Recently, Qu Duanyun had been staying at the National Teacher's Manor.

Since Shi Zhongyu already knew about his relationship with the Immortal Gathering, it was better to spend some time studying at the National Teacher's Manor rather than being constantly watched at Taiheng. He had specifically left a Word Cloth at the sect, so he wasn't neglecting his duties.

The current situation at Taiheng was quite awkward, so it was good to lay low for a while.

The "villains" who plotted against the various masters seemed to be related to the Immortal Gathering, but no one could find direct evidence. Never mind other sects, Taiheng itself was already in endless disputes, with different factions holding their own views. Some firmly believed that Taiheng was also a victim, and that Shi Zhongyu was just using the opportunity to seize power. Some still remembered Master Qi who died unjustly, and seeing Qu Duanyun's unclear connection with the Immortal Gathering, these people also had complaints.

With Taiheng itself in such disarray, public trust had plummeted. Coincidentally, the Luojiu invasion happened at the same time, bringing both internal and external troubles. Everything had been thrown into confusion.

Jianchen Temple was not as involved in worldly affairs as Taiheng and had little influence in the border regions. At present, it was not in a position to act beyond the imperial court.

Looking at the results, the Immortal Gathering had thoroughly achieved its goal of disrupting the jianghu.

Although his personal circumstances were not ideal, Qu Duanyun showed no signs of worry. Chaotic times were approaching, and it was a good opportunity to cleanse the sect. When the flames of war grew stronger, those naive idealists would surely be the first to rush out.

As these thoughts crossed his mind, Qu Duanyun scooped up another ladle of warm water and sprinkled it on the flesh god statue in the shrine.

Ever since learning about the existence of his "Grandmaster", tending to the flesh god statue had become Qu Duanyun's job. This Grandmaster had used his own body for experiments, merging himself with the flesh god statue. Unfortunately, the result was not perfect—a complete human body couldn't compare to the refined living flesh paste. Although he achieved a form of immortality, the Grandmaster needed to periodically consume "immortal bodies", otherwise his organs would gradually decay.

Even with immortal bodies to eat, his body would still exude some impurities daily. Every day at the third watch, someone needed to cleanse him with warm water.

Compared to the chaos outside the National Teacher's Manor, Qu Duanyun quite enjoyed this task. The Grandmaster might not live comfortably, but his knowledge far surpassed that of ordinary people.

And right now, Qu Duanyun had no shortage of questions.

"Were the hundreds of years of peace and prosperity really due to the blessings of True Immortals?"

He enthusiastically poured water, which carried away dark yellow sticky fluid, emitting a faint foul odor. However, the incense in the room was stronger, quickly masking the stench.

[Not so. True Immortals merely convey their intentions to the Suspended Tree; they themselves do not have the ability to reverse heaven and earth. The Suspended Tree's roots reach the sky, thus it can disperse clouds, regulate rain, stabilize the earth, and secure borders. This is how our Dayun achieved a hundred years of peace and prosperity.]

The tone of the Grandmaster in the flesh statue was particularly detached.

[We and the Suspended Tree are in a mutually beneficial relationship. The Suspended Tree eliminates disease and weakness for our Dayun, screening for the strong. We cultivate good seeds for the Suspended Tree and expand its territory. Such cooperation can nurture an invincible and glorious nation... Alas, people are short-sighted, only knowing personal feelings and petty righteousness. The imperial family is myopic, with no concern for plans spanning a thousand years. If not for this, why would the hundred-year plan need to be hidden away like this?]

Thinking of Qi Xindao's matter, Qu Duanyun deeply agreed and couldn't help but sigh.

After lamenting, Qu Duanyun cleaned more conscientiously: "Grandmaster, since the Suspended Tree has the ability to reach the heavens, why not use it for border warfare?"

Nurturing a talent that only appears once in a hundred years couldn't be wrong, but wasn't this selection standard too strict? The Deity Summoning Formation was incredibly powerful. As long as it was used flexibly, was there any battle that couldn't be won?

