Each of the nine dragon maidens possesses extraordinary abilities.

Wen Ciji thought for a moment and said, "Didn't we fail to reach an agreement the day before yesterday? You're not satisfied with the cooperation terms of the Langya Gang."

“My proxy has awakened, so these decisions are naturally his,” said Arrogance.

Arrogance was stunned after she finished speaking. Something about her words was strange. Suddenly, she felt a lump in her throat, and some emotion was urging her to cry.

But she can't cry now. If she cries, she'll be willful, and the Holy Emperor might see all this and laugh at her later, saying, "You call this arrogance?"

"Why are you suddenly bringing this up?" Arrogantly glanced at Wen Ciji again, sensing that the other party had ill intentions.

"I just saw you were bored, so I started a conversation." Wen Ciji frankly stated his purpose.

"Our relationship isn't that good enough for us to chat freely." Arrogant and speechless, she didn't tell Lu Yueyuan that she had almost wrecked Wen Ciji's place before.

The Langya Gang is a merchant guild, and Wen Ciji is its vice leader. Their conversations revolve around self-interest, and arrogance won't buy into that. "Without our representatives, Qingzhou would be finished long ago, everyone begging for food, and you're still here haggling with me?" She was furious, feeling that the people of Qingzhou were indeed as ungrateful as she remembered.

"Don't talk to me unless it's important." She transmitted her voice arrogantly. Unlike Wen Ciji, she wasn't bored; she was genuinely listening to Lu Yueyuan and Jing Xingzhou's conversation.

“I’ve offended you, please forgive me. I was just so bored, and I always felt that you could answer my question,” Wen Ciji said.

"What's the problem?"

"I like Jing Xingzhou, can you tell?"

"I can see that. Explain in detail."

“We grew up together,” Wen Ciji said. “No one knows him better than me. I always thought we would become Daoist partners, but we didn’t. I hinted at it to him many times, but he never noticed.”

“How could I not have noticed? He was definitely faking it. Even if Jing Xingzhou weren’t a divine agent, he’d still be an ordinary person. After being with you for so many years, he must have figured it out by now.” Arrogance was genuinely intrigued by Wen Ciji and moved on to the topic. “Men are the most authoritative when it comes to playing dumb. They’re practically born actors. He actually knows what you want and what you care about, but what does it matter to him? They have many grand goals to achieve. Your affairs are just a tiny fraction of their lives. Explaining things to you is a huge favor. They also have a savior complex, wishing they could die in the eyes of the whole world, to die alone and have everyone weep for them. But who would actually cry for them… Hey, you’re talking like I’m a man.”

Arrogance recalled seeing her brothers carrying newly issued magical artifacts in the family, looking majestic and beautiful. She really wanted to touch them, but was too embarrassed to ask. Her brothers noticed her thoughts and walked around showing them off, looking incredibly smug.

Wen Ciji was overwhelmed by the surge of arrogance. After a while, she said, "Then what should I do? He's pretending to be stupid. Can I still expose him?"

"Come on," he sneered arrogantly. "Can you wake someone who's pretending to be asleep? What can you do to him if he doesn't want to? Beat him up, trample him underfoot, and force him to tell you?"

As she said this, she subconsciously glanced at Lu Yueyuan. To be honest, she had actually thought about it; when they first met, she wanted to hang him up and give him a good beating. Who the hell are you, suddenly appearing to steal my position as the executor? Now she wasn't so concerned about the executor position anymore, but her desire to beat him up remained unchanged.

Lu Yueyuan is a riddle-maker, arrogance thought. Such a riddle-maker is no different from a scumbag. If you don't torment him, he will never tell you the truth.

Chapter 95: How come you're so skilled? (4k)

“So we can only follow along helplessly, just like you and your agents,” Wen Ciji said.

"Are you here to cause trouble?" The arrogant man laughed. "I don't have that much affection for him. The only reason I'm following him is because the god I believe in has chosen him. My situation is different from yours. Do you really have great faith in Lord Hengjun?"

