Pei Zi Yun watched on as the oxcart with Ye Su’er gradually departed. He stayed firmly rooted to the spot until the oxcart disappeared from his view altogether. He then stretched a finger out. At this point, a white Plum Blossom appeared as it gradually became larger and transformed faster. Before long, it became a semi-transparent information interface, bearing with it faint light. Numerous words could be seen on it."Mission: Relieve the danger of Free Cloud Sect. Become a Dao Master (Completed)
This wasn’t the time for him to be deep in thought, hence Pei Zi Yun turned around to go. At this point, the preparation was done. He then invited the eunuch into a hall.
Most people would do things differently. After reading out the Imperial Edict, most people would lose reverence and respect for the eunuch, who was just a mere eighth ranked official. Monasteries in this realm are not prohibited from consuming meat and fish, but had food with slightly simpler tastes according to the customs. Everyone had eight dishes before them and a jug of wine to pour for themselves.
After the meal was over, fruits were served before Pei Zi Yun concluded the banquet. He then ordered for everyone to leave and led the eunuch into the adjacent hall and served him tea. The eunuch then spoke, "Actually I don’t belong to the Emperor’s Palace. Instead I come from the Crown Prince’s Palace. After receiving your gift, the Crown Prince was elated and invited you to the capital city again when you’re free. Since an edict had to be issued to you, I was thus sent here to see through the procession."
"Eunuch, is there something wrong with the Crown Prince?" Pei Zi Yun asked. No wonder the ceremony was such a simple one.
The eunuch laughed, "Dao Master, I don’t know much about the thoughts of the Crown Prince. But all will be made known to you when you see him."
Pei Zi Yun hesitated. To be frank, he didn’t want to get involved in affairs between the Crown Prince and King Lu any longer. The problem between the pair of them was extremely complicated and required a great deal of skill to handle.
Whoever wanted to solve it can go ahead!
He knew that he wasn’t someone who belonged in the Imperial Court. At this point, how many more t.i.tles can the imperial court confer upon him after coming to the rescue of the dynasty? Unless the reward was money, but then again out of the 20,000 taels of silver he once had, he still had 17,000 taels!
Besides, the last time he was in the capital city, he heard that there was some gold owned by the previous dynasty that had been sunk intentionally. Although there were talks of it, most people regarded it as just groundless rumors.
Only after ten years was the precise location of the treasure found. Jade, gold bars, silver bars and gold ingots were unearthed.
Such news shocked the world. Even though the original owner was imprisoned, he heard of such tales. Besides, something like this had nothing to do with Daoists sects whatsoever and thus wasn’t something taboo. This memory remained extremely clear to the original owner.
Indeed, the treasure was buried on an island nearby called Shigu island.
As for how much it was worth, the original owner couldn’t be sure. But it wouldn’t be less than 300,000 taels of gold. If those idiots who uncovered it gave it to the Crown Prince, Pei Zi Yun was sure that they would eventually end up dead.
Thinking this way, a Plum Blossom appeared before his eyes as it gradually became bigger and transformed faster into a transparent information interface, bearing with it faint light. Words could be seen across his vision.
"Mission: a.s.sist the Crown Prince, Defeat Holy Jail Sect"
"This system seems particularly bent on me destroying the Holy Jail Sect."
"But even if I were to a.s.sist the Crown Prince, I won’t do it in a way which would compromise my life. That’s only something the original owner would do." Pei Zi Yun thought to himself before he spoke, "Since the Crown Prince has invited me, how can I ever refuse? However, you’re an Imperial Envoy, and it won’t be fitting that someone of a lower status should travel with you. Give me several days, I shall find my way to the capital city."
After these words were spoken, the eunuch released as he smiled, "Now that the Dao Master has agreed, I can break the good news to the Crown Prince."
Dark Altar Sect
Several warriors patrolled the vicinity of the sect.
It had rained for several hours now as clouds and fog enveloped the entire area. At the same time a certain mysterious feel was added to the monastery. All of a sudden, music was played as fireworks exploded in the sky.
After several continuous explosions, the town beneath the mountain came alive as people came and went. Many were out buying gifts as they hurried along their way.
