Chapter 171 The Hehuan Sect:

"Someone, open the back door!" The woman clapped her hands.

The two burly servants from earlier stepped forward, pushed open the back gate, and walked towards the back.

"Please follow me, ladies," the woman said with a smile.

Rong Xie and Shen Bingsi stood up and followed the woman to the backyard.

At this moment, the scene in the backyard was fully exposed to the two of them. Unlike the flamboyant scene they had imagined, the backyard looked like a very ordinary backyard, with a pond, a few flower trees, and no essential difference from Rong Xie's house in Lanyuan.

The servant opened the doors ahead, and the woman led Rong Xie and Shen Bingsi straight ahead. It was clear that the woman was treating the two with high courtesy, as they walked through the main gate without going through any side gates.

She walked all the way to the innermost part of the courtyard, to a place that looked like a bedroom, and stepped over the threshold without hesitation.

Rong Xie hesitated and looked inside. The pink curtains and the painting of Guanyin giving a child all indicated that this was a woman's boudoir. It would be improper for them to just barge in like this.

Please stop here.

"Manager Rong, please come in," the woman said with a smile, noticing Rong Xie's hesitation.

"We need to get to the main altar. Is there a road leading to the main altar?" Rong Xie asked.

“Of course,” the woman laughed even harder, “this is the only way to the main altar.”

Rong Xie felt a bit embarrassed, hoping that the woman's words didn't have any hidden meaning. He wasn't the kind of old-fashioned conservative, but he was indeed not good at understanding the unspoken meanings of others.

"There might be a hidden door or a secret passage or something," Shen Bingsi guessed.

"Pfft, Sword Saint Shen is indeed experienced in this area, as expected of someone who regularly works for the Mirror Palace." The woman laughed, walked into the room, and then turned back to wave to the two of them, "Come on, it's all the same road, what's there to be afraid of? Do you think I'd eat you two?"

"..." Rong Xie felt the atmosphere was even stranger, no, it should be said that the atmosphere was even more normal. Isn't this the kind of atmosphere the Hehuan Sect has?

In order to see Elder Hong, Rong Xie gritted his teeth and followed her in, secretly holding several talismans in his hand. Shen Bingsi also touched the Shengxie Sword at her waist. The two of them entered the woman's boudoir with great caution.

The woman walked straight ahead as if there were some great road in the room, but unfortunately she reached the back wall after only a few steps, then turned to the right and suddenly disappeared.

Rong Xie was startled and quickly chased after her. Standing under the back wall where the woman had just been standing, he heard voices.

The mingled sounds of voices, footsteps, and the tinkling of wind chimes under the eaves made it seem as if some famous tourist attraction was hidden in this boudoir.

"What is that place?" Shen Bingsi looked inside through the gauze cabinet on the back wall.

Rong Xie followed and saw a small gate not far away. Inside, tourists dressed in all sorts of costumes came and went in an endless stream, and two monks in gray-blue robes stood under the porch.

Rong Xie was taken aback. There was a door behind this boudoir leading to a temple? It looked like... a very popular temple?

"Come on, didn't you two want to go to the main altar? The main altar is just ahead." The woman's laughter came again. Rong Xie looked in the direction of the sound and saw that there was a path along the back wall. At the end of the path stood a cabinet. The cabinet door had been closed just now, and they thought it was a dead end. Now the cabinet door was half open, and there was clearly an open road outside. The woman was peeking at them.

Rong Xie and Shen Bingsi followed and came to the back of the boudoir together.

"This is... the main headquarters?"

The view behind the boudoir was the same as what they saw through the gauze curtains.

"Yes, this is the main altar of the Honey Buddha. There are 333 Honey Buddha temples throughout the world. The larger ones can accommodate 300 believers to listen to the sermons, while the smaller ones are just a small shrine by the roadside. They all take this place as their ancestral home." The woman introduced with a smile, "Please follow me, both of you."

Rong Xie and Shen Bingsi exchanged a puzzled look; they weren't looking for a Buddhist temple.

