"I know. That old fox Jiang Wansui will use this chance to probe the path into Jiangnan Province, and test the waters of the Wuwei Sect."
Jiang Yunxian lazily stretched her arms: "Co to think of it, we’ve been at peace with you for so many years..."
"Let’s treat this as a warm-up."
"You..." Lou Hechuan hesitated, unsure what to say.
"Don’t worry, Elder Lou. You’re important—all else fails, I’ll make sure you’re safe." Jiang Yunxian promised.
"What do I need to do?" Lou Hechuan asked in a low voice.
"Don’t do anything." Jiang Yunxian paused slightly, then added: "That young man nad Zhang Fan—don’t let him get too deep."
"Zhang Fan? Is he one of yours, too?" Lou Hechuan’s eyebrow twitched.
"What do you an ’too’?" Jiang Yunxian chuckled: "Elder Lou, you’re too sensitive. That young man is closely tied to Zhenwu Mountain. He’s useful if kept around."
"I understand."
Lou Hechuan gazed at Jiang Yunxian for a long mont, then slowly stood up.
"I hope you’ll keep your word."
With those words, Lou Hechuan turned, pushed open the door, and exited the room.
Inside the elegant, empty room, only Jiang Yunxian remained. Water still boiled on the stove, bubbling away.
"I warned you long ago, people from their family are always disasters waiting to happen. Should never have associated with them."
"Zhang Lingzong, if you don’t show yourself soon, I’ll throw your son out there, and leave you childless at your funeral."
Jiang Yunxian’s eyes narrowed slightly, fixing on the swirling, rising mist as she murmured to herself.
Just then, a middle-aged man in a suit entered the room.
"Sister Yun, Lou Hechuan left. Did you reach any agreent?"
"What kind of result could we reach?" Jiang Yunxian replied coolly, "That old fox—do you really think he cares about the life and death of ng Qinghuan?"
"He ca late only to ask for a promise from ."
"What sort of promise?" The suited middle-aged man couldn’t help but ask.
"No matter how turbulent things get in Jiangnan, his seat cannot be touched."
"He knows as well: holding onto that chair in Jiangnan Province requires more than the Daoist Alliance Headquarters’ approval—it depends on Sister Yun’s mood, too." The suited man sneered.
Where the Lord of the Profound Palace resides, it’s never that easy to reach in, is it?
Only, on the surface, no one recognizes that Jiangnan Province harbors such a living Buddha!
"Lou Hechuan, that old bastard, has played both sides all these years—and grabbed plenty of benefits."
"Playing both sides always ans drinking poison to slake your thirst. Arriving at a crossroads, he’ll have to choose eventually," Jiang Yunxian said mildly.
"If he won’t leave, we’ll help him out."
Saying this, Jiang Yunxian picked up the teacup on the table, flipped her wrist, and splashed the tea water, watching it run freely across the tabletop.
"He’s past the point of no return."
"If he tries to turn back, all that’s left is a severed head!" The suited man sneered.
...
Shangjing City
No. 273, Immortal Concealnt Road, Daoist Alliance Headquarters.
Down the hall, light still burned in an office.
At the desk, a kindly old man wearing thick reading glasses hunched over, searching through a mass of densely written text...
"ng Qinghuan is dead. Soone from Qi Yun Mountain is on the way—they’ll arrive early tomorrow. This matter needs an explanation."
Inside the office, a tall, thin man spoke in a heavy voice, wearing Daoist robes with a white crane emblem embroidered on the corner.
Fan Lingzhou, Daoist of White Crane Temple, and also one of Jiang Wansui’s most capable aides—in fact, a holder of the ’Observatory Master’ rank.
"So many troubles erge in Jiangnan Province—who’d believe it’s all fine? When there’s a rat on the table, there’s surely a nest out of sight..."
Then, another man spoke up. He wore a jacket and gold-frad glasses, paused, and looked at the kindly old man bending over the desk.
Yue Cang Peak, Daoist of White Crane Temple, likewise one of Jiang Wansui’s four main aides—and also at ’Observatory Master’ cultivation.
