Chapter 1537: Thirty Years of Diligence, and Stepping Out Destroys the Family

Gui Zhe Sheng Shan.

Sheng Huan Dian was quite lively at the moment. Yu Lao surveyed the room and saw, besides Dao Xuanji, a group of young people—Bei Bei, Xi, Ao Sheng, Fang Fang, and others. It had been ages since Sheng Huan Dian had so many young faces. In the past, it was always a bunch of middle-aged folks and old timers, looking decrepit and out of touch, but at least they could handle things when needed. Now, with this crowd... Yu Lao was at a loss for words. There was a strange mix of vibrant energy and a sense of talent shortage. Was this what Dao Qiong Cang meant by a "great overhaul"? Well, yes, the entire Sheng Shan was undergoing a massive shake-up. The old guard was completely gone, replaced by newcomers.

But... could they really pull their weight? These new ones weren't slacking off; they were full of enthusiasm and eager to achieve big things. Still, if you threw this group down the mountain, Xu Xiao Shou could probably smash them all with just a couple of punches. Yu Lao had the nagging feeling that Dao Qiong Cang had duped him. And yet, when he suggested this "great overhaul" back then, the old ten-member council had unanimously approved it. Perfect! As Yu Lao thought about it and glanced around again... it was absurd. Not a single member of the original ten-member council remained. They had all voted themselves out! It wasn't just the people who had changed—even the place felt totally different.

Back when Dao Qiong Cang was around, the main theme of Sheng Huan Dian was silver, making it bright and welcoming, like a breath of fresh air. But after that trip outside the city for a fight, how had the decor turned into this dark mess with red accents? What was going on? When Yu Lao first returned, he thought he'd wandered into the wrong place—maybe even ended up in Nan Yu's Xu Yue Gray Palace. The colors were so gloomy, like an aura of malice. As practitioners of Tianji Shu, didn't they know red symbolized bloodshed and disaster? Who would choose this black-and-red combo, turning the whole hall into a murky haze?

No wonder the new leader's first moves were like lighting three fires, only to end up burning themselves twice and wiping out the entire Yu Jing City... Of course, Yu Lao kept that last grumble to himself. After seeing his great-granddaughter off back to the mountain, he had become more laid-back. He just regretted that when Dao Qiong Cang defected from Sheng Shen Dian Tang, he hadn't taken Yu Lao along for the ride. Now, stuck in the hall, all Yu Lao could do was envy Gou Wu Yue and Wei Feng for getting to roam freely outside, while secretly praying that Xuanji Hall Master wouldn't call on him again. I want to slack off, not fight!

“......Xuanmiao Men?”

“Right, after that sword strike, Gu Lao is probably on his last legs.”

Up front, Dao Xuanji was still asking Xi about the Qingjian Shu matter, and his tone carried a hint of sadness. Meanwhile, Dao Xuanji, who now had to hold everything together and serve as the backbone for everyone, rarely showed any strong emotions anymore.

“He sure had the nerve...” Dao Xuanji said with a touch of regret, but it quickly faded. To her, Gu Yu was just a minor piece on the board. She had just taken office and needed a reliable sword in her hand—someone on par with Gou Wu Yue or Rao Yao Yao. Bei Bei was too young for that kind of responsibility. If only Gu Yu hadn't been so reckless and stubborn. Even if he hadn't taken down Xu Xiao Shou, as long as he returned and showed some submission, Dao Xuanji would likely have granted him a half-saint status. But alas, ancient sword cultivators were too unyielding. Still, it was within expectations; after all, Gu Yu had always made it clear he was a free spirit and wouldn't serve her.

Since he was useless, better to eliminate him early and not waste more effort! But with that said... Dao Xuanji scanned the faces around her—eager young people with still-inexperienced looks, and the only one with a full beard was just a mumbling brute. She fell silent. A good cook can't make a meal without ingredients. Tianji Shu practitioners weren't meant for the front lines, and she was finally realizing that Sheng Shen Dian Tang had hit a crisis right when she took over, with no one reliable to fight. Overlooking the expectant gazes, Dao Xuanji's eyes settled on Yu Lao, who looked a bit evasive.

“Yu Lao, the Jianxian battle is over. What are your thoughts on the situation ahead?”

Yu Lao sighed inwardly. It had come, just as he feared. What do I know about the situation? Ask me thirty years ago, and I could have given you some insights. But now? When Dao Qiong Cang defected from Sheng Shan, he might as well have taken my old brain with him! Still, Yu Lao was a master at slacking off. He blinked his dead-fish eyes a couple of times, then lifted his head with a look of confusion mixed with expectation, glancing around as if searching.

