Ye Tianxin was briefly stunned. She looked at her master as though asking for help. Although she had been the Palace Master of the Derived Moon Palace in the past, the White Tower Council was in a completely different league. Previously, she was still rather confident. However, after witnessing Lan Xihe’s strength earlier, she had completely lost her confidence. She hoped her master would help her to decide; whatever her master ordered, she would carry it out without any hesitation.
Lu Zhou did not say anything; he only nodded at her. After all, his disciple was no longer a child. He might be able to protect her for now, but he would not be able to protect her forever. There were some things she had to do on her own.
Ye Tianxin understood her master’s thoughts. She inhaled deeply as she swept her gaze across and everyone and said, “Everyone, rise to your feet.”
“Thank you, Tower Master Ye.”
Everyone rose to their feet.
Elder Ding Ling hurriedly instructed the cultivators next to her, “Clean the white tower. Make sure everything is in place. Also, arrange two female attendants for Tower Master Ye.”
“Understood.”
The cultivators left to make preparations.
Then, Ding Ling moved to stand in front of Ye Tianxin and said with a bow, “Tower Master, if there’s anything else you need, please feel free to look for me.”
Ye Tianxin had just taken over the position of the Tower Master of the White Tower Council, after all. She knew it would not be easy for her to command so many experts now so she said, “Everything will proceed as usual. I want to increase my strength as fast as I can…”
Ning Wanqing said with a smile, “Tower Master Ye possesses the Great Void energy and is now a Two Chart Thousand Realms Whirling cultivator. It won’t be a problem for you to surpass Tower Master Lan in the future.”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
The former Tower Master of the White Tower Council, Lan Xihe, was already thousands of years old when she activated her 13th Birth Chart. Although she also possessed the Great Void energy, it was too late. In comparison, the current Tower Master, Ye Tianxin, had a higher potential and brighter future.
An elder bowed and said, “It’s of utmost importance that we keep the matter of Tower Master Ye’s possessing the Great Void energy a secret. We’re not to let outsiders who learn of this matter go…”
The other elders nodded in agreement; this concerned the future of the White Tower Council, after all.
“What about Great Ming? They sent a lot of people here today. Who knows if they’ll send more people in the future?”
“Gongsun Yuanxuan fled at the last minute. After seeing Tower Master Lan’s strength and Pavilion Master Lu wielding the power of heaven and earth, he must have gone into hiding and feeling vexed now. He won’t dare to come again. There’s no need to worry about Great Ming for now. Let’s see what they do next,” an elder said. After that, he turned to Ye Tianxin and asked, “What do you think, Tower Master?”
Ye Tianxin nodded and said, “We’ll do as the elder suggested.”
Meanwhile, Lu Zhou’s existence served as support and a deterrent to dissenters.
Ye Tianxian listened to the elder’s suggestion to build trust. It was easier to win people’s hearts using both kindness and intimidation.
Ye Tianxian looked at Lu Zhou and asked, “Master, is it alright to handle matters in this manner?”
Lu Zhou nodded. “Yes. You’re now the Tower Master; you can handle these matters on your own…”
“Yes,” Ye Tianxin said, “I have a request, master.”
“Speak.”
“Cheng Huang has been very helpful to me. During my most difficult time, Cheng Huang saved me. I can’t do without Cheng Huang,” Ye Tianxin said with a bow.
Chenghuang?
The elders and judges exchanged a look of surprise.
Ding Ling asked in disbelief, “Cheng Huang is a mysterious ancient beast that understands humans… Tower Master, you managed to tame Cheng Huang?”
Lu Zhou said, “It’s just Chenghuang. There’s no need to make a fuss. I’ll ask Zhao Hongfu to create a large runic passage…”
Ye Tianxin said gratefully, “Thank you, master.”
Ding Ling said from the side, “Cheng Huang should be able to shrink its size slightly. A huge runic passage would take a long time to build. However, it shouldn’t be a problem if we all work together. Tower Master, may I ask how big Cheng Huang is?”
Ye Tianxin thought about it for a moment before she replied, “When we first met, it was 1,000 feet long. It shrank by half after we returned to the Evil Sky Pavilion.”
Ding Ling, the other elders, and the judges. “…”
An old elder said, “If it didn’t hide its true size, based on its length at 1,000 feet, it should have the strength of a beast king. Cheng Huang is a mysterious ancient beast; considering it only reached maturity, it’ll definitely be even stronger in the future.”
