By the lakeside window sill, the very breath of spring was in full bloom.

A single potted plant, yet it held the burgeoning vitality of a spring day within its delicate frame. Its flower head, with wings, tail, and feet held aloft, resembled a phoenix poised for flight. Its stem bore lush, flowing tendrils, like the whiskers of an immortal.

Most striking were the two main petals on either side, extending outwards as if to embrace the wind. Their lines were exquisite, shimmering with the brilliance of golden feathers. Thus, it was named the “Golden Feather Phoenix Immortal”.

It bloomed with agonizing slowness, once every three years. Its flowering period was fleeting, lasting only three days. Hence, it was also known as the “Three-Day Cycle”.

Naturally, its growth demanded extremely harsh conditions. To preserve its blooming posture, to artificially prolong its ephemeral splendor, required the consumption of vast resources. Throughout the entire Qi country, only the Bao family possessed the stable output of the Golden Feather Phoenix Immortal flower.

Of course, this particular enterprise had already been transferred to Chongxuan Sheng of the Chongxuan family.

Beyond its aesthetic appeal, this flower held immense medicinal value. Its “Immortal Whiskers” could be incorporated into over thirty medicinal formulations, enhancing their efficacy. Its petals, moreover, were highly sought-after tea ingredients. The two “Golden Feathers” in particular, were renowned among the finest flower teas.

Shuofang Earl Bao Yi cherished this flower above all others. On his windowsill, year-round, he insisted upon a potted Golden Feather Phoenix Immortal in bloom. Not by employing extraordinary power to maintain the illusion of an unfading flower – that lacked true beauty. Instead, he had flowers transplanted here, each wilting after three days, only to be replaced by another in full bloom.

When Bao Bozhao initially transferred this business, one strict condition was imposed: the supply to Shuofang Earl must be guaranteed.

“The more beautiful the flower, the shorter its bloom – perhaps this is a constant principle of the heavens,” Bao Yi, hands clasped behind his back, mused softly, gazing out at the misty, vast expanse of Fehe Lake. This man, known as “Piao Yao” in his youth, an Earl once as renowned as Chongxuan Mingtu, showed no outward sign of the fierce vitality that had defined him. He seemed more like a cultivated scholar, his brows and eyes gentle. Only when he turned did his brow subtly lift, revealing a hint of ruggedness, a flicker of resolve.

He turned to Bao Zhongqing, his voice slow and deliberate: “You are my only son now.”

Today’s Bao Zhongqing was dressed in the simplest of attire, devoid of any unnecessary adornments, yet everything fit him perfectly. Were it not for the pockmarks on his face, he would not be considered unsightly. In this world teeming with myriad secret techniques, minor facial imperfections were hardly a concern for the Shuofang Earl’s mansion.

However, at a very young age, Bao Zhongqing had declared, “A great man should seek a body of gold and marrow of jade; seeking a face of gold and jade is the mark of a small man!” He had personally refused any alteration to his appearance. This single sentence had formally ignited the rivalry between him and Bao Bozhao for the right to inherit the title.

Currently, the Great Qi’s Bao family boasted three Earls, a truly prominent lineage. But only the position of Shuofang Earl was hereditary and irreplaceable, the bedrock of a true thousand-year family. The Shuofang Earl had always been the master of the Bao family.

At this moment, facing his father’s rare display of emotion, Bao Zhongqing’s face contorted with sorrow: “Father, please restrain your grief.” He looked at Bao Yi, his eyes filled with worry and sorrow.

“Was Bozhao killed by you?” the contemporary Shuofang Earl abruptly inquired. His voice resonated like thunder.

Bao Zhongqing’s face mirrored disbelief, followed by profound heartache. Even with his extraordinary cultivation, he stumbled back two steps before regaining his footing. “How could Father say such a thing?!” He stood steady, barely supporting himself, and with shock and pain, stepped forward. “How could I do such a thing? Could it be that in Father’s eyes, I am such a beast?!”

Bao Yi’s eyes were icy cold: “You did not deny that you are capable of it.”

“People have their bottom lines!” Bao Zhongqing’s eyes, filled with pain and anger, flashed. “Regardless of whether I am capable or not, he was my blood brother from the same mother. How could I possibly do that?! Beyond identity, cultivation, and other such factors, I am at least still a person!”

“So you are capable of it,” Bao Yi stated.

“If given enough time and opportunity, I could even kill Chongxuan Zun of the Outer Tower Realm or Jiang Wang. Those who have not yet reached the threshold of divinity are fragile. Father, of course, understands this.” Bao Zhongqing’s voice was hoarse, his eyes glistening with tears. “But why would Father choose to wound my heart so deeply?”

