The stone paperweight struck directly against his forehead, leaving a red mark.
"Go ahead, calculate it! Calculate it now!" Master Sage Subhuti glared angrily at Skylar Loft, but after a moment, he said nothing more.
Time passed in silence. The Meditation Hall was oppressively still, and the atmosphere grew increasingly stifling.
She strode over, snatched the cup from Simon Stone’s hand, sniffed it, and frowned, "How can a cultivator touch wine?"
At this, Master Sage Subhuti was taken aback.
Skylar Loft spoke coolly, "The reason Erik Yang was able to defeat the Heavenly Court was simply because the Grand Supreme did not intervene. Later, Erik Yang surrendered and disbanded his followers. The truth behind all this has long been obvious. Even if I did not calculate, I would know."
"If you know, why did you still take Anna Yang as your disciple?" Master Sage Subhuti demanded.
He poured two cups, handed one to Simon Stone, and asked meaningfully, "You’re not going to refuse the wine too, are you?"
Previously, Belle had mentioned Skylar Loft. According to her, he was approachable and well-regarded among the Daoists, though a bit wild and irreverent.
Belle wasn’t scared at all. She glared right back and tugged Simon Stone’s hand, "Simon—no, Uncle Simon, here, eat what I brought you."
Perhaps this man wore many faces, and the one seen daily was just one of them.
By contrast, Elder Sky was much simpler—he only ever had one face, and it was a sour one.
Watching the uncle and niece bicker, Simon Stone couldn’t get a word in edgewise.
Seeing Simon Stone accept the cup, Skylar Loft’s cheerful expression returned. "That’s more like it! Come, let’s drink. The first cup is for your trials finally coming to an end!"
Simon Stone carefully clinked his cup with Skylar Loft’s, sniffed the wine, found it mild, and drank it all in one go.
"Good! Good!" Skylar Loft gave a thumbs up, drained his own cup, burped gently, and refilled Simon Stone’s glass, laughing, "At last, I have someone to drink with among all my brothers. This second cup is for our meeting—too late, but better than never!"
Simon Stone’s mouth twitched involuntarily at the sight.
Simon Stone gave an awkward smile and could only follow suit.
A little wine was no problem, but Skylar Loft’s easy familiarity was hard for Simon Stone to get used to.
Seated by Skylar Loft on the couch, Simon Stone eyed the dishes and the wine just poured. Hesitantly, he said, "Eighth Brother, isn’t wine and meat forbidden in the temple?"
Anna Yang furrowed her brows slightly as she stared at Skylar Loft.
"Aren’t we supposed to pay respects to Master?"
"You’ll have plenty of chances later. When the old man wants to see you, he’ll ask for you himself."
Skylar Loft ignored Anna Yang’s confusion, pulled her along, and muttered, "If Master hadn’t accepted the tenth disciple this time, I wouldn’t have dared to take you in."
Anna Yang snorted coldly, clearly unimpressed by being taken in as a disciple, yet her eyes kept drifting toward Master Sage Subhuti’s hall, as if with some reverence.
Unlike Elder Gale, the senior disciple whose followers were few, Skylar Loft had many disciples, most recruited later in life, often already skilled before joining him.
Perhaps it was because so many of his disciples were demons, and there was always some divide between humans and demons. That’s why he built his own Daoist temple far away on Cloudrise Peak—Cloudrise Pavilion. Thus came the saying: "Cloudrise Pavilion atop Cloudrise Peak, Skylar Loft within Cloudrise Pavilion." He was quite proud of this, even inviting a famous mortal calligrapher to inscribe the words, which became a celebrated tale.
At Cloudrise Pavilion, Skylar Loft often hosted grand banquets, inviting guests from every walk of life—be they from the Three Teachings, Nine Streams, Three Realms, or Six Paths. He was truly a man of vast connections.
Since none of his disciples lived in the temple, Skylar Loft had to personally arrange everything Anna Yang would need. Fortunately, none of the Daoist followers dared make trouble for Skylar Loft, so everything went smoothly.
By evening, Skylar Loft knocked on the Monkey’s door.
The Monkey had barely opened the door when Skylar Loft placed a hand on his shoulder.
This startled the Monkey quite a bit.
Cultivators of the Sage’s Path valued restraint and inner cultivation; such casual gestures were rare among them.
"Isn’t this kind of gesture unusual for a cultivator of the Sage’s Path?" the Monkey wondered.
Skylar Loft casually said, "You haven’t eaten yet, have you, Brother Sun?" Without waiting for a reply, he turned and waved, and three Daoists rushed in to set up a banquet on the table.
A banquet it truly was—there was wine and meat.
The Monkey’s mouth twitched involuntarily at the sight.
Daoist cultivators weren’t as strict as Buddhists about abstaining from meat and wine, but still, such lavish feasts were rare.
