Senior Brother is Playing the Long Game

The sudden gale had subsided, leaving the entire scene in dead silence.

The sword pressure of Li Wuxie was extremely restrained, shrinking to within a ten-foot radius. Given the cultivation levels of those present, they were unable to perceive it and now wore expressions of utter bewilderment.

You say he won, he says you won—who exactly won?

Chief Li suddenly knelt and vomited blood; was his illness acting up again?

Was Elder Lu actually this strong?

And... what the hell was this about a daughter?

Li Wuxie hadn't seen the Snake Immortal in three thousand years; where would a daughter come from?

How could someone slander his innocence out of thin air?

Li Wuxie was also at a loss, feeling that something was fundamentally wrong.

Yet, judging by Lu Ya's expression and tone, he didn't seem to be lying.

"A daughter?"

"Don't disbelieve it; there really are people who stay pregnant for three thousand years."

Lu Ya sent a divine thought to Ning Zhongzi, who quickly went to fetch Lady Black Sheep.

Ning Zhongzi had long suspected this, but found it too absurd to believe.

A moment later, Lady Black Sheep arrived at the cliffside of the plaza, cradling a half-snake infant girl.

The infant had been crying, but the moment she reached the cliff, she suddenly stopped. Her large, rolling eyes stared straight at the sky, toward the direction of Li Wuxie.

Li Wuxie cast a glance, and his heart shook violently.

These eyes, this hair, these colorful scales...

He didn't even need to use his divine sense to be certain: this was truly his daughter!

For a moment, he stood woodenly in mid-air, his rugged face trembling slightly. Memories sealed away for three thousand years flooded his mind, stirring a thousand emotions in his heart, nearly bringing him to tears.

In reality, from the moment Li Wuxie stepped into Azure Phoenix City, Lu Ya had discovered the blood connection between the two.

At the time, he had intended to return the infant to Li Wuxie; after all, the amount of milk this little girl consumed was quite a burden.

But upon discovering that Li Wuxie was a Chief of the East Floating Immortal Court, he suddenly realized that this infant was the perfect miniature tool!

With this connection to Li Wuxie, would he still need to worry about the development of Azure Phoenix City?

Thinking this, Lu Ya added:

"Since you are a Chief of the Immortal Court and a lonely bachelor, raising a daughter is too hard. So, I'll raise her for you until she grows up... Hehehe, wouldn't it be wonderful if I trained her to be a snake-girl ship-girl?"

Li Wuxie's expression suddenly turned cold.

He thought to himself, hadn't that woman harmed him enough already?

Did she have to produce a smaller one to continue the torment?

Even if he, Li Wuxie, were to suffer from kidney failure until he died, never rise again, and be reviled for ten thousand generations, he would never look at her again!

With this in mind, he said coldly:

"This is not my daughter. I, Li Wuxie, am a dignified Chief of the Immortal Court; how could I possibly have a child with a demoness of the Immortal Tail?"

Lu Ya smiled.

"I was just saying. If you don't admit it, so be it. Regardless, you aren't taking these seven ships with you."

Li Wuxie no longer fixated on the Immortal Ship.

"In the Immortal Realm, those stronger than me, Li, are as numerous as carp crossing a river. Do not be too arrogant. Also... the recent beast tide is likely aimed at your Bamboo Spring Sect. Take care of yourself."

"Many thanks for the warning."

"Everyone, off the ship!"

Hearing Li Wuxie's shout, the inspection personnel on the Immortal Ship were instantly stunned.

"Lord Li, this is an inspection ship of the Immortal Court!"

Li Wuxie had already prepared his excuse.

"It is fine. These seven ships shall remain here under the management of Deacon Wine Fox to assist in the development and construction of Azure Phoenix City. Consider it a small token of goodwill from the East Floating Immortal Court."

Lu Ya was taken aback—he truly lived up to being an official!

Feeling admiration in his heart, he cupped his hands and said:

"Many thanks, Chief Li."

Li Wuxie raised his hand and summoned a massive, square black stone slab. Carrying the members of the Immortal Court, he departed from the Bamboo Spring Sect in a grand, sweeping manner.

The momentum was even more imposing than when they had arrived!

Azure Phoenix City.

The matter had concluded in a way no one had expected.

The crowd watched this battle with a sense of awe, though they were utterly bewildered.

Was it Elder Lu who won through sheer strength, or did Chief Li suddenly suffer a lapse that allowed Elder Lu to pick up an easy victory? Or perhaps, for the sake of his daughter, did Chief Li intentionally throw the match?

The onlookers could not fathom the truth.

But having seen him trade blows with Li Wuxie, at least one thing was certain—

Elder Lu was formidable.

No one knew exactly how strong he was, but "formidable" was the only word for it.

After this battle, Azure Phoenix City should be secure.

After all, Chief Li's daughter was here, and these seven Immortal Ship vessels were essentially the oversized toys he had left for her. As for the matter of Xu Yinglong, perhaps Li Wuxie would coordinate a resolution.

The only lingering concern was Xu Yinglong, but they trusted Li Wuxie would handle it.

Li Wuxie had served as Chief in the East Floating Immortal District for three thousand years, and his prestige was immense. Furthermore, he was once an Immortal Emperor; even after his fall, most Immortal Saint figures would still grant him some face.

Realizing this, the crowd admired Lu Ya even more.

Cooking.

City-building.

Combat.

Strategy...

Only now did everyone realize that Elder Lu hadn't been slacking off during those ten days he stayed indoors; he had been racking his brains, secretly working overtime!

