Chapter 274: Chapter 10: Seeing Ji Ming Again

Zhang Deming shook his head and said, "What does that have to do with me?"

"A little, I suppose? Some were sent in before Senior Sister left. Others, after she left, were sent in by me based on her messages.

Otherwise, Senior Brother, do you think you could have lived so leisurely in the Qingyou Jade Pavilion?" Ji Ming replied.

Zhang Deming smiled and murmured, "That darn girl..."

’Did she misunderstand the stories I told her back then?’

’Or... did *I* tell them wrong? Is that how you’re supposed to interpret the "overbearing CEO" trope?’

Zhang Deming was momentarily at a loss for words, so he changed the subject. "It seems my junior brother’s status in the Sect is quite high!"

Ji Ming glanced at him and said, "I guess so. After all, I am the youngest Disciple of the Great Peak Master of Spirit Nurturing Peak.

Plus, with the methods and connections Senior Sister left behind, handling some matters is troublesome, but manageable."

"So, Junior Brother, are you angry that I’m taking advantage of you, or..." Zhang Deming said.

"I was originally planning to punish a few, deal with some others, and dampen their arrogance. By letting things cool down, you, Senior Brother, could have continued to peacefully slack off in the Qingyou Jade Pavilion.

In a few more years, if you were fortunate enough to reach the Tai Chi realm, it would have been easy to handle whether you entered the Inner Sect or took a position in the Outer Sect.

But I had just finished dealing with everyone on my end when you jumped right into the Inner Sect, making a scene. Most of my previous efforts have gone to waste.

You might have even become a thorn in some people’s sides. Don’t you think I’m allowed to be a little resentful, Senior Brother?" Ji Ming said plaintively.

Looking at Ji Ming’s pouting expression, like that of a wronged young wife, Zhang Deming suddenly felt the urge to laugh, though he couldn’t quite say why.

Although the things he was saying were quite normal, Zhang Deming couldn’t shake the feeling that Ji Ming must be screaming on the inside.

"I can let all that slide. I can grit my teeth and still solve it.

But, Senior Brother, can you please tell me how you managed to cause a scene in front of our Master, and then in front of the Sect Leader?

I really wanted to suppress this, but I’m powerless to do so. The Celestial Spirit Sect isn’t owned by the Ji family, and I’m just a Cultivator who has barely entered the Tai Chi realm!

I don’t have Senior Sister’s guts. Just handling the daily affairs within the peak scares me half to death. And now you want me to go head-to-head with the Sect Leader?

Senior Brother, I really don’t have the nerve!

I wouldn’t even dare to do that with Master, let alone the Sect Leader!"

Zhang Deming looked at the seemingly calm Ji Ming, nodded, and said, "Mm, I get it. You’re trying to say it’s not your fault this situation couldn’t be suppressed, right?

You don’t have to explain. I never thought it was your fault to begin with! You can’t be disappointed if you never had any expectations!"

Ji Ming: "..."

"Do you have any idea how much Master dislikes you? Now that you’ve entered Spirit Nurturing Peak like this, do you think your life is going to be easy?

Yes, Senior Sister did leave behind an ’Aid Deming Assembly’ before she left, but its power is limited."

"Wait, what assembly did you say?" Zhang Deming’s expression faltered, and he spoke up.

"The ’Aid Deming Assembly’!" Ji Ming said, his face blank.

"So this assembly is for...?" Zhang Deming asked.

"The core principle of the assembly is to ensure that you, Senior Brother, can live a comfortable life in the Outer Sect and be a carefree slacker.

And if you ever do enter the Inner Sect, it’s to ensure that you, Senior Brother, are not bullied, wronged, or forced to grind for seniority!" Ji Ming stated the purpose of the club-like assembly with a deadpan expression.

The more Zhang Deming listened, the more dark lines appeared on his forehead, and the stranger the whole thing felt.

’So this was the assembly he’d been thinking about?’

’If that’s really the case, and he had followed his original plan to enter the Inner Sect and sneak into the assembly with Luh Jingsun, he would have gone insane.’

’How shameless would he have to be to willingly attend a meeting like that?’

"So that darn girl was always messing around like this in the Sect?

And you all just went along with her nonsense? Even after she left, you were all willing to continue?" Zhang Deming asked, completely speechless.

"Senior Brother, do you know the grade of my Spirit Root?" Ji Ming suddenly asked.

