Teacher and Student

Compared to Lu Bode, Li Guang, and others, Zhang Tang's horsemanship was slightly inferior.

While riding through Chang'an City, the difference in their horses was not immediately apparent, but when crossing water Chang'an City, Zhang Tang clearly fell behind.

However, Zhang Tang handled the logistics exceptionally well after falling behind. He not only brought in a twelve-person search team but also obtained a horse-drawn carriage.

Xu Chang lay on the carriage, his face bruised and his eyes vacant and lifeless.

Capturing Ao Sheng is a great achievement. Capturing such a wicked dragon is morally justifiable, and even the Dragon Kings of the Four Seas would be ashamed to set foot in Chang'an City. Moreover, the body of a dragon will bring many benefits.

This achievement would be enough to make Xu Chang proud and honored, and would surely improve relations with Changxin Palace, even making the new emperor extremely grateful. It would also surely allow some of the army's fiercest generals to obtain treasures such as dragon horns, dragon tendons, and dragon scales, thereby gaining greater killing power.

But all of this requires Xu Chang to risk his life as a test.

Even if Li Guang knew, Xu Chang still vaguely sensed that Incantation Technique was following him, and that the other party might want to end the life of him, the Prime Minister of the Great Han.

Xu Chang ultimately did not gamble with his life.

Even if he only had three more days to live, Xu Chang felt he wouldn't gamble.

He was old, his blood had grown cold, and Xu Chang didn't want to die lying among the corpses of mayflies.

Faced with the conflict between supreme glory and the rationality of self-preservation, Xu Chang had no choice but to confront the consequences he had to accept.

"Lord Dong... Lord Dongfang!"

It wasn't until they entered Chang'an City that Xu Chang realized the feeling of being watched had subsided.

He struggled to lift his head.

The dragon that caused chaos in the Jing River was Ao Sheng, but there was also a water god dragon king residing in the water palace.

If there was any merit to be gained from this chaotic battle, Xu Chang felt it was only from Ao Li, the Water Dragon King who was willing to make amends.

However, the conditions for interacting with the other party are extremely demanding.

Perhaps it was Zhang Xuezhou's earnest inducement and coercion that led the other party to reveal themselves. They only accepted the court's appointment of Zhang Xuezhou for communication and exchange, and any unusual behavior would be met with hostility, thus causing them to relocate the Water Palace away from the Jing River.

This is a credit that falls on Zhang Xuezhou's head. Although it's hard to know how significant the role is, Zhang Xuezhou can at least be credited.

"I hope Lord Dongfang will say a few kind words then, so that I won't suffer a terrible fate!"

Upon seeing Zhang Xuezhou leaning over on horseback, Xu Chang whispered about the Dragon King Ao Li.

As long as he can generate sustained value in his interactions with the Dragon Clan, the probability of Xu Chang's safety will increase. At this moment, he is also trying his best to secure every bit of support when he liquidates his assets and withdraws.

"I, Xu, will not let Lord Dongfang suffer any loss," Xu Chang in a low voice.

"Prime Minister, you flatter me. It was you who stopped the rain. You fought the enemy with your life..."

"Commander Li is with us!"

Xu Chang's eyes dimmed.

Some things can be concealed from the truth, but some things cannot be concealed and will inevitably be found out by the new emperor, empress dowager, and others.

Xu Chang knew Li Guang very well and was well aware that the other party would definitely report back.

Regardless of what Xu Chang said, or what Zhang Xuezhou and Lu Bode said, Li Guang's report was the standard answer from the new emperor and others. His decision to let Ao Sheng go because he valued his life would inevitably be exposed.

"When Lord Dongfang was summoned for questioning by His Majesty and the Empress Dowager, all he needed to do was..."

"But my illness is about to flare up again. Can the Prime Minister hold on for another twelve days?"

Xu Chang had just telepathically instructed Zhang Xuezhou on how to speak in a roundabout way, and when Zhang Xuezhou mentioned his patient, he immediately closed his eyes.

"Heaven is going to kill me!"

Xu Chang muttered to himself, lying on the carriage without saying another word, letting the carriage pull him toward the Imperial Medical Academy.

"Lord Zhang, you can have this horse. I'm sick and need to go home!"

The carriage from Xu Chang sped ahead, with soldiers clearing the way. Zhang Xuezhou glanced at the carriage that had begun to race through the city, pursed his lips, and chose to jump off his horse.