Simon Stone stared in disbelief as the Daoists finished setting up and left. Only then did Skylar Loft pull him inside: "Simon, I heard you spent ten years here, and knelt outside the gate for another year. Such perseverance is truly admirable. As your senior, I must give you a proper welcome."
Seated by Skylar Loft on the couch, Simon Stone eyed the dishes and the wine just poured. Hesitantly, he said, "Eighth Brother, isn’t wine and meat forbidden in the temple?"
Skylar Loft didn’t answer. He rolled up his sleeves, grabbed a chunk of pork trotter, and started eating. The smile on his lips faded slightly as he glanced at Simon Stone now and then.
This made Simon Stone feel a bit awkward.
After finishing the pork trotter and wiping the grease from his mouth, Skylar Loft smiled and said, "Wine is only frowned upon here, not forbidden. Sneaking into the Scripture Pavilion, now that’s forbidden—but didn’t you do it anyway, Simon? Why so well-behaved with your Eighth Brother now?"
With that, he grabbed a chicken leg and continued eating, his gaze fixed on Simon Stone with a hint of playful mockery.
"Well... I—I don’t eat meat," Simon Stone finally stammered after some thought.
Skylar Loft slapped his forehead, "Here I was thinking you were refusing my hospitality! Hahaha!" With a flick of his hand, the entire tableful of meat vanished, replaced by an array of vegetables and fruits.
He poured two cups, handed one to Simon Stone, and asked meaningfully, "You’re not going to refuse the wine too, are you?"
He poured two cups, handed one to the Monkey, and asked meaningfully, "You’re not going to refuse the wine too, are you?"
But now, Simon Stone suddenly felt that his Eighth Brother was far more complicated than he appeared.
Perhaps this man wore many faces, and the one seen daily was just one of them.
By contrast, Fifth Brother Elder Sky was much simpler—he only ever had one face, and it was a sour one.
Simon Stone pursed his lips, a smile slowly spreading across his face. He reached out to take the cup, "I’ve never had wine before, but since you offered, I won’t refuse."
Seeing Simon Stone accept the cup, Skylar Loft’s cheerful expression returned. "That’s more like it! Come, let’s drink. The first cup is for your trials finally coming to an end!"
Seeing the Monkey accept the cup, Skylar Loft’s cheerful expression returned. "That’s more like it! Come, let’s drink. The first cup is for your trials finally coming to an end!"
Simon Stone carefully clinked his cup with Skylar Loft’s, sniffed the wine, found it mild, and drank it all in one go.
"Good! Good!" Skylar Loft gave a thumbs up, drained his own cup, burped gently, and refilled the Monkey’s glass, laughing, "At last, I have someone to drink with among all my brothers. This second cup is for our meeting—too late, but better than never!"
With that, he raised his cup again.
Simon Stone gave an awkward smile and could only follow suit.
A little wine was no problem, but Skylar Loft’s easy familiarity was hard for Simon Stone to get used to.
He wasn’t much of a socializer; for more than ten years, he’d barely spoken to anyone. Suddenly having such an enthusiastic friend was a lot to get used to.
Just then, Belle pushed open the door, carrying food she’d prepared for Simon Stone.
She entered and, seeing Skylar Loft, exclaimed, "Uncle Skylar! What are you doing here?"
She strode over, snatched the cup from Simon Stone’s hand, sniffed it, and frowned, "How can a cultivator touch wine?"
She strode over, snatched the cup from the Monkey’s hand, sniffed it, and frowned, "How can a cultivator touch wine?"
Her gaze locked on Skylar Loft, lips pursed in anger, though as his junior she couldn’t openly scold him.
Skylar Loft saw Belle’s expression and gave a few awkward laughs, setting his cup down with a sigh. "Little Belle is just as stubborn as your master. Cultivating immortality is about seeking longevity—if you live forever but never enjoy life, what’s the point?"
Belle pouted and moved closer to Simon Stone, taking his hand. "Master says Eighth Uncle’s ideas are the wildest—listen if you must, but don’t believe them, or you’ll end up just like him."
Simon Stone gave a nervous smile.
"Hey, did your master really say that about me? You’re not making it up, are you, little girl?" Skylar Loft tapped the table and glared, but his youthful face was far from intimidating no matter how angry he pretended to be.
Belle wasn’t scared at all. She glared right back and tugged Simon Stone’s hand, "Simon—no, Uncle Simon, here, eat what I brought you."
"What are you doing? My brother and I were about to talk and drink by candlelight—why are you meddling, little girl?"
Watching the uncle and niece bicker, Simon Stone couldn’t get a word in edgewise.
Watching the uncle and niece bicker, the Monkey couldn’t get a word in edgewise.
Skylar Loft was about to retort when hurried footsteps sounded outside the door.
A Daoist disciple burst in, shouting, "Uncle Skylar, something’s wrong! Senior Sister Anna Yang and Senior Brother Eugene are fighting!"
"What?!" Skylar Loft toppled off the couch in shock.