A sudden sense of urgency welled up in Lianshan Xin.
Du Jiu and Qi Wenbin had previously filled him in on the internal situation within Nine Heavens, which was divided primarily into three major factions.
The Hermit faction rarely stepped into the outside world; so long as you didn't provoke them, they wouldn't give you trouble either.
The Status Quo faction mostly held the fort at headquarters, well beyond Lianshan Xin's reach, and for the most part, they wouldn't go looking for trouble with others either.
Only the weakest faction was exceptionally hawkish.
Qi Shiyun was the leading figure of this faction.
And there were several others just like her.
"As for your talent in cultivating immortality, I can't read that," Zhang Aniu offered as a friendly reminder. "However, Shiyun said your talent is no worse than hers, which means what you lack is time. Those young masters and candidate successors share almost the exact same mindset as you right now. They're still young and eager to make their mark. The difference is that they're much stronger than you."
*That might not necessarily be the case,* Lianshan Xin thought.
Give him a few days to thoroughly master the Dragon Slaying True Intent, and he could attempt a breakthrough into the True Intent realm.
"Are most of these young masters and candidate successors in the Grandmaster realm?"
"Naturally."
"Then this student will work hard."
It was only a single realm.
Wasn't that just a matter of another princess?
If one princess wasn't enough, throw in a prefect as well.
As long as one's moral standards were flexible enough, solutions always outnumbered difficulties.
"Five years from now, three seats in Nine Heavens will become vacant."
The information Heavenly Sword revealed next caught Lianshan Xin by surprise. "Nine Heavens rotates members on a regular basis?"
"Naturally. His Majesty said that infusing new blood periodically is far more conducive to maintaining Nine Heavens' combat readiness."
Lianshan Xin wanted to ask: since His Majesty understood this so well, why not abdicate in favor of the Crown Prince?
But he held his tongue.
He had to consider his nine clans.
"Besides, many masters never cared for fame, fortune, or trouble in the first place. Giving up their seats suits them just fine to enjoy peace and quiet. In five years, the ones stepping down will be the Heavenly Physician, the Celestial Master, and Heavenly Divination. Yet the successors to fill those spots won't necessarily come from their own lineages; rather, the best candidates will be chosen on merit. The titles within Nine Heavens can change at any time. So over the next five years, those young masters will be extraordinarily driven."
Lianshan Xin understood.
He also gained a brand-new understanding of Nine Heavens.
No wonder it could endure for a thousand years just like the imperial court.
Nine Heavens lacked neither strength nor the wisdom to bow out at the peak, let alone the depth of a millennium-old heritage.
It truly was an incomparably sharp divine sword protecting the realm—though, of course, a little too sharp.
After all, this Zhang Aniu before his eyes had risen to power by blinding a princess.
Qi Shiyun was also somewhat overly audacious.
The high-ranking members of Nine Heavens were, to varying degrees, just like Lianshan Xin: somewhat lacking in respect for the law.
"It seems that before they arrive in Jiangzhou, this student needs to rack up a few more achievements."
He had ties with Qi Shiyun, but no friendship whatsoever with people from other lineages. Everyone was young; no one would defer or hold back. Lianshan Xin knew this well.
"My lord, this student believes he possesses a pair of eyes reasonably capable of seeing through people's hearts. I shall take my leave for now and take a walk around the academy."
Time waited for no man.
He wanted to uncover a few more Demon Cult fiends.
"Go on."
Zhang Aniu did not stop him.
The young masters and candidate successors from the other factions were anxious, but he was not.
He had already passed that phase.
"Shiyun... still seems to lack a bit of accumulation before reaching the Domain realm. Sure enough, she's still not as good as me."
Sensing the aura emanating from Qi Shiyun's direction, Zhang Aniu shook his head.
***
Mount Kuang.
Deep in the clouds, beyond knowing.
An eagle's cry pierced the air.
Thousand Faces raised his hand.
An eagle circling in the sky swooped down and landed directly on Thousand Faces's arm.