Arrogance thought Wen Ciji was ridiculous for thinking they were the same. No, they were completely different. Arrogance was not familiar with Lu Yueyuan at all, and didn't even know him. Lu Yueyuan was the same. Even if he had learned about him from the Holy Emperor, it was from a third-party perspective, which was definitely different.

“I don’t trust him, simply because I grew up with him and I know him. That’s all. Aren’t you the same?” Wen Ciji asked.

"What? What are we too?" Arrogance was taken aback.

“Aren’t you childhood sweethearts?” Wen Ciji said.

Arrogance was dumbfounded. She stared intently at Wen Ciji, trying to discern from his eyes whether he was joking or serious. But judging from Wen Ciji's resolute gaze, it was undoubtedly serious. She truly felt they were kindred spirits. Look how similar they were, growing up together since childhood, and then he became the representative of the gods, while she could only follow. The only difference was that Arrogance genuinely believed in the Holy Emperor… But wait, who was this guy's childhood sweetheart? How could Wen Ciji have such a judgment?

Lu Yueyuan's true childhood sweetheart was Ming Huaiwei. Unfortunately, he dealt her a heavy blow, even stabbing her in the back. The two of them were truly locked in a love-hate relationship. Her arrogance made her at most an accomplice, turning a knife into a weapon for Lu Yueyuan to wield, but that was about it.

Arrogance took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, but no. You are, after all, the vice leader of the Langya Gang. Not to mention intelligence capabilities, you should at least improve your ability to judge people. Do you think I treat him the way you treat Jing Xingzhou? I am merely following the will of the gods. If you are here to test this, then congratulations, you have succeeded. I am not that familiar with him."

"Is that so?" Wen Ciji's eyes showed obvious doubt. "But he seems to trust you a lot."

"He has no reason to doubt me, does he? We both believe in the Holy Emperor, what's the big deal?" Arrogantly, she said. She was trying to figure out Wen Ciji's purpose. If he was here to sow discord, that would be incredibly idiotic, not only idiotic but also stupid. With a formidable enemy at hand, using such a thing to sow discord was no different from a child throwing a tantrum.

“I don’t think I’m mistaken. Memory may lie, but human instinct doesn’t. You two really look like you’ve known each other for years.” Wen Ciji looked at Ao Man, who was sitting right next to Lu Yueyuan. It was a very close distance. Lu Yueyuan could easily place his hand on Ao Man’s clasped knees with just a slight movement to the side. How was this any different from Wen Ciji and Jing Xingzhou’s situation? Right now, Jing Xingzhou had one hand on Wen Ciji’s leg.

Arrogantly, he slightly opened his mouth, looked at Wen Ciji for a long time, and then said, "Unfortunately, no. I still maintain that I am not familiar with him."

Pride had noticed it too; she was indeed getting a bit too close to Lu Yueyuan. But what did it matter? Jealousy was sleeping next to him, and Gluttony cooked him a variety of meals every day. What was she compared to that? But perhaps her feminine side was acting up, because Pride thought back to when Lu Yueyuan first convened the Phantom Gathering. He had spoken so fluently with them, expressing lust, greed, rage... Except for his offline laziness, everyone liked him. His words always hit the nail on the head regarding what they wanted most. Could that really be achieved by simply receiving information from the Holy Emperor? And... was the Holy Emperor really paying attention to them?

Wen Ciji wanted to say something more, but the conversation between the two men ended, and Jing Xingzhou stood up: "I have really benefited a lot today. It's getting late, I'll come to visit again another day."

Lu Yueyuan smiled amicably: "Okay."

The recluse also woke up and exhaled: "You're done talking? Phew, I thought you were going to talk all night."

"I didn't realize it was so late," Jing Xingzhou said somewhat awkwardly. "It's my fault."

"Alright, alright, stop talking about your faults and mine. You'll start arguing again later." The Hermit waved his hand, used his spiritual energy to pull Jing Xingzhou back, and said goodbye to Lu Yueyuan. "We're leaving now. We'll come back to see you later."

Wen Ciji glanced at Aoman and then got up and left.

"They finally left. I thought I was going to have to wait outside all night."

Gluttony peeked out, and only entered the room after confirming that no one was there. She was wearing the academy's attire, carrying a food box, and her hair was braided and hung down over her shoulders.

