Inside the Immortal Mansion, the Bee Queen wriggled over to the edge of the Purple Bamboo Forest. Watching the Black Land beyond continue to expand, she spoke to Nanli the Firebird, who had grown much taller.

"The land is expanding again. It seems Master has had a breakthrough in his cultivation."

By now, few secrets within the Immortal Mansion could escape the Bee Queen. As the Spirit Beast who had resided there the longest, she had personally witnessed the Immortal Mansion grow from a tiny plot of land to its current seven hundred acres.

When Fang Qingyuan was at the Foundation Establishment Fifth Layer, the Immortal Mansion was about five hundred and forty acres. A thirty percent increase brought it to its current seven hundred acres.

Each time the Immortal Mansion grew, Fang Qingyuan’s total soul power increased along with it. To the Bee Queen, it felt as though her master’s spiritual pressure grew stronger with every expansion, so it was no surprise she reached such a conclusion.

Nanli tilted her head, looking at the Bee Queen. Uninterested, she then ran off to the newly cleared Black Land, trying to dig up something to eat.

Seeing Nanli’s silly antics, the Bee Queen lost interest. After watching the Immortal Mansion’s expansion for a while longer, she wriggled back to her hive and started to leisurely read a book while drinking tea. She had recently discovered a new recipe: adding cream and maple syrup to her tea. It was delicious.

Just as the Bee Queen was engrossed in her reading, Fang Qingyuan’s soul appeared silently beside her. By the time she noticed him, her little face had gone a bit green.

Fang Qingyuan plucked the Mortal Book from her grasp, glanced at the title, and laughed.

"How many of these have you read?"

The Bee Queen mumbled defensively,

"Not that many. Only a dozen or so."

Fang Qingyuan nodded and tossed the book back to her. Just as the Bee Queen was silently rejoicing, he said playfully,

"Since you’ve read so many, you must be brimming with beautiful prose. Why don’t you try writing one yourself? I’ll have it published for you. We’ll see if the mortals like your work."

"Huh!?"

The Bee Queen stared blankly. Long after Fang Qingyuan’s figure had vanished, she still hadn’t snapped out of it. Alchemy, she could handle. But writing? That was truly beyond her. If she had any hair, she would have been tearing it out while rolling on the ground.

.....

After his soul returned to his body, Fang Qingyuan couldn’t help but laugh to himself. ’So there is something that can stump that little Bee Queen, after all.’

Returning to the matter at hand, Fang Qingyuan sensed the surging Magical Power within him and grew a little worried. His cultivation was progressing steadily, but his personal alchemy thesis was still undecided. ’Do I really have to wait until I reach Foundation Establishment Perfection to finalize it?’

He recalled the prerequisites for the third of his potential alchemy theses—the one concerning the ’Voice of All Sentient Life.’ With a resigned sigh, Fang Qingyuan stood up, summoned Jinbao, and flew toward the White Mountain Beast Taming Sect.

「Two days later.」

He arrived at the White Mountain Beast Taming Sect. Fang Qingyuan strode confidently to the main gate. He didn’t need to present a formal notice of his visit; a Guest Officer immediately came forward to greet him and lead him inside.

Feeling as if he were returning to his own home, Fang Qingyuan showed none of the decorum of a guest, leading the Guest Officer directly toward the back of the mountain.

"Wait, wait, Sect Leader Fang! I must announce you! I have to! Sect Leader Le is in seclusion right now."

The Foundation Establishment Guest called out desperately from behind, but Fang Qingyuan paid him no mind. He knew perfectly well that Lechuan’s "seclusion" was just a story for outsiders.

Sure enough, when they reached the back of the mountain, Lechuan’s voice echoed in their ears.

"Let him in. You may go about your business."

Fang Qingyuan entered Lechuan’s residence with Jinbao. Lechuan was at a desk, flourishing his brush as he painted on a long scroll.

A black cat was sprawled on a nearby Jade Couch. It lifted a paw and gave Fang Qingyuan a little wave.

"Greetings, Master Heiye. I trust you are well?"

