A thousand enlightenments in one night, starting from being a menial apprentice.

Chapter 486 Tianyan Sect

It was already late at night in a remote room in a building at the center of the medicine pavilion complex. The lanterns on the wall were emitting an orange light. After all, it was a medicine pavilion room. Although there were no herbs stored in the room, it was still filled with a faint medicinal fragrance.

Lu Zhongtang, Sun Fujia, Zheng Yi, and Xu Qie were all sitting on the armchairs. Their faces looked very ugly at this moment.

Ge Rushong and his forces were destroyed, and Qingling Peak where the Tongzhengshisi was located has now been taken over by Lin Youjian. They had no choice but to move the meeting place to the medicine pavilion.

The sudden fall of Ge Rusong dealt a heavy blow to them, especially Lu Zhongtang, whose face was dejected. Pei Du, his disciple who had been trained for many years, also died in this incident. This time, he lost both his wife and his army!

Zheng Yi's face was also very solemn, as if he had just drunk a bowl of very bitter Chinese medicine. He sighed and said, "It turns out that we didn't see it! This old thief Zhu He has tied up his trap and is waiting for us to get in?!"

Xu Qie added, "With Elder Ge's fall, the Tongzhengshisi is also lost. From now on, all of us will be deaf and blind. How can we fight Zhu He?"

Lu Zhongtang's eyes swept over Zheng Yi and Xu Qie. To be honest, after Ge Rushong's fall, his spirits had cooled down. As for Pei Du's matter, it made him even more heartbroken. He already regretted listening to Ge Rushong's advice and competing for the next leader. He was not cut out for it!

Lu Zhongtang said: "If you can't win, then don't fight. I think it's better not to be the sect leader!"

Lu Zhongtang's words already indicated that he wanted to break up. He had never had much enthusiasm for these power struggles, but he could not stand Ge Rushong's instigation. In addition, he was somewhat unwilling to be the bloodline of the sect's ancestor and wanted to prove himself. His ambition was originally just a pretense, and now after a setback and a bleak future, he began to think about retreating.

Zheng Yi and Xu Qie were silent upon hearing this, as if they had acquiesced. When Ge Rushong fell, their fighting spirit also dropped. In fact, Ge Rushong was originally the core force of this camp. Zheng Yi, Xu Qie, and Sun Fujia were actually instigated by Ge Rushong.

Sun Fujia, with white hair and beard, smiled slightly and said, "You guys gave up after such a small setback? Isn't that too petty?"

Zheng Yi smiled bitterly and said, "Elder Sun is right, but the situation is dim and it is hard to see who will win! This time, Zhu He directly killed Elder Ge and pulled down our banner!"

Sun Fujia sighed and said, "Zhu He is not easy to deal with! But as the saying goes, the situation is stronger than the people. As long as there is an opportunity, we can still turn the situation around."

Hearing this, Xu Qie glanced at Sun Fujia's meaningful expression and couldn't help asking, "Opportunity? What does Elder Sun mean by this?"

Lu Zhongtang and Zheng Yi also looked at Sun Fujia. Sun Fujia was the one who kept his word the least among them, and he would never say empty words. Since he said this, he must have something substantive in mind.

Sun Fujia moved his somewhat stiff shoulders and said, "You should have heard recently that Zhuang Tairu of Shenyi Sect has achieved the Nascent Soul Realm a month ago."

Zheng Yi's eyes moved, and he said, "This matter is no longer a secret, and the eight sects in Jiuzhou should all know about it. In this way, the Shenyi Sect will have two great cultivators in the Nascent Soul Realm. The Shenyi Sect occupies the land of Jizhou, which is adjacent to our Qingzhou. I'm afraid our days will be difficult in the future."

Xu Qie sighed and said, "It can't be helped. After all, whoever has the bigger fist has the final say. I guess we will have to give in on some controversial issues in the future."

Sun Fujia said: "It's not just us Taiyi Sect that have a hard time. The people who are adjacent to Jizhou don't know how bad our Qingzhou is!"

