Discussing Matters

Ten days later, at the Chongming Sect, in the sect leader's courtyard...

"Outsiders all say that once Tie Liuyun gained power, he became arrogant and his wolfish nature was exposed. I think you, Sect Leader Kang Da, are no less than Tie Liuyun." Ye Zhengwen gently placed a piece, securing the victory.

"Ha, what are you saying?" Kang Dabao's face suddenly turned ugly. It was unclear whether it was because Ye Zhengwen had hit a sore spot, or because he hadn't lost a game of chess in a long time, but today he had suffered a crushing defeat on the chessboard.

Without waiting for Sect Leader Kang Da to concede defeat, Ye Zhengwen picked up the chess piece without hesitation.

His mouth didn't stop talking as he continued, "The Assistant Commissioner Tie was originally meant to protect the Mystic Moon Sect. The sooner he reaps the rewards at his Ding Prefecture camp, the sooner he can suppress the arrogance of the people from the capital. Even if he can't save the entire Mystic Moon Sect, he still wants to spare Linghu You's life."

Acting Sima Gun, on the other hand, was wholeheartedly devoted to the king's affairs. He clearly understood the stakes and, taking advantage of the fact that Sima Fei was still in seclusion and Prefectural Governor Zhu was unable to unite the entire Capital Region Faction, he deliberately followed the advice of Assistant Commissioner Tie and set up a ladder for the Earl of Nan'an to safeguard the overall situation.

Although Lord Bo knew the truth of the matter, that was, after all, a False Core cultivator with over a thousand followers, who was of great importance to the Ding Prefecture camp. How could he not feel a pang of reluctance?!

With your discerning eye, you couldn't possibly have missed these things. Yet you still insisted on putting that Earl in such an awkward position. What was the point? Does Feng Wan really value you that much?"

With a "clatter," Kang Dabao didn't answer him. He simply waved his hand with a stern face, and the chess pieces, one by one, separated into black and white, falling back into the chess box.

Without even glancing at Ye Zhengwen's unpleasant expression, he quickly placed another piece.

"You can't even think things through yourself!" Ye Zhengwen didn't tolerate him and immediately shouted loudly, the wind howling so fiercely that it almost overturned the long-standing stone table.

"Why are you in such a hurry? Since you've already offended him, then so be it. I've learned my lesson the hard way, and I can't afford to suffer the same fate again. If I can't eliminate this False Core enemy using the power of the Marquis of Earl of Nan'an, who knows how serious the consequences will be?" A hint of hurt appeared in Kang Dabao's eyes.

After he finished speaking, without looking at Ye Zhengwen, he got up, walked to the bare banyan tree in the courtyard, turned his back, put his hands behind his back, and sighed softly:

"Tie Liuyun is determined to rise to power with the Han City Yue Household, and his conflict with the Capital Region Faction in the state court is almost irreconcilable. Sooner or later, he will offend him."

As for Yue Lin, because of Yue Lan's death at the hands of Uncle Black Shoes, he harbors resentment towards us. He must be making moves in the interior, but he just hasn't had time to do so yet.

Since they can't accept my family here, I might as well follow my Yue Household' path wholeheartedly. My uncle Core Formation the Core Formation stage, but they still don't know how to restrain themselves. There must be something strange about this, which is why I used to do some face-saving work with them before.

But if I continue to be so hesitant, my father's side won't tolerate us for much longer."

That statement was not wrong. Ye Zhengwen did not say anything for a moment, but idly tapped the chess pieces, making a tapping sound in the courtyard.

After a long pause, he finally spoke, then shook his head and said, "This reasoning is simple and without fault, but you cannot hide it from me. If it weren't for Feng Wan's affair, even if you wanted to take Linghu You's life, you wouldn't have had to bear the cost of offending the Earl of Nan'an."

Even if we offend Tie Liuyun, we will suffer the consequences. Don't think that this matter will be over just because the Marquis of Earl of Nan'an ordered us to withdraw from the Mystic Moon Sect. At that time, as long as the Ding Prefecture camp says that they are short of people, do you think the state court will appoint us?!

"You blockhead." Whether Ye Zhengwen was right or wrong, Kang Dabao just shook his head and laughed.

The former, however, immediately changed his tone, becoming very serious and admonishing, "A soft heart is a disease. Which of those who achieve great things, who become immortals or ancestors, is not hard-hearted?!"

The Sect Leader Kang Da's lips curled slightly, and he sighed deeply, "I know that being soft-hearted is a flaw, but I also know that if one truly becomes heartless, even after becoming an immortal or an ancestor, there will be no flavor left in one's heart."

