Arrival

When Si Zijing arrived at the yamen alone, Huang Shiwei had already been waiting at the entrance for quite some time. Noticing the displeasure in his eyes, Si Zijing walked forward, smiling nonchalantly. "It has been quite a while, yet the moment we meet, you glare at me like that. This Si is truly a little frightened." Huang Shiwei was neither warm nor cold as he stared into his eyes. "Just now, you intended to strike at Xu Mengxi, didn't you?" "That's right. I did indeed intend to kill her." Si Zijing made no attempt to evade the question, looking him straight in the eye. "What, now that the Third Young Master is inside the yamen, do you still plan to use his authority as your banner to shield Xu Mengxi? Killing her at this critical juncture is entirely more beneficial than harmful to the Chancellor's Manor." Huang Shiwei's eyes flickered. Instead of pressing the point stubbornly, he said, "Now that the Third Young Master is here, regarding how to handle Xu Mengxi, I believe you ought to ask for his instructions." "Naturally. Let us go in." Si Zijing offered a faint smile, speaking with deep implication: "Brother Huang, this Si can see how much importance you place on Commander Xu. Her character does indeed warrant such regard, but I would still like to remind you that in our present circumstances, this wavering attitude of yours is a grave taboo. "Especially for people like us." "My thanks to Mister Si for the reminder." "Haha, there is no need for that. After all, we both serve the Lord Chancellor." Led by Huang Shiwei, the two entered the Zhenxi prefectural yamen without hindrance. The abrupt activation of the city defense array had clearly thrown the officials within the yamen into turmoil. From the moment they stepped through the main gates, officers in Zhenxi Army armor hurried past them from time to time, leaving the entire yamen in a state of disarray. Seeing this, a strange gleam flickered in Si Zijing's eyes. To guard against various unexpected public crises, local government offices everywhere prepared contingency plans well in advance. For a crucial border bastion like Zhenxi Prefectural City, there were easily more than ten contingency plans for activating the city defense array; it should not have been this chaotic. Yet from what he could see, it would not be an exaggeration to say the chain of command within the Zhenxi prefectural yamen was completely paralyzed. Hesitation rising in his heart, Si Zijing sent a voice transmission: "Brother Huang, just now I was so preoccupied talking about that little sister of yours that I hadn't the chance to ask about the Third Young Master's situation. Why are we able to move through this Zhenxi prefectural yamen without hindrance, and how were we able to directly seize control of the city defense array? If our intelligence was not mistaken, the highest-ranking officer currently in the city should be Zhan Xian'an of the Second Garrison, shouldn't he?" "He is already dead." "What?" "Mister Si, do you require me to repeat myself?" "..." Hearing such shocking news out of nowhere, the confusion in Si Zijing's mind lasted for only an instant before he rapidly sorted through his thoughts, murmuring four words: "The Commandery Princess?" A flash of surprise showed in Huang Shiwei's eyes, caught off guard by his sharp wit. He gave a slight nod and wasted no words: "You guessed correctly. Before we see the young master, let me give you a brief overview of the situation in the Western Border." "Then I will trouble Brother Huang." *** Meanwhile, high in the distant void, three figures looked down upon the shimmering barrier that had materialized over Zhenxi Prefectural City. A hunched elder, a woman in white, and a solemn middle-aged man in luxurious brocade robes. At this moment, however, the atmosphere among the three was rather tense. In the frigid gales of the high altitudes, the White Emperor's deep voice betrayed no emotion: "It seems your people have failed." Hearing this, the hunched elder slowly withdrew his gaze and said with resignation, "There was no helping it. Zhenxi Prefectural City instituted a curfew. Unless this humble old man went in person, even if I sent men inside, they would have had to wait until dawn." At those words, the White Emperor cast an imperceptible glance at the woman in white not far away, who looked like a celestial maiden descended to the mortal realm, and said, "Put that way, it is true enough. After all, the person who brought the Linlang into the city was capable of making the Pavilion Master yield. Entering at the same time, your men could not possibly have delivered word to Zhan Xian'an before them." The hunched elder sighed softly and said with a chuckle to the two beside him, "Now that the