## The Shadow of Bai Yujing

Hoping to reach Bai Yujing before Yu-shixiong grew impatient, Lu Chen urged haste upon Hao Su, and together they invoked the Three Mountain Rune.

Beneath them, the land unfolded, its mountain ranges and rivers winding like serpentine dragons.

It was a tapestry far removed from the ordered realm of Haoran, a landscape where the nine continents rose from the seas like majestic mountains, while the fourteen provinces of Qingming were cleft and sundered by vast, meandering waterways.

A streak of blinding sword-light plunged towards the celestial city of Shenxiao.

It was none other than the imposing form of Hao Su, the executioner.

Soon, a cohort of young swordsmen, led by the talisman-scribing prodigy Dong Huafu, arrived to greet him.

Hao Su, the sword-wielding executioner, seemed to have materialized from thin air, a stranger to these lands.

Sixteen swordsmen, led by the seasoned Yuan Ying cultivator Cheng Quan, had followed Daoshan to Qingming many years ago. They had dispersed, nine of them choosing to hone their swords within the hallowed halls of Shenxiao City. All but Dong Huafu had accepted the decrees of Shenxiao, becoming Daoist officials in Bai Yujing.

Cheng Quan, accompanied by several younger blades, had sought sanctuary within Wu Shuangjiang’s Suichu Palace, entering their golden rolls. Suichu, a sect of considerable power, held the right to bestow private decrees, a tradition recognized by Bai Yujing, allowing them to establish their own lineages. Thus, Cheng Quan received his own decree, assuming the mantle of a Daoist official and serving as an honored elder of the ancestral hall.

The old swordsman had left a simple cloth-wrapped sword box upon a Dragon Resting Stone beside the Crane Tower, a silent offering to the waters below. Bai Yujing, though aware of this act, feigned ignorance, knowing full well that Suichu Palace would soon welcome a reborn sword saint, Nalan Shaowei, returned through the power of a resurrected life-lamp.

Elsewhere, Yan Ming sought the wisdom of the Xuandu Temple.

Of the nine young swordsmen dedicated to the sword in Shenxiao City, half were currently in secluded cultivation. The city held these warriors in high regard, granting them access to a dozen of their most treasured, otherwise secret, sword techniques. Dong Huafu, however, had chosen a secluded peak within the sprawling peach blossom grove, building a humble hut and abstaining from visiting the main city.

Hao Su surveyed the young men, clad in the traditional Daoist robes and caps. The exception, of course, was Dong Huafu.

A solitary outsider stood among them – a middle-aged Daoist, crowned with a golden lotus flower, his smile warm and inviting. He introduced himself as Wang Qing, vice-lord of Shenxiao City, styled Golden Chime.

Unburdened by the presence of outsiders, Hao Su spoke plainly: “My name is Hao Su, from the blessed land of Lingshuang in Haoran. For many years, I served as an executioner at the Sword Qi Great Wall, though I never once climbed the ramparts to deliver a killing blow to the demons. Whether you recognize my authority or not is of little consequence. I came here having promised Hidden Officer that if you ever find yourselves in need, and are willing to seek my aid, I will offer my assistance to the best of my abilities, without reservation. Each of you has a single request, a debt you may freely draw upon. If you believe my intervention would taint the tradition of the Sword Qi Great Wall, I will not interfere, but know that I will do my utmost to retrieve your corpses and avenge your deaths.”

The young swordsmen remained silent, neither nodding nor shaking their heads.

Dong Huafu was the first to break the silence: “Did the Second Proprietor mention when he would be arriving?”

Hao Su shook his head. “I am not well acquainted with him, and we do not discuss such personal matters.”

A young woman, a swordswoman, inquired with curiosity: “Executioner, is it true that upon leaving the Sword Qi Great Wall, you sought revenge in the central dominion of Middle Earth, and that you twisted the head off an old Ascendant and left it at the gates? And within the span of an incense stick, you slew an Ascendant Great Demon from Xianzan City, so quickly that the beast of Xuanpu had no time to shatter its golden core and explode its nascent soul?”

Hao Su hesitated, then, adopting the shamelessness of the Hidden Officer, nodded. “Something like that.”

The truth was a secret concerning Chen Pingan and the Middle Earth Wen Miao. Otherwise, Hao Su would never have dared to claim responsibility for the death of Xuanpu.

