Gods and Men, Words and Swords

"Um?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Yifu was taken aback at first, then realized what was happening.

"Indeed, we are fighting underground, how could the Underworld Office, so close at hand, not know? I suppose even if the gods didn't intervene, they would remain hidden to the side, but..."

Thinking to himself, Wang Yifu turned to look at Tong Shou and saw that the other party did not show any surprise, which clearly meant that he had expected it.

As Qiu Yan finished speaking, Qidian in the air not far away, and three human figures radiating white light appeared.

An elderly man, who looked to be in his fifties, and two young men, one stout and the other well-proportioned.

The three people were dressed similarly and looked no different from ordinary people. However, they appeared out of thin air, without any trace of human presence, and exuded a faint sense of pressure after their appearance.

These are three deities.

"Greetings, Three Divine Lords." Qiu Yan stepped forward and greeted the gods.

"Sir, there's no need for such formality. We three are Wandering God. We sensed a fight here and came to investigate. We meant no harm." The three deities waved their hands repeatedly, being very polite.

It was clear that they were somewhat wary of Qiu Yan, and their words and actions were cautious.

This is understandable. The three gods came under orders, but what they saw next made them somewhat terrified.

The Divine Rank of Wandering God is of the Seventh Grade, and in terms of combat power, he is equivalent to a cultivator who has just entered the Third Realm. However, the strength that Qiu Yan has shown has already exceeded this level, and he cannot be simply referred to as a mortal. If he were to fight, none of the three gods would be his match, so naturally he would not dare to be arrogant.

"The strife of the mortal realm has disturbed the peace of the Divine Office. This is our fault..."

Qiu Yan spoke plainly, as if talking to an ordinary person. Although he was admitting his mistake, he did not make people feel humble.

This behavior caught Tong Shou's attention. You see, even those with exceptional cultivation and combat power surpassing ordinary gods still have reservations when dealing with them. After all, gods and humans are not only different in their life forms, but also in many other ways.

Cultivators can achieve longevity through spiritual practice, but they cannot be considered immortal. Deities, on the other hand, are granted divine status, and as long as incense offerings continue and talismans remain intact, they are essentially free from the threat of extinction. This alone is enough to inspire awe, not to mention that deities often represent a Divine Office and set of rules, fundamentally different from flesh and blood. They can even interfere with Fortune and Karma, altering the fates of mortals and affecting their descendants.

"When this person communicates with the gods, their speech and behavior are completely normal, without the slightest trace of pretense. It's not feigned composure; why is that? Even Master is inevitably moved when meeting deities, after all, gods cannot be encountered frequently. But this person's expression when conversing with the gods is as if they can frequently encounter them..."

A question crossed his mind. Not long after, Qiu Yan bid farewell to the three deities and walked towards Tong Shou and the others. Then, he raised his hand and grabbed, his True Qi forming a ribbon that trapped Tong Shou and the others, pulling them away.

"What is the background of this scholar? I tried to trace his origins with my Divine Sense, but there is no record of such a person in the files."

Watching Qiu Yan's departing figure, the three Wandering Gods put away their smiles, and the old man-like deity asked in a telepathic message.

"The records don't mention it, which means they're not from Eastern Capital. They must have come because of the Apricot Altar Dao Discourse," replied the well-proportioned Wandering God beside him. "However, after this incident, we can't let our guard down. We need to pay closer attention. Also, those cultivators came to help us this time, so we can't ignore them."

"That's not right," said the slightly stout deity. "This person is quite powerful, comparable to the Fourth Realm cultivator. Our conversation just now has established contact with us. If we let our guard down because of surveillance and a few Daoists, it would be unwise to offend each other or create discord."

"What do you mean?" The old-looking deity seemed to have realized something.

The slightly overweight deity said in a deep voice, "Although the evil Eastern Capital has temporarily retreated after disturbing the Eastern Capital, the City God has taken a piece of his flesh, so things are unlikely to end well. He may return at any time. This god is incredibly powerful, and without the assistance of a highly skilled cultivator, the Divine Office alone may not be able to defeat him."

The other young deity then realized what was going on. "You mean you want to befriend this scholar and ask for his help later?"

The slightly overweight deity nodded and said, "Even if we don't forge a relationship, it's good to leave a good connection. At least we've left a way out; it might come in handy when things really come to a head."

"That makes sense," the elderly deity agreed. "Today's events should still be reported truthfully, and a file should be created afterward. However, we can also submit our thoughts at the same time."

As the words fell, the figures of the three deities gradually disappeared, their radiance vanished, and they returned to nothingness.

Splash!

As the three gods departed, this man-made open space descended into darkness and began to collapse, with mud and sand quickly filling it up.

"Young master, you're back?"

Inside the inn, Hu Qi and Dai Guo were somewhat surprised to see Qiu Yan suddenly return.

The story of the Apricot Altar Dao Discourse" is also circulated among the common people, though not in detail. To ordinary people, the " Apricot Altar Dao Discourse " was simply a group of scholars gathering together and arguing with each other.

Only those who know the inside story will know that those who discuss philosophy in academies and studies in the Mortal Realm are mostly people who are not qualified to Scholar Forest, or those who have simply been eliminated. Their discussions are a cover-up.

