Wait a minute, where is my master?

Prince Mu died suddenly.

His network of allies in the court, the soldiers that he had cajoled within the military, and the power he had accumulated in secret—all of it remained largely unused when Jin Xu struck him down within his own royal mansion.

It was absurd but also laid bare the vulnerability of life to the residents of Shangjing City.

Even if you've achieved Divinity Transformation, you could still die at any moment.

The death of Prince Mu not only shook Shangjing, but also served as a wake-up call to the various factions operating in the shadows.

Those who were oblivious to the truth thought that Emperor Xia Xuanmin had found some mysterious new aid, thus they all began contemplating retreat.

Take the remnants of the Medicine King Valley, for instance. They fled Shangjing that very night and were said to be planning to find a rural area to open an honest pharmacy and live out their remaining years.

Then there were the survivors of the Shang and Jin Dynasties, who also retreated from the area, though these two clans did not abandon their dreams of restoring their nations—only, they planned to do it differently.

As the head of the two clans said, "Wealth does not last beyond three generations."

They intended to find some out-of-the-way place to have many children. They would wait for either Xia Yunzhao to abdicate or for the person who conjured the Golden Thunderbolt to ascend before coming out to vie for the throne of Great Xia.

Of course, the one most affected by this incident was Prince Chun, Xia Huangchun.

He moved directly from Shangjing to a suburban residence and deployed all the power he could muster there.

Death, he did not fear.

But he did not want to experience that feeling of "dying before spending all his money."

...

The sun was setting in the west, as crimson clouds spread across the sky.

Inside the large mansion where the Seventh Princess came and went.

Jin Xu, Yu Yaoer, and Xu Qian, who had a vacant look in his eyes and his body swathed in bandages, were sitting around a table eating.

Little White and Age Chicken had gone to the kitchen.

The Husky had just found a rat's head in one of the dishes, but Age Chicken insisted it was a duck neck. The two of them were embroiled in an ongoing dispute, neither willing to concede to the other.

So, they had gone to the kitchen to seek the cook's opinion.

At the dining table, the little Taoist picked up a chopstick-full of greens and turned to the Little Fish Demon, asking softly, "How is it, any specific news from your grandma?"

"Not yet, young master. It seems that the clan has been particularly busy lately, and grandma said she'd respond later," Yu Yaoer replied, her lips glistening with grease from the chicken leg she was holding.

Upon hearing Jin Xu's question, the little Taoist quietly nodded.

He then turned his gaze towards the person sitting across from him—a Sixth-Grade night watchman from Great Xia—who was still flirting with the servant feeding him, despite being wrapped in bandages from head to toe, falling deep into thought.

"Ehhhhm... never mind, let's not tell him," he decided.

Xu Qian, who had a fairly good psychological makeup, was like a bloody gourd just an hour and a half ago, and now he was already being helped to the table to eat. He even managed to throw out occasional flirtatious remarks to the servant pouring his wine and feeding him, except that since his ears had not yet recovered, he couldn't hear the servant's replies and just enjoyed the act of flirting.

For example, the servant had already said, "Lord Xu, I am a man," several times but the hard-of-hearing Xu Qian was still convinced that it was a young maid feeding him.

...

He had survived such serious injuries in such a short time largely thanks to the pill reserves of the Great Xia National Treasury. The ordinary injuries on his body had mostly healed with the immense amount of pills, now only leaving the issues with his eyes and ears.

When Emperor Xia Yunzhao sent them back, he said that Great Xia's Imperial Physician declared Xu Qian's injuries to the eyes and ears to be very severe, beyond the help of ordinary pills, and that other methods must be sought.

Just as the little Taoist pondered whether he should learn a healing spell upon hearing this, Yu Yaoer promptly volunteered that she had seen her grandmother treat similar injuries before and offered to help inquire about it.

That's what prompted the conversation they just had.

"Temple master!"

As Jin Xu was about to continue eating, Little White returned from the kitchen with Age Chicken in tow.

Seeing the two return, the little Taoist curiously asked, "How did it go, did you figure out if it's a duck neck or a rat's head?"

The Husky held up the little red rooster he was holding, saying excitedly, "Nope, the cooks in the back got into a fight over this too!"

"..."

Jin Xu was left speechless and chose to continue eating his meal.

...

In an ordinary house in Shangjing City.

The Third Elder of the Demon Sect was packing her belongings—she was preparing to flee.

Suddenly, a ghostly voice echoed through the room.

"Yan Meishan, what are you doing? What has happened in Shangjing? How did Prince Mu die? Why has Prince Chun suddenly cut off contact with us and furthermore retreated to the outskirts?"

The Third Elder looked up to see black eyes that had suddenly appeared on the wall. She pondered for a moment and then said with a serious expression.

"I don't want to do this anymore."

"What did you say?"

Ye Wuyang thought he had misunderstood, not having heard clearly.

"I said I don't want to continue with the plan in Shangjing City any longer!"

The Third Elder walked over to the table without any semblance of grace, picked up a teacup, and drained it in one gulp, then collapsed into the chair.

"Yan Meishan, a man can be trifled with at will, but words must not be spoken carelessly! For the sake of the plan in Shangjing City, our Sect has been arranging for dozens of years. How can you, as the Third Elder of our Sect, think about retreating in the face of battle?"

