Chapter 71

Fu Ming's heart quickened, but his expression didn't waver. "He is our nation's Xianzun." His tone was heavier than before. "By rights, he is also your master. Are you..."

"I'm killing my master—you want to say I'm guilty of treason?" Lin Yu picked up his thought. The long-absent sunlight warmed the paper, and her fingers unconsciously traced the light on the page.

"Not exactly treason." After a long moment, Fu Ming replied.

Lin Yu propped her chin on her hand and stopped looking at him. She had a vague suspicion that Fu Ming would definitely move to eliminate the Xianzun. Her intuition had always been accurate, rarely wrong. Fu Ming had supported her becoming the Divine Maiden, and she served his purposes. He wanted to create a god, to have someone to counterbalance divine power, to have someone to help him bring this precarious dynasty back on track.

If that were so, there was no room for the Xianzun. If left alive, he would only be a disaster in the future. As the person closest to the gods in this world, the Xianzun could transmit divine decrees and oversee the major sacred ceremonies of every festival. If he wasn't removed, the human sacrifices would never be abolished, and as long as those continued, the gods of heaven would keep enhancing their cultivation and power through the offerings of believers. The longer this dragged on, the harder it would be to root them out.

The folk sacrifices were minor by comparison, mostly involving fewer than ten people. When nobles and princes presided over rituals, they offered at most thirty or fifty. But the Xianzun started at over a hundred. Lin Yu had just inquired a few days ago—the Spring Sacrifice in a few days would offer five hundred. That number was appalling. Settling accounts meant dealing with the biggest debt first; Fu Ming couldn't fail to understand that.

"Why does he have to wait until my Ascension to live a few more years? Why not now?" Lin Yu asked.

"Ordinary people who stray into the demonic path die within three to five years," Fu Ming suddenly said. "But guess why I've lived so long?"

Seeing Lin Yu shake her head, Fu Ming continued, "Because the previous emperor and empress successfully Ascended. Not to mention Fu Zheng—he sought his own death, and no one could save him. So, as the sole descendant of the Immortal Emperor and Empress, I inherited blessings beyond ordinary imagination. Even though they became abandoned by the Heavenly Dao and fell after a brief flash of glory."

"By the same logic, the previous Divine Maiden, A Si, failed her first Ascension. The Xianzun exchanged half his life's cultivation and blessings for a chance for A Si, allowing her to Ascend and become a god again. Do you think he's the kind of person who values affection and loyalty?"

Lin Yu: "He isn't."

Lin Yu inexplicably recalled the night Lin Zhao died. Lin Zhao was half-immortal, yet the Xianzun had killed her without mercy. Faced with a divine decree, he wouldn't spare anyone.

"His deal isn't a loss, though. He traded half his life for the blessing of the Divine Maiden's Ascension. The Xianzun is, after all, just a mortal with deep cultivation. Even if he staked his entire life, it'd still be worth it—a mortal's lifelong blessings can't compare to even a sliver of an immortal's. He relied on A Si's blessings to greatly increase his cultivation, which is how he's lived until now."

"But what he wants isn't just to aid a Divine Maiden in becoming a god. He wants to leave his name through the ages. The only way is through A Si—this Divine Maiden he brought up himself. Once A Si becomes a High God after some time, her status secure, blessing the world with rain and wind, then people will remember the Xianzun and mention who her master was in mythology when recording the Rain Goddess's past."

After Fu Ming explained it, Lin Yu suddenly had a feeling of enlightenment. She had previously only thought of the Xianzun as a contradictory person—he highly valued himself, said he cherished his disciples, yet didn't regard others as people; he'd casually kill ordinary disciples for sacrifices.

Saying he was the righteous leader, the exemplar of orthodox cultivators, yet he would do anything to gain cultivation as fast as possible, even willing to use heretical methods. The Xianzun was good to Lin Yu, but she understood that what he treated well was the identity of "Divine Maiden," not Lin Yu as a person.

