The Great Night Watch

Chapter 2 The Saintess's Guidance

Suddenly, a silver boat appeared in the clouds on the horizon, and a beautiful woman stood on it, like a celestial being. The

silver boat spun and landed on the bluestone path below the Inquiry Pavilion, transforming into an earring that dangled from the woman's earlobe.

The woman raised her hand, and a burst of energy shot towards the Inquiry Bell, producing a clear ring.

This was called striking the Dao Bell.

Disciples inquire about the Dao by striking the Dao Bell first.

This was a request to inquire.

Lin Su raised his eyes, looking at the beautiful woman through the gap in the courtyard, his eyes showing surprise. How could it be her?

The little saintess he had seen in the library earlier.

"Brother, another sister has been tricked." Xiao Yao's whisper reached Lin Su's ear. Xiao Yao had finished eating the pheasant, her mouth full of oil, and she rubbed it on Lin Su's shoulder. This girl had this one bad habit—she could never learn proper hygiene.

Lin Su turned his head to make her be quiet.

Then, he nimbly entered through the side door into the inner discussion room. The room was windowless and completely sealed. He gently raised his hand, and a small hammer struck a nearby bell. The clear chime indicated that he had agreed to his disciple's request for guidance.

Outside the bamboo curtain, the little saintess appeared out of thin air, bowing slightly: "Third Elder, I fear there has been a mishap in my cultivation. I have come today seeking a solution."

Lin Su took a deep breath and changed his voice: "What mishap? Tell me."

"Yes!" The little saintess was extremely respectful: "Three days ago, after breaking through to the Dao Flower Realm, I suddenly experienced uncontrollable bleeding from my lower body. I examined my entire body internally, combing through my meridians, but found no internal injuries and felt no pain. Therefore, this situation must be abnormal..."

Lin Su's eyes widened in the darkness...

Why does this sound like menstruation?

Later, as the symptoms were described, it was no longer just a vague feeling; he was completely certain!

The little saintess had grown up, and it was her first time!

Her knowledge of physiology was nonexistent, and coupled with her recent breakthrough in cultivation, she naturally tried to explain this stage of life's changes using her cultivation techniques. When she couldn't explain it, she panicked…

Lin Su's pent-up emotions boiled down to two words: "...It's alright!"

This answer, upon hearing the little saintess's words, made her jump: "Elder, can you cure it?"

Cure?

Even if I could, I wouldn't dare. If I caused you to prematurely stop menstruating, I'm afraid your parents would beat me…

His hesitation caused the little saintess to misunderstand his meaning: "This disciple humbly requests Elder's skillful intervention. Whether it succeeds or not, I will be deeply grateful!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Su changed his mind…

Why not gain a free favor?

"You should close your six senses and relax your whole body…"

The saintess closed her eyes, withdrawing her divine sense inward, truly cooperating for the treatment.

Lin Su came behind her, looking at the exquisite beauty before him, smelling the sweet fragrance of youth, glancing at the beautiful protrusion of her chest, feeling the contrast between her previous holiness and her current docility.

To be honest, wicked thoughts did cross his mind.

But commendably, when his finger touched the ground, he still maintained a degree of restraint… After

about five minutes, Lin Su forcibly suppressed his wandering thoughts, reluctantly withdrew his finger, returned behind the bamboo curtain, calculated the time it took for her “illness” to flare up, and said through the curtain, “You may return now; you will surely recover tomorrow!”

A thin blush had appeared on the saintess's face at some point. She slowly opened her eyes, bowed slightly, and said, “Thank you, Elder!”

She took out a small package from her bosom, placed it on the table, and went out.

Back in the courtyard, she opened the package; inside was ten taels of silver.

Xiao Yao jumped eight inches high with excitement: “Ten taels!… Brother, the more you cheat, the more you get… Oh, no, it’s guidance from a renowned teacher, reasonable fees.”

Lin Su patted her head and murmured, “This situation is a little special; I’m not entirely sure… cough cough… is it really reasonable…”

Ah? Xiao Yao was stunned…

The next day, the little saintess's bleeding "illness" was cured. After confirming it, she was overjoyed. Her sister noticed her happiness and smiled slightly: "Little sister, you're so happy today, unlike the worried days of the past few days. Is there some good news?"

The saintess smiled: "A few days ago, I suffered from an illness and was afraid of going astray in my cultivation, so I was quite worried. Fortunately, thanks to the Third Elder's skillful treatment, I've recovered now."

The sister's smile froze: "Third Elder? Didn't the Third Elder go to Turtle Abyss with Mother half a month ago?"

The saintess frowned: "No way? For the past half month, the Third Elder has been at the Dao Inquiry Pavilion, answering disciples' questions about cultivation with profound insights. All the disciples say that the Third Elder's discussions these days are concise yet profound, and they have benefited greatly."

The sister was full of suspicion. For half a month? How could that be? Others might not know, but she did. She was beside her mother when her mother and the Third Elder set off together…

She remained calm: “Tell me about your ailment, and how he miraculously treated you.”

The Holy Maiden spoke… When she

mentioned her ailment, her sister’s eyes widened. Heavens, wasn’t this clearly “menstruation”? How dare you ask a man about this?

When the “Guardian of the Pavilion” was mentioned as a “treatment” method, her sister was instantly filled with rage and malice, cursing him inwardly as a bastard… She

exploded on the spot!

With a whoosh, she soared into the sky, shooting towards the Pavilion of Inquiry with an extremely fierce gust of wind.

