The god of the Yanluo clan that Zhang Ruochen wished to see was, naturally, Yan Zhexian.
The last time they met, because he had to go secretly to the Abyss of Darkness to meet Yan Wushen, Zhang Ruochen had used all manner of excuses to coldly refuse Yan Zhexian’s kindness. He had appeared utterly heartless and had felt deeply guilty ever since. He very much wanted, before he died, to explain everything to her face to face and thus settle one burden on his heart.
Yan Zhexian was pure of heart. Upon learning that Zhang Ruochen had been struck by the Dao-Severing Curse, far from kicking him when he was down, she had instead offered help in his hour of need, wishing to take him to the Yanluo clan so that the Supreme could break the curse for him.
Yet Zhang Ruochen had deliberately wounded her feelings.
Later, he had even heard that Yan Zhexian had been captured by the Great God Wen Tong of the Temple of Darkness, which only deepened his guilt.
Since she had not come to Xing Huan Tian, however, Zhang Ruochen said no more about it. “This old man simply does not understand. Bai Qing’er is a cosmic-cycle-level genius and the disciple of the Star-Sea Angler. In future she may well become a God Venerable herself. How could the gods of the Yanluo clan not wish to marry her?”
Yan Yu smiled faintly, the refined smile of a scholar. “Since the elder has spoken openly, Yan will not hide the truth. The Yanluo clan is interested not only in Bai Qing’er, this seed of a God Venerable, but in the entire Twelve Divine Maiden Manors and indeed the whole of Xing Huan Tian.”
“Oh?” said Zhang Ruochen.
Yan Yu continued, “The world sees only the City Lord of the First Divine Maiden City, the White Empress, and her twelve manor lords. Yet they do not know that among the heavenly proud daughters who have married out from the Twelve Divine Maiden Manors, some have also reached the divine realm. And every single one of those they married was an outstanding hero of his era, some even overlords of entire regions.”
“The influence of the Twelve Divine Maiden Manors has long spread across the Hell Realm and the myriad realms of the Heavenly Court. Countless ears and eyes serve them. Their power is far beyond merely Xing Huan Tian and its one hundred and eighty Divine Maiden Towers. Those are only the surface.”
“In some respects, their mastery of intelligence and their penetration of the world’s hidden secrets surpass even the Red Dust Peerless Tower under the Heavenly Palace and the Divine Mountain Astonishing Cloud Pavilion under the Temple of Destiny.”
“If the elder regards them as a mere group of weak women, he would be gravely mistaken.”
Clearly, Yan Yu had overheard Zhang Ruochen’s earlier conversation with the Nether Flower Manor Lord.
Zhang Ruochen was of course well aware of the Twelve Divine Maiden Manors’ strength. Even setting aside previous eras, in this era alone they had managed to arrange for a woman to fall in love with Luo Sheng Tian, the divine imperial son of the Tianluo Divine Kingdom of the Rakshasa clan. In the Domain of Destiny they could even influence the Death Priest of the Temple of Destiny and mobilise the temple’s power to achieve their ends.
Yan Yu went on, “Now that war has begun and the universe is in great turmoil, this is not merely a war between the Heavenly Court and Hell Realm. It is highly likely to ignite even greater conflicts; anything that defies imagination may occur. In such times, a power like the Twelve Divine Maiden Manors is naturally something every side wishes to control.”
“Controlling them is equivalent to controlling the ears and eyes of the entire universe.”
“Controlling Xing Huan Tian is equivalent to controlling the throat that guards the Sea Stone Star Route, and thus holding the initiative in the next phase of war between the Hell Realm and the southern universe of the Heavenly Court. That is why, even while the starry battlefield rages and heaven and earth are overturned, gods from both the Heavenly Court and Hell Realm still gather in Xing Huan Tian.”
Though Zhang Ruochen’s expression remained unchanged, huge waves surged within his heart.
He was not shocked by what Yan Yu said; Zhang Ruochen had long thought of all this himself.
What shocked him was that Yan Yu would speak so frankly to a dying old man like him. Was Yan Yu not afraid that Divine Master Yu Rumour or the White Empress might overhear?
Or perhaps he intended them to hear, using these words to convey the will of the Yanluo clan.
Yan Yu wore a faint smile as he continued, “Everyone knows that Bai Qing’er’s mother is the White Empress and her father is the renowned Great God Huang Tian. In future she is certain to become the lord of the Twelve Divine Maiden Manors. Marry her, and one gains control of the entire Twelve Divine Maiden Manors and of Xing Huan Tian, this great world of extraordinary strategic importance. And the one married is a future God Venerable.”
“This old man understands!” said Zhang Ruochen.
“Does the elder truly understand?” asked Yan Yu.
