174: Chapter 174 Azure Clouds and Storms, Returning to the Yan Kingdom

The mountain gate of the Qinglan Sect was still the same gate.

Chu Sheng stood at the foot of the mountain and looked up, feeling that this place was much shorter than in his memories.

It wasn't that the mountain had shrunk; it was that he had grown taller.

The changes on the mountain were significant.

Several buildings had been renovated, and the Spiritual Qi was denser than before, but the most obvious change was the people.

The Disciples of the Qinglan Sect all walked with their heads down, coming and going in a great hurry.

After the Second Elder died, the Qinglan Sect had become like this.

Some said the Second Elder was killed by an enemy, some said he suffered from Qi Deviation, and others said the Sect Master did it.

There were all sorts of rumors, but no one knew the truth.

The corner of his mouth curled slightly, thinking that this was probably the joy of killing invisibly.

You know you did it, but the whole world is in the dark.

Danxia Peak, on the other hand, was quite peaceful.

As Chu Sheng walked up, he heard Zhou Wantang's voice from afar.

She was instructing several Disciples in a lukewarm tone.

As he drew closer, he saw Zhou Wantang standing at the entrance of the Alchemy room, dressed in purple robes with her hair held up by a jade hairpin.

Standing directly in front of her was a young male Disciple with a cultivation at the Qi Induction stage.

Whatever Zhou Wantang said, the Disciple would nod.

But Chu Sheng could tell that the Disciple wasn't listening at all; he would take a glance and quickly look away, only to be unable to resist looking again.

Chu Sheng leaned against a distant tree, arms crossed over his chest.

Watching this scene, he thought this kid was likely the epitome of countless low-level male Disciples.

Someone like Zhou Wantang was beautiful, had high cultivation, held a prestigious status, and was lukewarm toward everyone.

She was a goddess-level figure to many Disciples.

The Disciple finally mustered his courage and spoke: "Vice Sect Leader, this Disciple has an audacious request..."

Zhou Wantang looked at him: "Speak."

“This Disciple wishes... wishes to ask the Vice Sect Leader for guidance on swordsmanship.”

After the Disciple finished speaking, his face was red all the way to the base of his neck.

Zhou Wantang glanced at him. "Swordsmanship is not under my jurisdiction. Go find the Elder of Technique Transmission."

The Disciple's face turned from red to pale, and his lips trembled slightly, though he didn't seem entirely dejected.

He sighed inwardly: "Elder Zhou truly is detached from worldly affairs; I'm afraid no man in the world can move her heart."

Chu Sheng smiled and shook his head.

He circled to the back of the Alchemy room and pushed open a window.

Zhou Wantang was organizing medicinal ingredients and didn't even look up when she heard the movement: "Get out."

“Your temper has certainly grown,” Chu Sheng said.

Zhou Wantang's hand paused; she looked up and was stunned for a moment when she saw it was Chu Sheng.

“How did you get in?”

She asked, her tone still lukewarm but softening slightly.

“Climbed through the window.”

“There's a door, yet you don't use it.”

“The door was too far.”

Zhou Wantang said nothing more.

Chu Sheng walked over and embraced her from behind.

Zhou Wantang's body stiffened for a moment, then slowly relaxed.

“That Disciple just now,” Chu Sheng whispered in her ear, “looked at you as if he were looking at a Fairy.”

“Boring.”

“He probably doesn't know that the Fairy in his eyes is merely someone else's...”

“Shut up.”

Zhou Wantang reached out and covered his mouth, her face so red it looked like it might bleed.

Chu Sheng laughed and didn't continue.

Several baskets of medicinal ingredients in the Alchemy room were knocked over, but no one went to pick them up.

In the distance, the Disciple practicing his sword heard the crashing sounds from the main hall and scratched his head, "Could the Elder have exploded her furnace while performing Alchemy?"

After a long time, Zhou Wantang straightened her robes and glared at Chu Sheng.

Chu Sheng leaned against the wall, watching her clean up the mess with a smile on his lips.

“You're the Vice Sect Leader now?” he asked.

“The Acting Sect Master hasn't been decided yet, so I'm managing things for now.”

Zhou Wantang repacked the medicinal ingredients into the baskets with efficient movements. “After the Second Elder died, the Sect was in chaos for a while. I reached a Breakthrough to the True Transformation Realm and suppressed the situation.”

“You became Vice Sect Leader? Did the other Elders not have any objections?”

“Those who had objections have all shut their mouths.”

Zhou Wantang's tone was very flat.

Chu Sheng smiled.

This woman was his right-hand person in the simulation, and she was no less capable in reality.

Leaving Danxia Peak, Chu Sheng went to the Scripture Pavilion.

The Old Man of the Pavilion Guard was still the same old man, with a hunched back and graying hair.

