Yin Yang Soul Searcher

How difficult is it to become a third-rank Yin-Yang Master? The current Grand Preceptor of the Great Xia Dynasty, the most powerful Yin-Yang Master in the world, has been at the second rank for many years! The most powerful Yin-Yang Master in Beichen has only just reached the second rank!

In this world, perhaps only these two people could guide Bai Jueming to become an Onmyoji. One is the Grand Preceptor of the Great Xia Dynasty, and the other is the Grand Preceptor of the Northern Chen Dynasty!

Could this have been done by the Imperial Advisor? Or was it done by Beichen? But why would they do such a thing?

Why go through all this trouble to find such a person in the mortal realm? Is it because people with this kind of constitution have something special about them? If we think about it from another angle, even if Bai Jueming was instructed by the Imperial Preceptor, why not keep him by our side and train him? Why let him make a living in the black market for so many years? If something were to happen to him, wouldn't all the instruction have been for nothing?

The deputy hall master's eyes, hidden beneath his mask, were deep as he looked at Li Zhengshan, seemingly guessing what he was thinking: "I also suspected that this matter might have been orchestrated by the Grand Preceptor."

"But it didn't." The deputy hall master's expression behind his mask was grave. "The Imperial Advisor instructed me to take a wisp of Bai Jueming's soul power to the Soul Lamp Hall to examine it. I checked every single soul lamp, including the Imperial Advisor's. The result was that none of the soul lamps matched Bai Jueming's soul power!"

"Could it be the work of the Onmyoji of Beichen?" After saying that, Li Zhengshan cursed himself for being stupid. The Onmyoji of Beichen was instructing the people of Daxia?

The deputy hall master sighed, "I've thought about that too, but how could such a thing be possible?"

The Grand Preceptor of Beichen guided your Great Xia's people to become Yin-Yang Masters, only to turn against your own country? Wouldn't it be better to directly cultivate Beichen's infant, or bring the successfully guided Bai Jueming back to Beichen to become a Beichen citizen? Or do you intend to keep Bai Jueming in the capital as a spy? That way, Bai Jueming would never be exposed to the Yin-Yang Palace.

Li Zhengshan suddenly realized a terrifying truth and said in a trembling voice, "Could there be third-rank Yin-Yang Masters that we don't know about?"

Upon hearing this, the deputy hall master shook his head: "You just advanced to the fifth rank, you should know this best."

That's right, that's right. I almost forgot, there's no way such a person could exist. To advance to the fifth rank, an Onmyoji needs to meet two conditions. First, they need to live in a city with a population of over a million, like the capital of the Great Xia Kingdom or Bianjing, the capital of the Beichen Kingdom! Places like the northern barbarians, the Western Shu Kingdom in the northwest, the Great Demon Kingdom of the demon race, and the Inner Demon Sea do not meet the conditions for an Onmyoji to advance.

Secondly, the location must be reinforced by a massive array, and one must remain within the array to draw upon the power of heaven and earth. These conditions are incredibly stringent, and only the Yin-Yang Palace in Bianjing, the capital of the Northern Chen Kingdom, meets them. The Great Xia Yin-Yang Palace and the Great Xia Imperial City are also among the three locations that meet these requirements.

Given such stringent promotion requirements, what kind of rogue cultivator could secretly advance to the fifth rank without these forces' knowledge? Could it be that Beichen secretly trained a third-rank Yin-Yang Master unknown to Daxia? No, no. That brings us back to the original question: why would the people of Beichen mentor a Daxia person to become an Yin-Yang Master?

If there's even a one in ten thousand chance that it was Beichen's doing, what would their purpose be? Now that Bai Jueming is under the management of the Yin-Yang Palace, there's no possibility that he'll pledge allegiance to Beichen.

Li Zhengshan murmured to himself, "Then who is the Yin-Yang Master behind Bai Jueming?"

"Go back and ask Bai Jueming what he knows. As for that Onmyoji's appearance, it's definitely fake." The deputy hall master's tone was mocking. "Onmyoji are best at guarding against other Onmyoji's dream questioning and soul-searching techniques. Onmyoji with this kind of identity are the direction of my investigation. I'll try to find him."