Bao Yi gazed intently at him. “I personally went to the land of Xia, examined all the battle traces at the scene. From Wuyang City to Xiaojian Mountain, not a single detail was missed.”

Bao Zhongqing cried out like a wounded beast, his voice raw with heartbreak and anger. “Then you should know even more of your son’s innocence! You are a contemporary True Person, possessing eyes that penetrate reality. Yet today, you wound me with these words, simply because it was not I who died on the battlefield in Xia country?!”

He drew forth a short dagger of opulent appearance. Dropping heavily to his knees, he knelt, raising both hands high, presenting the dagger. “Come!” He closed his eyes, tears streaming down his face. “If you truly harbor unresolved doubts, if you are consumed by resentment, then use this dagger, a gift from my brother, to kill me! Let this unworthy son, who should have died but did not, go accompany my brother, who should not have died but did!”

This dagger, adorned with green, inlaid with gold and embedded with jade, was exceedingly precious, named Zhaoqing. It was a gift from Bao Bozhao to Bao Zhongqing when he was eight years old. At that time, they had been very close.

“The human heart is more complex than anything in this world. Eyes that penetrate worldly reality cannot penetrate the heart.” Strong as the Annihilate Thunder Army commander was, there was a moment of disquiet in his gaze. He sighed. “Zhongqing, perhaps in the past, I overlooked your feelings. I must also admit that regarding the issue of inheriting the title, my choice was somewhat cold, I did not treat you with enough tenderness. The blame for the extent of your rivalry lies primarily with me. So today, facing this outcome, I am perhaps the least qualified person to resent.”

With a rare, gentle gaze, he looked at his only remaining son. “Tell me truthfully, did Bozhao have any last words before he died?”

Bao Zhongqing opened his tear-filled eyes, looking up at his father. His voice trembled. “Are you still unwilling to believe me?”

“I can choose not to blame you. I can attribute Bozhao’s death entirely to the Tai family of the Xia country. The Bao family can feign complete ignorance of this.” Bao Yi spoke, a hint of pleading in his voice. “Surely you cannot deny… a father the right to a last conversation with his son?”

A dignified contemporary True Person, the contemporary Shuofang Earl, a renowned figure among the nine commanders of the military affairs hall, it was truly rare to see him in such a vulnerable state. Who could remain unmoved by such a sight?

But Bao Zhongqing only said miserably, “Zhongqing deserves to die, his actions were improper, to the extent of causing Father such misunderstanding. Now there is no way to prove my innocence, no way to clarify my intentions. I wish to accompany my elder brother, so that Father may know! Father’s love for his son, I hope that after Zhongqing’s death, you may still feel some pity!”

He reversed the dagger with his backhand, Dao Yuan surging within, and without hesitation, plunged it towards his heart! The dagger tip pierced his heart, fresh blood rapidly staining his clothes. The Geng Metal Qi within the five mansions sea surged and roared, intending destruction.

But everything stopped. Bao Yi caught his hand.

The master of the Bao family said no more. He simply took the Zhaoqing dagger, placed it in his bosom, and then produced a red sealed gift list, placing it in Bao Zhongqing’s hand. “This gift list was originally prepared for your brother, for the object of his marriage, the daughter of the Cangshu County guard. Now it is yours. See if you need to add anything. Tomorrow I will have people go to propose the marriage.”

He noticed Bao Zhongqing’s hesitant expression and paused. “What is it? Do you have someone you favor?”

“Son does indeed have a deep love in his heart,” Bao Zhongqing replied, meeting the Shuofang Earl’s gaze. “Not anymore.”

Such a person as he could not possibly harbor any deep love in his heart. At most, he considered the daughter of the Cangshu County guard not entirely well-matched for the Shuofang Earl’s mansion. But considering that the Cangshu County guard was a student of court physician Song Yao, his cultivation and official position held potential for advancement, making the match not entirely unacceptable. Especially as this was a matter already decided by Bao Yi.

He would accept. But he needed his father to understand his sacrifice.

“Go,” Bao Yi finally said.

“Please take care of yourself, Father.” Bao Zhongqing knelt on the ground, performing a deep bow. Wiping away his tears, he scrambled to his feet, turned, and left the room.

Fehe Lake was Linzi’s finest inner-city lake. This separate mansion by the lakeside was Bao Yi’s preferred residence. This commander of the nine commanders, hiding the loneliness in his eyes, turned back, his gaze once again upon the rippling waves of the lake. But he could no longer appreciate the scenery. With a flick of his sleeve, he swept away the potted flower on the windowsill, leaving not a single petal!

