Tang Yimo left Beiluo City and went back to the capital city.
He was kind of lost. This trip to Beiluo made him realize what real cultivators were like.
He had been kind of proud of himself thanks to Eight Meridians Escaping Demonic Technique. He had even thought there was nothing he was incapable of accomplishing in his world, and he had despised everyone.
But now, he realized he was far from perfect.
It was a heavy blow for him.
He was even not a match for Lu Ping’an’s coachman—let alone White Jade City’s leader, Lu Ping’an himself.
That one look from the coachman almost made him unable to breathe.
Tang Yimo thought he might have to open the second meridian to compete with that coachman.
He went back to the mansion Yuwen Xiu had specially prepared for Tang Xiansheng.
Seeing Tang Yimo walk in, Tang Xiansheng was beaming.
“Yimo.”
Tang Xiansheng called out in a tender voice.
He was going to ask Tang Yimo about the gains of this trip.
However, Tang Yimo only waved his hand with an emotionless face. He didn’t seem to want to speak.
Seeing Tang Yimo vanishing in the darkness of the night, Tang Xiansheng let out a sigh, with his hands behind his back.
“Is Lu Ping’an from Beilu really so strong?”
“He even put Yimo so frustrated.”
How perceptive Tang Xiansheng was. He knew instantly that Tang Yimo had been greatly frustrated.
Tang Xiansheng had seen too much of this. After all, he was not very excellent when he was young. He had experienced many setbacks, so he could sympathize with Tang Yimo.
He walked to Tang Yimo’s room. The carved wooden door was tightly shut. The candles in the room had been extinguished.
Tang Xiansheng smiled. He said something to soothe Tang Yimo.
Then he went back to his room.
Lights were flickering.
Tang Xiansheng was reading a roll of bamboo slits, but he also seemed to be waiting for something.
Something was rustling on the beam of the house.
A black shadow jumped down.
“Lord, First Young Master already finished his meeting with Nanman Chili’s Young Priest. Chili’s soldiers will join the South County Army,” the black shadow said, kneeling on one knee.
“Chili is Nanman’s strongest clan. They unified hundreds of clans living on Nanman’s territory. Their warriors fight beasts a lot, so they are very brave and strong. If we allow such a threatening troop to stay in South County secretly, management will be difficult,” Tang Xiansheng said without looking away from the bamboo slits.
“It was a mess at the beginning, and the barbarian troop was almost exposed. But First Young Master found Chili’s Young Priest. They decided to manage the barbarian troop and our troop separately. They are kind of in harmony with one another so far.”
Tang Xiansheng nodded with satisfaction. “This is also a challenge for Yun’er. It looks like he is doing well.”
The black shadow hesitated and then said, “Lord… Those who are not of our kin are sure to have a different mind. Our collaboration with Nanman is like asking a tiger for its skin, but the tiger would never give up its skin.”
Tang Xiansheng finally looked away from the bamboo slits. Then he put them down.
“I surely understand it. Nanman is a group of uncivilized barbarians. They refuse enlightenment. However, if we can use them well, then they’ll be as sharp as a knife. If they are too disobedient, then we’ll just kill them,” Tang Xiansheng exclaimed.
“I actually admire Bai Fengtian a lot. He was such a decisive man. He commanded to kill 300,000 barbarian soldiers.”
“However, compared to barbarian soldiers from Xirong, Nanman is more organized because of Chili’s unification. But this also gives me a chance, because the more organized, the more ambitious.”
“It’ll be easier for us to buy them with interests.”
Tang Xiansheng tapped on the bamboo slits.
“By the way, I suppose Chili’s Young Priest mentioned the Dragon Gate to Yun’er? What was Yun’er’s answer?” Tang Xiansheng asked in a plain voice.
“First Young Master declined. Chili’s Young Priest was extremely angry when he left,” The black shadow replied.
Tang Xiansheng showed a satisfied smile. He didn’t speak after quite some time. “Nanman soldiers are like a knife. When the blade gets blunt, it’ll be time to break it.”
“We South County have a Dragon Gate. The South Manor Army trained in the Dragon Gate will be our trump card to deal with Chili’s barbarian soldiers.”
The black shadow cupped his hands at Tang Xiansheng.
“Go and spread the news. Yun’er will send 100,000 soldiers in two batches to the north.”
“We’ll make wolves and tigers kill each other. We have to end this war fast before those cultivators completely seize the power of the world,” Tang Xiansheng said seriously, his temples turning gray.
“Yes.”
The black shadow cupped his hands. After a jump, he vanished from the room.
It was quiet in the room again. Even the candle flames stopped flickering.
The only sound in the room was Tang Xiansheng’s heavy breathing.
“Cultivators… Maybe I need to pay Beiluo City a visit.”
“I should meet this Young Master Lu from Beiluo.”
******
Those two philosophers left Beiluo City safely.
The whole world went into an uproar. Many people thought that after the loss of the Hundred Schools, the philosophers would be imprisoned on Island Lake, Beiluo, or choose to pledge allegiance to White Jade City and become a part of it, like what Tianji School did.
However…
That was not what happened.
