Don't let Yu Ding take on any more disciples.

Chapter 495 Coming at the right time

"You are……"

When Zhang Youren saw the handsome Taoist priest who had arrived—a man of refined elegance, gentle demeanor, and dressed in a sky-blue Taoist robe—he froze in shock.

Yu Ding looked up at him and smiled, "It's been a long time, my friend Zhang."

Zhang Youren said with some emotion, "Decades have passed, and the immortal's demeanor remains unchanged, but I am no longer young."

The appearance of the jade tripod brought back his past experiences, leaving him with mixed feelings.

Yu Ding laughed and said, "What, won't you invite this humble Taoist priest in for a seat?"

As if waking from a dream, Zhang Youren quickly said, "Immortal, please come and sit down in the hall. But these two..."

He glanced hesitantly at the two convulsing figures on the ground.

Yu Ding smiled, made a hand seal with his right hand and pointed to the sky. The spiritual energy of heaven and earth immediately gathered and turned into crystal raindrops that entered the two people's bodies, just like falling on parched ground, nourishing their physical bodies and helping them repair their immortal bodies.

Although both were struck by lightning, Venus and the Kunzhong Divine General were, after all, celestial beings from the Heavenly Court, protected by their divine systems. Therefore, the severity of their divine punishment was naturally different from that of the demons and evil spirits.

Seeing that the two were much better, Zhang Youren was relieved and led Yu Ding into the hall to catch up.

"Speaking of which, the first thing I need to do after finding you this time is to apologize," Yu Ding suddenly said.

Zhang Youren was taken aback: "Why do you say such a thing, Immortal?"

"At the time, I was preoccupied with other matters and heard that you wished to study Taoist arts, so I entrusted you to my two disciples, Yang Jian and Long Ji. However..."

Yu Ding slammed his fist on the table in anger and said, "What I didn't expect was that those two bastards were so irresponsible. Not only did they not teach you any useful skills, they also lost you. They are truly despicable."

Zhang Youren quickly and somewhat guiltily tried to appease her, saying, "Immortal, please calm down. In truth, Erlang Shen and Fairy Longji have been very attentive and responsible towards me. Really, I swear, it's just... it's just..."

Yu Ding looked over: "But what?"

Zhang Youren smiled wryly, "But I just realized I've oversimplified the process of cultivating immortality and seeking the Dao. The process is far too arduous, I..."

Yu Ding feigned sudden realization and said, "You can't endure the hardships of cultivation?"

Zhang Youren nodded shyly and sighed, "Everyone says that immortals are good, but they can't endure the hardships of cultivation. Really, Immortal, I don't blame anyone else for my lack of success in cultivation. I only blame myself for my weak will and lack of perseverance. Sometimes I think it's not so bad to be an ordinary person."

Yu Ding nodded, realizing that his trip to understand Lao Hao hadn't been in vain; he had gained some insights.

Suddenly he looked toward the bedroom next to the hall and saw several pairs of eyes curiously looking at him from behind the window paper.

Zhang Youren stood up and said, "Madam, please come out and pay your respects to Immortal Yu Ding. He is a true immortal."

As soon as he spoke, a rustling sound came from inside the house, and a woman in her thirties with a graceful figure, dressed in rustic clothes but exuding an air of nobility, led several daughters out of the house.

The girls were all beautiful, with delicate eyebrows, rosy cheeks, and captivating charm. Yu Ding was immediately struck by their beauty and realized what it meant for a girl next door to have grown into a beautiful young woman.

Zhang Youren said, "Immortal, this is my wife, and my daughters. Madam, this is the Jade Cauldron Immortal I mentioned to you."

The Jade Pool Queen Mother... Yu Ding's heart stirred, and he immediately recognized her identity, marveling at how this was truly an unbreakable bond.

As for the seven daughters of the Zhang family, although they were also offspring of the Jade Emperor and the Queen Mother of the West, they could not actually be considered Longji's sisters.

