Zhuge Zhenren, an ascended immortal and a true dignitary, was accustomed to a refined life.

He truly hadn’t expected that someone in this world could be so brazen-faced, instantly taking advantage of a situation and trying to establish a connection with him.

The critical point was that if the connection had been made earlier, it might have been acceptable.

He had just mentioned he was from Taixu Men, and this youngster, following the conversation, immediately declared, full of conviction, that he was also from Taixu Men.

It was too far-fetched, too deliberate, and too blunt.

Wasn’t this just a scoundrel in the making?

Zhuge Zhenren grumbled inwardly and couldn’t help but ask Mo Hua, “If I were to say I came from Dao Fu, would you also say the same, that you are a disciple of Dao Fu?”

“No, I wouldn’t,” Mo Hua shook his head. “I’m from Taixu Men! I have nothing to do with Dao Fu.”

Zhuge Zhenren remarked, “You certainly have principles…”

The golden-robed young noble looked at Mo Hua, a half-smile playing on his lips, “This kid isn’t completely foolish, he knows to find a strong patron. It’s just that his methods are too naive, and his face is a bit too thick. You say you’re from Taixu Men, but does that truly make you a disciple of Taixu Men?”

Mo Hua replied, “I truly am.”

The golden-robed young noble showed disdain, “Taixu Men would accept someone like you?”

Mo Hua was displeased, “What’s wrong with me?”

“What kind of spiritual root do you have?”

“Lower-middle grade…”

The golden-robed young noble continued, “Putting aside everything else, the current Taixu Men is the largest sect in Qianxue Zhoujie, its power flourishing. Although it still lags behind the sects and academies of Daozhou, it is already a top-tier sect in the vast Qianzhou, and even among the nine prefectures of the cultivation world.”

“With your spiritual root, you probably can’t even reach the threshold. And you say you’re a disciple of Taixu Men?”

Mo Hua had an expression that suggested, “You’re an outsider, you wouldn’t understand,” and said, “That was before. When I joined, Taixu Men wasn’t so formidable yet; it was still at the bottom of the Eight Great Sects. After I entered, Taixu Men became the top sect in Qianxue.”

The golden-robed young noble raised an eyebrow, “What? Are you trying to say that Taixu Men became the top sect in Qianxue thanks to you?”

Mo Hua looked a little embarrassed, “If you want to understand it that way, it’s not entirely wrong…”

The golden-robed young noble was speechless.

Not just him, but all the powerful nobles present, and even the three Yu Hua Zhenren, were somewhat speechless.

Someone couldn’t take it anymore and said, “Shall we just torture him? I can’t listen to this anymore. This braggart of a kid, his mouth is full of nonsense. His face is as white as snow and as thick as earth—he doesn’t know his place.”

“Give him a beating!”

“Whip him a few more times, bruise his backside.”

“Remember to slap him, see if he dares to spout such nonsense again.”

Mo Hua quickly interjected, “I’m telling the truth!”

The golden-robed young noble questioned, “If you’re so important to Taixu Men, why didn’t you say so before?”

Mo Hua replied, “I forgot before.”

“Why do you remember now?”

Mo Hua glanced at Zhuge Zhenren, “Isn’t it… because I saw a ‘fellow disciple’?”

The golden-robed young noble had nothing to say.

Hua Zhenren was silent for a moment and then said, “I’ll go fetch the torture instruments.”

He was now starting to suspect whether this youngster was truly a Shenzhu from the barren lands.

Logically, a Shenzhu symbolizes a deity, holding high status, being very composed, and authoritative.

It shouldn’t be so shameless.

Qingmu Zhenren thought for a moment and said, “I have some poison here, I can feed him some to make him suffer a bit.”

Zhuge Zhenren remained silent, his smile still frozen on his face, unable to utter a single word. If it weren’t for his status, preventing him from bullying a junior, he would have loved to go down and beat Mo Hua himself.

Seeing that no one believed him, Mo Hua gritted his teeth and finally said, “I have proof!”

