"True Lord."
Inside Xuanqing Hall on Little Penglai, Dragon Monarch Aohui, wearing a gilded crown and an Azure Dragon robe, bowed to the Daoist in a dark robe and blue-green crown.
But before Dragon Monarch Aohui could complete the bow, a gentle force held him up.
Jiang Sheng smiled. "Why stand on ceremony, Dragon Monarch?"
"You have long been on good terms with Penglai. You have always known right from wrong, and you know our True Disciples of the Hao and Dao generations. By rights, I should consider you an elder of my master's generation. There is no need to be so distant."
Ao Hui merely smiled and did not take the words at face value.
The East Sea Dragon Palace was no longer what it had once been, and Daoist Ling Yuan was no longer the Daoist Ling Yuan of years past.
Times had changed, and so had people. Jiang Sheng could say it, but Ao Hui could not afford to believe it.
Seeing this, Jiang Sheng personally led Ao Hui to a seat.
Once they were seated, Jiang Sheng brought out a set of tea utensils and began brewing tea with practiced ease. "Dragon Monarch, have you come with good news?"
Ao Hui nodded. "To be frank, True Lord, while traveling through the All Heavens and Myriad Worlds, I met someone in Vermilion Province of the Jiuzhou World. She still rules a mountain there, so she knows the territory well."
"If your fellow Daoist goes to Vermilion Province, she may be able to help."
As Ao Hui spoke, Jiang Sheng finished brewing two cups of immortal tea. He passed one to Ao Hui, who hurriedly accepted it. Jiang Sheng smiled. "It would be best if she could help. If she cannot, that is fine too."
"She is going