"If the Shangjing City plan fails, does our Sect not have other preparations? Qing State, the Shui Clan, White Emperor Pavilion, any successful setup would allow us to break the Demon Lord's seal. There's no need to risk our lives for the little bit of national Dragon Energy that Great Xia offers."

The Third Elder of the Demon Sect sprawled in the chair, responding dismissively.

The few sentences uttered revealed an enormous amount of information.

"Watch your words! State your reasons?"

A pair of pitch-black eyes scolded before asking. Its owner's body was not in Shangjing City at the moment, having only received news of Prince Mu's death. He was still unclear about the specifics of what had happened.

"Have you ever seen golden thunderbolts raining from the sky? Like the tribulation of the heavens, no, even more terrifying than that. That kind of horrifying Spiritual Power fluctuation, I've only felt it on the Great Elder! Wuyang, listen to me, as long as that little Taoist helps Great Xia, we stand no chance, unless the Great Elder himself comes to Shangjing! But you know as well as I, that's not possible."

Yan Meishan straightened herself, speaking to the black eyes before her with a trace of panic on her face.

Before Ye Wuyang's arrival, the Third Elder of the Demon Sect had already pondered for a long time. From the breaking of the formations in Gusu City to the loss of the Bronze Gate, the purging of resentment in Gusu City, to the destruction of the Yinming Corpse Evil in Ling City and the killing of Prince Mu today.

This little Taoist was definitely here to aid the Great Xia Dynasty!

Having not personally experienced the little Taoist's strength before was one thing, but now, having felt the power of that golden thunderbolt firsthand and having clashed with it, to persist would be foolish!

"Wait, wait. Speak more clearly, what golden thunderbolt, and how does this relate to the little Taoist?"

The pitch-black eyes were muddled by her words.

But seeing the panic in her face and recalling this mad woman's fearless nature, even daring to capture a Kunlun Taoist, he faintly sensed the situation might be quite serious.

Yan Meishan then detailed how Prince Mu died, along with the little Taoist's accomplishments along the way, and her own analysis, explaining everything to him properly.

There were too many witnesses when Jin Xu killed Prince Mu, and with Prince Chun's spies among the night watchmen, his identity was not kept secret but quickly spread throughout Shangjing City.

Even if it had been kept a secret, the signature golden thunderbolt couldn't have been hidden from the Third Elder of the Demon Sect, who was all too familiar with it, easily deducing who had acted against Mu Royal Mansion.

"So you think, this little Taoist has been targeting our Demon Sect just to aid the Great Xia Dynasty?"

"It's not what I think, isn't it an obvious fact!"

The Third Elder believed her deduction was flawless.

"No, how could Xia Xuanmin, an almost dying man from the Tribulation Crossing Realm, manage to get the help of the old monk from Wanbao Temple, let alone find such a powerful little Taoist?"

Ye Wuyang was very puzzled, but having listened to the Third Elder's analysis, he felt there was some sense to it.

Otherwise, there was no explanation as to why the person would be constantly opposing their Demon Sect.

But such a formidable master, where had he come from? Most of the famous and capable Taoists in the Nine Provinces Realm were in Kunlun Immortal Palace, with the only other notable place being the Xuanxu Temple. However, he knew the strength of the old Taoist from Xuanxu Temple; it wasn't enough to scare Yan Meishan into retreating without a fight.

Seeing that he remained silent, the Third Elder of the Demon Sect continued, "Wuyang, let's abandon the plan for Shangjing City. We'll go back to the headquarters and explain the situation to the Great Elder, then heading to Qing State or Yu State would be better than sending ourselves to die here!"

The pitch-black eyes pondered for a while before responding, "No."

"You!"

"Don't be hasty, listen to what I have to say..."

Ye Wuyang's mind quickly developed another plan.

Which Cultivator on the Demon Path didn't have an experience of killing and plundering, triumphing despite being weaker?

If they couldn't compete in terms of outright strength, then they could resort to other means.

Inside the small room, a deep voice emanated from a pair of pitch-black eyes, while a woman with a charming face but a serious expression in a gauzy skirt listened attentively at the side.

The scene was truly eerie.

...

The waning moon hung like a hook, and the stars were dim.

In the Great Xia Imperial City, within the Taiji Palace.

Inside the main hall, after concluding his lesson, Xia Xuanmin craftily inquired about the various details concerning the little Taoist from Xia Yunzhao.

By this time, he had even begun to ask whether the other party was married and if his parents were still living.

"Grandpa!"

Seventh Princess, blush reddening her face with the impetuousness of a young lady, couldn't help but playfully protest.

"Heh, all right, all right, Grandpa won't ask anymore."

Xia Xuanmin responded with a light laugh as his old age became increasingly apparent.

As time passed, his hair grew sparser and wrinkles more abundant; clearly, there weren't many days left for him.

"Alright, Zhaoer. It's getting late, you should go rest. Come back when you have time tomorrow," he said.

"Yes, Grandpa, you should rest early too."

Xia Yunzhao exited the main hall.

Even the death of Prince Mu that day didn't prevent Xia Xuanmin from tutoring his own granddaughter.

It was only because of the incident involving Xu Qian's injury that the Seventh Princess had arrived later than usual, and naturally left a little later as well.

After Xia Yunzhao had left, a portly monk emerged from a corner and, beaming at Emperor Min, said, "Do you want to know about that little Taoist? I have some information."