Hu Qi and Dai Guo were already familiar with the Apricot Altar Dao Discourse at the Apricot Altar, and they also possessed cultivation. During the time Qiu Yan was away, the two of them had done some investigation and knew that these few days were the time for the Daoist discussions, a time when many scholars would enter the forest. However, they did not expect that Qiu Yan would return at this time.

"During the time I was away, did anyone come?" Upon returning, Qiu Yan immediately inquired about what had happened after he left.

Hu Qi thought for a moment and said, "Three days ago, that Mr. Ji sent someone to say that he knew about your choice and would repay your kindness in another way in the future." As he spoke, his face was full of curiosity, but he refrained from asking any further questions.

Qiu Yan nodded and then asked, "Has anything unusual happened in the city?"

"Something big happened in the city," Dai Guo answered quickly. "Not long after you left, young master, the sky suddenly became stormy, and Heavenly Soldiers and Generals descended upon the Imperial City. The scene was truly astonishing!"

"Heavenly Soldiers and Generals?" Qiu Yan narrowed his eyes. "Do you know if they're real or not?"

Hu Qi replied, "That's hard to say, but someone who dares to cause such a commotion in the Eastern Capital and do such a thing in the Imperial City must be genuine. Otherwise, Heaven would surely issue a warning. After all, although there is no True Dragon guarding this city, it is still a secondary capital, and all evil spirits are warded off."

The emperors of the Great Rui Dynasty all resided in Prosperity Capital in the west, leaving the eastern Imperial City, empty. Eastern Capital was known among the people as "the place without True Dragon to rule."

Qiu Yan hesitated for a moment, then asked, "How was the matter resolved?"

"The heavenly soldiers were directly dispersed by several streams of Qi and Blood in the Imperial City. That Qi and Blood was like a pillar of energy, which no ordinary person could produce. It must have been a master from the imperial palace." Hu Qi's eyes changed as he spoke, clearly still feeling lingering fear. He cultivated the Fate Dao of Fate and was sensitive to the Essence Blood pillars of masters of Life Cultivation.

At this moment, Dai Guo said, "However, after the Celestial Soldiers Void Ruins and the smoke and clouds dissipated, the Eastern Capital did tremble a few times, though not significantly. It must have been suppressed by someone. Although it could deceive ordinary people, it couldn't deceive cultivators. In my opinion, someone must have fought a major battle, which is why it affected the city! However, there must be experts stationed in the secondary capital to suppress it."

"Are people fighting here?"

Upon learning this news, Qiu Yan suddenly thought of the Void-Driving Dao Lord and became thoughtful.

Dai Guo was about to speak again when Hu Qi tugged at his sleeve, signaling him not to interrupt Qiu Yan's train of thought. However, this gesture brought Qiu Yan back to his senses, and he smiled and said, "This is no small matter, but it's not our concern for now, so there's no need to delve into it."

Hu Qi nodded and continued, "Speaking of which, there have been some things happening these past two days. The Apricot Altar Dao Discourse has officially begun, and many scholars have gone to the academies Inner City. Some have even entered the Imperial City, presumably to enter the forest from there." There was one question he didn't ask: why didn't Qiu Yan participate?

Qiu Yan saw through the other person's thoughts and said, "You must be curious as to why I chose this time to come back."

"That's right!" Dai Guo replied. He didn't hold back when he spoke. "Young Master was also planning to participate in that Dao Debate. I've heard a lot of news these past few days. It's said that many talented young people will stand out in the Dao Debate and quickly rise to fame once they leave the Scholar Forest. Young Master can't miss such an opportunity!"

The information he was referring to wasn't hearsay from the street, but rather information gathered through spies and infiltration.

Qiu Yan didn't hide anything from the two and said directly, "I've already been to Scholar Forest literati's circle and gained a lot. My next step is to improve my public image and reputation. However, becoming famous throughout the world shouldn't rely on competitions among scholars. Let them compete for literary fame; it has nothing to do with me."

"Hmm?" Hu Qi and Dai Guo were still curious, but Qiu Yan said, "Alright, let's pack up. We'll be finding somewhere else to stay later."

"Find another place to stay?" Dai Guo perked up immediately upon hearing this. "Is the young master heading west?"

Qiu Yan shook his head and said, "I don't plan to for now. Right now, I need to settle a few people in. The inn is inconvenient here, so I need to find another place." After saying that, he told the two to go upstairs and went back to his room.

It had been a while since I'd been here. The house hadn't been returned by Hu Qi and Dai Guo, but the two were guarding it, preventing people from easily entering or leaving. It was already covered in a layer of dust.

Looking around, Qiu Yan shook his head, raised his hand to form a hand seal, removed a layer of disguise, then walked to the table, tidied up the books, and finally came across the long, narrow box that the Han Residence had sent, containing the manuscript of the Legalist Sage.

"I need to choose a day to return the things." He thought to himself, when suddenly something struck him, and the few sparks of Sage Sun Spirit within his Heart Fire trembled, faintly resonating with the box.

"Hmm?" Qiu Yan was just starting to think when two more orbs of light flew out of his soul and condensed into a book in the air.

Clang!

A noise came from a corner of the room, originating from Qiu Yan's bundle and longsword!