Accepting Bribes

This was the first time Dai Bufan had ever heard of a demonic cult taking the initiative to offer perks. "Are the demonic cults treating you two as protective umbrellas, or what? How come I crack down on demonic cults every day, yet not one of them has ever begged for mercy or tried to bribe me?" "You can't call it bribery. They just insisted on giving it to us, and we're too thin-skinned to turn them down," Meng Jingzhou corrected. "Moreover, the crime of bribery only applies to imperial officials. Old Lu and I are bona fide commoners." Lu Yang chimed in as well, "To infiltrate enemy ranks, we bear humiliation and heavy burdens, forced to accept their gifts." Dai Bufan: "..." "Forget it, forget it. Here are all the intelligence dossiers on the Shining Sun Cult. You two study them." Dai Bufan shoved a tall stack of files to the duo, telling them to read through them right here and return them once finished—treating it as early grooming for the hall master and vice hall master positions. He still had quite a backlog of business to deal with. In a few months, it would be another recruitment cycle for the Dao Seeking Sect. Remembering how the last recruitment hadn't been prepared for in advance—resulting in enrolling Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou, two fine junior brothers who kept him on tenterhooks every day, while promising seeds like Bai Ming and Lan Ting had been snapped up early by other sects—this time, Dai Bufan was determined to scout out a few prime prospects with excellent character, temperament, and root bones ahead of time. What he needed to do now was unearth these candidates from the intelligence files of Hanhai Yunyan. There were plenty of facts about the Shining Sun Cult that they couldn't conceal even if they tried. For instance, periodically sending two Body Integration stage experts to the sun to die; the Shining Sun Cult wanting everyone to worship the sun; treating Moon Laurel Immortal Palace as their imaginary rival; and so on. The Shining Sun Cult had existed for sixty thousand years and had researched the sun for sixty thousand years. One could well imagine how profound their development of cultivation arts harnessing solar power had become. Yet, no matter how profound, it certainly couldn't compare to what Lu Yang knew. In the Immortal Fairy's study that they had recently gained access to, there were, plain as day, Immortal Jiuchong's insights into lunar and solar power. No matter how powerful the Shining Sun Cult was, could they possibly surpass Immortal Jiuchong, who possessed the Yin-Yang Dao fruit? Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou spent three full days studying before finally digesting all the intelligence on the Shining Sun Cult. "Finished reading?" Dai Bufan raised an eyebrow. With a thought, the Shining Sun Cult's dossiers automatically flew back to their original places. "More or less." "How many elders do you need to accompany you?" Dai Bufan certainly wouldn't let two Nascent Soul cultivators meet demonic cult masters alone; it was far too dangerous. "Four elders." "Alright. Wait here; I'll contact them for you." Dai Bufan rose, left the Mission Hall, and headed to the various peaks to request the elders' presence. The moment they heard there was another chance to play Protector Heavenly Kings, the elders were more eager than the last, nearly coming to blows on the spot. Fortunately, with Dai Bufan talking them down, they agreed to settle it by drawing lots. In the end, Old Ba, Third Elder, Fourth Elder, and Seventh Elder were chosen to accompany Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou. Meanwhile, Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou took out their respective tokens to notify the two cult masters, selecting a restaurant as the meeting place, scheduled for two days later. When it came to this gift-giving meeting, the Heavenly Court Cult held the initiative. The two cult masters quickly sent word back, confirming that they would definitely attend. *** Two days later, the entire restaurant was booked out, and the three cults gathered together once more. Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou sat at the head of the room. Behind them stood four Protector Heavenly Kings like iron towers. The Protector Heavenly Kings glared with wide, tiger-like eyes, imposing without being angry, exerting a subtle aura of intimidation. Neither Mu Baiyi nor Cult Master Chi had expected to run into the other here, resulting in an awkward pause. Cult Master Chi also hadn't expected Young Cult Master Lu to show up. Hadn't people said there was friction between Young Cult Master Lu and Holy Son Long? Why had Young Cult Master Lu tagged along when Chi had intended to give gifts to Holy Son Long in private? Could some unforeseen shift have occurred between them that he didn't know about? "We haven't seen each other in days, yet you two remain as dashing as ever! Hahaha!" Cult Master Chi clasped his fists to greet them as peers, taking the lead to break the