In other words, Zhang Youren was just a reincarnation of the Jade Emperor. The Jade Emperor was Zhang Youren, but Zhang Youren was not the Jade Emperor. Longji was the Jade Emperor's biological son, and these seven daughters were Zhang Youren's descendants.

Longji inherited the bloodlines of two innate deities, but although these seven princesses all had the potential for cultivation, in his eyes they were not particularly outstanding.

Chi Yao was also examining the jade cauldron. It must be said that this Taoist priest had an otherworldly air about him, with an extraordinary and refined demeanor. Although she had never seen what a deity looked like, after seeing this Taoist priest, she felt that this was what a deity should look like.

I must say, this Taoist priest is quite handsome...

Yu Ding laughed and said, "When I first heard that you were beaten by that traitor Long Ji, I was quite worried and searched for you for a long time. Now that I see that you have married a virtuous wife, started a family, and are living a happy life, I am relieved."

Chi Yao, who had been smiling, frowned upon hearing this: "You're the master of that fairy who almost beat my old Zhang to death? Tell me, how did you teach your disciple?"

"I..." Yu Ding was speechless when asked the question, and couldn't help but look at Zhang Youren. This was the first time he had been questioned because of his disciple.

Zhang Youren, your wife has always been so brave. No wonder she's the reincarnation of the Queen Mother of the West. It seems she still retains some of her former personality traits.

"Stop talking, stop talking," Zhang Youren said awkwardly, pulling at his sleeve to stop him.

Chi Yao said angrily, "Why won't you say anything? What are you afraid of? Even gods have reason. Do you know that when I found him, he was already half dead..."

"Shrew..." Yu Ding silently commented in his heart, then coughed and said, "Indeed, my disciple was wrong in this matter. I apologize to both of you."

Zhang Youren laughed and said, "No need, no need."

Chi Yao said, "As the master, you are certainly responsible for not teaching your disciple well. However, as the saying goes, one should bear the consequences of one's own actions. Let your disciple apologize."

Hmm... Yu Ding's lips twitched. No, you think this is the Heavenly Court, Queen Mother of the West? Now that Long Ji is here, do you believe he can suppress you with one hand?
Zhang Youren became anxious: "No, Yao'er, what are you doing? I've already stopped caring about it, why are you bringing it up again?"

Chi Yao laughed: "Your true colors are showing now. You're so protective of her, and you still say nothing happened between you two?"

Zhang Youren said impatiently, "What happened? What could possibly happen? How could a fairy like her have worldly desires? Don't be so unreasonable!"

Chi Yao sneered, "Fairies may not be tempted by mortal desires, but mortals can. You said that the fairy who knocked you away back then was because you didn't work hard enough in your cultivation, but is that really the case? Or did you do something even more outrageous?" Yu Ding's expression became a little strange. No, what you're saying is getting more and more outrageous, Your Majesty.

He suddenly felt a sense of anticipation for her expression after she regained her memories.

Zhang Youren angrily retorted, "I, Zhang Youren, have lived an upright and honest life for over thirty years. How dare you slander my innocence out of thin air?"

The two glared at each other, their expressions tense and on the verge of exchanging blows.

"Cough cough!"

Fortunately, at that moment, accompanied by coughing, two figures came in, supporting each other.

The two men's clothes were spotless after the charring was removed, but their faces were still somewhat pale.

Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Taibai and Kunzhong Shenjiang exchanged a glance: "It seems we've come at the wrong time."

Yu Ding was overjoyed and said, "No, you've come at just the right time. Come in quickly."

He pulled the two of them in, and seeing that there were many people, Zhang Youren and his wife stopped arguing, looking somewhat awkward.

Next, Yu Ding asked the two men to identify themselves and explain their purpose.

"What? Kunzhong Divine General? Taibai Jinxing? He wants my old Zhang to become the Heavenly Emperor?"

Zhang Youren had already heard about this beforehand, so he wasn't surprised, but Chi Yao's face showed a mixture of surprise and delight after hearing it.