Buddhist temples and the Hehuan sect seem to be the two most incompatible extremes, but... if the Hehuan sect doesn't want to be found, hiding in a Buddhist temple is a clever way.

The two followed the woman through the small door. Two servants were standing outside the door. After they had all passed through, they went back to close the door. Rong Xie glanced back and saw a sign on the door that read: "Important place for monks, no unauthorized personnel allowed."

"..."

A gleaming golden pagoda stands before you, clearly indicating that this place is extremely popular with worshippers; otherwise, such a dazzling golden roof could not have been built.

A steady stream of tourists emerged from the side gate of the main hall where the pagoda is located and strolled by a spacious pond, where white peacocks were leisurely preening their feathers.

Located in the south, Liujin City has a hot and humid climate. Even in early spring, it is like summer in Shengjing, so it is not surprising to see white peacocks.

"I suggested to Protector Seju that we fence off this pool, so that tourists wouldn't come up and knock on the door. Everyone envies my temple's good location, but they don't know how much trouble it will cause," the woman sighed.

As they were talking, an anxious-looking tourist ran over. Seeing Rong Xie and the others standing in front of the small door, he rushed up as if he had found a savior: "Is there a latrine? Is there a latrine inside?"

"No," the woman said expressionlessly.

"Really not? Then where is the outhouse?" the man asked, unwilling to give up.

"Keep walking straight ahead, to the side of the second hall where they sell luck-changing stones," the woman said.

"Thank you! Thank you!" The man ran away awkwardly.

"..."

The atmosphere then became more relaxed.

The woman led the two around the pagoda and into the back garden. After passing through an unusually tall bamboo grove, they arrived at a garden full of blooming flowers, dotted with many colorful little houses, and occasionally the sounds of laughter and music could be heard.

Rong Xie stared at the garden in astonishment, unable to believe that the headquarters of the Hehuan Sect was so brazenly located in a prime location in Liujin City, without even a roof to shelter it.

When Rong Xie saw the Buddhist temple, he had already anticipated the situation of the Hehuan Sect's headquarters—an underground palace that appeared solemn and gloomy on the surface, but was actually a place for pleasure-seeking, or a scripture pavilion that was actually a den of iniquity... He did not expect that when he went around to the backyard, it was actually open-air.

"Welcome to the headquarters of the Hehuan Sect," the woman said with a smile. Seemingly noticing Rong Xie's surprise, she explained, "Fifty years ago, when the sect leader moved the Hehuan Sect from Shengjing to Liujin City, he vowed to let everyone live under the sun, among the flowers, and live the happiest days, openly and honestly—what's that saying again? Flowers should grow under the sun so that they can bloom brilliantly."

"Of course, we also took necessary precautions. Not everyone can enter here as easily as you." A man dressed entirely in black emerged from the bamboo forest. Rong Xie couldn't even detect his aura, as his cultivation level was unknown.

"Guardian of Color Fear!" The woman's eyes lit up, and she immediately walked towards the man in black, bowing to him. "The person has been brought."

“Alright.” Protector Seju nodded and raised his hand to signal. The woman stepped forward, took his hand, kissed his palm, and then rubbed it against her face before reluctantly leaving.

Rong Xie was shocked by the strange way his subordinate greeted his superior.

“I am Protector Seju, in charge of creating gardens and designing houses,” Protector Seju said coldly. “I admire the layout of Huanxue Manor, and I heard that you two were also involved in the design.”

Rong Xie hadn't expected to receive such praise for the design of Huanxue Manor from the Hehuan Sect—a feeling that was quite complex. But in his eyes, the man in black suddenly appeared tall and wise, even his cold demeanor transforming into a symbol of solemnity.

“We don’t understand these things either; we just mentioned our needs to the craftsman in that workshop,” Rong Xie said.

For the rest of the time, Protector Seju and Rong Xie chatted happily, so much so that Shen Bing couldn't help but try to interject between them, but unfortunately, he really didn't understand these things.

Fortunately, they finally arrived at their destination before Shen Bingsi coughed up blood.

A tall bamboo house, with a large sapphire blue peacock perched on the roof. When guests arrive, the peacock flies down heavily and blocks their way.

