114: If I tell him to understand, he must understand!

Night.

Jiang Lan lay on the bed, quietly looking at the rafters above.

The power filling his body gave him an unreal feeling.

This was the after-effect of his strength improving too quickly.

Right now, Jiang Lan felt a sense of unreality.

Although he had improved his strength before, and it wasn't uncommon for him to cross several Realms, or even major Realms, at once.

But he had never had this feeling before.

The gap between the Mortal Shedding Realm and the Spirit Gathering Realm was simply too vast.

If he were to encounter his former self from the Spirit Gathering Realm now, he wouldn't even need to lift a finger; just the 'momentum' from his body would be enough to pressure his former self into submission.

His thoughts were in a turmoil, and combined with the fact that he had rested enough, he couldn't fall asleep at all.

He tossed and turned on the wooden bed for a while.

Suddenly, the wooden door creaked.

The door had been used for a long time and wasn't lubricated, so it inevitably made a sound when opening and closing.

Jiang Lan opened his eyes and looked towards the door.

Actually, he didn't need to look; he already knew who it was.

There were only he and Gu Yan'er in the entire room; besides Gu Yan'er, who else could it be?

"Didn't I tell you to rest in your room? What are you doing here?"

"I can't sleep..."

Although it was already night and the room was pitch black, Jiang Lan's vision was unimpeded; everything was clearly visible before his eyes.

Gu Yan'er was wearing a silk nightgown, her pretty face flushed, her eyes full of affection, and a shy expression.

Thus, there was no need to guess why she had come.

Everyone was an adult.

Still a young man, full of vigor, Jiang Lan's interest was piqued by this allure.

Furthermore, Jiang Lan was experiencing intimacy for the first time in his two lives.

What happened next, naturally, needed no further words.

It was true that women affected the speed of drawing a saber, but he didn't need to draw a saber now.

Raising a spear would suffice... The next morning, the sky was bright.

Jiang Lan opened his eyes and turned his head; Gu Yan'er's delicate brows were slightly furrowed, as if she was dreaming of something.

Without waking her, Jiang Lan quietly got up, put on his clothes, went to the courtyard for a simple wash, then went to the street to buy some breakfast, and returned to the small courtyard.

When he returned home, Gu Yan'er had already woken up and was tidying up.

Placing the bought breakfast on the table, Jiang Lan said:

"Eat. After eating, come with me to the Division."

Going to the Demon Suppression Division, Jiang Lan's main purpose was to confirm one thing.

If the current Emperor really colluded with demons, then Yao Banxian must have known about it.

Jiang Lan now roughly understood the Miao Fa Pavilion's attitude towards the Dynasty.

As long as the Dynasty was not in danger of collapse, they generally would not intervene... Two quarters of an hour later, at the Demon Suppression Division, Miao Fa Pavilion.

"Have some tea." Yao Banxian handed over a teacup and placed it in front of Jiang Lan. "It's excellent Immortal Cave Tea. If it were normally, I, Banxian, wouldn't even bear to drink it."

Jiang Lan picked up the teacup and took a light sip.

Hmm... it tasted like tea.

"Good tea!"

Yao Banxian raised his eyelids. "Alright, tell me, what happened?"

Jiang Lan didn't hide anything, revealing everything Gu Yan'er had told him yesterday.

Then, he asked:

"Is the current Emperor really colluding with demons?"

Yao Banxian rested his hand on the tea table, tapping it a few times.

After a while, he replied, "It's merely a matter of mutual needs. Everyone has greed, let alone an Emperor of a country? It's just that what he seeks is different from ordinary people."

"Then what does he seek?"

As soon as he asked, Jiang Lan already vaguely had the answer in his heart.

The current Emperor was already quite old, even if Great Yan was just a tiny country the size of a sesame seed within the entire Chihong Province.

But no matter how small the country, wasn't he still the Emperor?

What ordinary people pursued was nothing more than wealth, power, beautiful wives, and concubines.

The Emperor certainly wouldn't lack these things.

When a person lacked nothing, what they wanted was nothing more than to live a little longer.

Let alone here, even in Jiang Lan's previous life, countless emperors, for this goal, took elixirs and cultivated immortality, vainly attempting to achieve eternal life.

"Eternal life?"

"Heh... I, Banxian, knew you were intelligent, young friend." Yao Banxian chuckled, "Naturally, it's to seek eternal life."

"Not everyone has the talent for cultivation. An ordinary person's life is no longer than a hundred years. Without the talent for cultivation, one naturally has to think of other ways.

"That's why I, Banxian, said that the current Emperor and the demons merely have mutual needs. The Emperor provides blood sacrifices to the demons, and the demons provide the Emperor with methods to prolong his life."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Lan's eyes flickered.

"You don't intend to intervene?"

Yao Banxian looked up, his eyes, all whites, fixed on Jiang Lan.

After a long while, he shook his head.

"Heaven and Earth are unkind, treating all things as straw dogs. What the Emperor does violates human harmony, but it does not harm heavenly harmony. If I, Banxian, were to intervene, things would change. To bear the Karma of a nation, I, Banxian, am too blessed and shallow in fate; I'm afraid I cannot bear it.

"Young friend, remember, my Miao Fa Pavilion is not a servant to any family. If Great Yan truly faces the risk of collapse, my Miao Fa Pavilion will naturally take action."

Jiang Lan was silent for a while.

Upon careful thought, what Yao Banxian said was not wrong.

Everyone looked at things from a different perspective, and Jiang Lan couldn't force Yao Banxian to act according to his own ideas.

Before he could speak, Yao Banxian continued:

"And it's still the same old saying, even if I, Banxian, were to intervene, what about the next Emperor? If he's a wise ruler, that's certainly good. But what if the next Emperor is even more incompetent than this one?"

"Then kill him again," Jiang Lan said. "If the Emperor after that is also incompetent, then kill him again. Eventually, a wise ruler will ascend the throne. Even if he's not wise, I'll make him wise, and he will be."

Yao Banxian opened his mouth.

"Young friend... your Killing Intent is too strong."

Jiang Lan raised his teacup again and took a light sip.

"To govern a chaotic world, one must have methods for governing a chaotic world..."

Yao Banxian said, "Young friend, do you truly think that?"

"How could it be false?" Jiang Lan looked at Yao Banxian with some surprise.

"Alas..." Yao Banxian sighed, "Your temper will cause you trouble sooner or later."

Jiang Lan grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth.

"The later, the better."

Hearing this, Yao Banxian was torn between laughter and tears.

"You... never mind, I, Banxian, know I can't persuade you. Do as you see fit. But remember, handle the aftermath well. A country cannot be without a ruler for a single day."

As he spoke, Yao Banxian showed no sign of thinking Jiang Lan couldn't accomplish it; instead, he was concerned about the choice of a new Emperor.

Jiang Lan stood up and cupped his fists.

"Then I shall take my leave first."

With that, Jiang Lan didn't linger and turned to leave.

Walking out of the Miao Fa Pavilion, he lightly gripped the hilt of the saber at his waist.

He hadn't asked who the demon colluding with the Emperor was, or where it was.

Although Yao Banxian certainly knew, there was no need to trouble him with such matters.

He would just go directly to the Imperial Palace and ask the old Emperor.

Speaking of which, Jiang Lan was already a Demon Suppression Envoy, yet he hadn't even met the Emperor.

It was clear that this Emperor didn't pay much attention to state affairs either.