Emperor Yuanjing: Where Are My Lotus Seeds?

Inside the stone gate, the old man's voice carried a hint of laughter:

"First, we need to find out what the current Supervisor is plotting. The first Supervisor didn't kill you because he wanted to steal the fortune. If you died, the fortune would be returned to the Great Feng. That's what that guy named Ji Qian said, right?"

Xu Qi'an nodded.

The old man continued, "But this argument has a flaw. If it were true, the current Superintendent would only need to kill you to thwart their plot."

Xu Qi'an hummed in agreement. "So, the current supervisor has other motives, or perhaps Ji Qian's understanding is wrong."

The old man praised, "You are indeed a very wise person. We are warriors, and with the temperament of warriors, when faced with such a situation, we don't need to hesitate at all; we just overturn the table."

"Can't we lift it?" Xu Qi'an said in a deep voice.

"Then accumulate strength and try to survive in the cracks. No matter how strong the two generations of supervisors were, one thing is certain: your destiny is within you; it is your power, and it will become your reliance. This is a fact that even the supervisors cannot change. You are a smart man; you should understand what I mean."

The old man said.

"I wonder if you, senior, were involved in that process of accumulating power?" Xu Qi'an asked with a smile.

The old man paused for a moment, then chuckled and said, "You came to Quanrong Mountain for the banquet just for this, didn't you?"

Xu Qi'an nodded, then shook his head. "It's just a matter of luck. And coincidentally, I'm overflowing with luck."

The old man laughed and said, "Alright, if you can find me the nine-colored lotus root, I will help you!"

Xu Qi'an pondered for a moment and said, "Would a small piece be alright?"

The old man countered, "Can a small piece of lotus root really help me advance to the second rank?"

It seems they want the whole lotus root, or at least most of it. In that case, the lotus root I have is useless. And the Nine-Colored Lotus Root is a treasure of the Earth Sect, so Master Jinlian definitely won't give it to me; there's no doubt about that.

"Is there anything else that can be used as a substitute?" Xu Qi'an didn't dwell on the lotus root.

"Perhaps!" the old man said.

After a moment of silence, Xu Qi'an asked, "Have you ever seen that supervisor from five hundred years ago?"

"I've met you!"

The old man gave an affirmative answer, and then laughed, "Back then, he hadn't yet established the Warlock System. Interestingly, that guy was a handsome young man back then, just like the young man you brought up the mountain."

"He was inseparable from the Great Feng Emperor Gaozu, an extremely intelligent man who valued loyalty and integrity, but was also somewhat stubborn. By the way, they shared the same ambition: neither sought immortality."

"Hearing you say that, I get the feeling that the First Generation and the Great Ancestor have a lot of bromance," Xu Qi'an thought to himself.

She's as beautiful as a woman, loyal, trustworthy, stubborn, and doesn't seek immortality!

He silently noted down these key points, then clasped his hands in a respectful bow. "If there's nothing else, senior, then this junior will take his leave."

Behind him came the old scoundrel's voice:

Have you thought about how to escape the misfortune that is about to befall you?

"Senior, just wait and see. Perhaps soon, Xu Yinluo will become history. Perhaps, he will do something that will shock the entire land." Xu Qi'an said without turning his head.

"We'll see," the old man said with a smile.

After leaving the back mountain, the golden-red sunlight bathed the mountaintops. He walked towards his courtyard, where Cao Qingyang had already dispersed his followers and was waiting for him at the entrance with Yang Cuixue and other fourth-rank experts.

What did your ancestors tell you?

"Xu Yinluo, what was that sword energy just now?"

"Xu Yinluo, may I take a look at your sword?"

The sect leaders and gang leaders swarmed over.

Xiao Yuenu, the mistress of Wanhua Pavilion, stood demurely to the side, wrapped in a pink robe, without saying a word, but her naturally beautiful eyes were quietly watching Xu Qi'an, full of expectation.

"What the senior colleague told me was a secret, not to be told to outsiders. As for it..."

Xu Qi'an took the Taiping Blade from his waistband, stood it upright on the ground, raised his eyebrows and smiled, "Anyone who can draw it, feel free to try."

"Just a knife."

A fourth-rank gang leader wielding a knife stepped forward with burning eyes, rubbed his hands together, gripped the hilt of the knife, and pulled hard.

Didn't pull it out.

With another burst of force.

It still can't be pulled out.

The crowd looked on in surprise and gathered around.

