"Take leave."

After the filthy deal was struck, Jiang Li did not stay any longer. His figure dematerialized, and with a gentle breeze, he vanished without a trace.

Yet Zhu Hui'an was still left standing in place beside the stone table, hands clasped behind his back, gazing at the night sky.

After a long while, the teacup had gone completely cold, and at that moment, Zhu Hui'an took out a new teacup and slowly poured himself a cup of tea.

"What is your opinion on Jiang Li?" Zhu Hui'an seemed to be talking to himself.

"Young and successful yet completely without impetuousness, a person of profound depth."

A voice, indistinguishable in gender and utterly plain in tone, came through the wind, responding to Zhu Hui'an's inquiry.

"Yes, when this old man was under his pressure, expressing sincerity to him, he still remained impassive, inscrutable whether he was tempted or not," Zhu Hui'an sighed softly, "he's so deep and mature, almost like a thousand-year-old fox."

"Such nature makes this old man wonder whether the supreme throne even tempts him."

"Those who are unaffected by power are either indifferent to fame and fortune or have large ambitions and grand plans. Which do you think Jiang Li is?" the voice in the wind responded negatively, "And what people desire are nothing more than power and strength. Desiring power is understandable, but aiming for strength... You see the actions of Elder Tianxuan, you should know she still guards against Jiang Li."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Hui'an immediately thought of Jiang Li temporarily assuming the role of Yaoguang Elder and nodded slightly in agreement.

Outstanding individuals always face adversity, and Jiang Li now is like a targeted piece of wood, having been directly placed by Tianxuan into the position of Yaoguang Elder, effectively cutting him off from competing for the Sect Leader position. Whether Elder Tianxuan is doing it intentionally or not, it shows she still harbors concerns about Jiang Li.

And these concerns, as time goes by, will deepen as Jiang Li progresses, not weaken, until deliberate suppression occurs, hindering his realm's advancement.

Not to mention, Zhu Hui'an had also made Jiang Li submit an unusual pledge of loyalty.

"He must have realized this, and that's why he came to me."

Zhu Hui'an said this as if relieved and tossed his teacup back into the forest behind him, then asked, "What is the current situation in Liangzhou Province?"

"Liangzhou Capital, Yuelin, was taken over by the Taiping Sect in a single day, and the inspector has become a prisoner; the northern part of Liangzhou Province is now completely under the control of the Taiping Sect, while the southern part is held by the court."

The voice was well-informed about the situation, summarizing succinctly, "According to court's intentions, they aim to block the Taiping Sect in Liangzhou, but the Taiping Sect inevitably plans to push south. They have not acted yet because the floods haven't fully receded; they are currently focusing on gathering refugees. Once the floodwaters recede, the great battle will begin."

"The Mo Sect Master has already issued an order, commanding Mo Sect's forces to rush to Liangzhou's aid, vowing to stop the Taiping. However, there are also disturbances from Buddha Country, apparently showing intentions of entering the fray; thus, the situation in Liangzhou is currently very intricate."

Zhu Hui'an's gaze fluctuated, and he slowly said, "Dinghu Sect is now under Elder Tianxuan's control, while the Sect Leader is nowhere to be seen. I suspect that Heavenly Monarch Gongsun Qi has also become a supporter of the Taiping Sect. In that case, Dinghu Sect will certainly fully engage in this battle, and Jiang Li, as Yaoguang Elder, will also participate. When the time comes, let peers contact him."

"If they can align with him, they can join his forces opportunistically," the voice continued, "If one day Jiang Li truly approaches the Emperor's position, even if he is unwilling, we can still push him."

"Indeed."

Zhu Hui'an poured himself another cup of tea with a smile and drank it up.

...

...

Above Dinghu, the gentle breeze came slowly, and a figure emerged, heading to the Sect's dock.

'Just now, there was someone secretly spying, most likely Zhu Hui'an's so-called peers, but who could it be? It's unlikely to be the Ji Family's princes, nor does it seem to be someone from the Mystic Sect. The former would not genuinely conspire with Zhu Hui'an, and the latter focuses mainly on cultivation and preaching, and wouldn't refer to Zhu Hui'an as a peer...'

Jiang Li's thoughts flashed like lightning, various names running through his mind, finally locking onto one, "Mo Sect."

