As soon as Zhang Jingmo came over, he sensed the residual heat and knew at a glance what Lu Guijiu had done. He called out, "Guijiu."

Lu Guijiu felt a bit guilty and looked up to explain, "Master, I was being careless..."

Zhang Jingmo looked at Lu Guijiu with a half-smile. Back then, he didn't know why Lu Guijiu was angry, but now how could he not know? It was nothing more than the child being unhappy about suddenly having a senior brother.

However, with the Xuanwu Conference approaching, Zhang Jingmo didn't want these small matters to disturb Lu Guijiu's mind. So, not only did he not scold Lu Guijiu, he even comforted him gently, saying, "It's okay, just be careful next time."

Lu Guijiu let out a low "mm" sound.

Zhang Jingmo asked, "Is there anything else you want to say?"

But Lu Guijiu asked, "Master, when did Senior Brother become your disciple?"

Zhang Jingmo said, "That was hundreds of years ago... before your father was even born."

The timing of his birth was not something Lu Guijiu could decide. Although dissatisfied, he could only accept it.

Zhang Jingmo said, "Cultivate well. In the future, your master will be relying on you."

Lu Guijiu didn't expect Zhang Jingmo to suddenly say such a thing. He said, "Master, this disciple will definitely cultivate diligently. This disciple will strive to protect Master and not let others harm Master."

These words were truly spoken at the right time. Zhang Jingmo laughed while thinking in his heart, not letting others harm me, then does that mean you can personally do it yourself? Forget it, even if raising a tiger, one still needs to give it a few pieces of meat.

Ji Jinglun's return was just a small episode. Very soon, the Xuanwu Conference officially began.

Zhang Jingmo had prepared for too long for this conference to allow any mistakes.

So, a few days before the Xuanwu Conference, Lu Guijiu's entire set of equipment was replaced. Zhang Jingmo had Lu Guijiu carry talismans and spiritual medicines and used spiritual tools to wrap Lu Guijiu from head to toe.

Ji Jinglun was also present. Seeing Zhang Jingmo like this, he laughed, "Junior Brother, I'm going to be jealous of you. Master never treated me this well back then."

Zhang Jingmo was feeling irritated. Hearing this, he said in a bad mood, "Go, go, go to the side. Don't come and interrupt."

Hearing this, Ji Jinglun laughed again but didn't say anything more.

Lu Guijiu obediently let Zhang Jingmo equip him. He very much liked his master's attentive manner, liked watching his master slightly furrowing his brows, pondering how to make him even more powerful.

Senior Brother's words made Lu Guijiu's heart feel as if he had eaten honey. He said, "Master, I won't let you down."

Zhang Jingmo thought for a bit and added, "If you really can't get first place, forget it. You must return safely."

Lu Guijiu nodded.

While the two were talking, the crane child delivering the Xuanwu Conference entry tablet also arrived. Zhang Jingmo took the wooden tablet and rewarded the crane child with a medicinal pill. The crane child let out a joyful cry and then took off and flew away.

After the crane child flew far away, Zhang Jingmo solemnly handed the wooden tablet to Lu Guijiu. He said, "This wooden tablet is the entry pass for the Xuanwu Conference. You must keep it safe."

Lu Guijiu agreed.

Zhang Jingmo looked at Lu Guijiu, who was almost as tall as him, always feeling that there was something he hadn't finished telling him. He furrowed his brows and thought for a long time but still couldn't remember. He did say a lot of nonsense though.

Instead, it was Ji Jinglun standing on the side who couldn't help but say, "Master, you're not sending your disciple to take an exam, you're clearly sending your husband to the battlefield."

Lu Guijiu laughed upon hearing this, but Zhang Jingmo scolded, "Nonsense."

Ji Jinglun said aggrievedly, "Master, you still say I'm talking nonsense. What you said to Junior Brother today is equivalent to what you said to me in a year."

Zhang Jingmo coldly said, "When I'm in seclusion refining pills, I won't say a word to you for a year."

