The departure of Yu Shiyun went largely unnoticed by most. Although the sudden resignation of this literature teacher, who had only recently arrived and was precisely the kind of liberal arts faculty member the school desperately lacked, seemed somewhat peculiar—given that the employment benefits and working environment at Mount Shu Martial Arts School were top-tier nationally, making it difficult to find a better post elsewhere.

If that were the case...

Rumors such as, "Could it be that our school has been infiltrated by..." did circulate, but Ye Wen paid them no mind. Furthermore, the more one tried to explain away such matters, the more convinced people became that they were true, so ignoring them was the better course.

When Ning Ruxue later heard this rumor, she did inquire about the teacher. His junior martial sister did not believe the gossip, which greatly pleased Ye Wen; he felt his junior sister was truly the best for trusting him so completely.

What he didn't know was that Ning Ruxue had considered the matter carefully. She recalled that most of her senior brother’s time at school was spent with either herself or Huayi, leaving him no time for such indiscretions; hence, she concluded those rumors were entirely baseless.

At the same time, the teacher named Yu Shiyun had appeared somewhat reclusive in the school, rarely interacting with others and constantly observing her surroundings, as if trying to uncover something. What Yu Shiyun thought she was doing stealthily, others had already noticed the anomaly.

The reason she hadn't been dealt with earlier was that they couldn't ascertain her exact intentions. Now that Ye Wen had caught her in the act, he certainly wouldn't tolerate such recklessness any longer.

"I surmise that Yu Shiyun must be someone from our country's public security departments, specifically sent to probe our background!"

Ye Wen didn't care which specific department she belonged to; it was likely someone from the Ministry of State Security or similar. To him, these so-called "agents" were not worth his effort to consider.

Moreover, he already had a different idea in mind. Since someone from the higher-ups had noticed him, rather than continuing to hide things, it might be better to take a different route and legitimize the name of our Mount Shu Martial Arts School.

"How do we legitimize it?"

Ye Wen leaned back, crossing his legs, a fine cigar held between his fingers. As he exhaled a cloud of smoke, he said, "Since the name of our Mount Shu Sect has already been recognized by the cultivation world, we might as well officially link the name of our Mount Shu Martial Arts School to it... After all, we are not the only sect with businesses in the secular world; our situation is quite common!" Since discovering the matter with Yu Shiyun, he understood that the status of Mount Shu Martial Arts School could no longer be concealed; it was better to reveal the truth outright.

"This school of ours is an enterprise of the Mount Shu Sect. I, the Sect Master, preside here to select outstanding disciples for our own sect..." In any case, when he and Ning Ruxue had previously appeared before others, they were wearing modern attire. Those with keen eyes must have already noticed that he currently resided in the secular world—and there were only a few things powerful cultivators needed to do while moving in the secular realm. If the Sect Master personally intervened, it must concern the sect's lineage.

Establishing a school to select disciples was the most suitable pretext! Furthermore, his appearance had long ceased to be a secret after appearing on television several times. Cultivators had also seen his face after the incident at Mount Diancang.

Putting aside other matters, that hermit Beihe seemed to have close ties with special government departments. He might not have connected the dots before, but he could recall this matter at any time.

Coupled with the fact that those two young cultivators from the Emei Sect often moved in the secular world and had also seen him, it was better to openly acknowledge his identity now than to have them discover it later on television.

This turn of events did not align with the plan Ye Wen had originally set, but plans are always subject to change. Due to these few incidents, the situation had drastically shifted, compelling him to continuously adjust his direction.

As Ye Wen was conversing with Ning Ruxue, he suddenly felt a surge of potent blade energy crisscrossing the sky directly above him, the fierce momentum seemingly intended to deliberately announce its presence.

"This blade energy..."

Ye Wen paused for a moment before immediately realizing who it was—none other than the hermit Beihe from Kunlun Mountain! This man had deliberately come to his school to release his blade energy; it appeared he had understood Ye Wen's current secular identity but was deliberately using this method to invite Ye Wen out out of consideration for Ye Wen's reputation.