Ye Zhengwen was stunned for a long time after hearing this, and did not try to persuade him further.

The two stood side by side, with only the sound of the wind passing through the courtyard, until Wu Meng knocked on the gate of Lingqi.

The precocious child with his hair in a topknot back then has now grown into a tall and imposing man with profound martial arts skills.

Although Wu Meng was a mortal, he was influential not only in the vicinity of Chongming City, but even newly initiated disciples had to befriend him. After all, Wu Meng served the sect leader and elders, whom many disciples rarely saw for years. Compared to the other two mortal giants, Wu Meng's prestige was self-evident.

But at this moment, the sect leader's attendant abandoned his usual haughty demeanor from when he was outside, and carefully entered, saying respectfully, "Reporting to the sect leader and Elder Ye, He Household is outside requesting an audience."

"Let this girl go back, and just say I won't see her." Kang Dabao frowned, his face showing displeasure, and said in a deep voice.

"Master, the young mistress has brought the young master over. It's quite windy outside," Wu Meng whispered a reminder.

"You brat, did you take Spirit Stone?!" Sect Leader Kang Da suddenly laughed, while Wu Meng repeatedly protested, "How dare I accept Spirit Stone from you, madam?! I was the one who..."

Ye Zhengwen stopped Wu Meng from speaking, reminding him, "Why don't you meet her? You can't hide from her forever."

Kang Dabao, however, remained unmoved, chuckling lightly, "Heh, we've gotten through more than ten years without seeing each other, so let's not see each other then."

Ye Zhengwen did not give up and said softly, "Brother Chang is still cold."

"Bring that good-for-nothing in," a hint of annoyance flashed across Sect Leader Kang Da as he took a step and landed back on the stone bench.

"Uncle~~" The little boy's sweet voice was captivating. He rushed into the sect leader's courtyard before his mother could reach him, and tremblingly ran towards Kang Dabao in the center of the courtyard.

He Wanying could even see her senior brother, her only son had already melted away most of the frost on his face.

Sect Leader Kang Da opened his arms and picked up the delicate, exquisitely beautiful boy, his face now full of smiles.

It goes without saying how this child came to be. During Kang Dabao's three years of seclusion, He Wanying, with Jiang Qing's guidance, was able to accomplish many things.

As for Sect Leader Kang Da, this is Old Sect Leader He's flesh and blood. No matter how much he dislikes his father, there is no reason for him not to like him.

"Chang'er has gained quite a bit of weight," Kang Dabao said happily.

"Brother Yi just came back from Chongming City and brought Chang'er some braised pork knuckle made by Brother Jin Household. It's so delicious!" As he said this, the delicate-looking boy's mouth watered again.

"You two little devils! Your brother Jin Household is working hard to break through to the Qi Refining Seventh Layer, yet he still has to spare time to serve you two young masters."

Kang Dabao feigned annoyance and gave Xiao Dingdang a very light tug.

Startled, the delicate-looking boy kicked his legs repeatedly and cried out, "Mother, Uncle is so mean! Chang'er won't play with him anymore. Later we'll go play with Father and ask him to teach me how to shoot eagles in the mountains."

The moment the child uttered those Fang Yi, the pleasant atmosphere in the courtyard came to an abrupt end.

The young woman's eyes were filled with unconcealed sorrow, Ye Zhengwen's faint smile vanished, and the Sect Leader Kang Da's expression also darkened, his gaze towards the delicate boy filled with a mixture of heartache and relief.

The delicate-looking boy, blocking the little bell, moved in front of his mother, not forgetting to turn back and throw a comment at Kang Dabao: "Hmph, Uncle is the worst! Chang'er is going to go tell Auntie on me."

"Chang'er, don't be rude to your uncle!" After reprimanding the boy He Wanying, He Wanying greeted the two people in the courtyard, "Senior Brother, Senior Brother Ye."

Ye Zhengwen returned the courtesy with a half-bow, and Kang Dabao nodded in response. Then, without asking He Wanying's purpose, he simply uttered a soft "hmm" and said nothing more.

"Junior sister has come to thank senior brother." The young woman wore a white flower in her hair, and her face still showed signs of grief. When she spoke, she had lost her usual spoiled manner, which made Sect Leader Kang Da temporarily put aside his prejudice and raise his eyebrows slightly to look at her.

"Without my senior brother, my son and I don't know when we would have been able to avenge my husband."

"I thought you came here to cause trouble." Sect Leader Kang Da's tone remained unpleasant.