“Cakes?”

“What cakes?”

“You know, now that you mention it, I am a bit hungry...”

Sheng Huan Dian fell silent. Dao Xuanji wasn't one to mind a joke, but she had no patience for it right then. “High opinions, not cakes.” And they weren't even the same sound!

All the young people were standing there, wide-eyed and staring at him, but Yu Lao was way past the age of embarrassment.

“Squeak—”

He pulled out his chair, propped up his legs, and let out a chuckle. His left hand rested on the table, his right hand raised. Gone! Everyone was watching him intently. He was just watching Dao Xuanji. After three breaths, with her eyes narrowing, she asked, “What do you mean?”

Yu Lao grinned. After that fight outside, his rebellious streak had come out. He knew that endless dodging would only let others push him around, so he said, “That's my high opinion. Back when Dao Qiong Cang was here, that's how we did things.”

Dao Xuanji almost didn't catch on. And the young ones around her were even more clueless. Yu Lao somehow pulled out a fish bone and started gnawing on it, pointing around at the seats as he spoke.

“Not just me, but him, it, her... Back in the day, we all handled meetings like this—it was efficient! You new kids probably don't know, but when Dao Qiong Cang made suggestions, we just raised our hands to agree. That's it.”

He looked at Dao Xuanji. “You're his sister, so you've got plenty of clever ideas too. No need to test me—just make your suggestions.”

“Anyway, whatever I say, Dao Qiong Cang could always pick it apart and shoot it down. You'd do the same. So, let's skip the messy back-and-forth. It's better for everyone... I'll agree with whatever you say!”

He raised his hand again, glancing at the shocked faces around the table with a smirk. “What about you all?”

Xi, Bei Bei, and the others didn't know whether to raise their hands or not. Only Fang Fang, still recovering from her injuries, took it to heart and naively raised her hand, saying weakly, “Th-then I'll agree too...”

Dao Xuanji's face darkened. For a moment, she even wondered if she was still falling for Dao Qiong Cang's schemes, right down to seizing his hall master position.

“Where's Jiang Na Yi!”

She didn't want to waste more words or tests. Turning to Xi, considering Yu Lao's attitude, she knew relying on him to stand against Xu Xiao Shou and his forces charging up Sheng Shan was hopeless. People like him could add to the wins when the wind was favorable, but you'd be lucky to even see them when things turned bad. They weren't up to the task! And then there was Zhong Yuanzi, suspected of colluding with Xu Xiao Shou, and Fang Wenxin, who had long forgotten his original purpose and kept aiding the enemy! Truly, outsiders couldn't be trusted.

But with the need for people at hand... she couldn't move against them now. She'd settle accounts later! For now, her only hope lay with those who loved the common people—among Sheng Shen Dian Tang's people, only one could shield her from this crisis.

“Jiang Na Yi...” Xi hesitated. If he hadn't heard anything, that meant Jiang Na Yi was still at Ran Ming site.

“He's out of time.” Dao Xuanji glanced at the sky outside—it was perfect weather for annihilation. With a wave of her hand, “The Bei Yu Pu Xuan Jiang clan is hereby eradicated!”

“Wait—”

Just then, a tearing sound echoed in everyone's ears, and they all turned toward its source—Yu Lao. He had been sitting there when he suddenly felt added weight in his lap, and a figure materialized on him. He paused, digging at his slightly itchy ear. “Who are you?”

Jiang Na Yi had just returned, still shaken and not fully recovered from his near-death experience. Subconsciously, he started venting to the hall master at the head of the room.

“Jiang Na Yi, at your service, Xuanji Hall Master!”

“Wow, Hall Master, you have no idea how tough my trip was. I risked life and limb, ten deaths and no life, to protect Half-Saint Wei An and break into the Shen Ai battle, all just to see Cang Sheng Emperor once. In the end...”

“In the end, if you don't get off me, I'll twist your head off and use it to fish for black sharks.” A faint voice murmured in his ear.

Jiang Na Yi froze. “Who's talking?”

He turned to look around at the unfamiliar faces and the bearded man. “Was it you?”

This guy is an idiot... Fang Fang covered her mouth and stifled a laugh.

