“What if I tell you that within the Diaohai Blessed Land... there is a treasure that has the miraculous effect of extending one's lifespan?”
In an instant, Gongsun Bei's gaze suddenly froze. He spun around, his usually calm eyes visibly rippling with emotion as he said, “Is what the Sect Master says... true!?”
“How would I dare to make a definitive claim on whether it is true or not?”
Xu Zhouling smiled. He walked unhurriedly to the table, lifted the copper kettle, poured a cup of hot tea, and handed it to Gongsun Bei.
“I have never entered the Diaohai Blessed Land myself... This is merely an old tale I happened to hear in my earlier years. In that Blessed Land, there grows a Renwater Flame Apricot Tree, a spiritual root planted by Daoist Master Fengye himself in ancient times.”
“This apricot tree ripens once every century, and each harvest yields only nine fruits. Every flame apricot can extend a person's lifespan by twelve years. Furthermore, a person can consume at most three in their lifetime; any more would lose its efficacy.”
At this point, Xu Zhouling paused, saying no more, only adding with a smile: “Of course, this is merely a rumor I happened to hear, and it cannot be taken as absolute truth. If Brother Gongsun has no interest, you can just treat it as an amusing anecdote.”
Gongsun Bei pursed his lips, not replying immediately.
He was as clear as a mirror in his heart—if Xu Zhouling had adamantly claimed that the Renwater Flame Apricot Tree was definitely in the Diaohai Blessed Land, he would have instead doubted its authenticity.
But as it happened... This Sect Master of the Star-Plucking Sect was as slippery as an eel!
He only spoke three parts of the truth, keeping the remaining seven parts thoroughly hidden. He clearly knew more details, yet he did not spell them out, only throwing out a hook. As for the rest... You would have to guess!
If you did not bite, he would say no more; if you did bite, then you would have to take a stand.
Gongsun Bei took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled.
“The Prefectural Governor has been immensely kind to me. If I did not know about this lifespan-extending treasure, that would be one thing. But now that I know, I must try my best to obtain it!”
“It seems... the demon-slaying campaign can only be temporarily put on hold!”
He stood silently for a moment. Finally, under the gaze of the four pairs of eyes in the hall, he took a few steps forward and accepted the cup of tea from Xu Zhouling's hand.
“Exactly...” Xu Zhouling clapped his hands and smiled.
Once Gongsun Bei sat back down, Xu Zhouling finally began to recount all the intelligence regarding the Diaohai Blessed Land to everyone in detail.
An incense stick's time later.
After hearing about the various major factions that could be involved behind the scenes—Jiang Su, the Xuanjing Division, the Longxiang Army, Wang Zhifan, the Qi clan, the Buddhist Sect, and the Southern Sea's Raging Sea Sect—the room fell into a temporary silence, with no one speaking.
After a long silence, Yi Nanping was the first to break the quiet, her voice soft yet clear: “With so many powerful factions involved, even if we manage to get a share of the spoils, I fear it will be difficult for us to escape unscathed relying solely on our own strength...”
“Junior Sister is correct.”
A mysterious smile played on Xu Zhouling's lips. His gaze swept over the four of them, and he lowered his voice, saying, “Therefore... I have a plan that can allow our Star-Plucking Sect to reap more benefits from the Blessed Land.”
To the side, Wen Qingye, who had remained silent all this time, suddenly flashed his sharp eyes and said in a low voice, “Does Senior Brother mean... chaos?”
“Precisely!” Xu Zhouling clapped in praise, his eyes filled with deep admiration. “Junior Brother truly knows me!”
The four people present were all highly intelligent. With just that single word, it was like parting the clouds to see the sun; they instantly understood the profound mystery behind it.
Lei Xiao straightened his posture, his thick brows furrowing as he said in a deep voice, “Senior Brother, do you mean... since there are already so many factions involved, we might as well leak the news and stir the pot even further?”
Yi Nanping's beautiful eyes rippled as she fell into thought, slowly adding, “And we shouldn't just leak it recklessly. We should do it slowly, deliberately, and with a specific purpose...”
“Junior Sister is indeed clever!”
