I picked up the scattered attributes

—Especially when the person sitting in front of you is someone you were a formidable enemy not long ago.

It was precisely for this reason that Feng Xia felt extremely grateful for the selfless care and love shown by such a kind-hearted old man as Ancestor Chen Hai.

returning a Favour many times more.

A blood feud, of course...of course, the first thing to do is beat the person to death.

Therefore, Feng Xia would certainly not easily accept the olive branch suddenly extended by Emperor Xuanwu—the entire area within a thousand miles belongs to Qianqiu Valley, which sounds very wonderful, but who knows how many pitfalls are buried inside?

"Fellow Daoist is too kind."

Upon hearing Feng Xia's question, Mo Zi'an quickly adjusted his breathing, his face remaining expressionless. He shook his head with a smile and said, "Brother Dao is a Yuan Dan realm cultivator, and can now be considered the number one person in Xuanwu Kingdom. How could the court expect you to bear any responsibility?"

"You're giving me so many benefits without me having to pay any price?"

Feng Xia narrowed his eyes slightly, a mocking smile curving his lips.

Mo Zian shook his head again: "Brother Dao has misunderstood something. On the contrary, these are not benefits for you, but rather the price paid by the court as an apology for the previous offense."

"Moreover, if you, Brother Dao, were to be granted the title of Guardian Spirit King, it would not be without benefit to the imperial court."

"I'd like to hear more details." Hurry up and get to the point!

"Brother Dao, being bestowed the title of Guardian Spirit King means that Xuanwu Kingdom still has a Yuan Dan realm expert in name only. This is all thanks to you, Brother Dao."

Mo Zian smiled faintly and continued, "At the same time, the court does not need to continue to be enemies with you, which is actually an invisible benefit. In addition, the various sects and forces on Canglan Mountain are scattered and disorganized, obeying orders but not summons, which has always been a worry for His Majesty. After you take over this land, you will eventually have to manage and reorganize it."

Feng Xia immediately understood.

The former is a large group of mental illnesses, while the latter is a single mental illness. In comparison, if he were His Majesty the Emperor, he would most likely choose the latter.

Especially when the latter situation cannot be completely resolved.

"However, given that emperor's consistent style of doing things, he would often leave more than one backup plan. It seems unlikely that he would give up on treatment so easily. There are probably other hidden pitfalls in this whole affair!"

In any case, there is one thing the other party did get right.

This guardian spirit king...

He's definitely going to be Feng Xia!

"Being bestowed the title of Guardian Spirit King will be of great benefit to both me and Qianqiu Valley!"

"From now on, Qianqiu Valley will be completely legitimate, and I can legitimately take action against the other sects. Also, if I have official channels..."

"The truth behind the decline of this world's vitality, as well as the method to lift the seal on the Forsaken Ancient Land, may be found through the imperial court!"

Even if there are no clues for the time being, the imperial court can be used to search for them.

Even if extraordinary powers exist in this world, the principle that there is strength in numbers still holds true.

Moreover, with Feng Xia's current cultivation level, he could undoubtedly take on a hundred or a thousand men single-handedly, but if he were to fight an entire nation alone...

The outcome is now unknown.

What if the imperial court also possesses those unreasonable and lethal weapons that it hasn't used?

It's not that we can't or dare not use it, but rather that the cost of using it is too high; this is also a possibility.

"At this stage, it's definitely best to play it safe! Once I've returned to the Yuan Dan realm, or even reached the Dharma Aspect realm, no matter how many schemes or plots the emperor has, I can make sure his ashes are scattered!"

And Feng Xia believes that day is not far away.

After pondering it over several times, Feng Xia thought for a moment and then handed the imperial edict to Zhu Youniang. This scene surprised Mo Zi'an: "Brother Feng, I was just about to ask, may I ask who this lady is...?"

“She is my Daoist partner.” Feng Xia replied with a slight smile. “Her intuition is extraordinary. Regardless of whether there is a problem or not, it’s always good to let her take a look.”

"So it's your wife! You two are truly a match made in heaven, everyone envies you."

Mo Zian didn't ask any further questions, but instead complimented him as if he had just realized something.

A short while later, Zhu Youniang handed the imperial edict back, shook her head slightly, and said softly, "It's not very tasty."

"I see."

Feng Xia nodded and withdrew the imperial edict.

Mo Zi'an, who had maintained a smile throughout, finally showed a hint of surprise: Wait, what did this girl just say? And what exactly did you understand, fellow Daoist?!

“Fellow Daoist Mo, I have been cultivating in seclusion for many years and know very little about the outside world. Why don’t we take this opportunity to introduce the situation outside…”

Just then, Feng Xia spoke up, interrupting Mo Zi'an's thoughts.

A surge of joy welled up in his chest, genuine and without a trace of falsehood—for heaven's sake, he had spent a whole hour chatting with Feng Xia about inexplicable topics, like Weibo, WeChat, the kneeling boy, and the masculine Cai Moumou, etc...

