"Courting favor with gentle flattery"

Yun Qing understood at once and delayed no further. He raised his hand and produced a lustrous white jade slip. With a slight stir of spiritual power at his fingertips, a phantom image of the Soul-Suppressing Stele appeared above it, a minute crack clearly visible on its surface.

"When I arrived at the Ancestral Shrine with the Young Lord today, I discovered a concealed crack three inches long on the stele's northwestern side. Someone had hidden it beforehand with a sinister secret art. Otherwise, Yun Hao and the others could never have shaken the Soul-Suppressing Stele with their spiritual power. Had I not examined it carefully with my double pupils, I would almost have been deceived."

He tapped a finger, and a grayish-black trace of spiritual power appeared beside the phantom image. "This is the residual spiritual power left at the scene. It carries a peculiar, chilling aura, somewhat similar to the spiritual power of the Twelfth Elder's branch."

"I suspect that what lies behind this is no mere quarrel between the legitimate and collateral branches. The aim may have been to provoke the Young Lord's ill feelings toward me. The deeper purpose... remains to be investigated. However, damaging the Soul-Suppressing Stele and disturbing the Ancestral Shrine are crimes deserving death. I implore the Young Lord to permit a thorough investigation, so we may drag the mastermind into the light and restore discipline to the clan!" He accused no elder directly, merely presented the evidence and stated the facts.

If someone had painstakingly plotted to use Yun Huang's hand to eliminate him... who would be most delighted to see it happen?

Without waiting for Yun Huang's reply, Yun Qing lifted his head. His eyes gazed earnestly into the empty air as he sought guidance with just the right measure of confusion and dependence. "But I am young and inexperienced, and my words carry little weight. There are many crucial points I cannot understand. Might the Young Lord spare a moment to guide me out of this maze and part the clouds so I may see the sun?"

Through his divine sense, Yun Huang observed Yun Qing's deferential, dependent manner, as though he were sincerely seeking instruction. A phrase instantly flashed through his mind:

"Courting favor with gentle flattery!"

This pose again! Yun Huang felt stifled with irritation and had no intention of answering him. Yet, seeing Yun Qing's tall figure still bowed respectfully, he finally deigned to speak, coldly tossing out a few words: "The Profound Ascension Ceremony."

Yun Qing's thoughts raced, and understanding struck instantly. "Young Lord, you mean... this is connected to the Profound Ascension Ceremony, and to the Twelfth Elder's branch desperately needing to retain its seat in the Cloud Summit Tournament?"

He turned to the Second Elder for confirmation. "The Twelfth Elder's branch has indeed produced few outstanding talents in recent generations. Its younger members have broken their blades in defeat at several consecutive Cloud Summit Tournaments. If no one manages to enter the ranks of the Twelve Young Masters in this rotation... Second Elder, would clan rules require the Profound Ascension Ceremony to begin?"

Stroking his goatee, the Second Elder drawled, "Correct. Once the Profound Ascension Ceremony-the Main Lineage Succession Battle-begins, wolves will circle on every side. Many powerful collateral branches that have long been preparing will issue challenges. If they fail to defend their position, the main and subordinate branches exchange places, and their resources are slashed by seventy percent. The Twelfth Elder's branch... may face ruin."

So the root of it all was the imminent Cloud Summit Tournament! The Twelfth Elder's branch had to ensure that Yun Chi successfully claimed a place among the Twelve Young Masters this time.

Although Yun Chi's spirit-devouring body qualified as a rare heaven-tier physique, it had unfortunately run straight into Yun Qing's chaos dao embryo.

The spirit-devouring body had dominance to spare but lacked purity, and lacked even more the mysteries of chaos giving rise to all things. It was merely a spirit physique inferior to the chaos dao embryo.

Thus, the finest resources both needed for cultivation, such as chaos origin qi and primordial marrow stone, naturally went first to the chaos dao embryo. Most of what Yun Chi received was a grade below.

"Therefore, if I fell from favor..." Yun Qing stood with his hands behind his back, a trace of cold mockery in his voice. "The competition for resources between Yun Chi and me is plain to see. But even if the clan made an exception and piled all its best resources onto him, with his foundation, his chances of breaking through his bottleneck before the rotation and defeating the other prodigies in the Cloud Summit Tournament would remain slim."