Otherwise, if he had simply shown up unannounced, Ye Wen might have become angry: I’ve been hiding perfectly well, and you deliberately show up to boast about your prowess? Therefore, hermit Beihe used this method to test the waters. If Ye Wen didn't mind their knowledge of his secular identity, he would naturally come out to greet him. If he minded, he could simply not appear, and hermit Beihe would understand Ye Wen’s intent and leave.

Ye Wen was fully aware of the subtleties involved. He smiled at Ning Ruxue and said, "Ruxue, let's go out and greet him!" Just as he was about to step onto the balcony and soar into the sky, he suddenly remembered something and instructed Ning Ruxue, "I'll go out first to meet hermit Beihe. Junior Sister, you go call Huayi, and then we'll go together!"

This instruction seemed slightly baffling, but Ning Ruxue, having just heard Ye Wen's revised plan, quickly understood. Her senior brother was demonstrating the strength of the Mount Shu Sect.

Although she and her senior brother had displayed their abilities before many cultivators, in the current cultivation world, no matter how strong an individual became, unless they were overwhelmingly powerful, they could only rely on major sects for support.

Ning Ruxue and Ye Wen were indeed formidable, but cultivators now cared more about the actual strength of the Mount Shu Sect. If only Ye Wen and Ning Ruxue appeared for every meeting, it might inevitably lead to being underestimated. Calling Huayi this time was meant to inform hermit Beihe, and subsequently convey the message through him to others: The Mount Shu Sect has more people!

Ye Wen cast an illusionary spell from the balcony of his villa, then mounted his sword light and shot straight toward the sky. Perhaps hermit Beihe didn't want to disturb ordinary people, as he had kept his blade light suspended at a very high altitude, hidden within the clouds.

If Ye Wen hadn't been able to locate him through his divine sense, and since hermit Beihe hadn't tried to conceal himself, finding him would have required considerable effort.

"Hermit Beihe..."

"Sect Master Ye, you are too courteous!"

They met within the clouds, and after exchanging bows, hermit Beihe smiled, "I thought Sect Master Ye was traveling everywhere; it turns out you have already started an academy..."

Opening a school wasn't unusual; in fact, the Kunlun Sect also ran several, often under various peculiar names, all aimed at finding outstanding disciples.

Ye Wen smiled, "I wandered through the secular world for over a decade and finally realized this method is the most convenient and fastest..."

With these words, he accomplished two things: first, demonstrating why he was so familiar with the current situation, even choosing a method similar to his earlier reputation-building stunts to open a school (since they could find him, they likely knew about his previous actions); simultaneously, he subtly implied that this method wasn't strange, as many sects were doing the same.

It must be said that after serving as Sect Master for ten years, Ye Wen’s skill in conversation had been honed to a considerable degree. He managed to convey multiple meanings in a single sentence, and the fact that hermit Beihe could grasp all of them demonstrated that he was no simple figure.

The former itinerant cultivator of Kunlun, now an honorary elder of the Kunlun Sect, smiled and nodded, "Sect Master Ye speaks the truth!"

After exchanging greetings and a brief chat, two more streaks of light rose from below: one was a vibrant green sword light, naturally Ning Ruxue soaring up on her own sword; the other was a white light radiating immense Geng Metal power, which even hermit Beihe regarded with great surprise, involuntarily looking down to see that in addition to Mrs. Ye, whom he had met before, there was a stunningly beautiful woman enveloped in white light, both flying towards where he and Ye Wen hovered.

The one controlling the white light was naturally Huayi. Huayi had acquired the ability to fly once her cultivation of the Geng Metal Divine Light was nearly complete. However, because her cultivation level wasn't very high, her speed was limited, and she lacked the agility of Ye Wen and Ning Ruxue’s sword lights. But for a straight-line ascent into the air, it wouldn't reveal much abnormality.