By now, all of Qingming knew that the last Hidden Officer of the Sword Qi Great Wall, in league with Lu Chen, Third Proprietor of Bai Yujing, and accompanied by Ning Yao, Qi Tingji, Hao Su, and Lu Zhi, had ventured deep into the savage lands. They had strode through that vast wilderness as if it were their own backyard, cleaving the City of Daozuan, the first Daoist of the world, in two with their bare hands. Hao Su had seized the opportunity to slay the Ascendant Great Demon Xuanpu, and, upon Mount Tuoyue, a place of equal stature to Bai Yujing, had slain the first disciple of a Great Ancestor from the Savage Lands…

After all, the sudden appearance of a new moon in Qingming’s night sky was a matter that no Daoist official could ignore.

And to those heretics who walked the path of moon-worship, and to those mountain spirits and river monsters, this was a much-needed rain after a long drought, inspiring genuine gratitude for the Sword Qi Great Wall and its young Hidden Officer.

In the Savage Lands, She Yue, one of the ten most promising youths, resided in the moon known as the Toad Palace.

The Old King of the Seat, the Lotus Hermit, resided in the moon known as the Jade Hook, which Dong Sangeng had cleaved from the sky with his sword, dragging it down into the world.

“Radiant Glow”, once a moon hanging at the center of the Savage Lands’ night sky, was known as the “Golden Realm” and was transported into Qingming by four swordsmen.

Yu Dou himself left Bai Yujing to greet the moon.

Bai Ze tried to stop the transfer from happening, but was stopped by Li Sheng.

This action had far-reaching consequences for all three realms, the true extent of which would only be revealed after a century or a millennium of hindsight.

Wang Qing smiled and extended an invitation: “Shall I show the executioner around Shenxiao City?”

Hao Su clasped his hands in gratitude: “I am much obliged.”

Dong Huafu declared: “I will accompany you.”

Wang Qing was taken aback. This brilliant swordmaster of the Dong family from the Sword Qi Great Wall had remained secluded within the peach blossom grove since his arrival in Shenxiao, save for a single pilgrimage to the Xuandu Temple.

Wang Qing held a favorable impression of the Hidden Officer. On a public level, the presence of these swordsmen had elevated Shenxiao City within Bai Yujing’s hierarchy. The swordsmen’s decision to reside in Shenxiao was likely influenced by the Hidden Officer, as the abundant sword qi of the Ziqi Tower or the thunderous energy near the Jade Pivot City’s Lightning Pool would be more conducive to their training. On a private level, Wang Qing’s master, the previous city lord and Daoist Saint guarding the Sword Qi Great Wall, had left a “family letter” to be delivered to Wang Qing by the old swordsman Cheng Quan. The letter included both the Hundred Sword Immortal Seal and the Bicentennial Sword Immortal Seal, as well as several stamps. In the letter, the master praised the young Hidden Officer, born of humble origins, and specifically instructed Wang Qing to offer Chen Pingan a generous serving of Shenxiao City’s peach blossom wine whenever he visited Bai Yujing, regardless of his purpose.

Dong Huafu, of course, had his own reasons.

If he were to wander Shenxiao City alone, wouldn’t he have to pay for his own drinks?

After parting with Hao Su, Lu Chen returned to Bai Yujing’s highest point, a nameless place, not among the Five Cities and Twelve Towers, simply known as the Upper Clarity Pavilion by the Daoist officials of Bai Yujing. It had been a place of rare teachings from their master, and was forbidden to all but the three Proprietors.

Occasionally, Lu Chen would summon familiar Daoist officials to drink, admire the moon, and watch the sunrise, or bring young acolytes, one in each hand, to enjoy the view.

Yu Dou rarely interfered.

Lu Chen grumbled: “Jiang Yunsheng and the others! A few days apart and their airs grow unbearable! It’s no use even if Yu-shixiong delivers the message. Must I go personally?”

Yu Dou replied: “I have instructed them to await my decree. When they arrive is my decision, and when they leave is yours.”

Lu Chen tentatively inquired: “Could we dedicate a portion of the moon-moving merit, granting Hao Su, as a guest official of Shenxiao, the right to slay an Ascendant Daoist official within Qingming without facing repercussions from Bai Yujing?”