Even though he couldn't understand anything, he still pretended to smile and even acted like an expert, chatting happily with Feng Xia... Even with his intelligence, he almost exhausted all his mental energy.

I'm so angry and tired.

Feng Xia did not refuse the imperial decree, but instead inquired about the situation outside. It can be said that Feng Xia had accepted this conferment of the title!

"Whatever Brother Guan wants to ask, as long as I know the answer, I will answer it without reservation!"

Mo Zian patted his chest and guaranteed.

Feng Xia's eyes lit up instantly upon hearing this: "That's wonderful! Someone, prepare brush, ink, paper, and inkstone for Fellow Daoist Mo. Not too much, just bring two hundred catties of paper first—"

"Come, come, I have quite a few things I want to know. It's easy to forget if I just talk about it. Why don't you write them down on paper instead, Fellow Daoist Mo?"

"..."

……

Several days have passed.

A gaunt and haggard Mo Zian staggered out of Qianqiu Valley, exuding a heavy aura of twilight. He had dark circles under his eyes, and his hands trembled like chicken claws, a far cry from the calm and collected demeanor he had when he first entered the valley.

"My lord... are you alright?"

Qingyue, the little girl waiting in the car, couldn't help but tremble as she asked, "What have you been through these past few days? Why have you become like this...?"

"Don't worry about me... Let's go! Get out of Qianqiu Valley as soon as possible..."

Pfft!

Mo Zi'an fell face down into the carriage, only one hand slowly reaching upwards, as if gesturing something. Then, with all his remaining strength, he spoke haltingly:

"He has already agreed... to leave the Canglan Mountains before he discovers anything amiss..."

……

Chapter 0122

"That guy left?"

At the entrance of Qianqiu Palace, Zhu Youniang peeked out upside down, her beautiful hair flowing down her back, curiously observing Feng Xia inside the palace.

"He just left." Feng Xia nodded slightly and smiled. "It's a pity he didn't want to stay any longer, otherwise, I could have gotten another two thousand catties of paper..."

Even with the entire stock of Qianqiu Valley, they couldn't produce two thousand catties of paper in a short time.

But it doesn't matter, isn't it convenient for a person with supernatural powers to make paper?

If Mo Zian can speed things up, Feng Xia can accomplish even more.

Unfortunately, Mo Zian still couldn't hold on until the end.

Six days and six nights of frantic writing, along with the various tricky questions posed by Feng Xia, especially those unheard-of things, completely exhausted his wisdom and mental energy.

Therefore, Mo Zian fled in a panic, without the slightest hesitation, and no matter how Feng Xia tried to persuade him to stay, it was to no avail.

"Ah Xia, what are you still worried about?"

Seeing that Feng Xia was still frowning, Zhu You Niang disappeared from her spot in a flash, and the next second, she appeared above Feng Xia's head, staring at him without moving her eyes.

Feng Xia was silent for a moment, then suddenly smiled and said, "I don't know what I'm worried about, or maybe it's just my imagination, but I always feel that His Majesty the Emperor... doesn't seem like he would give up so easily."

"Give up what?" The girl tilted her head.

With this movement, her jet-black hair fell down, brushing against Feng Xia's cheeks and sliding down his shoulders, making his collarbone tingle slightly.

"We won't give up the interests of Qianqiu Valley so easily."

"But what Mo Zian said seems to make a lot of sense, doesn't it?"

Feng Xia pondered for a moment before whispering, "Everything he said makes perfect sense, and that's the biggest problem! The imperial court has been planning for Qianqiu Valley for at least several hundred years. If we give up now, wouldn't all our efforts over the past few hundred years be wasted in an instant?"

Even before the current emperor ascended the throne, the suppression and division of Qianqiu Valley had already begun, which is why Feng Xia made such a bold prediction...

The current emperor of Xuanwu Kingdom is merely the successor to a certain plan, not its creator.

A project that has spanned hundreds of years, involving countless people and consuming an astonishing amount of manpower and resources, how could it possibly be easily abandoned?

“Besides that…” Feng Xia rubbed his temples, then composed himself and said, “It is said that all the land within a thousand miles of Qianqiu Valley belongs to Qianqiu Valley, but judging from Mo Zi’an’s attitude, he doesn’t seem to feel much pain. On the contrary, he seems a little anxious.”

"Huh? But didn't that guy say that there are many sects in Canglan Mountain? If you can integrate them all, it will be good news for the imperial court, right?"

"However, given the power the imperial court has demonstrated so far, apart from the old Sword King in Qianqiu Valley, is it really going to be a difficult task to integrate the other sects?"

Feng Xia muttered something under his breath, as if asking Zhu Youniang, or perhaps questioning himself.

Even without Mo Yuanlong personally taking action, just a few Dukes of Zhenguo could basically suppress all resistance—so why hasn't the court done so?

Feng Xia had already formed a vague guess.

Perhaps deeper within the Canglan Mountains, other deadly threats lurk, forcing even the imperial court to exercise caution in order to avoid triggering an even greater crisis!

"Then why don't you just refuse, Ah Xia?" Zhu Youniang thought for a moment and replied.