Zhang Ruochen nodded. “The Second Prince has spoken at such length because he desires the Heavenly Venerable’s Treasure Gauze.”
“The Yanluo clan has no need to send more gods here. Even if there exists among the gods born to the Yanluo clan in this cycle someone stronger than the Second Prince, none is more outstanding than he, and none possesses his noble status. Bai Qing’er is no ordinary woman; to enter her sight is exceedingly difficult. The Second Prince is her best choice.”
Yan Yu straightened his robes, assumed a solemn and respectful bearing, and bowed deeply to Zhang Ruochen. “If the elder would give the Heavenly Venerable’s Treasure Gauze to Yan, Yan will certainly present a life-extending divine pill in return. These are not empty words like those of Lord Shi Ying. With the Supreme’s mastery of alchemy, the life-extending divine pill he refines would be of the highest quality.”
“This old man can see the Second Prince’s sincerity and trusts his character, but the Heavenly Venerable’s Treasure Gauze truly is not in my possession,” said Zhang Ruochen.
Yan Yu merely sighed, showing no suspicion of Zhang Ruochen’s words.
After all, to a man on the verge of death, the value of a life-extending divine pill far exceeded that of the Heavenly Venerable’s Treasure Gauze. If it were in his hands, there would be no reason not to exchange it.
Yan Yu said, “In truth, I have always suspected that the recent appearance of the Heavenly Venerable’s Treasure Gauze is nothing but a trap.”
Zhang Ruochen grew interested. “How so?”
Yan Yu explained, “The Heavenly Venerable’s Treasure Gauze is merely a thing of legend. That legend began ten cosmic cycles ago, more than a million years past. No one has ever truly seen it.”
“Yet after Bai Qing’er publicly announced that whoever brought the Heavenly Venerable’s Treasure Gauze to the Exquisite Conference and presented it to her could marry her, a legend over a million years old suddenly became real, and the treasure itself emerged. Is that not far too convenient?”
“By my reckoning, there are only two possibilities.”
“First, this is a scheme deliberately set by Bai Qing’er herself.”
“Her purpose is difficult to guess. That woman’s intellect is demonic; her actions follow no pattern. She even dares commit acts that defy the world. No matter how clever one is, one may still fall into her calculations.”
A thousand years ago, Bai Qing’er had single-handedly toyed with all the cultivators of the Hell Realm, stirring storms and creating chaos. She had left a deep impression on Yan Yu.
“Second, some great clan of the Hell Realm or some great realm of the Heavenly Court is orchestrating this, deliberately spreading news of the Heavenly Venerable’s Treasure Gauze to draw everyone’s attention.”
Zhang Ruochen asked, “If the Heavenly Venerable’s Treasure Gauze is utterly fictitious, then what meaning is there in people like the Second Prince, Shang Hong, and Hai Shang Ming Gong coming to Xing Huan Tian?”
Yan Yu smiled. “It is precisely because people think as the elder does that the schemer can use this cognitive trap to whip up trouble. In reality, what Bai Qing’er and the Twelve Divine Maiden Manors truly want is not the Heavenly Venerable’s Treasure Gauze at all, but to refine the First Divine Maiden City into a true divine city. Whoever can help them achieve that will marry Bai Qing’er.”
“If more than one power can accomplish it, then it will be time for Bai Qing’er to choose in reverse.”
“So the Second Prince coming alone to Xing Huan Tian is sufficient, because the Yanluo clan certainly possesses the means to refine the First Divine Maiden City into a divine city.”
“I have already said much today. Yan takes his leave.”
Having confirmed that the Heavenly Venerable’s Treasure Gauze was not in Zhang Ruochen’s possession, Yan Yu naturally lost interest in further conversation.
Yet just as he turned to depart, he paused and, with grave seriousness, warned, “Yan believes the elder does not have the Heavenly Venerable’s Treasure Gauze, but other cultivators will not. Moreover, Blade Venerable has already issued a divine decree: whoever kills you and brings your divine heart to the Blade God Realm will be granted the status of divine envoy.”
“Therefore, the elder would do best not to leave Wuming Manor. If you must leave, be especially wary of Shang Hong. That man is a genius unseen in ages. His cultivation is but one step short of the Great God realm, and he is one of the Envoys of Truth who crossed the tenth level of the Sea of Truth, mastering vast quantities of truth profundities. He stands at the very pinnacle of this cosmic cycle. A thousand-year new god like Wu Ma Jiuxing is as far beneath him as heaven from earth; Shang Hong could crush him with a single finger. Yan has said all he can.”
It was clear that even Yan Yu harboured deep wariness toward a powerhouse of Shang Hong’s calibre.