Zhang Deming shook his head. "You reached the Tai Chi realm at eighteen. Even if you joined the Sect eleven or twelve years ago, you must have at least a High-Grade Spirit Root of sixty points or more, right?"

In the Hongmeng Realm, or rather the entire Cosmos, Spirit Roots weren’t differentiated by elements like metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. It would be an incredibly rare thing for someone to be born without all Five Elements.

Spirit Roots were graded by points.

Below thirty points, they were all considered inferior products, although even these "products" had different levels of deficiency.

But for an Upper Sect like the Celestial Spirit Sect, such roots were looked down upon. Even if someone with one managed to join, they would all start as servants.

Thirty to forty-four points was a Low-Grade Spirit Root;

Forty-five to fifty-nine points was a Mid-Grade Spirit Root;

Sixty to seventy-four points was a High-Grade Spirit Root;

Seventy-five to eighty-four points was a Top-Grade Spirit Root;

Eighty-five to ninety-four points was a Celestial Spirit Root;

And ninety-five to a full one hundred points was an Immortal Spirit Root.

In a Four-Nine Upper Sect like the Celestial Spirit Sect, one needed at least a High-Grade Spirit Root to be considered a genius and enjoy numerous privileges.

Disciples with Mid- or Low-Grade Spirit Roots, if they had no backing, had to honestly struggle their way up from the Outer Sect.

Ji Ming shook his head. "My Spirit Root is fifty-eight. Only Mid-Grade."

Hearing this, Zhang Deming said, "Then you must be truly diligent, Junior Brother. Looking at your Cultivation, you must have been in the Tai Chi realm for at least a year or two, right?

The first time we met, you should have already reached Tai Chi, correct?"

Ji Ming said, "It did take some effort, but if it weren’t for Senior Sister, I’d probably still be struggling in the Outer Sect right now.

It’s not just me. Everyone still in the assembly has received an immense favor from Senior Sister.

So, never mind her asking us to look after one person; we would do it even if her request were more absurd."

Seeing Ji Ming’s expression, the corner of Zhang Deming’s mouth nearly twitched. ’That darn girl, was she raising Death Warriors in the Inner Sect?’

’I really shouldn’t have told her all those messy stories back then. Thankfully, her Talent was great enough to support such nonsense.’

’Otherwise, with her meager Cultivation, she would have drowned long ago for daring to fool around like this in the deep waters of the Inner Sect.’

’Did she really think those old-timers in the Inner Sect were just sitting up there for decoration?’

"You’ve gotten me so sidetracked, I forgot to talk about the important stuff.

Master is a very easygoing and laid-back person. Well, in Senior Sister’s words, Master is a slacker, a shut-in, a tech geek.

In all these years, I’ve almost never seen him get truly angry at anyone. He’s always amicable, or rather, indifferent.

Except for you, Senior Brother. He specifically marked you as someone who could not enter Spirit Nurturing Peak. It just goes to show how much of a headache you two caused him back then.

And now, you’ve gone and caused trouble all the way up to the Sect Leader.

Although I don’t know why, for you to make Master go out of his way to bring you to Spirit Nurturing Peak to discipline you... I can only say, you’re a real piece of work.

Just you watch. Who knows what kind of storm is waiting for us!

I reckon my words won’t carry much weight anymore. Next time a message comes from the Holy Land, I won’t know how to explain this to Senior Sister."

The more Ji Ming spoke, the more aggrieved he sounded, his voice starting to choke up.

"You’re not going to cry, are you?" Zhang Deming said immediately. "I’m warning you, you’re a man of eighteen or nineteen now. If you cry, I’m jumping off.

Otherwise, if we go back to Spirit Nurturing Peak like this, people will think I did something to you!"

Ji Ming’s expression stiffened. He turned back and glared at Zhang Deming, trying to look fierce but only coming off as cute.

He was already young and had a round, baby face, which made him look even more like a shota.

Combined with his accomplished Cultivation and excellent upkeep, he was truly the type of person who was adorably well-behaved, the kind that would make older women want to reach out and pat his head.

He was living proof that boys could be in danger too. His appeal to older women was probably lethal.

’Hmm...’

’Some older men probably too...’

’Ahem...’

"I’m talking about serious matters with you!" Ji Ming glared at Zhang Deming before continuing.

Zhang Deming nodded solemnly. Light Wings materialized on his back as he said, "I’m being very serious with you, too."

"A Tier Three Feather Fall Technique?" Ji Ming froze, stunned.