"You are the Cult Master of the Heavenly Court Cult?!" Qiu Jin'an sprang to his feet, eyes wide with disbelief, his voice suddenly spiking an octave higher.
The others had similar reactions. Even the Abbot of the Hanging Temple lost his composure, dreading that an enigmatic, chilling smile might creep onto Yun Zhi's lips as she murmured, "This concerns the Heavenly Court Cult's million-year grand design; there is no room for failure," before striking out to eliminate all five of them right then and there.
A ripple of confusion stirred in Yun Zhi's calm eyes.
*Didn't you ask for my thoughts on the Heavenly Court Cult? I spoke the honest truth—why are you reacting so dramatically?*
It was no wonder they reacted so intensely. This was the Great Xia Imperial Palace, the very bastion of the righteous path, and those seated here were the foremost leaders of the righteous sects. They had spent half the day citing precedents and analyzing clues, ultimately reaching the definitive conclusion that the Heavenly Court Cult harbored ambitions to usurp the world, that it was a new demonic cult forming the new Four Great Demonic Cults alongside the other three, and that it posed an extreme danger.
For her to suddenly announce at such a moment that she was the Cult Master of the Heavenly Court Cult—anyone would react this way.
Crucially, she was also the one with the highest cultivation among the six of them.
Seeing how strongly everyone reacted, Yun Zhi realized an explanation was in order. "There is no need for concern. The Heavenly Court Cult is an internal organization of the Dao Seeking Sect. It is safe and reliable. My little junior brother, Lu Yang, proposed its founding in order to infiltrate the Nine Nether Cult."
"Lu Yang?" Qiu Jin'an and Luo Hongxia were relatively composed, having already known of Lu Yang's existence, but the name was entirely unfamiliar to Emperor Xia, the Abbot of the Hanging Temple, and the Sect Master of the Prison Suppressing Sect.
Lu Yang was undeniably talented, able to calmly triumph even when facing a cultivator who had dispersed their cultivation to cultivate anew, making him the undisputed leader of the younger generation. However, his cultivation realm was still too low to enter the sight of figures of their stature.
Of course, if he had stepped onto the stage as an ancient history scholar, he would have become famous quite easily.
Lu Yang did have the glorious achievement of destroying the Immortal Cult to his name, but Yun Zhi had taken action in that battle, so nobody would ever imagine that a mere Foundation Establishment disciple had played a role.
"Lu Yang is Master's newest disciple and my little junior brother," Yun Zhi said. "He is extraordinarily gifted in spells and cultivation, and he played a vital role in the destruction of the Immortal Cult."
Everyone was astonished. For Yun Zhi to praise someone's aptitude in spells, and to go so far as to describe it as "extraordinarily gifted"—just how terrifying had this Lu Yang's talent to be?
And what else did Fellow Daoist Yun say? She said Lu Yang had played a vital role in bringing down the Immortal Cult. Could Lu Yang truly have been the crucial factor behind the Immortal Cult's downfall?
What cultivation realm had this Lu Yang even possessed back then? How had he accomplished such a feat?
"I have met Lu Yang before," Qiu Jin'an attested to Lu Yang's talent. "He is indeed a rare prodigy, and his train of thought differs from ordinary people. At the same cultivation level, he once defeated a Great Yu Body Integration expert who had dispersed his cultivation to cultivate anew."
"He defeated a Great Yu Body Integration expert who had dispersed his cultivation to cultivate anew?!" Luo Hongxia covered her mouth. In their youth, all of them had been supreme geniuses, yet pulling off such a feat would likely have been difficult even for them.
"Not only that," Qiu Jin'an added, refusing to stop until he had astonished them to death. "During the exchange between the Five Elements Sect and the Dao Seeking Sect, the Dao Seeking Sect claimed that Lu Yang possessed peerless combat prowess, fighting across realms from the Foundation Establishment stage to defeat cultivators across three major stages: Golden Core, Nascent Soul, and Soul Formation!"
This revelation was even more staggering than defeating a cultivator who had dispersed their cultivation to start over.
"Fellow Daoist Yun, is this true?"
Yun Zhi hesitated—a rare sight for her—before nodding, prompting even louder gasps of shock from the gathered leaders.
Yun Zhi felt that the conversation had strayed far off topic without anyone noticing, so she pulled it back. "I am the Cult Master of the Heavenly Court Cult. Within the cult, there are the Nine Heavenly King Protectors, consisting of the First Elder through the Eighth Elder, plus Master—though Master does not yet know he has joined the Heavenly Court Cult.