Some distance away stood the monastery and the halls within were extremely dark. The only thing that could be seen was incense which had been lit before the statue of an anchor. The winds blew against the paper curtains, as the sound of a clock ticking could be heard far away. The Blind Daoist was seated on the ground with his legs folded. All of a sudden, he jolted up and p.r.i.c.ked his ears to listen. There were ten rings.
"Ten consecutive rings, looks like he finally reached Yin Master level 10. And has sent this signal to inform the sect."
The Blind Daoist opened his eyes, stood up, and mumbled under his breath, "The fortunes in the sky changed abruptly, but Xie Cheng Dong managed to reach the tenth level. His authority must’ve increased significantly and he shall come to ask questions. I have to prepare myself."
Several days had pa.s.sed
Xie Cheng Dong was dressed in a set of golden robes with embroidery all over. When he walked past, the warriors who guarded the area bowed deeply, "Young master!"
Xie Cheng Dong brought a little kid along with him. This kid held onto a green box with several inscriptions on it. From time to time, the box trembled as if there was a living animal contained within.
As soon as he reached the monastery, Xie Cheng Dong felt dark energy looming over the area as it seeped out. When he focused and entered his Yin Master realm, he could see that grey and black energy swirled around. However, as he walked towards the black mist, it dissipated, as if his body had repelled the black mist.
Xie Cheng Dong sighed, as he walked further in. He felt the black energy become stronger and more concentrated. Additionally, he also felt a certain pressure being exerted on his body, which was extremely disconcerting.
"The evil energy is so heavy now?" Xie Cheng Dong thought as he opened the door and entered the hall. Even when the doors were open, the light from outside found it hard to penetrate through the dense darkness. After his ascent to the tenth stage of Yin Master, the dark energy within this hall became way more obvious to him. In fact, it almost caused a certain fear and repulsion to this Full Circle Foundation (Level 10) Yin Master.
"This sacrifice was being made for the greater good." Xie Cheng Dong walked across the hall, his face was downcast.
Before long, he could see the Blind Daoist seated on the mat, he chanted several mantras as the air within the hall rippled violently.
Xie Cheng Dong sat before the Blind Daoist as the child handed the green box over to him before the child left.
Soon, the Blind Daoist stopped chanting and whispered, "Young master has finally arrived."
"I’ve arrived." Xie Cheng Dong acknowledged as the hall went silent once more.
After some time of silence, Xie Cheng Dong handed the box over, "This is a spiritual medication given by the sect. It can help improve your longevity."
The Blind Daoist fell deep into thought for some time before he spoke, "Although my physical eyes don’t work, I can tell that young master has already reached the Full Circle Foundation of the Yin Master, the tenth stage. You’re only a small step away from becoming an Earth Immortal."
Xie Cheng Dong then sighed, "If it weren’t for my father and yourself, I wouldn’t be where I am today. All this was only achieved through your hard work. Please, keep this spiritual medication."
Hearing these words, the Blind Daoist sighed, "Many years ago, I was chased after and attacked by my enemies. I met your father by chance, and he took me in, protected me and got revenge for me. I haven’t forgotten his grace to me."
"Both you are your father are extremely gifted, if not, it would be extremely difficult to rebel against the heavens and alter your fate." The Blind Daoist laughed, "It’s just that it had to be done through my hands."
"Although that’s the case, I shall never forget what you’ve done for me." Xie Cheng Dong sighed as he stood up and took several paces. "The more I progress, the more I understand how rare it is for someone to help me the way you did."
"My father was just a normal disciple at the age of 30. After gaining your a.s.sistance, he became a Core Disciple from a normal disciple within a year. Soon after, he became an Elder."
"And I was well protected and groomed since I was young, also with your help. I soared and ascended levels rapidly. Before long, I was the best disciple within my sect. Now, I’m almost an Earth Immortal, while my peers are still struggling to open the gates to heavens. Most of them wouldn’t even succeed."
Xie Cheng Dong spun around, his eyes were opened wide and glowed, "Maybe my father and I are both gifted, but we wouldn’t ever have thrived to this extent. My father broke the rule twice, and I managed to alter my fortunes once. All this was true hard work on your part."
