Chapter 1302: A Dilapidated Mansion
The hall was completely silent.
The guards, civil and military officials, and Emperor Zai Hong were all stunned. They thought they were seeing things so they quickly rubbed their eyes before they looked again. However, they found that their eyes did not deceive them. The Divine Lord they respected was truly kneeling on the ground. For a moment, they did not know how to react.
Zhu Honggong’s smile froze on his face as soon as he fell to his knees. He looked in the direction of the entrance.
‘Hallucination? Auditory hallucination?’
Zhu Honggong ruthlessly pinched himself and determined he was indeed hallucinating. It must be due to the psychological trauma from the past. With this, he moved to stand. Alas, before he could rise to his feet, a deep and sonorous voice rang in his ears.
“Kneel.”
Zhu Honggong’s eyes widened, and he began to tremble. Then, he said loudly, “M-master… I’m just joking around! I promise to complete my mission!”
Zhu Honggong longer cared about his dignity as the Divine Lord. He lost the air of someone who was on equal footing with the emperor.
“…”
Zai Hong was the ruler of Great Qing. Upon seeing Zhu Honggong disregarding his image, he felt slightly embarra.s.sed. Nevertheless, he did not dare to have any opinion nor did he dare to voice them out.
Zhao Hongfu scratched her head in confusion as she said, “Mr. Eighth, you’re really funny. I thought you were going to arrest me, but it turns out to be a joke.”
Zhu Honggong smiled and said, “I was afraid that Miss Zhao isn’t used to this new place so I decided to lighten the mood…”
Upon hearing this, Zhao Hongfu was greatly moved. She said, “As it turns out, Brother Zhu is still the nicest to me. Mr. Seventh is always so serious. He’s always studying or giving me missions. It’s too tiring. I’ve been to Ms. Sixth’s place once. However, she’s so cold so it wasn’t fun at all. Ms. Fifth is even scarier. She’s just like the emperor. Oh, wait, perhaps, it’s inappropriate for me to say these things…”
Zhu Honggong. “…”
Zhao Hongfu continued to say, “Anyway, this place is quite good. I didn’t expect you to have such great prestige here, Brother Zhu! Even then, you didn’t forget about me!”
‘Brother Zhu? You’re a lady. Is it appropriate for you to refer to us as brothers all the time?’
Zhu Honggong was speechless.
Zhao Hongfu said, “Alright, it’s settled then. Hurry up and give me an official post so I can enjoy a comfortable life!”
Upon seeing this, Zai Hong said, “I see! So you’re doing to cheer Ms. Zhao up! Your magnanimity really knows no bounds! Although we’re on equal footing, you’re so broadminded. I really can’t compare to you! It’s truly Great Qing’s blessing to have someone like you!”
Then, Zai Hong said, “Lady Zhao, I’ll issue a decree to…”
Zhu Honggong hurriedly rose to his feet and grabbed Zhao Hongfu before he interjected, “A joke is just a joke. You can’t take it seriously. We still have important matters to attend to.”
“Huh?”
“What do you mean by ‘huh’? We must complete the runic pa.s.sage in half a month!” Zhu Honggong said vehemently.
Zhao Hongfu. “…”
Zai Hong was speechless as well. ‘Brother, you keep changing all the time. I really can’t keep up with you!’
…
Lu Zhou cut off the power of sight.
His eighth disciple was not very reliable. Without Lu Li supervising his eighth disciple, he would grow lazy. It was best to continue letting his seventh disciple keep an eye on his eighth disciple.
Following that, Lu Zhou regulated his breathing and began to cultivate.
…
On the deck.
Zhao Yu pointed to Yu Shangrong and Yu Zhenghai who were standing side by side before asking curiously, “Are your Eldest Senior Brother and Second Senior Brother always like this?”
“You’ll get used to it,” Mings.h.i.+ Yin replied lazily.
Zhao Yu said with a smile, “There are many sword experts in Great Qin. In fact, there’s one in the capital. He’s from a remote place in the green lotus domain. He learned the sword from Master Qiu, and later, he became a famous general of Great Qin.”
“May I ask what his sword skills are like?” Yu Shangrong asked.