Yu Dou remained silent.

Lu Chen continued: “If Hao Su were to challenge one of our own within Bai Yujing, I would use my own merit to compensate. However, such an event is unlikely. If the feud lies outside of Bai Yujing, I will first attempt to dissuade Hao Su, urging him to seek his sword within my hundred years, so as not to trouble Yu-shixiong.”

Hao Su had disregarded the Wen Miao’s rules and slain Nan Guangzhao, an Ascendant cultivator from Middle Earth. The executioner’s journey to the Savage Lands with the Hidden Officer had yielded great rewards, allowing him to atone for his past transgressions with the Wen Miao, ultimately allowing him to accompany the Radiant Glow moon to Qingming.

Lu Chen had not returned empty-handed, offering the Jade Light Blessed Land, once a Savage Lands armory, to the Wen Miao in Middle Earth, in exchange for three future journeys to Haoran.

Upon returning to Bai Yujing, Lu Chen had also brought with him a treasure of immortal quality – a coral brush rest acquired from the Jade Tablet City in the Savage Lands.

Lu Chen would need to visit Wang Dongzhi, lord of the much esteemed Jade Pavilion, to discuss a discreet transaction.

Yu Dou asked: “Is this Chen Pingan’s wish?”

Lu Chen nodded. “Having promised to do my utmost, I hope Yu-shixiong will grant his consent, and approve this agenda in the next council. If anyone believes it is presumptuous and violates your established rules, then we need not record it. Yu-shixiong need only remain silent from beginning to end, and that will be enough of a statement for the city and tower lords to understand.”

Lu Chen had explained some of the difficulties to Chen Pingan, such as the fact that, according to his shixiong’s decree, the three Proprietors, Five Cities, and Twelve Towers were to strictly adhere to a few fundamental rules, and could otherwise reject the Proprietor’s decrees. This was not common in Bai Yujing’s history, but it was not unheard of. Almost all of the city and tower lords had rejected decrees from Yu Dou and Lu Chen.

The rejection of Lu Chen’s “Proprietor’s decrees” was less frequent than Yu Dou’s, only a dozen or so times compared to the Second Proprietor’s hundreds of decrees.

Even so, half of the Third Proprietor’s decrees had been rejected.

This had long been a tale widely shared throughout Qingming.

Yu Dou did not answer immediately, scoffing: “You were almost testing the sword with your own body in the Savage Lands, yet you remain so reasonable?”

Yu Dou had been listening to the earlier conversation near the Radiant Glow moon. The old temple master had not prevented the Second Proprietor from eavesdropping.

Lu Chen chuckled: “Consider it a repayment. I’m merely speaking. Qi Jingchun was always more amenable to reason, wasn’t he?”

Yu Dou remained noncommittal, his expression indifferent: “Do not interfere with the affairs of the Xuandu Temple and Suichu Palace. I have waited for them for many years.”

Lu Chen jested: “Those sound like good words of concern, but they come from Yu-shixiong, they sound odd.”

Yu Dou stated: “The matter of Hao Su serving as a guest official in Shenxiao City will be added to the agenda for the next Jade Clarity Palace council. As for the other matter you mentioned, I will offer a timely reminder during the council, and pretend nothing has happened.”

Lu Chen sighed with relief, and said in a deep voice: “Shixiong informed me of something at the Azure Cooling Mountains in the Northern Grotto Domain…”

Yu Dou, wanting nothing to do with what Lu Chen was about to say, shook his head and said: “Cultivation is a personal matter.”

But on his face, there was still a smile.

Lu Chen had no choice but to stop. He had a mournful look on his face, as if saying “Yu-shixiong, you’re hurting my feelings. You’re always smiling when you think of shifu, but you always give me that cold face of yours”.

Lu Chen wiped the railing with his sleeve and asked casually: “Any interesting news while I was away?”

Yu Dou said expressionlessly: “I believe what I find interesting would only bore you.”

Lu Chen said pitifully: “Then please humour me, and tell me something you think I would find interesting.”

Yu Dou replied slowly: “Shidi Shanging is still in closed cultivation, beginning to refine the mountain seal. Yang Ningxing is now my disciple. Lin Jiangxian’s martial arts have improved again. Yao Qing has slain three cadaverous immortals. Bai Ou visited the intercalary moon peak, and was struck down the mountain by Xin Kuai, nearly losing his realm. Zhao Ge is using some secret art to create an Ascendant realm for her young Daoist companion out of thin air. Half of the fourteen domains are restless.”