“Huh?” Jiang Na Yi felt himself lifted into the air. The last time his head had felt like this was just moments ago, when his body was shattered by the Xie Zui Bow's arrow. But back then, his head had fallen downward, half-blown to dust by Shen Yi's fist, only for him to respawn alive from Ran Ming site. This time...

Jiang Na Yi realized in horror that his head was being held up. There was someone beneath him— no wonder that chair had felt so uncomfortable! “Who are you? Do you want to die? I just accomplished a great feat, and you're messing with me?”

Luckily, his head was still attached to his neck. The lingering soul from Ran Ming site made him suddenly realize... the person under him was the only one daring to sit in Sheng Huan Dian right now!

In that instant, he nearly wet himself. “Senior, spare me!”

“Senior, I was blind not to recognize you!”

“Senior...” Jiang Na Yi thudded to the ground. “Ouch!”

“Tsk, I preferred you when you were cocky.” Yu Lao tossed the head away like a ball, not wanting to dirty his hands on such a spineless fool.

“Thank you, Senior, for your mercy! Thank you so much... You must be Yu Lao. Your appearance and demeanor are truly that of a great master.” Jiang Na Yi spewed flattery without a second thought, regardless of accuracy.

“Hey!” Yu Lao chuckled. What a character—he must have really scared himself silly.

Everyone in the hall turned their attention to this babbling fool. Not just Bei Bei, who knew what Jiang Na Yi's return implied, but even Fang Fang had figured it out.

“What about Ai Cang Sheng?” Dao Xuanji's eyes finally lit up.

At the mention of Ai Cang Sheng, Jiang Na Yi sprang up from the ground, gesturing excitedly.

“You wouldn't believe it— inside, Cang Sheng Emperor and Shen Yi fought like nothing I've ever seen. It was beyond 'world-shattering'!”

“That's the power of the Ten Zun Seats! Before I went, I couldn't even imagine...”

Jiang Na Yi clutched his head, thrilled. “What a joke— Xu Xiao Shou and his space mysteries, or Mei Jian Sheng? When Cang Sheng returns, one arrow from him will send them all to the afterlife!”

“I asked you, where is Ai Cang Sheng?” Dao Xuanji's face showed irritation at being ignored.

Jiang Na Yi was feeling bold now, backed by his success, and for the second time, he dodged her question directly. Standing up, he looked at the hall master and countered, “Where did Cang Sheng Emperor enter the site from?”

After all, entry and exit points matched—that had been verified. Just like him; he'd entered from this spot and come out right onto Yu Lao.

Dao Xuanji saw Jiang Na Yi's audacity and, strangely, her brows relaxed with a rare smile. She'd shown more expressions in these few days than in her whole life. And Jiang Na Yi... well, without some backbone, he wouldn't dare act like this, which only confirmed his achievement.

But truthfully, Dao Xuanji didn't know where Ai Cang Sheng had entered Ran Ming site from. A waft of Gui Xiang came from outside the hall.

The figure of Jiu Ji Gui Ling Ti, in a pale yellow palace dress, appeared. Without waiting for greetings or Yu Lao's signals, she pointed straight at the entrance. “He entered from here.”

No matter how many mistakes Dao Xuanji had made before... no matter how unreliable Jiang Na Yi seemed... right now, the only one who could save Sheng Shen Dian Tang from disaster was Ai Cang Sheng. As long as he returned, everything else could wait.

In that moment, even Jiu Ji Gui Ling Ti thought Jiang Na Yi looked a bit more refined. But soon, she reconsidered her mistaken impression...

Jiang Na Yi was still calculating the time when his expression suddenly changed. He dropped to one knee and slid forward to the entrance of Sheng Huan Dian, spreading his arms wide and shouting fawningly,

“Welcoming the return of Cang Sheng Emperor—”

His voice pierced the beams and shook the clouds. Fang Fang, new to her role as war department head and inexperienced, saw Jiang Na Yi's dramatic move and thought some important figure from Gui Zhe Sheng Shan had arrived. She instinctively tried to slide and kneel too, “Wel—”

Xi quickly grabbed her and stopped the spell. One clown in Sheng Huan Dian was enough—did they need two?

As everyone stared in astonishment at Jiang Na Yi's over-the-top performance, suddenly...

“Boom!”

A terrifying black-red Xie Zui holy pressure descended at the entrance of Sheng Huan Dian. In an instant, the surrounding space shattered violently. The Tianji array protecting the hall activated immediately but overloaded, with Dao patterns sizzling and exploding everywhere. Jiang Na Yi, closest and eager to show his loyalty, didn't even have time to groan before his eyes rolled back, and he was crushed into the shattered floor tiles, his bones and muscles pulverized into a bloody mess.

