Just a Useful Pawn in the Stain Sect

Chapter 507: The Dynasty Nurtures Scholars for 15,000 Years

Inside the Junior Tutor’s Mansion in Celestial Wu City.

Li Taian stumbled all the way back. The moment he landed, he looked up at the current Junior Tutor and said through gritted teeth, "Sir, we can’t hesitate any longer!"

"We must find a way to disband the Imperial City Department!"

At these words, the Junior Tutor’s expression became troubled. "What happened? The Imperial City Department... it was established by His Majesty, after all. What can we do?"

"Besides, the matter of His Majesty’s assassination hasn’t been cleared up yet..."

"We can’t let them investigate any further!"

Li Taian gritted his teeth. "He isn’t investigating the assassins and Demon Sect spies at all. He’s using this as an excuse to eliminate his rivals. If you ask me, *he’s* the one who’s more like a Demon Sect spy."

At this point, he glanced around and lowered his voice.

"I even... I even suspect he’s that lord from the West, pulling the same old tricks, sneaking into our Dao Court to make a fortune through illicit means! Sir, we must be on our guard!"

"That lord from the West!?" The Junior Tutor was shocked, then his face filled with worry. "But he already controls the Commander-in-Chief’s Mansion, and he has the support of the Empress and the Crown Prince. So many officials in the Imperial City Department follow him, too. He’s already become a formidable power..."

"That One Heart Association is the biggest problem!"

Li Taian said gravely, "His Majesty was deceived by that Demon Dragon, and the Crown Prince and the Empress have been hoodwinked. We must find a way to set things right!"

"...What do you plan to do?" the Junior Tutor asked.

Li Taian took a deep breath and shared his idea. "Invite Wu Taian, the Southern King, to the capital! He is His Majesty’s own brother, and his Position is no lower than the Crown Prince’s."

"As long as he’s on our side, we’ll have legitimate grounds to stand on."

"But before that, someone has to restrain that Demon Dragon’s movements. We have to intimidate him and stop him from being so arrogant."

After speaking, Li Taian turned around. "Pingyi, this task must fall to you."

Hearing this, Zheng Pingyi, the current Junior Master, finally looked up and calmly shook his head. "I’m sorry, but I don’t wish to get involved in this kind of power struggle..."

"This isn’t a power struggle!"

Li Taian’s voice suddenly rose. "Can’t you see? That Demon Dragon is suspected to be a hidden pawn of the Bhagavat! If we’re not careful, the entire world could be turned upside down!"

"Have you forgotten the fate of the previous dynasty?"

"This..."

Seeing Zheng Pingyi waver, Li Taian took another step forward and grabbed his hand. "If this continues, the nation will cease to be a nation."

"The Dao Court is in a time of crisis. On my own, I truly can’t... I can’t do anything."

As he finished, Li Taian’s voice even choked up. He finally said in a low voice, "Pingyi, you just need to keep an eye on that Demon Dragon. You don’t have to worry about anything else."

As personal disciples of the Three Ministers, the Junior Master was the most unique among the three of them. He had no interest in the Dao Court’s power struggles, focusing all his energy on Combat. Thus, his combat prowess was also the strongest. At least in Li Taian’s eyes, the current Junior Master, Zheng Pingyi, was likely the number one cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage in the Dao Court.

With him watching the Demon Dragon, Li Taian could rest easy.

Next, he looked at the Junior Tutor again. "The Imperial City Department is just a disorderly mob. As long as Pingyi can restrain that Demon Dragon, there’s still hope!"

"Additionally, we need to persuade the Empress and make her understand that Demon Dragon’s ambition."

"As long as the Empress and the Crown Prince stop supporting that Demon Dragon, he won’t be able to hold on by himself. The more glorious he was before, the harder his fall will be."

"In short, that Demon Dragon has already secured the loyalty of the Commander of Five Armies. We absolutely cannot let him get his hands on the Emperor’s Token. Otherwise, once he commands the five armies and uses the Emperor’s Token to gain the ’As if I were present’ Position, the situation will be truly lost. It won’t matter who comes to help then."

"We all understand the reasoning."

The Junior Tutor sighed. "But how do we do it? The Emperor’s Token is with the Empress, and the Empress is in the Celestial Wu Hall. But the Celestial Wu Hall is currently sealed off by the Imperial City Department..."

"That’s simple."

Li Taian said in a low, serious voice, "This time, the Imperial City Department’s city-wide search has stirred the wrath of Heaven and the resentment of the people. I plan to gather all the court officials and go to Xuanwu Gate together to remonstrate."