Lu Zhongtang said, "That's right! The Tianyan Sect that occupies Youzhou seems to have had more disputes with the Shenyi Sect in recent years. This time, the Shenyi Sect suddenly has a great cultivator in the Nascent Soul Realm. I'm afraid the pressure on the Tianyan Sect is even greater than ours."

"That's right!" Sun Fujia said, "There is an old acquaintance of mine in the Tianyan Sect. When he was young, he was obsessed with medicine and poison like me. We have known each other for nearly a hundred years and often discussed new discoveries in the field of medicine and poison. Recently, he went to Yongzhou and passed by Qingzhou, so he specially asked me to meet him. When we were reminiscing about our old friendship, we also mentioned the recent situation of the sect. He told me personally that the ancestor of the Tianyan Sect, Li Ku, will come to Qingzhou soon to personally pay a visit to our ancestor, Lu Yinlin."

Zheng Yi was surprised and asked, "Li Ku wants to come and see the ancestor?"

Sun Fujia said: "Not bad!"

Zheng Yi said: "That old fellow Li Ku hasn't left the mountain for hundreds of years."

Xu Qie said: "It seems that Zhuang Tairu's achievement of the Nascent Soul Realm has put a lot of pressure on the Tianyan Sect. Even old fellow Li Ku can't sit still."

"Every time a new Yuanying realm expert is born, it will have an impact on the situation of the eight sects in Jiuzhou. Now, except for the Faxiang Temple in Yongzhou, the other seven sects are probably changing their minds." Sun Fujia's eyes flashed and said, "However, this is an opportunity for us!"

Lu Zhongtang, Zheng Yi and Xu Qie all looked at Sun Fujia inquiringly. They still couldn't understand what Sun Fujia meant by the opportunity.

Sun Fujia continued, "Tian Yan Sect's ancestor Li Ku came this time and brought along Tian Yan Sect's young master Li Ruzhou. It is said that they want to promote a marriage between the two sects."

"Marriage!?"

Upon hearing this, Zheng Yi and Xu Qie both looked at Lu Zhongtang.

Lao Li Ku's intention was obvious. He wanted to form an alliance between the two sects through marriage to fight against the pressure from the Divine Will Sect. This was not an empty talk, because if it was accomplished, it would obviously be in the interests of both the Tianyan Sect and the Taiyi Sect.

Moreover, when Old Li Ku came this time, he brought along Li Ruzhou, the young master of Tianyan Sect, which shows that he is sincere in making this happen.

As for the person of the marriage alliance, he is about to be revealed!
Tianyan Sect is different from Taiyi Sect. The ancestor of Taiyi Sect, Lu Yinlin, is over a thousand years old and has long since lost interest in matters of bloodline.

But this is not the case with the Tianyan Sect. Until now, thousands of years have passed, and it is still the Li family that manages the sect and the secular world, which is unparalleled in the world.

Therefore, the Tianyan Sect has always attached great importance to bloodline.

This time, who is the best candidate for marriage with Li Ruzhou, the young master of Tianyan Sect, except Lu Zhongtang's only daughter Lu Qingzhu?
Zheng Yi's face flashed with excitement, and he said with a smile: "The only one who can be a good match for Li Ruzhou, the young master of Tianyan Sect, is the daughter of the Lu family."

A trace of worry flashed across Lu Zhongtang's face, and he hesitated and said, "Qingzhu is a lonely girl, she may not listen to me."

Since A-Mo's death, the relationship between father and daughter has been very strained.

Xu Qie said: "This is a good fate. Even if she doesn't listen to Brother Lu's words, does she not listen to the words of the ancestor? It is said that Li Ruzhou, the young master of Tianyan Sect, is a first-class talent."

Zheng Yi said: "When the two meet, with our Qingzhu's talent, I guarantee that Li Ruzhou will be distracted."

Sun Fujia said: "A talented man and a beautiful woman, wouldn't they be a good couple?"