Setting that aside, the Xianzun also had a blood debt with her. He had transmitted the dream of Immortal Lord He to the Cultivation Academy, leading to the deaths of both her parents and countless innocent girls. The Moon God's wrath, demanding the Priestess as a sacrifice—that was also his order, which led to Lin Zhao being killed and offered up.

She really couldn't think of a reason to spare the Xianzun's life.

Fu Ming glanced at the ancient book in Lin Yu's hands. He casually took it, flipped to a page, and returned it to her. He pointed to a corner of the page. "Like him, for instance."

Lin Yu snapped back to attention and looked at where Fu Ming's finger pointed. This book was still one that Fu Ming had compiled and copied, his smooth and flowing script sprawling across the page, introducing a person named "Huang Tingzhi."

He was born three hundred years ago in Jingzhou. At that time, the Heavenly Dao was too far from mortals; gods were only a volume on a bookshelf, and no one foolishly dreamed of becoming an immortal. So he founded the first Cultivation Academy, initiating the path of mortal cultivation.

As soon as Lin Yu finished reading those two short lines, Fu Ming turned back a page, where larger characters read "Sang Shen." Sang Shen was the god in charge of all living things between heaven and earth. In the book, this section was all about her. Fu Ming flipped through more than a dozen pages for Lin Yu to see—the next several pages were all about Sang Shen, with no further mention of Huang Tingzhi.

"He built the world's first Cultivation Academy and was also Sang Shen's former master. That's why he gets a few dozen characters in this ancient divine record. Two short lines—enough to leave his name for a thousand ages. Every future cultivator will know his name."

Lin Yu nodded thoughtfully. "Then why doesn't the Xianzun become a god himself, instead of going through all this trouble to make clothes for others?"

"He'd like to." Fu Ming turned the book back to the page Lin Yu had first been on. "But the moment he became the Xianzun, it became impossible. His life's mission is only to listen to the will of heaven; he cannot step onto the divine path."

"You truly don't want to kill him?" Lin Yu propped her head up, tapping the table idly. Seeing Fu Ming's silence, she wisely ended the topic. "Forget it, I'm just joking."

Casually, she added, "The Xianzun asked about the Imperial Preceptor the other day. That's how I learned he was also a disciple of the Heaven's Mandate Tower."

Fu Ming wasn't surprised. "That's right. The Imperial Preceptor followed the Xianzun for about seven or eight years. What did you tell him?"

"Not familiar."

Lin Yu truly wasn't close to him. Although Fu Ming had always brought him along earlier, Lin Yu and Yu Jia had barely exchanged a few words. Their only connection was Lin Zhao, but unfortunately, Yu Jia didn't know she was Lin Zhao's sister, and Fu Ming didn't know either, so there was no possibility of Fu Ming telling Yu Jia about her identity.

Fu Ming chuckled lightly, and the serious atmosphere between them dissipated. "Not familiar, yet you acted so close to him?"

Lin Yu knew he was referring to yesterday. "That's because... I just found out the Imperial Preceptor and I were fellow disciples. By rights, I should call him senior brother, so I paid him some attention..."

"So what did you notice?"

That question caught Lin Yu off guard. She fumbled for words. "He's... pretty tall? Stands out."

"...That's it?"

"That's it."

"What about me?"

"You're also pretty tall..." Lin Yu was at a loss.

"The same words, not sincere."

"...You're better looking than the Imperial Preceptor."

Fu Ming finally couldn't help but laugh, apparently satisfied with the answer, in a much better mood.

Lin Yu: "Though speaking of it, the Imperial Preceptor is pretty capable, leaving the Heaven's Mandate Tower and becoming the Imperial Preceptor. Why have I never heard anyone mention him before?"

"He betrayed the Heaven's Mandate Tower."

