Two days later, in the Heaven Room on the second floor of Clouds Inn in Jing Province City.
Lu Zhou looked at the city through the window. He instinctively stroked his beard as he fell deep in his thoughts. When he reached for his beard, he noticed it was much shorter than it used to be. This… Well, he had not gotten used to his new appearance.
Lu Zhou had arrived in the city the day before. He was surprised to find that the Nether Sect had yet to extend its reach to Jing Province City. The citizens did not seem to be affected as well.
The Nether Sect was no fool. They had promised early on that they would not lay a hand on the civilians. After all, they wanted to achieve world dominion. The civilians were the roots of the world, not their enemies. Their enemies were Great Yan’s Imperial family and the opposing factions.
Jing Province was located in the area innermost of Great Yan. It was not a place that remote places like Liang Province could compare to.
Alas, Lu Zhou had not seen Yu Zhenghai.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
As he entertained his thoughts, a knock rang from outside.
“Who’s there?” Lu Zhou turned around slowly as he sighed. Perhaps, he had gotten accustomed to the character of an eccentric old man in this world. He was not Ji Tiandao and not the original Lu Zhou, but a new character. Without waiting for a reply, he said, “Come in.”
A waiter entered the room after closing the door. He said tentatively, “Dear customer, I have information regarding the matter you asked me about. The great general guarding Jing Province City is one of the Divine Capital’s eight great generals. He’s General Wen Shu, commander of the southwest and a Confucian Society elite. The Formation of Jing Province City was laid by the Confucian Society.”
“What’s the Nether Sect up to now?” Lu Zhou asked.
“You don’t have to worry about that. It’s said that even the Sect Master of the Nether Sect can only look at the city even if he were here. Jing Province City is as secure as a city protected by a wall of metal and a moat of boiling water,” the waiter replied.
“You’re very confident with Jing Province City’s security?”
“I’m not the only one. Everyone feels the same way… The people of Jing Province City aren’t affected at all,” the waiter said with a smile, “Dear customer… since you’re asking about this, you can’t be…” He wanted to say the word ‘spy’, but he quickly swallowed the word when he saw the killing intent brewing in the depths of Lu Zhou’s eyes. “Please rest well!” He shuddered and quickly retreated from the room in fright.
Lu Zhou turned around to face the window. As he expected, the Nether Sect was much weaker without Si Wuya. It could not even conquer Jing Province City.
…
At dusk, in a certain Nether Sect’s branch.
A flag that was raised in the center of the campground danced in the wind.
Yu Zhenghai was cultivating with his eyes closed as he sat on his throne. A cloud of mist was swirling before him. All of a sudden, he flipped his hand. The Jasper Saber appeared out of thin air above his palm. His forehead was drenched in sweat as his eyes suddenly snapped open. He raised his sleeve to wipe the sweat off his forehead as he murmured, “Master, please don’t make me… It’s… it’s just a dream…”
At this moment, Hua Chongyang walked in excitedly. “Sect master.”
“What is it?”
“Mister Seventh is back!”
Upon hearing this, Yu Zhenghai rose to his feet immediately. A strange light gleamed in his eyes as he said, “Hurry, where is her?”
Yu Zhenghai’s voice had barely faded when Si Wuya sauntered into the hall. He wore a long Confucian scholar robe and held the Peacock Plume in his hand. His expression was calm, but his eyes were lively. After he walked to the center of the hall, he cupped his fists and said, “We meet again, Eldest Senior Brother.”
Yu Zhenghai hastened down the steps, visibly excited. He walked up to Si Wuya, at a loss for words. The exhaustion that had plagued him lately seemed to have vanished at this moment. Finally, he raised his hands and placed them on Si Wuya’s shoulders as he said excitedly, “My dear brother… how I miss you so!”
Si Wuya. “???”
Hua Chongyang. “???”
Yu Zhenghai’s expression was rather telling even though they could understand his feelings.
Hua Chongyang had spent a fair portion of his time listening to Yu Zhenghai’s ramblings. The phrases he often heard were ‘This would’ve turned out much better if Junior Brother did it’, ‘If only Junior Brother were here’, and the likes.
The Four Great Protectors had a headache from all the ramblings. How could Hua Chongyang not be delighted about Si Wuya’s return as well?
