Holy Light Sect.

Currently, the sect was holding a ceremony for accepting disciples from different places of the Holy Light Palace. Everyone was very enthusiastic about this because not only can you have the possibility to become a personal disciple of an elder here or a core disciple but you can also have the qualifications to be chosen as one of the Holy Princes of the Holy Light Palace.

There were no prerequisites to becoming one of the Holy Princes. You didn’t have to be a monk like the Holy Light Emperor or the others. As long as you had the heart to serve for peace, nothing else would matter to them.

“There are quite a lot of applicants for this year’s ceremony, huh?” an old man said, combing his beard with his hand. “There are also some that are quite decent as well.”

“Supreme Elder Gu, why have you come out of seclusion? Do you perhaps want to accept new disciples for this year’s ceremony?” another elder said, appearing beside him inside a room—while looking at the thousands of applicants outside. “Isn’t it enough for you to be able to accept someone with a rare physique?”

“Well, about that brat, he’s already on his way to clear a Transcendent-Level Sacred Areas to become a Holy Prince. He might even have a chance to become a Holy Son. He’s already been recommended to the Holy Light Palace.”

“Supreme Elder Gu, you’ve really been in seclusion for quite a while, huh? Haven’t you heard about the news? A few months ago, your disciple already became the new Holy Son! He replaced the old Holy Son before. What was he called again? Ah… yes, Sheng Ao! Rumor says that he had a scandal with a woman before so the Holy Light Emperor was forced to banish him out from the Holy Light Palace. I don’t know the details… but it seems like Sheng Ao is very close to the Holy Light Emperor. It was said that it was the latter who raised this kid.”

“Eh?” Supreme Elder Gu was surprised. “That kid had already gotten that far?”

He then recalled the last conversation he had with the kid back then.

***

“Master, I’ll definitely go to the Holy Light Palace and become the Holy Son!” his disciple’s words as he cupped his hands in front of his master.

“What drives you to become the Holy Son, We’er?” Supreme Elder Gu asked. “Is there some hidden purpose for you to be this worked up when it comes to becoming the Holy Son? You know, as a monk, desires for power are mere ornaments you… even for me even though I don’t have a shiny head as you have. We do not desire anything. Worldly feelings—”

“But master…” Hao We interrupted Supreme Elder Gu. “Humans are still humans. We are still beings conceived in this world to feel something. Don’t we advocate for peace? Isn’t that a desire in itself?”

Supreme Elder Gu was stunned to speak, after hearing his disciple’s counter-query. What his disciple told him was true. If monks and others like them always said that they didn’t desire anything, even commencing sacrificial rituals, then what about the peace that they kept on blabbering out about? What about the peace that they, including him, kept on trying to achieve?

“Why is that the case so, master? Don’t you think it’s a bit hypocritical for us to advocate for it when we would say we should have any desires for anything? If we kill others for peace, then isn’t killing a cause for a purpose of peace? Master, it’s not always the case. I just realized it when the Holy Light Palace invited me to dive into one of their Sacred Areas.

“Master, I am your most outstanding disciple since I was a kid. I also desire peace. My family was once murdered by someone I still don’t know. It was said that one of the churches did it. I did not believe it at first, but after investigating it myself and leveraging all the current capabilities that I have, I have found that it was really the church that did it. All for the so-called peace. I don’t desire revenge as everything would fall back into Karma. However, master, do you think it’s hypocritical when we would say that even though our hearts really wanted to?

“Haha, anyway, master. Don’t bother about my thoughts. You know me; I always say the things I shouldn’t say at all. Anyway, master, continue with your cultivation. I’ll continue mine, but I’ll never forget the kindness you showered upon me. When you go out of seclusion, please tell someone to tell me. I would like to visit you at that time.”

***

“He really did it?” Supreme Elder Gu asked himself. “He really attained the title of a Holy Son? How did he accomplish such a thing? Will? Drive?”

“Supreme Elder Gu? Why are you spacing out? Don’t you want to accept disciples this time?” the elder beside him woke him up from his stupor.

“Oh, right. Elder Nan, could you do me the favor to tell someone to fetch my disciple from the Holy Light Palace after telling him I’m already out of seclusion? He has told me that he would see me.”

“Alright, Supreme Elder… I’ll send the message right away to one of my disciples. I don’t have much time to personally do it, because I’ll be the one presiding the ceremony today,” the elder said, pulling out a token from his pocket and telling his disciple the same order. “Anyway, let’s go now, Supreme Elder… perhaps we’ll find another sapling this year that’s worth nurturing?”

“Desire… peace, huh?” Supreme Elder Gu contemplated before completely disappearing from the room and appearing above the clouds as he looked at the new faces that would soon be entering their Holy Light Sect. “Contradictions. Beings are hypocritical. I am as well. No one is as holy as they think they are. Even the Holy Light Emperor might even have a past or part of himself that he wouldn’t want to talk about. Perhaps… it’s the desire… because of that desire for peace… we can all become people we never even imagined to be. It could be we can become savage for peace. It could be we would become kind for peace. But that’s it… if we become kind for peace, then that’s not kindness at all.”

Kindness was not anymore a free lunch.

Even at this moment, Supreme Elder Gu held his pride up and did not want to be seen because he thought he should show up only when everything was done. What was this if not pride?

SIGH.

Supreme Elder Gu became contemplative. What his disciple’s thoughts did to him greatly disturbed his mind, but he was able to think about it properly and it was like he had always been closing his eyes to things that he should have already seen.

“Kids, today is the day… a milestone for you to become who you want to become and what you intend to do in life. We are now going to start the process of accepting disciples! However, there are prerequisites before we can accept you! In this ceremony, there will be three parts…”

While this was ongoing, Yang Lujia and the others already blended with the crowd and first came to the Holy Light Sect for information. Yang Fei told them that if they wanted information, they must first go to the Holy Light Sect.

The Holy Light Sect is the biggest and strongest sect under the Holy Light Palace’s jurisdiction. It was said that they had a Supreme Elder who was a former Arch-Cardinal himself, someone who once worked for the Holy Light Emperor. Even the sect master was one of the present Arch-Cardinals.

Arch-Cardinals are the highest position they could get in the Holy Light Palace, only under two positions—the Holy Son and the Holy Light Emperor himself. Their names were extremely holy that people would throw at you all the things that they had if you disrespected them by only an inch.

Although the Holy Light Palace was pretty new compared to the others, its depths could not be measured at all. Who would have thought that there had already been two generations of Arch-Cardinals and still the same emperor?

“It’s pretty lively there,” Yang Lujia said. “What’s going on? They’re trying to accept disciples from all over the place? Oh, so that’s why it was so crowded. Oh?” Yang Lujia sensed someone alive above the clouds and saw a small token hanging on his waist. “Supreme Elder Gu? One of the former Arch-Cardinals?”