Upon hearing the voice, countless worshippers turned their heads to look. They saw that not far in front of the temple, a thousand figures dressed in various styles of Daoist robes had appeared out of nowhere.
Although the colors and styles of the robes differed somewhat, they all had one thing in common: a purple sun symbol embroidered on their chests.
At the forefront was a Daoist who appeared to be in his fifties. The sun emblem on his chest was the most complete and round, radiating an intimidating aura. He was Zhou Bufan, the Supreme Ancestor of the Purple Sun Dao Sect.
Behind him stood three other Supreme Elders of the Purple Sun Dao Sect, all of whom were at the Nascent Soul Realm. Following them were the sect leader and numerous high-ranking members, all at the Golden Core Realm, totaling over a dozen.
The remaining crowd of over a thousand included a small number of Foundation Building Realm cultivators, while the majority were Qi Refining Realm cultivators.
Seeing Zhou Bufan's arrival, the beggar Daoist trembled. He slowly lifted his head to gaze at Zhou Bufan, his expression numb.
"Ancestor, isn't that Daoist Duan?" a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator remarked in surprise, looking at the beggar Daoist. "He hasn't left and even set up a tea table to leisurely enjoy tea."
Zhou Bufan smiled and said, "Perhaps he wishes to stay and witness the grandeur of our questioning today. After all, such opportunities are rare, and without the Nine Yang Dao Sect's approval, it would be quite difficult to act against the Grand Thousand Dao Sect."
After saying that, Zhou Bufan led the high-ranking members toward the Beggar Daoist. The Foundation Building and Qi Refining Realm cultivators quickly dispersed, surrounding the entire mountain, making it nearly impossible for even a fly to escape.
Wu Weizi was taken aback for a moment before erupting in anger. "You! What do you mean by that?!"
Zhou Bufan's brow furrowed. He raised his hand, signaling for Wu Weizi to calm down, and said, "Wait a moment."
He gave the beggar Daoist another look and quickly realized that he wasn't sitting at the table, but rather kneeling before it! What's more, the tea in front of him looked rather peculiar, with a dark yellow color and emitting a strange odor.
This odd smell seemed vaguely familiar to Zhou Bufan, but he couldn't quite place his finger on it; it felt like something he had encountered a long time ago.
The beggar Daoist laughed eerily. "What do I mean by this? Hehehehehe…. It doesn't matter. Before long, you'll all be kneeling here drinking tea. Hahahaha. You probably don't recognize this tea, do you? After living for several hundred years and fasting for so long, you've all forgotten about these mundane things."
Wu Weizi and the other two Nascent Soul Realm cultivators exchanged puzzled looks, and the high-ranking members looked utterly confused, not knowing what the hell was going on.
At that moment, a Daoist who appeared to have no cultivation at all and looked like an ordinary mortal held a broom and glared at the beggar Daoist. "What's going on with you?! Lord Black said to drink your fill! Why are you chatting?!"
Without saying a word, the beggar Daoist lifted the teacup in front of him and drank its contents in one go. After that, he poured himself another cup.
Throughout the entire process, he remained silent, only occasionally glancing at Wu Weizi, his eyes revealing a deep-seated resentment.
If it hadn't been for Wu Weizi's, this old friend's, invitation, how could he have ended up in such a situation?
Wu Weizi kept looking at the Daoist and then at the beggar Daoist. "What on earth is going on?!"
The Daoist was clearly just an ordinary person, a mere mortal who hadn't entered stepped onto the Immortal path. How could a single sentence from him make the beggar Daoist so obedient? Who was this "Lord Black" he mentioned? ṝÀΝꝋ𝐁Ê𝐬
At that moment, a group of people slowly emerged from the Daoist temple.
Zhou Bufan frowned slightly, observing the group of Daoists. They were indeed cultivators, but it was not Pei Qingfeng whom he had seen before. The person leading them was someone he didn't know.
Li Daoyi was the one at the forefront. He cupped his fist and bowed. "Daoist from the Purple Sun Dao Sect, you have traveled from afar; I apologize for not welcoming you properly."
He had a nonchalant smile on his face.
"He's only at the Foundation Building Realm.…" Zhou Bufan frowned. "The Grand Thousand Dao Sect sent a mere Foundation Building Realm cultivator to welcome us? Where is Pei Qingfeng? Do you know why we from the Purple Yang Dao Sect have come here today?"
"No matter the reason, Ancestor Fang said that guests are to be treated as guests; let's sit down and enjoy a cup of tea before discussing anything else," replied Li Daoye, his smile growing.
"Forget about those small fry. Only the high-ranking members of the Purple Sun Dao Sect are qualified to drink this tea. A few days ago, I already ordered people to find enough tea for them," said Li Daoye.
"Putting on an act." Wu Weizhi suddenly snorted coldly and then turned to the beggar Daoist. "How much did they pay you to accompany them here and put on this farce?"
The beggar Daoist glanced at him and suddenly burst into laughter. "You'll find out soon enough! Why the rush? Just wait a moment; you can sit across from me, and we'll brew tea and discuss the Dao. How delightful that will be!"
Wu Weizi felt an overwhelming sense of malice hidden in the Beggar Daoist's words. "You! What's wrong with you?!"
Not understanding why his friend was behaving this way, Wu Weizi directed his anger at the Grand Thousand Dao Sect, the only outlet in sight.
He turned to Zhou Bufan and cupped his fist. "Ancestor, please give the order! Let's begin the questioning now; no one from the Grand Thousand Dao Sect is leaving today!"
Zhou Bufan remained silent, narrowing his eyes. Suddenly, a figure appeared in his line of sight.
It was a white paper figure, slowly making its way toward the group of Grand Thousand Dao Sect cultivators. It paused momentarily and glanced at Zhou Bufan.
A smile unexpectedly spread across the painted face of the paper figure, and for some reason, Zhou Bufan felt a chill run down his spine, as if a cold breeze was creeping in from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head.
Zhou Bufan raised his hand, gesturing for Wu Weizi and the others to wait up. "Wait a moment."
After that, he fixed his gaze on the white paper figure.
The white paper figure approached Fang Chen and conveyed, "Lord, these are all of them. There isn't anyone waiting outside."
At that moment, Zhou Bufan and the others finally noticed Fang Chen among the crowd.
Then, another figure appeared—a black paper figure.
"Lord, those at the Foundation Building and Qi Refining Realm have all been dealt with. They won't wake for a day."
Zhou Bufan and the others turned in unison to see the Purple Sun Dao Sect cultivators they had brought with them lying motionless on the ground, their faces pale and enveloped in a heavy aura of dark energy.
They silently subdued over a thousand Foundation Building and Qi Refining cultivators!?
The high-ranking members of the Purple Yang Dao Sect exchanged horrified looks.
Fang Chen nodded. "Well then, please invite these guests to sit and enjoy some tea."
The black and white paper figures simultaneously turned to Zhou Bufan before vanishing and appearing right in front of him.
"Dear guests, the lord invites you to sit for a drink of tea," said the white paper figure.
It gently waved its sleeve and one tea table after another appeared in front of the guests, next to the beggar Daoist's table.
Even a deaf man would've been able to hear the threat hidden in the black paper figure's words.
Wu Weizi and the others stared intently at the black and white paper figures, waiting for Zhou Bufan's instruction.
Despite the strange appearance of the two figures, they had confidence in their ancestor, a mid-stage Enlightenment Realm cultivator. They weren't necessarily afraid of a confrontation!