Chapter 318 Debtors Are Grandpas

Elder Star-Treader tried every means to persuade.

Debts always come due, and Elder Star-Treader vaguely sensed something.

That is, Keeper Shouren wasn't his usual self, though he couldn’t pinpoint exactly what had changed.

But better to play it safe—just repaying the owed spirit stones would settle the matter.

"Brother Guyue, trust me, these spirit stones should be repaid!"

Seeing that Fan Qinghui remained unconvinced, Elder Star-Treader turned to Elder Guyue.

On the fence, Elder Guyue nodded upon hearing his senior brother’s words.

"What? Have you both lost your minds? That's a fortune in spirit stones! Do you not know what kind of person Keeper Shouren is?"

"A debt's a debt!"

"It’s not just me refusing to repay—just wait and see, many others won’t either!"

"Now that we’re in the Guyue Sect, is he really gonna start something here?"

Fan Qinghui couldn’t understand it, truly couldn’t.

"Even if there’s no fight, your reputation will be ruined!" Elder Star-Treader warned.

"Impossible! If he only demands repayment from the three of us, then yes, my reputation might suffer. But if he starts collecting from all who owe him, the one with the ruined reputation won’t be me—it’ll be Keeper Shouren!"

The court of public opinion.

If Keeper Shouren pressed everyone for repayment, their gossip alone could ruin him.

Elder Star-Treader made a few more attempts, but Fan Qinghui remained unmoved.

"Senior brother, just tell him I’m in seclusion. Play dumb about the whole thing. Can he forcibly drag me out of my secluded state?"

"That's it - I'm out!"

With no other choice, Elder Star-Treader could only go with Elder Guyue.

"Keeper Shouren, sorry to keep you waiting. Here are my 30,000 top-grade spirit stones. My apologies for the delay in repayment!"

Elder Star-Treader laid it on thick.

"Keeper, here are my 10,000 spirit stones."

Keeper Shouren couldn’t help but smile.

"Times have been tough, fellow Keepers. I hope you understand."

"Not at all, not at all. We owed you for so long—it’s only right you came to collect. No hard feelings, we hope."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

Keeper Shouren couldn't hide his delight—these two had repaid.

"And Elder Fan? Why haven’t I seen him?"

"Ah, my sect brother is currently in seclusion for a breakthrough. It wouldn't be right to interrupt his cultivation. Once he emerges, I’ll inform him to bring them to you himself. Will that work for you?"

Shouren didn't press further and nodded, "Since that's the case, we'll be going now!"

"Brother Daoist, stay a while longer. Let me treat you to some of Guyue Sect's specialty dishes."

"No need, no need. We still have other spirit stones to collect. We've bothered you enough already."

The three of them left.

"Brother Daoist Lu, Brother Daoist Lin, what do you think? These people aren't so bad, are they?" Shouren beamed.

So, his protection hadn't been completely pointless.

Lu Ye gave a slight nod.

To be honest, having two people return spirit stones had already exceeded Lu Ye's expectations.

"Let's go, next one!"

Little did he know, Fan Qinghui couldn't help but laugh when he heard that Shouren had left just like that.

See? Not paying him back was that easy.

His two honest shixiong had actually handed over such a huge sum—what fools!

He couldn't resist sharing the news with others.

With two spirit stones recovered, Shouren was riding high, and he was in great spirits.

He even took out the Sound Transmission Stone.

"What are you doing?" Lu Ye asked.

"Hahaha, what else? Naturally, I'm contacting them in advance, telling them to have the spirit stones ready. That way, I can prepare myself—if I can recover even half of what's owed, I'll be satisfied," Shouren let out a hearty laugh.

Lu Ye's mouth opened slightly, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he remained silent.

He and Lin Chuyue shared a knowing look, both seeing pity in each other's eyes.

If you just showed up out of the blue, some people, out of impulse or pride, might actually give you the spirit stones.

But warning them ahead of time...

Shouren began contacting everyone who owed him.

"Brother Daoist Mofeng, it's Shouren. Are you there?"

"Brother Daoist Shouren, I am!"

"Well, do you remember ninety-one years ago when you invited me to the North Sea?"

"Of course I remember! Brother Daoist Shouren showed your mighty power back then, making the North Sea monsters suffer. I recall it vividly."

"Hahaha, well, you promised me 30,000 spirit stones for that trip, but you didn't have them at the time. Now that a century has passed, shouldn't you give me the spirit stones you promised?"

There was sudden silence from the Sound Transmission Stone.

Shouren was baffled.

Undeterred, he started calling the next person.

"Daoist Fengjian, long time no see. Are you there?"

"Brother Shouren, indeed I am. I was just about to thank you for mediating with that murderous fiend Lu Ye."

Lu Ye???

"Ahem, 'murderous fiend' might be an overstatement. Lu Ye was being hunted from start to finish—he had no choice in the matter, really."

"Yes, yes, truly helpless."

"Actually... do you recall eighty-one years ago when you invited me..."

Daoist Fengjian went quiet.

"Young Yuan!"

"Senior Shouren! You actually initiated contact with me—this brings me immeasurable happiness!"

"Hahaha, Young Yuan, do you remember twenty-four years ago when you begged me..."

Little Yuan fell silent.

Shouren Daoist reached out to over a dozen people consecutively. It was clear he was very busy.

The earliest debt went back 340 years, while the most recent was just three years ago.

Heaven knew how many people had sought Shouren Daoist's help over such a long span?

Yet, he kept trying, contacting one after another.

In the end, only one person gave him a positive response.

"Congratulations, my friend! I've prepared choice wine and delicacies in my mountain retreat. Come find me, and I'll present the spirit stones respectfully!"

Hearing this message, Shouren Daoist stood stunned.

"Fellow Daoist... why congratulate me?"

"Congratulations on your epiphany and spiritual rebirth!"

Shouren Daoist...

It must be said, his eyes grew moist at that moment.

Lu Ye was equally surprised.

"Who is this?" Lu Ye asked in surprise.

"Daoist Yuhua."

Ah, Daoist Yuhua... that explains it.

In a previous incarnation, Daoist Yuhua had once warned him not to show boundless kindness to others.

Though their interactions weren't frequent, he knew Daoist Yuhua had fallen during the Great Demon Purge—a truly saintly and virtuous cultivator!

But... what of the others besides Daoist Yuhua?

"Brother Daoist? Brother Daoist? Where are you?"

"My apologies, Brother Daoist Shouren, I have urgent matters to attend to. Let's discuss this later!"

"Brother Daoist Shouren, I remember the spirit stones I owe you, but I truly don’t have any right now. You know I’ve got my hands full with problems lately."

"Brother Daoist Shouren, I’m sorry, but I don’t have any spirit stones at the moment."

Some replied, while others who had just been speaking suddenly went radio silent upon hearing about repaying the spirit stones.

Brother Daoist Shouren...