"Junior sister is my father's daughter after all, how could she do such a foolish thing?"

"How many foolish things have you done over the years?" Kang Dabao didn't want to be swayed by this gratitude, and said in a deep voice, "No need to thank me. Go thank Little Sanzi; at least you didn't feed him those rotten fruits for nothing back then. Go thank Uncle Black Shoes; without him, even Little Sanzi would have been ruined for your worthless family."

Speaking of this matter, Kang Dabao also harbored considerable resentment towards Jiang Qing. Without the former's consent, this Third Master Jiang had completely eliminated Linghu You's only daughter, which led to many subsequent events.

Otherwise, if Linghu Rong were still alive, Sect Leader Kang Da could have avoided many subsequent matters and let Zhu Tong fight against the Yue Household and Tie Liuyun.

"That Little Sanzi, luckily I got the Foundation Establishment Pill back from him and gave it to Old Ye, otherwise he probably would have let Wanying keep it too." Kang Dabao thought to himself again.

"Junior sister understands." He Wanying's beautiful eyes flickered, and a few clear tears fell.

The delicate-looking boy, oblivious to the situation and remaining true to his original nature, immediately became angry again, pouting and shouting, "Mother is crying! Uncle is bad! When Chang'er grows up, I'll beat you up and avenge Mother!"

"Live well, you still have Chang'er." Kang Dabao left these last words, then shook his head and returned to his room without paying any more attention to the people in the courtyard.

After He Wanying bowed to Ye Zhengwen, she picked up He Chang and left the sect leader's courtyard.

The delicate-looking child was named Chang by his father, Feng Wan, who wished for a smooth and peaceful life for his child. The child's surname, He, was decided by the domineering and overbearing Sect Leader Kang Da.

Like many virtuous mothers in the classic texts of various sects, He Wanying is about to embark on the path of raising children that her father and brothers do not want her to take.

This time, Sect Leader Kang Da didn't stay in the cloud room for long before Jiang Qing found him. The two found a room and sat down facing each other.

"Is this all we've got?" Kang Dabao asked first, casually picking up several Storage Bag in front of him. Jiang Qing, sitting opposite him, was still pale, clearly indicating that his injuries had not fully healed.

That's understandable, after all, chasing after False Core is no easy task.

If it weren't for the fact that Linghu You Daoist Black Shoes had improved further, and that both Sect Leader Kang Da and Jiang Qing had made progress, it's uncertain which side would have been the one fleeing in such a sorry state in Jin County.

Not to mention that the three of them, wielding the might of Dasheng, had slain several Foundation Establishment from the Mystic Moon Sect.

Jiang Qing didn't bother with formalities in front of Kang Dabao. He sat cross-legged and said casually, "Some of them weren't very valuable, so I just picked out a few small ones and gave them away as a reward."

"Mo Guang only knows how to pamper them, but the rules for entering the warehouse still need to be followed. Otherwise, these rules that have been so hard to establish will fall into disuse very quickly if you don't follow them and I don't care about them."

Seeing that Jiang Qing didn't seem to be listening, Sect Leader Kang Da put his things away and asked, "Has Uncle Black Shoes' injury improved?"

When the conversation turned to serious matters, Jiang Qing's expression became solemn. "My master said that Linghu You probably hasn't made any progress since he achieved the False Core. He's a mediocre person, far inferior to Yuan Buwen and Yue Lan."

I observed that he was almost fully recovered when he returned from the Mystic Moon Sect, so he seemed to be quite well. I heard that my uncle recently planned to visit Tengwen Prefecture, apparently to attend an auction or something.

Kang Dabao thought for a moment, then said softly, "I'll take over your task of transporting military supplies from now on. I've just come out of seclusion and don't have anything important to do. You should go with your martial uncle this time. Listen to his teachings along the way, broaden your horizons, and you can at least avoid some trouble."

Jiang Qing nodded and agreed first, then said, "The dragon beast master sent by my sister-in-law's family is quite skilled. He is willing to teach me everything he knows, so even this silly child Anle has made great progress in the art of beast taming. Now he is not far from becoming First-Tier Superior-Grade beast master."

He had previously told Anle that the Grass Deer in the Beast Garden sold well, but their blood quality was low, making them more for show than practical use. In addition, the number of vain female Daoists was always limited, and if they sold too many in the future, they probably wouldn't be able to make much money.

Therefore, he wanted to ask Anle to lead people to the Cold Crow Mountain to find some Higher Vehicle -quality hoofed beasts to breed with the Grass Deer, and try to tame another kind of pack animal that combines a delicate appearance with a powerful bloodline.