Lu Chen did not know whether to laugh or cry. “Restless”, indeed. Yu-shixiong could speak quite eloquently, but others simply did not understand him.

Lin Jiangxian, the undisputed master of martial arts, had “improved again”, so he must have been more than halfway there?

Yang Ningxing, from the Northern Grotto Domain’s Cloudy Sky Palace of the Sacred Xuan Office, had entered Qingming through the Five Colors Domain and was a very dedicated young man.

In Lu Chen’s view, however, this man’s qualities and endowments were at best a “small Yao Qing”. Or rather, accurately, a “tiny Yao Qing”.

Lu Chen asked: “That little Heavenly Lord, is he not one of Yu-shixiong’s close disciples?”

Yu Dou shook his head. “Not yet.”

But Yu Dou soon said something that sounded very much like himself: “If one day he surprises me, then even if he has brothers and sisters, Yang Ningxing can still become my close disciple.”

Bai Ou, the female national master of the Azure Divinity Dynasty and third on the list of martial artists, was already a god-like figure.

Bai Ou had asked Lin Jiangxian twice, but had always avoided Xin Kuai of the intercalary moon peak. He wondered what had made her seek him out this time.

Lu Chen had a strange look on his face, as if thinking “Xin Kuai is working hard for something that does not benefit himself directly”.

The luck of Xu Jue was great, especially for women!

Qingming’s female cultivators were truly remarkable. Those with the top combat power could be considered the most capable among the realms.

Zhao Ge, an Ascendant cultivator, was called the “Restore Peace”.

Also the first vice lord of Southern Radiance City and the two female lords of the Cloud Water Tower.

The Xuandu Temple also had a shijie of Sun Huaizhong’s who had reportedly been in closed cultivation for a thousand years.

Plus a few hermits with high level of Daoism.

If a top 20 list were to be made, about half of the names would be female cultivators.

Lu Chen asked: “Has anyone beaten the Heavenly Drum to voice their grievances?”

Yu Dou shook his head.

Beating the Heavenly Drum was a gamble of life.

Lu Chen had a worried look on his face: “Our Minister, is a real worry.”

Yao Qing, styled Zimei and styled “Tomb Guardian”, was the first minister of the Azure Divinity Dynasty.

As an Ascendant cultivator, Yao Qing was one of the most likely to reach the fourteenth realm.

From the emperor and generals to the civil and military officials, nearly everyone in the Dynasty, other than the clerical staff, were Daoists.

For example, Bai Yujing’s Cloud Water Tower specializes in making Daoist diplomas for various countries and Daoist temples.

Large mountain sects may bestow degrees on their own, but Dynasties in the lowlands, even the Azure Divinity Dynasty, need to obtain their degrees from Bai Yujing, and the countries in the fourteen realms will receive a certain number of allocations according to custom.

As a Daoist official outside of Bai Yujing, Yao Qing was often invited to lecture and preach in Azure Jade City.

The three Cadaveric Immortals formed from Yao Qing’s three corpses had all become immortals. According to the genealogy of Bai Yujing, they ranked higher than the “ghost immortals” who were “disintegrated”.

And the three Cadaveric Immortals themselves also had Nether Souls, but were innately unable to practice the Primordial Soul. So, with the True Body and the Outer Bodies of Yin and Yang, almost as many as Lu Chen.

The path that Yao Qing took seemed closest to Lu Chen’s Seven Hearts Mirror.

So Yao Qing, the three-time prime minister of the Azure Divinity Dynasty, had always been known as the “Lu Chen of Qingming Domain” here in the Five Cities and Twelve Towers of Bai Yujing.

And Lu Chen had been given a name that rang through the pugilist world outside of Bai Yujing: “The Yao Qing of Bai Yujing”.

Everyone knew who had come up with the names.

Lu Chen had gleefully accepted the title, but what Yao Qing thought, no one knew.

Yu Dou rarely asked: “Is the Buddhist priest of Baiyun Temple in the Azure Plume Country of Treasure Bottle Continent one of shixiong’s clone?”

