The three men in the main hall of the Prefecture Magistrate’s Office waited quietly for the Jiedu Envoy, seated in the place of honor, to continue.

Besides Jiang Changping and Dong Wanjun, the Celestial Profound Sect’s Cangsong Taoist was also present.

The Celestial Profound Sect had been dispatched by the Grand Tutor to reinforce the Northern States, and Du Qinghui certainly wasn’t going to let such an asset go to waste.

Before becoming Jiedu Envoy, Du Qinghui had been the Left Imperial Envoy of the Imperial Inspection Office, a genuine Second-Grade Official.

However, in terms of career prospects, the Imperial Inspection Office was a step below the Six Ministries. After all, their job was to make enemies.

Who would have thought Emperor Xuanyang would place such immense trust in Imperial Envoy Du? He ignored the protests of several Ministers to insist on placing Du Qinghui in the position of Jiedu Envoy.

Don’t be fooled by the Jiedu Envoy being a provincial official. The authority in his hands was far greater than that of the Imperial Inspection Office, and it wasn’t much less than that of the Six Ministers.

Du Qinghui spoke slowly, "The Xuan Yang Dynasty is currently facing great upheaval. All forces in Ling Province must show gratitude for His Majesty’s grace and contribute to the defense of our lands."

Cangsong Taoist, who had been observing quietly, finally raised an eyebrow and glanced at the powerful Jiedu Envoy.

Translated, what Du Qinghui had just said was: it was time for the factions that planned to profit from Ling Province to start bleeding for the cause.

Jiang Changping, ever astute, quickly agreed. "Lord Du speaks sense."

Jiang Changping was proud, but to continue acting proud in front of his direct superior would be foolish.

As a veteran of the officialdom, he understood how things worked. With Du Qinghui newly arrived in Ling Province, now was the perfect time to show loyalty.

This Lord Du was a favorite of His Majesty the Emperor. With a simple recommendation, Jiang Changping might be transferred to the Capital City and become a Capital Official.

Although provincial officials had more opportunities for illicit gains, it was ultimately easier to become a high-ranking official when one was closer to the Imperial Palace.

Of course, the prerequisite was that one’s own capabilities had to be solid.

Dong Wanjun said, "I’ll see to it at once."

Du Qinghui waved his hand. "Go on."

The three men rose, bowed to Du Qinghui, and slowly withdrew.

Once they stepped over the threshold, Cangsong Taoist shot a discreet glance at Dong Wanjun.

He hadn’t seen Dong Wanjun since that night, and upon seeing him again, he still felt a deep sense of dread.

He had already heard the rumors about Dong Wanjun from the Northern Plains.

Anyone who could earn the reverence of those martial-worshipping barbarians was, without exception, a ruthless character. ’My decision to retreat that night was nothing short of brilliant,’ he thought.

At this moment, Jiang Changping also looked at Dong Wanjun. "Lord Dong, this matter will likely not be easy."

The new powers in Ling Province all had frighteningly powerful backgrounds. Even with Du Qinghui’s order, he didn’t want to offend all of them at once.

He was from the Jiang Family, after all, and had to consider future generations.

Dong Wanjun’s face was devoid of expression. "Just beat them until they listen, won’t that do?"

"..."

The corner of Jiang Changping’s mouth twitched.

Only Dong Wanjun could say something so utterly brutish. Jiang Changping admitted he couldn’t do it.

Being an official required tact. This didn’t mean one should be spinelessly subservient, but one had to know who could be pushed around and who could not.

If he offended one or two of these Ling Province powers, it wouldn’t matter.

But if he offended all of them, not even the favor his father, the old Minister, had accumulated could guarantee the Jiang Family’s future peace.

That was why very few officials were willing to be "lone ministers" without allies.

Jiang Changping was silent for a long while before speaking. "Lord Dong, you handle this matter, and I’ll owe you a favor. What do you say?"

It was truly inconvenient for him to take action on the matter Lord Du had raised today.

Frankly, compared to the Generals and Prefects of other provinces, his relationship with Dong Wanjun was quite good.