"If he barely scraped into the last seat, that would already mean blue smoke was rising from his ancestors' graves." The Second Elder mercilessly twisted the knife. He was nowhere near as smooth and tactful as Yun Qing. "What exactly is that old snake, the Twelfth Elder, trying to pull..."

Suddenly, something occurred to the Second Elder. His words faltered, and he spoke with guarded gravity. "Wait. I remember now. That old fellow spends all year studying lost ancient texts. He's particularly keen on those vicious secret arts from antiquity involving Foundation Seizure and Cauldron Exchange..."

Yun Qing's gaze abruptly sharpened! Every clue thundered into place at that moment.

No wonder their first move had been to drive a wedge between him and Yun Huang! If the young clan head happened to 'accidentally' despise him, or even 'punished' him until his dao embryo was damaged...

Then the Twelfth Elder could act first and report afterward under the banner of "preserving a Chaos Prodigy for the Lineage and compensating for its losses." He could employ forbidden evil arts to try to strip away and transfer Yun Qing's dao embryo essence, forcibly pouring it into Yun Chi! Even if it only produced a false chaos dao embryo with an unstable foundation and limited prospects, it would still send Yun Chi's strength soaring, allowing him to stand out in the Cloud Summit Tournament and preserve their branch's status!

By then, the timber would already have been made into a boat. With Yun Huang having "rejected" him first, and a newly created "false physique" available, the Lineage would most likely tacitly accept the deed for the greater good and turn to nurturing Yun Chi instead.

What a fine scheme-kill with a borrowed blade, then sacrifice the plum tree in place of the peach! Not only would they remove their greatest obstacle, they would also seize his dao foundation and pave a road into the clouds for their grandson!

Yun Qing stood with his hands behind his back. His aura ceased to be restrained and abruptly became incomparably sharp. His fitted black robes accentuated a figure that towered like a solitary peak, as though a long-sealed spear had suddenly been drawn, its cold gleam piercing enough to make even Yun Huang, hidden in the shadows, glance his way.

"A spirit-devouring body... a chaos dao embryo..." Yun Huang's cool voice drifted out again, carrying a hint of amusement, as though savoring the two terms. "Both excellent nourishment and vessels."

Those words were like thunder from the highest heavens, savagely striking Yun Qing's sea of consciousness.

Although the Twelfth Elder's scheme had startled him, he had been confident he could handle it calmly. But he dared not take the words of Yun Huang, a reincarnated Immortal Emperor, as a joke. His hair instantly stood on end. If a chaos dao embryo was useful even to a reincarnated Immortal Emperor, had the Twelfth Elder intended from the outset to divide me up with Yun Huang?

The Second Elder's expression also shifted slightly, his eyes growing more solemn. The meaning behind the word "vessel" was enough to chill anyone who understood it.

Yun Qing forcibly suppressed his palpitations and lowered his eyes, his voice carrying a barely perceptible rasp. "I... am deeply afraid. I know only to serve the Young Lord faithfully and protect the Yun Clan. This body and this life are both at the disposal of the Young Lord and the Lineage. I dare not fail you." His words were both a pledge of loyalty and a veiled plea-I am far more valuable to you alive than as a 'vessel.' Please stop eyeing me!

"Hmph. Remember what you said today." No emotion could be discerned in Yun Huang's voice, but the vast pressure fixed upon the Serenity Courtyard dispersed as silently as it had arrived.

Clearly, he had accepted that argument for the time being.

Only after confirming that Yun Huang's divine sense had completely departed did the Second Elder pat his chest, still shaken, and give Yun Qing a thumbs-up. For the moment, he dared not use voice transmission again.

Yun Qing wore a bitter smile, and a sheen of cold sweat covered his back, his muscles slightly taut beneath his black robes. Dealing with Yun Huang truly was no different from walking a tightrope over an endless abyss. Every exchange concealed sharp edges; the slightest misstep would plunge him into eternal ruin.

Within the Serenity Courtyard, Yun Qing discussed a few more details with the Second Elder. The Second Elder gave him a list of the Twelfth Elder's trusted followers, then yawned and took his leave, ambling away.

After seeing the Second Elder off, Yun Qing sat alone on his couch to cultivate. As he focused on sensing the inside of his body, he suddenly detected a wisp of spiritual power bearing a distinctive Radiant Sun Seal imprint. Like spider silk, it lingered almost imperceptibly near his sea of qi.

This was not the result of an injury. It was more like... a mark, a silent declaration.

-"I am watching you."