Ze Tian Ji (Way of Choices)

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

As news began to pour in, the Li Palace ceased to be so cold and cheerless. The bishops and deacons stood on the plaza and engaged in whispered discussion. As they waited for an order from the Pope or the archbishops, they all had different expressions.

It could be presumed that the Imperial Court was even more nervous at this moment, and it was hard to imagine what the princes and ministers were doing.

South Stream Temple, Mount Li, the Mutuo clan… they had all arrived at the capital on the same day. It had to be intentional. After the confluence of the north and south, the Imperial Court had relaxed its vigilance over the sects of the south. Moreover, since they had the Grand Examination as cover, no one had gotten any news of this beforehand.

Who across the continent could arrange for such a major event? Of course, it was Xu Yourong, because she was the Holy Maiden, but what did she want to do? Did she want to use this hurricane of momentum to threaten the palace? Would the venerable Daoist Shang Xingzhou still be able to quietly remain in Luoyang?

When they thought of these things, the Li Palace priests turned toward that secluded palace in the depths of the Li Palace.

Tang Thirty-Six, Linghai Zhiwang, and Hu Thirty-Two were also looking at Chen Changsheng.

Chen Changsheng said nothing, nor did he give any order. With a calm expression, he walked back into the hall.

Linghai Zhiwang was somewhat confused, but he understood the general meaning and turned around, walking out of the Li Palace.

Tang Thirty-Six followed Chen Changsheng back into the hall and asked, "What do you intend to do?"

Chen Changsheng replied, "I intend to practice the sword."

Tang Thirty-Six froze.

The sky today was exceptionally blue. Cut apart as it was by the eaves of the hall, it looked just like a porcelain tile.

The soft gurgling of flowing water could be heard exceptionally well in the slightly dim confines of the hall.

The clear water in the stone pool undulated with ripples that would never cease. A ladle sat quietly by the pool.

The Green Leaf had already been returned to the place it had existed in for many years. Although it was missing a leaf, it was still a pleasant green.

Chen Changsheng did not enter the Green Leaf World. Instead, he walked into a quiet stone room deep within the hall.

The room was devoid of furniture or tools, and its walls and ground were made from gray stone. It was abnormally plain, crude.

A prayer mat was placed on the floor, and it looked rather worn.

The prayer mat naturally made Tang Thirty-Six think of the one in Wenshui's ancestral hall, causing him to stop.

Chen Changsheng sat on the prayer mat and extended his right hand.

A wind did not stir within the stone room and his sleeve did not tremble, but his fingertip vibrated.

There was a light clap.

A flick of the finger.

With a clear crack, several thousand swords streamed out of the sheath at Chen Changsheng's waist, occupying all the space in the stone chamber.

Countless awe-inspiring sword intents began to rise and fall within the stone chamber, jolting and intersecting against each other before they gradually calmed down.

Looking into the stone chamber, one would see a sea of swords with Chen Changsheng sitting in the very middle.

Tang Thirty-Six felt a chill in his eyes at this sight, and then realized that one of his eyelashes was drifting down.

With a grinding sound, the door to the stone chamber slowly closed, accompanied by Chen Changsheng closing his eyes as well.

As he walked out of the hall, Tang Thirty-Six asked Hu Thirty-Two, "What's going on there?"

Hu Thirty-Two replied, "His Holiness had always been diligently cultivating."

Tang Thirty-Six found this rather absurd. "He's still thinking about practicing his sword at this sort of moment?"

"Yes." Hu Thirty-Two was a little worried, adding, "After meeting the Holy Maiden that day, His Holiness stopped caring about anything else."

Tang Thirty-Six felt rather uneasy, because this scene gave off a rather familiar feeling.

……

……

Countless gazes within the capital all rested upon the Xu Estate.

In these last few days, Xu Yourong had stopped meeting people. Instead, she chose to quietly remain at home.

But everyone knew that this matter had to do with her and the people she had met.

Before she met Prince Chen Liu, before she met the emperor late in the night within the palace, she had met many people in the south over the last few years.

These people had all come. They came from the south, her south.

"The Holy Maiden's pressure is too much. Sir, as her father, you should at least speak with her about it."

The Divine General of the East's estate was always somber and quiet, so the voice from the reception hall seemed louder than it really was.

It was obvious that this person was suppressing the anger in his heart.