Lu Zhou nodded. “All of you can deal with the White Tower Council’s affairs on your own…”
After saying that, Lu Zhou turned and left.
Litte Yuan’er said to Ye Tianxin, “Sixth Senior Sister… I’ll come and visit you in the future.”
“Okay.”
Ding Ling bowed to Ye Tianxin, indicating that she would send the other members of the Evil Sky Pavilion off.
After Ye Tianxin nodded, Ding Ling hurriedly led Lu Zhou and the others to the runic passage on the snowy mountain.
While they flew in the air, due to Little Yuan’er’s playful nature, she swerved left and right as she flew, causing her to fall behind by quite a bit.
Upon seeing this, Lu Zhou said reproachfully, “This is preposterous. You’ve cultivated for such a long time, and still, you’ve yet to enter the Thousand Realms Whirling stage. You shouldn’t be so playful all the time…”
Little Yuan’er became obedient as soon as Lu Zhou spoke up. She caught up to Lu Zhou and said, “I promise I’ll enter the Thousand Realms Whirling stage this year.”
“Are you sure you can do it?” Lu Zhou asked.
“Yes. I promise!” Little Yuan’er raised a hand and confidently said, “I’ll enter the Thousand Realms Whirling stage this year, surpass Sixth Senior Sister next year, and surpass Second Senior Brother in five years…”
Ding Ling. “???”
Lu Zhou nodded. “Okay, master believes you.”
Ding Ling. “…”
One dared to utter such words while the other dared to believe such words.
…
In the royal palace’s Preservation Hall in the red lotus domain.
As soon as Lu Zhou returned to the hall, he used the power of sight to observe Duanmu Sheng. When he saw that it was still pitch-black, he had no choice but to cut off the power of sight.
Then, Lu Zhou studied the changes in his Dantian’s sea of Qi and the growth of his blue avatar.
Although the blue avatar had evolved to an Eight Methods Connected avatar, it was still very weak. It did not add much to the supreme mystic power. Before it evolved into a Thousand Realms Whirling avatar, he still had to rely on meditating on the Heavenly Writing. Naturally, he would have to continue studying the blue avatar’s abilities.
After a while, he recalled Lan Xihe mistaking his supreme mystic power from the Heavenly Writing for the power of heaven and earth. He shook his head as he thought to himself, ‘Is there a need for me to lie? If they want to misunderstand, then, I’ll let them misunderstand…’
Following that, Lu Zhou called up the system interface to have a look.
“Ding! Second avatar’s current status: Eight Methods Connected. Requires 3,500 years of life to advance to the next stage.”
‘Forget it!’ Lu Zhou felt his head ache.
It was expected that advancing would consume more years, especially after his avatar had advanced by three stages. However, the consumption was really too high; his lifespan would not be enough to continue improving his avatar. He thought it was fortunate that he did not recklessly advance his avatar previously. Otherwise, he would have suffered a huge loss.
He looked at his lifespan.
Remaining lifespan: 1,364,899 (3,739 years of which 600 years are from Reversal Cards)
In the end, Lu Zhou chose not to further advance his Eight Methods Connected avatar. Instead, he brought the Green Cicada Jade out.
He sat cross-legged and sensed the change in his body before he mobilized the Primal Qi and began to absorb the remaining years of life in the Green Cicada Jade.
With this, he discovered his absorption speed had doubled.
Wisps of green smoke from the Green Cicada Jade entered Lu Zhou’s body.
In less than an hour, he had completely absorbed the years in the Green Cicada Jade. As a result, the jade fell, nothing more than a waste now.
When he looked at his system interface, he saw his life had increased by 5,000 years.
…
At this time, Qin Moshang who was sitting in a tub filled with some bubbling medicinal elixir suddenly opened his eyes.
“My Green Cicada Jade!”
He rose to his feet abruptly with a furious expression on his face.
An elegant man walked in at this moment. He said, “Young Master Qin, didn’t I tell you to endure it previously? How can you forget about it again?”
“My Green Cicada Jade has been destroyed. How can I endure it?!” Qin Moshang said through gritted teeth.
“I know the 10,000-year-old Green Cicada Hade is a rare sacred item. However, if it’s gone, then it’s gone. We’ll look for a new one in the future. However, if you don’t focus on recovering your Birth Chart now, you won’t be able to recover in the future.”
Upon hearing this, Qin Moshang sat down in the tub again.