After saying that, the deputy hall master casually tossed two black pills at Li Zhengshan: "You did a good job. These are breakthrough pills for you. Your subordinates can use them, or you can keep them for yourself."

Li Zhengshan excitedly accepted the pills; he had never taken such a special pill for Yin-Yang Masters before. Once he reached his advancement bottleneck, taking it would allow him to smoothly advance in rank! If he kept both of them, advancing to the third rank would only be a matter of time!

"Thank you for the medicine, Vice Hall Master." Li Zhengshan clasped his hands in a salute and prepared to take his leave.

The deputy hall master nodded slightly: "But this matter is not completely over yet. The imperial advisor is still recovering from his injuries, and the demon race has infiltrated the capital. We still need to be more vigilant."

"yes!"

Zhengshan Hall, Bai Jueming's private office.

Bai Jueming sprawled out in his chair, legs propped up on the table, looking every bit the big shot. Han Xueshan rolled her eyes. "Can't you even be a little more mindful of your image?"

"Isn't my image pretty good?" Bai Jueming said, feigning sleep. "Ever since the Imperial Preceptor was injured, the capital has become increasingly turbulent."

Han Xueshan nodded in strong agreement: "In the entire Great Xia Dynasty, apart from the Grand Preceptor, the current Emperor is the most capable fighter. Now that the Grand Preceptor is injured and His Majesty stays in the palace and doesn't come and go as he pleases, he can't deter those villains at all."

"The craftsman in the Craftsmen's Hall is at odds with the emperor and only wants to focus on crafting weapons, and is completely unwilling to get involved in politics and trivial matters."

Upon hearing this, Bai Jueming was taken aback, then looked puzzled: "Miss Han, you even know that Qiao Shou and His Majesty are at odds? How can a Taoist disciple like you know so much about the political figures of Great Xia? Are the court and the Mountain Tiger Temple so deeply intertwined?"

"Shouldn't this be common knowledge? Are you even a Great Xia person?" Han Xueshan retorted.

"Nonsense, of course I'm not." Bai Jueming ignored the question and instead said, "I've only recently joined the Yin-Yang Palace, so I don't know much about some things yet. Also, how do you know that Qiao Shou and His Majesty don't get along? Tell me about it." Bai Jueming winked at Han Xueshan with a fawning smile.

"You're disgusting." Han Xueshan said with disgust, but she still revealed these not-so-secret secrets.

"Actually, the head of the Craftsmen's Hall was not originally a member of the imperial court. He was originally a Taoist disciple at our Shanhu Temple."

"Taoist disciples?" Bai Jueming's voice was tinged with doubt. "Disciples of your Mountain Tiger Temple can even become officials in the imperial court? Their connections are certainly strong."

Bai Jueming remembered his younger brother telling him that the imperial court would help Shanhu Temple select children with talent for cultivation to join the temple, entirely because their founder had helped the founding emperor. Conversely, the Taoists of Shanhu Temple would also assist the imperial court. He never imagined that a Taoist could become an official?

"Shanhu Temple is backed by the imperial court and helps each other. If the court needs it, the temple will usually send disciples down to protect those officials. This is partly a training opportunity for the Taoist disciples and partly a way to repay the court's favor. However, Taoists are generally not allowed to become officials."

Han Xueshan shook her head, denying Bai Jueming's statement: "Once you become an official, you can no longer focus on cultivating your Dao. You need to handle the trivial matters of the court. It's easy to neglect your cultivation. So, it's more common for people like me to help the court and protect the safety of some useless people. That way, you won't neglect your cultivation."

"Ugh, no, you bitch, you're just trying to call me trash! I'm only low in cultivation now, it's not like I'll be low forever." Bai Jueming's face darkened, clearly annoyed.

Han Xueshan glanced at Bai Jueming with disdain: "Besides, His Majesty wouldn't allow such a thing to happen. If there are too many Taoist disciples among the officials, it will destabilize the imperial power. Don't you understand?"

"Those who know, know," Bai Jueming indicated that he understood. If some fellow disciples from the same Taoist temple were to seize power, it would be easy for them to unite and oppose the imperial power, which would be detrimental to the feudal rulers' autocracy and governance.