When Lu Zhongtang heard this, his brows knitted. He was somewhat reluctant to link Lu Qingzhu's lifelong affairs with these things. Since Lu Qingzhu's mother died, he had already owed this girl too much.

Lu Zhongtang said: "This matter still depends on the opinion of the ancestor. Let's talk about it later."

Zheng Yi, Xu Qie and Sun Fujia looked at Lu Zhongtang's expression and did not quite understand the worry on his face.

Isn't this a good thing?

Moreover, this marriage obviously gave them great hope.

Once Lu Qingzhu and Li Ruzhou get married, the next leader of the sect will most likely be Lu Zhongtang.

After all, the most important task of Taiyi Sect is to deal with the pressure and challenge from Shenyi Sect. To be honest, Taiyi Sect is not having an easy time either, with the chaos of the Filthy Blood Sect inside and the pressure from Shenyi Sect outside, so it is really necessary to form an alliance with Tianyan Sect.

The marriage between Lu Qingzhu and Li Ruzhou was confirmed. If Lu Zhongtang took over as the next sect master, then the sect master of Taiyi Sect and the sect master of Tianyan Sect would be in-laws. This alliance was even more solid because of this relationship. For this reason, the Council of Elders would definitely nominate Lu Zhongtang as the next sect master. Because this was in the interests of the sect, and there was even the will of the ancestors behind it.

Although Lu Zhongtang did not say anything, Zheng Yi, Xu Qie and Sun Fujia had obviously regarded this as something that was bound to happen.

The originally gloomy atmosphere immediately became exciting.

Zheng Yi then said, "There is one more thing that needs to be dealt with."

Lu Zhongtang looked at him and asked, "What else?"

Zheng Yi said, "It's Pei Du and Jiang Zhe! They were in the Judgment Bureau and they gave us all away. Although there is no physical evidence and Chu Qiushan did not pursue the case, keeping these two people is a disaster after all."

Xu Qie said: "Pei Du and Jiang Zhe had their Dantian destroyed and were expelled from the sect. Killing them is just like killing two dogs. If Brother Zheng finds it troublesome, just leave these two to me."

Zheng Yi said: "No! I have a ready-made candidate. However, Pei Du is Brother Lu's abandoned disciple after all, so I have to ask Brother Lu's opinion." As Zheng Yi spoke, he looked at Lu Zhongtang.

A trace of pain flashed across Lu Zhongtang's brows, and he said, "You guys can do whatever you want."

Xu Qie said: "Brother Zheng, you said there is a ready-made candidate, why do I feel like there is something else behind your words!"

Zheng Yi said, "Isn't Liu Shushan still in Shenyun Mansion? Isn't he a ready-made candidate for this job?"

Xu Qie's eyes moved and he said, "Brother Zheng wants to take him in, right?"

Zheng Yi said: "It's not that easy to change the sect. There must be some price to pay, right?"

In fact, Liu Shushan had good talent. He crossed the red line during the Yougu test, and he had made outstanding contributions during his three years as an outer disciple. When Liu Shushan was becoming a disciple in the Dragon Fish Hall, Zheng Yi wanted to accept him as his disciple, but Ge Rushong's conditions were obviously better, so Liu Shushan became Ge Rushong's disciple.

Now, Ge Rushong is about to be executed, Qingling Peak has been taken over by Lin Youjian, and Liu Shushan, the direct disciple, is only in name.

What's the difference between a disciple without a master and an inner disciple listed in various departments?

Zheng Yi gave him this dirty job to see if Liu Shushan was willing to join his sect. If he really wanted to join his sect, he would have to do this dirty job. If he was not willing to pay even this little price, why would he recruit a dog who had no sincerity and lost his home? !

While Lu Zhongtang and his companions were discussing matters in the medicine cabinet, in a separate cell deep in the dungeon of the Judgment and Adjudication Office, Ge Rushong was lying on a pile of hay with a dull look in his eyes.

His hair hung messily on his face, and a dim lantern at the cell door illuminated his pale face.