It was just that, due to His Majesty the Emperor’s spies, the two of them could not become too close.

Dong Wanjun started walking away. "As you wish."

Compared to Jiang Changping, he was much more of a lone wolf.

It wasn’t that he had no ties, but the Divine Mansion Sect was a far cry from the Jiang Family.

The problem Jiang Changping worried about—affecting the official careers of his descendants—simply didn’t exist for the Divine Mansion Sect. He could naturally act without reservation.

As for Jiang Changping’s favor, he would naturally accept it.

The higher one climbed in officialdom, the more one feared owing favors, because the price of every favor was far greater than gold or silver.

A favor from a Prefect... was indeed very valuable.

...

A shocking storm erupted in Ling Province.

By order of the Shuofang Jiedu Envoy Du Qinghui, all powers stationed in Ling Province were required to dispatch personnel to help guard the Grain Transport Official Road.

At first, naturally, many were unwilling.

After all, the powers backing them were immense, and the relationships within the Xuan Yang Imperial Court were complex. Even Du Qinghui would have a headache dealing with them, so they naturally felt they had nothing to fear.

But no one expected the Lingzhou General, Dong Wanjun, to personally "pay a visit" to each one, beating them into submission.

These powers wouldn’t just take a beating lying down. For a time, memorials impeaching Dong Wanjun fell like snowflakes onto His Majesty the Emperor’s desk.

However, this time His Majesty the Emperor broke his usual habit of readily accepting counsel and said only one thing: "With Du Qinghui gone, the Imperial Inspection Office seems to have forgotten its manners."

This single sentence frightened the young Imperial Censors of the Imperial Inspection Office so much that they didn’t dare to utter another word of impeachment, remaining on edge for a long time.

His Majesty the Emperor had made his final verdict, and the matter was dropped.

The powers in Ling Province had taken that beating for nothing.

Many people began to analyze the imperial will through this incident, concluding that Dong Wanjun was a rather useful talent.

Although such a stain on his record would make it difficult for him to become the second most powerful person in the empire, it was perfect for forging him into a killing blade.

His Majesty the Emperor likely had such intentions as well.

If Dong Wanjun knew how to curry favor with the Emperor like Du Qinghui did, he might have been able to follow Du Qinghui’s path and become an Imperial Censor of the Court of Imperial Supervision.

For a time, the number of people trying to win over Old Dong increased significantly.

Of course, there was no shortage of those who bore grudges.

These powers were not part of Xu Dingchun’s faction; of course they would seek revenge.

Although the factions beaten by Old Dong didn’t dare to move against him because of the imperial decree, they could secretly target the Divine Mansion Sect.

A surging undercurrent was already quietly closing in on Huanglong Prefecture.

...

"Jianghu matters should be settled in the Jianghu, of course."

A goatee-bearded old man’s eyes glinted with malice.

This man was an elder of the Cangyang Sect, which had been the first power beaten by Old Dong.

Because of this, the Cangyang Sect had also suffered the greatest loss of face.

The goatee-bearded elder had even been punished by the Cangyang Sect for this, so of course he harbored a grudge.

’If I can’t deal with Dong Wanjun, can’t I at least deal with the insignificant Divine Mansion Sect?’

Besides, as far as he knew, there were no fewer than ten other powers besides the Cangyang Sect that wanted to deal with the Divine Mansion Sect.

And how would they settle this in the Jianghu?

By issuing challenges at their doorstep, of course.

...

"Sect Leader, disciples of Taibai Peak are being repeatedly challenged by unknown Jianghu masters."

Taibai Peak’s Liu Donghai said in a low voice.

In fact, it wasn’t just Taibai Peak. Recently, disciples from all Thirteen Peaks of the Divine Mansion Sect had been repeatedly challenged by unknown experts.

As a major Jianghu sect, the Divine Mansion Sect had no reason to refuse open and honorable challenges.

But without exception, every challenge ended in defeat.

Many disciples even had their wrists severed.

Although the Divine Mansion Sect had divine healers who could reattach the severed hands, it would inevitably affect their future in the Martial Dao.

