City Lord's Mansion.
Zhao Yunzhou was leaning over his desk, writing invitations.
With the birth of a supreme-grade Mahayana Pill, as the City Lord of Dongcang Heavenly Capital, he had to invite Qi Chong, the City Lord of Yunque Heavenly Capital, to attend the auction no matter what.
Before the ink could even dry, Steward Liu stumbled in, nearly tripping over the threshold.
“City Lord! The people from the Grand Primordium Sect are asking for an audience. They say they have major news to report!”
Zhao Yunzhou's hand paused, a wave of irritation rising within him. Why was the Grand Primordium Sect here again?
Hadn't he just given them their spirit stones?
He waved his hand impatiently. “What major news could they possibly have?”
“Are they going to confess to me now that the supreme-grade Mahayana Pill is gone?”
Steward Liu swallowed hard. “They say they have found... the reason for the Eastern Territory's sparse spiritual energy.”
Zhao Yunzhou's hand trembled, and his brush fell onto the paper with a clatter, leaving a large smudge of ink.
He pushed his chair back and stood up, his voice cracking with excitement. “Quickly, invite them in!!”
In a flurry, he swept the pile of ruined invitations on his desk into a drawer, straightened his robes, and took several deep breaths before pushing the door open to walk out.
Xue Mingzhao and her group were drinking tea in the main hall. When they saw Zhao Yunzhou enter, they all stood up.
Zhao Yunzhou's face was piled with smiles, incredibly warm and welcoming. “Brother Mingyuan is here! Sit, sit! No need to be polite!”
“When I opened the gates this morning and saw your two beloved disciples, I even remarked that only Brother Mingyuan could teach such outstanding individuals.”
As he turned his head, he caught sight of Su Ye with his cheeks puffed out like a hamster, stuffing two more pastries into his mouth.
Zhao Yunzhou: “...”
“Steward Liu!” Zhao Yunzhou turned toward the door and bellowed, “How are you hosting our guests? You only served these two plates of pastries? Hurry up and bring the best pastries in the mansion! Look how starved the child is!”
Steward Liu called out in response from outside and ran off at a trot.
Su Mingyuan cleared his throat, feeling a bit embarrassed. “Our visit today is because my two disciples accidentally discovered some clues in the seabed, so we came specifically to report it to the City Lord.”
Wen Shuxian took over. “The disciples were playing in the sea and were chased by a demon beast to the bottom of a cliff, where they accidentally discovered a barrier. Inside, there was actually a spatial rift.”
“The spiritual energy has been leaking out through this rift. This is likely the primary reason for the depletion of the Eastern Territory's spiritual energy.”
Zhao Yunzhou was astonished to hear this.
Over the years, he had sent countless talented experts to investigate, and they had turned the seabed upside down at least dozens of times without finding anything unusual.
And yet, these two kids had stumbled upon it like a blind cat running into a dead mouse?
But that wasn't the point. Being able to find the cause was a monumental blessing.
“Then, does Brother Mingyuan have a way to patch this rift?” Zhao Yunzhou's voice trembled with excitement.
Su Mingyuan said, “Our sect's Elder Mu has inspected it. We can set up a formation to temporarily patch it, which can maintain the seal for at least a year.”
Zhao Yunzhou spun around in excitement on the spot, repeating, “Wonderful, wonderful!”
A year. A year was more than enough.
He turned around and grabbed Su Mingyuan's hand, his eyes turning red. “Brother Mingyuan, do you know that if we can truly patch this rift and revive the Eastern Territory's spiritual energy, your Grand Primordium Sect will be the great benefactor of the entire Eastern Territory!”
Mu Tianqing spoke up at the right moment. “We came here today because we need the City Lord's assistance. The materials for the formation are rare, and with the Grand Primordium Sect's current resources, we cannot afford them.”
Zhao Yunzhou waved his hand grandly. “Write them down! Write down the materials you need! The City Lord's Mansion will find them! In addition, we will allocate another five hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones to the Grand Primordium Sect every year as a maintenance fee. What do you think?”
Su Mingyuan was about to politely decline, but Xue Mingzhao had already chimed in with a beaming smile. “Then thank you, City Lord Uncle! You are truly a living bodhisattva descended to earth!”