He was not injured at all, but all his cultivation had been destroyed. Yang Sixian had just come to tell him the decision of the Council of Elders to execute him.

Ge Rushong lay there without even lifting his eyelids. He had already died once when his cultivation was abolished, and the execution a few days later was meaningless to him.

At this moment, the sound of wheels of a wooden cart was heard from the corridor outside the prison door.

A hunchbacked old man with gray hair was pushing a wooden cart with some difficulty along the uneven road in the prison corridor.

On the wooden cart were two black, filthy wooden barrels.

One wooden barrel contained rice paste, and the other barrel contained a porcelain bowl.

Every time the old man arrived at a cell, he would stop and scoop a bowl of paste rice with a porcelain bowl and place it outside the cell. After a while, a person would reach out from the cell and bring the bowl of rice in, followed by the sound of slurping and swallowing.

The stale rice paste was also a delicacy for the hungry prisoners.

Just like for a person who is about to die of thirst, the water in the toilet is also a blessing.

With the sound of wheels rumbling, the wooden cart stopped outside Ge Rushong's cell door.

The old man scooped a bowl of rice paste and placed it on the ground at the door of Ge Rushong's cell, but he did not leave. Instead, he looked around cautiously. After confirming that no one was there, he suddenly called out to Ge Rushong, who was lying motionless on the straw in the dark, "Sir, Jing Chou has something to say to you. I will bring it to you."

"Jingchou?"

When he heard this name, Ge Rushong's originally gloomy eyes suddenly flashed with light.

He turned his head and looked at the old man standing at the prison door, his face full of wrinkles and eyes like dead fish. He knew this old man, this person was a spy he had planted in the Judgment of the Imperial Clan for many years. When he planted this person in the Judgment of the Imperial Clan, Yang Sixian was not yet the chief of the Judgment of the Imperial Clan.

Ge Rushong looked at the man, swallowed hard, and asked, "Is Jingchou still alive?"

Jing Chou is an old slave who has served Ge Rushong personally for many years. He is an orphan who grew up with Ge Rushong. He is disabled and has incomplete bones. He is unable to practice martial arts and is just an ordinary person.

The old man said, "Master Chu said he was just a servant and didn't kill him. He asked him to go to the lower courtyard to help manage the registered disciples."

Ge Rusong chuckled and said, "Master Chu is virtuous!"

"Sir, Jing Chou found me. He asked you if you have any last words to leave for him." The old man stood outside the prison door, looked at Ge Rushong and asked.

Ge Rushong suddenly struggled to his feet, half-knelt and half-crawled to the prison door, looked at the old man, and instructed: "Tell Jingchou to use the things I left behind. Find a chance and find a way to kill Duan Rong! I will not rest in peace until this guy is alive! The end of this old man is all because of him!"

"Yes, sir!" The old man's eyes moved and asked, "Anything else?"

Ge Rushong suddenly lay down at the prison door and said, "If it works, please burn some paper in front of my grave and tell me, so that I can rest in peace in the underworld."

"Yes, sir." The old man stood up, pushed the wooden cart, and walked away.

Ge Rushong suddenly reached out, brought in the bowl of rice paste on the ground outside the prison door, and began to eat it with slurps.

Jing Chou was one of the people he trusted most. Many of his things hidden in various places were given to Jing Chou to hide. He also asked Jing Chou to contact many secret agents in the sect, and this old man was one of them.

If Jing Chou could collect all the things hidden in various places, it would be a great force. As long as he used it properly, it would be unlikely to kill the old man Zhu He, but there was still a good chance to kill Duan Rong, a cultivator in the Yuanqi realm. He knew very well that the things he had accumulated over the years were very attractive even to the strong men in the Dongming realm. It all depended on Jing Chou whether he could use them well. To make a deal with the old thief in the Dongming realm was like courting disaster.

"Jing Chou, I'm waiting for your good news down there, please don't let me down!" Ge Rushong said, and he laughed creepily like a devil.

A centipede is still alive even after death!

(End of this chapter)