Fang Qingyuan stepped forward with a fawning bow, pulling out some Top-Grade Demon Beast Jerky from his storage bag as an offering for the master.

Heiye accepted the jerky without ceremony and began to gnaw on it. Seeing this, Fang Qingyuan plopped down on the Jade Couch.

Heiye shifted slightly to make more room for him, then said,

"I was just about to send for you. You’ve got good timing, showing up on your own."

Hearing this, Fang Qingyuan blinked. ’Something good is about to happen,’ he realized, and waited quietly for Heiye to continue.

A moment later, Lechuan set down his brush and turned to Fang Qingyuan with some news.

"Di Yuanpu was only ever using Zhao E Lian. Back then, he had Zhao E Lian take my place for two reasons: one, he wanted someone with a vicious temperament like Zhao E Lian to keep things under control, and two, he wanted to take all the credit for the campaign for himself. Now that the campaign is over, it’s no longer appropriate for Zhao E Lian to remain the Sect Leader of the Southern Border Beast Taming Sect."

Hearing Lechuan say this, something clicked in Fang Qingyuan’s mind. He tried to follow his train of thought.

"So, Zhao E Lian did the dirty work and took the fall for it, but now he’s holding onto the profits from the Southern Border Beast Taming Sect, blocking other people’s road to riches. Is that why Di Yuanpu, our Nascent Soul Ancestor, wants to replace him with one of his own people?"

Lechuan chuckled and tossed his brush aside, saying happily,

"Zhao E Lian comes from a poor background, and no one at Zongshan is willing to speak up for him. Otherwise, with his contributions to the campaign, it wouldn’t be so easy for Di Yuanpu to replace him. Unfortunately, his temperament is brutish and arrogant, and he’s offended quite a few people. Even the Nascent Soul Uncles in the sect see him as a piece of dog shit and avoid him like the plague."

"Besides, I’ve been holding onto the evidence you brought back all those years ago, biding my time. Now, I’ve managed to ’sell’ it for a good price. Di Yuanpu is willing to expend resources to obtain it. When the time comes, you’ll act as a personal witness to nail the coffin shut on Zhao E Lian for good."

With just a few casual words, the future of the currently all-powerful Zhao E Lian was sealed. Although it was primarily the will of the Nascent Soul Ancestor, Di Yuanpu, Lechuan’s patience had played a crucial role.

After hearing all this, Fang Qingyuan thought for a moment. ’Zhao E Lian is probably done for.’ Even if he wasn’t put under house arrest, his position as Sect Leader of the Southern Border Beast Taming Sect would certainly be revoked.

As for executing him? That was an unrealistic thought. How could a Late-stage Golden Core cultivator, who also had a Nascent Soul Level Companion Beast, be executed so easily just for being implicated with Demon Cultivators?

This kind of investigation was an internal affair for the Beast Taming Sect; it couldn’t be handed over to the Great Zhou Academy. Who knew if the people from the Academy would use it as a pretext to drag even more people into the mess? The Beast Taming Sect would never do something that would hand a weapon to the Great Zhou Academy.

After thinking this through, a crafty glint appeared in Fang Qingyuan’s eyes. He grinned at Lechuan and said,

"I can testify, Master, but you can’t swallow my share of the reward! Even a few crumbs from Nascent Soul Ancestor Di Yuanpu’s table would be more than the Qingyuan Sect could handle. The Qingyuan Sect is your creation too; you can’t just provide for the White Mountain Beast Taming Sect and forget all about us."

Hearing this, Lechuan laughed and scolded him playfully before explaining,

"I’ve already used most of the resources Uncle Di offered me to bargain for one thing: I must find the person who murdered Liang De all those years ago and get justice for him."

At the mention of Zhao Liangde, Fang Qingyuan’s expression turned serious. Years ago, Zhao Liangde had been exploring the Black River Ruins when he was ambushed and killed by a Demon hired by the Spirit Wood Alliance. The Alliance was later told to produce the culprit, but they claimed they couldn’t find them, and the matter was shelved.

To think that after more than twenty years, Lechuan still hadn’t forgotten. He was willing to trade a vast amount of resources just to get justice for Zhao Liangde.

