The Greenwood Sect's ancestor ignored the astonished, shocked, and confused looks the crowd threw his way.
Instead, he turned to look at Yun He and showed a respectful expression, clasping his hands in salute. "Disciple Qingmu, pays respects to Master."
"Master?" Yun He replied in confusion. "I don't remember accepting you as a disciple."
The crowd was briefly taken aback, not because of Yun He's words but because Yun He had actually responded. Yun He had only exchanged a few simple pleasantries, never actively responding to anyone !
The Greenwood Sect's ancestor smiled. "It doesn't matter, Master. You will eventually recall. Nowadays, even these juniors dare to be disrespectful to you. As your disciple, I shall take the liberty today to question their Dao one by one. What do you think about that?"
Yun He suddenly looked away, ignoring the Greenwood Sect's ancestor, seemingly falling back into that state of confusion.
Fang Chen noticed this and couldn't help but sigh inwardly; it seemed that Senior Yun He really couldn't remember the Greenwood Sect's ancestor.
The crowd was somewhat taken aback. The cultivators from the Great Expansion Dao Sect, Morning Star Sect, and Innate Dao Sect all revealed strange expressions.
"Question the Dao? What does the Greenwood Sect's ancestor want to do?"
Upon hearing that, Ouyang Haoyu looked a bit panicked. However, he quickly composed himself and said, "I'm just at the Enlightenment Realm. Your cultivation level is far above mine. According to the Dao Sect's rules, you cannot question me about the Dao."
"Dao Sect's rules? This is the first time I've heard of that…"
"You all don't understand, do you? I've studied the ancient Dao Sect. Back then, the way to resolve disputes was by questioning the Dao. However, once a question is posed, it becomes a life-and-death struggle; the loser perishes, and their Dao disappears.
"So, unless absolutely necessary, Dao Sect cultivators rarely initiate a question about the Dao. Even if no one dies, it will still result in a bitter feud, leading to a situation where neither side can live peacefully."
"Isn't that similar to sword cultivators' sword duels?"
"Shh, they are here too…"
"Qingmu, when did you become a disciple of the Three Thousand Dao Sect?" asked the Dragon Sovereign of the Morning Star Sect.
Even though he had retracted all his aura, his dragon-headed, human-bodied form still exerted considerable pressure on some of the mid to low-ranking cultivators present.
The Greenwood Sect's ancestor smiled. "Dragon Sovereign, I have always been a disciple of the Three Thousand Dao Sect."
The Dragon Sovereign said lightly, "The Greenwood Sect likes to farm and plant trees. Are these a result of teachings passed down to you from the Three Thousand Dao Sect?"
The corner of the Greenwood ancestor's mouth rose mockingly. "What do you think? Why else can spiritual trees thrive in the Greenwood Sect but not in your Morning Star Sect? Don't you understand? Branches are merely branches, just like if two stalks of green onions were stuck into a pig's nose, a pig’s nose will still be a pig’s nose no matter how similar it looks to the green onion."
The crowd gasped in disbelief, looking at the Greenwood Sect's ancestor with astonishment. How could he speak so boldly and even insult the Dragon Sovereign?
What he just said was an implicit insult, suggesting that the Morning Star Sect was like a pig. He was just short of directly pointing at the Dragon Sovereign's nose and calling him a pig.
The scales on the Dragon Sovereign's neck suddenly bristled, resembling opened mouths.
Wang Zhenlong suddenly interjected, "Uh, there's no need for that, is there? Qingmu questioning the Dao is his own business; it has nothing to do with the Greenwood Sect. We're still counting on the spiritual fruits over there."
With him taking the lead, many cultivators began to speak up. "Exactly, the Greenwood Sect and our sect have always had business dealings. Some spiritual fruits can only be grown by the Greenwood Sect. If the Greenwood Sect is gone, where will we find those spiritual fruits? Are we supposed to go to the Immortal Demonic Sea? To Celestial Heaven? To Northern Dipper?"
"I believe that even if there's a dispute, it can be resolved on the spot. After resolving it, things can go back to how they were before. The Greenwood Sect really can't afford to have any issues right now; the spiritual trees were just recently planted. You wouldn't want to miss out on the fruits, would you? Those could very well be immortal fruits."
The crowd voiced their opinions back and forth, but the highest cultivator present was only at the Profound Immortal level, with most being at the Dao Union Realm. Ouyang Xuanzhen did not take them seriously; even Wang Zhenlong was merely someone he feared because of the old Sword Immortal behind him.
Heavenly King Zhen suddenly said, "I believe that, regardless of the situation, the Greenwood Sect itself should not be involved; it needs stability,"
The crowd was taken aback. With Heavenly King Zhen speaking up, it seemed that the Great Expansion Dao Gate wouldn't be able to do anything to the Greenwood Sect.
That wasn't surprising; the Greenwood Sect was quite a special existence. They cultivated countless spiritual trees. When these trees bore fruits, the fruit would ultimately end up in the hands of various sects. Some of the fruit would even be offered as tributes to the royal family.
A taunting smile appeared on the face of the Greenwood Sect's ancestor as he looked at Ouyang Xuanzhen. "Did you hear that? Today, I am questioning you in the capacity of a disciple of the Three Thousand Dao Sect, not as the ancestor of the Greenwood Sect. You need to distinguish between the two; one is one, and two is two."
The crowd revealed strange expressions. "The Great Expansion Dao Sect is really... shooting itself in the foot this time..."
It was well-known that the Great Expansion Dao Sect used to have only one Profound Immortal, Ouyang Xuanzhen. Now that he had become an Immortal King, the Great Expansion Dao Sect experienced a temporary gap. Perhaps after a few hundred years, they could cultivate another Profound Immortal from the remaining Dao Union Realm cultivators.
Nevertheless, that was a matter for several hundred years later. At present, there was not a single person in the Great Expansion Dao Sect whose cultivation could rival that of Qingmu.
Ouyang Xuanzhen maintained a neutral expression.
After a few moments, he suddenly smiled. "Qingmu, it’s true that you should not question a junior's Dao. However, the Great Expansion Dao Sect currently lacks a Profound Immortal. Who can you question?"
The Greenwood Sect's ancestor chuckled and swept his eyes over the people around, his gaze pausing on several people, causing them to visibly stiffen. "The Great Expansion Dao Sect doesn't have a Profound Immortal, but the Morning Star Sect must have one, right? The Innate Dao Sect as well? Apart from your three major sects, are there really no Profound Immortals left in the other sects? I see many old friends here today."
Fang Chen suddenly spoke up. "Senior Brother, you can question the Profound Immortals. As for Enlightenment Realm cultivators, let me handle them."
The crowd was taken aback.
What's going on here?
Ouyang Haoyu stared fixedly at Fang Chen. He had already recognized who he was, but hearing him call Qingmu "Senior Brother" genuinely shocked him.
Langya Wenqiu looked puzzled. "I'm a bit confused. Is Senior Brother Fang actually a junior brother of the Greenwood Sect's ancestor? How did this happen?"
Everyone gasped, realizing that the Greenwood Sect's ancestor intended to sever ties with this group of Dao Sects today.
The Greenwood Sect's ancestor was taken aback. "Junior Brother, are you sure you want to question him? Your cultivation level—"
Before the Greenwood Sect's ancestor could finish his sentence, Fang Chen had already cupped his fist toward Ouyang Haoyu. "Fang Chen of the Three Thousand Dao Sect is here to question your Dao today. Between us, only one can live."