Thousand Faces stroked the eagle's feathers with his left hand, then untied a tiny bamboo tube from its talon.
Then, gently rubbing the eagle's head, he smiled. "Fly on. The sky is where you belong."
As if understanding human speech, the eagle actually nodded at Thousand Faces.
Then it flapped its wings, soared into the sky, and swiftly vanished from sight.
Once the eagle was gone, Thousand Faces opened the seal of the bamboo tube and shook out a letter.
Having scanned it swiftly, Thousand Faces erupted in fury.
"Scoundrel!"
"Master, what does the letter say?"
Standing behind Thousand Faces was a man who, startled by his master's sudden wrath, felt a jolt of panic in his heart.
Thousand Faces gave a cold snort. "Word from Shenjing. The reason my identity was exposed is that someone sent an anonymous report to Nine Heavens headquarters."
The man was shocked. "Master, who else knew your identity?"
Thousand Faces said with venom, "Only Blood Guanyin and the cult leader knew."
Even the disciples he took on hadn't known his true identity prior to this incident.
The man was even more astonished. "It couldn't have been the cult leader, could it?"
Thousand Faces looked at him as if he were an idiot. "If the cult leader wanted to kill me, why would he go to such trouble?"
"Blood Guanyin has a grudge against you, Master?"
Thousand Faces flared up in rage again. "I merely struck an underhanded blow against her when she was breaking through to a dharma idol! How could she go this far?!"
The man: "..."
"Brothers of the Sacred Cult may quarrel at home, but they unite against outside threats! For Blood Guanyin to borrow Nine Heavens' hand to strike at me is simply outrageous!"
The more Thousand Faces spoke, the angrier he became. "For the Sacred Cult's grand plans, I painstakingly lurked undercover in Bailudong Academy for decades, sacrificing who knows how much! And just like that, I was exposed by this fool over internal infighting! Grouped with such vermin, how are we supposed to accomplish the Sacred Cult's grand undertaking?!"
The man tried to console him. "Please calm your anger, Master. Perhaps there is a misunderstanding. The news from Shenjing might not be true."
Thousand Faces snorted coldly. "Blood Guanyin appeared in Shenjing seven days ago. How could there be such a coincidence in this world?"
Startled, the man asked, "Does Nine Heavens know about this?"
"They probably don't know yet."
The man lowered his head.
Inwardly, he felt glad that defecting to Master had been the right choice.
It was just that this Sacred Cult... seemed reliable, yet at the same time not quite reliable at all.
Just as he was thinking this, he heard Thousand Faces speak again: "Since Blood Guanyin made the first move, she can't blame me for retaliating. It's time for the Sacred Cult to scrape the poison from its bones. Borrowing a blade to kill someone—who doesn't know how to do that?"
By the end, Thousand Faces's voice dripped with murderous intent. "Xiangwen, I will give you a list. Use Zhang Aniu's sword to sever every reach Blood Guanyin has extended into Jiangzhou. That will also allow you to firmly secure your footing in Bailudong Academy."
Had Lianshan Xin been here at this moment, he would surely have recognized that the man standing behind Thousand Faces was none other than Lin Xiangwen, whom he had cornered and ridiculed yesterday.
"By the way, I truly hadn't expected that you, Xiangwen, would forsake the dark to come into the light, offering your loyalty to this seat."
Thousand Faces turned around, his gaze upon Lin Xiangwen filled with appreciation. "There aren't many people with your foresight these days. Xiangwen, what do you wish to gain from me?"
Lin Xiangwen hesitated for a moment.
"No need to hide it. This seat never mistreats his own people. Speak freely," Thousand Faces said magnanimously.
Lin Xiangwen hesitated no longer. "After Master defeats Heavenly Sword, could you merely cripple his cultivation and bestow him upon me?"
Thousand Faces: "?"
Catching the evasive look in Lin Xiangwen's eyes, Thousand Faces suffered his second breakdown of the day.
"Grouped with you lot of vermin, how on earth are we supposed to accomplish the Sacred Cult's grand undertaking?!"
Chapter 51