Chapter 2748: Not Without Reason

Glory.

Yu Xianyu, with one hand pressing the Yu family and the other holding the folded branch, possessing both military and financial power, having both Dao and martial momentum, never thought there would be this day. Just being called out by one person would make her feel glorious.

But when she, who was quietly cultivating and waiting in the resting room, suddenly heard her name called and instinctively walked towards the stage, advancing all the way to the moment when billions of gazes focused on the world-renowned Dangmo Tianjun...

She suddenly felt glorious.

How far had she walked to reach this stage, where tens of thousands of people were focused, and to have the most dazzling star of the era personally call out her name?

How many times had she swung her fist, only to finally receive Yu Que's wave of his hand...

Finally, in this dazzling light, she saw the commander of the world's first army wave goodbye and leave.

She saw her opponents, Gong Tianya, the scholar with a sword, Ji Sansi, with a red robe and silver spear, and Lu Ye, young but solemn, standing like an old dragon, walk onto the stage one by one.

At this moment, she suddenly thought, why did Dangmo Tianjun suddenly personally enter the arena, push forward the competition progress, and urgently announce so many things...

There was a feeling of fear that the night was long and full of dreams, a desire to get things done once and for all.

As a favored child of the era, already possessing such fame and bravery, what else could make him so urgent?

She vaguely thought of some things... about the recent sparks in the world, the wind and rain about to come to the stage. But focused on the competition, she hadn't gathered enough information to piece together the full picture.

But no matter what, for Dangmo Tianjun to retire from the cabinet at this time, from her perspective, was a very good choice.

In Heavenly Capital City, the voices about Jiang Ge Lao's reputation being too prominent, his power too heavy, and his private interests too numerous were already becoming increasingly fierce. She believed this was not limited to Heavenly Capital City. And this session of the Yellow River Assembly was held so grandly, already placing him high on the flames... one careless move and he would burn to ashes.

Achieving merit and then retreating is great wisdom.

And the last decision he participated in before retiring from the cabinet, "Taixu Academy," naturally would no longer face any resistance.

No one could profit from it, and Jiang Ge Lao, who did not belong to any major hegemonic power or any particular faction, left empty-handed. Who could still accuse him of having private interests?

Precisely this "Taixu Academy" serves the purpose of governing the world and is beneficial to the stability of the current world order.

Precisely the most "private" cabinet members who sat the straightest were still there... all resistance ceased to exist.

As for the reasons behind Jiang Ge Lao's retirement from the cabinet, there were still more reasons that Yu Xianyu simply couldn't see.

In fact, before the competition, she went to recruit Lu Ye more to save Jing country's reputation.

If Lu Ye joined Jing country, the accusation of the Wei country's two prefectures' extraordinary cultivators being slaughtered would not clear itself.

Even if he did refuse. As the representative of Jing country's Outer Tower Field, she could still let the world see Jing country's broad mind and demeanor.

The vast and great Jing country had not yet reached the point of fighting on the stage over the victory or defeat of the competition's favored children.

In past sessions and dynasties, it had always been about overwhelming hard strength.

Of course, this session was indeed... worrying, and it might even lead to other thoughts.

The Unlimited Field was already claimed by Chu Kui, the four strong contenders in the Inner Treasury Field had no chance, and only she remained on the Viewing River Platform, still able to fight for Jing. Yu Xianyu saw not pressure... but an unprecedented opportunity!

Jing country's favored sons on the stage had never been unfavored before, but facing Lu Ye, who had just shouldered blood debt, Gong Tianya, who bore up Qiantang on his shoulders, and Ji Sansi, who wore snow and carried red... she really wasn't given much hope.

Even before the competition, Heavenly Capital City inside had more expectations for Xu Zhiyi and Sa Shihan, whom the Tianshi family had heavily bet on and claimed that "the accumulation of a millennium culminates in this merit."

When Zuo Guangshu stepped on Sa Shihan's head and pierced through to the core, there were lamenting voices within Heavenly Capital City, as if Jing country's journey in the Yellow River Assembly had already ended.

If she were to win the championship today, this championship title would be more meaningful than those taken for granted in past sessions.

