Chapter 487: Chapter 487: Ang Xiao’s Unease

「Three days later.」

The East, Celestial Wu City.

Lü Yang withdrew his awareness, feeling quite pleased with himself for having unexpectedly formed an alliance with Minor Metal. Emperor Jia You, on the other hand, was in a terrible mood.

’What the— Where is he?’

Inside the Celestial Wu Hall, Emperor Jia You gazed toward the North and performed a quick divination. He discovered that the once-mighty surge for Seeking Gold had been nothing more than a paper tiger, collapsing at the first touch.

It had only lasted for three days before vanishing completely.

Minor Metal wasn’t Seeking Gold, and the Stain Sect hadn’t reacted. It was as if to say, "Nothing to see here," leaving Emperor Jia You feeling like he had punched at thin air.

’He’s not Seeking Gold anymore?’

"Unfathomable... A Demon, indeed!"

’To think I gave him the First-Grade Official position of Commander of Nine Gates to stop him from Seeking Gold... and now he just stops? Did I give it away for nothing?’

Emperor Jia You was tempted to summon Lü Yang back and rescind the Official Position of Commander of Nine Gates. But words, once spoken, are like spilled water. Moreover, an emperor does not speak in jest. How could he simply take it back? Thus, Emperor Jia You could only curse inwardly, forced to swallow this bitter pill.

However, at that very moment, Lü Yang entered the palace.

"This humble servant greets Your Majesty!"

The moment he entered the palace, Lü Yang didn’t hesitate. He manifested the symbol of his Official Position as Commander of the Nine Gates Infantry Patrol and Five Camps and declared loudly, "This servant requests to return this position!"

"...Oh?" Emperor Jia You raised an eyebrow.

"What is it, Du Aiqing? Do you not like this office? Do you find it beneath you?"

"This servant is horrified!"

Lü Yang bowed his head. "Your Majesty bestowed this office upon me so that I might go to the North and face our enemies. But now there is no turmoil in the North, and I have not achieved a shred of merit. How could I dare to remain in this position?"

"I implore Your Majesty, do not bring me such unearned honor."

After Lü Yang finished speaking, Emperor Jia You was silent for a moment before bursting into laughter. "Excellent! Excellent! Excellent! Du Aiqing is truly a loyal servant of my Dao Court!"

But praise was one thing, action another. Lü Yang had given him a graceful way out, and Emperor Jia You naturally took it. With a crook of his finger, the symbol of the Commander of Nine Gates’ Official Position above Lü Yang’s head vanished. Lü Yang’s aura immediately plummeted from Foundation Establishment Perfection back down to Mid-stage Foundation Establishment Perfection, and even his back seemed to hunch over involuntarily.

Seeing his state, Emperor Jia You felt a pang of pity.

After all, while Lü Yang was being sensible, it was true that the Emperor himself had acted rather ungracefully. But to him, Official Positions were not to be handed out lightly!

The very foundation of the Dao Court was at stake.

This was because every Official Position in the Dao Court, from the First Grade to the Ninth Grade, was in essence a manifestation drawn from the Four Dao Fruit Positions by the Immortal Dao Law.

The higher the rank of an Official Position, the more Power of Fruit Position it contained.

The more Official Positions existed, the more Power of Fruit Position was drawn away.

This might seem detrimental to the Fruit and the Perfected Lords who held them, but within the Dao Court in the East, it carried another symbolic meaning.

That of "Titles and Authority."

The more Official Positions derived from one’s own Fruit there were within the Dao Court, the deeper one’s control over the Immortal Dao Law, the very foundation of the court.

How had the previous Daoist Court Grandmaster reached the Middle Stage of Golden Core?

It was because his power held sway over the entire court, with the support of every official, that he was able to achieve Pocket World Falling under the blessing of the Immortal Dao Law, thereby obtaining the Mighty Power of the middle stage.

The same was true for Emperor Jia You.

He had only reached the Middle Stage of Golden Core by overthrowing the previous Grandmaster and ruling the East alone for several hundred years.

However, for Emperor Jia You, who was already at the Middle Stage of Golden Core and about to attempt a breakthrough to the Late Stage, the situation was reversed. He needed to preserve his Power of Fruit Position as much as possible.

Therefore, the fewer officials he appointed, the better.

This was one of the reasons he had relinquished control of the All Heaven Department, leaving appointments to the Three Ministers.

On this basis, a department like the Imperial City Department, which didn’t consume his Power of Fruit Position and relied solely on Incense, was naturally held in high favor.

"Alright, you may rise."

Emperor Jia You made a lifting gesture with his right hand and smiled. "Du Aiqing, I have seen your loyalty. A loyal servant must be rewarded. I will grant you an additional measure of stipend."

"Furthermore, although you have returned the position of Commander of Nine Gates, the Imperial City Department has already taken over the defense of the nine gates as of yesterday. There is no need to withdraw them. Let them remain. Aiqing, you will temporarily assume the duties of the Commander of Nine Gates. It will not be too late to officially grant you the title once you have earned sufficient merit."