"It smells so good!" Jealousy suddenly looked up, her eyes shining brightly as she looked over.

"This is yours on top, the middle one is the boss's, and the bottom one is the Executor's," Gluttony said with a smile, having already allocated everything.

"You arrived a while ago?" Lu Yueyuan looked at her. "There's no need to wait. You can come in directly next time."

"I didn't make their portion, otherwise it would be troublesome if they asked me for it. This is fine." Gluttony smiled and handed Lu Yueyuan his portion.

"Can you make noodles next time?" Lu Yueyuan asked.

“Of course, I’m a master at making noodles!” Gluttony said happily; she was indeed skilled at making pasta.

Arrogance glanced instinctively at Lu Yueyuan and Gluttony, who were talking back and forth without any awkwardness.

"...Born to be an expert? No, it's impossible that the Holy Emperor would even tell you about something as simple as noodles..." Arrogance muttered to himself, "But perhaps, the Holy Emperor knows everything..."

“Wow, Proxy, yours looks better. Let’s switch,” said Jealousy.

"The Actor's portion is spiritual food, to replenish the soul. I've already allocated it all, so it's best not to change it," Gluttony said, her eyebrows slightly furrowed, her eyes showing a rare emotional fluctuation.

"Then I'll have a bite, just a bite, okay? The Agent doesn't mind." Jealousy really came over and used her chopsticks to pick up the chicken leg meat from Lu Yueyuan's food box.

Lu Yueyuan did not stop him, but simply chewed slowly.

"Is it alright, Lord Agent? Have one of your chicken legs." Jealousy grinned slyly as he ate and asked.

"You've already eaten it, why are you still asking?" Gluttony spoke up for Lu Yueyuan.

"Just asking, if the Agent doesn't agree, I'll just spit it out. Besides, my soul is also very tired. I've been making magical artifacts for the Agent all this time." Jealousy said as she jumped onto the bed, knelt down, and looked at Lu Yueyuan very seriously, asking, "Does the Agent want it? I'll spit it out for you. Anyway, you don't even care about the cakes I've eaten."

Pride and Gluttony both looked at Lu Yueyuan.

Lu Yueyuan paused for two seconds before slowly speaking: "First of all, I didn't eat the pancake you ate. You just broke it in half and gave me half. Also, I'm not interested in anything you've eaten. That concludes my explanation."

"Yes, yes, but it's all the same. Why does the Executor need to explain? Hmm, let me ask you another question. Who is the Executor explaining for, Gluttony or the Boss?" Jealousy smiled slyly.

"I'm finished eating." Lu Yueyuan put down his chopsticks; he had indeed finished everything.

"Answer the question! Answer the question!" Jealousy is just being unreasonable.

"The problem." Lu Yueyuan refused to say anything else, and he was being unreasonable. He closed his eyes, lay back, and pretended to sleep.

"Alright, jealousy, stop it," Gluttony said. "The Proxy isn't getting any rest because of you. I'll make you a portion from now on. Besides, nobody cares whether the Proxy has eaten what's in your mouth or not. Food is precious. If it's a critical moment, it's okay to eat what's left in someone else's mouth to save energy."

Arrogantly, she sat there, eating from her food box, remaining silent for a long time. "Yes, who would care..." she muttered to herself, but no one could hear her, not even the gods.

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Youzhou, the Ghost City of Fengdu.

When news of the White Mountain Ancestor's representative being injured reached the capital, panic ensued.

The Ghost King has been under a lot of pressure lately. The Netherworld Barrier was damaged, causing the dead souls to flood in. At first, everyone was able to resist, but now, the dead souls that appear are getting stronger and stronger.

Originally, the Ghost King was gloating when he heard the news of the disappearance of one of the guardians of the Nine Peaks Sect in Zhongzhou, but his laughter soon vanished. Some unscrupulous person had damaged the Netherworld Curtain, disrupting the peace of Youzhou and forcing the Ghost Palace of Fengdu to shift its forces to the front line of fighting against the dead souls.

Originally, he planned to wipe out the guardians of the Jiuyi Sect who had entered Youzhou in one fell swoop, but the continuous battles had made it difficult for Fengdu Ghost Palace to protect itself, not to mention that now, one of the agents had been injured.