Xu Zhouling clapped his hands in high praise, saying with a smile, “Since this Diaohai Blessed Land has appeared within the borders of our Nanxiang Prefecture, rather than letting external forces sweep away all the benefits, we might as well let us local forces have them. It will also serve as a great opportunity for the younger generation of our various sects to gain some fortune.”
He paused, his tone growing slightly more serious: “The foundation of a sect, after all, lies in its youth.”
“Our Nanxiang Prefecture is located at a vital junction, directly facing the brunt of the Yinsha Sect and even the demonic sects of the Yue State. It is a frontline that bleeds year-round. Letting our own juniors gain a bit more ability will give them a better chance of survival and cause them to bleed less when they face the Yinsha Sect in the future.”
After Xu Zhouling finished speaking, the hall fell silent for a moment.
Several of them lowered their eyes in contemplation, weighing whether this plan was feasible.
A moment later, Gongsun Bei suddenly set down his teacup and said, “I have a question I must ask the Sect Master.”
“Brother Gongsun, please speak freely.”
“Some time ago, the Nine Anhuai Fiends failed in their attempt to assassinate the Prefectural Governor. Most of the demons have already been executed, but only the Entangling Silk Fiend, who was aided by someone within the prefecture capital, remains at large.”
Gongsun Bei slowed his speech, making every word count: “To be able to mobilize such immense power within the prefecture capital and keep her whereabouts hidden even from the joint efforts of myself and five Garrison Masters... even the two century-old clans, Huo and He, could not do it so cleanly!”
“Therefore, I boldly surmise... among the Four Sects, someone is likely colluding with the demonic path.”
These words were like a stone causing a thousand ripples, and the hall suddenly fell into a deathly, pin-drop silence!
But Gongsun Bei ignored the oppressive atmosphere and continued: “If we rashly leak the news of the Blessed Land and the Yinsha Sect gets wind of it... That pack of madmen does not care about the rules of the martial world. When the time comes, they will certainly dispatch their most elite demons to infiltrate the Blessed Land, slaughtering wantonly and painting the Diaohai red with blood to seize all the benefits for themselves!”
Xu Zhouling fell into a pensive silence, because what Gongsun Bei said was also a thorn in his own heart.
“Among the Four Sects, I fear someone indeed has ties with the demonic path. However, whether this connection is merely an exchange of resources and trading of information, or if they have completely defected to the demonic sect... still requires careful consideration!”
His eyes flickered as he looked at Gongsun Bei, slowly speaking: “Therefore... Brother Gongsun, your previous journey of running between the various sects for the demon-slaying campaign and trying to deliver the Guangwu Order will come in handy.”
As soon as these words were spoken, a look of realization simultaneously flashed in the eyes of Wen Qingye, Lei Xiao, and Yi Nanping!
Indeed!
Gongsun Bei had spent several days running around for the demon-slaying matter. The responses from the various sects had been mixed; most had merely offered half-hearted excuses, and some had even rejected him to his face.
But there were also those whose hot blood had not yet run cold, who had agreed without hesitation! Some were even willing to personally leave their mountains to eradicate the demons and defend the righteous path.
If they only revealed the news of the Diaohai Blessed Land to those righteous individuals who were willing to risk their lives, although the risk of leakage still could not be entirely avoided, the disaster of a massive leak would be minimized to the greatest extent!
Gongsun Bei pondered for a moment, finally nodding slowly: “This plan... is extremely ingenious. I have no objections.”
Seeing him relent, Xu Zhouling took a deep breath, a look of resolve flashing in his eyes: “Excellent!”
“Since that is the case, in my opinion, we can first invite Elder Feng Buting of Mount Bixia's Sword Lineage for a discussion! This man has a fiery temperament and hates evil as an enemy; he is trustworthy.”
“There is also the Zhenhai Marquis Mansion. Although the Marquis Mansion holds a unique status, the old Marquis showed great kindness to all of us during his lifetime. The young Marquis, Dong Fu, has now also stepped into the Outer Gang Rank, so we can invite him to join us as well.”
“Furthermore, Elder Shen Cang of the Qingyuan Sword Pavilion is also an elder of the righteous path who has fought against demons for many years without ever retreating. We can also invite him to discuss this major matter together.”
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