Zhunti smiled at the weak Ma Yuan, and after examining his physical condition, he immediately said, "Good, good, good! Your Dao foundation is still intact. Since you wish to join my Western religion, and I see you have a connection with the West, I shall accept you as my disciple!"
After Zhunti finished speaking, he took Ma Yuan back to Mount Sumeru and arranged for Dizang to escort Ma Yuan away.
After Dizang led Ma Yuan away, Zhunti excitedly said to Jieyin, "Brother, we've found a treasure! His Golden Immortal Dao foundation is still intact. He only needs to absorb a massive amount of spiritual energy to quickly reach the peak of Golden Immortal, saving us a lot of effort!"
Jieyin raised an eyebrow upon hearing this, "Oh! Tongtian is so kind? That's rather unusual!"
Zhunti chuckled, "He is his disciple after all. Perhaps it was a moment of soft-heartedness. If he hadn't been so soft-hearted, we wouldn't have stumbled upon such a great bargain for free!"
Jieyin nodded, finding Zhunti's words reasonable.
Time flew by, and a thousand years passed in the blink of an eye. Ju Liusun, released from his punishment, looked at Duobao kneeling at the foot of Mount Taiqing and sighed, "Heaven's ways are indeed cyclical. Who would have thought Duobao would come to this!"
On Mount Taiqing, Taishang held the Creation Whip, which glowed with a seven-colored light, and looked at it with increasing satisfaction.
Taishang, seeing the few individuals who had helped him, felt a pang of guilt for troubling them for a millennium. He took out seven yellow middle plums and distributed them to the assembled saints, "Thank you for your efforts, fellow Daoists. Please accept these fruits to quench your thirst!"
Nuwa happily accepted the fruits handed over by Taishang and said with a smile, "It's been many years since I last visited your Mount Taiqing, fellow Daoist Taishang, and I haven't even had a sip of water. It's only right that I accept a fruit from you!"
The saints burst into laughter. Zhen Yuanzi also gave each of them a Ginseng Fruit.
Houtu, sensing Duobao and Qilin kneeling at the foot of Mount Taiqing, spoke to Taishang, "It seems you have personal matters to attend to. I also have many matters to handle in my Underworld. I bid you farewell!"
Hearing this, Nuwa turned to Taihao and said, "Brother, it's been a long time since we've seen each other. Why don't you accompany me to my Wa Huang Palace and stay with me for a few days?"
Taihao heard her words, gently ruffled Nuwa's head, and softly agreed, "Alright!"
As they spoke, they both departed from Kunlun.
Zhen Yuanzi and Hongyun looked at each other, realizing they were the only ones left. Hongyun then said, "To help the Holy Lord reforge this Creation Whip must have been exhausting! We shall return to my Wuzhuang Temple as well."
After everyone had left, Taishang and Tongtian turned their gaze towards Duobao and Qilin at the foot of the peak. Taishang and Tongtian had noticed them as soon as they emerged, but with Nuwa and Houtu present, it had been inconvenient for them to step away.
After Taishang put away the Creation Whip, Tongtian waved his daoist robe, and Duobao and Qilin appeared before them.
"What's going on? How long have you been kneeling?" Tongtian asked, looking at them.
Qilin and Duobao, still processing their sudden appearance before Tongtian and Taishang, were immediately met with Tongtian's question.
Duobao immediately replied, "Master, I made a mistake. Please punish me."
As soon as Duobao finished speaking, the pale-faced Qilin quickly added, "Master, it has nothing to do with my junior brother. Ma Yuan violated the sect's rules and harmed the human race, which is why Duobao intervened."
Taishang frowned upon hearing this and asked, looking at them, "When did this happen? How long have you two been kneeling?"
Qilin scratched his head and said, "Senior Uncle, it happened shortly after you two went into seclusion!"
Taishang looked at them and said, "So, you've been kneeling for about a thousand years?"
Qilin nodded. Tongtian, seeing that they had knelt for a thousand years, felt a softening in his heart and said expressionlessly, "You may rise."
Duobao and Qilin, hearing this, stumbled to their feet. They had been kneeling for too long, and even standing up was a great effort, especially since Qilin's cultivation had been sealed by Taishang. If it weren't for Duobao, Xuan Du, and the others intermittently channeling qi to Qilin during these thousand years, Qilin might have collapsed long ago.
Taishang, hearing that Qilin had knelt for a thousand years with his cultivation sealed, looked at Qilin and then unsealed the confinement on him.
With his cultivation restored, Qilin's pale complexion regained some color.
Seeing that Taishang had lifted the seal on his cultivation, Qilin immediately bowed and thanked him, "Thank you, Senior Uncle!"
Taishang looked at Qilin and Duobao and said, "Alright, tell me what exactly happened."
Duobao then recounted everything that had transpired after Taishang and the others had gone into seclusion: Yuanshi entrusting him with the management of Kunlun, and the incident with Ma Yuan.
Taishang, upon hearing this, looked at Tongtian and said, "Third Brother, since he is your disciple, you shall handle this matter."
Tongtian nodded with a dark expression. He hadn't expected such a wicked being to emerge from his disciples, one who dared to consume human hearts!
Just as Duobao and Qilin were startled by Tongtian's grim expression, Tongtian's voice, devoid of any warmth, suddenly rang out, "Where is Ma Yuan?"
Duobao trembled and replied, "Master, I dispersed his cultivation, expelled him from Kunlun, and he is now missing!"
Taishang immediately began to calculate with his fingers and discovered that Ma Yuan had joined the Western religion on Mount Sumeru.
Taishang sneered and said coldly, "He certainly has noble benefactors. Not only has he recovered his cultivation, but he has also advanced further and is now enjoying himself on Mount Sumeru!"
Tongtian immediately said, "Brother, I will go to Mount Sumeru."
Taishang looked at Duobao and nodded, "Alright, if you wish to go, then go. Take Duobao with you!"
Tongtian, unsure of Taishang's intentions, still brought Duobao along and headed towards Mount Sumeru.