"Get out of here, get out of here."

The gang leader dismissed everyone, feeling somewhat ashamed. His arm muscles bulged, and his aura suddenly exploded.

Clang!

The Taiping sword was drawn from its sheath and forcibly pulled out.

The next moment, the gang leader recoiled as if he had been electrocuted, his palm stinging painfully.

Taiping Dao seemed somewhat annoyed. He turned the blade and aimed it at the gang leader, thrusting it forward with a whoosh.

A chase ensued, with one man wielding a knife.

"Absolutely peerless divine weapon."

"This sword is a peerless divine weapon? How come I didn't realize it before?"

"The divine weapon possesses a spirit; it cannot be drawn or used by anyone but its master. Old Sun relied on brute force to forcibly draw the sword, thus enraging it."

Everyone was stunned, speechless. They had never imagined that Xu Qi'an's sword was a peerless divine weapon. Although they had just witnessed a strange phenomenon, no one connected it with the sword, assuming that Xu Yinluo had had some kind of epiphany.

These fourth-rank martial artists, one after another, all looked at the Taiping Blade with a drooling expression.

A peerless weapon!

These are weapons that transcend the realm of Law Artifact artifacts. Each peerless divine weapon possesses its own independent consciousness and has, to a certain extent, transcended the category of mere weapons.

More like companions.

At the same time, the peerless divine weapon can also accumulate its own blade energy to fight enemies on its own.

To paraphrase Xu Qi'an's words from his previous life: I am now a fully-fledged weapon; I can fight on my own.

For Rogue Cultivator, a magical Law Artifact can be passed down as a family heirloom, from father to son, and from son to grandson. For a martial arts organization, a peerless divine weapon can be its most prized possession.

Above even the most powerful divine weapons, there are Law Treasure.

The distinction between peerless divine weapons and Law Treasure lies not in their offensive methods, but in their uniqueness and distinctiveness.

The Taiping Dao is a weapon with a single function; therefore, it is a peerless divine weapon, not Law Treasure.

The Sword of National Protection is both a peerless divine weapon and Law Treasure, because it can suppress the destiny of a nation, which is what makes it unique.

For example, the Earth Book Fragment currently only has two functions: sending messages and storing items.

But this is not the true effect of "ground book," but the effect of the fragments.

Master Jinlian never told the fragment holder what miraculous powers the complete Earth Book possessed.

Xu Yinluo actually possessed a peerless divine weapon.

"Return."

Xu Qi'an said calmly.

The Taiping Dao, like a disobedient husky, chased after Chief Sun for a while before angrily returning to Xu Qi'an's side and circling him.

"Its intelligence is just beginning to emerge, and it still has a lot of room to grow. You should use your Qi to nurture it more, and it would be best to use it to nourish your intention. It will slowly transform." Cao Qingyang's eyes gleamed with envy.

The martial arts Law Artifact has many magical artifacts, but not a single peerless divine weapon.

Moreover, he cultivates sword intent, which perfectly suits his needs. Even as the leader of the alliance, he cannot remain calm.

At this moment, Xiao Yuenu said softly, "I've heard that peerless divine weapons are named, and the name is inseparable from the weapon. I wonder what Xu Yinluo's weapon is called?"

Yang Cuixue and the others immediately looked at Xu Qi'an.

"Master Xiao is knowledgeable and well-traveled."

Xu Qi'an gripped the hilt of the sword, flicked the spine of the blade, and said, "The sword is named Taiping, meaning peace throughout the world. If there is any injustice, let it cut it down."

Everyone was filled with awe and respect.

With peace restored to the world, and all injustices eradicated, Xiao Yuenu's expression was slightly dazed, and she glanced at Xu Qi'an with a complicated look.

After lunch, Xu Qi'an and Nangong Qianrou bid farewell to the members of the Martial Alliance, mounted their horses, and leisurely set off onto the official road.

"Nangong, you've seen more of the world than I have. Have you ever heard of Xuzhou?"

"Never heard of it," Nangong Qianrou said indifferently.

"Such a quick reply, it's obviously insincere," Xu Qi'an thought to himself. The two of them ran along the official road for a long time, but still did not see Li Miaozhen and Chu Yuanzhen return.

Have these two forgotten about me? It would take me half a month to ride back to the capital, nothing like the speed of a flying sword. Xu Qi'an planned to fly back using his invisible wings.

