Swing the sword at the future female devil

Chapter 256 The Uses of the Fragment of the Map of Mountains and Rivers
Zhang Zhiyao, who had been looking dissatisfied and thought that the advisor's words were an insult to her aesthetic sense, suddenly stopped making a fuss after hearing Duan Huaige say these words, and held her breath and hid to the side.

A fragment of the "Map of Mountains and Rivers"? And the imperial court? Am I about to trigger some more trials exclusive to future Celestial Masters?

Come to think of it, in novels and animations, which protagonist's growth isn't accompanied by all sorts of missions and trials? At the same time, it also involves the conspiracies of this world... The fragment of the Jiangshan Sheji Map that Duan Huaige mentioned is the closest thing to the conspiracies of this world.

Zhang Zhiyao had heard from his advisors that the "Map of Mountains and Rivers" might be related to the secrets and future of the spiritual energy revival, a matter of great importance, where a single move could affect the whole situation.

She was afraid that when these people were discussing important matters, they would suddenly say, "Kids, don't listen to so much, get out!" So she quietly hid to the side, blinking her eyes to eavesdrop on important information.

The old Celestial Master smiled slightly upon hearing this, as if he had expected it, and said, "You were sent by the imperial court? What evidence do you have?"

"Of course not," Duan Huaige replied firmly. "I was on a secret mission, an undercover operation. How could I possibly have any proof?"

"Since you're the hidden agent, what's the meaning of your proactively exposing yourself?" The old master's amused expression deepened. "How can I be sure you're not just making things up?"

"The reason I was exposed was naturally due to the actions of the Celestial Master's Mansion." Duan Huaige was also helpless. He had planned to infiltrate the Celestial Master's Mansion on Longhu Mountain with Qin Shuangjiang as undercover agents to gather information, and to send another working group to conduct consultations. However, the news that the Celestial Master's Mansion was going to close the mountain disrupted the original plan. With no other choice, he had to go up the mountain first to see if he could reach a result.

"Old Celestial Master, since you have invited many people from other sects, it is a contradiction to suddenly decide to close the mountain."

"Furthermore, most of the people you invited seem to be quite capable, so I guess your purpose in summoning your disciples and other sects might not just be to discuss important matters, but perhaps to ask for help without letting too many people know that the Celestial Master's Mansion needs assistance."

The old celestial master's smile grew even more satisfied. He turned to Zhang Zhiyao and said, "Little Yao'er, you've chosen a good childhood sweetheart... He's quite clever."

"However... as clever as you are, you still can't convince me why I should give you the incomplete map."

"Naturally, it's because the incomplete map is not a treasure to your Celestial Master's Mansion, but rather the source of disaster." Duan Huaige said decisively, "Others may not know the details of the incomplete Jiangshan Sheji Map, but I do. You can't wait to get rid of this hot potato."

Upon hearing this, the wicked young celestial master's eyes lit up, and he didn't even have time to correct the old celestial master's claim about him being a child groom.

Wow, so cool! This is exactly the kind of crisis and secret it is! This Celestial Master was born to save the world!
"Shut up! The Celestial Master's Mansion will not tolerate such slander!" Zhang Mingyi sneered. "We, the cultivators of the Celestial Master's Mansion, have the ambition to uphold justice for the world. How could we fear so-called disasters and pass on a hot potato to others?"

"Hey, Mingyi, no need for such a big reaction. What this kid said isn't wrong. The purpose of gathering our disciples is precisely to discuss whether or not to throw him out, isn't it?" The old Celestial Master said with a smile, "Go on, what do you know?"

Seeing that the other party didn't seem to be intimidated at all, Duan Huaige couldn't help but wonder... Could it be that he guessed wrong, and that the Celestial Master's Mansion actually preferred to leave the disaster to Longhu Mountain?

Perhaps… this also explains why the system's mission description mentions the massacre at Longhu Mountain by a demon, and even the sect's treasured sword, the Three-Five Male and Female Demon-Slaying Sword, was stolen. If Duan Huaige hadn't intervened, keeping the fragment of the map would have inevitably attracted the covetousness of Taiqing. Thinking of this, Duan Huaige had no choice but to bite the bullet and continue, "In the secret realm, I personally witnessed the birth of the demon from the fragment of the map, and I also saw firsthand how terrifying she was."

"That demon is ambitious and ruthless. No force that possesses the incomplete map will escape her clutches. Although Longhu Mountain is a great sect with a history of thousands of years, that demon's origins are even older than the first Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain."

"If we really run into them, Longhu Mountain might not be a match for them."

The old Celestial Master remained calm and composed, standing firm like a pine tree. However, his disciple Zhang Mingyi seemed to lack such composure. Upon hearing Duan Huaige say that even if Longhu Mountain exerted all its strength, it would be unable to defeat the female demon Taiqing, a flash of anger appeared in his eyes.

"Who says that Longhu Mountain can only stand by and wait to be slaughtered? If that demon dares to come, I will make her taste the Nine Heavens Thunder Prison of our mountain-protecting formation!"

"Grandmaster Uncle, you haven't seen that demon," Duan Huaige said helplessly. "Back then, in order to kill this fiend, the imperial court sent the military to surround him heavily and invited experts from various sects. Of the eleven Core Formation cultivators, only two returned severely injured. And this was only after she had just escaped..."

"Now that she has escaped for so long and regained her strength, even the Old Celestial Master might not dare to say that he could kill her, right?"

He glanced at the faces of the people on the field. Zhang Mingyi's face was ashen. Although he was unwilling, he had to admit that Duan Huaige was right.

"Ahem... So, Elder Celestial Master, for the future of the Celestial Master's Mansion and for the future of the righteous path, let's hand over the incomplete map to the imperial court!"

“You guessed right.” The old Celestial Master nodded and smiled. “Longhu Mountain is indeed in a dilemma about whether or not to keep the fragments of the Jiangshan Sheji Map. Some advocate that such a national treasure should be handed over to the imperial court so that the court can consider how to fight the demon; others advocate that this is a mission passed down from generation to generation by the Celestial Master’s Mansion, and it should not be abandoned to others just because of the danger.”

"The world is bustling, all for profit; the world is bustling, all for gain... Young man, you've said so much, but you've only mentioned the crisis of keeping the incomplete map at Longhu Mountain... Do you know what benefit keeping the incomplete map would bring to Longhu Mountain?"

Duan Huaige's eyes widened, seemingly not considering this direction at all. The old Celestial Master seemed to have guessed Duan Huaige's thoughts and leisurely explained, "What do you take us for... I admit that the Celestial Master's Mansion does have noble people who have transcended vulgar interests and are willing to sacrifice themselves for the common people... but such people are undoubtedly a minority."

"The fact that they can form a force to oppose taking it away means that keeping the fragments of the map must be beneficial to them."

Seeing that Duan Huaige was still completely bewildered, the old master simply pointed out the crux of the matter:

"Wherever the fragment of the Jiangshan Sheji Tu (Map of Mountains and Rivers) is located, it can increase the spiritual energy concentration of an area... Haven't you noticed that the spiritual energy concentration of Longhu Mountain far exceeds the average level of the outside world?"

(End of this chapter)