Qin Shi Ambitious

Page 223

"No need for formalities," the Moon Goddess, standing in the middle of the three, replied lightly, then asked, "Has anything unusual happened at headquarters in the past two years?"

"All departments are operating normally, and nothing major has happened. The only exception is that a new batch of Five Spirits Mystic Unity disciples were recruited last year, and there are several promising talents among them now."

"Oh, which disciples are worth paying attention to?"

“There’s that Wood Department disciple that the Moon Goddess brought back a few years ago.” The High Priestess’s mind raced back to the present. “And… there’s also a Water Department disciple named ‘Ling,’ who is quite interesting.”

"'Spirit'?" The Moon Goddess's lips curled up, her tone filled with amusement.

"Does this disciple know the Moon Goddess?" Dongjun asked casually.

"Whether we recognize them or not, we'll only know after seeing them in person. I don't think anyone would come to the Yin Yang School under their real name and appearance to carry out a dangerous infiltration mission," the Moon Goddess replied calmly.

"That's hard to say." Xinghun roughly guessed what was going on and chuckled, "After spending so much time with those cunning old foxes, you can't just assume that everyone has a meticulous mind."

There are always more fools than fools in the world, especially as you go further down the social ladder.

Chapter 251 The Planner

Wu Ling Xuan Tong is an elite disciple whose aptitude is recognized by the high-ranking elders of the Yin Yang School as being superior to that of ordinary people.

The number of Yin-Yang School members is already small, and the number of Five Spirits Mystic Unity members is even smaller. Compared to ordinary disciples, they have access to a better cultivation environment and better cultivation techniques.

Sun, Moon, and Star arrived together at the high corridor bridge of the Five Spirits Mystic Unity Training Ground. Looking down through the transparent gauze curtain, they saw that most of the elite disciples of the five departments were currently practicing and discussing Yin-Yang techniques on their own.

From the disciples' perspective, the covered bridge was shrouded in a hazy gray mist, making it impossible for them to see whether any elders were observing them from behind the special gauze curtain.

Among the scattered Five Spirits, the Moon Goddess recognized the man with the short blue hair and striking markings on his face as the Taoist disciple she had met when she brought back a suitable target from Mount Taiyi.

If we're really going to talk about it, this young man named Ling is quite talented, as evidenced by the fact that he became one of the Five Spirits of the Mysterious Harmony after infiltrating the Yin-Yang School.

However, this person was highly regarded within the Taoist community at the time, having been granted the title of "Ten Thousand Rivers Autumn Water" and having already reached the initial stage of cultivation, so it was not appropriate to forcibly abduct him within the Heavenly Sect Hall.

Secondly, the Yin-Yang School needs a candidate whose qualifications lean towards the Wood element.

Having confirmed her target, the Moon Goddess shifted her gaze to the purple-haired girl she had chosen to bring back.

Watching her alone, forming hand seals and manipulating the small ball made of leaves in her palm, one could tell that she had achieved minor success in her cultivation of the Myriad Leaves Flying Flower Stream.

“The spirit robes are draped, the jade pendants are dazzling.” The Moon Goddess took out a purple jade pendant, which originally belonged to the purple-haired girl: “This person will be the destined candidate for the position of Junior Master of Fate.”

"The universe is boundless, the great Dao is Yin and Yang. Isolated Yang cannot produce life, isolated Yin cannot grow." Yan Fei also stared at the target: "It seems that she still needs a test."

"No, there are two tests. The first one has already been sent to us by the Taoists." After pointing out that Xiao Ling was a spy sent by the Taoists to infiltrate the Yin-Yang School, she casually tossed the jade pendant in her hand, intending to discard this useless item. But just as the jade pendant was about to shatter, Xinghun absorbed it into his hand:

"Don't you think this is a fine tool to humiliate Taoism?" The Left Protector weighed the purple jade in his hand, and with a sneer of interest, he walked down the spiral staircase on the left side of the covered bridge.