So he said, "Riding a horse is too slow, why don't we fly back?"

Nangong Qianrou scoffed, "Your broken knife can't carry anyone."

You underestimate me. In front of Nangong Meiren, Xu Qi'an took out a Confucian School Law Technique scroll, tore off a page, and lit it with a flick of his wrist. "I have a pair of invisible wings."

Nangong Qianrou clearly sensed a ripple in the surrounding air, and the faint sound of flapping wings could be heard, as if a pair of wings had suddenly unfolded.

"Why don't you just teleport? For example, I'm currently at the city gate of the capital," Nangong Qianrou hesitated for a moment before offering her suggestion.

"It's not that I'm not smart enough. If I summoned a pair of wings, I'd just be crooked for a few days. But if we do as you say, we can indeed return to the capital immediately, but then our clansmen will have to come to my house for dinner again," Xu Qi'an said with a self-deprecating humor.

He grabbed Nangong Qianrou by the shoulders and leaped into the air.

The two flew intermittently, finally arriving at the capital city of Central China on the morning of the second day.

Xu Qi'an's neck inevitably became crooked, and he could only look at people with slanted eyes.

It would be improper for Xu Qi'an to meet Wei Yuan in such a manner, so he decided to go home and rest for a day before playing Truth or Dare with Wei Yuan tomorrow.

Upon returning home, Xu Lingyin came running after hearing the news, excitedly exclaiming, "Big pot! Big pot!"

Upon seeing that Xu Qi'an's hands were empty, their enthusiasm waned considerably.

Xu Lingyin tilted her head and asked, "Big Brother, didn't you bring back any gifts? You always bring back gifts when you go out to play before."

Xu Qi'an tilted his head. "Big brother had something to do this time and didn't bring a gift, why are you tilting your head?"

"I'm imitating the big pot," Xu Lingyin said, still tilting her head.

Xu Qi'an tilted his head to look at her.

Xu Lingyin tilted her head to look at him.

I can't stand it! What a foolish child! I wonder if giving her a lotus seed would make her smarter?

No, that would be too wasteful.

"Why didn't my master come back? I hid a lot of chicken legs for her, and a big pot too," Xu Lingyin asked, tilting her head.

Just then, my aunt came out of the living room and said irritably, "I threw away the chicken leg you hid in your shoe. How could you eat that? Aren't you afraid of getting diarrhea?"

The little boy tilted his head, jumped up and down unwillingly, and shouted, "Where did you throw it? I want to pick it up for Master and the big pot to eat!"

Your filial piety has gone astray. Xu Qi'an said, "Brother, you don't need it. Pick it up and give it to Lina to eat."

The next day.

Tianji and Tianshu finally returned to the capital. They were first escorted by Daoist priests from the Earth Sect who rode flying swords.

However, the Earth Sect Daoist priests lacked patience and were short-tempered. They only sent them to Jiangzhou, which was right next to the capital, and then abandoned the Prince of Huai's spies and left on their own.

After a night's journey by water, the spies finally returned to the capital.

Upon entering the imperial city, Tianji and Tianshu entered through the south gate of the palace. The south gate was rarely used by anyone, as this area was adjacent to the eunuchs' dormitories.

At this moment, Emperor Yuanjing had just finished his breakfast and was about to leave the palace to go to Lingbao Temple to find the Imperial Preceptor for his morning prayers.

A eunuch rushed in to report that the spies who had gone to Jianzhou on a mission had returned to the capital and had just entered the palace, waiting outside for an audience.

"Summon them to the Imperial Study."

Emperor Yuanjing smiled and looked at his attendant beside him, saying leisurely, "I've heard that the lotus seeds of the Earth Sect can Aperture Opening all things, even stones."

"My lord, do you think that if I consume lotus seeds, it will make up for my lack of natural talent?"

The old eunuch smiled amiably, "Your Majesty's talent is unparalleled, why would you need lotus seeds? However, this old servant still wishes to congratulate Your Majesty; eating lotus seeds will make you even more powerful."

Emperor Yuanjing laughed heartily.

He suppressed his emotions and waited for more than a quarter of an hour before leading the old eunuch slowly toward the imperial study.

In the imperial study, Tianji and Tianshu, dressed in black robes and wearing pure gold masks, stood quietly with their heads bowed, not uttering a sound.

Emperor Yuanjing glanced at the two men, his smile unwavering, "Where are the lotus seeds? Quickly bring them to me."

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