"Junior Yan Shouyi, representing the Civil Sect, welcomes both of you!"
Zhou Yan and Hou Jingchen got out of the car. Yan Shouyi warmly stepped forward to shake their hands.
Hou Jingchen was not good with words, and his scrutinizing gaze never left Yan Shouyi. Zhou Yan, on the other hand, was adept at handling such situations, responding to Yan Shouyi with equal enthusiasm, uttering phrases like "long admired" and "fellow practitioners."
At first glance, it seemed Zhou Yan had a better attitude towards Yan Shouyi, appearing more eager to merge with the Civil Sect, while Hou Jingchen, proud and arrogant, looked down on Yan Shouyi and the Civil Sect.
Fortunately, Yan Shouyi had done his homework with Li Chongxi beforehand, understanding their personalities and temperaments. Otherwise, he would certainly have been misled by their outward appearances.
After ushering the honored guests into the Civil Sect stronghold, the usual routine followed: introductions, demonstrations of strength, and finally, arrival at the assembly hall.
Throughout the journey, Zhou Yan praised the Civil Sect without reservation, and Hou Jingchen gained a new understanding of Yan Shouyi and the Civil Sect.
Although the Civil Sect stronghold was extremely luxurious, upon closer inspection, not a single penny was spent unnecessarily.
Every building within the stronghold was constructed with great care, not only blending harmoniously with the Feng Shui of West Lake but also specifically designed for practitioners of civilian sects. It was a case of making the best use of resources, with no hint of extravagance.
Members living within the Civil Sect no longer had to be burdened by mundane matters; they could dedicate themselves entirely to cultivating their skills.
Compared to other civilian sect organizations, the Civil Sect was practically a paradise that everyone dreamed of!
Thinking of this, Hou Jingchen felt a blush creep onto his face, as his Changlin Army was still embodying the spirit of enduring hardship and fatigue, often being taken to the deserts and Gobi for training.
Because of Hou Jingchen's philosophy, his subordinates seemed to have endured a lot of unnecessary suffering.
When the group arrived at the assembly hall, they found it already packed with guests.
Zhou Yan's gaze swept across the room and noticed that instead of the traditional seating arrangement with varying levels of seniority, there was a large round table with dozens of seats.
"A round table? What does Yan Shouyi mean by this? Is he not planning to lead the civilian sects?" Zhou Yan wondered inwardly.
The round table implied no distinction between superiors and subordinates, and the seats were identical. However, everyone had consciously left the eastern position vacant, a position surely meant for Yan Shouyi.
As Yan Shouyi entered the assembly hall, everyone inside fell silent.
Yan Shouyi's gaze swept across the room, acknowledging Yan Chou, Jiang Qingxue, Wang Jiwang, Li Chongxi, Cui Yu, Zhao Zhenghao, and others who were also seated at the round table.
Seated around the round table were the leaders of various civilian sect organizations, big and small.
Yan Shouyi cleared his throat and announced loudly,
"Esteemed guests, I have invited you all to the Civil Sect today to jointly discuss the future path of the civilian sects! Here, there are no distinctions of status, no hierarchy of high or low, everyone enjoys equal speaking rights. We are not here to conform to anyone's ideas, but to collectively decide the future of the practitioners of civilian sects!"
"Excellent!"
Li Chongxi led the applause.
The others quickly followed suit.
For the leaders of most civilian sect organizations, joining the Civil Sect offered countless benefits and no drawbacks; they couldn't have wished for anything more.
Initially, everyone had prepared to submit to Yan Shouyi's authority. However, upon arriving and seeing the grand round table, their perceptions shifted.
Yan Shouyi had shown immense respect to each individual, thus earning their respect in return. Now, everyone was genuinely convinced and impressed by Yan Shouyi, and the primary objective of this meeting had already been largely achieved.
Jiang Qingxue gazed at Yan Shouyi with joy in her beautiful eyes, her face radiating pride. As a mother, nothing brought her more happiness than seeing her son succeed.
Yan Shouyi gestured for Zhou Yan and Hou Jingchen to be seated, "Senior Zhou, Senior Hou, please be seated."
"Thank you."
Hou Jingchen was also quite satisfied with Yan Shouyi's current demeanor. He smiled at Yan Shouyi and then took his seat.
Zhou Yan followed suit, but his eyes darted around, seemingly lost in thought.
Yan Shouyi sat in the last vacant seat.
He smiled and said, "After the tireless efforts of our esteemed elders, inheritors of the Lu Ban tradition, the 'Civil Sect Dao Canon' has finally been compiled. You should all have begun studying it and experiencing its profound mysteries?"
A fortune teller, known as a 'She Daoren', laughed heartily, "I've only studied it for three days, and I already feel the influence of the Five Curses and Three Deficiencies diminishing. If I study it for another ten years, I might no longer be affected by the Five Curses and Three Deficiencies at all! President Yan, you are truly our savior this time!"
Others chimed in, expressing their gratitude to Yan Shouyi for his selfless act.
He could have used the 'Civil Sect Dao Canon' to forcibly recruit members from other factions, and the leaders present would have had no means to resist.
However, Yan Shouyi chose not to do so. He opted to make the contents public, allowing all practitioners of civilian sects to read and cultivate freely.
This act alone was enough to earn everyone's admiration.
Yan Shouyi humbly waved his hands, "I only completed the final four sentences. The credit still belongs to the esteemed seniors, the inheritors of the Lu Ban tradition."
"President Yan, please don't be so modest. Those last four sentences were the touch of genius! Someone else surely couldn't have written them!" the fortune teller praised.
After a few pleasantries, Yan Shouyi got down to business.
He sat upright, placed his hands on the table with fingers intertwined, his expression serious.
"Now that the 'Civil Sect Dao Canon' has been published, and practitioners of civilian sects are no longer affected by the Five Curses and Three Deficiencies, in essence, we are no different from the major orthodox sects. Therefore, everyone, do you think there is still a need to continue the conflict between our two factions?"
After this question was posed, everyone fell silent.
Some shook their heads, some waved their hands, and some lowered their heads in silence.
Truthfully, no one wanted to openly fall out with the major orthodox sects. However, the relationship between the two factions had been extremely tense previously, with some skirmishes leading to irreconcilable grudges.
Now, if reconciliation were to occur, wouldn't all those who had died have died in vain?
Even though everyone also wished for peaceful coexistence, they felt ashamed to face their fallen friends.
However, no one wanted to be the first to speak. After all, everyone knew that Yan Shouyi desired reconciliation between the two factions. To bring up the sacrificed companions now would be to actively place a stumbling block in Yan Shouyi's path and become the primary culprit hindering peace between the two factions.
That could potentially lead to being nailed to the pillar of shame.
Just as everyone thought the topic would pass due to their silence, Zhou Yan suddenly spoke.
Zhou Yan's face was filled with guilt and embarrassment as he said,
"President Yan, I don't wish to dampen everyone's spirits like this, but there are some words that I, Zhou, must say, however uncomfortable it may be..."
Yan Shouyi narrowed his eyes. He knew Zhou Yan was a smiling tiger, and his current embarrassment was feigned. The crucial part was what he was about to say next.
As expected, Zhou Yan was about to bring up the sacrificed companions.