From the perspective of the Moon Goddess and the Eastern Lord, when Xinghun arrived in front of the Five Spirits Xuan Tong, he had already put away the jade pendant in his hand. Under normal circumstances, he was rational: he knew very well when something could be used and when it should be hidden away to wait for fermentation.

Staring at Xinghun, who seemed to be teaching Yin-Yang techniques to his elite disciples, Dongjun calmly said, "Are you just going to let him run wild like this? How are you going to control him so he doesn't cause trouble?"

"This is Lu Wei's business. I only need to ensure that you don't cause any problems," the Moon Goddess added coldly. "You should know that Xinghun was forced to join the Yin-Yang School on his way back to Xianyang from Zhao. Before that, he was already that person's man."

"Handan?" Dongjun suddenly smiled slightly: "I remember that after you lost to me in the peach blossom forest of Ji City that year, you also went to that city?"

"Indeed, I think you still know why I went there." The Moon Goddess's eyes remained calm and unwavering, as if she were listening to the story of an outsider unrelated to herself when Dongjun spoke to her.

"Of course, but what I'm curious about is: you said Lu Wei controlled Xinghun, and you controlled me, so between you and Lu Wei, who controlled whom?" Dong Jun's smile remained unchanged, and he continued to press the issue once the topic was out in the open.

"What do you think the answer is?"

"I don't think the mighty Moon Goddess would be controlled by others, but Lu Wei's personality doesn't seem like that of someone who would hand over his secrets to outsiders... It's unbelievable that the two of you can actually work together like this~"

As soon as Dong Jun finished speaking, the atmosphere in the covered bridge became deathly quiet.

"It seems..." After a long while, it was Dongjun who made the move. She turned around gracefully, the sound of her mid-calf boots clicking on the floor breaking the silence: "There is a deal between you two. As for the contents of this deal, I think: he can give you the Five Virtues Inner Qi, so all you can give is a promise to be the future leader of the Yin Yang School, right?"

"Do you really have faith in him for the future? Or do you have faith in the farmer's family?"

“I have my own decision.” The Moon Goddess’s expression did not change at all during Dongjun’s analysis, which made the latter somewhat disappointed: “However, there is one premise that we are on the same page: it will be beneficial to both of us to take control of the Mirage Project.”

“That’s right, I agree with that.” Faced with the Moon Goddess’s avoidance of discussing the so-called 'future leader of the Yin-Yang School' and instead mentioning the Mirage, Dongjun nodded in agreement without any reservations.

The mirage is closely related to the Eastern Emperor's desire to restore the Zhou Dynasty. Regarding this matter, she and the Moon Goddess share the same attitude: whether the Zhou Dynasty is restored or not will not bring much positive change to the two women. To put it bluntly, their status comes from their own Yin-Yang skills, so their pursuit is also the advancement of Yin-Yang skills.

If the Eastern Emperor Mirage Project were to take shape, a large amount of resources would be used for the restoration of Zhou. Rather than wasting them, they might as well seize them and use them for their own purposes.

Having inherited the legacy of the Yin-Yang School and the Ji Dynasty Ji Clan, and with the help of Lu Wei's Five Virtues Inner Qi, the Yin-Yang Great Dao will undoubtedly be expanded to a deeper level under the guidance of Riyue and the other two.

The names of the sun and moon will forever be etched in the history of the Yin-Yang School... at least that's what Dongjun thinks.

Therefore, she put forward a seemingly obvious idea: "After the Mohists are destroyed, we can use the power of the Farmers to kill the Eastern Emperor, and then Lu Wei will be of no use."

"Instead of cooperating again, we should capture him and lock him up in the Sakura Prison that will be built on the Mirage blueprints. When we need something, we can just forcibly extract it from him."

"So that's what you were thinking?" The Moon Goddess seemed thoughtful, as if she was tempted.