awkwardness. Behind Cult Master Chi stood two young maidservants, delicate and charming, with skin so tender it seemed water could be pinched from it. Cult Master Chi shot them a glance, and the two maidservants obediently stepped over to Meng Jingzhou's side with submissive compliance, making Meng Jingzhou's eyelids twitch. "Cult Master Chi, what is the meaning of this?" "Just a modest token of regard. Both of us practice pure Yang cultivation arts, so we inevitably need to vent the excess fire periodically. Consider these two lasses a greeting gift. I pray Holy Son Long will accept them." Cult Master Chi felt that offering cultivation arts alone might not entice Holy Son Long, so he had decided to sweeten the pot. Naturally, Meng Jingzhou wouldn't accept them. Feigning anger, he snapped, "Are you using this opportunity to plant two spies at my side?!" Cult Master Chi hurriedly said, "Please calm your fury, Holy Son Long! I harbor no such intention!" No matter how Cult Master Chi tried to persuade him, Meng Jingzhou remained on guard and refused to take the maidservants. Seeing Holy Son Long's resolute stance, Cult Master Chi had no choice but to drop the matter and wave the maidservants back. Meng Jingzhou narrowed his eyes. "Does Cult Master Chi truly possess a method to enhance the absorption of solar power?" Cult Master Chi hadn't anticipated that his earlier stunt would create friction with Holy Son Long, which ran completely contrary to his intentions. Lu Yang laughed heartily and patted Meng Jingzhou on the shoulder. "You're overthinking it. How would Cult Master Chi dare plot against us? Nothing of the sort." Seeing Lu Yang smooth things over for him, Cult Master Chi glanced at Lu Yang with a touch of gratitude, then produced a wooden box sealed with warding formations. Releasing the seal, he revealed several books inside the wooden box, which were cultivation manuals on harnessing solar power. Fourth Elder stepped forward, flipped through the manuals, and turned to speak respectfully to Meng Jingzhou: "Holy Son, these are indeed cultivation arts that harness solar power. They may serve as useful references." Meng Jingzhou gave a casual grunt and waved his hand impatiently. "Take them, then." Cult Master Chi hadn't prepared a gift for Lu Yang, so he had to scramble to retrieve precious heavenly treasures from his storage ring. "I pray Young Cult Master Lu will kindly accept these as well." With a single glance, Lu Yang recognized the origins of these items and smiled. "Hundred Grass Pills, True Dragon Molt, Ginseng King whiskers... Cult Master Chi is most thoughtful. In that case, I shan't be polite." Seventh Elder stepped up from the side and accepted the treasures on Lu Yang's behalf. Seeing how much effort Cult Master Chi had put into this, Mu Baiyi realized that if his own offerings were inferior, it would leave a poor impression on the Heavenly Court Cult. He suspected that this was the very reason the Heavenly Court Cult had gathered both cults here together. With an aching heart, Mu Baiyi drew out treasured heirlooms from his storage ring and presented them to Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou, who accepted everything without hesitation. Once both cult masters had finished presenting their gifts, they suddenly spoke in unison: "I have a matter to consult you on." The two glared at each other. Lu Yang raised a hand with a chuckle, signaling that there was no rush. "We have plenty of time. One at a time. How about this: Cult Master Chi spoke first earlier, so Cult Master Mu goes first this time. What do you two say?" Cult Master Chi had no choice but to agree. Mu Baiyi asked, "Our barbecue shop's business is flourishing, raking in gold by the bushel every day. It's just that the imperial court's taxes are too steep. I wonder if Young Cult Master Lu has any solution?" Mu Baiyi made sure to rope Lu Yang into the same camp first. The four Protector Heavenly Kings frowned inwardly. This was completely unexpected—how was he supposed to answer? Lu Yang chuckled without answering, turning his head toward Cult Master Chi instead. "And what about you?" "It is like this. As Young Cult Master Lu knows, our Shining Sun Cult has been researching solar power to lead the world to revere the sun. Recently, multiple attempts to ascend to the sun have failed. I wonder if Young Cult Master Lu has any solution?" Cult Master Chi was frantic inside. If another attempt to reach the sun failed, he would have to deliberately evade taxes again and hide out in the imperial prison for several decades! The four Protector Heavenly Kings frowned inwardly once more. How could anyone have a solution for that? The sun was supremely Yang and supremely powerful; whoever touched it died. Did the Shining Sun Cult want Yun Zhi to step in? Hearing this, Lu Yang interlaced his fingers across his chest and leaned slightly back against the chair. "The problems both of your cults are facing can actually be resolved with a single method." "Cult Master Chi, have you ever heard of solar energy?"