Inside a candy shop.

Muyu Feifei was trading freshly picked herbs for candied hawthorns.

The battle had ended too quickly, leaving them on edge.

The shopkeeper asked curiously:

"Two Tiger Immortal ladies, can you tell me why your Elder Lu was able to defeat Chief Li? Was it because of Chief Li's daughter?"

Muyu shamelessly replied:

"Give us two more skewers of candied hawthorns, and I'll tell you the truth."

The shopkeeper hurriedly handed over two extra skewers.

"Here, take them!"

Taking the candied hawthorns, Feifei suddenly gave a thumbs-up.

"Need you even ask? My Junior Martial Uncle is invincible under the heavens."

The shopkeeper suddenly felt a pang of regret.

"You really dare to say anything."

Azure Phoenix City soon returned to tranquility.

At the cliff's edge in front of Yuelai Inn.

Lu Ya handed the seven Immortal Ship vessels over to Ning Zhongzi, tasking her with finding people to repaint them and replace all the flags and totems on the hulls with the Azure Phoenix Xiuchiu design. From now on, these seven ships would serve as the shuttle buses for Azure Phoenix City.

Ning Zhongzi shook her head and sighed.

Even if these were inspection ships from the Immortal Court, with Li Wuxie backing them, what else could she do but accept them calmly?

Ever since Lu Ya arrived at the Bamboo Spring Sect, she felt as though she had been walking on a tightrope over an abyss. Every time it seemed perilous, they somehow made it through unscathed.

Lu Ya had made her worry for nothing again... She decided she would never worry again.

Because she finally saw it clearly.

Her Senior Martial Brother was playing a grand game of chess!

Looking at Lu Ya again, her gaze had changed; for the first time, there was a sense of adoration.

"I never imagined Senior Brother knew the child's identity all along and had prepared this to help Azure Phoenix City survive a calamity. It seems I have been misunderstanding Senior Brother this whole time."

Lu Ya's face turned red.

"Ahem, a minor contribution, not worth mentioning, not worth mentioning."

"What do you mean 'your contribution'? Wasn't it me who risked my life to save her?"

The Wine Fox Immortal descended on her Giant Gourd and kicked out at Lu Ya, but she missed, nearly tumbling off the Giant Gourd herself.

With a yelp, the wound on her shoulder split open.

Ning Zhongzi hurriedly pulled down half of her clothing to apply medicine and wrap a simple bandage.

Lu Ya retorted:

"You say you risked your life to save her, but let me ask you: where exactly did you 'save' the child of a high-ranking Female Snake Immortal of the Immortal Tail from?"

The Wine Fox Immortal bared her teeth, unable to offer a clear explanation.

After all, this Snake Infant had been entrusted to her by someone else.

As for who it was, she had no way of saying.

"I, I... wasn't I picked up by Golden Peng and the others?"

"Would Golden Peng want a half-immortal? Do you even believe that yourself?"

"..."

Wine Fox Immortal was left speechless, opting to play dumb and drink his wine, pretending he hadn't heard a thing.

Lu Ya did not press the matter. After settling Lady Black Sheep and the infant, he returned to the City Lord's chambers on the third floor of Yuelai Inn with Ning Zhongzi.

"What instructions does Senior Brother have next?"

Ning Zhongzi smoothed her robes and looked up at Lu Ya, her bright eyes filled with anticipation.

Lu Ya had originally intended to ask for some pocket money to live it up, but since he had been cornered by Ning Zhongzi, he spoke off the cuff:

"Fan Ni, that tool, can be taken offline. After this battle, I have a premonition that another massive wave of immortals will settle in Azure Phoenix City. Senior Sister, prepare for the expansion project. Increase the number of shops from thirty to two hundred, and switch to a double-row layout. A single-sided street lacks soul."

Upon hearing this, Ning Zhongzi became even more certain that Lu Ya was playing a grand game of chess.

Only then did Lu Ya whisper:

"Now that everyone is gone, Senior Sister, let me tell you something. You must have quite a bit of surplus money from collecting rent. I want to take some Immortal Crystal to spend; you know, in this society, you can't move an inch without money."

Ning Zhongzi smiled gently. As the spokesperson for Liu Xuanye, it was only natural for her to be in charge of the finances, and she knew full well that this money had been earned by Lu Ya, so she naturally would not refuse his request.

"That's fine. Although the city expansion will cost money, I can give you one thousand Immortal Crystal first. Is that enough?"

Just then, the cunning voice of Wine Fox Immortal drifted in from outside the door.

"Ten Thousand Flower Pavilion entrusted me to ask you for the room fee. You left in such a hurry today that you forgot to pay."

Upon hearing this, Ning Zhongzi's bright eyes turned stern and resentful. She stared at Lu Ya without saying a word, then turned and walked away.

"Hey, Senior Sister, don't go! You haven't given me the Immortal Crystal yet."

Alas, there was no reply.

Furious, Lu Ya dragged Wine Fox Immortal into the office and pinned him to the long desk for a sound thrashing.

Wine Fox Immortal resisted desperately, extending his three tails to wrap tightly around Lu Ya's right hand.

"Stop hitting me! Let me tell you, you are the great hero of Azure Phoenix City right now, at least for today. While everyone's enthusiasm for you is still high, let's go drink and listen to music while the iron is hot. Who would dare charge you?"

That makes a lot of sense!

Lu Ya stopped the beating, his grip suddenly turning gentle and firm.

"Does it hurt? Let me rub it for you."