The Bao family and the Chongxuan family had contended for many years, and throughout, neither had truly been able to suppress the other. But with Chongxuan Chuliang’s ennoblement as a marquis, followed by the first divine threshold achieving True Person in the Eastern Domain. Chongxuan Zun and Chongxuan Sheng, both exhibiting frightening talent… the Bao family’s momentum had already begun to wane.

As a leading figure of the next generation of the Bao family, Bao Bozhao had initially sold the Golden Feather Phoenix Immortal flower business precisely to ease the Bao family’s conflict with the Chongxuan family. Not only had Bao Bozhao sold the Golden Feather Phoenix Immortal flower business to Chongxuan Sheng, but he had also been able to disregard the humiliation of being trampled upon by Chongxuan Zun at the Grand Master’s ceremony, greatly facilitating business under Chongxuan Zun’s purview.

Bao Yi had not planned to interfere with Bao Bozhao’s strategy of governance. He greatly approved of Bao Bozhao’s mindset, capable of enduring what ordinary people could not. Of course, discussing these things now held no meaning. Just like this basin of Golden Feather Phoenix Immortal flower that had been swept away.

What qualification did the future Bao family have to be enemies with the Chongxuan family? And what qualification to be friends with the Chongxuan family?!

Leaving the Fehe Lake separate mansion, Bao Zhongqing immediately entered a carriage. The man driving the carriage was none other than Yan Er, once known as the foremost Tenglong of Linhai, the “Fuhai Hand”. Now… still a Tenglong. The fog of ignorance was not so easily penetrated.

Having followed Bao Zhongqing’s side for so long, he had already grasped the young master’s temperament. Thus, he appeared not to notice Bao Zhongqing’s disheveled appearance, simply asking, “Young Master, where to?”

“Imperial Hospital.”

Seating himself in the carriage compartment, Bao Zhongqing unhurriedly attended to his wound and changed into a fresh set of clothes. His voice, devoid of any discernible difference, was calm. “Speaking of which, during the subjugation of Xia, I was in the eastern line battle alongside Chongxuan Zun and Jiang Wang, we can be considered comrades. They have been in a coma in the Imperial Hospital for so many days, both emotionally and practically, I should go see them.”

Yan Er pulled the reins, controlling the carriage smoothly towards the Imperial Hospital. Bao Zhongqing, like Chongxuan Zun, Jiang Wang, and Chongxuan Sheng, were all seriously wounded and were among the first to be sent back to Linzi for recuperation. Only he, after returning to Linzi, was unwilling to accept treatment, instead forcing himself to return to the mansion to mourn.

Chongxuan Zun and Jiang Wang had been in the Imperial Hospital for several days, with the army on the verge of returning to Qi, and the ancestral temple offering ceremony imminent. To be truthful, Bao Zhongqing did not approve of the strategy of easing tension with the Chongxuan family. Even in this war of subjugation against Xia, the two direct descendants of the Chongxuan family had achieved astonishingly brilliant military feats, destined to soar high, steadily suppressing the already war-dead Bao Bozhao, and his own mediocre self, Bao Zhongqing.

But he believed that the Chongxuan family was like the midday sun, and the thorn planted by the late Chongxuan Mingtu was even more useful. The Bao family could serve as a balancing piece, to be used by the Emperor, thereby gaining support. But this was a matter decided by Bao Bozhao during his lifetime. Before completely eradicating Bao Bozhao’s influence, he was quite willing to let his father feel the deep affection between their brothers. This included preserving old ways and following old strategies.

Moreover, since he was to follow old strategies—Bao Bozhao had so cooperated with Chongxuan Fatty’s strategy on the eastern front, surely Chongxuan Fatty should show some gesture? At the very least, he should feel a trace of compensatory psychology towards the only younger brother of the war-dead?

The carriage stopped in front of the Imperial Hospital. Bao Zhongqing casually picked up a few gifts and walked towards the entrance. He could easily imagine the glory that these few individuals, still recuperating, would enjoy at the great temple offering ceremony after Cao Ji’s triumphant return. He understood perfectly the uninterrupted flow of carriages outside the Imperial Hospital, and the strictness of the several teams of palace guards at the entrance, denying entry.

Of course, this could not stop him, a direct descendant of the Shuofang Earl. Furthermore, he was also a general wounded in the war against Xia. His wounds, surely, needed changing or something?

After wandering around the vast Imperial Hospital for a while, before he could find a physician to inquire about which courtyard Jiang Wang or Chongxuan Zun resided in, he spotted an extremely conspicuous figure – a fatty, like a thief, sneaking towards a small courtyard on the east side. The fatty heard the movement and suddenly turned back. A warm smile instantly bloomed on his fat face. “Brother Bao!”