The elegant and scholarly man said again, “In my opinion, Venerable Master Qin treats you very well. With his support, why are you afraid you won’t be able to seek revenge in the future?”
Qin Moshang’s anger gradually subsided as he asked “Did Venerable Master Qin go out?”
“Yes… The Sacred Hall has sent news that a heaven and earth phenomenon had appeared. A supreme figure has returned to their place in the Great Void,” the scholarly man replied.
“A supreme being?”
“He’s not in Great Qin. He should be from another domain,” the scholarly young man said. Then, after a pause, he continued to say, “The last time you went to another domain, you lost your Birth Chart to someone. What if that person is the supreme being who has returned to the Great Void?”
Swoosh!
Qin Moshang slumped in the tub as soon as he heard these words. His expression was very unsightly as well.
Upon seeing Qin Moshang’s reactions, the scholarly man said sheepishly, “I said ‘if’, and I’m only guessing anyway. Anyway, if it weren’t for this group of Balance Keepers, don’t you think Great Qin would’ve already united all the domains?”
Qin Moshang’s heart was somewhat stifled. He said, “Don’t say anymore. I’ll never forget the appearance of that person who destroyed my Birth Chart. What you said is absolutely impossible!”
The scholarly man nodded and said, “Alright. Please work hard in cultivating. I’ll take my leave; if there’s anything else, you can look for me…”
Even after the scholarly man left, Qin Moshang kept recalling the appearance of Lu Zhou when they were by the Cold Pond. He clenched his hands again as he thought about the loss of his Green Cicada Jade.
…
After Lu Zhou absorbed the years in the Green Cicada Jade, he placed five life hearts in front of him. These five life hearts belonged to the Nether Wolf King, Hu Jiao, Henggong Yu, the Scarlet-eyed Boar Demon, and Dang Hu.
The Nether Wolf King’s life heart granted one night vision.
After going to the Unknown Land with Lan Xihe, Lu Zhou thought the night vision ability could be useful as well.
As for Hu Jiao and Henggong Yu, both life hearts granted one the ability to control water.
Lu Zhou did not find the ability useful since he already possessed a similar ability. If he forcefully used them to activate a Birth Chart, not only would it be a waste, but its effect would be greatly reduced as well. Sometimes activating two unsuitable Birth Charts could not even compare to the power of one suitable Birth Chart.
The Scarlet-eyed Boar Demon’s life heart increased one’s defenses. Defenses were different from life hearts’ abilities. Unlike abilities, defenses could be stacked to increase its strength.
Lu Zhou thought it was a good idea to keep it as a backup.
Dang Hu’s life heart that granted one fire resistance was also deemed unuseful by Lu Zhou.
In the end, Lu Zhou only decided to keep two of the five life hearts.
“Who should I give these three life hearts to?” Lu Zhou wondered out loud as each of his disciples’ names flashed in his mind.
At this time, a voice rang from outside of the Preservation Hall.
“Yu Shangrong requests to see master.”
“Enter.”
Yu Shangrong walked in with the Longevity Sword in hand.
Lu Zhou suddenly recalled that Yu Shangrong had fought with one of the Five Tigers of the Dark and Light Alliance in front of the Ninth Temple. Hence, he asked, “Are you injured?”
Yu Shangrong replied with a faint smile, “They’re just superficial wounds. I recovered while I was in the Ninth Temple.”
Lu Zhou nodded in satisfaction before he asked, “Have you absorbed Pu Yi’s life heart?”
“Yes, I have. The effect was acceptable. However, it seems like ordinary life hearts have become useless,” Yu Shangrong replied.
This was to be expected. The further one advanced, the less effective ordinary life hearts would become.
Moreover, Yu Shangrong’s Eleven-leaf cultivation base was not something a single life heart would be able to raise on its own. It was obvious that if he wanted to advance in the future, the quality of the life hearts needed would also become higher and higher.
It was no wonder that after Xiao Yunhe lost five Birth Charts, it was useless for him to absorb the energy from ordinary life hearts to recover his Birth Charts.
Lu Zhou waved his sleeve as he said, “Share these life hearts with your Eldest Senior Brother.”
The three life hearts flew out.
Yu Shangrong instinctively raised his scabbard horizontally, and the three life hearts landed neatly in a row on the scabbard. Upon seeing the life hearts, he kneeled on one knee immediately. “Master, you’ve already given us too many life hearts. These…”
Lu Zhou raised his hand and interjected, “Do you think I’ll lack these things?”