The Junior Tutor’s expression changed instantly. "Don’t be reckless!"

"That Du Huan is ruthless. If he gets vicious, it’s not impossible for him to wipe out all the remonstrating officials in one go. People will die..."

"People dying is exactly what we want!"

Li Taian’s tone was vicious. "If no one dies, how can we make the Empress and the Crown Prince see that Demon Dragon’s ambition and understand that he is anything but a loyal and righteous man?"

Under the rules of the Dao Court, the Imperial Family and the officials had always complemented each other. Therefore, Li Taian was certain that even if Empress Xiao wanted to suppress them, she wouldn’t truly resort to a massacre. So, if the officials caused a commotion, at the very least, Empress Xiao and the Crown Prince would have to show up and meet them.

This would put Lü Yang in a difficult position.

If he sat back and did nothing, they could publicly admonish Empress Xiao and inform her of Lü Yang’s ambitions. It might not drive a wedge between them, but it would at least make Empress Xiao wary.

But what if he did intervene and didn’t let Empress Xiao meet the officials?

Then, without any need for their admonishment, Empress Xiao herself would become suspicious of Lü Yang... Therefore, Li Taian’s move could be called an open and undisguised scheme.

The only drawback was that people might die.

But whether a thousand people died or ten thousand, or a hundred thousand, it was just a number. If they died, they died. What they held in their hearts were the Nine Provinces and Ten Thousand Directions.

"In any case, Official Positions can be re-appointed. The more who die, the better!" Li Taian said harshly. "The dynasty has nurtured its scholars for fifteen thousand years. Now is the time for them to die for righteousness!"

...

Commander-in-Chief’s Mansion.

Lü Yang sat upright in a Master’s Chair, his eyes slightly closed. He formed a Daoist Hand Seal, and a dark gold color began to suffuse his originally fair skin.

On that hand, the dark gold color gathered, eventually transforming into a series of patterns that seemed carved between Lü Yang’s five fingers. If one looked closely, they would see that these dazzling runic patterns combined to form the names of several Abilities.

Heaven-Slaying Sword-Drawing Technique, Heartless Slash.

Formless and Thoughtless, Dust Separation and Disruption.

One Thought Divine Saber.

These were, astonishingly, the Innate Abilities of the Commander of Five Armies, all of which had now been Deprived by Lü Yang using Ming Monarch’s Rule and integrated into the Gold-Plated Military Token.

’Incredible...’

Feeling the Inlaid Gold Talisman suspended in his palm, a look of delighted surprise appeared in Lü Yang’s eyes. ’This Daoist Skill... its power might be even greater than I imagined!’

Empress Xiao had contributed greatly to this.

The Innate Abilities of the five Commanders of the Capital Camp were complementary. After being unified by the Gold-Plated Military Token, the Position of the Abilities had grown almost exponentially.

’That’s secondary.’

’Most importantly, I still have the Tribulation Wave. Combined with my Sword Intent and amplified by the Gold-Plated Military Token, the power I can unleash will be absolutely supreme!’

Beyond that, Lü Yang had another pleasant surprise.

Because Lü Yang had successively mastered three Daoist Skills, his understanding of the Fruit of Celestial Fire had deepened. Furthermore, his actions to seize power within the Dao Court had attracted the attention of the Fruit of Celestial Fire. As a result, the bottleneck that had plagued him ever since reaching Foundation Establishment Perfection had finally loosened.

’The Fruit of Celestial Fire embodies the transformations of Yin and Yang, the division of the sun and moon.’

’In the Sun, it is firm, with the radiance that adorns the heavens. In the Taiyin, it is soft, with the brightness that leaves the sea. If the sun and moon are in the sky together, it holds the wonder of warming mountains and seas, illuminating the cosmos...’

A vast sea of knowledge flowed through Lü Yang’s mind.

This was all his Cultivation, his understanding of the Fruit of Celestial Fire. Filled by this Cultivation, Lü Yang felt his Soul growing harder and harder.

Washed over by his Cultivation, his sturdy Soul began to tremble violently, like a climber scaling a treacherous peak who nearly falls but manages to persevere. He pushed on until he finally reached the summit. Only then did his accumulated Cultivation, mixed with his Divine Sense, finally pour out like a bursting dam.

"AHH!"

The next moment, Lü Yang’s eyes flew open as he let out a long cry. At the same time, within his Soul, a streak of golden light slowly emerged.

’The first strand of Gold Attribute... a Gold Attribute that belongs only to me... I’ve refined it!’