Chapter 802: Three Generations Gather in the Prison

After the Emotionless Sect fell into chaos, the high-ranking members killed many people to suppress the situation.

Normally, killing a few people would be enough to send a message, but this didn't work for the Emotionless Sect. Emotionless individuals feel no fear; they only prioritize profit. Killing a few people would not serve as a deterrent. Only by eliminating a large number could the lower ranks truly grasp the determination of the higher-ups, forcing them to weigh the pros and cons and compelling them to back down from difficult situations.

Recalling that scene from his youth, Daoist Buyu marveled. It was the first time he had seen killings carried out with such ruthless efficiency.

However, the situation was not quickly suppressed. The high-ranking members of the Emotionless Sect also had their own hierarchies, and influenced by the lower ranks, they began to engage in internal strife. It was said that even the Sect Master had been subjected to assassination attempts on more than one occasion.

After the internal strife was quelled, the Emotionless Sect began to settle old scores. They traced the source of the trouble back to me and prepared to execute me. I suspect their dissatisfaction also stemmed from my 'kill-wife-to-ascend-to-Dao' method, or rather, my improved version of it.

Fortunately, at that time, I was at the Soul Transformation stage, and I also had a life-saving magical artifact given by my master. That's how I narrowly escaped the Emotionless Sect.

What a pity. I had planned to remain undercover within the Emotionless Sect to uncover its headquarters and true capabilities. I didn't expect them to be so impatient, insisting on killing me, even though my every action conformed to the sect's doctrines.

Daoist Buyu shook his head, feeling that with his understanding of the Emotionless Dao, the Emotionless Sect should have made him their Sect Master.

Although I didn't fully uncover the Emotionless Sect's hidden depths, I did ascertain that it had two Deputy Sect Masters and one Sect Master. The Sect Master's cultivation level was unknown, but the two Deputy Sect Masters were at the early and mid-stages of Tribulation Transcendence, respectively.

Lu Yang gasped. This intelligence was unknown even to the Blazing Sun Sect and the Nine Nether Sect. Furthermore, it meant that the Emotionless Sect had at least three Tribulation Transcendence stage cultivators, making them stronger than both of those sects.

"What happened next?" the Patriarch asked earnestly, listening intently.

"Then I just ran away," Daoist Buyu said, pouting. "I saw that the Emotionless Sect couldn't handle it, so I stopped pretending. I directly contacted my sect and the Great Xia Dynasty, dismantling all the Emotionless Sect's strongholds I knew of. Those who deserved to die were killed, and those who could be saved were rescued."

First, there was internal strife, followed by suppression from the righteous sects. These two rounds of blows severely weakened the Emotionless Sect, causing them to lie low for several centuries.

"Didn't the Emotionless Sect retaliate against you afterward?" Lu Yang asked.

Daoist Buyu pointed out the flaw in Lu Yang's conventional thinking: "They don't have 'hatred.' Why would they retaliate against me?"

"However, you're right, there were quite a few who wanted to retaliate against me. Cultivating through 'hatred' is also a path within the Emotionless Dao. Among them, a man named Su Moran harbored the most hatred for me. He was a Deputy Sect Master at the mid-stage of Tribulation Transcendence. I estimate it's because I tricked him quite severely back then."

"But, Su Moran wasn't very keen on letting others know about his desire to retaliate against me."

"Why?"

"Because his desire for revenge against me implies he harbors hatred, temporarily diverging from the Emotionless Dao. And diverging from the Emotionless Dao means his cultivation has hit a bottleneck."

"And encountering a bottleneck, with his cultivation stagnating, would lower his standing within the Emotionless Sect."

"The Emotionless Sect is truly dangerous!" The Patriarch felt a wave of lingering fear. He was fortunate to have been caught. If he had joined the Emotionless Sect, he would likely have been exposed within a couple of days.

"It's a good thing you didn't join the Emotionless Sect, Patriarch," Clan Leader Jin remarked, expressing concern for Daoist Xiantian.

