A Familiar Name

"Has Elder Cao ever visited the Bo Kingdom?" "Five or six times—we are right next door, after all!" Cao Yanhua said. "But I almost always went on sect business!" "Almost always?" He Lingchuan caught the distinction. "When was the most recent time? Was it for private or official matters?" "About half a year ago, perhaps?" Cao Yanhua pondered. "Dispatched by Sect Leader Li." Sect Leader Li nodded. "Yes. Half a year ago, I asked Elder Cao to go to Julu Port to receive someone." He Lingchuan mused, "Besides yourself and Elder Cao, is there anyone else in the sect qualified to go up the mountain to inspect the Bright Lantern Cup?" "There is also Elder Wu." Seeing everyone fall silent, Elder Cao said anxiously, "It really wasn't me! Commander Jin's tribute disappeared without a trace. How could I possibly pull that off?!" Jin Bai exchanged a look with He Lingchuan and gave Sect Leader Li a nod. Sect Leader Li then asked Elder Cao to return to his quarters first, sending sect disciples to accompany him. Though done with pleasant manners, this was tantamount to detention. Elder Cao was now a prime suspect; if he fled, the Xiaoyao Sect would be in grave trouble. Cao Yanhua had nothing more he could say. He merely let out a long sigh and withdrew on his own. Once his figure vanished from sight, He Lingchuan finally asked Sect Leader Li, "How are Elder Cao's relations with others in the sect?" "Very good," Sect Leader Li said. "He is deeply loved and respected by all, high and low." "This is a serious matter, so let's skip the polite platitudes." He Lingchuan chuckled. He had rarely seen anyone truly beloved by both superiors and subordinates alike, and Elder Cao certainly did not look the part. "Does he have rivals in the sect?" Sect Leader Li paced a few steps before answering, "Elder Cao is outspoken and blunt, so he inevitably offends people with his words. But everyone in the sect knows he harbors no malice." Jin Bai frowned in displeasure. "Sect Leader Li, we are investigating a case!" If you want to play the peace-loving good guy, this isn't the time. Sect Leader Li shook his head. "Truly, there are none." He Lingchuan spoke up at once. "Didn't some disciples provide an alibi for Elder Cao when the tribute was stolen? I would like to see them." Sect Leader Li naturally had no objection. Roughly two hours later, six or seven Xiaoyao Sect disciples stood before Jin Bai and He Lingchuan. Jin Bai glanced at He Lingchuan, and the latter said softly to Sect Leader Li, "Sect Leader, there is something I would like to ask you." With that, he gestured toward the door. Sect Leader Li looked at the disciples, then stepped outside with him quite naturally. Directly across from them was Baimao Peak. At this time of year, lush green carpeted the foot of the mountain, while snow still blanketed the slopes from the mountainside up, making for a magnificent view. The mountain stood there, looking almost no different from how it had appeared a hundred and sixty years ago. Yet the people were gone, and times had changed. He Lingchuan sighed silently to himself, then asked Sect Leader Li, "Pardon me for asking, but since when has the Xiaoyao Sect provided the Bright Lantern Cup to the Mou Kingdom?" Sect Leader Li seemed somewhat surprised, so He Lingchuan added, "With the passage of time, more people might have learned the secret." "Over a hundred years ago, I believe." Sect Leader Li thought for a moment. "More precisely, over a hundred and twenty years ago." "Your sect's history goes back that far?" The Xiaoyao Sect had actually existed for over a century; He Lingchuan was slightly surprised. "My apologies. I mean, on the Shanjin Plain, that is remarkably long-lived." Kingdoms on the Shanjin Plain changed hands like spinning lanterns. Shifting rule in five or ten years was nothing new. "Indeed." Sect Leader Li smiled. "Actually, on the Shanjin Plain, although the Xiaoyao Sect's territory is modest, our strength surpasses that of most kingdoms. Our lineage and teachings have never been broken, and people from the surrounding lands continually pour in." There were exceptions to every rule. A few factions on the Shanjin Plain managed to get by decently enough, and the Xiaoyao Sect was one of them. "After the Mou Kingdom was founded, they offered us tremendous assistance. In return, the Xiaoyao Sect sends the Bright Lantern Cup as tribute every several years." He Lingchuan pondered. "How did you ever establish ties with the Mou Kingdom? The distance between you two is quite considerable." Taking a ship from the Yangshan Archipelago to Julu Port took seven days; departing from the Mou Kingdom itself was naturally even farther. "It was the Mou Kingdom that reached out to us, hoping to obtain the Bright Lantern Cup produced by our sect." Sect Leader Li did not say everything outright, but He Lingchuan grasped his underlying meaning at once. The Mou Kingdom could not take the Bright Lantern Cup for free, so there had to be covert exchanges of terms between both parties. What came to mind immediately was the Mou Kingdom providing financial or manpower support to the Xiaoyao Sect; after all, which country or faction on the Shanjin Plain wasn't strapped for coin? No wonder the Xiaoyao Sect could live so comfortably on the Shanjin Plain—it had the backing of the Mou Kingdom and even Lingshan. From the looks of it, the Bright Lantern Cup truly was important to the Mou Kingdom. Were it not for the great distance between them, the Mou Kingdom might well have swallowed the Xiaoyao Sect in one gulp; this Daoist order would never have enjoyed such ease and freedom today. Sect Leader Li continued, "Our Xiaoyao Sect's founding patriarch, Wang Gesheng, signed a series of treaties with the Mou Kingdom back then..." Hearing a familiar name, He Lingchuan was taken aback. "Wait. What was the founding patriarch's name?" "Our founding patriarch's esteemed name was Wang Gesheng. Has Mister He perhaps heard of him?" "I have, I have." He Lingchuan chuckled. "This Patriarch Wang was a native of the Julu Kingdom, wasn't he?" "Precisely!" Sect Leader Li nodded. "People today are unaware that over a hundred and sixty years ago, the land where