"Apart from them, there are five newly recruited disciples of the Dao Seeking Sect: Lu Yang, Meng Jingzhou, Tao Yao, Man Gu, and Li Haoran."
Yun Zhi did not reveal the Immortal Fairy's existence.
"You all harbor some misunderstandings regarding the Heavenly Court Cult," she continued matter-of-factly. "We of the Dao Seeking Sect belong to the righteous path. The members of the Heavenly Court Cult are all senior figures and budding seeds of the Dao Seeking Sect, so how could it possibly be a demonic cult?"
Yun Zhi spoke as if it were only natural: since all the members of the Heavenly Court Cult were righteous cultivators, the Heavenly Court Cult was naturally a righteous power.
The corners of the five leaders' eyes twitched. Given their status and seniority, however, it was hardly appropriate for them to lodge petty complaints to Yun Zhi.
"Then what about Dou Tianzun...?"
Qiu Jin'an stopped halfway through his sentence, suddenly recalling what the Nine Nether Cult Master had said: *Dou Tianzun juggles the stars like beans.*
The stars in the sky were Yun Zhi's Golden Core! That being so, Yun Zhi could naturally manipulate the stars as she pleased!
Then there was the feat of being invincible within the same realm and fighting three opponents at once—Yun Zhi could easily accomplish that with the power of national destiny!
Furthermore, Lu Yang was Yun Zhi's little junior brother, so Yun Zhi would naturally protect him from the shadows when he traveled!
It matched. Everything aligned!
All present were sharp minds; they quickly realized that Dou Tianzun was none other than Yun Zhi herself.
Although Yun Zhi gave no direct answer, it was an unspoken truth understood by all, so it mattered little whether she answered aloud.
"The Heavenly Court Cult has already gained the trust of the Nine Nether Cult. I ask that you refrain from moving against the Nine Nether Cult for now, lest we alert the enemy."
"Of course, of course," everyone agreed with smiles. Knowing that the Heavenly Court Cult was entirely made up of their own people, matters became far simpler.
"The Heavenly Court Cult and the Nine Nether Cult have reached an initial cooperation," Yun Zhi explained. "The Heavenly Court Cult provides the technology, while the Nine Nether Cult supplies the manpower and labor. The two of us have partnered to open a barbecue restaurant, and the business has just gotten off the ground. The more cult members working at the barbecue restaurant, the less likely the Nine Nether Cult will be to commit evil. Therefore, I hope the imperial court can enact favorable policies promoting the dining and hospitality industry, secretly supporting the barbecue restaurant's growth."
Emperor Xia pondered the idea. Stimulating the dining industry would boost tax revenue and benefit both the realm and the common people—a win-win proposition.
"That should not be difficult."
"Good. There is one more thing: Wu Youdao and the other two are at the Dao Seeking Sect. I extracted some intelligence from them."
Knowing looks appeared on everyone's faces. Just as they had thought—with Yun Zhi present in Hanshui City, how could she have let Wu Youdao and his two accomplices escape?
Yun Zhi recounted everything Wu Youdao had confessed, and expressions around the room grew solemn.
"Just as I anticipated," Emperor Xia said with a cold snort, showing little surprise upon hearing the realms of the two Imperial Preceptors. "If Great Yu dares to plot for the power of national destiny, they must possess Immortal-level combat power."
Great Yu's goal was to replace Great Xia. Knowing full well that the power of national destiny was an Immortal's creation, their audacity to pursue it could only mean that Great Yu had an Immortal of their own!
"Great Yu's next move is in Jizhou," Emperor Xia continued. "Jizhou is situated in the Central Plains, densely populated with numerous cities. A comprehensive search relying solely on the imperial court's power would be arduous, so I must ask the immortal sects to lend a helping hand."
To track down Great Yu's movements required Body Integration stage cultivators at the very least. While the court possessed plenty of Body Integration experts, they could not all be dispatched to Jizhou; other regions also required Body Integration experts to guard them.
Moreover, the Body Integration experts of the immortal sects were of higher overall caliber than those of the imperial court, granting them ample margin to maneuver and relay warnings should they encounter Great Yu cultivators.
"This concerns the stability of Great Xia. The Five Elements Sect will not sit idly by."
"The Prison Suppressing Sect agrees."
Aside from the Abbot of the Hanging Temple, the other four immortal sect leaders voiced their support one after another.
The Abbot of the Hanging Temple could only nod repeatedly to signify that he shared their stance.
He felt rather vexed. Cultivating Silent Chan truly was not easy; several times he had felt the urge to speak, only to force it back down with great effort.
Dealing with Daoist Buyu was so much better—one only had to use fists, never words.
Chapter 453