Chapter 1480: A Personal Visit to Ice and Snow Pavilion

“Controlling the four sects isn’t meant to choke the cultivators beneath Heaven?”

Inside the secret chamber, Niu Youdao paced slowly, muttering as he thought.

Lü Wushuang sat nearby drinking tea and considered the question before replying, “Since the Five Sacred Venerables have publicly stated otherwise, that probably isn’t their purpose. Even if they did want to control supplies, only restricting cultivation pills would have much effect. The other things would accomplish little.”

“And with the situation already deteriorated to this point, restricting the supply of pills would only backfire.”

Niu Youdao stopped walking and sighed. “Whatever the truth, at least this probe confirms that isn’t what they’re doing. We can eliminate that possibility.”

Lü Wushuang said, “There is something you need to watch for. Although your move against Misty Pavilion succeeded, it may have produced a reaction in the opposite direction. The Five Sacred Venerables may now have truly united against an external enemy.”

Niu Youdao looked somewhat disdainful. “You really think the Five Sacred Venerables can be of one mind? Which of them doesn’t want sole dominion over all beneath Heaven? They’re pursuing the Wuliang Fruit trail so relentlessly precisely because they fear another Wu Chang appearing.”

“At least under the present circumstances,” Lü Wushuang said, “barring an accident, they will certainly present a united front against outsiders.”

“There will definitely be accidents. How could I possibly let them sit there comfortably?” Niu Youdao walked to the map of the Sacred Realm and stared at it. “Since we can’t figure out what they’re doing, then we’ll have to watch and wait. They can do their business, and we’ll do ours.”

Lü Wushuang glanced toward the map, a light flashing in her eyes. “You want to move against the old demoness?”

Niu Youdao considered the matter. “Doesn’t Luo Qiu want to keep a lid on things? Yin Ji’s existence alone is enough to make harmony among the Five impossible.”

“I still have some cards in my hand. We’ll see how things develop before deciding how to play them.”

“In any case, we cannot stop. We cannot let them live comfortably.”

“Better to make them react to us than to keep reacting to them.”

...

At Zijin Cave, two distinguished guests arrived together: Long Xiu, Sect Leader of Xiaoyao Palace, and Meng Xuan, Sect Leader of Lingjian Mountain.

Their host was still the same as before and received them with the same courtesy.

Yet Long Xiu and Meng Xuan both felt something about Gong Lince was inexplicably different. They could not tell whether it was merely their imagination, but they vaguely sensed a hint of condescension in the way he looked at them now.

Was it simply because Zijin Cave had become the most powerful faction in Yan?

Both men felt somewhat sour about it and cursed him inwardly.

Let him enjoy himself for now.

Once Jin’s armies marched east, they would see how pleased with himself he remained.

On the surface, however, relations among the three parties remained cordial.

After they sat in a mountain pavilion and tea had been served, Gong Lince smiled and asked, “The two of you arrived rather suddenly. What brings you here?”

Long Xiu sighed. “What else could it be at a time like this? Things have already become this chaotic. Why pretend you don’t understand?”

Gong Lince gave an acknowledging sound, as though he now understood. “The affairs among the Seven Saints. We should simply watch.”

That was what he said aloud, but inwardly his nerves were taut.

Du Wuxu had gone to Wen Hua’s side. Luo Qiu had gone to Xi Haitang’s. Lan Daolin had gone to Yan Zhutian’s.

Any one of those three could be exposed at any time, and if that happened, Gong Lince himself could be implicated.

How could he not be nervous?

Meng Xuan said, “Simply watch? Yuan Se and Lü Wushuang both sent letters directly into our hands. Don’t tell me you never received one. Now Yuan Se and Lü Wushuang are calling on us to act against the Five Sacred Venerables together. Are we supposed to obey or resist?”

Gong Lince smiled. “Didn’t the Five Sacred Venerables say Lü Wushuang and Yuan Se have already had their cultivation crippled?”

Long Xiu snorted. “Brother Gong, why do I get the feeling you’re talking as though none of this affects you? The Five say those two have lost their cultivation, so we’re simply supposed to believe they have? Who would dare take nonsense like that on faith?”