"Compared to being controlled by others every time we make a request, it is naturally more convenient for us to do it ourselves." Yan Fei said confidently, "The Yin-Yang School is not the Yin-Yang School of Qin, nor will it be the Yin-Yang School of the Farmer's School. It will only be our Yin-Yang School, the Yin-Yang School that will last for ten thousand years."

"Perhaps there are even better solutions." The Moon Goddess's eyes flickered. Unlike Dong Jun, who could only pitifully suck up a little bit of thin water each time, she could always get her fill of the Five Virtues Inner Qi as long as she didn't overdo it.

It's just some internal energy. The Rejuvenation Technique allows for quick recovery, and Lu is physically strong. There's absolutely no need for her to go through any capture plans with Dongjun.

Moreover, as the Moon Goddess's understanding of Yin-Yang arts deepens, she will gradually no longer need to obtain pure Five Virtues internal energy from the outside for her research.

"Let's complete our mirage project first, and then consider subsequent options."

Regardless of their purpose, the two subconsciously avoided mentioning the stars in the 'Sun, Moon and Stars' when they spoke. To them, each other was the most important ally and the most important rival within the Yin-Yang School.

------

After returning to headquarters from a pleasant conversation with Li Mu in the Daze Mountains, the Hall Master encountered Xiao Yan'er, who came to report on the internal situation of the farm.

Ji Yan has now officially begun his career as a disciple of the Farmer's School in the Gonggong Hall, which is also the starting point of his career in power.

Under Lu Wei's instructions, she ignored the sordid affairs among the other five halls and focused solely on stuffing people into the five halls.

Now, the Four Peaks Hall has unknowingly become a force that can be controlled at any time, and the next target is naturally the Kuiwei Hall, which was decided long ago.

Ten years ago, when Lu was not yet the head of Gonggong Hall, his arrangements for Kuiwei Hall were pragmatic. He wanted to do favors for Chen Sheng, who had been expelled from the peasant family, in order to gain Chen Sheng's support after he returned to Kuiwei Hall as the head of the hall.

At that time, Lu Wei was not strong, his influence was small, and his ambitions were even smaller.

However, his rapid expansion of power later led him to abandon this frustrating plan and decisively kick out Chen Sheng, whom he had only met a few times: the position of hall master could only be held by his own confidant!

What about Chen Sheng?

If he wants to come back, all his previous qualifications will be cancelled, and he will have to start all over again as a One-Star Pearl Grass disciple, which will be completely fair and just.

If they don't want to come back and are blocking the way, then they should be treated as traitors to the peasantry. Lu Wei will personally go to the Tomb of the Six Sages to ask Elder Bingzhu, Chen Sheng's master, to clean up the sect!

The advantage of being able to send people into Kuiwei Hall now lies with Tian Mi, but so does the disadvantage.

Kuiwei Hall is the worst of the six halls. Its situation has been like this for several years, and it can't get much worse. Therefore, Tian Mi's management is extremely lenient.

It's not difficult to get people into Kuiwei Hall, but it's difficult to get them to seize the position of general manager, which is second only to Tianmi Hall's head, and to manipulate Tianmi at will. They must be talented people with certain abilities.

This person cannot be an existing disciple of the Gonggong Hall headquarters, and must be loyal to Abbot Lu. These two conditions alone eliminate a large number of suitable candidates.

Therefore, people can only be selected from the branches, and the disciples of Gonggong Hall in Chungu Town and Sanghai City will at least be investigated by Shennong Hall, so the identities of these people are exposed.

After eliminating options one by one, what seemed like a lot of choices ultimately led to Jing County.

Coincidentally, there was indeed such a candidate in Jing County: Chen Ping.

With his abilities and the support of the Gonggong Hall, he could easily thrive in the Kuiwei Hall.

Although Chen Ping had previously expressed his unwillingness to sever his identity as a Taoist disciple, if he truly cared deeply about a nominal identity, then he wouldn't be Chen Ping.