"Does Lord Dongfang not go to the Imperial Medical Academy if he is ill?" Zhang Tang asked curiously.

"My illness was caused by treatment at the Imperial Medical Academy, and now I'm terrified of even seeing it!"

Zhang Xuezhou waved his hand and returned the mount to Zhang Tang.

He waved to Rong Tianding, who was riding behind him, then shook off his clothes, which were covered in mud and mayfly corpses, before shaking his head and sighing as he walked towards Old Tree Alley.

"What happened? Why does everyone look so depressed?"

Zhang Tang asked in surprise, but no one responded.

Li Guang rode past with a solemn expression, while Lu Bode remained silent and followed closely behind Li Guang.

After running a hundred meters, Li Guang's eyesight sharpened.

"Sneaking!"

Zhang Xuezhou was unable to go to the palace due to an impending relapse of his illness, and thus they parted ways.

The carriage carrying Xu Chang sped towards the Imperial Medical Academy, taking the lead.

However, the spy did not choose either of these groups; instead, they focused their attention on Li Guang and his men.

Li Guang reached back and drew his bow and arrow, observing the unusual surroundings as he spurred his horse forward.

After running for nearly several miles, Li Guang pulled back the bowstring, and an arrow flew out.

The arrow grazed Lu Bode's scalp. Before Lu Bode could even feel the shock of the arrow hitting his head, he heard a slight hissing sound above his head. A ten-foot-long, grayish-white venomous snake appeared in an instant, then was pierced by the arrow to its tail, turning into a long grayish-white hair that fell to the ground.

"It's a deliberate attempt to create a false impression!"

Li Guang's heart skipped a beat, and he cursed under his breath.

After searching along the way for a long time, Li Guang finally shot down the target with an arrow. He never expected that it was just Snake Head Incantation hidden in Lu Bode's head, which he had been holding back.

The other party may have already left, or they may have set their sights on other targets, or perhaps it was to cover Ao Sheng's departure so that they could repeat this method of manipulating clouds and rain in the future, or something else entirely.

Li Guang found it difficult to guess the opponent's intentions, and he had no way to deal with such an unseen adversary.

If the court's experts in Technique Method cannot find the flaws in such cultivators, they will be in a very passive position.

Li Guang ultimately had no choice but to ride back to the palace to see how the court would respond.

As they walked closer to Laoshu Hutong and their own doorstep, Zhang Xuezhou's expression grew increasingly grim.

Holding his staff, he pointed at Rong Tianding again, and the two of them returned to the house together.

When A-Qiao, who had been invited back by Rong Tianding, saw the two and was about to greet them, Zhang Xuezhou waved his hand to indicate that he would not speak, and then led Rong Tianding into the study.

"The teacher came from afar and followed the student to their home, so did they just stand outside the whole time?"

Zhang Xuezhou asked, his face grim.

"I'm afraid you'll beat me to death if I go inside!"

The ethereal sound drifted over, making it difficult to discern its direction; even Zhang Xuezhou, skilled in Demonic Sound Technique, couldn't distinguish it clearly.

But the ability to communicate means that Hongku did indeed come with him.

This was a troublesome person that Zhang Xuezhou disliked intensely; he never imagined that he would run into Hongku while staying in Chang'an City.

Zhang Xuezhou felt that he had never had a good day while following Hongku.

He lived in constant fear while apprenticing at the Yedie River Holy Land. When he went to the Kunlun Sacred Land, he was abandoned by Hongku and Venerable Lei. He managed to gain some advantage by impersonating Hongku and preaching at the Black Stone Courtyard, but then he fell into Hongku's trap and became a shield for the enemy who was about to kill Hongku.

Since their debut, Zhang Xuezhou and Hongku have collaborated and disagreed, but Zhang Xuezhou has never won decisively.

This left him feeling no joy when he met Hongku again, and he was even more worried that Hongku would try to take advantage of him again.

"I'm seriously ill," Zhang Xuezhou said sincerely. "I'll be in a coma for about ten days in a while. How could I dare to be disrespectful to you!"

Oh? Is your illness worse than before?

"My periods of unconsciousness are getting longer and longer; I'm afraid I won't make it this far!"

Sigh~

With a long sigh, a naked, blurry figure emerged in the study, revealing Hongku's gray-white hair and ruddy complexion.