“If we don’t consider cultivation, in terms of sword skill, he’s definitely the best in Great Qin!” Zhao Yu said confidently.
Yu Shangrong smiled and said, “If there’s a chance, I hope I’ll be able to meet him.”
Zhao Yu a.s.sumed it would not be easy to get close to the people of the Evil Sky Pavilion. He did not expect Yu Shangrong to be so polite and gentle.
Zhao Yu felt his level was about that of Mings.h.i.+ Yin so he lowered his head slightly and said, “Second Senior Brother is really eloquent…”
Mings.h.i.+ Yin immediately said, “You’re really just spewing whatever nonsense that comes to your mind…”
“…”
At this moment, Yu Zhenghai asked, “Are there any saber experts?”
Zhao Yu thought for a moment before he said, “General Xi is quite skilled…”
“Quite skilled? Forget it. Quite skilled means he’s mediocre. He’s a far cry from being an expert,” Yu Zhenghai said.
Zhao Yu said, somewhat embarra.s.sed, “Although General Xi’s saber skills may not be the best in the world, he’s definitely not mediocre. He once carried a saber and crossed the northern desert, killing tens of thousands of rebels in Zhongzhou. His saber skills are honed through bloodshed and war. He dislikes ostentatious techniques and thinks that they’re just flashy trash.”
“I agree.” Yu Zhenghai nodded. “If there’s a chance, I’d like to spar with him.”
“I’m afraid that’s impossible,” Zhao Yu said, “He doesn’t like sparring; he practices by killing.”
Yu Zhenghai shook his head. “What a pity. I can’t kill him just to prove my saber skills. Forget it.”
“…”
At this moment, Zhao Yu’s subordinate who was manning the helm pointed up ahead and said, “Young Master Zhao, we’re here!”
Zhao Yu nodded before turning to face the others, “Everyone, we’ve arrived at Xiangyang.”
Everyone moved to the sides of the deck and looked down.
Little Yuan’er and Conch were clearly excited.
…
In the evening.
That’s a pity. I can’t kill him just to prove my saber skills. Forget it.”Yu Zhenghai shook his head.
“…”
At this moment, the subordinate in charge pointed to the clouds ahead and said, “Young Master Zhao, we’re here.”
Zhao Yu nodded. “Everyone, we have arrived at Xianyang.”
Everyone came to the deck.
They looked down.
Little Yuan ‘er and the conch also ran out and looked down excitedly.
The flying carriage lowered its alt.i.tude, attracting the commoners and cultivators on the street to look up. The flying carriage flew over and landed in a villa in the south of the city.
..
In the evening.
Zhao Yu had arranged for the accommodations of the people of the Evil Sky Pavilion.
Lu Zhou continued to cultivate in the room that had been arranged for him. He wanted to stabilize his 13th Birth Chart.
He did not use the Pillar of Impermanence since they were now in the capital of Great Qin, and it would affect ordinary people.
…
At the same time.
A figure flashed out of the residence into the street. It moved erratically at a speed that was difficult to capture with the naked eye. After walking down the long street, it left the bustling area and arrived at a quiet area in the north. Finally, it came to a halt in front of a dilapidated mansion that was overgrown with weed and vines.
The figure stood at the entrance of the mansion for a long time, looking at the broken plaque that hung on the entrance. There was only one word on the plaque, which was vaguely visible: Meng.
Following that, the figure leaped over the wall at the side and landed with movements as light as a swallow.
The garden was overrun with weeds that were taller than a person, but a small path was faintly discernible.
“Someone’s here?”
The figure moved stealthily along the small path and arrived at the rundown main hall. The doors and the windows were gone; a large hole could be seen on the roof.
At this moment, the sound of snoring from inside the hall.
The figure moved to the entrance and peeked inside. He shook his head and said in a barely audible voice, “It’s just a beggar.”
However, the beggar’s hearing was rather keen. He suddenly raised his head and called out, “Who’s there?”
“I’m just pa.s.sing by, wanting to find a place to rest.”
“You can find a place to sleep, but don’t disturb me,” the beggar said before he turned around and continued to sleep.
The figure did not enter the main hall.. Instead, he asked, “How long have you lived in this place?”