East Floating District Can't Have Someone This Badass

For the fifteen minutes Lu Ya spent admiring the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss.

In Azure Phoenix City, there was a pharmacy called the Hundred Herb Shop.

A dozen black goats were tethered outside the shop.

They were all males, tall and sturdy, and bleated incessantly, drawing a crowd of onlookers.

The shepherd took off his felt hat and slowly entered the shop.

He was a tall, middle-aged man.

He wore a loose black robe and a seven-foot immortal sword at his waist. His hair hung loose, and his beard was unkempt. His features were striking, and his angular face was as sharply defined as a carving.

Yet his eyes always drooped halfway shut, and heavy, dark bags hung beneath them. He cradled a steaming Porcelain Sand Pot in his hands, giving the impression of a man who looked strong on the outside but was weak within.

The shopkeeper hurried over to greet him.

"What medicine are you looking for, sir? The Hundred Herb Shop has all kinds of rare and exotic herbs."

The shepherd replied, "I've been overworking myself lately. Do you have any spirit medicine to restore my strength? Don't bother recommending ordinary stuff. I only want rare, potent medicine."

"Potent medicine, you say."

The shopkeeper gave the man a knowing look, then fetched a jar from the back room.

"You've come to the right shop. This is our signature treasure—the Eastern Divine Wolfberry, a sacred medicine from the East Court Continent. It's a single, enormous goji berry, and it's incredibly nourishing!"

"Never heard of it."

"That's what makes it rare."

The shepherd swept it with his divine sense. It did have some potent restorative properties, but calling it a sacred medicine was a bit of an exaggeration.

"How much?"

"Eight thousand Immortal Crystals."

"I've only got two hundred and forty-nine Immortal Crystals. Will you sell it for that?"

"I'm sorry, sir, but we don't haggle."

"I haven't received my immortal stipend in a hundred years. Where am I supposed to get that many Immortal Crystals?"

"Don't you have more than a dozen sheep?"

The shepherd gave a blank smile and sipped the goji berry tea in his Porcelain Sand Pot. He said nothing.

After a while, he asked, "The Void Kun behind the city... do you know who killed it, shopkeeper?"

"Of course. It was Elder Lu. Though some say it was Elder Fan of the White Lotus Sect."

"Elder Lu?"

"Are you from out of town? Elder Lu Ya of the Bamboo Spring Sect, Sect Master Liu's Daoist partner."

The shepherd jolted in surprise.

"What?!"

"Oh, you know Sect Master Liu? No need to be so surprised. Elder Lu is an extraordinary man. Plenty of locals saw him kiss Sect Master Liu at their wedding banquet."

"He... is still alive?"

"Of course."

There was still someone this badass in the East Floating District?

The shepherd suddenly felt a pang of grief and couldn't help but lament the injustice of fate. How could there be someone in this world who could cultivate dual cultivation with Liu Xuanye without suffering any harm, while he, on the other hand, because...

Sigh!

The shepherd let out a long, mournful sigh and nearly crushed the Porcelain Sand Pot in his hands.

At the same time.

A fleet of Immortal Boats flying the Immortal Court's banner was slowly approaching the Bamboo Spring Sect.

It was a surprise inspection team from the East Floating Immortal Court!

At the bow of the flagship stood a young man dressed in brocade robes. He was thickset, with a head shaped like a winter melon, and his proud belly jutted out before him.

The fierce wind whipped his bangs about, lending him an effortless air, as if a great wind had risen and the clouds were soaring.

Two venerable old men stood on either side of him, their hands clasped behind their backs. Both were Nine Star Immortal Sect Masters, clad in dark gold Immortal Court official cloaks.

Their eyes were deep, shrewd, and utterly imperious.

Besides them, a young man in an official's immortal robe stood behind him, his features soft and feminine.

He was tall and slender, with an excessively delicate, almost feminine face. His complexion was pale, and his nose was slightly crooked.

He was none other than the man whose falcon Lu Ya had roasted on the Bamboo Spring Sect's Sword Terrace—

Zhang Pingzhi.

Lu Ya had roasted his falcon, so he had sworn to take Lu Ya's Kun!

So he had attached himself to a powerful figure in East Floating City who shared his aims.

That way, he could avenge his humiliation and climb a higher branch to soar to success.

An Immortal Court official like him, with neither outstanding talent nor a powerful background, had to build ties with big shots to make a name for himself and rise to prominence in the Immortal Realm—just like Senior Deacon Black Stone.

If Deacon Black Stone hadn't attached himself to Li Wuxie, would anyone in the East Floating Immortal Court listen to him?