Si Wuya endured the pain on his shoulders and said, “Eldest Senior Brother, let’s not celebrate just yet.”
“Hm?”
“Master sent me here.”
Upon hearing this, Yu Zhenghai instinctively took a step back. He frowned. “Master?”
Si Wuya said, “Master is already at the Nine-leaf stage.”
“…” Yu Zhenghai waved his hand and said, “If you’re trying to persuade me, you can save your breath!”
“That’s not what I mean.”
“Then what do you mean?” Yu Zhenghai’s tone grew stern and grim. “Master’s growing senile, have you grown senile as well? The one I’m opposing has always been Great Yan’s Imperial family and never the Evil Sky Pavilion!”
“I know,” Si Wuya responded calmly.
“Then, why are you helping master?” Yu Zhenghai questioned.
The entire great hall was as silent as a graveyard.
Si Wuya only stared at Yu Zhenghai silently, waiting for Yu Zhenghai’s anger to abate.
It was just as Si Wuya had expected, after a while, Yu Zhenghai gradually calmed down.
Finally, Si Wuya said, “Master isn’t senile.”
An expression of confusion appeared on Yu Zhenghai’s face.
Si Wuya said, “Perhaps… we’re both wrong.” He paused before continuing, “Master has ordered me to come here and bring you back to the Evil Sky Pavilion! However, master knows that… with my cultivation base, it’s impossible for me to make you do anything you refuse to. Knowing that, why did he still send me here?”
“Master wants to go against Great Yan as well?” Yu Zhenghai asked.
Si Wuya did not respond directly. Instead, he said, “Master left the choice to me… and think that I’ve made up my mind a long time ago.”
Yu Zhenghai appeared stunned, unable to understand Si Wuya’s words.
Si Wuya shook his head and changed the topic. “Why aren’t you severing your Golden Lotus and attempting to attain the Nine-leaf stage, Eldest Senior Brother?”
Yu Zhenghai said disapprovingly, “Severing my lotus means that I’ll have to cultivate from the beginning again. What I aim to do is to take over the world while everyone severs their lotuses!”
Si Wuya nodded. “In that case… the sooner the better.”
Upon hearing this, something stirred in Yu Zhenghai’s heart. He appeared overjoyed as he waved his hand and said, “Hua Chongyang, quickly bring the map over!”
“Yes, sect master!”
Shortly after, Hua Chongyang placed the map of Jing Province City on the big table. He briefed Si Wuya in detail about the current situation in Jing Province City as well.
Yu Zhenghai pointed at the area around Jing Province City and said, “The person guarding Jing Province City is Wen Shu, one of the eight commanders of the Divine Capital. This man is from the Confucian Societies. He’s skilled in Formations, and that’s giving me a headache…”
At the side, Hua Chongyang cupped his fists and said, “If it weren’t for this Formation, sect master could’ve taken down Wen Shu on his own. Jing Province would’ve fallen a long time ago.”
“My wise brother… Do you have any good plans? Do you have any of your men planted around Wen Shu?” Yu Zhenghai looked at Si Wuya expectantly as though he was looking at a beautiful lady.
Goosebumps rose on Si Wuya’s skin from being stared at so intently. He felt helpless about the change in the way his Eldest Senior Brother addressed him as well. He shook his head and said, “The eight commanders aren’t your run-of-the-mill officials. The people around them can’t be taken down that easily. Besides, we’ve used this tactic in Liang Province before. We can’t use it again.”
Yu Zhenghai sighed in disappointment.
Si Wuya said, “But… I do have another idea.”
“My wise brother… Tell me, quick!” Yu Zhenghai kept addressing him as ‘his wise brother’. It felt like he no longer cared about appearing imposing.
“Jing Province’s geography is treacherous, it’s also a place where wild beasts are gathered… There are many mountains and forests around it. We can use the beasts to whittle away at the Formation,” Si Wuya said.
Yu Zhenghai frowned and said, “I’m not the king of beasts, how am I supposed to order them around?”
Si Wuya said, “What a coincidence… In the three days’ time, north of Jing Province, there will be a live sacrifice on the heaven worship platform.”
“A live sacrifice?”
“It’s only a mindless act of sacrificing a person to the heavens. That’s unimportant… What’s important is the sacrificial person is born with the innate ability to understand the tongue of beasts. He’s a person gifted in tune.”