“How…” Rong Xie asked hesitantly.

The fearful protector said, "Don't be afraid, it just wants to show off."

Before the words were even finished, the peacock shook its magnificent tail, swaying its body and spreading its tail feathers one by one, like a giant fan. Each tail feather had exquisite patterns that looked like big eyes.

Rong Xie stared at the peacock in astonishment. He knew that such a beautiful bird existed in the world, and many people mistook it for a phoenix—but he had never seen it with his own eyes (except for the white peacock in front of him), let alone seen it display its tail feathers.

As Rong Xie was captivated by the peacock's beautiful tail feathers, a loud laugh came from inside the bamboo house; it was clear that it belonged to an old man.

"Isn't it a joy to have friends coming from afar!" the old man chanted, his voice high-pitched and clear, almost like the tune of Bai Shui Shan Ren. "Well, does my Hehuan Sect meet your standards?"

Rong Xie couldn't help but feel nervous as he was finally about to meet Elder Hong.

They went through many trials and tribulations to finally find Elder Hong's method. If even Elder Hong couldn't solve Shen Bing Si's problem with her Dao heart, then...

Rong Xie dared not think too much, and with his mind at ease, he and Shen Bingsi bowed to the bamboo building: "Disciple Rong Xie (Shen Bingsi) greets Elder Hong."

"Hahaha, good!" An invisible spiritual force lifted Rong Xie and Shen Bingsi. Elder Hong still did not appear, but used his powerful spiritual force to shock the guests from afar. "Are you going to abandon the Spirit Mirror Sect and join my Joyful Union Sect? Brilliant, brilliant!"

"Uh..." The two were slightly embarrassed. "Disciple" was just a humble way of addressing someone. Would Elder Hong really take it seriously?

“Elder Hong, you misunderstand. We have come to ask Elder Hong for some advice,” Rong Xie said.

"Oh? What is it?"

“My friend Shen Bingsi originally cultivated the Path of Ruthlessness,” Rong Xie said. Although Elder Hong should already know their origins, he still laid the groundwork to show respect. “However, his Dao heart wavered, and he began to suffer the backlash of the Heavenly Dao. We heard that there is only one highly accomplished senior in the world who successfully switched from the Path of Ruthlessness to another path, and that is Elder Hong. Therefore, we have traveled thousands of miles to pay our respects to you and ask for your help.”

Elder Hong fell silent, and the bamboo building was quiet except for the sound of cheerful singing and dancing coming from afar.

Rong Xie tensed up, his heart pounding in his chest. He wondered if Elder Hong would deliberately make things difficult for them. After all, they hadn't brought Elder Hong any reward. Thinking about it carefully, it was practically getting something for nothing.

"If we need payment, Bing Si and I have some savings, we..."

"No, no, no, that's not right," Elder Hong suddenly spoke up, interrupting Rong Xie's addition. "I'm not the only one in the world who switched from the Path of Ruthlessness to other paths. There are many others. Those who gave up halfway, those who couldn't resist the temptation and broke the precepts, or those who had their cultivation destroyed and were expelled from the sect, didn't they also successfully switch to other paths?"

“Well… that’s one way to put it, but there are still some differences. Bing Si’s Dao Heart is firm, and his progress is extremely fast. He has already reached the Nascent Soul stage. With such a fast cultivation speed, he is like a carriage galloping on a highway. If his Dao Heart wavers even slightly, he may crash and die. He is quite different from those cultivators who are not strong enough and give up halfway.” Rong Xie explained.

"Hmm, I see," Elder Hong said thoughtfully. "Then why the rush? Just slow down and become one of those cultivators who lack the strength and give up halfway, wouldn't that solve the problem?"

Rong Xie was taken aback. He felt that Elder Hong's words were quite profound, but he was completely clueless about how to do it.

He was about to ask Elder Hong for further advice when he heard Elder Hong yawn and lazily say, "When you ask someone for advice, you have to give them some reward. I don't care about gold and silver treasures. I just like to have fun. How about this, you each tell a joke. If you can make me laugh, I will tell you how to switch to another path. How about that?"