I thought that since we were going to search anyway, I might as well take Anle and the others with me. Who knows, we might even find a useful Second Tier Demon Beast. My martial uncle still needs a few days to prepare. I'll finish this matter first, and then it won't be too late to serve him at Tengwen Prefecture."

"Your plan is not bad, but Second Tier Demon Beast beasts are quite fierce and may be difficult to subdue." Sect Leader Kang Da agreed with the idea, but raised some questions about what Jiang Qing had said.

Jiang Qing, however, didn't care at all and waved his hand dismissively:

"As long as they aren't completely stupid and ignorant, and know how painful it is for a flying sword to cut flesh, they should be able to reason with us. Even if they truly don't understand reason, it's still not a loss; we're just making the most of them."

"Now that our Chongming Sect's various crafts have begun to take shape, not a single piece of flesh, bone, or blood can be wasted; they can all be made into spiritual items and exchanged for Spirit Stone at the Chongming Small Pavilion."

Kang Dabao didn't insist any further. After all, with Jiang Qing protecting the disciples as they entered the Cold Crow Mountain Range, things would be safer. Even if they couldn't capture a Second Tier Demon Beast to breed, the probability of finding some powerful First Tier Demon Beast would greatly increase.

As the two were talking, Yuan Jin, who hadn't left the house in a long time, also came in. He didn't stand on ceremony and went straight to the point. "Senior Brother, I'm still missing one item when I Foundation Establishment."

"What is it?" Although Kang Dabao had already prepared this round of spiritual dew for Yuan Jin, he still couldn't explain its effects. Since Yuan Jin had taken the initiative to ask for it, it certainly wasn't without reason.

Foundation Establishment is a major undertaking, and putting in some effort is always beneficial, as it increases the chances of success. Sect Leader Kang Da is naturally concerned about this.

"We need the Essence Blood from the root of the Black-Pupiled White Ape's nose, both first and second tiers, the more the better." Yuan Jin showed no politeness.

"First Tier apes aren't uncommon; the He Household's caravan has a stable supply. Second Tier, however, are hard to find. I never heard them mention them when I spoke with those mountain travelers from the Chongming Small Pavilion years ago. I don't know if it's because they weren't very close, or if all the Black-Pupiled White Ape in this area have already been wiped out."

After Kang Dabao read for a while, he saw Jiang Qing's eyes light up, and she said with some excitement in her voice:

"When I accompanied Brother Ji Yunsheng to Hong County to exterminate the Giant-Toothed Mountain Monkey last time, I saw several groups of Black-Pupiled White Ape living peacefully nearby. It seems that these beasts are even more widely distributed in Hong County."

"Senior Brother has important matters to attend to and cannot leave, so I, your junior brother, will handle this. We can work on two fronts simultaneously without neglecting either. I can take Anle and the others to search for Second Tier hoofed beasts at the same time."

"Don't be so impulsive," even though his junior brother had already reached the Foundation Establishment, Sect Leader Kang Da still couldn't help but nag again.

Before Jiang Qing could reply, Yuan Jin blurted out, "Senior brother, let me go with Little Sanzi."

The two Foundation Establishment inside the room were both taken aback. After thinking for a moment, they realized that Yuan Jin hadn't left the Chongming Sect since he killed eleven of his peers last time. Going with him this time would be a good way to relax.

Excessive, strenuous practice and being too tense are not good for Foundation Establishment.

"Well then, let's do it that way." Kang Dabao made the final decision, and continued, "I will write to the Chongming Small Pavilion and Double Brightness Caravan, asking my junior disciples to make a big effort to acquire the Essence Blood of the Black-Pupiled White Ape's mountain root. I suppose this item is not exactly rare, so there shouldn't be a shortage."

Meanwhile, the Merit Points Hall will also post tasks, mobilizing disciples with spare time to search for them in various places. I will have Junior Brother Ye keep an eye on this matter, so don't worry."

"Thank you, Senior Brother." Yuan Jin bowed.

Kang Dabao suddenly asked, "Second, I only have one question for you now, tell me honestly. Did you suffer Qi Deviation while practicing the 'White Ape Scripture' back then?!"

Yuan Jin suddenly raised his head, met the concerned look of the Sect Leader Kang Da for a moment, said nothing, and then lowered his head again.

The hall was silent; the three brothers, who rarely gathered together, also fell silent.

After an unknown amount of time, the sounds of clinking glasses and toasts emanated from the room again, continuing for a long time.