Han Xueshan cleared her throat and continued, "Master Qiao of the Craftsmen's Hall is an exception. He possessed unparalleled talent in weapon crafting back in the Taoist temple. Not only the Craftsmen's Hall is skilled in weapon crafting, but our Taoist school also has its own methods. His Majesty recognized his talent in weapon crafting and personally invited him to serve as Master of the Craftsmen's Hall."

"Oh, Your Majesty's invitation is too much of a privilege. I imagine it would be difficult for Qiao Shou to refuse." Bai Jueming couldn't help but sigh. Having a special skill really does make one successful anywhere. But it also means being destined to be a tool.

"No! At that time, Qiao Shou was single-mindedly devoted to the Dao and had no desire to become the head of the Craftsmen's Hall. So he refused."

"No way." Bai Jueming grinned. "He dared to refuse His Majesty? Many people would kill for that. And what happened next?"

"Later, His Majesty resorted to a despicable method." After saying this, Han Xueshan realized she had said the wrong thing. She looked around to make sure no one was there before she felt relieved.

"Despicable tactics?" Bai Jueming's first thought was to threaten Qiao Shou's family with their lives.

"Qiao Shou lost his parents at a young age, but he has a younger sister. In the end, His Majesty began to pursue Qiao Shou's sister, and no matter how hard Qiao Shou tried to protect her, he ultimately failed." Han Xueshan curled her lip, disgusted by such methods. However, since the other party was the emperor, she dared not say anything.

The two quickly fell in love, and soon Joe's sister became pregnant...

This is ridiculous! If you can't handle your sister, at least you can handle your brother-in-law? Now that I'm your brother-in-law, you think you can just not help me? This method isn't even that despicable...

"Because he lost both his parents at a young age, Qiao Shou doted on his younger sister and indulged her in everything. Eventually, His Majesty found him with his pregnant sister and appointed him as the head of the Craftsmen's Hall."

"Qiao Shou was furious. He pointed at His Majesty's nose and cursed him. He looked like he wanted to fight to the death."

"In the end, it was his sister who persuaded him with kind words, saying things like, 'We two are truly in love, and if you kill his unborn child, he will have no father.'"

"Pfft, pfft, pfft," Bai Jueming couldn't help but say, "How can an older brother not be furious?" His precious younger sister turned out to be love-struck and siding with outsiders, even trying to sabotage her brother.

"Qiao almost choked, lamenting that he must have committed some terrible sin in his past life. He knew all too well that the imperial family was the most ruthless. In the end, he made a deal with His Majesty: he would be content to be the head of the artisan hall, but his sister had to become the empress!"

"At that time, His Majesty had just ascended the throne and had not yet had time to appoint an empress. He agreed to Qiao Shou's request and, despite the immense pressure from the court officials, made Qiao Shou's sister the empress. Later, Qiao Shou's sister gave birth to a boy, who is now the crown prince."

"His Majesty keeps his word. He not only made his sister empress, but also made his nephew crown prince." Bai Jueming felt that it was quite an achievement for an emperor to do this. Of course, this was inseparable from Qiao Shou's intimidation. He himself was powerful and had the right to negotiate with the emperor.

"I think His Majesty's behavior..." Han Xueshan shook her head, saying nothing more. One could only lament how foolish the Empress was, falling so easily into a man's trap...

"Miss Han, what would you do if you encountered someone like His Majesty?" Bai Jueming asked with a wicked smile.

"If I encountered someone like His Majesty, I would definitely..." Han Xueshan didn't finish her sentence, but instead raised her hand in a chop gesture. "I would definitely side with my own brother."

Bai Jueming smiled, his nonchalant demeanor vanishing. "Miss Han, haven't you ever had a crush on someone your own age?"

"No," Han Xueshan said, shaking her high ponytail. She didn't understand why Bai Jueming asked that. Since childhood, she had been treated like a boy by her peers, no boy liked her, and she didn't have anyone she liked... "I don't think even if I did like someone, I would never conspire with an outsider to trick my own brother."

"You haven't experienced love, so you don't understand the power of love," Bai Jueming said with emotion.

"You act like you know everything." Han Xueshan said with disdain.

"Of course I don't understand either, I only believe in the God of Wealth."