Even his female partner, Tahongzi, had now latched on to Black Stone, a small tree. She had always been cold and pragmatic, but now she had started dressing up every day.

Zhang Pingzhi refused to be left behind.

So he devised a perfect plan and attached himself to the powerful young lord of East Floating City, Xu Yinglong.

Xu Yinglong might only be half a step from becoming an Immortal Sect Master. He looked fat and lazy, like an imbecile.

But he was not only the young lord of East Floating City, he was also an inspection official of the East Floating Immortal Court. His granduncle by marriage was a judge of the Colored Cloud Immortal Court, an Immortal Saint named—

True Person Zhushen!

He was a big shot who could make the entire Colored Cloud Immortal Domain tremble with a single stomp!

Back then, Yun Zhonghe had relied on his connections to get Zhang Lianxin out of prison.

True Person Zhushen had a taste for rare and exotic beasts, and had once taken a liking to the Void Kun beneath Yun Zhonghe.

Unfortunately, the Kunpeng Brothers' defection from the sect had happened before he could get a taste of Kun meat.

Yun Zhonghe had lost his position as sect master as a result.

Now the Void Kun had been cooked by the Bamboo Spring Sect.

This was Zhang Pingzhi's God-given opportunity to avenge his humiliation and get close to True Person Zhushen!

And Xu Yinglong was his stepping stone.

As for Lu Ya...

From Black Stone's attitude, it seemed Lu Ya was hiding his strength or had a powerful background.

But even if he was hiding his strength, did he dare defy the Immortal Court's inspection team?

Even if he had a powerful background, could it be more powerful than Xu Yinglong's granduncle by marriage, True Person Zhushen?

In the Immortal Realm, the Immortal Court was Heaven itself—the Heavenly Dao that none could defy!

Even a tyrannical powerhouse like Li Wuxie wouldn't dare go against the Immortal Court's will.

Who did Lu Ya think he was?

Just an insignificant fool who thought a little strength let him stop a chariot with his arms!

Only those who recognized reality, sanded down their rough edges, weathered the turbulent world of the immortals, endured hardship, and kept striving would one day seize the winds of fate and transform into dragons!

At the bow of the ship.

Xu Yinglong might have been fat, but he wasn't as stupid as Zhang Pingzhi imagined.

He, too, considered himself a dragon about to command wind and rain—a broad-bodied Yinglong!

"Are you sure Lu Ya has nothing to do with the White Lotus Sect? That sect deserves a beating too, but it isn't their turn yet."

Zhang Pingzhi replied respectfully, "Reporting to the young lord, that was only a guess before. We've just received word from ahead that Chen Daozai, Sect Master of the White Lotus Sect, stopped in Azure Phoenix City for a few hours. We can now confirm that the Bamboo Spring Sect has absolutely no connection to the White Lotus Sect. The Void Kun incident was entirely Fan Ni's personal act to restore his reputation."

"Is that so?"

A ripple of delight crossed Xu Yinglong's layers of fat.

"That Kun was delicious. And in a moment, it'll be mine."

Zhang Pingzhi's heart tightened, but he didn't forget to remind him, "We could hold a Kun head hotpot feast at Kuncheng Lake and invite True Person Zhushen. Once he's pleased, you'll be able to shed that 'young' in young lord sooner."

Xu Yinglong heard this and puffed out his belly even more. Then he asked, "Lu Ya has won Liu Xuanye over, dealt with Fan Ni, and even cooked a Giant Kun himself. Who exactly is he?"

"Just a snot-nosed brat with a bit of luck. Before the young lord and True Person Zhushen, he's nothing but an ant."

Xu Yinglong snorted.

"The East Floating District can't have someone this badass."

"Of course not. This fellow once roasted an Immortal Court hunting falcon without permission. His crime is heinous. He must be arrested."

"I've already smoothed over all the connections with the Colored Cloud Immortal Court. I hope you've taken care of that stubborn old fossil, True Person Silver Moon."

Zhang Pingzhi leaned close to his ear. "True Person Silver Moon is just a teacher. Without Li Wuxie, Black Stone is nothing, either. Your father is the lord of East Floating City, and your granduncle by marriage is a judge of the Colored Cloud Immortal Court. Isn't this East Floating District yours to rule?"

A glimmer of dragon light appeared in Xu Yinglong's narrowed eyes, and he seemed to rise among the clouds.

"Back then, Yun Zhonghe tried to get Zhang Lianxin out of prison by treating my granduncle by marriage to his Void Kun, but he came away empty-handed. What Yun Zhonghe couldn't accomplish back then, I, Xu Yinglong, will accomplish now!"