[Not so. There are no such convenient matters in this world. The so-called "deity summoning" is merely using sorcery to determine a location and induce the Suspended Tree to grow a new root. Then True Immortals control it with sorcery, indeed allowing it to drain the surrounding mortals.]

The flesh statue was silent for a moment, its tone becoming more earnest.

[...However, all things conform to the principles of heaven and earth. Now the Suspended Tree is enormous, and growing new roots consumes a great deal. In populous areas, it's fine; the lost essence can be replenished later. But if too many new roots are induced in the barren borderlands, it would harm the Suspended Tree without benefit. If not for the True Immortals' nurturing, how could the Suspended Tree grow so large?]

That's true, Qu Duanyun thought to himself. Many insects and few beasts—this is ultimately the principle of heaven and earth. If such things were as easy to grow as weeds, people would likely have been drained dry long ago.

[It's a pity that mortals are still mortals. Sun Wang has ample valor but insufficient wisdom and strategy. The Suspended Tree under his protection has now grown to its limit.]

The monster-like old man spread his deformed ten fingers.

[Destruction before construction, destruction before construction. I suppose I've lingered on for many years, waiting for just this moment... Intelligent and valorous, with pure desires—once that person eats the Shi Rou, he can become an emperor for the ages, a true Divine Emperor Wu".]

The Desire Child is inherently arrogant and selfish, incapable of feeling any compassion for the weak and useless—perfect material for an emperor. Thinking of Shi Jingzhi now, Qu Duanyun no longer felt any envy. He had lost fair and square and was only waiting to be a good subject.

Qu Duanyun sprinkled the last ladle of water from the bucket and bowed respectfully.

"Thank you for your teachings, Grandmaster. This time, the hundred-year great undertaking will surely succeed."

Below the shrine in the National Teacher's Manor, it was a different scene altogether.

Compared to the delicate work of saving lives, bringing about natural disasters was simpler. The True Immortal didn't need to be present in person, only needing to convey their intentions to the Suspended Tree, instructing it to disrupt the climate.

Sun Wang sat at the deepest part underground, with countless black and red roots piercing through his clothes and connecting to his body. His entire form was twisted and deformed, like a rough ball of twine woven from thick vines. Distorted root-like structures protruded from the gaps in the "ball of twine", extending in all directions, their ends gradually fading into the air.

Rather than an immortal, it looked more like some kind of tree root spirit.

Jiang Youyue knelt before this enormous mass, his posture as respectful as ever.

"The matter of the Disastrous Root was due to our negligence in failing to discover the loophole in the Great Prohibited Formation," he said earnestly. "However, the Wushu ore deposits within the borders of Dayun have been destroyed by us. Even if some remain, they won't harm the Suspended Tree."

"Even if that Disastrous Root incites in every way possible, ruining the Desire Child. With successful precedents, the hundred-year plan will only be delayed by a few decades. Once this matter is settled, we will certainly deal properly with that Disastrous Root."

Disastrous Root, truly living up to its name.

The Suspended Tree viewed that person as part of itself, and even the True Immortals couldn't do anything about him. He truly was unkillable and indestructible, and could only be carefully imprisoned somewhere. With the enemy hidden and us exposed, capturing the Disastrous Root alone was even more difficult.

Jiang Youyue had heard about the Disastrous Root before—

When the country was founded, there was a great general named Yin Zizhu. This man was both intelligent and valorous, with the appearance of a banished immortal. At that time, He Cheng'an, being a True Immortal, wanted to gift him the Shi Rou, allowing Yin Zizhu to become a new True Immortal.

Who would have thought that Yin Zizhu's constitution was exceptionally compatible with the Suspended Tree? Just by drinking the immortal wine, he gradually became one with the roots of the Suspended Tree.

True Immortals ultimately need to sever their roots and travel far, sowing seeds in different lands. This is the principle of the Suspended Tree's propagation, naturally leaving room for when the fruit is ripe and the stem falls. But Yin Zizhu was a complete accident, connected to the Suspended Tree in an extraordinarily unusual way, and couldn't be used as a True Immortal at all.