Lu Chen shook his head: “Hard to say. I can’t be sure.”

Lu Chen asked: “Did Yu-shixiong ask shifu if the martial artist Xin Kuai was of our Qingming Realm?”

Yu Dou said: “I didn’t ask shifu, but I’m pretty sure.”

Every realm has someone who can overwhelm its most powerful cultivator.

The two may act separately or clash, and even the three founders of the religions can’t suppress them with their knowledge.

Like in the Five Colors Realm, the one who could overwhelm Ning Yao was probably Feng Yuanxiao.

Compared to the incident of the Sage which was seen as a slight flaw in the white jade, Lu Chen had mentioned the “contention” which was about the story of the Sage and the old boatman, and Kuming had mentioned the story of the “children arguing about the sun”, which was actually another meeting between the Sage and the being of the Haoran. But the turbulent skirmish was when Li Sheng remade the rules, the Sage “meeting” a cultivator in the mountains again.

Lu Chen had asked his shifu in the lotus cave about it, but the Dao ancestor could not answer him.

Lu Chen said: “I’m worried about Chai Wu. Her preacher will be Chen Pingan, Xiao Mo, Cui Dongshan, Mi Yu and more. Maybe Ning Yao, Liang Shuang, the Fire Dragon Daoist, and Lu Yan will join them. And the talismans of Yu Xuan, the thunder magic of the Dragon Tiger Mountain Heavenly Master… I can’t bear to think of it.”

The more one gets to the mountain peak, the more one worries about this.

Especially the new gatekeeper of Lost Mountain, named Nianjing, styled Xianwei.

The Daoist wears a hairpin of wood.

So no matter how he trains, no matter how slow he is, or even if he does not improve, no one dares to ignore him.

The fast Chai Wu and the slow Xianwei.

To Yu Dou, none of it matters until one reaches the fourteenth realm.

Yu Dou said: “There aren’t many chances for Zheng Juezhong to enter Qingming. I’ve carefully investigated Radiant Light and found nothing suspicious.”

Sun Huaizhong of the Xuandu Temple had visited the Haoran Realm twice and recently brought a few disciples back with him.

The old scholar had visited Bai Ye in Xuandu Temple.

And the Radiant Light moon.

Lu Chen shook his head and smiled: “It’s hard to find traces of what Master Zheng wants to do. He will do it without anyone knowing.”

Yu Dou asked: “Does Chen Pingan have no origins at all?”

Lu Chen nodded: “None.”

Yu Dou smiled: “Then that is great.”

It was remarkable for a child from a poor family to have gotten this far.

But talent and luck was not enough.

How many talented people had Yu Dou seen in his eight thousand years of cultivation?

They all mean nothing in the long run.

Yu Dou had killed more than a handful of Ascendant cultivators.

As long as one doesn’t break the rules during Yu Dou’s hundred years and cultivates in peace, then they are free to do whatever they want in the other two hundred.

But if one breaks the rules during the hundred years, then Yu Dou will show no mercy.

Not only in the fourteen realms, but in Bai Yujing, vice lords had been taken care of personally by Yu Dou.

Lu Chen looked at the towering Five Cities and Twelve Towers.

Purple Qi Tower.

Daoists of Purple Qi Tower are named Jiang. Because Purple Qi Tower is located to the far east of Bai Yujing and is enveloped in purple mist.

Jiang Zhaomo was currently teaching swordsmanship to a dozen descendants of the Jiang clan.

Inside the training area was a replica of the Light Shadow Scroll.

Using the scroll, the descendants of Jiang could witness the moon moving.

Qi Tingji used the sword magic of the ancients, pulling the moon with a long rope.

Hao Su was able to Daoize a part of the moon and cut off its connection with the Savage Realm.

Lu Zhi pushed the moon forward.

The four swordsmen of the Sword Qi Great Wall each had their own task.

Jiang Zhaomo waved his sleeves, and a miniature Radiant Light moon appeared out of nowhere in the training area, and he had the disciples fill the role of the swordsmen of the Sword Qi Great Wall.

The most talented swordsmen flew off on their swords, turning into fireflies.

Jiang Zhaomo sat cross-legged on the mat, squinting his golden eyes and pointing out the shortcomings of each move.

One swordsman who could not understand was tossed out of the training area and crashed into a pillar, with no one daring to help.