Gong Lince spread both hands. “We cannot afford to offend either side. What else can we do?”

“Other than helping neither side, remaining neutral, and waiting until they decide the victor, what choice do we have?”

“Who would dare casually throw himself behind either camp?”

“Pretend to be confused and keep living your life.”

They all understood the logic.

Long Xiu and Meng Xuan had come only because they hoped the three sides could agree on one position and advance or retreat together.

And it was hardly only the three of them.

The attitude of the sects throughout the world was essentially the same.

Pretend not to understand and muddle through.

...

Inside his study, Shao Pingbo looked over the steady stream of recent reports from the cultivation world and could not help laughing.

“The two sides have actually started a war of words. When did the Five Sacred Venerables sink to this level?”

Shao Sansheng smiled beside him. “Judging from this, the Five Sacred Venerables’ control over the world truly is far weaker than before.”

Shao Pingbo shook his head slightly. “The Five Sacred Venerables will never sit and watch. They will certainly counterattack.”

“Their sudden takeover of Qiyun Sect, Ling Sect, Tianxing Sect, and Myriad Beasts Sect has to serve some purpose. It must be the prelude to that counterattack.”

“Stay in closer contact with Blackwater Terrace. Find a way to increase our attention on the cultivation world as well.”

“I want more information and greater detail so I can judge developments and prepare early.”

“I don’t want some raging torrent to sweep us away before we even realize what is happening.”

Shao Sansheng bowed slightly. “Eldest Young Master can rest assured. We’re already monitoring it.”

...

Inside a small courtyard, Zi Pingxiu and Jia Wuqun sat opposite each other in a pavilion.

Zi Pingxiu watched Jia Wuqun write on the revolving writing board, unsure why the man had invited him over.

After writing several lines, Jia Wuqun turned the board around for him to read:

The purpose behind the Five Sacred Venerables’ control of Qiyun Sect, Myriad Beasts Sect, Ling Sect, and Tianxing Sect is unknown. I must trouble the Chancellor to have the Lamp-Lighting Bureau watch the matter. No detail is too small. Pass everything to me.

Zi Pingxiu looked puzzled.

He glanced outside the pavilion at Yuan Cong and Wei Duo, then tried asking, “Even that side doesn’t know?”

Jia Wuqun shook his head, indicating he had already contacted them and they did not know either.

Zi Pingxiu hesitated. “This involves the Five Sacred Venerables. Is it appropriate to investigate them?”

Jia Wuqun picked up his brush again and wrote:

The Five Sacred Venerables’ eyes and ears throughout the world are destroyed. At present, even the cultivation world obeys them in public while defying them in private. There is no need for concern.

These were not empty words.

Many things could no longer be pushed through by the Five Sacred Venerables.

Take the Wuliang Fruit investigation.

So many people had fled Misty Pavilion that no one could know whether the people with problems were among them. With the surveillance network throughout the world gone, there was no longer any effective way to investigate.

Likewise, if the various sects secretly played tricks, the Five Sacred Venerables had no way to discover them.

The Wuliang Fruit affair could no longer be properly verified.

Monitoring the movements of personnel in the various sects had become equally meaningless.

Too many people had guilty consciences.

Without eyes and ears to distinguish truth from falsehood, the sects could report whatever movements they pleased.

There was no way to verify the reports.

Zi Pingxiu thought it over and agreed. He nodded. “Fine. I understand.”

After he left, Wei Duo walked over, tore off the sheet Jia Wuqun had written on, and added it to the brazier to be burned with the rest.

...

At dawn, above a boundless snowy wilderness, Zhuge Chi lowered the flying mount.

Niu Youdao and Yun Ji drifted down onto the summit of a snow-covered mountain.

The flying mount circled once, then turned back the way it had come.

Niu Youdao and Yun Ji flew toward Ice and Snow Pavilion.

Naturally, none of the three showed their true faces.

As for the flying mount, Huo Kong and the others had taken quite a few with them when they fled Misty Pavilion. Niu Youdao had acquired a batch from those mounts.

Under the present circumstances, so long as they did not expose a flying mount near their own residence or another place connected to them, they could use one more or less however they pleased.