The word "betrayed" was subtle. Lin Yu made an "oh" sound and didn't ask further. She continued reading from the page Fu Ming had turned to. After that, the two exchanged little, and the atmosphere was very harmonious until noon, when Lin Yu left.

As she left, Lin Yu had wanted to take the book she'd read most of, but Fu Ming didn't allow it. Lin Yu figured that since it was his own revised compilation, he naturally didn't want it circulating, so she made an appointment with Fu Ming to come every morning for the next few days; in the afternoon, she had to practice spells. Fu Ming didn't say yes or no, just escorted her out of the main hall.

...

After noon, Lin Yu went to the back mountain to practice with her senior brothers and sisters as the Xianzun required.

So-called practice, but most of the time Lin Yu just watched from behind. Everyone knew her cultivation was mediocre, no match for cultivators who'd trained for over a decade. The Xianzun hadn't required anything of Lin Yu for killing the Ghost King—she just needed to stand behind everyone and reap the rewards.

Lin Yu sat on a high stone step far away, watching the senior brothers and sisters duel below. The entire back mountain shook with the commotion—almost no one held back, all fighting with their full strength. After watching them for a while, she began to observe her surroundings. This place was remote, almost bordering the backside of the Divine Mountain, and Lin Yu had never been here before.

She'd long known the Divine Mountain was huge, but hadn't realized just how huge. Apart from the peak visible to the world, where the Heaven's Mandate Tower was built, the mountain had a vast backside and terrain hidden by clouds. The whole mountain together was almost the size of a small city. The area where ordinary disciples lived and cultivated was only a tiny fraction; much remained unexplored.

"Little junior sister, come over!" A pale-skinned woman called out. Lin Yu looked over and recognized the caller as Bai Yue, a formidable sword cultivator. The disciples here had joined more than a decade before her, and over the afternoon, Lin Yu had gotten used to them calling her little junior sister.

Lin Yu smiled and walked over. "What's up, senior sister?"

Bai Yue looked Lin Yu up and down. "Hey, I heard you don't have your own magic tool. That absolutely won't do. Even if the Xianzun doesn't have high demands for you, you can't just not learn anything."

Lin Yu hadn't told anyone about obtaining the Bai Ze bone whip. In front of these people at the Heaven's Mandate Tower, she couldn't use it, or she'd be recognized and stir up trouble. So, to everyone, Lin Yu indeed appeared to have no magic tool for self-defense.

Lin Yu smiled. "The Xianzun said he hasn't found a suitable tool for me. Besides, I can't really use one right now—I'm too weak; with my cultivation, I can't wield any powerful artifact anyway. There's no rush."

Indeed, Lin Yu had played the fool all afternoon, saying "I don't know" to whatever she was asked, and then her senior brothers and sisters would lecture her at length with expressions of disappointment. After a few hours, she'd gained quite a bit, and Lin Yu was very satisfied.

As long as she acted dumb, someone would inevitably step in to teach her all sorts of knowledge and basic techniques. This was much faster than slowly learning with Elder Wen. If she had to follow Elder Wen, he might not even cover all this in half a year.

Bai Yue shook her head. "The Xianzun is like that; he's probably trying to pick out a good tool for you, might even give you a divine artifact. But in our cultivation, the strong have strong tools, the weak have weak tools. How can you go without?"

Bai Yue spoke quickly. Before Lin Yu could answer, she glanced around, her gaze landing on the hand of a white-haired man nearby. Her eyes lit up. "Chu Yin, come here."

The one called Chu Yin immediately sheathed his sword at the sound, his tone displeased. "Don't bother me."

Bai Yue didn't like that tone. She swung a slap at him, but Chu Yin dodged easily, leaving her to miss. Lin Yu watched her the whole time. Bai Yue waved her hand and laughed. "He's just like that, don't take offense..."

Then she put on an angry expression. "Hand over your sword, or I'll come beat you up in the dark tonight."

Chu Yin didn't respond, but he obediently tossed the sword over. Bai Yue caught it with one hand, expertly drawing the blade to show Lin Yu.

