Free Web NovelChapter 326: Chapter 55: Completing the Registration
「Dongcheng District.」
Wang Ping was in a private room on the second floor of a teahouse, listening to a storyteller. He had, of course, heard the rumbling from the West City District, but unlike Jiangcun, he couldn’t get a bird’s-eye view.
However, teahouses were natural hubs for news, and he soon learned what had happened from the jests of the other patrons.
At that moment, Wang Ping suddenly recalled the Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator he had met at Bin Pass. That man had possessed a resolute, do-or-die attitude that fit perfectly with the descriptions of the cultivators throwing their lives away in the stories people were jokingly telling.
Listening to the idle chatter of the common folk, hearing their indifferent tones, and sensing their moods, Wang Ping gained a new understanding of Shangjing City. The people here weren’t all fanatics. In the teahouse, for instance, they could joke about the Emperor.
Sometimes, they even made their quips right in front of the Imperial Family’s missionary priests. The priests never argued, simply offering a smile in return. In theory, these people were still the Emperor’s faithful; their morning incense offerings never ceased. They just weren’t as extreme as the soldiers or the great clans.
The Emperor meticulously maintained a grand image of a benevolent, wise, open-minded, and just ruler!
"Huh!"
Wang Ping suddenly felt something and walked to the window of his private room. He looked up at the golden light streaming through the sky. After sweeping up the blood and severed limbs from the streets, the light seemed to grow even more brilliant. In reality, however, the nation’s destiny had weakened slightly, and there was even a momentary gap.
CLANG!
He tossed down two Copper Coins.
Seeing the resulting hexagram, Wang Ping raised an eyebrow. Yu Lian, who had been lazing on the nearby tea table, flew over and asked, "What’s wrong?"
"Just now, for a brief moment, the nation’s destiny stalled!"
Wang Ping said softly, "It was only for an instant, but for a Third Realm Cultivator, a lot can be done in that single moment."
...
「Phoenix Tower.」
Located in the West City District, it was Shangjing City’s most famous pleasure quarter—a brothel, to put it plainly.
On the tenth day of the new year, the snow was still falling and the weather was cold and dreary. But the festive Spring Festival atmosphere still burned hot within Shangjing City. Phoenix Tower saw a constant stream of patrons, its main entrance crowded with sedan chairs and carriages. Outside the four courtyards surrounding the tower—to the east, south, west, and north—one could even spot the sedans of the court’s first-rank officials.
Wang Ping had arrived at the West Garden early that morning and had it all to himself.
The West Garden was exquisitely decorated. Its buildings were predominantly a pale yellow, and the courtyard’s scenery was centered around two wintersweet plum trees next to a pavilion. Complemented by rockeries, waterside gazebos, and weeping willows, the design made anyone within it unconsciously feel that the two wintersweet plum trees were truly beautiful.
But Wang Ping was unmoved. The place was too gaudy, and trapped within this crowded city, even the most beautiful scenery lacked vitality, becoming nothing more than lifeless objects devoid of any spiritual grace.
Yu Lian, on the other hand, loved it. She liked the petals of the wintersweet plums, occasionally nibbling one to taste its faint, floral fragrance. For her, appreciating flowers meant eating them.
By the time half the flowers on the two wintersweet plum trees had ended up in Yu Lian’s stomach, the snow finally stopped, and the guest Wang Ping had been waiting for arrived.
This Yun Que was different from the one Wang Ping had seen at the Three Seats meeting. He wore no opulent robes, but rather a simple, gray-white scholar’s gown. His hair was tied back with a jade hairpin, and he had a thick woolen cloak draped over his shoulders.
Jiangcun, who accompanied Yun Que, was dressed similarly. They looked just like the young masters of some noble family in the Capital City out for a night of revelry.
Wang Ping greeted the two at the entrance.
After the three exchanged pleasantries, Yun Que glanced at the somewhat awkward-looking wintersweet plum trees and said, "This place is really going downhill..." As he spoke, he took out a jade slip and handed it to Wang Ping. "Just leave a sliver of your Primordial Spirit Consciousness inside."
Wang Ping took the jade slip and cautiously inspected it inside and out. He then examined its contents. It was a record of his life, with his contributions to the Daoist Scripture Hall documented in the greatest detail. It even included the recent events on Mozhou Road. In this file, he was described as practically the savior of Mozhou Road.
After infusing his Primordial Spirit Consciousness into the jade slip, a red and blue Array flashed across its surface, preserving the consciousness within.
"From now on, Fellow Daoist Changqing will be an official Third Seat of the Daoist Scripture Hall."
Yun Que put away the jade slip, glanced at his younger brother beside him, and said casually, "You two talk amongst yourselves. The clone I manifested in the Daoist Scripture Hall can’t hold out for much longer."
With that, he headed for the entrance. Wang Ping was about to offer some polite parting words, but Jiangcun cut him off. "Alright, don’t be so formal. My second brother is always like this. Let’s go sit over there."
He pointed to the pavilion up ahead where a brazier was burning.
Wang Ping didn’t refuse, but he had already made up his mind. ’I will absolutely not let myself be used as bait. My opponents aren’t fools. Once I’m exposed, if I have an expert by my side, the enemy won’t be stupid enough to charge in and get themselves killed. That means their only option is to ambush me on my way back to Nanlin Road.’
’There are too many variables on that road. Even with an escort, I can’t guarantee my safety.’
After Jiangcun sat down, he didn’t beat around the bush and went straight to his plan. "We’ve already found the hiding place of the two who tried to assassinate you. You’ll definitely recognize one of them."
"Oh?" Wang Ping played along, putting on a questioning expression.
"Leng Zhixing, the Sect Leader of the Single Saber Sect!"
"He actually broke through?"
"Correct!"
"What are you planning to do?" Wang Ping asked just as directly.
Jiangcun was silent for a few breaths, then changed the subject. "Someone is investigating who was at Yellow Sheep Mountain on the day of your assassination attempt. While it’s a foolish line of inquiry, with enough time and manpower, they’ll eventually dig something up. And you, you’ve wasted too much time!"
A glint flashed in Wang Ping’s eyes. He had also considered that someone might investigate from this angle. That was why he had timed his registration perfectly and already made considerable arrangements.
However, Wang Ping didn’t reveal his cleverness, instead feigning weakness. "Fellow Daoist, please speak your mind."
"It’s simple. Go pay your respects to General Wang Kang one more time. This time, go in person."
Hearing this, Wang Ping adopted a thoughtful expression. Just then, Yu Lian emerged from his sleeve, flew up to a branch of the nearby wintersweet plum tree, and was about to swallow a couple more blossoms when Wang Ping spoke. "I’ve actually thought of another way."
"Do tell!" Jiangcun gestured invitingly, his patience clear.
"We are the soldiers, and they are the thieves. Since you already know their hiding place, why not just go and kill them?"
Jiangcun was visibly taken aback. After a moment’s thought, he said, "I’m afraid we wouldn’t be able to pull them out by the roots..."
Wang Ping interrupted, "What’s there to be afraid of? We are on the side of justice. If worse comes to worst, we can launch a city-wide search. His Majesty the Emperor would surely be pleased to see such a thing. Therefore, we hold the advantageous position. Even if we just leverage our authority, we can crush them until they can’t breathe."
He held out his hands, making a gesture. "In Shangjing City, we are a great mountain, and they are merely ants trying to shake it. If we don’t use our overwhelming advantage to crush them now, are we supposed to wait until they’ve tunneled through the mountain before we act?"