Someone replaced him and dragged the moon together.

Jiang Zhaomo turned his head.

Lu Chen had returned to Bai Yujing.

And Hao Su had gone to Shenxiao City.

The officials of Bai Yujing were happy to see this Ascendant realm swordsman here.

Most of the sword techniques of Qingming were of the Xuandu lineage.

Yu Dou was accompanied by Jiang Zhaomo in the past.

This was from Jiang Zhaomo’s previous life.

Inside Spirit Treasure City, an old Daoist was instructing his disciple in alchemy using a meteor as the cauldron.

The disciple was very talented.

The old Daoist holding the duster said: “Pingying, you will accompany me to the top of Bai Yujing and meet with the two Proprietors.”

The Daoist’s heart only fluttered slightly, and he said respectfully: “Disciple obeys.”

Azure Radiance City, also known as the Jade Emperor City, lies to the far north of Bai Yujing.

The city controlled nearly three realms, with one of the ten great blessed lands, two of the thirty-six small blessed lands, and three of the seventy-two blessed lands.

Every sixty years, the city lord would use an ancient carriage to inspect the officials, even being able to inspect outside the territory of Azure Radiance City.

A small Daoist, a newly ascended immortal, was worried about the upcoming tour.

Jiang Yunsheng blamed Lu Chen for it.

He would rather have let Shidi Shanging be the city lord.

Jade Pivot City.

A mirror hung in the high sky, bearing the twelve times and the words “Eternal Fortune”, which was forged by Kuming himself.

In addition, millions of words were added by city lords of the past.

The mirror shone like the sun and moon and circulated in Jade Pivot City.

And Lu Chen’s study, the Thousand Swords Study, was built here so that Lu Chen could ask the two city lords for advice.

The vice lord, Shao Xiang, sensed the two energies in Bai Yujing and went to meet with the city lord, Guo Jie.

Guo Jie said: “Lu proprietor said that parables account for nineteen, true account seventeen, the words come from the sun, and the words are the voice of the heavens.”

Shao Xiang wanted to ask Lu Chen to help restore Zhang Fenghai’s position.

Guo Jie said: “It’s hard. I’m afraid it will backfire.”

The reason why Zhang Fenghai was imprisoned was because he had argued with Yu Shou about a mistake and declared that he would leave Bai Yujing.

So Yu Shuo imprisoned him in Empyrean Haze Cave of town Mountain Palace.

Guo Jie and Shao Xiang loved their Shidi.

Shao Xiang sighed.

Two vice lords had it even worse.

The Jade Pavilion of Bai Yujing was a gold and jade training ground.

The founder was a great master of calligraphy, and the records were immaculate.

The master of the Jade Pavilion, Wang Dongzhi, wrote Daoist scriptures.

Everyone in Qingming was wondering if Bai Ye of Xuandu would make a trip to the Jade Pavilion.

Wang Dongzhi was looking at a painting on the wall.

The painting was called “Coral Thread” and depicted a coral branch from the Eastern Sea which could blossom a five-colored jade flower, and the painting held an ancient dragon palace.

The vice lord, Xie Xuan, stood at the door.

Wang Dongzhi had a rule to stop people from entering his study, especially to prevent Lu Chen from stealing.

Xie Xuan asked: “Was it made by the Three Mountains Nine Marquis?”

Wang Dongzhi nodded: “The Three Mountains Nine Marquis visited Azure Radiance City in secret, and Proprietor Lu was there. He directly sealed a large dragon palace in the painting, and there may even be aquatic beings still alive.”

That was why the Jade Pavilion had been unable to break the mountain and water restrictions of the painting for so many years.

When Lu Chen laid eyes on the painting, he stuck around for a month, wanting to take a look.

Wang Dongzhi insisted that the painting was nothing special.

In Qingming, aquatic beings were used as offerings by sects and dynasties.

And in Bai Yujing, Lu Chen had agreed with Chen Pingan that he would try to take half of the Dragon Palace’s revenue from Wang Dongzhi.

Lu Chen had agreed to give half of the Dragon Palace to Chen Pingan, instead of the original 3/7 split.

The key to open the Dragon Palace was the coral brush rest which was now in Lu Chen’s hands.

Lu Chen turned his head and laughed: “Yu-shixiong, you can call everyone over.”