The position of the future leader of the Farmer's Hall is something that even the weakest Kuiwei Hall would be hard to refuse in the martial arts world, especially since Chen Ping is currently lacking opportunities to make his mark.

It shouldn't be too difficult to persuade Chen Ping, but there is one thing that must be taken into account.

This is where Tian Mi's shortcomings come in: Chen Ping is very handsome and dignified, perhaps second only to Lu Wei among the disciples of the Farmer's School.

If Chen Ping wants to do well in Kuiwei Hall, he will likely have to endure being 'bullied' by Tian Mi.

Even if he is highly intelligent, if Tian Mi insists on sleeping with him, Chen Ping will probably still have to pay some price.

In this regard, Master Lu wrote a letter explaining the situation in detail, leaving it to Chen Ping to weigh the pros and cons himself.

"I have someone to handle the Kuiwei Hall, you can continue with the other three halls." He sealed the letter and instructed Xiaoyan'er to have it delivered to Jing County by a disciple the next morning. Xiaoyan'er accepted it respectfully, her expression unchanged, and nodded obediently, saying:

"My brother, the Hall Master, can control the Four Mountains Hall and the Kuiwei Hall at the disciple level. My next target is the Chiyou Hall."

This is the most conservative plan. Compared to the strength of Shennong Hall and Lieshan Hall, the other three halls are naturally easier to infiltrate.

Especially since the leader of Chiyou Hall is Tian Hu, this tiger-man Ji Yan is fully confident that he can outsmart him.

Lu Wei made proper arrangements for the Four Mountains Hall and the Kuiwei Hall. The Chiyou Hall, which is not of much significance, can be used as a test for Ji Yan to hone his abilities.

The Gonggong Hall has no shortage of executors, but planners are extremely rare, apart from the Hall Master himself.

Chapter 252 Ji Yan and Mi Lian

Tian Hu of Chiyou Hall was a thorough clan chauvinist; he always entrusted the position of chief steward to his own Tian clan members.

Even those of other surnames, like the Bone Demon who have been under their wing for many years, can only serve as henchmen and cannot be involved in important management positions.

If Ji Yan wants to make a move against him, she can only do so by targeting other disciples outside of the Tian family.

Of the 100,000 disciples of the Farmers in Daze Mountain, only a minority belonged to the Tian family. This was true even in the Lieshan Hall and Chiyou Hall, where the Tian family's power was at its peak.

In particular, for reasons unknown to Ji Yan, several dozen mid-level disciples of the Tian family from these two halls were summoned away a few years ago and have not returned to this day.

However, it seems that either Tian Guang issued the order or Tian Meng was the one who was able to summon so many members of the Tian family away!

If it's the former, then with the disappearance of this former leader of the martial arts world and the fact that these Tian family disciples haven't shown up for so long, they're probably in grave danger.

If it's the latter, is it possible that Tian Meng, like in Jing County, also established an important branch in some hidden stronghold...?

Ji Yan couldn't figure out this problem: Tian Meng was not like Tian Hu. Judging from the reputation among farmers, he was superior to his younger brother in both brains and muscles.

So she immediately sought help from Lu Wei: Xiao Yan'er believed that she was young and could naively make use of all available resources.

Aside from the Tian family members themselves, the person most likely to know the truth about the Tian family's problems is none other than the head of the hall!

However, Lu Wei nodded, but told her to think about it herself: it was a small matter, involving only a few dozen members of the Tian clan, and would not affect the overall situation.

'Then why did you nod...' After not getting the answer she wanted, Xiao Yan'er silently complained to herself for a couple of minutes, but she was not discouraged: In her plan, she originally intended to provoke conflict between the Tian family disciples and ordinary disciples, and to create a rift between them.

If those dozens of Tian family managers were still in place, the problem would be slightly more complicated; if they weren't, the conflict would undoubtedly be more easily triggered.

Given Tian Hu's personality, the conflict between the Tian clan and ordinary disciples within the Chi You Hall already existed; these ordinary disciples simply lacked an 'external force' to support them.