"President, you need to take a stand. No matter what’s up with Lou Hechuan, he’s no longer suitable to lead the Jiangnan Province Daoist Alliance," Yue Cang Peak pressed on.
"Fan, adjust the lights—too bright for my eyes."
Just then, the old man at the desk spoke.
Who would have thought that this kindly, white-haired elder before them was Jiang Wansui, fad alongside Chu Chaoran and called half the backbone of the Daoist Sect?
Fan Lingzhou stopped the discussion instantly, turned and switched off a lamp.
"That’s better—much more comfortable," Jiang Wansui chuckled softly.
"Yue, where were you? Go on."
Jiang Wansui put down his pen, removed his reading glasses, picked up his thermos, and looked to Yue Cang Peak.
"President, Qinghuan went to Jiangnan Province mainly to investigate the local Daoist Alliance, especially Lou Hechuan, and now she’s dead..."
"This is sheer lawlessness. Whether Lou Hechuan’s involved or not, he’s at least partly responsible..."
"In my opinion, Lou Hechuan is no longer fit to chair the Jiangnan Province Daoist Alliance and should be suspended and investigated imdiately," Yue Cangfeng stated.
Jiang Wansui nodded, blew the tea leaves from his thermos, took a sip, then spoke slowly: "Yue, how much do you really know about Jiangnan Province?"
"Uh..." Yue Cang Peak paused, caught off guard by the question.
He only knew that in recent years, administration of the Jiangnan Province Daoist Alliance had differed from elsewhere, and especially lately, Wuwei Demons were increasingly rampant—most concentrating around the Jiangnan Province Daoist Alliance.
This had raised suspicions at the top, so they sent ng Qinghuan there—officially for the Wuwei Sect’s Yin Hu incident, but really to covertly investigate Lou Hechuan and others heading the Jiangnan Province Daoist Alliance.
Apart from that, he knew nothing.
"No investigation, no right to speak." Jiang Wansui set down his thermos.
"Lou Hechuan’s an old hand in the Alliance, with serious clout in Jiangnan Province and connections all across the board—especially with Maoshan..."
"If you abruptly remove him, have you considered the so-called consequences?"
Jiang Wansui spoke slowly, each word deliberate—but to Fan Lingzhou and Yue Cang Peak, every syllable crashed like thunder, making their spines unconsciously straighten.
"I’ve always emphasized: stability is the foundation, unity the aim. Unless there’s conclusive evidence—don’t touch these elders lightly if you can avoid it..."
rcy shone in Jiang Wansui’s eyes: "If you move now, even if you seat soone else, that chair may not stay steady."
"Once it falls into chaos and you ask him back to fix it, you’re left in a passive position."
"Jiangnan Province is not a place that can be allowed to go awry."
"President makes a good point—we’ve been too narrowly focused."
"Not dialectical enough, lacking in big-picture perspective."
Fan Lingzhou and Yue Cang Peak reflected in self-criticism.
"You’re young—test yourself through practice. Only by realizing mistakes and shortcomings can you progress. And toward elders, you need tolerance and respect..."
Jiang Wansui seed a kindly grandfather, offering advice—every gesture radiated compassion and scrutiny.
"And ng Qinghuan’s death..."
"Send soone to Jiangnan Province..."
"Their mission is...?" Yue Cangfeng subconsciously asked.
"Kill a batch." Jiang Wansui replied blandly.
With that, Jiang Wansui donned his reading glasses again and returned to the docunts before him.
Fan Lingzhou and Yue Cangfeng traded glances, both understanding perfectly.
They knew: for others, this would be a huge matter, but to Jiang Wansui, it ant little—his concern was the Daoist Sect as a whole, not any single region.
This kind of thing really wasn’t worth his trouble.
"Hm!?"
Just then, Jiang Wansui’s brow twitched. He set down his pen again; the kindness on his face gave way to gravity.
In his hand, a docunt—mostly blank, bearing just eight characters:
King Yan descends the mountain, leaves the Ancestral Court!!
"That old dog erged from the mountain!?" Jiang Wansui muttered in a heavy voice.
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