Soon, the Daoist officials of Azure Radiance City, Spirit Treasure City, and Purple Qi Tower arrived.

Jiang Yunsheng, city lord of Azure Radiance City, was a young-looking immortal.

Jiang Zhaomo was an ancestor of his, so the Jiang clan had one city lord and one lord.

Pang Ding, styled Xuxin, city lord of Spirit Treasure City, was an old Ascendant cultivator who was even older than the two proprietors of Bai Yujing.

Jiang Zhaomo, lord of Purple Qi Tower, styled Chaosheng, Ascendant Realm, entered Bai Yujing around the same time as Proprietor Yu Dou, and they had been close friends, travelling together and sweeping through the fourteen realms.

There was also a top martial artist, seen as the constant foundation for the flowing top ten martial artists.

Every sixty years, Jiang Zhaomo would ask Lin Jiangxian to fight.

So there were many martial arts experts in Purple Qi Tower.

Pang Ding brought a new disciple, Zhou Pingying.

Jiang Zhaomo brought a girl, Jiang Yuwei, styled Weixin. She was both a swordsman and a martial artist.

The girl was beautiful, and she and Zhou Pingying stood together as if golden children and jade maidens.

Lu Chen smiled and said: “Good looks, good attitude.”

Zhou Pingying had not been able to defeat Xu Juan for the position of lord, and had not even made the list of the top ten.

Xu Juan was a Jade Purity Ghost, a lord of the Great Tide Sect and the Two Capital Mountain, and the companion of the female Ascendant Zhao Ge.

Lu Chen had a stunning question at the start.

“Yu-shixiong, what if one day, the swordsmen of the Five Colors Domain came to Bai Yujing with their swords?”

Yu Dou said: “Then let them come.”

Pang Ding frowned.

Jiang Yunsheng hesitated and said: “There are only a few Jade Purity swordsmen in the Heavenly Ascension city. What can they do even in a thousand years?”

Pang Ding shook his head and said: “Who would have believed that so few people in Sword Qi Great Wall could have defended the city for ten thousand years?”

Bai Yujing had governed the Qingming Realm for ten thousand years.

Lu Chen said: “Lord Pang is the most steadfast.”

He turned to look at Jiang Yunsheng and knocked on the little Daoist’s head: “You were at the gates of Sword Qi Great Wall for so long and didn’t understand this simple thing. How did you become a city lord?”

Jiang Zhaomo smiled: “He’s just too full.”

Yu Dou suddenly said: “Take out the scroll of light and let them see the Hidden Officer’s moves.”

Lu Chen was embarrassed and said: “Ah? Is that really necessary?”

Yu Dou didn’t say a word, but that was his attitude.

Lu Chen had no choice but to find a scroll and show it.

There was the Shrine of Fenhe and the ruins of the Lyu Gong Shrine.

Lu Chen had temporarily erased some scenes.

Jiang Zhaomo crossed his arms, leaned against the railing, and watched the young green-shirted man in the painting with interest.

Pang Ding held his duster and squinted.

The Hidden Officer was worthy of his reputation.

Jiang Yuwei was excited and thought that this legendary figure was indeed bold, strange, and quite… sinister.

Lu Chen said: “Xiao Ping, say what you want.”

Zhou Pingying said: “Does someone as lucky as him deserve to speak to Lord Proprietor in that way?”

“Leaving aside his identity, Chen Pingan is now just a martial artist. He is not even a Jade Purity swordsman. What is he?”

“He is ignorant and dares to threaten a Proprietor of Bai Yujing?”

Yu Dou pretended not to hear.

Lu Chen seemed to have heard a joke and looked back with a brilliant smile.

With a kind expression, Lu Chen looked at the newly arrived Daoist.

Jiang Zhaomo smiled coldly, Chen Pingan hadn’t met him before, but this person had a death wish.

Jiang Yuwei whispered: “By identity, Chen Pingan is the last Hidden Officer of the Sword Qi Great Wall, so he is almost a Proprietor of Bai Yujing.”

Jiang Zhaomo smiled and reminded his junior in a voice: “Don’t stir the pot, you’ll die.”

Pang Ding angrily said: “Shut up! Go back to the city and stay there for sixty years!”

Lu Chen stopped him and said: “Come on, don’t go so soon.”