city defense array has been activated, Zhan Xian'an has likely met with disaster. The situation has grown somewhat thorny. What do the two of you think about this?" Though he spoke thus, not a trace of worry showed on his wrinkled face, as if he still held contingency cards even if Zhan Xian'an were dead. With a cold and stern expression, the White Emperor did not answer the question, but instead turned his gaze toward Tianyuan. "Rather than that, this Bai is more curious as to where the Pavilion Master went last night, and whom she met." At that, the hunched elder raised an eyebrow and chuckled oddly under his breath, echoing him: "The Pavilion Master's intelligence is truly well-informed. The information you brought back in the Tiger Hour was fulfilled the moment dawn broke. This humble old man would also quite like to know from where the Pavilion Master obtained this news." Hearing the two tag-team their interrogation, Tianyuan replied impassively: "If my Overseeing Heaven Pavilion harbored other intentions, I would not have informed you of this matter." "It is not that we doubt you, Pavilion Master." The hunched elder cut Tianyuan off and said with a light laugh, "We are merely curious who could bring the Linlang into the city past your obstruction, and what means they used to gain Zhan Xian'an's trust." Tianyuan's golden eyes swept over their faces as she said slowly, "The latter is unknown. The former is our pavilion's Saintess." "The Saintess, is it..." The corners of the hunched elder's shriveled lips curled into a meaningful smile. He murmured, "May this humble old man interpret the Pavilion Master's words to mean that your sect's Saintess has rebelled?" The White Emperor said nothing, quietly stroking his hand as he watched. Tianyuan's expression remained tranquil as she uttered two words: "You may." "Which means we may strike to kill, correct?" the hunched elder pressed. Tianyuan answered without the slightest hesitation: "If she stands in the way, kill her as you see fit." Hearing this answer, the hunched elder rubbed his hands together and gave a sinister laugh. "That Saintess of yours can trade blows with the White Emperor without falling into a disadvantage. Before we take action, should you not inform us of the weaknesses in her cultivation art..." Before he could finish, the hunched elder noticed golden light already beginning to swirl in Tianyuan's eyes, and he smiled, changing his tune: "Still, the Heaven-Deducing Art is a secret heirloom of your esteemed sect after all. Therefore, when the time comes, that Saintess will be left for the Pavilion Master to deal with. There should be no issue with this, yes?" "Naturally." "With the Pavilion Master's promise to place righteousness above kinship, this humble old man will also lay his cards on the table. Though the array has risen, breaking it will be as easy as turning over one's palm." As he spoke, Elder Qin cast his withered gaze toward the fortress metropolis on the horizon. "I only wonder which acquaintance from the Prime Minister's Manor is presiding over that city right now, capable of gathering the bargaining chips to battle against us in such a short time..." "It is the heir of that Prime Minister's Manor." "..." The gentle breeze brushed against her long embroidered white dress. Tianyuan's voice quietly resonated in their minds, ushering in a chilling, murderous silence. The White Emperor's draconic eyes narrowed slightly. The hunched elder fell into thought. After a long pause, the hunched elder gently shook his head and spoke with a smile, his tone chillingly cold: "It seems you failed to kill that Xu Changtian back then, Pavilion Master. But put that way, the logic behind many things now falls into place. "Yet none of that matters anymore. What matters is that we three now have another common objective for this trip." "Six," the White Emperor suddenly spoke up. "What?" The hunched elder glanced back. "..." The White Emperor did not reply, merely glancing in the direction of Thousand Thorns Gorge. The hunched elder looked over as well, but it was not until more than a dozen breaths later that he finally sensed three immense auras hurtling toward them. After a moment of silence, the hunched elder grinned. "So the person those three wish to demand is also that Xu Changtian. Tsk-tsk, I truly do not know how Xu Yinhe could bear to place his own heir in such a dangerous place. "Still, since he is so overconfident, this Qin will gladly accept this great gift..." With that, he released his qi dynamic to guide the three newcomers while speaking in a slow, measured voice: "A lion uses all its might even when hunting a rabbit. Since those three have arrived early, there is naturally no need for us to delay any further."