourishing Pills like candy.”

‘Wait, isn’t it supposed to be that Master is bullied by these disciples until she’s crying, and then I go to comfort her? Why is the atmosphere so enthusiastic?’

“Alright, the rest of the disciples, don’t worry, there are still chances.
Just now, Xiaoyan mentioned the Spiritual Pivot Administration, which is not entirely correct.
The Spiritual Pivot Administration was established after the founding of the Great Yan, and its main contribution was the Worldly Engagement System they created.”

“The establishment of the Worldly Engagement System officially broke the barrier between immortals and mortals.
From then on, cultivation was no longer for the sake of becoming an immortal, but for the human race itself.
Whether you are earning spiritual merits or returning to secular life, it is all because of the Worldly Engagement System.
Using the abilities and knowledge gained from cultivation to build the Great Yan, rather than wasting a lifetime on the path of cultivation in vain…”

Gong Ning had originally wanted to teach some cultivation knowledge, but she didn’t know what Elder Bai had taught them, or if they could understand what she was going to say.

In addition, the disciples’ curiosity about her was greater than their interest in what she had to teach.
Under such circumstances, forcing them to learn those things would be very ineffective.

So, Gong Ning decided to talk about something interesting.

Spiritual sublimation, cultivation of character, and expansion of thinking could all be taught, especially history, which was most enlightening.

For this lecture, the system gave a grade of A, an English letter that Gong Ning hadn’t seen in a long time.
It was clear that most of the disciples had listened and participated.

It wasn’t until noon that Gong Ning let out a long sigh and bid farewell to the enthusiastic disciples.

She had wanted to say something to Elder Bai, but this little rascal Tao Lingling suddenly darted out and threw herself into her arms.

“Master, your disciple hasn’t seen you all morning, I missed you so much…”

This immediately made Gong Ning a little embarrassed, and she quickly patted Tao Lingling’s head.

“Don’t be like this, we’re outside…”

“Does Master mean that it’s okay to be like this at home?”

“You rebellious disciple, why do you love to pick at words so much?
I’ll punish you by making you copy the Heart Sutra ten times when we get back!
I’m sorry, Elder Bai, for making a fool of myself.”

Bai Peilan shook her head and smiled, “It’s a good thing for a disciple to be clingy.
Unlike my direct disciple, who stays cooped up at home all day and doesn’t get close to people.
But this batch of my disciples seems to like you very much.
Tonight, I will draw up a list and handle the handover.
From now on, we will each have our own duties.”

She looked at the disciples who had run off to eat.

“It’s just about mealtime.
Would you like to go eat something together?”

Before Gong Ning could reply, Tao Lingling started acting up again, hugging Gong Ning’s arm, “Master, let’s go back and eat, okay?
Your disciple will make you something delicious.”

Gong Ning was truly puzzled now, “You child, are you sleep-talking?
Why are you acting like this?”

‘Isn’t it to keep you away from this two-faced, backstabbing bad woman! Who knows what ill intentions she might be harboring?’

Bai Peilan smiled, “It seems Elder Gong Ning has other delicacies in her house.
I won’t invite you to the cafeteria to eat those sloppy things then.”

‘This disciple has definitely made the other person unhappy.’

Gong Ning tried to mend her relationship with her colleague, “Would you like to come be a guest at the Hall Master’s place?”

“Forget it, forget it.
Bai Peilan is naturally timid.
If I sit at the same table as the Sword Immortal, I’m afraid I won’t even be able to hold my chopsticks properly.”

The pleasantries ended there.

Bai Peilan watched the Master and disciple duo walk away, thinking maybe she should read that “The Crippled Immortal” as well.

‘Just a little curious, just a glance.’