"Yu Xianyu..."

She saw Dangmo Tianjun's gentle smile.

She thought, this really is a very gentle person.

Born in Heavenly Capital City, possessing everything from a young age, growing up to strive back everything for herself... she had seen too many strong individuals. Those people either held power over the world or were naturally majestic. No matter how they bent down to smile, they were always high above.

Dangmo Tianjun was different.

He gave people a feeling of being in the human world, mingling with grass and trees, just like the neighbor's brother she had seen in her childhood, before understanding the difference between high and low status... that kind of simple, ordinary, and hard-to-find feeling.

But he was clearly as radiant as the sun and moon!

She wanted to become such a strong person. She thought, true gentleness must come from a powerful inner heart.

Only a person who has the ability to calmly cope with wind and rain can face the human world so gently.

A little more is flattery, a little less is humility. And higher, it becomes charity.

"Your opponent is Gong Tianya." Dangmo Tianjun said with a warm smile.

Yu Xianyu instantly came back to her senses, her eyes focused, and she stood firmly on the stage.

Gong Tianya, who was originally in the court hearing the Dao Heaven Palace asking Jiang Zhenjun if he had resentment, had already grown into a scholar like the bright moon, a swordsman like bamboo, possessing the tenacity of an old farmer.

Lu Ye and Ji Sansi silently retreated.

Simple and clean martial clothes, and a corner of a red cloak, floated to Gong Tianya's sides.

He lifted his boot and stepped forward, holding the sword with a green bamboo scabbard horizontally in front of his body... he only said one thing: "Please grant me instruction."

Zhuge Zuo had the habit of touching his finger bones. When he wasn't reading books, he would touch his own bones.

Touching bones was the fastest way to perceive the body. He learned this from a young age and could use it to tell people's fortunes, accurately judging how many inches and centimeters he would grow taller next year.

He always wanted to grow up quickly.

Now he didn't want to, but he had already grown up. Someone said, "When you don't want to grow up, that's when you've already grown up."

He used his thumb and index finger to rub the index finger of his other hand, inch by inch. Repeatedly back and forth.

From the perspective of fate, his fate was very bad, with the bones being sparse between the three, punishing and harming six relatives. His grandfather gave him the name "Zuo," which also meant supplementing what was lacking.

But after returning from the East Sea, his fate changed.

Three Yang opens Tai, fortune assists long.

He always felt his grandfather was too burdened, hoping he could grow up quickly and help share the burden.

But he suddenly realized he was also one of the reasons for his grandfather's burden...

He became more silent.

Zhong Liyan's letter made him subconsciously pinch his bones tightly. The pain that happened at this instant finally slightly alleviated the pain in his brain.

"Recently there's a rumor, I don't know if gentlemen have heard..." Zhuge Zuo opened his mouth in the resting room of the Inner Treasury field players. He slowly rubbed his finger bones, looking somewhat absent-minded.

He lightly lifted his index finger, and a sound-retaining stone flew out. Inside was a sneaky voice.

"Heard? This session of the Yellow River Assembly, someone cheated."

"How is that possible! There are so many True Monarchs watching on the field, the truth is known at a glance. Who dares to play a fake match?" Another voice asked. "Ha, I'm not talking about that." The former voice said.

"Off-field methods are even more impossible. Who dares to challenge the fairness of the Yellow River Assembly? Are they not afraid of the Town River True Monarch's sword? In all the heavens and myriad realms, you're not allowed to ascend to the peak... aren't you afraid?"

"I'm afraid of a hair, I can't ascend to the peak in my next life either. What, what are you interrupting? I'm saying..." That voice suddenly lowered: "It seems there are old guys mixed in with the stage!"

Zhuge Zuo's index finger paused there, and the sound-retaining stone also stopped abruptly.

"Although it's temporarily just a rumor, it suddenly spread, which inevitably makes people suspicious."

He said slowly and methodically: "Empty holes are not necessarily without wind."

After only four strong contenders remained, the resting room became empty.

Except for Bao Xuanjing, everyone else had a relatively cold temperament, so they sat very far apart, almost each in a corner.