Bao Zhongqing strode forward even faster, tears in his eyes. “Brother Chongxuan, it is truly wonderful that you are recovering. My heart can finally rest halfway!” Their hands gripped each other, shaking heavily, the very picture of deep emotion.

“Oh? Don’t know for whom the other half remains anxious?” Chongxuan Sheng asked.

“Of course, it is for Brother Jiang Wang and your esteemed brother, Chongxuan Zun.” Bao Zhongqing said solemnly. “My elder brother died for the great cause of subjugating Xia. How can these heroes of Great Qi not make me worry? Of this worry, you occupy half, and the two of them together occupy the other half.”

“Only after death can you rest at ease?” Chongxuan Sheng joked.

Bao Zhongqing sighed. “Yes, ah. Unless I am thoroughly dead, how can I cease to worry about my comrades?”

This sentence earned Chongxuan Sheng’s solemn respect. “I did not realize before that Brother Bao was such a heartfelt person. In the future, we must get along well.”

“We should have gotten along well long ago!” Bao Zhongqing said meaningfully. Why should not the future master of the Bao family and the future master of the Chongxuan family get along well? Both had been suppressed from a young age, both had long been in the position of the weaker competitor, and should have much in common.

What? Chongxuan Sheng, you are not the future master of the Chongxuan family? The one competing with you is currently unconscious on his sickbed. Should you not… think of a way?

Chongxuan Sheng seemed completely oblivious, smiling harmlessly. “Brother Bao, what brings you to the Imperial Hospital today?”

Bao Zhongqing also simply smiled. “I wonder which courtyard Brother Jiang is recuperating in? I came to see him.”

“No way,” Chongxuan Sheng shook his head seriously. “The Imperial Physician said that Brother Wang needs good rest, and administered the Sleep Immortal Needle, prolonging his coma time. During this period, he cannot be disturbed.”

Sleep Immortal Needle! One of the three most precious needle techniques of the Linzi Imperial Hospital, used to nourish the body and protect cultivation, with the beautiful name “Awake from a great dream, a single sleep wandering among immortals.” The extremely high cost of the needles made it rarely used. Truly a massive expense!

“It is I who am impolite,” Bao Zhongqing said regretfully. “I imagine Young Master Zun’s side is also the same. Then I will not disturb. I have prepared two small gifts here, I’ll trouble Young Master Sheng to present them—”

His words were not finished before Chongxuan Sheng grabbed his arm and led him directly towards the side courtyard. “My esteemed brother fears no disturbance! I also wanted to go see him. Come, together!”

The one who is most radical is the most suspicious. After all, when they learn that Zhang Ruochen is the new Grand Elder, they will surely hide, no longer revealing any flaws. The website is about to close, download the Love Reading app to see the latest content for free.

“Swish! Swish! Swish!”

All the gods under the Spatial Divine Hall, emerging from various secret realms, flew forth, their divine might released, divine light enveloping them. They hung in the void, surrounding Zhang Ruochen in the center.

Chi Xingtian saw Zhang Ruochen’s dire situation and immediately manifested his colossal demonic form, becoming several thousand *zhang* high. He roared angrily, “Within the Spatial Divine Hall lurks a Quantity Venerable, quite possibly one of those present! If you can truly investigate the truth, then it would be strange. If you intend to rely on arrays to suppress us, *hehe*, then let’s fight! At worst, we’ll demolish this nest of the Quantity organization, the Spatial Divine Hall.”

The various gods of the Spatial Divine Hall were all enraged, their voices scolding one after another. Fifth Elder Xue Qing said, “Cultivators throughout the world know that the Quantity organization is most adept at stirring up disputes, allowing the Heaven Court to descend into internal conflict. Your actions indeed resemble theirs greatly! As far as I know, there are still Quantity Messengers and Quantity Venerables not yet discovered. Who knows if you all are clean?”

Zhang Ruochen’s gaze fell upon him. Immediately, Xue Qing’s face turned pale, as if a divine mountain was pressing down on his body, making him completely immobile.

Zhang Ruochen said, “The Elf race just attacked the Kunlun Realm, and you are also born of the Elf race, are you not? I see the deaths in Kunlun, your suspicion is not small. Take him down.”

Chi Xingtian was stunned, looking towards Zhang Ruochen. Who would have thought that the always rational Zhang Ruochen would actually resort to action, finding a reason so far-fetched, clearly intending to use power to suppress? But thinking about it, he could also understand. His only son had died, how could he be rational?

“Boom!”

“Boom!”

Qing Su acted. In an instant, she suppressed Xue Qing under a tower-shaped war artifact.