Three Factions of the Heavenly Court

Su Yuan hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but held back.

Xu Jingyang, who stood nearby, was quick to take the hint. He immediately rose to his feet, stroked his beard, and chuckled.

"Ah, I've been sitting too long, and my old bones are getting stiff. I'll go up to the deck for some fresh air, enjoy the sea of clouds, and keep an eye on Red Boy for the Great Sage while I'm at it."

With that, he leisurely left the cabin, leaving the space to the master and disciple.

Only the two of them remained in the cabin, accompanied by the faint whistle of the flying vessel cutting through the sea of clouds.

Su Yuan fell silent for a moment, seemingly choosing his words before he finally spoke.

"Master, now that things have come to this, I won't hide it from you any longer..."

Venus Star Lord raised his eyelids slightly, a flicker of understanding passing through his eyes.

He was an exceedingly perceptive figure. He had long noticed that Su Yuan had made frequent moves during this descent to the mortal realm and built up such a massive business. There was no way it had all come from Su Yuan's own little schemes and courage.

There had to be a deeper, more secretive force behind it, perhaps even one that was not entirely "respectable," pushing things along. Su Yuan was very likely an operative sent by that faction.

But he had no desire to investigate it—not now, at least. He did not even want to hear about it.

Successfully recruiting the demon monkey this time was a tremendous achievement. Riding this favorable wind, Venus Star Lord would firmly return to the core of Heavenly Court's power. He had even gained a little more standing before His Majesty, and he was bound to rise further in the future.

At such a critical juncture, he absolutely did not want to become too deeply entangled with any force that might be viewed as the "dark side." Black and white had never mixed easily. He only wanted to stand in the light and bask in heavenly favor.

Seeing his teacher's expression, Su Yuan tactfully swallowed the words about the "recruitment supplies" that had already reached his lips. His throat bobbed, and he smoothly changed the subject, his tone becoming lighter as he brought up Red Boy's placement.

"Before I descended to the mortal realm, I happened to encounter Senior Ink Qilin. At his request, I promised to keep watch for and recover some of his bloodline descendants who had been scattered among mortals..."

"Hmm?"

Venus Star Lord's half-closed eyes flew open. Though the old man was an immortal of pure yang with no interest whatsoever in romance between men and women, he was intensely interested in this sort of gossip.

He even unconsciously gestured with both hands as if measuring something, apparently imagining countless scenarios in an instant. His voice was full of disbelief. "That Ink Qilin is so huge. Red Boy and Ink Qilin could... could actually be related?"

Su Yuan nodded.

"According to what Bull Demon King said while drunk, he himself seems to possess a trace of extremely diluted ancient qilin blood."

"Think about it, Master. Cattle and qilin both belong to the four-legged beasts. Trace their ancestry back tens of thousands of years, and surely they must share some distant kinship. It just so happens that we can send Red Boy over to make the old qilin happy in his old age, while also securing Red Boy a better background. A win-win—an absolute jackpot!"

Venus Star Lord did not respond immediately. Instead, he began to reassess his disciple.

He had originally thought Su Yuan was merely a runner or messenger pushed forward by the faction behind him.

But from the way he had spoken just now, and how casually he arranged such matters, it seemed that he had extremely deep ties to that hidden force. It did not even seem like a simple superior-subordinate relationship.

After Venus Star Lord also left under the excuse of needing rest, Xu Jingyang leisurely slipped back in.

He poked his head around, confirming that Venus Star Lord was indeed gone. Only then did he gently close the door behind him, lean close to Su Yuan, and lower his voice. The kindly old man's smile faded somewhat.

"Little Su, my eldest brother sent me a message just now. For this little 'job,' after expenses, how much of the 'profit' will actually end up in everyone's hands? My eldest brother is... waiting for word."

Su Yuan was stunned at first, then suddenly remembered that Xu Jingyang ranked third among the Four Great Heavenly Masters. The leader of the Four Great Heavenly Masters was none other than Zhang Daoling of Mount Longhu, Zhang Tianshi!

Qingxu, a Daoist from Zhang Tianshi's residence, had indeed participated in handling the contraband goods this time and had supplied quite a few of the main ingredients for demon transformation pills.

So that was it! I was wondering why Xu Jingyang had cooperated with me so seamlessly along the way. I thought he was just a kind old man with no opinions of his own. So this was where it all started!

No, it was even more likely that he was the person sent down this black-market line to supervise the accounts.

At that thought, a fine layer of cold sweat instantly broke out across Su Yuan's back.

He did not dare be careless. Quickly composing himself, he laid out the calculations he had prepared.

"Heavenly Master Xu, rest assured, the accounts are clear. We purchased that batch of 'goods' for a total of roughly ninety-eight million spirit stones, strictly keeping it under one hundred million. As for the sales revenue from this operation..."

He paused and held up one hand.

"Preliminary estimates put it around this figure—roughly five billion."

He went through the accounts with Xu Jingyang in full after setting aside the flying vessel's earnings. He explained in detail how much Ink Qilin would take as the middleman, how much each faction would receive according to its investment share and status, and finally stated, "Roughly speaking, the net profit this time is astonishing. Even after deducting all the necessary expenses, Zhang Tianshi's final share should be about this amount."

He held up two fingers.

"Two hundred million?!"

Xu Jingyang sucked in a sharp breath, and his eyes brightened.

Su Yuan nodded.

"Precisely. More importantly, under the banner of recruitment, we've completely opened up the channel to the Six Great Sages led by Bull Demon King. That line is secure from now on. I don't need to explain the value of an 'exclusive business,' do I?"

The Four Great Heavenly Masters were bound together in fortune and adversity. If Zhang Tianshi could receive two hundred million, then according to the rules and their internal shares, Xu Jingyang himself could at least receive forty or fifty million! He was so delighted that his smile stretched from ear to ear, and he clapped his hands with laughter.

In his excellent mood, he became more talkative. He leaned closer and took the chance to reveal many secrets of Heavenly Court.

"Little Su..."

Xu Jingyang lowered his voice, took a sip of tea, and deliberately kept him in suspense.

"Do you know why Venus Star Lord thinks so highly of you, and why even the eccentric Ink Qilin is willing to show you such respect and set up such a grand operation for you?"

Su Yuan remained silent, his brow furrowing slightly. His path had indeed seemed remarkably smooth. Ever since ascending, he had handled one matter after another successfully, always escaping danger and even turning misfortune into blessing.

Of course, his own efforts had played a part, but one also had to consider the course of history.

Seeing Su Yuan remain silent, Xu Jingyang chuckled teasingly. "What do those two big shots see in you? Your slow cultivation? Your poor innate talent?"

Su Yuan could only smile bitterly. "Heavenly Master, please stop teasing this junior. I still possess that much self-awareness."

Xu Jingyang laughed heartily and stopped keeping him in suspense. His expression turned slightly serious.

"Today, this old man will give you a lesson. After the ancient war between the shamans and demons, the Dao Ancestor personally ordered Haotian God to take over Heavenly Court and restore order. At that time, there was a faction in Heavenly Court composed either of veteran officials who had already served during the Demon Emperor's era, or great powers personally sought out by His Majesty and invited to ascend to Heaven as officials. This faction had the deepest roots and was the most traditional. It was generally called the Establishment Faction, led by Mother of Jade Pool, Donghua Emperor, and your teacher, Venus Star Lord."