"If Father becomes the Heavenly Emperor, then we'll be princesses!" The younger daughters were delighted to hear this.

Only the eldest daughter of the Zhang family looked at Zhang Youren with concern.

"Didn't I tell you all that I can't be the Heavenly Emperor? Why won't you stop?"

Zhang Youren stood up with a displeased expression, cupped his hands and said, "Please, I beg you, just leave now and stop disturbing my life, okay?"

As he was about to bow down again, Venus and the Earth God General were terrified, their scalps tingling and their bodies covered in cold sweat.

Fortunately, Yu Ding caught Zhang Youren and shook his head, saying, "Let's talk things out. Don't just bow to people casually. They can't accept your gifts."

Haotian is the Heavenly Emperor who bears the Mandate of Heaven. In terms of rank, even the Heavenly Dao Saint is only on equal footing with him. So, who in this primordial world can be worthy of such a grand ceremony from him?
Zhang Youren snorted, "Anyway, whoever wants to be the Heavenly Emperor can be one. I won't be one, and I can't be one."

For some reason, he felt a deep-seated aversion to the position of Heavenly Emperor, as if a voice was telling him he must not go.

Chi Yao's eyes lit up as she said, "How can we not do it? We can. My old Zhang has agreed to this, you two immortal envoys."

For some reason, after hearing about this, she felt as if something in the heavens was calling to her, telling her that she must make this happen.

Zhang Youren became anxious: "When did I agree to that? You're making empty promises to others?"

Venus gave the Kun Zhong Shen Jiang a wink.

Kunzhong God General hurriedly advised, "Chief Zhang, don't be anxious. This is only the preliminary selection. We ten gods are each looking for suitable candidates. You are just one of the candidates that Taibai Jinxing and I have chosen."

Venus nodded and said, "That's right. Next, Chief Zhang will need to compete with other candidates found by the immortals. The gods will then elect him. As for who will ultimately become the Heavenly Emperor, that remains to be seen."

"Old Taibai, you lie without even blinking an eye!" Yu Ding thought to himself, scoffing. He was certain that Taibai had recognized Zhang Youren's identity after being struck by lightning.

However, Kunzhong Shenjiang, that hothead, arrived in Heaven late and probably doesn't understand much.

“Preliminary selection…” Zhang Youren pondered.

Chi Yao laughed and said, "Didn't you say that your Zhang family has a rule that when there is a disagreement at home, the majority shall prevail? Now we all support you going, so are you going or not?"

As she spoke, she raised her hand, and her three daughters followed suit.

The remaining few were initially observing, but after being glared at by their mothers, they decisively raised their hands to vote.

Old Zhang has a few more cozy, drafty little cotton-padded jackets... Yu Ding gently shook his head, then suddenly paused, only to see his eldest daughter looking at her father with heartache without making a move, and his youngest daughter beside her also not raising her hand.

Chi Yao ignored it, since she already had an overwhelming advantage.

Zhang Youren glanced at his wife and children, pondered for a moment, then patted his eldest daughter's head and his youngest daughter's face, and said with relief, "I'll go!"

"Go if you want, at worst I'll just go through the motions and come back," he thought to himself.

After a while.

Several beams of divine light shot up from the Zhang family's courtyard and headed straight for the Heavenly Court.

Yu Ding originally wanted to leave and not join in the fun, but Taibai Jinxing and Kunzhong Shenjiang were old acquaintances and extended a warm invitation. Zhang Youren also said that he was afraid to go to an unfamiliar place alone and insisted that he come along.

Soon after, they entered the South Heavenly Gate and arrived at the Tongming Palace.

Yu Ding greeted the celestial beings in the Heavenly Court with great enthusiasm and familiarity. There was no way around it; there were just too many acquaintances, and he knew almost everyone.

It was observed that the ten immortals who had set out to find suitable candidates had all returned.

Ok?
Seeing Yu Ding enter with Tai Bai, Li Jing, a member of the immortal ranks, showed a hint of surprise in his eyes, then smiled.