Misty Pavilion’s prohibition could almost be ignored.

The geothermal gorge amid the snowy wastes remained as bustling as ever with cultivators.

Returning to this place again, Niu Youdao strolled past a row of shops, looking around as he walked.

Thinking back to the past filled him with emotion.

In the blink of an eye, so many years had gone by.

Their destination was Rainbow Inn.

Yun Ji handled the arrangements and asked for a room, specifically choosing one that faced the direction she wanted.

Behind the counter, Chu Anlou was still there.

After all these years, he remained the manager of Rainbow Inn.

Seated behind the counter, Chu Anlou watched the guests.

Niu Youdao gave him a slight nod and faint smile as he passed, then continued on.

Once inside the room, Yun Ji checked everything carefully.

Afterward, she opened the window and studied Ice and Snow Pavilion behind the inn for a while.

Then she took the room’s teapot and placed it on the windowsill.

Turning sideways, she silently observed the view outside.

Niu Youdao sat cross-legged on the couch and meditated.

The two of them, a lone man and lone woman, shared the room.

Sometime after noon, Yun Ji suddenly turned her head and reminded him, “They’re here.”

Niu Youdao abruptly opened his eyes, ended his meditation, and got down from the couch.

He walked slowly to the window and looked outside from the side.

Beside the meltwater river, one man and two women approached with a child.

Several guards followed some distance behind, constantly watching their surroundings.

The man was Chuan Ying.

The two women were Xue Luo’er and Sha Huanli.

Sha Huanli was holding the child in her arms and amusing her, repeatedly making Chuan Ying and his wife burst into laughter.

When Niu Youdao noticed the doting look Chuan Ying gave the child, he smiled faintly as well.

At the same time, he noticed Sha Huanli occasionally glance toward the window where the teapot had been placed.

Niu Youdao folded his arms across his chest, turned around, and leaned back against the wall beside the window.

With a faint smile, he said, “Looks like Sha Huanli and Xue Luo’er really are close.”

“She was always afraid Sha Rulai might harm Xue Luo’er. Sha Rulai spent quite a bit of effort on that, repeatedly guaranteeing her safety before he finally managed to persuade her.”

Yun Ji said, “Without that family background, she’s only an ordinary woman. Now that she’s been dragged into something like this, how could she not be afraid?”

Niu Youdao tipped his head slightly.

Yun Ji immediately lifted away the teapot, reached out, and closed the window...

Several days later, after spending some time at Ice and Snow Pavilion, Sha Huanli prepared to return to Star-Plucking City.

Xue Luo’er and her daughter went with her at Sha Huanli’s invitation.

Chuan Ying had originally intended to accompany them, but found an excuse not to go because he had received a letter.

After Xue Luo’er and her daughter rose into the sky on a flying mount with Sha Huanli, Chuan Ying quietly left Ice and Snow Pavilion as well and disappeared into the vast snow-covered mountains.

After changing his appearance, he secretly entered an icebound gorge and reached the meeting place specified in the letter.

There, he discovered two strangers waiting for him.

He immediately turned around, seemingly unwilling to risk some misunderstanding.

Niu Youdao called out, “Chuan Ying.”

Chuan Ying’s body stiffened.

Then he flashed away anyway.

Yun Ji instantly shot after him.

In the blink of an eye, she caught him.

Two heavy impacts rang out during the brief exchange.

Chuan Ying crashed to the ground, where Yun Ji planted one foot on him and left him unable to move.

She bent down and ripped the disguise from his face.

Niu Youdao flashed down and strolled over.

He smiled. “Why run?”

Chuan Ying clenched his teeth. “Who are you people?”

Niu Youdao chuckled. “Anyone capable of using Wu Chang’s name to lure you out naturally knows the secret between you and Wu Chang.”

Fear appeared on Chuan Ying’s face.

His voice sank. “Who exactly are you?”

Niu Youdao looked around. “This isn’t a place to talk. Let’s go somewhere else and have a proper conversation.”

With that, he flashed away.

Yun Ji grabbed Chuan Ying, lifted him bodily, and flew after Niu Youdao.

[End of Chapter 1480]