Without waiting for Zhao Yunzhou to speak, Xue Mingzhao continued, “Speaking of which, the vision over the Grand Primordium Sect the other day was likely an auspicious omen brought about by the revival of the Eastern Territory's spiritual energy. Martial Uncle Xu just happened to refine the Mahayana Pill during those days, which made everyone mistake it for a vision drawn by the pill. It seems even the Heavenly Dao is sending good fortune to the Eastern Territory.”
The smile on Zhao Yunzhou's face did not fade. This little fox had smoothly brushed off the matter of the vision in just a few sentences, and even handily pinned the blame on the revival of spiritual energy.
But—if the Eastern Territory could truly revive its spiritual energy, did it really matter whether that vision was drawn by the Mahayana Pill or not?
Seventeen years ago, Dongcang Heavenly Capital was an existence on par with Yunque Heavenly Capital. If it could truly restore its former glory, he, as the City Lord, would be the first person to have his name go down in history for eternity.
The right to explain a mere vision was not even worth a fraction compared to the future of the entire Eastern Territory.
With a shift in his thoughts, he laughed heartily and went along with her words. “Well said! That heavenly vision was indeed an auspicious omen of the Eastern Territory's spiritual energy revival! The Grand Primordium Sect just happened to refine a supreme-grade Mahayana Pill at the same time—a double blessing!”
“At the auction a month from now, I will announce this to the entire Eastern Territory, so everyone knows of this monumental good news!”
Hearing this, Xue Mingzhao stopped speaking and quietly lowered her head to eat her pastries.
The group exchanged another round of mutual flattery.
Zhao Yunzhou was in high spirits. The problem that had plagued him for over a decade finally showed a glimmer of hope. He waved his hand grandly. “Tonight, I must host a banquet to properly entertain Brother Mingyuan and the elders!”
Xue Mingzhao and Su Ye's eyes lit up simultaneously.
Fantastic! They could freeload another great meal.
Sitting upright in the guest seat, Su Mingyuan looked at his two disciples, who were practically rubbing their hands in anticipation of the meal, and his hand holding his teacup paused slightly.
Now that they were financially well-off, should the first order of business be to build a dining hall for the sect?
Zhao Yunzhou spared no expense to entertain Xue Mingzhao and her group.
The dishes on the table were all rare treasures:
The Seven-Colored Glazed Shrimp shimmered with a rainbow light, a spiritual creature that only appeared once in a thousand years in the deep sea.
The Dragon Blood Bird's Nest Soup was slow-cooked with the heart blood of a thousand-year flood dragon, its aroma condensing into a mist.
The Black Ice Snow Lotus Cake melted the moment it touched the tongue, a tribute that could only be found in the Northern Territory.
The wine was five-thousand-year-old Drunken Immortal Brew, glowing like amber when poured into jade cups, and even the chopsticks were crafted from warm jade.
Xue Mingzhao scooped a full bowl of Dragon Blood Bird's Nest Soup and picked up three glazed shrimp, sighing from the bottom of her heart, “It would be so nice if we could come here to freeload every day.”
Su Ye shoveled food into his mouth, his cheeks bulging like a ball.
Ever since he was kicked out of his family, he had never eaten a proper meal. At this moment, tears welled in his eyes as he stuffed Black Ice Snow Lotus Cake into his mouth, mumbling incoherently, “Why didn't I realize these things tasted so good before?”
The entire table of people watched the two juniors devour the food like starved ghosts reincarnated.
Zhao Yunzhou didn't care about their table manners at all. “Since you find it delicious, feel free to visit often. The food at the City Lord's Mansion is indeed quite decent.”
Xue Mingzhao's eyes sparkled. “Really?!”
Su Ye, with his mouth still full of rice, was so excited he nearly choked. “Really? Then I'll come every day from now on!”
Zhao Yunzhou: “...” That might not be necessary.
This was the happiest meal Zhao Yunzhou had eaten in seventeen years.
Given the state of the Eastern Territory over the years, he had been looked down upon by other city lords both openly and secretly. The cultivators in the city who could leave had already left, and if things dragged on for a few more years, he feared even the City Lord's Mansion would have to relocate.
He hadn't expected to finally see a turning point.
At this thought, the gaze he directed at the two became even more affectionate.
These two children were truly the lucky stars of the Eastern Territory!
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