Zhao Liangde had been incapacitated for over two decades now. He had been old to begin with; even if he were revived now, he wouldn’t have much time left. But some things weren’t about such calculations. A person can’t live solely for profit; there must be principles to uphold, things worth fighting for.

Fang Qingyuan couldn’t find any words to argue against Lechuan’s resolve. After all, Zhao Liangde had helped him a great deal back then.

But then he remembered the purpose of his own trip. He hesitated for a moment before asking timidly,

"Seeking justice for Senior Brother Liang De is the right thing to do, of course... but were *all* the resources traded away?"

Lechuan shook his head and burst out laughing.

"I knew you were thinking about that. I only used my share of the resources. You were the key person who pushed this matter forward, so I didn’t touch your portion. When you meet Uncle Di, you can make your own request. How much you get will all depend on your own skill."

Fang Qingyuan retreated sheepishly. ’Since it’s about my alchemy thesis, what does a little pride matter? Besides, there’s no shame in this in front of my own master.’

As for Heiye, the Golden Core Spirit Beast, Fang Qingyuan automatically discounted him. They weren’t even the same species, so there was no shame to be lost.

’Originally, I was planning to get a Beast Taming Heart Method from Lechuan. But Di Yuanpu is a Nascent Soul Cultivator; his influence must be much greater. It shouldn’t be too hard to ask him for a Celestial Beast Taming Heart Method... right?’

「More than half a month later.」

Fang Qingyuan remained at the White Mountain Beast Taming Sect, waiting. His stay ended the day Heiye summoned him.

He recalled Jinbao into the Immortal Mansion to avoid giving anything away in front of a Nascent Soul Cultivator. He then followed Heiye to where Lechuan was waiting. With a wave of his hand, Lechuan swept the two men and one beast into the air, and they flew off toward the Southern Border.

Golden Core Cultivators flew at incredible speeds. A journey that would have taken Fang Qingyuan five days was covered by Lechuan in less than one.

Once they reached the Southern Border, Lechuan flew directly toward Celestial Gate Mountain. As they flew, they could still see faint traces of how the area used to look.

The Beast Taming Sect’s original Guest Officers had lost their usual arrogance; many unfamiliar disciples had taken their places.

Entering the main hall, Fang Qingyuan saw an old man seated on the main throne. His face was a web of wrinkles so deep a mosquito could get trapped in them. Judging by his appearance alone, he was ancient.

A giant crocodile stood behind him, balanced on its tail and hind legs, sitting upright like a person. In its hand-like forelimbs, it clutched a few small Bulrush Pigfish. Every so often, it would toss one of the squeaking creatures into its massive maw and chew it raw, an expression of pure satisfaction on its face.

Zhao E Lian was seated in a subordinate position, his expression dark and sullen. Several other Golden Core Cultivators from the Beast Taming Sect were also present, but Fang Qingyuan didn’t recognize any of them.

"Lechuan of the White Mountain Beast Taming Sect, along with my disciple Fang Qingyuan, pays respects to Uncle Di."

Just as Lechuan and Fang Qingyuan finished their bows, before Di Yuanpu could even speak, his eyes narrowed. In the next instant, Fang Qingyuan heard a piercing feline shriek as Heiye’s body arched, his fur standing on end.

Turning around, Fang Qingyuan saw that the giant crocodile had finished its Pig Fish at some point. It had ambled over to Heiye and was now wiping its hands on his fur, smearing the sticky mucus from the fish all over him.

"Look at you! So naughty! Get back here, now!"

Di Yuanpu scolded angrily, but though his words were stern, he didn’t move from his seat. The surrounding Golden Core Cultivators all stared at the floor, pretending they hadn’t seen a thing.

"Hee hee..."

The giant crocodile let out the mischievous, bratty giggle of a little girl and scurried back behind Di Yuanpu.

With that, Di Yuanpu cleared his throat and continued,

"Since everyone has arrived, let us now discuss the matter of Zhao E Lian colluding with Demon Cultivators at the Outer Sea Iron Wind Islands."