“He’s just saying what’s on his mind. You want to punish him by locking him up for sixty years, I don’t agree.”

Zhou Pingying realized that he had said the wrong thing.

The young man’s face turned pale, but he immediately calmed his Dao Heart and took a step back.

Lu Chen’s eyes lit up and he patted the young Daoist’s shoulder and said: “The self-preservation is not bad.”

“I remember that when you first arrived at Bai Yujing, you were the one who had the idea of taking the place of Yu-shixiong?”

Yu Dou still didn’t care.

Pang Ding was surprised. Did this disciple lose his mind?

Lu Chen smiled and said: “Does this mean that you’ll face a problem in the Nascent Soul Realm in a few years?”

Because the demon is Yu-shixiong.

Yu Dou nodded and said: “Stay here, and cultivate.”

Pang Ding sighed with relief. What luck for his disciple.

Yu Dou suddenly looked at Lu Chen.

Lu Chen smiled and shook his head, indicating that everything was fine.

In Lu Chen’s inner world, there were many things happening, with storms and thunder, which the immortal crushed in his hand.

There were also clouds that were crushed.

This was Cui Chan’s scheme.

Once Lu Chen chooses to enter the game and change his ways, he will no longer be the same Lu Chen.

This would change his Dao Heart, but it was easy for Lu Chen to deal with it.

Lu Chen waved his hand and said with a smile: “Everyone, go home and cultivate.”

After everyone had left the corridor,

Yu Dou smiled and said: “Shidi, be careful lately. Don’t go out if you can. At least don’t leave Bai Yujing, and you should pay more attention to Southern Radiance City. Preach and take on disciples.”

If he needs to act in such a way, then he is not strong enough.

Lu Chen hesitated.

In the past, Lu Chen had been the one talking, but today Yu Shou spoke more.

“If that Chen Pingan doesn’t even dare to take revenge openly, or if he doesn’t even think about coming to Bai Yujing to fight, then he’s a piece of trash. So I’m willing to think more highly of Chen Pingan for being so open with you in the illusion. He’s done a good job as Hidden Officer.”

Yu Dou’s smile was even brighter: “Is it only allowed for me to have Jiang Zhaomo and Pang Ding go after Qi Jingchun in order to repay Shifu’s kindness, but not for a young man to seek revenge for a Shixiong?”

Yu Dou shook his head: “There is no such thing.”

“If he dares to come to Bai Yujing in the future, I want to ask him to have a drink with me before we fight.”

Lu Chen looked serious and didn’t say a word.

“Lu Chen.”

“Hm?”

“As Shidi, you have done enough for Yu Shixiong for thousands of years, so don’t worry about me anymore.”

“Alright, I will listen to shixiong.”

————

Demon Suppression Tower of Tung Leaf Domain.

After drinking a jug of Bamboo Sea blessed land wine,

The Sage and the young Hidden Officer sat opposite each other as if they were in a debate that was a disparity of Dao age and cultivation.

Lyu Yan, who had stepped into the fourteenth realm, Xiao Mo, and Qing Tong were watching from the side.

The Sage beckoned: “Fellow Daoist Pure Yang, lend me your duster.”

Lyu Yan smiled and tossed the duster to him.

The Sage caught the duster.

The area suddenly became as large as space.

The Demon Suppression Tower became small.

The Sage slowly drew a circle with the duster, leaving behind a trace of light.

Lyu Yan was the first to see the entrance.

Chen Pingan followed.

Xiao Mo was a little late to realize it.

Only Qing Tong looked the most confused, but soon he realized it.

The Sage was using a crude way to describe the ten thousand years of a few realms.

The Sword Qi Great Wall prevented the Great Ancestor from reaching the fifteenth realm, and Chen Qing made a pact with the Sword Qi Great Wall.

The initial plans to build the Savage Lands hall of valor failed, so they began to build the Savage Lands hall of heroes.

The Dao Ancestor entered the Savage Lands on an ox, and the Great Demon had to flee to the outside.

The disciple of Qingming’s Dao Ancestor found two shidi, and Bai Yujing had a second proprietor.

Li Sheng worked with the Three Mountains Nine Marquis to start making new rules.

The Dragon Slaying created the Lizhu Blessed Land.

Bai Yujing had its third proprietor.

The conflict between the three and the four