"Now that I’ve already reached the pinnacle of Dark Altar Sect, what should I do?"
The incense before the anchor gradually burned out, emitting a distinct smell.
Hearing Xie Cheng Dong’s words, the Blind Daoist seemed to sink into sorrow as he coughed twice and covered his mouth with a handkerchief. He then spoke, "Although I cannot peer into the Will of Heaven any longer, I can tell that the Emperor’s longevity has already been capped. There’s no way he can increase it, it will only be decreased. Following this thought, he only has two years more to live at most."
"Were there more changes to the Will of Heaven?" Xie Cheng Dong looked straight at the Blind Daoist and asked.
"That’s right. I’ve already taken into account these changes. In the past, the Crown Prince was heirless and King Lu’s ascent to the throne was clear. However, it seems like the pair of tiny dragons are at war with each other now, trying to win the throne for themselves."
"Although a tenth stage Yin Master is extremely rare, there are many throughout the course of history. Do you know why you haven’t become an Earth Immortal?"
"Because there’s already an Earth Immortal within Dark Altar Sect. Although we also have a Paradise, it only has enough resources to support a single Earth Immortal."
"When a person becomes an Yin Master, his longevity isn’t increased. In fact, there have been cases of Earth Immortals dying from using too much energy without restricting it."
"When a person becomes an Earth Immortal, he could live up to 200 or even 300 years old."
"A normal disciple of Dark Altar Sect, might not even live up to 70 years of age. And yet young master is unable to wait for the current Earth Immortal to vacate his Paradise, and leave an empty seat for you."
"As for breaking through the bottleneck from the Full Circle Foundation of Yin Master to Earth Immortal, you have to go against the Imperial Qi, that’s the only way." The Blind Daoist didn’t mince his words as he spoke.
When Xie Cheng Dong heard this, he seemed to understand and laughed, "With so many things happening in the world, we cannot ever escape fighting, and yet we will never let victory escape us as well."
"Mister has put in much effort into educating me, I’ve learned." Xie Cheng Dong then stood up to leave without turning back.
Without speaking a word, the Daoist waited for Xie Cheng Dong to leave. Once the door slammed shut, the room turned dark once more. The only sounds that were heard were the sounds of breathing and the footsteps of warriors as they patrolled.
On a regular day, even birds won’t fly near this monastery. Apart from Xie Cheng Dong, n.o.body else was permitted near the monastery.
After sometime, the Daoist stood up and smashed the teacup ferociously on the ground.
"Haha, you think I’m useless now?" The Blind Daoist shouted out as he coughed violently and pressed a cloth to his mouth. When he took the cloth away, there were bloodstains on it. He then laughed, "But don’t you ever forget the seeds you sowed when you were weak and young."
Pier
Pei Zi Yun was on the boat as he admired the scenery.
The boat had stopped by the pier, as people disembarked and walked along the stretch of roads connected to the pier. Many people came and went from the pier, as they did their daily duties.
Ren Wei then appeared and saw Pei Zi Yun having some wine from afar on the deck of the boat. He hurriedly hopped on and was about to speak when he heard Pei Zi Yun whisper, "Two years!"
Hearing this, Ren Wei asked suspiciously, "Firstly, congratulations to master Top Scorer for annihilating the pirates effortlessly. The journal which you wrote had already reached this area and everyone is talking about it. What two years?"
"No, nothing. It’s just that the last time I was here in the capital city was two years ago." Pei Zi Yun laughed. He was just thinking about how according to the original owner’s memories, the Emperor would rule for eleven years and ten months. It has already been nine years and eleven months. He didn’t even have two full years left.
"Even without needing other pieces of information, it’s clear that there isn’t much time left. Unless the Emperor decides to oust King Lu himself, it’s impossible for the Crown Prince to completely defeat King Lu in the race for the throne. It’s only enough for him to close the gap between the both of them."
"Once the Emperor dies, peace will end and the following days would be difficult."
"With difficult days, the opportunity for him to take over the throne would be presented."