Chapter 316 - 123: The Final Departure (Part 3)

Chapter 316: Chapter 123: The Final Departure (Part 3)

If, back in Changshan County, Fang Rui saw the world of Great Yu as a chessboard from his position at the bottom of society,

then in Huaiyin Prefecture City, as a Silver Seal Chief Constable, he truly came to understand its man-eating nature.

’If I stood at a higher vantage point, what would Great Yu look like then?’

Whether a person or a nation, neither was a two-dimensional plane that could be understood with a single glance.

They were multi-faceted, and viewing them from different angles often led to different conclusions.

"It’s snowing!"

Just then, a voice suddenly called out from outside.

Fang Rui pulled aside the carriage curtain and looked out.

It was afternoon. The sun pierced through the endless yellow clouds, bathing the world below in brilliant white light. It enveloped everything in sight, shrinking the shadows to mere slivers.

Farther in the distance, a flock of wild geese flew past in a line, honking as they went.

It was a scene straight from a poem: a thousand miles of yellow clouds under a dimming sun, as the north wind blew the geese through flurries of snow.

...

「While Fang Rui and his family were on the road...」

Huaiyin Prefecture City.

WHOOSH!

Snowflakes drifted down.

Xun Buhe and Niu Bajin walked out of the Divine Capture Bureau side by side.

They had served under Fang Rui and weathered hardships together, so the two had grown closer and closer lately.

"The snow’s come early this year!"

"Tell me about it! Come on, Old Gou, let’s go grab a drink."

"Alright, but it’s your turn to treat, Bajin."

"My treat, then... Sigh. Drinking with just the two of us isn’t the same. I miss the old days, when the Chief was here, and Dadan..."

...

Their voices gradually faded, swallowed by the curtain of falling snow.

...

The Prefectural Magistrate’s Office.

Lord Song was hosting a grand banquet, bragging about his trip to the State City and having the time of his life. "That day, I attended the Pursuit Conference! Venerable Taiyuan brought out the Ten Thousand Miles of Mountains and Rivers Map, and what a sight it was... The Half-Immortal Family that fought him was no pushover, either... I just nodded off for a moment, and when I looked up again—hey, where did Venerable Taiyuan go? Turns out he’d spat out a mouthful of blood and was falling from the sky..."

He told the story with great animation.

Below, however, the assembled officials all looked constipated, forcing themselves to stay alert and nod from time to time.

It wasn’t that Lord Song’s tale lacked excitement. Rather, he had been holding banquets for three days since his return from the State City, and this was the twelfth time he had recounted the experience.

’Heh heh, forcing them all to listen feels amazing!’

Lord Song looked at the packed hall, everyone listening to his boasts, a beauty in his arms periodically pouring wine and feeding it to him. He couldn’t help but sigh to himself, ’This is the life! Not even worth talking about!’

...

Wuzhou State City, the Zhen Family estate.

From within a secret chamber, the decadent sounds of a man and woman’s union echoed, lingering for a long, long time.

The Patriarch of the Zhen Family, who was waiting outside, muttered to himself, ’Three days and three nights... that should be about enough time.’

BOOM!

Just then, the door to the secret chamber burst open, and Zhen Taiyuan strode out, draping a robe over his shoulders and radiating an immortal aura.

"Ancestor, you..."

"I am fine."

Zhen Taiyuan waved his hand. "Thanks to the Virgin Yin Essence from the three hundred maidens of Eight Characters Pure Yin you brought me, plus the Heavenly and Earthly Treasures and my Qianyang True Scripture, my injuries have now healed."

"However,"

His expression turned grim. "I’ve lost ten years of my lifespan. I don’t have much time left."

"Dammit!"

The Zhen Family Patriarch’s face filled with righteous indignation. "I will continue to hunt the culprit for you, Ancestor! I will find them, tear them to a million pieces, and scatter their ashes to the wind..."

"Why bother saying such foolish things?"

Zhen Taiyuan stopped in his tracks. "There’s no need to investigate. I used the Ten Thousand Miles of Mountains and Rivers Map to perform a Divination, and even that failed. Why would you bother humiliating yourself? Of course, if you have the ability to extract the Qi Fortune of a Flood Dragon, or can borrow a Saint Emperor’s Relic, then you can pretend I said nothing."

"Ahem."

The Patriarch’s old face flushed. Those feats were far beyond his abilities. He awkwardly changed the subject, "Ancestor, while you were recuperating, the city has grown unstable. Many people are getting restless..."

"Just a bunch of pathetic clowns,"

Zhen Taiyuan snorted. "Do you know what the most important asset of our family is?"

"The True Monarch’s Profound Intent?"

"Wrong!"

"The clan’s Nine Luminaries Qianyang Locking Heaven Array?"

"Wrong!"

"Then it’s..."

"It is the title of ’Qianyang Wuji Master’."

Zhen Taiyuan looked at the Patriarch. "There are some secrets it is now time to tell you. The title of ’Qianyang Wuji Master’ is not like those empty titles that last only a single generation. It is inscribed upon the Saint Emperor’s Relic, the Map of Mountains and Rivers. This is the true source of our family’s strength, the reason we will endure as long as the dynasty itself."

"As long as one sits in this position, they are blessed with immense Qi Fortune, making a breakthrough to the Source Technique Realm no difficult feat. You... should start preparing."

"Ancestor, this... you intend to pass the position to me? I can’t accept! Ancestor, you..."

The Patriarch’s heart leaped, but he immediately suppressed his excitement, fearing this was a test. He refused profusely, his voice full of sorrow.

"Say no more. My mind is made up. Also, I am tired. You may leave."

Zhen Taiyuan waved his hand, dismissing the Patriarch.

After the Patriarch left, Zhen Taiyuan paced for a long time before finally making his way to the ancestral hall.

"A Source Realm Cultivator has a lifespan of one hundred and fifty years... Heh heh. Ironic. Utterly, profoundly ironic."

Zhen Taiyuan stood before the ancestral tablets for a long time, then suddenly fell to his knees with a thud, tears streaming down his aged face. "Ancestors! Your generation followed the Saint Emperor... You sacrificed so much for the sake of the people, for this world!"

"No, it wasn’t just you. We, your descendants, generation after generation—all of us at the very top of Great Yu—have also paid far too high a price."

"Those at the bottom cannot help themselves; those in the middle see only a world that devours its own. But who knows what we have given? What we have sacrificed?"

Zhen Taiyuan gave a cold laugh. "The Nineteen States enjoy peace and prosperity, and hundreds of millions live and work contentedly. The price for all that is merely a one-in-a-hundred-million chance of being devoured."

"But we—the Royal Family, the Half-Immortal Families who share the dynasty’s fate, the true pinnacle of Great Yu—we have all sacrificed our lifespans and our very cultivation paths."