Worse still, Yin Zizhu hadn't eaten the Shi Rou and had no protective feelings towards the Suspended Tree. If he were allowed to roam the world and discover the truth, who knows what chaos he might cause.

So He Cheng'an changed his approach.

The Suspended Tree treated this man as its own "root", a situation that was rare and impossible to reproduce. The Suspended Tree's root system was intangible, beyond mortal interference. But Yin Zizhu was a visible and tangible person, his body no different from the roots of the Suspended Tree, available for all sorts of experiments.

The subsequent events are well-known to every National Teacher.

Immortal flesh statues, a creation of "pseudo-roots", absorbing the essence of myriad people, creating a "small Suspended Tree" like the "Desire Child" on the ground—thus began the hundred-year great undertaking.

As for Yin Zizhu... He Cheng'an sealed him in the northwest, using him as magical material for the Great Prohibited Formation. This provided an inexhaustible source and kept him thoroughly confined.

This should have been a perfect design.

Next time they catch that Disastrous Root, it would be better to cast him into molten iron. Even if he can't be used as material, at least he won't cause trouble again. Shi Jingzhi was already a Desire Child who would stop at nothing to survive, and he was familiar with Yin Zizhu. Once he becomes a True Immortal, capturing Yin Zizhu won't be a problem.

Just as they had anticipated, when Shi Jingzhi was falsely accused of being a rebel, he had no intention of sitting idly by and waiting for death.

Now war has broken out everywhere, and natural disasters have arrived. As chaotic times approach, the emperor's "order to suppress bandits" has also been pushed to that person's doorstep.

Jiang Youyue had a feeling that before early summer, this matter would be settled.

"...When Shi Jingzhi begins to struggle with the imperial family, I will send Duanyun to the front lines to receive the newly born True Immortal."

"Sun Wang" did not respond for a long time.

That mass of root-like matter slowly writhed, continuing its incomprehensible communication with the Suspended Tree. It completely ignored Jiang Youyue in front of it, treating him as if he were thin air.

Jiang Youyue held his breath for a moment, knowing this was tacit approval—although True Immortals could disguise themselves as very human-like people, in front of those in the know, they were always too lazy to make this effort, and rarely even conversed.

This might be related to its age. Perhaps when Shi Jingzhi becomes a True Immortal, this place will be livelier.

On the ground, spring's intent lingered with the scent of peach blossoms, while the blood-red color from the border regions seeped all the way into the Central Plains.

When a wall falls, everyone pushes—the Red Hook Sect remained silent, and the Xilong in the west began to frequently make small moves. In the south, violent storms arose, and floods were widespread. Within half a month, refugees were scattered everywhere. The various sects of the martial arts world hadn't yet recovered and had no time to protect the common people. Bandit groups sprang up faster than mushrooms after rain.

Looking around, disasters were everywhere—east, south, west, and north. It was as if Heaven had bundled up all the calamities owed to Dayun for three hundred years and solemnly returned them all at once.

With nowhere to go in the surrounding areas, the center was also unstable.

News of the emperor's serious illness had been leaked, and everyone knew that the current emperor was gravely ill. When it rains, it pours—this serious illness was neither here nor there, not severe enough to require a regent, yet offering no hope of recovery.

With things having reached such a state, the emperor showed no positive attitude. Xu Jingxing had grown so thin as to be barely human, and didn't even look at memorials anymore, only occasionally listening to war reports. Prince Rong, who used to stick close to him, was nowhere to be seen—that person had always been timid and valued his life, who knows if he had already found a place to take refuge in advance.

The imperial court, just like Taiheng before, was in a state of every man for himself, a complete mess.

Amidst all this chaos, the rumors spread by the Immortal Gathering became more and more widespread. Sayings like "The emperor has lost virtue, persecuting his brothers out of jealousy, and thus lost his mandate" were everywhere, and rumors that "A worthy king blessed by Heaven is wandering among the common people, currently near Ku Mountain" were also ineradicable.

In the midst of despair and panic, many people even took their families to the area around Ku Mountain, just hoping to receive a bit of the "mandate's" blessing. There were also quite a few people who took the opportunity to impersonate "Shi Jingzhi", each wanting to establish themselves as king.