Upon hearing this, Yu Shangrong nodded before he said, “Thank you, master. There’s another thing…”
“Speak.”
Yu Shangrong’s expression turned solemn as he said, “During the battle in Jiannan Circuit, I gained some enlightenment about the sword path. I wish to ask for master’s guidance…”
Lu Zhou rose to his feet.
Yu Shangrong remained kneeling on one knee. His gaze was lowered.
Lu Zhou moved to stand in front of Yu Shangrong with his hands resting on his back. He suddenly asked, “How many years have you been cultivating with me?”
Yu Shangrong replied, “I joined master five years after Eldest Senior Brother did. Including the time after I returned to the Evil Sky Pavilion, I’ve been cultivating with master for 275 years.”
Lu Zhou nodded. He recalled the scene when Yu Shangrong had just returned to the Evil Sky Pavilion. In a blink of an eye, so many years had passed. He said with a sigh, “Indeed, it’s been a long since we last sparred…”
‘Sparring?’ Yu Shangrong was inwardly shocked.
Lu Zhou waved his sleeve and said, “The sword path is endless. Today, I’ll see how much you’ve improved over the years. Go and make the preparations. I’ll be there later.”
Yu Shangrong. “…”
‘Master, I asked for guidance, not a sparring session…’
…
Zhu Honggong leaned next to the door against the wall as he said, “Second Senior Brother is truly worthy of being the person I admire the most. He actually dared to challenge master! Fourth Senior Brother, aren’t you coming to watch?”
“What?! Second Senior Brother challenged master?!”
Creak!
The door swung open.
Mingshi Yin stepped out before he suddenly turned back and said, “Doggy, carry me on your back! Let’s go and have a look!”
Woof! Woof! Woof!
Qiong Qi rushed out and flew toward the Preservation Hall like a gust of wind.
Mingshi Yin. “???”
Zhu Honggong hurriedly stepped forward and patted Mingshi Yin’s back as he said, “Fourth Senior Brother, don’t be angry. Dang Kang, carry Fourth Senior Brother on your back!”
…
Next to the square outside of the Preservation Hall.
Yu Zhenghai walked up to Yu Shangrong and gave Yu Shangrong a thumbs-up as he said, “Second Junior Brother, you win this time!”
Yu Shangrong’s expression remained the same. He looked in the direction of the Preservation Hall and asked, “Eldest Senior Brother, why are you making fun of me?”
“I’m not making fun of you. I’m sincerely praising you,” Yu Zhenghai replied.
“The sword path is long, and so is the saber path. Instead of praising me, why don’t you be brave and follow my example, Eldest Senior Brother?” Yu Shangrong asked with an indifferent smile on his face.
Yu Zhenghai. “…”
“Second Senior Brother!” Little Yuan’er called out.
Yu Shangrong looked up and saw Little Yuan’er, carrying something in her arms, and Conch running over.
Yu Shangrong smiled and said, “Ninth Junior Sister, Little Junior Sister.”
“Here.”
“What’s this?”
“The Cloud Treading Boots. When master hits you, you can run away faster using these…” Little Yuan’er explained as she handed the boots to Yu Shangrong. She scratched her head and said, “It’s a pity that the Cloud Feather Raiment Second Senior Brother gave isn’t suitable for men. Otherwise, I would’ve brought it here as well…”
Yu Shangrong. “…”
‘Since you know the Cloud Feather Raiment isn’t suitable for men, what makes you think the Cloud Treading Boots are suitable?’
Yu Zhenghai held back his laughter and said with a straight face, “What matters are the effects. There’s no need to care about the differences between men and women. Ninth Junior Sister, you’re really too kind…”
Yu Shangrong glanced at Yu Zhenghai from the corners of his eyes before he said with a gentle smile on his face, “The Cloud Treading Boots were given to you by Eldest Senior Brother; how can I accept them? In a while, Eldest Senior Brother is planning to ask for guidance from master regarding his saber techniques. Perhaps, the boots will be useful to him…”
Yu Zhenghai. “???”
Just as Yu Zhenghai was about to refute the words, a voice rang from the direction of the Preservation Hall.
“Old First, you want to spar with me using saber techniques?” Lu Zhou walked out of the hall with his hands on his back. “It’s really rare for all of you to be so eager to learn. Alright, I’ll teach you everything I know.”
Yu Zhenghai. “???”