The philosophers of Daoist School and Sword Sect left on their horses smoothly in the drizzle.
However, as Hua Dongliu and Xie Yunling left, a more shocking piece of news spread across the world.
Xie Yunling announced Daoist School had been renamed Daoist Pavilion after returning to Daoist School.
The Sword Saint Hua Dongliu announced Sword Sect had been renamed Sword Pavilion after returning to Sword Sect.
These two pieces of news shocked all forces in the world.
Although Daoist School and Sword Sect were forces of the Hundred Schools of Philosophy, they were actually leading magnates in the martial arts world.
The new names of the two forces were surely an astonishing signal.
Tianji School was renamed Tianji Pavilion after being incorporated into White Jade City.
So Daoist Pavilion and Sword Pavilion—these two new names really made people wonder.
“Daoist School and Sword Sect were also incorporated into White Jade City!”
This news put all martial arts practitioners petrified.
Then, a big storm seemed to be brewing in the Great Zhou Dynasty.
After days of endless drizzles, even the air smelled humid, making people feel lazy.
On the city tower of Beiluo City…
An armored soldier on sentry duty yawned. His eyes were drooping from lack of sleep.
All of a sudden…
This armored soldier opened his eyes widely.
He grasped the spear in his hand more tightly.
He saw below the city tower, one by one, a black dot show up on the foggy plain.
Those were just travelers. They were unarmed.
If it were not for that, this soldier would have supposed this was an invasion.
However, even so, the soldier was still nervous. He hurried to go to the city tower to strike the ancient bronze bell with a wooden mallet.
Luo Yue came, carrying his knife and armor, followed by a team of elite soldiers.
These soldiers were full, after having consumed the Dragon’s Blood Elixir. They looked like they would never run out of energy. Their Qi and blood were roaring, giving off oppressive energy.
Lu Changkong was cultivating on Lake Island.
So Luo Yue was in charge of guarding the city.
He was responsible for maintaining order in the city while training the Dragon Blood Army.
“General Luo, there’s a large group of people assembling outside of the city. There are at least thousands of them!” the soldier who was on sentry duty reported to Luo Yue while kneeling on one knee.
“It can’t be… Young Master is famous for that fight. Who would have the nerve to attack Beiluo now?”
Luo Yue frowned.
He couldn’t figure which force was attacking Beiluo.
North County?
Unlikely.
West County was even more unlikely. The Overlord knew clearly how strong Lu Fan was.
Luo Yue stopped thinking. He went onto the city tower. Looking at the densely packed people coming across the plain from far away below the magnificent city wall of Beiluo, he was puzzled.
“These people seem to be martial forces and martial nobilities.”
“They don’t look like they are going to capture Beiluo City.”
“Instead, they look like…”
“Pilgrims?” Luo Yue said, feeling weird.
The soldiers around him also looked puzzled.
Soon, these people carrying their luggage on their backs all arrived before Beiluo City.
These martial arts practitioners, carrying knives, spears, axes, and battle axes, all looked hideous. Most of them were second-class martial arts practitioners or even worse. There were first-class martial arts practitioners and Grandmasters as well, but only a handful.
Luo Yue commanded to close the city gate.
These martial arts practitioners assembled before the city, asking to open the city gate.
“I’m a martial arts practitioner from Dongyang County. My family name is Liu. I came for an Immortal encounter! I want to join White Jade City to follow Young Master Lu!” A martial arts practitioner shouted, kneeling down before the city wall.
And this was only the start.
One after another, a martial arts practitioner introduced themselves. Some of them were from West County, and the others were from North County and South County.
Almost all of the thirteen counties of Great Zhou were represented.
Luo Yue was kind of speechless. He couldn’t make any decision. After all, those people were not enemies. He couldn’t command to have them killed.
So he told his subordinates to keep the city gate shut, while he headed for Lake Island in a hurry.
He went to the island by boat.
Compared to the disturbance outside of the island, Lake Island was quiet and elegant.
Peach flowers were blooming quietly, while chrysanthemums were waving.
A breeze stirred the lake’s surface. The water rippled.
On the second floor of White Jade City Pavilion…
Lu Fan was playing chess leisurely. He set up the Wind Rain Strategy on the chessboard to refine his Soul Strength and practice the control of his own strength.
He didn’t seem to be bothered by the appraisal quest to upgrade the level of the world at all, as if he had totally forgotten about it.
Of course, it was not that Lu Fan had not prepared for it at all.
As soon as Nie Changqing came back, Lu Fan told him and Ning Zhao to start an intense cultivation plan to improve themselves.
He also told Ni Yu to refine more Gathering Qi Elixirs. As a result, Ni Yu was pretty exhausted these days.
Ni Yu had been living a relaxing life. Refining one pot of Gathering Qi Elixirs every few days was easy and not stressful at all.
But now, Lu Fan told her to refine one pot of Gathering Qi Elixirs every day.
Ni Yu had almost been weighed down.
But Ni Yu didn’t dare say anything. Nor did she pose any questions.
After all, she laughed very happily that day.
The happier she was that day, the more stressful she was at the moment. She really couldn’t complain.