“Crack!”

Even Bei Bei, farther away, buckled at the knees, her kneecaps nearly shattering. Horror flashed in her eyes, her face flushed red, but she couldn't hold out for even a second. “Pfft!” She spat out blood. Ao Sheng and Fang Fang, not as fragile as ancient sword cultivators, tried to burst away first, but as soon as they lifted their feet, the holy might slammed them into the ground.

They weren't fragile, sure. But when it came to sheer toughness, they didn't match ancient sword cultivators.

“Snap!”

The chair under Yu Lao's backside exploded into pieces. He was flung into the air by the black-red Xie Zui force, but he managed to grab a chair fragment mid-flight, landing gracefully and using it to cushion his fall as he stumbled.

Xi, who had experienced both the battlefield and Sheng Huan Dian, and had felt Xu Xiao Shou's overwhelming presence, compared it to the unrestrained aura of Cang Sheng Emperor returning from the front lines...

“Finally...”

The blood that had cooled for days boiled again! The head that had been forced down, nearly buried in the ground, finally lifted!

“The big one's coming...”

Woo—

At the peak of Gui Zhe Sheng Shan, dark clouds gathered, Xuan Qi surged, and half the sky turned ominously overcast. The snow on the plaza outside Sheng Huan Dian was swept away, and even the ancestral tree, Jiu Ji Gui, took on an eerie hue.

“Ai Cang Sheng!” Jiu Ji Gui Ling Ti shouted sternly, “Tone it down!”

The Gui Mu wheelchair appeared, and Ai Cang Sheng sat in it. The Xie Zui Bow, taller than a person, flipped through the air and slung itself at his waist. With his left hand, he pulled a black cloth from the void and draped it over his legs. Instantly, the veins bulging around his eyes receded, the killing intent and Dao principles in his gaze vanished, and the howling Xie Zui force inside and outside the hall ebbed like a tide.

“Thud.”

The front legs of the main seat hit the ground. Dao Xuanji, who had been pressed against the wall, finally settled back. She didn't stand. Her gaze followed the grooves the seat had carved into the floor, then drifted to the Xuan table a zhang away, and finally to the small figure in the wheelchair at the entrance.

For a moment, Dao Xuanji felt disoriented...

“Did I really drive Dao Qiong Cang off Sheng Shan? Did I truly suppress him once?”

“Is this the Ten Zun Seats?”

The battles of the Ten Zun Seats, the peak of the era, had been decades ago. Over those years, some said they had weakened, others that they had grown stronger. But time was impartial. Now, when people dared to jest about it, it proved that time had indeed dulled the deep impressions from back then. What remained was just hearsay.

Dao Xuanji knew Ai Cang Sheng was powerful. She was from that era, though she hadn't participated in the Ten Zun Seats war. She had never underestimated him. But when even the momentum he unleashed upon returning could suppress her, a fellow Half-Saint...

Even as a Tianji Shu practitioner, not suited for direct combat! For that instant, Dao Xuanji truly doubted herself: “Am I really that weak?”

“Apologies.”

A soft voice from the entrance snapped everyone out of their thoughts. Ai Cang Sheng turned his wheelchair toward the hall. Spotting the mangled flesh embedded in the floor beside him, he paused. Then, seeing the chaos inside—people strewn about—he paused again. How many years had it been since Sheng Huan Dian saw something like this? Not since Dao Qiong Cang's order banning novices from the hall.

But Ai Cang Sheng wasn't one for small talk. Even with Dao Xuanji, his equal, now sitting in Dao Qiong Cang's seat, he figured it might be a sign of improving relations between the siblings. Still, he wouldn't speak to her—dragons don't dwell with snakes.

Luckily, there was a familiar face: Yu Lao, a comforting presence. All the issues—from what had happened in the Five Domains during his absence to everything else— weren't something a slacker like Yu Lao could explain clearly. Ai Cang Sheng wasn't foolish enough to ask him. He just needed that one person to show up...

Yes, and to settle the score for being set up...

Ai Cang Sheng cut to the chase, scanning the room before saying,

“Where's Dao Qiong Cang?”

Dao Xuanji opened her mouth.

Ai Cang Sheng cut her off coldly.

“Let him come see me first. We'll discuss everything else after.”