The only visible fighting force of Fengdu Ghost Mansion consists of three agents who are Dao-self unity experts, which is far inferior to that of Jiuyi Sect. The injury of Baishan Patriarch's agent has been a great blow to the entire Fengdu Ghost Mansion. At least for now, the Ghost King has no mood to deal with Mo Zhiyan's matter.

He even suspected that it might be the Four Gods' Agents or Mo Zhiyan who did it, but after thinking about it, he felt it was impossible. Even if they wanted to seize the Youzhou land vein, the intrusion of the dead souls would be detrimental to them, and they would have no reason to do so.

If the dead souls were to grow stronger, the entire Youzhou would be destroyed. The Four Gods would not only lose the earth veins, but Youzhou would also degenerate into a deathly realm, leaving not a single hair behind.

Yesterday, the Blackwater Goddess's representative came to discuss the matter with the Ghost King. The damage to the Netherworld Curtain might not have been caused by human intervention. It had maintained the operation of Youzhou for so many years and was already worn down beyond recognition by the passage of time. The Blackwater Goddess's representative suggested that the Ghost King and the Jiuyi Sect make peace, at least regarding the matter of Mo Zhiyan, and not push things to the brink. Although the two sides had been at odds for many years, it was only a struggle over lineage. Moreover, the Jiuyi Sect's own situation was also complicated, and its protectors were showing a tendency to obey orders but not summons.

The Blackwater Goddess's proxy already knew about the events in Qingzhou. She had analyzed the situation for the Ghost King. Regardless of the Heavenly Venerable's proxy's motives for attacking Qing Zaishan, the attack was an undeniable fact, and the Guardians and the Four Gods' Proxy Agents would no longer be a united front. Since a rift had emerged between them, Youzhou should no longer treat the Guardians and the Four Gods' Proxy Agents as a single entity. Her suggestion was for the Fengdu Ghost Palace to extend goodwill to Mo Zhiyan; regardless of whether it succeeded, at least a friendly communication channel should be established.

The Ghost King said he would think about it, but in reality he was extremely unwilling.

He harbored strong regional prejudices, believing that people from all over the country, except for those from Youzhou, were no good. He thought the people of Qingzhou were cunning and treacherous, and the people of Zhongzhou were utterly hypocritical. He hadn't forgotten how his father had died.

"The previous sect leader of the Jiuyi Sect was an extremely hypocritical liar. He lured my father to Zhongzhou under the guise of peace talks, which resulted in my father's untimely death. I cannot forget this grudge."

The Ghost King said to his Daoist partner.

He could not forget this hatred.

At that time, he was only a teenager and had just embarked on the path of cultivation. His future was originally very bright, but unexpectedly, his father died. In an instant, the people around him who were originally kind to him suddenly became strange.

Over the years, the Ghost King has been cautious and careful, and finally became the ruler of Fengdu Ghost Palace. Only he knows how much hardship he has endured.

Fortunately, that old man from the Jiuyi Sect also died. On the day he learned of his death, the Ghost King held a three-day feast and drank heavily. But even so, he still felt empty inside. After all, this revenge was not something he did himself, so he always felt it was meaningless.

He still harbored resentment in his heart, and this resentment affected his judgment of everything in Zhongzhou. For example, right now, he knew that what the Blackwater Lady's representative said made sense, but he just couldn't swallow his anger.

Who knows if it was the sect leader of the Jiuyi Sect who killed him back then, he told himself. Just forget everything and talk to the Jiuyi Sect's protectors. It's so frustrating.

Most importantly, he has been spreading the theory of hatred towards Zhongzhou to his disciples for so many years, but now he has gone there to negotiate with the people from Zhongzhou. Isn't this a slap in the face?

The Ghost King cared deeply about his reputation. Having cultivated immortality for so many years, he had only considered two things: face and enlightenment. Face was for others to see, enlightenment was for himself. For so many years, the Ghost King hadn't believed in any deities, making his enlightenment difficult, and that was that. Therefore, the first thing had become even more important. A sect leader needed to maintain the demeanor of a sect leader; if he didn't care about face, what else could he care about?