That being said, the past few days intense work further sharply improved Ni Yu’s elixir refining skill. She had got greater attainments. She could even refine Gathering Qi Elixirs with elixir patterns.
Luo Yue went onto the island. He was quite not used to the leisurely and slow pace on the island.
“Uncle Luo,” Nie Shuang greeted him.
He was very happy these days because he finally saw his mother.
His father didn’t fail him. He really brought his mother back. Although his mother was not in good condition, Nie Shuang’s eyes turned red as soon as he saw her. That power of kinship was undeniable.
With his mother’s company, Nie Shuang had been practicing fist methods harder these days.
Luo Yue smiled at Nie Shuang. He thought very highly of this kid. This kid was a go-getter. He would definitely have a great future.
Under one Heaven Facing Spiritual Chrysanthemum…
Sitting cross-legged, Lu Changkong was cultivating. Wisps of Spirit Qi were flowing into his Qi Core.
He opened his eyes slowly as if he had sensed Luo Yue’s appearance.
“Lord, martial arts practitioners from all counties of Great Zhou are assembling before Beiluo City. They said they would like to join White Jade City to study cultivation methods.”
Cupping his hands, Luo Yue told him what was happening outside.
“Oh? They want to join White Jade City?”
Lu Changkong looked very surprised at the news.
How could these people be so bighearted?
On what basis did they think they were qualified to join White Jade City?
Lu Changkong looked up at Lu Fan, who was focused on playing chess by the rail on the second floor of White Jade City Pavilion, with his hair flowing in the wind.
“Go and ask Fan’er,” Lu Changkong said.
Luo Yue’s face became stiff. He was always diffident before Lu Fan.
Maybe because Lu Fan always gave people the impression that he was holding himself aloof from the world.
But he still went to White Jade City Pavilion. Cupping his hands, he called out loudly, “Young Master…”
However, Lu Fan interrupted him before he could finish.
“Well, I know what you are going to say.”
“White Jade City isn’t short of disciples.”
Lu Fan’s indifferent voice came, accompanied by the sound of a chess piece placed on the chessboard.
So Luo Yue knew what to do.
He left Lake Island after cupping his hands at Lu Fan. He rode horseback to the city tower.
At this moment, it had been full of martial arts practitioners outside the city.
It was quite chaotic. Some hostile martial arts practitioners even started to fight. The roaring of Qi and blood kept coming.
Luo Yue frowned.
“Everyone…” Luo Yue said.
His voice came from the city tower and lingered around it.
Those martial arts practitioners looked up at Luo Yue.
“Young Master Lu said White Jade City is not recruiting,” Luo Yue said.
Suddenly, silence enveloped below the city tower after he had announced the news. But before long, the gathered martial arts practitioners went into an uproar again.
“White Jade City is the number one cultivation force in the world. It’s even predominant over the Hundred Schools of Philosophy. How is it possible it’s not recruiting?”
“I came a long way to Beiluo. All I want is to join White Jade City. I mean it!”
“Open the city gate. We don’t believe you. We want to see Young Master Lu in person!”
******
The gathered martial arts practitioners kept shouting, reluctant to accept such a result.
They crossed mountains and rivers to Beiluo. The only goal was to become a cultivator.
In their eyes, a cultivation force like White Jade City must need a significant number of disciples.
Like Mohist, they had thousands of disciples across Great Zhou.
Like Confucianist, all Confucian students in the world were Confucianist’s disciples…
As a force that outshined the Hundred Schools, how could it only have so few disciples?
Luo Yue knitted his brows.
Seeing the martial arts practitioners making trouble down there, Luo Yue was pissed off. His face turned cold.
Grasping the knife he was carrying at the waist, he took a step forward.
Luo Yue glanced coldly at the gathered martial arts practitioners down there.
“Young Master said he isn’t recruiting, so he isn’t recruiting. You keep quiet here. Otherwise… I’ll kill you all.”
Luo Yue suddenly unsheathed his knife, giving off a powerful, threatening pressure.
That was the effect of taking Dragon’s Blood Elixir. He was even stronger than martial arts Grandmasters.
The martial arts practitioners down there stayed silent for a few seconds. Then they went into an uproar again, because they just recalled one thing.
They were going on pilgrimage here. They were here to join White Jade City…
How come they weren’t even allowed to enter the city and were driven away?
It had become more and more chaotic.
Several ruffians from the martial arts world had started to swear. The morning peace in Beiluo City was hence broken.
On Lake Island…
Lu Fan, who was in the middle of setting up a strategy, knitted his brows.
He didn’t like the noise.
He liked it even less since those people were exercising moral coercion against White Jade City, against him.
There were always arrogant people in this world.
They didn’t hold cultivation powers in awe, but they really should.
Lu Fan put a black piece on the chessboard. A strong wind blew by, stirring his white robe and his hair.
He shifted his consciousness.
His Spiritual Sense flew out and flew a long distance.
It flew into Luo Yue’s head, who was standing on the city tower with a cold face, livid with rage.
Luo Yue was shocked at first, and then he looked very weird. He looked at those martial arts practitioners who were fighting to the bitter end down there with pity.
“Oh, great.”
“You have caught the Young Master’s attention.”