As a result, refugees gathered, and bandits were not far behind. The area around Qizhou became a veritable den of thieves. Before the Luojiu had even fought their way there, the former prosperity had already gone up in smoke.

As the "chief culprit", Shi Jingzhi himself had never appeared.

On this day, the Yueshui Bureau was still bustling with activity.

The situation at the border was changing rapidly, with daily news flowing like water, and Word Cloths flashing enough to make one dizzy. People ran back and forth with brush and ink, occasionally bumping into each other and adding ink spots to one another.

Dayun had been peaceful for hundreds of years, but now changes were coming one after another, each more difficult to deal with than the last.

"It's been so long, and we still can't contact the Mi Mountain Sect..."

"Luojiu's 'Divine Descent Saint' is personally leading the army, and Generals Liu and Li have died on the front lines!"

"Boshui is experiencing floods again, with victims numbering in the tens of thousands—"

The main hall was in an uproar, a cacophony of voices. Listening carefully, not a single piece of good news could be heard. This was the scene Shen Zhu saw when she stepped through the door.

As soon as she entered, the surrounding area immediately quieted down. It wasn't that the people of Yi City particularly respected their colleague—Shen Zhu had her own grudges with the Ku Mountain Sect, and might know news about the rebel Shi Jingzhi!

People looked at each other, then, like chickens fighting over food, they all swarmed around her. Countless questions mixed into a jumble, but Shen Zhu turned a deaf ear to them. She carried an exaggeratedly large package, smiling as she parted the crowd and walked straight towards the Heaven Department.

Shen Zhu stopped at the puzzle submission counter and stood silently for a long time, as if reminiscing about something. Finally, she fumbled in her bosom for a moment and took out an extremely old wooden tablet.

"The puzzle has been solved, this humble girl has come to submit it."

The disciple guarding the counter was irritated by the noise and grunted twice, casually accepting the wooden tablet—anyway, it was sure to be the same old story. As a member of the Heaven Department, the puzzles Shen Zhu submitted each time were neither good nor bad, nothing worth looking at.

However, as he received the puzzle tablet this time, he felt something was off. The tablet felt smooth and cool to the touch, quite heavy, with a texture almost like fine jade. He instinctively raised his eyelids to look at the writing on it.

"Finding Immortals?!" He unconsciously cried out, his voice cracking a bit.

"Yes."

Shen Zhu smiled like a spring flower.

"I found them."

The surroundings instantly fell silent, so quiet you could hear a pin drop, then suddenly erupted into an uproar.

That was the decorative puzzle that had been hanging in the Heaven Department since the founding of Yueshui Bureau. It had more decorative value than research significance, and Yueshui Bureau had been waiting for her to give up or die before hanging the tablet back up.

No one had expected that this seemingly joke of a puzzle could actually be formally solved by someone.

"You..." The disciple behind the counter swallowed, his mind blank. "Don't cause trouble, at a time like this?! To... to submit such a major puzzle, you need physical evidence that can be verified, and a theory that can be tested. If you're just trying to show off..."

With a thud.

Shen Zhu placed down a glass bottle containing chunks of Shi Rou, then pushed over a whole stack of papers.

The papers were both new and old, the new ones seemed to have been written within the last two or three days. The old ones had long been compiled into volumes, looking to be at least over ten years old. The person hastily pulled out one to look at, his expression becoming increasingly rigid as he read.

Of the methods described, he had never heard of a full nine-tenths. The breakdown of formations was even more dizzying, just looking at it made one feel faint.

Yet the handwriting on the paper was neat, with thorough analysis and calculations of magical techniques. At a glance, the key points of the argument were clear, the direction of inference was definite, and it didn't look like something hastily fabricated at all. Moreover, judging by the age of the paper, this person had been researching these things even before joining Yueshui Bureau.

Madwoman.

Why would a woman of common birth be so obsessed with these incomprehensible things?

"To be honest, I picked up this tablet just on a whim. Even if there were really gods in this world, I wouldn't revere them one bit."

