Chapter 212: Chapter 101: The Changing Situation

Wang Ping couldn’t answer the question. He instinctively looked up at the sky, which remained vast and cloudless. He tried to pierce through the clouds and gaze into the expanse beyond the heavens.

But his vision couldn’t reach that far.

"Gazing into the outer realms is a matter for the future. Right now, we must find a way to establish ourselves in the chaotic era to come." Wang Ping withdrew his gaze and began to carefully arrange the tea set on the stone table.

A fragrant cup of tea was soon brewed. Wang Ping and Yu Lian quietly savored its aroma, and half a day passed without them noticing.

From time to time, Wang Ping would summon his divine soul. He used his new divine soul to manifest Spirit Communication Talismans and Luck-Borrowing Talismans. With a mere thought, a Curse Talisman would appear out of thin air, requiring no effort from him to draw it.

He felt that he had grown stronger again.

It wasn’t until 3:45 PM that Yu Lian finally brought up what Hu Qianqian had told her.

"Let’s not rush. I’m going to have a chat with Master." Wang Ping put down his teacup, stood up, and looked at Yu Lian. "Do you want to come?"

Yu Lian shook her head quickly.

However, Yu Cheng Taoist was not in his small courtyard. Wang Ping waited, sitting in meditation for six days and six nights, until Yu Cheng Taoist finally returned.

"Your cultivation has now surpassed my own." Yu Cheng Taoist accepted Wang Ping’s ceremonial bow with a pleased expression, then said, "I have an inkling of why you’ve come to see me. But until my Heart Demon is eliminated, I fear I would lose control on the spot if I were to rashly merge with the Locust Tree Divine Soul."

Wang Ping said no more. He had only used one bottle of Sacred Heart Pills to merge with the Locust Tree Divine Soul and its memories. He still had a bottle and a half left, and he had intended to give them to his master to help him try and advance further.

"You don’t need to worry about me. I have a feeling that all these schemes will come to fruition within the next hundred years. Fellow Daoist Yuan Zheng will ensure I live to see that day."

Yu Cheng Taoist’s expression was serene, yet it held an unshakeable obsession. He was at peace with his own fate, but he remained fixated on the matter of Li Yan.

Wang Ping didn’t know what more to say.

"Currently, conflicts are deepening throughout the Zhongzhou Eastern Plains. Behind this are the differing agendas of the various factions of the Human Dao, as well as the shadow of the Emperor. The Emperor still wants to divert internal strife by waging war in the north. It’s actually a clever move, but right now, no one on the inside is willing to fight, unless..."

Yu Cheng Taoist paused for breath, then looked at Wang Ping with a smile. "Unless there are tempting benefits. For example... carving out new territories and being enfeoffed as kings. For the past two years, the new Emperor has frequently summoned your second senior brother to the palace. At the end of last year, he even asked him about the feasibility of this very matter."

Wang Ping thought for a moment and asked, "Master, are you saying that whoever conquers the northern lands gets to keep them?"

"Correct!"

"Is the Emperor willing to sacrifice the future political structure of the court for his own prestige?"

"No, the Imperial Family is definitely plotting something. The world is like an open game of chess right now. The heir chosen by the Imperial Family couldn’t possibly fail to see the state of the world. But for the past sixty years, three generations of emperors have been preoccupied with the war in the north. There must be a deeper reason for this that you and I don’t understand."

Yu Cheng Taoist could see a bit more of the bigger picture.

He had a point. Anyone capable of scheming on a worldly scale was no fool; they couldn’t possibly be blind to the state of affairs. They were simply constrained by the circumstances at times.

To break free, one must first escape their shackles. For the Imperial Family, deploying troops to the north was undoubtedly the best way to resolve their disputes.

And as long as the benefits were great enough, it was highly likely that everyone from the great clans to the powerful experts of the Cultivation Realm would be willing to act.

"So has my second senior brother become part of the war faction again?" Wang Ping asked with a smile.