The speaker was the Eastern Stallion Divine General, Peng Shihai.

Being forced to express a stance on the matter, Xu Shiji looked at the general with a nasty complexion.

In terms of status, Peng Shihai was lower than Xu Shiji, and in terms of seniority, he was far inferior. But he was a student of the now-deceased Principal of Star Seizer Academy, Chen Guansong, so he did not represent himself alone. He represented the will of the Divine Generals that now controlled the army and perhaps even the will of the venerable Daoist.

Xu Shiji suppressed his own vexation and replied, "Although the relationship between me and the Holy Maiden is that of father and daughter, it is also one of the subject and his lord. What do you think I can say?"

Peng Shihai gave a cold laugh and said, "If Sir finds it inconvenient to speak, then I'll do it. I want to meet the Holy Maiden to demand a full account!"

Xu Shiji could no longer restrain himself and harshly said, "I said that she isn't here! It's your choice if you want to believe it!"

……

……

Xu Yourong truly was not at home today.

On a day of such clear weather, she unfurled the Yellow Paper Umbrella and strolled through the streets of the capital.

A few days ago, she had gone to the Li Palace and requested the umbrella from Chen Changsheng, perhaps because she had already believed that she would need it to walk around today.

At her side was a girl dressed in black.

Everyone on the streets was talking about today's events, with the chatter from the tea houses and restaurants being especially loud.

The black-clothed girl had an indifferent expression and monstrous vertical pupils. She was very beautiful, but also somewhat odd, as she had a penchant for incessantly stuffing snacks into her mouth.

As she listened to these conversations, she mumbled , "You began preparing for this in White Emperor City?"

Xu Yourong smiled. "Yes, while you were pursuing that Angel from the other continent."

The little Black Dragon saw something and her eyes chilled. A seedless candied date shot out of her hand.

A little boy that was currently bullying his younger sister suddenly bent at the knee and fell to the floor. He instantly began to cry.

Xu Yourong shook her head.

The Black Dragon clapped her hands, ice crystals splashing out from her palms. She asked, "Why did you start then?"

Xu Yourong said, "Because it was only then that I was sure that Shang Xingzhou had suffered significant injuries."

The little Black Dragon turned blank for a moment, then asked, "He was injured?"

Xu Yourong affirmed, "Yes."

The Black Dragon knew how important this information was. Her pupils constricted as she asked, "How did you confirm it?"

Xu Yourong said, "The White Emperor had just broken out of his prison at the time. Whether or not he was faking it, his cultivation level and energy were still not at their peak. Moreover, he also had to battle with two Angels of the Sacred Light while Shang Xingzhou did not, and Shang Xingzhou even had me as a helper."

The Black Dragon did not get her meaning.

Xu Yourong explained, "In those circumstances, that Shang Xingzhou did not attempt to kill the White Emperor could only mean that he had also suffered significant injuries."

The Black Dragon was flabbergasted. "Aren't they friends?"

Xu Yourong only smiled in reply.

The Black Dragon then realized that she had also said that Shang Xingzhou had her as a helper, shocking her even further.

"If he really did attack the White Emperor then, would you really have helped him?"

Xu Yourong calmly replied, "Of course I would help him. In truth, I had already prepared myself to strike at the time."

The Black Dragon thought for a while, then asked, "These are just your speculations?"

Xu Yourong indifferently said, "That he and the White Emperor did not continue to attack that Angel but passed that on to you was so that they could guard against each other."

The little Black Dragon had not yet matured, but she was not lacking in intelligence. As she recalled the scene from back then, she quickly reached a conclusion.

After a very long period of silence, she said, "You humans are truly terrifying."

The lively crowds on both sides gradually vanished as the street gradually widened.

Xu Yourong and the Black Dragon had come to a quiet street.

If Mo Yu were here, she would be able to tell at a glance that this place was extremely close to the Road of Peace.

The little Black Dragon asked, "I thought you wanted to visit the girls of South Stream Temple, so why did we come here?"

Xu Yourong said, "I came to see two elders."

The little Black Dragon found this thoroughly uninteresting and vanished in a gust of icy wind.

Xu Yourong walked to the rear gate of an estate.

The gate slowly opened.

Xu Yourong looked at the two Daoist nuns and said, "I have troubled my two martial aunts."