Ji Jinglun pretended to cry, "Master, now that you have Junior Brother, you're biased. Back when it was my Xuanwu Conference, you only called a crane child to send me off. Before I even reached the venue, I broke my leg."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Jingmo also laughed. Speaking of which, his disciples did have some ties with the Xuanwu Conference. Back then, Ji Jinglun was also considered a genius, and many people expected him to make an appearance at the Xuanwu Conference. However, this silly child got too excited on his way there and actually fell directly from the crane child Zhang Jingmo had sent. At that time, he had not yet built his foundation. Falling from such a height directly to the ground, he smashed out a human-shaped hole and broke his bones into pieces. Let alone the Xuanwu Conference, he spent several months recovering from his injuries.

With Ji Jinglun's interruption, the frown on Zhang Jingmo's face finally relaxed. However, he didn't notice that when he showed a smile, Lu Guijiu seemed unhappy.

Lu Guijiu said to Lu Shu, "Why does seeing Master smile make me unhappy?"

Lu Shu sighed, "It depends on who he's smiling at."

Lu Guijiu understood.

After laughing, Lu Guijiu, who had received the wooden tablet, was about to set off. Zhang Jingmo was afraid that Lu Guijiu would encounter some danger on the way, so he insisted on escorting him to the restricted area of the Xuanwu Conference before leaving.

On the way back, he naturally encountered Daoist Cen, who had a face full of spring breeze. Rather than saying it was an encounter, it was more like Daoist Cen had come to find him.

Daoist Cen opened his mouth and said, "Zhang Jingmo, I haven't seen you for a few days, and you've become haggard again."

Zhang Jingmo said expressionlessly, "Not at all. It's Daoist Cen who has become haggard. I don't know if the spiritual medicines bought from the foot of the mountain are to your liking?"

Upon hearing this, Daoist Cen held his breath in his chest, his face alternating between green and white. Ever since he and Zhang Jingmo had a falling out, Zhang Jingmo had never given him a single pill, forcing him to spend a large amount of spirit stones to buy pills from other places... Not only were the medicinal properties of those pills inferior to those refined by Zhang Jingmo, but the prices were also very high, making Daoist Cen miserable.

Daoist Cen said, "You can be happy now, but in a month, I want to see if you can still laugh."

Zhang Jingmo said, "Rather than worrying about others, it's better to worry about yourself first. Daoist Cen, I'm afraid you won't be able to break through in the next hundred years. It's a pity for your disciple to lose his master so early."

Daoist Cen had never figured out how Zhang Jingmo, who usually didn't like to speak and had an air of immortality, could speak so venomously, stabbing at his heart with every sentence. He was almost angered to the point of fainting. If it weren't for the strict prohibition of infighting in Lingxu Sect, he might have directly fought with Zhang Jingmo.

Forget it, let him be proud for now. After the Xuanwu Conference ends, Zhang Jingmo won't be able to be so proud anymore. When Daoist Cen thought of Zhang Jingmo's grief-stricken appearance upon hearing the news of his disciple's death after the Xuanwu Conference, the depression in his heart dissipated. He laughed loudly and said, "Zhang Jingmo, what's the use of your sharp tongue? In a month, you'll have your time to cry."

Zhang Jingmo said, "Hehe."

The two parted unhappily. Zhang Jingmo went directly to find Yu Fen for a drink. Anyway, with Lu Guijiu gone for the month, he didn't have to supervise his cultivation every day.

Seeing Zhang Jingmo's unhappy expression, Yu Fen cautiously asked, "Did something happen to Lu Guijiu?"

Zhang Jingmo slapped the table, actually smashing the stone table to pieces. He angrily said, "Don't keep saying something happened or didn't happen all day long. My disciple is fine!"

Yu Fen laughed and said, "Okay, since you're in a bad mood, I'll accompany you to drink to your heart's content."

But unexpectedly, as soon as he finished speaking, he heard Zhang Jingmo ask faintly, "Lu Guijiu won't really have an accident, right?"

The smile froze on Yu Fen's face.