Mo Sect, too, opposes the Great Zhou system, but most of the time, Mo Sect only deals with issues at the middle and lower levels, not instigating a rebellion like the Taiping Sect, thus they are tolerated by the court, maintaining a relatively peaceful coexistence.

But this doesn't mean Mo Sect will always remain peaceful with the court.

With the chaotic times ahead, Mo Sect will surely sense the opportunity, and they are not lacking in courage. It's known that the Mo Sect Master was also involved in the battle of the Imperial City, having once personally assassinated an Emperor.

'But at that time, the Mo Sect Master entered Divine Capital with the initial intent of assassinating Zhang Zhixuan, to prevent the Taiping Sect from causing a catastrophe for living creatures. He doesn't seem like someone who would conspire with Zhu Hui'an. What's more, confucianism and mohism do not mix. Thus...'

Jiang Li internally concluded: 'It's not the Mo Sect Master, but some high-ranking member of Mo Sect.'

He hadn't forgotten that one of those who tried to stop him before was an assassin possessing Mo Dao Fruit.

Mo Sect, most likely has a hand in this.

This conclusion wasn't difficult to reach, requiring just a bit of speculation, to the point that Jiang Li even knew how to identify which high-ranking Mo Sect member was conspiring with Zhu Hui'an.

As he traveled to Liangzhou Province once again, among the first of the Mo Sect's people who approached him were those connected to the higher echelons. Perhaps, that person might even come to find him personally.

Just like Elder Yun had done before.

Moreover, the other party was restraining himself from appearing, but with Jiang Li making continuous progress, he would eventually have to show himself.

"I'm not in a hurry."

Thinking thus, Jiang Li donned a composed smile, ready to return to Tianxuan Hall for another three hundred rounds of combat with his senior sister.

However—

A bright moonlight beamed in front of Jiang Li, coalescing into a mysterious talisman, transmitting a thought.

"Master orders you to meet her in the Secret Place."

Jiang Li immediately glanced toward the direction of Tianxuan Hall, highly suspicious that the next moment might bring a Flying Sword Transmission telling him to hurry back to the hall.

If that were the case---

Jiang Li swiftly took the talisman and dashed toward the Secret Place as fast as lightning.

With two paths unfolding before him, to avoid being torn apart, Jiang Li decided not to give them a chance to rip him asunder and tackled each challenge separately.

As long as he didn't receive a transmission from his senior sister, she couldn't blame him.

At the same time, elsewhere.

Gongsun Qingyue was still in her room at Tianxuan, tidying up the traces.

Although she had been brave before, after the act of bravery, she felt a bit cowardly, planning to restore her bedroom to its original state to avoid truly upsetting her master and facing retaliation. After all, Gongsun Qingyue had been in a vulnerable position for many years, only managing to fight back a few times since Jiang Li's arrival.

Just as she was about to finish tidying up the bedroom, Gongsun Qingyue suddenly halted her movements, seized by a whim to use the Wordless Heavenly Scripture for Divination.

"My junior brother hasn't returned yet, could it be---"

Muttering under her breath, Gongsun Qingyue was about to press her palm onto the Heavenly Book.

It was then that a moonbeam broke through the spatial barrier, shining directly into the room and manifesting another talisman.

—["Master has summoned Jiang Li for an important discussion; you need not worry about Jiang Li returning late."]

"Tss—"

Gongsun Qingyue's body burst into Green Flame, and she smashed the talisman with a palm, turning to leave.

Another moonbeam talisman appeared.

—["My child, you don't want that relationship exposed, do you?"]

Gongsun Qingyue: "---"

With the relationship exposed, not to mention the impact on the Gongsun Family's reputation, that Old Demon would probably have a legitimate reason to enter the scene.

Gongsun Qingyue stopped in her tracks.

Then, a third moonbeam talisman arrived.

—["If you come, the master can also return the Array to you."]

To give her the Array, and then she could be free, right?

Maybe even make his way into Gongsun Qingyue's room.

Merely the thought of that scenario gave Gongsun Qingyue a headache as heavy as Mount Tai.

"I---" Gongsun Qingyue gritted her teeth, suddenly feeling torn.

As joyous as her previous defiance had been, now she felt just as stifled.

"You—after all, you're just a body of Primordial Spirit, what can you do?"

Eventually, Gongsun Qingyue forced out these words.

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