A Person of Unpardonable Evil

Hearing this, Jia Wen smiled faintly and replied noncommittally:

"I came to Great Yan, fought my heart out for the emperor, and climbed to my current position precisely so I could enjoy a comfortable life.

"What would I gain from Great Yan's people being left unable to live, its lands plunged into war?"

Chen Yan said nothing, merely shaking his head slightly.

The fifteen-year-old boy's reaction only piqued Jia Wen's interest further:

"Fellow Daoist Chen, did you know that I was very hostile toward you at first?"

"I knew."

Chen Yan answered.

"Do you know why I was hostile toward you?"

Jia Wen asked.

"One mountain cannot hold two tigers."

Chen Yan said.

"Then do you know why I'm no longer as hostile toward you as I was before?"

"Because you discovered that I'm no tiger, Fellow Daoist Jia."

Chen Yan continued to answer casually:

"Or rather, even if I am a tiger, I'm one that neither fights nor snatches anything from others."

"Exactly..."

Jia Wen paused in surprise, then nodded:

"Fellow Daoist Chen, you truly are an extraordinary person... sometimes, you even make me feel that you couldn't possibly be only fifteen."

"I'll take what you just said as a compliment, Fellow Daoist Jia."

Chen Yan said calmly.

The two Immortal Cultivators continued walking toward the outskirts of the Imperial City.

The trees beside the palace walls were a lush, deep green, a picture of peaceful days.

Yet Great Yan was neither as peaceful nor as stable as the scenery before them.

It was midsummer now, and the famine had yet to reach its worst.

Only when winter arrived this year would the nightmare truly begin.

"There's something else I need to tell you, Fellow Daoist Chen."

Jia Wen suddenly spoke again:

"My master will arrive in Great Yan's