Daoist Buyu shot a glance at Clan Leader Jin. "Go on, go on. You're not even from our Dao-Seeking Sect. Why are you calling him 'Patriarch'?"

"Don't say that, Big Brother," Clan Leader Jin replied. "I believe there's a possibility of cooperation between our Qiongqi Clan and your Dao-Seeking Sect. If our two powerful forces were to join hands in the future, wouldn't it be easy to secure a spot among the top ten powers in the Great Era Competition?"

Daoist Buyu considered the existence of his excellent disciple, Yunzhi, and felt that perhaps the Dao-Seeking Sect could become a top ten power even without allying with the Qiongqi Clan.

Initially, Lu Yang thought the Patriarch was quite safe in jail, and that he and Old Meng could simply visit him frequently. But upon realizing that the Patriarch and his master were locked up together, he immediately grew uneasy.

Lu Yang secretly consulted Old Meng: "How about we go to jail to protect the Patriarch?"

"It won't come to that, right? Although the Patriarch looks youthful, he's still an Integration Stage mighty cultivator who dispersed his cultivation to rebuild it, constantly refining his Dao heart. He shouldn't be so easily influenced by the Sect Master," Meng Jingzhou mused, wondering if Lu Yang was overly confident in the Sect Master's influence.

Before Lu Yang could speak, he heard Daoist Buyu lecturing Daoist Xiantian.

"Patriarch, you may not know this, but our Dao-Seeking Sect has a tradition of residing in jails. You know, in the mortal world, there's a profession where people sleep in hotels every day to test the living environment and suggest improvements. Our Dao-Seeking Sect has a similar profession. You see, I've spent years traveling from street to street, going to various cities to 'sit in jail.' This is precisely to investigate the prison environment. This isn't something suitable for government officials to do because if superiors come to inspect, the subordinates will surely temporarily improve the prison conditions. What could they possibly discover then? That's why it still relies on me."

"It's not just me. Two years ago, even the Minister of Justice joined me in jail to inspect the prison environment. This isn't something I'm making up; if you inquire in the Imperial City, everyone knows about it. Even His Majesty often mentions this matter in court as a delightful anecdote."

"So that's how it is." Daoist Xiantian had initially been skeptical when Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou mentioned that Dao-Seeking Sect disciples frequently ended up in jail. After Daoist Buyu's explanation, he suddenly understood, and his sense of guilt about being in jail lessened. Meng Jingzhou, however, felt that the Patriarch being with Daoist Buyu was indeed very dangerous. "We should just move in together," he suggested.

"What kind of crime should we commit?"

Even serving time in jail has its intricacies. The Patriarch was only imprisoned for half a month in total. If they committed a minor offense, they might not be detained, but if they committed a serious one, being locked up for two or three months would be too inconvenient.

"How about we steal something? That's the simplest way," Lu Yang said seriously.

At the City Lord's manor, the City Lord looked conflicted as he gazed at the two accusers below. "You're saying your name is Lu Yang, and you stole 2,900 spirit stones from Meng Jingzhou, and you refuse to return them?"

The City Lord then turned his attention to the other person. "And you're saying your name is Meng Jingzhou, and you also stole 2,900 spirit stones from Lu Yang, and you refuse to return them?"

Both men nodded earnestly.

They had already found out that the minimum threshold for theft charges for Nascent Soul stage cultivators in this area was 3,000 spirit stones. If the amount was below that, it would only be handled as an administrative case.

The maximum penalty for administrative cases was fifteen days of detention.

Since they had stolen from each other, refused to return the items, and refused to forgive, the City Lord could only apply the maximum penalty, detaining them for fifteen days.

They couldn't simply cancel out the offenses as if nothing happened, because the cases were independent and could not be merged.

The City Lord hissed, having long heard that Dao-Seeking Sect disciples enjoyed comprehending the Dao in jail. Could the rumors truly be accurate?