Seeing the disciple behind the counter dumbfounded, Shen Zhu smiled even more brilliantly.

"Now that I've obtained the truth I wanted, who knew I'd solve this problem along the way. Take it and verify it. I have only two requests."

"...What?"

"First, honor the Heaven Department's promise. From today on, I am the head of the Heaven Department... unless you can prove this puzzle false. Don't think about destroying or altering anything, I have plenty of backups for both the arguments and the physical evidence. If the Shi Rou chunks are gone, I have other substitutes, endless ones."

"This, this—"

"Don't worry, I've specially added a second request for you. I want these documents and physical evidence sent to every corner of Dayun's Yueshui Bureaus. After all, if you want to prove it false, the more people involved, the better, right?"

Her voice grew louder and louder, not hiding the provocative intent within. Her smile also grew bigger and bigger, until she finally burst out laughing.

"Come on, it's best if everyone comes to verify. The Heaven Department is full of elites from Yueshui Bureau, each one brilliant and mighty. Surely you won't be defeated by a 'weak woman' like me who's just been idling away her days?"

With countless eyes staring, the person behind the counter dared not be negligent. He carefully unpacked the mountain of documents, scanning each page with a magical device, and immediately transmitted them via Word Cloth.

Just as he finished here, another person, disheveled and covered in dust, rushed into the main hall, heading straight for the nearby counter. His voice was extremely loud, and everyone heard him clearly—

"It's all gone wrong! After so many days, there's finally movement from the Ku Mountain Sect!"

He gesticulated wildly.

"The, the first to make a move was that Su Si! He... he's going around collecting gold, only to support that Shi Jingzhi!"

This news was quite big, but not to the level of earth-shattering. With the incredible events that had just happened, it seemed even less interesting in comparison. The people around were still preoccupied with the matter of finding immortals, their faces showing nothing but numbness.

Seeing that others had no reaction, the person stomped his foot in anger: "Su Si isn't robbing ordinary households, nor is he robbing wealthy mansions or government offices, he's robbing divine shrines and immortal temples!"

Shen Zhu covered her mouth with her long sleeve, her face showing a surprised expression. Behind the sleeve, she revealed an appreciative smile.

"Wordy as he is, he moves quite efficiently," she muttered silently.

Thousands of miles away.

"Greetings, Sect Leader."

Protector Hua, having been fitted with a prosthetic limb, didn't kneel as smoothly as others.

The Red Hook Sect was in the process of recovery, with an especially large number of things to worry about. Earlier, Wu Huai's atrocious actions had cost the sect a considerable sum just in compensating the affected villagers. Now with Xilong eyeing them covetously, even she, a protector who usually didn't leave the sect, had been sent out to rush about everywhere.

As soon as she returned to the main altar, she heard the news of "Red Hook Sect attacking divine shrines everywhere," and nearly lost her balance.

Was the position of Red Hook Sect Leader tainted with something dirty? Why did everyone who touched it go mad? She didn't even change her clothes before rushing to the new sect leader's presence.

"Sect Leader, that Yan Zheng is willing to associate with you, helping you annex the Ling Sect. Indeed, we didn't suffer much loss... But the Ling Sect's branch altars are full of madmen, their people naturally arrogant and crazy, and have long been at odds with our sect. In my humble opinion, we should first subdue the Ling Sect people before making other plans."

She didn't explicitly say the rest, but her expression was clear—the world is in chaos, you've just ascended to this position, and haven't even warmed the seat yet. Acting so arrogantly, it's hard to guarantee nothing will go wrong.

"Hmm?" Su Si sat cross-legged on the sect leader's seat, unceremoniously chewing on mulberries. "Oh, those Ling Sect madmen. I've already given them a good lesson, they're very well-behaved now."

Other protectors and sect guardians were standing in the hall, not daring to make a sound. Some were busy giving eye signals to Hua Jingchun. But this woman, fearing to bring another disaster, was so anxious that she failed to notice the deeper meaning in their looks.