Such situations were normally common in the Jianghu, but with hundreds of challenges occurring in such a short period, it was obvious that someone was deliberately targeting the Divine Mansion Sect.

Even a True Disciple had been severely injured.

Bai Yuan hummed in thought.

In fact, before Liu Donghai’s arrival, several other Peak Masters had already come to see him.

He knew perfectly well who was behind this.

News from Old Dong’s side had long since reached Huanglong Prefecture. ’The disciples suffer for the master’s actions’—such things were all too common.

However, Bai Yuan actually saw this as a good opportunity for training.

The disciples who could endure the trials imposed by these outside forces would surely distinguish themselves and become pillars of the sect.

Right now, everything was still within the bounds of Jianghu rules. He naturally saw no need to intervene.

’We can’t just turtle up inside the Divine Mansion Sect every time a challenge is issued, can we?’

If they did that, then the Divine Mansion Sect would have no reason to exist.

Which major sect hadn’t fought its way to prominence in the Jianghu?

Ultimately, the Divine Mansion Sect had been based in Huanglong Prefecture for so long that it had forgotten the brutal struggles of its founding days.

’A kind heart cannot command an army.’ The same principle applied to leading a sect. Being soft-hearted would only turn the disciples of the Divine Mansion Sect into "embroidered pillows"—useless and for show.

Which expert hadn’t walked out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood?

...

"Dong Wanjun, the humiliation my Cangyang Sect has suffered will be repaid to your Divine Mansion Sect twofold!"

The goatee-bearded elder from the Cangyang Sect revealed a cruel smile.

During this time, too many Divine Mansion Sect disciples had been seriously injured.

The Divine Mansion Sect’s face had been utterly lost.

Now, all the sects in Ling Province were watching the Divine Mansion Sect become a laughingstock.

"How about we add something more potent to the mix?"

Another old crone spoke in a raspy voice.

This crone was an elder of the Feng Family from Qingzhou; the Feng Family was on the list of those brutally beaten by Old Dong.

And the one who had been beaten was this very crone.

This crone was the type who would seek revenge for the smallest grievance. How could she tolerate such a great humiliation?

Of the experts targeting the Divine Mansion Sect, the Feng Family had contributed the most.

The goatee-bearded elder asked, "What’s your plan?"

The crone’s eyes flashed with a vicious light. "What’s the point of crippling a few disciples? Cripple a few of their Peak Masters. Let them know what true pain is."

"Makes sense."

The goatee-bearded elder’s eyes lit up.

The disciples had only caused the Divine Mansion Sect to lose face; it was far from a crippling blow.

But the Divine Mansion Sect’s Peak Masters were a different story. They were the pillars of the sect. Harming even one would make Dong Wanjun feel the sting for a long time.

...

"This is going too far!"

Ouyang Hua’s eyes spat fire.

Yesterday, Yunxiao Peak’s Peak Master, Situ Liuyun, was severely injured by someone in Huanglong City. He was still lying in his room.

If not for Bai Yuan’s superb medical skills, he might have been left with internal injuries that would have made further progress impossible.

They could still tolerate them beating some disciples, but now that they’d attacked a Peak Master, how could they possibly endure it?

Besides Ouyang Hua, all the other Peak Masters were also in the Sect Leader Hall.

They were all waiting for Bai Yuan’s decision.

They were also aware of Dong Wanjun’s actions, and they knew the powers targeting the Divine Mansion Sect had backgrounds that were more formidable than the last.

This was why, despite their anger, they had not taken much action.

The Divine Mansion Sect was not even considered a top-tier power in Huanglong Prefecture anymore, let alone in the greater Ling Province.

The wisest course of action was, of course, to swallow their anger and endure.

Once the anger of those people subsided, everything would blow over.

But they just felt so utterly aggrieved.

’What a formidable existence the Divine Mansion Sect used to be.’

Under the gazes of all the Peak Masters—

Bai Yuan said, "However they hit us, we hit them back. Simple as that."

"..."

Hearing Bai Yuan’s words, all the Peak Masters looked at each other in stunned silence.