Everyone paused.

Zhuge Zhenren also raised an eyebrow slightly, looking at Mo Hua, “You have proof?”

Mo Hua nodded, “Yes.”

“What evidence?”

Mo Hua said seriously, “I have a Zongmen Yuyin!”

Hua Zhenren frowned.

The others also exchanged glances, their expressions turning grim.

“Yuyin?”

A Zongmen Yuyin is a jade slip that every disciple of a major sect receives after graduation, personally signed by their teachers and elders within the sect. It is used to introduce connections and guide cultivation.

Often, this Yuyin is more effective than a Zongmen Ling.

Because a Zongmen Ling merely proves that you are a disciple of that sect.

However, a Zongmen Yuyin reveals what kind of disciple you are within that sect.

The golden-robed noble asked, “Where is your Yuyin?”

Mo Hua replied, “It’s in my storage bag.”

“Where’s your storage bag?”

Mo Hua pointed to Hua Zhenren, “He snatched it.”

As a prisoner, he naturally had no claim to his storage bag.

Everyone’s gaze turned to Hua Zhenren.

Hua Zhenren’s expression was cold. “There is no Zongmen Yuyin in your storage bag.”

Mo Hua, however, asserted, “There is.”

Hua Zhenren’s eyes narrowed slightly, “I didn’t find it.”

Mo Hua snorted coldly, haughtily, “That’s my Yuyin, how could you possibly find it?”

A Yu Hua Zhenren failing to properly search a Zhuji cultivator’s storage bag would be a laughingstock.

Generally speaking, this would be utterly impossible.

However, Mo Hua’s expression was too confident, and given his somewhat special and elusive identity, everyone was momentarily unsure.

The golden-robed young noble looked at Hua Zhenren and slowly said, “Zhenren, why not give the youngster his storage bag and see what he can pull out?”

Hua Zhenren frowned, thought for a moment, and then nodded, “Alright.” He then rummaged in his sleeve, took out a storage bag, and tossed it to Mo Hua.

Mo Hua looked familiar and recognized it as his own storage bag at a glance.

He happily picked up the storage bag, then, in front of everyone, reached in with his right hand, earnestly rummaging around inside, and indeed pulled out a jade-colored scroll.

Everyone was stunned.

Hua Zhenren’s pupils also contracted.

For a moment, he truly thought something was wrong with him. As an eminent Yu Hua Zhenren, he had been too arrogant, not thoroughly searching a Zhuji cultivator’s storage bag, leading to an oversight.

But the next instant, he quickly recovered and reached out to snatch the Yuyin from Mo Hua’s hand.

Mo Hua knew he would try to snatch it, so he had already pulled his hand back.

But he was only at the Zhuji stage; how could he be faster than a Yu Hua Zhenren?

Just then, Qingmu Zhenren, in turn, grabbed Hua Zhenren’s hand and slowly said, “Brother Hua, don’t be so anxious. After all, you are a Zhenren, how could you snatch something from a junior?”

Hua Zhenren’s face was grim.

Mo Hua also quickly tucked the Yuyin into his sleeve.

Seeing this, Hua Zhenren said in a deep voice, “Give me the Yuyin.”

Mo Hua shook his head, “No.”

Hua Zhenren frowned, “Since you presented the Yuyin as proof, why won’t you let others see it?”

Mo Hua replied, “A Zongmen Yuyin can only be shown to people of the same sect. Besides, don’t think I don’t know, you all want to harm me. You have ill intentions towards me, and I don’t trust you.”

The golden-robed young noble couldn’t help but say, “You, a rebel from the desolate lands, are still playing innocent?”

Mo Hua insisted, “That’s slander, it’s defamation! What do the rebels of the desolate lands have to do with me? I am also a subject of the Daoting, and I am loyal to the Daoting!”

Mo Hua said these words without his face turning red or his breath faltering.

The golden-robed young noble was almost exasperated into laughter and was about to argue with Mo Hua again, but was stopped by Qingmu Zhenren.