The sword's color was strange. The outer scabbard was common black, but once drawn, the sharp blade of dark iron shone in a vivid red. Lin Yu asked in confusion, "This sword..."

Bai Yue raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Ah, so you haven't seen this before. This sword is called Evergreen, specially crafted by the Ji family in the capital, who have forged swords for generations. There's an extra step in the ordinary iron swordsmithing that gives this sword its evergreen hue."

Bai Yue squinted with a smile. "Why don't you guess what that last step is?"

Lin Yu opened her mouth to answer, but Bai Yue cut her off again, speaking on her own. "You'd never guess. Among the Ji family's new generation, there are many talented youths. Inspired by the living sacrifices, they pioneered a method of forging with humans as offerings—just toss a person into the furnace when the blade comes out!"

Bai Yue got more excited as she spoke, unable to stop once started. "You know, when a person goes into the furnace, the flames lick the flesh away to nothing, and then blood spurts out. At that point, the skin has just peeled off, and the blood inside is still cold. When that cold blood douses the red-hot dark iron—well, the sword is made."

Lin Yu's brow twitched. Bai Yue made as if to hand her the sword. "Try this one. If it feels right, your senior sister will have one forged for you to use for now. You can switch to a better one later."

Lin Yu didn't touch the crimson blade. She waved her hand, keeping a polite smile. "Thank you for the kindness, senior sister. But I haven't started cultivating yet; I have no spiritual power. I can't even carry it, much less lift a heavy dark iron sword like this."

Lin Yu's words all implied she was a useless idiot who couldn't even lift a sword, so don't bother, don't try to curry favor; she was good for nothing.

Hearing this, Bai Yue's smile gradually stiffened. She'd thought this new Divine Maiden might be someone worth buttering up, but it turned out to be a waste—all her effort for nothing.

Soon, word spread among the senior brothers and sisters that Lin Yu was too weak to even lift a sword. In the following days, when they gathered for practice, no one took the initiative to teach her basic spells anymore.

Lin Yu was glad for the freedom. The techniques they'd taught were too simple; she hadn't learned formal forms, and playing with simple moves for an afternoon was fine, but if she were surrounded and forced to study like that every day, it would be a waste of her time.

In just two or three days, she'd explored most of the surrounding terrain, discovered an unmapped path down the mountain and a bramble forest, and sometimes came back to watch the others train, picking up a few moves from any impressive techniques.

She learned fast. Though most of the spiritual power she possessed wasn't self-cultivated, training intensively beside a group of prodigies meant she could now produce a few decent moves. That was significant progress for Lin Yu.

The others didn't pay much attention whether Lin Yu went into the dense forest or stayed away for long periods. After all, she didn't know anything; her presence or absence was the same. They just figured she got bored watching and went off to play.

Lin Yu realized the benefits of hiding her abilities were immense. No one was on guard against her, so she could freely learn their skills, and any of her actions wouldn't raise suspicion. They didn't even hide their secrets from her. Lin Yu spent those days happily.

...

It wasn't until the sixth day, the day before the Spring Sacrifice, that the disciples who had been called back finally gathered. Some had traveled from far away, stepping into the back mountain with dust still on their robes; others returned wounded, put on new assignments without any rest.

Lin Yu stood before the crowd. At a glance, the number seemed off. She counted carefully—exactly one hundred thirty people.

"What's going on? Thirty extra?" Lin Yu asked Yan Yi, who stood at the front.

Yan Yi bowed respectfully. "The disciples sent out on missions all have important tasks. Some are in dangerous situations and can't extricate themselves; others are far from the Imperial City. With long distances, mishaps are common, so some losses are inevitable. I was told to call back fifty, but to make sure enough showed up, I sent orders to over a hundred people."

Lin Yu nodded thoughtfully. She asked casually, "What missions are so important that so many losses are acceptable?"