"He has his own agenda now. Besides, he cultivates the path of worldly engagement, advocating for the ’Middle’ Chapter within the Human Dao, which happens to align with the new Emperor’s thinking."

"Second senior brother wants a piece of the pie from the northern war, too?" Wang Ping discerned the true meaning behind his master’s words.

"Yes. He’s in the thick of it. If he plays his cards right, he might actually be able to secure a royal title for himself." Yu Cheng Taoist explained the subtlety with a chuckle.

"He wants to cultivate merit?"

"Correct!"

Wang Ping fell silent.

For a long time after, master and disciple exchanged their views on the matter in detail.

When Wang Ping returned to the Mountain Peak Dojo, Hu Qianqian had already been waiting for a long time. While at the Mountain Peak Dojo, she wasn’t as free-spirited as she was at Baisui Lake.

Yu Lian had also brought Shen Xiaozhu back. At that moment, Shen Xiaozhu was carrying water to fill the courtyard’s cistern, while Yu Lian was resting on the roof.

The moment Wang Ping returned, Hu Qianqian immediately performed a disciple’s bow with proper Taoist etiquette. Shen Xiaozhu was a beat slower, as she had to put down the buckets on her shoulder first. Her bow, however, was more proper than it had been before she went to Baisui Lake.

"Yu Lian told me that the Demon Race Alchemist in Ningzhou Road has made a move?"

"I was just about to report to you, Master..."

Hu Qianqian walked to the stone table, her furry ears twitching. With downcast eyes, she said, "That Alchemist’s name is Mountain View. He appears to be a Fox Demon, but his true form is actually a Sheep Demon—one that transformed from a domestic sheep. He normally stays inside his Alchemy Room. Anyone who requests his Alchemy services must bring their materials and find him there. He enjoys a high reputation in the demon-inhabited mountains of Right Huai Prefecture."

Wang Ping listened quietly, his mind recalling the portrait he had once seen of the Alchemist in his Fox Demon form.

"Recently, a large number of Human Race Cultivators have appeared at his residence, including one Entering Cultivator. According to information gathered from the idle chatter of some elderly members of the local Demon Race, someone brings a huge pile of materials to Mountain View’s Alchemy Room every ten years or so... My people investigated secretly and learned that he is crafting the Magical Artifacts an Artifact Cultivator needs to break through, as well as the Essence Blood Pills required for the process."

"An Artifact Cultivator?" Wang Ping was surprised.

"Yes!"

After her affirmative reply, Hu Qianqian added, "I had my people follow those who delivered the materials. A small number of them are outer members of ’First Day,’ but most are ordinary merchants from out of town."

’This Alchemist’s identity is quite complicated.’ Wang Ping fell into deep thought. However, the clues he had were limited, so he couldn’t make any detailed deductions.

"Continue the surveillance, especially on the outer members of ’First Day.’ Sometimes, small fish lead to a big catch." After giving the order, Wang Ping paused for a moment and said, "Go find your Brother Yang. If necessary, you can use the informants from Internal Affairs."

"Yes!"

Hu Qianqian’s furry ears twitched, a faint smile appearing on her face. She then brought up another matter. "The rioting Demon Race in Wudao Prefecture has been suppressed..."

As she spoke, she took a roster made of Xuan paper from her robes. "This lists the newly enfeoffed Mountain Monarchs and the division of their territories."

Wang Ping took the roster and gave it a cursory glance, just enough to get the gist of it. He then placed it on the stone table and said, "In another hundred years, the world will surely fall into chaos. I need them to be ready to make the necessary sacrifices for the stability of Wudao Prefecture at any time."

"Their armies were recruited and trained for the stability of Wudao Prefecture!" Hu Qianqian guaranteed.

Wang Ping nodded, then added with a smile, "Don’t neglect your own cultivation, either."

"Yes, Master. I dare not slack off for even a single day."

"Qianqian, there are some things you must understand. There’s a limit to who you can protect. Apart from your own cultivation, everything else is illusory."