“Alright, stop the bickering and let’s see his Yuyin.”

Qingmu Zhenren turned to look at Zhuge Zhenren.

Everyone else’s gazes also turned towards Zhuge Zhenren.

Zhuge Zhenren, who had initially “given up,” was a thousand times unwilling in his heart. He didn’t want to get involved in this messy situation, lest he soil his own reputation.

But the title “Taixu Men” had been brought into question.

Zhuge Zhenren slowly stood up, walked over to Mo Hua, gave him a disdainful look, and then took the Yuyin from Mo Hua’s hand.

Entering the Yuyin with his divine sense, Zhuge Zhenren’s expression immediately became incredibly colorful after just one glance.

He looked at Mo Hua, then at the Yuyin, then at Mo Hua again, then at the Yuyin—a thousand horses galloped through his mind, leaving him momentarily speechless.

Qingmu Zhenren, seeing his eagerness, asked, “How is it? Is this Yuyin… real or fake? Is this youngster truly a person from your Taixu Men?”

Zhuge Zhenren really wanted to clarify.

Not “your Taixu Men,” Taixu Men wasn’t his family’s.

But the words reached his lips, and he didn’t know where to begin.

He could only say, “This… it’s hard to say. I need to verify it.”

Qingmu Zhenren frowned, “A Zongmen Yuyin, isn’t it clear at a glance? What’s there to verify?”

Zhuge Zhenren sighed.

The key was, he couldn’t understand it at a glance.

Qingmu Zhenren, seeing that there seemed to be another hidden truth in this, nodded and said, “That’s fine then.”

Zhuge Zhenren said, “Then let’s disperse for today; I’ll go back and ask.” With that, he turned to leave.

Mo Hua, however, suddenly called out, “Wait!”

Zhuge Zhenren turned to look at Mo Hua, suddenly feeling a headache, but not wanting to lose his temper, he asked, “What is it now?”

Mo Hua pointed at Hua Zhenren, “He will kill me!”

Zhuge Zhenren looked at Hua Zhenren.

Hua Zhenren gritted his teeth.

Before, he hadn’t truly harbored killing intent towards Mo Hua; he merely wanted to “dissect” him to study his secrets.

Now, he truly wanted to get rid of this youngster.

Zhuge Zhenren was also helpless and sighed, “Brother Hua… this youngster must be kept for now. If the Yuyin is fake and he is not a disciple of my Taixu Men, then you can decide what to do with him. But for now, I am uncertain of his identity, so we must keep him for now.” Zhuge Zhenren’s tone was tactful.

But Hua Zhenren knew that the Zhuge family, with their detached nature, wouldn’t even glance if they didn’t want to meddle, but once they spoke, it meant they truly couldn’t ignore it.

The Zhuge family was extraordinary, and Zhuge Zhenren’s cultivation was also high.

Hua Zhenren didn’t dare to openly defy the seemingly unconcerned Zhuge Zhenren, so he simply said, “As Brother Zhuge wishes.”

Zhuge Zhenren thought for a moment, took out a Bagua charm, and personally hung it around Mo Hua’s neck, “This item can temporarily protect you. If anyone harms you, I will know.”

“Thank you, Zhuge Zhenren.”

Mo Hua had a beaming smile.

Zhuge Zhenren, however, couldn’t smile at all. He looked at Mo Hua as if he were looking at a huge problem, waved his fan, and Bagua patterns appeared under his feet. In a few flashes, he disappeared, going no one knew where.

After Zhuge Zhenren left, everyone else’s faces were momentarily grim, each lost in their own thoughts.

The golden-robed noble frowned and asked Mo Hua, “Are you truly a disciple of Taixu Men?”

Mo Hua did not answer, only pointed to the Bagua charm hanging on his chest.

This implied that he now had a powerful backer and no longer needed to bother with their trivial questions.

All questions would remain unanswered.

The golden-robed young noble was so angry his teeth ached.

Qingmu Zhenren still looked at Mo Hua, a deep surge of emotion in his eyes.