As Huayi approached, hermit Beihe suddenly noticed that his Heavenly River Divine Sand seemed to sense something and trembled slightly. This made hermit Beihe even more suspicious. After a careful inspection, he realized the anomaly in his protective treasure was due to the white light surrounding the woman.

"What kind of magical artifact or divine ability is this? It actually caused my Heavenly River Divine Sand to resonate?"

His Heavenly River Divine Sand encompassed the Five Elements of Metal and Earth, which is why it resonated with Huayi's Geng Metal Divine Light. This was fortunate, considering the artifact had been with hermit Beihe for many years and his cultivation was high enough to only cause a slight anomaly.

This was also partly because Huayi's Geng Metal Divine Light had not reached perfection; otherwise, if an ordinary cultivator possessed a metal-attribute artifact, they might feel their morale weaken considerably before a fight even began when encountering Huayi.

Due to these various changes, as Huayi flew closer, hermit Beihe couldn't help but regard the woman with extra attention. However, Ye Wen observed that hermit Beihe wasn't just looking at Huayi; he was scrutinizing that white divine light.

After observing for a moment, hermit Beihe remarked with a slight reproach, "Sect Master Ye, the Mount Shu Sect truly harbors hidden masters..."

Although he couldn't discern exactly what this white light was, he could tell this divine ability was formidable. Combined with the powerful strength already displayed by Ning Ruxue and Ye Wen, his assessment of the Mount Shu Sect's strength increased significantly.

Considering he had come this time partly to gather intelligence on the Mount Shu Sect for the Kunlun Sect, his thoughts naturally turned inward. He concluded that he would need a thorough discussion with his own Sect Master upon his return.

"This is hermit Beihe, whom I mentioned to you previously. He is currently an honorary elder of the Kunlun Sect..."

Ye Wen took the initiative to introduce them. The way he spoke allowed hermit Beihe to immediately recognize that this woman was also one of Sect Master Ye’s "own people."

"Greetings, hermit Beihe!"

Huayi, dressed in very modern clothing, performed a very classical bow, which looked rather strange. However, this appeared vastly different to hermit Beihe, because Huayi’s bow was a perfectly standard ancient rite. If he hadn't been profoundly knowledgeable, he might not have recognized it. To understand such etiquette and execute it so perfectly...

"Greetings, Madam!"

No one realized that because of this single bow from Huayi, hermit Beihe’s curiosity about the Mount Shu Sect grew even stronger, and his regard for them increased accordingly.

If he hadn't taken the Mount Shu Sect too seriously when he first met Ye Wen and learned of its existence, this bow alone forced him to place the Mount Shu Sect on equal footing with the Kunlun Sect.

The etiquette was so ancient that ordinary people would never know of it; hermit Beihe only learned of it after joining the Kunlun Sect through their vast collection of ancient texts.

If this woman understood such rites, she must come from a cultivator family with a long heritage, or the Mount Shu Sect itself was an ancient established sect, whose history was at least as long as Kunlun's.

When calculated this way, he could not afford to overlook them...

As they conversed, the group slowly descended to the ground. Ye Wen invited hermit Beihe into his home and, to show respect, they intentionally landed outside the main door and entered through the front, demonstrating deference to hermit Beihe.

After they were seated a short while, the conversation inevitably turned to Ye Wen's school.

"Sect Master Ye, the foundation of this school is so grand; it seems you intend to operate it long-term..."

Ye Wen set down his teacup and replied with a smile, "If good seedlings continue to appear, I don't mind operating it long-term; but if we don't see a single promising student for many years, perhaps the doors will close tomorrow!"

This statement was essentially non-committal. Hermit Beihe pondered before continuing, "By the way, Sect Master Ye also purchased a football club in Europe—truly an interesting hobby..."

"It was just for amusement. I plan to entrust these affairs to some friends in Europe to manage."