the Bo Kingdom now sits was called the Julu Kingdom." Such a coincidence? He Lingchuan rubbed his temples. The Xiaoyao Sect was actually founded by that youth from Julu Port, Wang Gesheng? Not only had he stayed at his family inn, but he had also asked him about the bear demon. Of course, that had been inside the Panlong World. Yet this proved that the Dafang Pot's historical reconstructions were genuine and reliable. Genuine, reliable... Seeing him zone out, Sect Leader Li could not help asking, "Mister He?" "Oh, I was just wondering: your sect has kept the Bright Lantern Cup for so long, so did outsiders really never find out and try to steal it?" "The Bright Lantern Cup's effects are specialized; not every cultivator has use for it," Sect Leader Li said with a smile. "To put it bluntly, an ordinary cultivator would never encounter an inner demon backlash in their entire lifetime." "True enough." The spider demon sisters had mentioned that the most common use for the Bright Lantern Cup was crafting a Heart Lamp to expel inner demons. Yet under current external conditions, most cultivators could never reach such a profound realm. Not to mention others, He Lingchuan had cultivated diligently for years and had yet to experience any harassment from inner demons. "Without reaching that realm, the Bright Lantern Cup isn't of much use," Sect Leader Li added. "Of course, the second prince of the Bo Kingdom is a special case. "Even if others knew our sect produced the Bright Lantern Cup, they wouldn't necessarily be interested. Furthermore, the Shanjin Plain has suffered endless turmoil for years, so fewer and fewer people know this secret. As of today, there probably aren't many left." The passing down of secrets suffered most from chaos. Over such a vast plain, how many pasts and secrets had been buried? He Lingchuan hesitated a moment before asking, "I would like to know: what became of the Julu Kingdom?" Neither the Panlong World nor Shao Jian's notes gave any hint about the Julu Kingdom's future. "The Julu Kingdom?" Sect Leader Li was somewhat surprised. This Mister He was actually interested in old affairs buried in dusty archives? Nevertheless, he replied, "Its history was short; its reign lasted exactly twenty-five years." "Only twenty-five years?" He Lingchuan murmured as if to himself. "The founding monarch of the Julu Kingdom worked diligently to govern and build strength. I thought the state would have lasted longer." The Julu Kingdom he had seen in the Panlong World had only been established for seven years and was flourishing. To think such good days would only last another eighteen years. Yet He Lingchuan thought further: that was already year 19 of the Panlong calendar. Thirteen years later, Panlong City would fall too. Alas, that was even before the demise of the Julu Kingdom. This Mister He knew the Julu King had been capable, yet knew nothing of the kingdom's history? Likely he had read some anecdote in an idle novel, Sect Leader Li thought, and said, "Once Ran Min died, his successor proved mediocre. In less than five years, the Julu Kingdom was annexed by the Dongmin Kingdom. "What did it matter how grand the Julu Kingdom was back then? It was nothing more than a reflection in the water. On the Shanjin Plain, swift rise and swift fall is destiny, inescapable for nations and individuals alike." He also gazed toward the distant mountains and sighed. "For thousands of years, only these mountains and rivers have remained unchanged." He Lingchuan looked at Baimao Mountain. These lands changed masters every so often, yet upon closer look, for nearly a thousand years, they seemed never to have truly had a master at all. Of course, the Xiaoyao Sect seemed to have stepped beyond the mundane boundaries for the time being, unaffected by such destiny. But He Lingchuan knew a major factor behind this was the backing of a great power. For the Xiaoyao Sect to stand firm here for a hundred years, it certainly had its own capabilities. Yet without the covert protection of the Mou Kingdom, there were bound to be several storms it could never have weathered on its own. "Right, I heard this place used to be called Dragon Head Mountain, the site where the Black Dragon fell." "Yes, there is such a legend." Sect Leader Li nodded. "That was long ago. People today only know Baimao Mountain and have never heard the name Dragon Head." "Since it was the site of a dragon's fall, were there many strange phenomena?" "That was also long ago," Sect Leader Li said. "In fact, I have heard another account: the true site of the dragon's fall isn't here, but in the Upside-Down Sea to the northeast of the Shanjin Plain. As for why this place was named Dragon Head Mountain, it was likely because a phantom of a black dragon once soared upward here—a truly magnificent sight. Over time, people drew far-fetched connections." This conflicted with the legends recorded in Shao Jian's notes. Which one was real? Perhaps neither was real. Their conversation finished, the two returned to find Jin Bai. Jin Bai, Dong Rui, and the others had also spoken to the disciple witnesses one by one. Seeing the two return, Jin Bai said immediately, "I've questioned them. They all say Elder Cao stayed in the sect during those days and never went out. Also, Elder Wu and Elder Cao have bad blood between them, frequently trading veiled insults." He Lingchuan had intentionally drawn Sect Leader Li away so the disciples could speak freely. Sect Leader Li rubbed his nose awkwardly. As sect leader, there were things he could not easily say. But since the Shadow Tooth Guard was asking, he sent someone to summon Elder Wu. Elder Wu's testimony was also a flat denial, and he too had eyewitness alibis. Busy until night fell, none of them managed to find any flaws in either elder's story, though they did hear some gossip about Elder Wu from two disciples. This elder had a persistent weakness for lust. Yet that had nothing to do with the current investigation. Tonight, He Lingchuan and his companions rested at the Xiaoyao Sect. Taking advantage of the break during dinner, Jin Bai pulled He Lingchuan aside and said somewhat dispiritedly, "We've turned up nothing at all."