His cloudy eyes and Peak True Solidity aura were like a lamp about to burn out.

He sat at the entrance of the Scripture Pavilion, holding a yellowed scripture in his hands, completely absorbed in reading.

Only when Chu Sheng walked up to him did he raise his head.

“You are...”

The old man squinted and looked for quite a while before suddenly remembering, “That Named Disciple from last time?”

Chu Sheng nodded.

“Thank you for your care last time, Senior.”

He cupped his hands, his tone sincere.

In the simulation, he had killed this old man, but that was in the fifth simulation.

In the previous simulations, the Old Man of the Pavilion Guard had been kind to him.

When he was still a minor Cultivator, it was this old man who gave him protection and the status of a Named Disciple, sparing him from the Second Elder's harassment.

He remembered this kindness.

The old man waved his hand: “It's not worth mentioning. You now... what is your cultivation?”

He couldn't see through Chu Sheng, which made him somewhat uneasy.

Chu Sheng didn't answer and instead asked a question: “Does Senior wish to return to the Yan Kingdom?”

The old man's hand trembled, and the scripture almost fell to the ground.

“You... what did you say?” The old man's voice was shaking.

Chu Sheng's eyes narrowed slightly as he stood there. He didn't intentionally release his aura, but his Spirit Sea Realm cultivation was like an invisible mountain, pressing heavily upon the old man.

The gap between True Firmament and Sea Opening was not just a little bit; it was the difference between heaven and earth.

The old man's face turned from red to white. He wanted to stand up, but his legs were weak.

“Yan Kingdom.”

Chu Sheng said in a flat tone, “It is currently in internal strife. The Four Great Families—Qian, Zhao, Sun, and Li—are fighting among themselves. Those with True Transformation Realm cultivation dare to claim hegemony. To put it bluntly, it's just children fighting.”

The old man's lips trembled, unable to speak.

He was a man of the Yan Kingdom who had been stranded in the Qinglan Sect for decades; he dreamed of going back.

But he knew that with his cultivation, he couldn't do anything even if he returned.

“I will send Senior back.”

Chu Sheng said, “I will settle those matters in the Yan Kingdom for Senior.”

The old man's eyes turned red.

Finally, he stood up and bowed deeply. Chu Sheng did not dodge and accepted the gesture.

After leaving the Scripture Pavilion, Chu Sheng did not stay long in the Qinglan Sect.

He took the Old Man of the Pavilion Guard and, with one step, left the mountain gate of the Qinglan Sect.

The Yan Kingdom was to the east of the Tianfeng Kingdom. It wasn't large, only about the size of a single prefecture in the Tianfeng Kingdom.

But though the sparrow is small, it has all the vital organs; the imperial court, noble families, and Sects—it had everything it should.

He didn't enter the city but first went to the branch altar of the Wendao Sect.

The branch altar of the Wendao Sect in the Yan Kingdom was located on a mountain outside Yanjing City. It wasn't large, but it had an air of grandeur.

Chu Sheng settled the Old Man of the Pavilion Guard in an inn in the city and went up the mountain alone.

The Altar Master of this small branch was an old man at the Early Stage of the Spirit Spring Realm. When he saw Chu Sheng, his expression changed.

Chu Sheng hadn't expected the branch master of a small country like Yan to be at the Spirit Sea Realm. While lamenting the deep foundations of the Wendao Palace, he guessed this old man was likely out of favor in the Wendao Palace and had been assigned to this remote borderland.

He couldn't see through Chu Sheng's cultivation but could feel that invisible sense of pressure.

“Senior's arrival is an honor; please forgive my lack of a proper welcome.”

The Altar Master cupped his hands, keeping his posture very low.

Chu Sheng waved his hand: “I'm looking for two people. Fairy Yunxia and Yue Jianli.”

The Altar Master was stunned for a moment, then nodded and sent someone to invite them.

Chu Sheng sat in the branch altar's living room, drinking tea and waiting.

The first to enter was Fairy Yunxia.

She wore a Daoist robe, her hair tied up high. Her face was elegant, but there was a hint of arrogance between her brows.

Her True Firmament cultivation was already considered quite good in the Yan Kingdom.

When she saw Chu Sheng, she was stunned. He looked familiar, but she couldn't remember where she had seen him.

Then came Yue Jianli.

She followed behind Fairy Yunxia, wearing a pale blue long dress with her hair draped over her shoulders. Her face was expressionless, but her eyes were very bright, like two stars.

Chu Sheng looked at Yue Jianli, remembering the events from the simulation.

“Your Excellency is...” Fairy Yunxia spoke, her tone testing the waters.

Chu Sheng set down his teacup, looked at Yue Jianli, and smiled.

Yue Jianli felt a bit uncomfortable under his gaze and frowned slightly.

“I've come to pick someone up,” Chu Sheng said.