Inside the Dao Inquiry Pavilion, Lin Su was discussing the Dao in a deep, soothing voice, while several disciples below listened with delight. On the table lay a bag of silver they had pooled together…

As their “pooled-money Dao Inquiry” neared its end, the young woman burst into the pavilion like a whirlwind. With a flick of her wrist, the bamboo curtain before her turned to dust. Her slender hand, like divine punishment, pierced through the darkness of the inner chamber, grabbed Lin Su by the neck, and sent him flying…

The moment Lin Su saw the sunlight, he was stunned.

Seeing the fierce-looking woman before him, bearing an eight-tenths resemblance to the Little Saintess, he inwardly screamed, “Holy crap!”

The old saying was absolutely true: what goes around comes around; those who act recklessly will pay the price…

The entire Lingxi Sect erupted!

Countless disciples were enraged!

Most enraged were precisely those disciples he had previously “instructed”!

On their cultivation journey, receiving guidance from an elder is an honor for a disciple. But to suddenly learn that their instructor is a "nominal disciple" several ranks lower than them, and a cultivation failure who can't even cross the threshold of cultivation, fills them with overwhelming anger.

"Dare to blaspheme the Dao Seeking Pavilion? Kill him!" ten disciples shouted in unison.

"Dare to use the Dao Seeking Pavilion to swindle money? Kill him!" a hundred disciples shouted in unison.

Before Lin Su, Xiao Yao bravely stepped forward, hands on her hips: "This isn't swindling, this is called 'Master Instruction, Reasonable Fees'..."

"Hit her!"

A group of people rushed towards Xiao Yao, who scrambled back to Lin Su's side, her face completely pale...

Just then, a figure descended from the sky, dressed in long green sleeves, with a snow-white goatee and a face full of black lines. With a slight tremor of his sleeve, dozens of disciples who had rushed over were all frozen in place—those on the ground were frozen in place, and those in the air were frozen in mid-air.

"Third Elder!"

"Master..." Lin Su managed to squeeze out two words, his voice a little dry.

This was the true guardian of the Dao Asking Pavilion; the Third Elder had returned!

"I already know all the reasons!" The Third Elder's voice was low and hoarse: "To amass wealth through Dao Asking is against the sect's laws. All the wealth amassed must be returned!"

He stretched out his hand, and the jar that Xiao Yao had hidden under the bed flew out.

Xiao Yao screamed: "This is guidance from a master, it's reasonable..."

Lin Su quickly covered her mouth.

The jar shattered, and silver rained down.

The Third Elder's voice echoed throughout the hall: "As for Lin Su, I have my own methods of discipline. Disperse!"

With a flick of his sleeve, everyone present, along with the scattered silver coins, were swept away in all directions. Lin Su's vision blurred and he appeared in a small courtyard. There were only three people in the courtyard: himself, Xiao Yao, and his master. The surroundings were eerily quiet... The

Third Elder took a deep breath, his eyes bulging outwards...

Lin Su quickly spoke up: "As the old saying goes, one should not discipline a disciple in anger, nor a wife at night. Master, please sit down. I will prepare some good dishes for you. After we have a welcoming feast, I will certainly not hide or avoid you, and I will apologize for my mistake!"

He pulled Xiao Yao and slipped into the kitchen.

In the courtyard, the Third Elder's eyes bulged high, and he was panting heavily. With a loud bang, he slapped his forehead, causing the courtyard gate behind him to fly off...

In the kitchen, Lin Su chopped vegetables without looking to the side, but he noticed the commotion outside.

Despite their master-disciple relationship, he could generally manage the Third Elder.

Two methods always worked.

First, the old man was a traditional and conservative person; just saying "as the old saying goes" would make him believe even the most trivial things.

Second, food!

As a cultivation sect, those who lived a nomadic life had no particular taste in food. Before he arrived, the Third Elder rarely ate anything of value, but after he cooked a few dishes of modern home-style cooking in an iron pot, the old man rediscovered his love for food.

Today's incident was a bit serious, and he was worried the old man might do something rash in his anger, so he used a two-pronged approach to calm him down.

This method was clearly effective; after the old man slapped himself on the forehead, his anger seemed to have subsided by about 80%.

Several dishes were served, the old man let out a long sigh, and began to eat.

Lin Su and Xiao Yao stood respectfully to the side.

After finishing their meal, Xiao Yao took the bowls into the kitchen. The Third Elder pointed to the chair in front of him, and Lin Su sat down.

The old man looked up, his eyes flashing with a mixture of emotions: "Do you know what crime you have committed?"

Lin Su protested, "Master, I am innocent... Master went out, and some fellow disciples came to ask for guidance. I have the sect in my heart, and with the sincere spirit of helping each other, I did my best to answer their questions. How can this be considered wrong? As the old saying goes..."

The Third Elder roared, "Shut up!" cutting off his "as the old saying goes!"

Lin Su stared at him blankly.

The old man slapped himself on the forehead again, sighing deeply, "This is also my fault. I didn't inform you of the sect's rules. I originally thought you were so insignificant within the sect that you couldn't even beat a dog, let alone commit a crime. I never imagined you would be so rebellious, daring to offend the heavens so easily… Listen to me carefully, what you've done violates two of the sect's 'Eighteen Precepts': 'Overstepping the bounds' and 'Desecrating the Dao Platform'! Violating any one of the Eighteen Precepts…"

He breathed heavily, brewing a terrifying emotion.

Lin Su finally tensed up: "What will happen?" The Third Elder slowly uttered eight words: "Abolish your cultivation and expel you from the sect!"