Sure enough, Hua Jingchun continued urgently: "Forgive my directness, but the Ling Sect people are accustomed to being vicious. It's not uncommon for them to comply outwardly but defy in private. Sect Leader, you are young, and it's easy to be deceived by that group of troublemakers..."

Plop.

A blood-stained sack was thrown in front of Hua Jingchun. She opened it to see only a bag of bloodied chunks of flesh.

"What is this?"

"Flesh with tendons attached," Su Si said nonchalantly. "I picked out the most troublesome ones and dealt with them all at once. The most arrogant ones were killed directly, no need to keep them."

Seeing his demeanor, it seemed he had long anticipated her reaction.

"I've made it clear to that group of people, if they don't submit to me as their new master, they're free to try assassination or open attack. But I don't have the good temper of Yan Zheng, and I won't let people die quick and easy deaths."

The words in Hua Jingchun's throat were choked back—although the Ku Mountain Sect had suffered many casualties along the way, at least they hadn't committed any atrocities, and had even saved quite a few people. Su Si himself was an old acquaintance of the new alliance leader, and she had originally worried that he might be hesitant in his actions due to old friendships...

So much for being hesitant! In terms of ruthless methods, this person was not only no less than Wu Huai, but could even match those madmen from the Ling Sect. With such a bandit-like demeanor, he really could keep those Ling Sect lunatics in check. But the steady reputation of Red Hook Sect, she was afraid, could never be recovered...

Hua Jingchun felt utterly exhausted.

Since he was the sect leader appointed by Dark Blood Witch, there was nothing to be done but accept it now. At least Su Si wouldn't take out his anger on his subordinates and was somewhat willing to listen to reason.

So Protector Hua took a deep breath and changed tack, trying to persuade him earnestly: "Sect Leader Shi has been kind to both you and me. Your willingness to lend him a hand shows loyalty and righteousness. But, but robbing the Immortal Gathering is one thing, messing with divine shrines will also anger the local people. Sect Leader, this matter needs more careful consideration..."

Even if she believed in Dark Blood Witch's judgment, Hua Jingchun still had a feeling that "this person wants to use Red Hook Sect and then run."

"I am giving it careful consideration."

"Protector Hua is right." The sect guardian in charge of this matter couldn't sit still either. He bowed to Su Si. "The situation is turbulent, and people seeking divine blessings are even more numerous than usual. Ordinary people believe in this, and our sect will definitely be resented... Last time when we robbed the shrine of Yongsheng, some civilians spontaneously formed a human wall to block us, it's really..."

"What's wrong with a human wall? Red Hook Sect is considered an evil sect after all, can't even handle ordinary civilians? Kick away the weak ones, knock out the strong ones and drag them away. If you don't have enough manpower, just say so, and I'll arrange more for you. Unless you can't handle the government troops, don't mention this to me again."

Su Si finished eating the mulberries and narrowed his eyes in satisfaction.

"My arrangements won't change, and you should remember, don't casually say things that shouldn't be said outside. Our sect's Red Scorpion Feet aren't kept to be idle. Working under me is like this, anyway I'm here now, and I won't leave so easily."

The faces of those seated below showed various expressions, a colorful display, with different degrees of fatigue. Perhaps this year the Red Hook Sect was fated for disaster, with each new sect leader being more of a bearer of calamity than the last, unstoppable.

Hua Jingchun still wouldn't give up, remaining kneeling: "Sect Leader!"

"Sister Hua."

Su Si jumped down from his seat and half-crouched in front of Hua Jingchun. He brushed over the handle of the flesh-cutting knife, caressing the dim mountain ghost coin, the smile in his eyes hard to understand.

"To be frank, I do indeed hate Dark Blood Witch, but Red Hook is the best blade I can grasp. I need to use this blade to protect people, so I certainly won't discard it after use. Rest assured, I intend to become a world-renowned hero."

"Some words can only be said at the right time. Some things... can only be done by the right people."

"Will you trust me just this once?"

Author's note:

If Fox Shi had obediently eaten the Shi Rou, the next plot would have been the fox and demon lord killing each other.

Sect Leader Shi: Pah!!! Absolutely impossible to eat.