He thought about it all night and finally decided to continue hunting down Mo Zhiyan while fighting against the dead souls. He was able to become the actual ruler of Fengdu Ghost Palace not only because of the support of his proxy, but also because he had his own considerable strength.

The White Mountain Ancestor's proxy was injured, but it's alright. He can just take over himself. The sect has developed for so many years and has quite a foundation. Although it is not as powerful as the Nine Peaks Sect, it will not collapse so easily.

However, before he could take any action, an envoy from Qingzhou arrived.

The messenger was a personal guard of Jing Xingzhou, the leader of the Langya Gang. He came to visit, saying he had brought important news.

The Ghost King originally didn't want to meet him, but the other party changed his mind after saying just one sentence.

"I know who destroyed the Netherworld Curtain."

Chapter 96: Do the people of Qingzhou/Youzhou suffer from some serious illness? (6k)

The Ghost King despised the people of Zhongzhou, and likewise, he hated the people of Qingzhou.

Hypocrisy is always accompanied by cunning; it's perfectly normal for the strongest forces in these two states to like to team up.

Despite numerous wars between Zhongzhou and Youzhou, Qingzhou consistently sides with Zhongzhou and frequently robs the trade channels between Youzhou and Yanzhou.

The Ghost King had protested this many times, but the Langya Gang's response was that they couldn't do anything about it. They were a merchant guild, and at most, they could only punish them according to the rules. However, many of the merchant guilds under their command didn't listen to the rules. Enraged, the Ghost King immediately called for reinforcements to deal with them. Unexpectedly, the despicable Qingzhou people promised some conditions and summoned the protectors of the Jiuyi Sect.

The two sides fought a fierce battle, but in the end, Fengdu Ghost Palace was defeated. There was nothing that could be done; Youzhou was simply outmatched on the main battlefield, and the Ghost King could only swallow his anger.

But no matter what, he came to hate Qingzhou.

He never expected that Qingzhou would send an envoy to him. It was a huge joke, but the information revealed by the envoy made it impossible for him to refuse.

The curtain of darkness...

It is a natural barrier for the survival of the people of Youzhou, and an important line of defense against outsiders. Problems can occur anywhere else, but the Netherworld Curtain must not be compromised.

The Ghost King had always believed that the Netherworld Curtain had been deliberately damaged. However, after the Blackwater Goddess's agent investigated, he concluded that the probability of natural damage was also very high, so he temporarily put his mind at ease. But then the Qingzhou envoy came and said those words. Whether it was true or not, he could not sit idly by.

If there really is someone in Youzhou who can break the Netherworld Curtain, then he cannot sit idly by. Similarly, if the Qingzhou envoy is lying, he will make the other party experience what it means to wish for death.

The envoy he received in the main hall almost laughed out of anger upon seeing him.

Damn it, it's a robot that's come.

Okay, I understand. Given the courage of the people of Qingzhou, they wouldn't dare to come in person.

The Ghost King expressed his disdain, but he could also understand the other party's cowardice.

Even though it's the largest gang in Qingzhou, and actually the strongest force in Qingzhou, and its leader is a god's agent, what's the result...? Neither of the two gods in Qingzhou is in charge. The Immortal Craftsman never issues divine decrees, and the Lord of Hengjun is even more abstract, betraying even his own followers.

Becoming an agent of that kind of god is incredibly unlucky. The Ghost King also received top-secret intelligence that the Mo family, the followers of the Immortal Craftsman, had been almost wiped out, but the Immortal Craftsman remained as silent as ever.

If you ask the Ghost King, they're all cowards, from the gods to the believers. Why don't you dare fight the people of Zhongzhou? That Killing-to-Prove-the-Dao Heavenly Venerable is your father! You've almost wiped him out, and you're not launching a divine war, what are you waiting for?

And that damn gang leader Jing Xingzhou, supposedly a divine agent, is mortally weak. The Ghost King met him once a long time ago, and back then he was sick like a tuberculosis patient. How come he's still alive all these years? What good is being alive if he can't even control his own gods? What a useless piece of trash.