The unspoken message was clear: do a good job.

Even though I have taken back the Official Position of Commander of Nine Gates, I am leaving you the responsibilities. If you perform well, the position will be yours again.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Upon hearing this, Lü Yang quickly put on an expression of eager delight. His previously hunched back straightened, and he took on the appearance of someone full of fighting spirit and ambition.

Only then did Emperor Jia You nod in satisfaction.

"You are dismissed."

Lü Yang bowed and backed out of the Celestial Wu Hall step by step. He summoned a Flying Light and returned to his Quiet Chamber in the Imperial City Department, where he finally let out a sigh of relief.

"Phew..."

Lü Yang wasn’t bothered about the First-Grade Official Position he had just surrendered. After all, over the past three days, he had already used up the three illicit empowerments from the Immortal Dao Law he’d siphoned off, allowing him to completely master the Earth of Wei Cultivation contained within the position. With such a harvest, it was no loss at all.

As for the First-Grade Official Position’s ability to condense one’s Gold Attribute?

Lü Yang didn’t care about that either. He believed that the Gold Attribute he could condense himself by steadily advancing his Cultivation was far more reliable than one granted by an official position.

’The time is right...’

With a single thought, Lü Yang used Puppet to take control of Yu Suzhen, who was far away in the North. He made her leave the Stain Sect and begin a journey toward the Overseas.

His Immortal Embryo Avatar would protect her in secret, ensuring she reached the Azure Sun Cultivation Realm safely.

’It’s time to open the No Heaven!’

He was now only missing the final Earth of Ji Cultivation. Once he obtained it, he could immediately begin Refining the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches and officially reach Foundation Establishment Perfection.

At that point, Emperor Jia You would have outlived his usefulness.

’Perhaps it’s time to find someone to help me assassinate him... Hmm. Fortunately, I’ve already chosen the perfect person for the job. This is a task best left to Ang Xiao.’

With a thought, Lü Yang gazed into his Myriad-Soul Banner, focusing on the remnant of a Grotto Heaven where Ang Xiao’s spiritual perception was trapped.

In his previous life, the Dao Court had quickly stabilized after the Emperor and the Three Ministers all went into seclusion. Emperor Jia You must have made arrangements beforehand.

However, Lü Yang wanted a Dao Court without a leader.

Therefore, in this life, he had no intention of giving Emperor Jia You the chance to make any arrangements. To accomplish that, Ang Xiao’s Veil of the Trees was undoubtedly the best tool.

.......

「The Netherworld. An indescribable place.」

Ang Xiao, who had been meditating in seclusion, suddenly snapped his eyes open. He scanned his surroundings, his brow deeply furrowed. "A fluctuation in my karmic links... Is someone plotting against me?"

"That mysterious Foundation Establishment cultivator?"

At this thought, Ang Xiao felt a sense of helplessness. For some unknown reason, the connection between him and the wisp of spiritual perception he’d left in the Current World had been completely severed.

To be able to do this, the person must possess a sealing-type Supreme Treasure capable of isolating karmic links. They were also extremely wary of him, much to Ang Xiao’s frustration. If he weren’t certain that he’d never met that Foundation Establishment cultivator before, he would have sworn they were old adversaries.

’Why be so wary of me?’

’Don’t I look like one of the good guys?’

"...No, I can’t just sit here and wait to be targeted."

Ang Xiao’s brow smoothed over as he quickly made a decision. "Perhaps it is time to activate that failsafe... I will retrieve Mu Changsheng’s Daoist Remnant."

Primal Daoist Mu Changsheng had died seeking the Fruit of Long-Flow Water, leaving behind only a Daoist Remnant. Ang Xiao had long coveted it, even going so far as to meddle with the inheritance Mu Changsheng left behind. He had planted a hidden measure within the Manual of Primal Qi, allowing him to influence any Cultivator who practiced the Cultivation Technique if the need arose.

With this in mind, Ang Xiao immediately took action.

However, as he tried to sense the Cultivator of the Manual of Primal Qi, his perception was flooded with the majestic image of the Fruit of Long-Flow Water and a resonant voice:

"When the false is taken as real, the real becomes false; where non-existence becomes existence, existence returns to non-existence."

"Mu Changsheng leaves the No Heaven here, for the benefit of future generations."

Ang Xiao: "...Huh?"

The next moment, a vast Power of Fruit Position surged outward, instantly shattering Ang Xiao’s perception and causing his heart to plummet into a dark abyss.

A sense of dread washed over him.

The Grotto Heaven Fragment of Fortune was gone. The Primal Daoist’s Daoist Remnant was gone. His own Divine Sense was sealed. And his identity had, in all likelihood, been discovered.

’Something’s wrong...!’

’Every move I’ve made recently, every hidden gambit I’ve put in place—they’ve all been dismantled! There’s someone behind this, someone setting a trap for me!’