Hua Zhenren’s gaze, on the other hand, was icy, his face growing increasingly grim.

But with Zhuge Zhenren’s Bagua charm hanging around Mo Hua’s neck, they truly couldn’t lay a hand on him for now.

Meanwhile, after Zhuge Zhenren’s figure dissipated with the Bagua patterns, he reappeared in another high pavilion shortly after.

The high pavilion, a magnificent building of jade and ivory, had people bustling to and fro.

Various confidential documents and jade slips were being passed around.

Along the way, every cultivator who saw Zhuge Zhenren showed deep respect, bowing their heads in salute.

Zhuge Zhenren nodded and walked along the vermilion corridor directly to a secret chamber at the top of the high pavilion.

Inside the secret chamber, two people were engrossed in reviewing a massive amount of jade slips and documents, their brows furrowed.

Both wore the Daoist robes of the Qige Zhushi of Daoting, with seven stars embroidered on their chests. However, on one person’s chest, it was the Tianshu star that shone, and on the other’s, it was the Tianquan star.

Zhuge walked into the room, and the two looked up at him briefly, then lowered their heads, annotating documents as they spoke, “We are very busy; we don’t have time to drink tea with you.”

Zhuge Zhenren, seeing that no one paid him any mind, walked to the table, poured himself a cup of tea, took a sip, and sighed.

One of the Tianquan Ge Zhushi looked up at him and asked, “Didn’t you go to the Hua family to watch the excitement? Why are you back?”

Zhuge Zhenren replied, “I went to watch the excitement, and ended up getting drawn into it myself.”

Both Zhushi paused, their movements of flipping through the scrolls not stopping, but their gazes turned to Zhuge Zhenren, asking, “What happened?”

Zhuge Zhenren asked, “You know that a ‘Shenzhu’ appeared in the desolate lands, right?”

Both nodded.

As Qige Zhushi responsible for suppressing rebellions in Daoting, they naturally knew about the Shenzhu in the desolate lands.

However, the desolate lands were isolated by famine, Daobing forces couldn’t penetrate, and the focus of the war wasn’t there, so they could only temporarily let it be.

Zhuge Zhenren said, “Some time ago, it was rumored that the Hua family acted and captured this Shenzhu from the barren lands. This matter was secret, originally no one knew. But as you know, once anything happens, it’s impossible for no one to find out…”

“What’s more, this Shenzhu is truly too mysterious…”

“The Hua family captured the Shenzhu, and other aristocratic families, sniffing out the scent, naturally went there, wanting to unearth some secrets…”

“Qintian Jian had nothing to do for a while, and I was quite free, so I also went to watch the excitement.”

“And then—”

Zhuge Zhenren sighed again, “I was dragged into it…”

The Tianquan Ge Zhushi shook his head, sounding rather gleeful, “Someone like you, too, had a day when you were dragged into something?”

The other Zhushi also laughed, “How unusual, is there really someone in this world who can drag you down?”

Zhuge Zhenren glanced at the two, “Don’t laugh, you two won’t escape either.”

The two were stunned, “What do you mean?”

Zhuge Zhenren said, “That so-called ‘Shenzhu’ that the Hua family captured… he claims to be a disciple of Taixu Men.”

Hiss—

Upon hearing this, both Zhushi gasped, exclaiming, “Our Taixu Men has such a talent?”

“The villain is actually from our Taixu Men?”

“This is extraordinary—”

Zhuge Zhenren rolled his eyes at the two, “I’m not joking with you.”

The Tianshu Ge Zhushi chuckled, “He says he’s a disciple of Taixu Men on an empty claim; does that make it true? Even if it’s a frame-up, it’s not done this way. Who would believe it?”

Zhuge Zhenren shook his head, “The key is, he also has a Yuyin.”

“Yuyin?” The two paused.

Zhuge Zhenren nodded and handed the Yuyin to them.

The two took it and, upon seeing the Yuyin covered with neat, printer-like “signatures,” their expressions also became incredibly interesting.