Martial Cultivator

To be precise, the last time so many cultivators arrived in the Divine Capital was during the Myriad Willow Convention. At that time, the Great Liang Dynasty had won first place in both the literary and martial examinations, which solidified the Great Liang Dynasty's attitude toward foreign lands for these past years.

However, in matters of the world, when the moon is full, it wanes; when the water is full, it overflows. It seemed that at this moment, the Great Liang was destined to decline like the setting sun, gradually falling.

The cultivators were arranged by the Ministry of Rites at the guest house for foreign cultivators, not far from the Heavenly Imperial Institution. Speaking of which, since the last time when the chairman of the Heavenly Imperial Institution died that night in the Imperial City, the Great Liang Emperor had not appointed a new chairman. The position remained vacant, and it was still being temporarily filled by a vice-chairman.

In truth, everyone could see that the Heavenly Imperial Institution's Chairman was a spy hiding within Great Liang. Now that he had been exposed, the Great Liang's trust in the Heavenly Imperial Institution had reached its lowest point. Coupled with the warden faction being highly favored, the standoff between the two sides from earlier years was no more. Fortunately, the Great Liang Dynasty was now in turmoil, unable to handle foreign lands as it had when the Great Liang Emperor was still around, so it was possible that the Heavenly Imperial Institution's role might once again become important in the future.

After recognizing this point, the numerous officials of the Heavenly Imperial Institution finally breathed a sigh of relief.

If they were to lose their foothold in Great Liang, it would be an unacceptable outcome for them.

In the guest house, the daoists from the Infatuation Daoist Temple were assigned to a refined and elegant small building, a courtesy extended by the Great Liang Dynasty to honor this leader of Daoism.

Daoist Zhenye pushed open the door and stepped out, standing on the second-floor corridor. He looked at tonight's bright moon with an indifferent expression.

Not long after, another middle-aged daoist slowly ascended from the first floor. Upon reaching the second floor, he leaned against the railing, his fingers unconsciously tapping it, while he lifted his head to look at the night sky. The bright moon hung silently in the heavens.

"It's a radiant and bright moon tonight."

The gray-robed daoist withdrew his gaze and turned toward Daoist Zhenye, probing as he asked, "Senior Brother, Yinli and Wuyang have always been at odds. Would Wuyang truly pass the position of temple master to his junior brother in the end?"

The former Chief Enforcer of the Infatuation Daoist Temple, now its temple master, went by the daoist title Yinli. As for the previous Temple Master, his daoist title was Wuyang.

Daoist Zhenye looked at the gray-robed daoist and said, "If Yinli became temple master, he would never pass the position to Wuyang at the final moment. But as for Wuyang, I still respect him. Over these years, while overseeing the temple's major and minor affairs, he has never acted out of personal interest to harm the public good. When the time comes to such a situation, I believe he would be capable of passing the position of Temple Master to Yinli, even if they've never been on good terms. After all, the two were taught by the same master. While Yinli may be narrow-minded, his cultivation realm and talent are undeniable. Looking at the current situation, there really isn't a more suitable candidate within the temple."

The gray-robed daoist sighed and said, "Now that Wuyang is dead and Yinli has taken the position of Temple Master, I'm afraid he won't act like Wuyang did."

Daoist Zhenye nodded. “That's why we must do something. At the very least, we need to establish some merits to prevent Yinli from targeting us. We might even be able to force him to abdicate. It's currently an excellent opportunity to revive our lineage.”

The gray-robed daoist asked, “Then, Senior Brother, tomorrow...”

Daoist Zhenye replied calmly, “Naturally, it must be done.”

“But the Great Liang Emperor's fate is still uncertain. What if he reappears in the world one day?”

The gray-robed daoist still seemed rather worried.

“How laughable, it's not like you don't know what happened that day. Could he truly be some celestial deity? In this world, no one can return alive from such a situation. All those measures he took were merely to intimidate us. Do you think such tricks could fool me?”

Daoist Zhenye's tone remained calm. “Even if he somehow returns one day, he can only find Yinli. What does that have to do with us?”

Hearing this, the gray-robed daoist burst into laughter. “Senior Brother, you're brilliant!"

Daoist Zhenye once again looked at the bright moon above, saying calmly, “This Great Liang Dynasty relied solely on that Emperor. Without him, what's there to fear about the Great Liang Dynasty? It's nothing more than a pitiful girl that anyone can bully.”

……

……

For several days, light rain had fallen intermittently. It was not constant throughout the day, sometimes it stopped for half an hour or so. He Liang diligently tempered his body on his own. Every hour or so, he would take a brief break, during which he would stand under the eaves and catch rainwater to wash his face.

Throughout the entire day, he had washed his face countless times, yet the young man still seemed to enjoy it without tire.

At this moment, He Liang had just scooped up a handful of water when he saw two oiled-paper umbrellas approaching from the distance, one high and one low. The one walking ahead was a woman in green clothes, wearing a pair of green cloth shoes.

Seeing the incoming figures, He Liang hurriedly wiped his face randomly, rushed out from under the eaves, and called out, "Mistress!"

Holding the oiled-paper umbrella, Xie Nandu smiled slightly, shifting the umbrella to the side a bit and asking, "Where is your master?"

He Liang stood beside Xie Nandu, smelling a pleasant scent from his Mistress, his face flushing slightly before replying, "Master is in seclusion. He probably won't be out these few days."

Xie Nandu glanced at the bamboo building and, hearing the sounds from inside, did not feel disappointed despite taking time out to visit. Instead, she waved her hand behind her, and a young man who was about the same age as He Liang walked up and looked at He Liang.

Xie Nandu said, "I met him on the way here. He should be your master's other disciple. He's already told you, right?"

He Liang looked curiously at the young man before him. "Senior Brother Yu?"

The young man smiled faintly and introduced himself, "Yu Qingfeng, I pay respects to you, Senior Brother He."

On the way here, the woman he had never met had already told him some things. But it was not until now, hearing it from He Liang, that he realized she was his Mistress.

"That's not right, that's not right! You're the Senior Brother! Master said he took you in first, and then me, so you're the senior brother!"

The three of them reached the eaves and, after putting away the umbrellas, He Liang smiled and said, "Master gave instructions, if Senior Brother arrived, you are to follow me and temper your body."

Yu Qingfeng nodded. He was supposed to have arrived at the Divine Capital earlier, but delays on the journey held him up. When he eventually got here, he heard that his master had already taken another disciple. He had mentally prepared himself to be the junior brother, yet unexpectedly, he was still the senior brother in the end.

Xie Nandu glanced at the house and then said, "Since your master is in seclusion, I'll head back. Follow your master's instructions and cultivate diligently."

He Liang and Yu Qingfeng both nodded and said in unison, "Take care, Mistress!"

Without saying more, Xie Nandu opened her oiled-paper umbrella and quickly left.

Now only the two youths remained, staring at each other.

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