Hearing this, hermit Beihe paused, thinking, This senior has connections in Europe too? After considering it, a strange expression crossed his face: "Could it be... someone from the European Papacy?"

If that were the case, the strength of the Mount Shu Sect would need re-evaluation. He never imagined that a sect which had been absent for so many years would have ties to the European Papacy—though he didn't find it strange, as the Papacy was also an ancient power spanning millennia, which only further proved the Mount Shu Sect was an ancient lineage.

He could never have guessed that Ye Wen’s good relationship with the Papacy was merely due to one Paladin and a large sum of British pounds; beyond that, he had zero rapport with the Papacy—the Pope himself would probably not be recognized if he stood before Ye Wen.

Hermit Beihe was quite unfortunate; every encounter with Ye Wen led his thoughts astray due to some bizarre circumstance, causing him to deviate further and further. Now, his impression of the Mount Shu Sect and Ye Wen was far removed from reality. If he knew the truth, he might very well vomit blood.

They chatted for a while longer, and then Ye Wen suddenly changed the subject, "By the way, the first time I encountered you, there were some secular forces with you. Could it be that they..."

Ye Wen didn't elaborate; such matters were best understood between them.

Indeed, hermit Beihe nodded immediately, "Senior must know, we cultivators occasionally leave behind traces, so the secular rulers must take action to erase those marks... Senior understands what a hindrance beings like us are to those in power!"

Ye Wen nodded; he was aware of this situation. If ordinary people knew that the path to eternal life truly existed, few would bother with worldly pursuits; everyone would try to find longevity and seek the Dao—and then those rulers would have no power left to command.

Therefore, matters concerning the cultivation world must be concealed as much as possible, and any traces must be covered up with lies—fortunately, the modern world possessed a marvelous term that could rationalize everything: science!

Ye Wen suddenly grew curious, "I wonder how that huge commotion I caused that day was explained away?"

The massive disturbance he created in the cemetery, with the purple light shooting into the sky, must have been visible for several kilometers. He wondered how they concocted a lie, especially since the area contained many unwholesome entities; the surrounding populace was already aware of this, and such a large event would surely lead to more trouble.

When Ye Wen asked, hermit Beihe’s expression became peculiar, as if he wanted to smile but dared not. Finally, after taking several deep breaths, he said, "A few unemployed vagrants set off fireworks late at night..."

"..." Ye Wen was silent for a long time before finally managing to utter, "What a lousy excuse..."

Hermit Beihe shrugged noncommittally, but his expression made Ye Wen realize that this man also seemed displeased that those officials had been so careless in covering things up.

"Are you familiar with those powers, Hermit?" Hermit Beihe paused, unsure why Ye Wen was suddenly asking about this, but he answered honestly, "We cultivators inevitably have to deal with those people, as many matters require coordination. Also, we need to step in to deal with those who exploit ordinary citizens by leveraging their minor capabilities... like that ancestor of the Crimson Blood!"

Ye Wen understood now. The current situation was one where the ruling powers were wary of cultivators but were simultaneously reliant on them. Fortunately, cultivators were focused on seeking longevity and had little interest in secular power, allowing the rulers and cultivators to coexist.

"I see..." Ye Wen stroked his chin, "My school seems to have attracted some attention. I was just thinking where I might find someone who understands these matters. Since you know those people, this issue should be easy to handle..." By "someone who understands," he meant those who acknowledged the existence of people like them—unlike Yu Shiyun, who clearly didn't know about their kind, or she wouldn't have been so arrogant with her meager abilities.

Hermit Beihe then realized that the senior was contemplating this very issue, which explained his line of questioning. However, this was hardly a difficult matter, and he agreed readily, "That can be arranged!"

Ye Wen nodded. Although this trouble wasn't significant for him, resolving it was certainly gratifying, so his subsequent demeanor became quite enthusiastic. He even prepared to give hermit Beihe a tour of the school.

Just then, a familiar voice shouted while knocking on the door, "Master, Master! I'm back!..." ... ...