"What do you mean?" Chen Yanxun, who had been watching the match through the mirror curtain, slightly raised his eyelids: "Someone lied about their age to participate? But what's the significance of that? The Yellow River Assembly doesn't restrict age, it's just an assembly of favored ones after all. Inner Treasury and Outer Tower are both middle-grade realms. Those old guys wouldn't have good reason to go on stage..."

"Crack!" Bao Xuanjing chewed on a pill, seemingly thoughtful: "Things like faking age to participate. Only in the Unlimited Field below thirty years old would there be this necessity. But the championship of this match has already been decided. No one should think Zuo Guangshu is an old guy... he is the focus of millions, the pride of Great Chu, watched by the Chu people as he grew up."

"Sa Shihan?" Chen Yanxun slightly raised his eyebrows: "The Tianshi family, silent for many years, suddenly produced this True Man below thirty years old. And he was previously cultivated by True Dao Prime Sect's Dezhen himself..."

Bao Xuanjing glanced at Gong Weizhang and smiled: "It's a pity Xu Zhiyi isn't here anymore, otherwise it would be interesting to see her expression. Speaking of 'suddenly,' Sa Shihan has the experience of being cultivated by Zong Dezhen, being the personal Dao boy of the Great Palm Teacher. How did Xu Zhiyi, this 'Little Tianshi,' who was always raised in Wan country and not seen by people, suddenly produce this treasure?"

Zhuge Zuo rubbed his own finger bones: "What the two gentlemen said is precisely what is most suspected now. The surge of public opinion always has a common trend."

Everyone generally suspected Sa Shihan and Xu Zhiyi, not because they really looked the most suspicious. It was because of the matter of the Wei country's two prefectures' extraordinary cultivators being slaughtered. Discerning people could all see that it wasn't done by people from Jing country, but there weren't many discerning people in the world. As long as Jing country didn't produce evidence to prove themselves, in the eyes of the crowd, they simply couldn't be innocent. Whoever had the biggest apprehension about Wei country's rise was the most suspicious. This reason is very simple and completely irrefutable.

Moreover... doing slaughter in Wei country wasn't the first time for people from Jing country!

The world's anticipation of the central spirit has been long, and people from Jing country have also been arrogant for too long.

And regardless of "whether there is a necessity," everyone generally feels that people from Jing country are capable of doing this kind of thing.

It is precisely this long-term "accumulated resentment" that leads to public opinion, once it appears, evolving in a direction unfavorable to Jing country.

"That's easy to say, but it's not realistic. People from Jing country are also being suppressed by public opinion, repaying the evil fruit of past arrogance." Bao Xuanjing smiled to dissolve the tense atmosphere: "How is it possible for an old guy to ascend the stage? The various monarchs on stage have wise eyes like torches, and bone age also can't be faked."

Chen Yanxun suddenly said: "The body may be truly young, but the soul is not necessarily."

Bao Xuanjing's face was full of doubt: "What do you mean? Seizing a body? Rebirth?"

He shook his head again: "The former cannot possibly not be discovered, the latter is impossible."

"Seizing a body that isn't the original body means first, a limited future, and second, an impure foundation. But if there's a trace of disharmony, in the eyes of the referee, it's like a chasm. As for rebirth..."

He sighed: "From ancient times till now, this matter has not existed. Once the Source Sea is gone, it returns with one, no one can be an exception. The previously widely rumored Winter Emperor Xie Ai was also finally proven to be a fake person created by Qin Taizu with the Three Lives Flower."

His sorrow was well concealed.

But sensitive people could still see that if rebirth truly existed in this world, he would surely want to see his grandfather back?

"Seizing a body inevitably has gaps, but what if the bloodline is extremely pure and the foundation is identical?" Zhuge Zuo suddenly asked. "The path of cultivation, one year, one change, a hundred generations, a thousand changes. Problems that couldn't be solved in the past are still seen as heavenly chasms now."

He pinched his finger bones: "According to my knowledge, Cixin, the former head of Miaoyou Zhaitang in Wash Moon Nunnery, after resolving her Dao, cultivated with her remnant soul. That 'Painting Middle Person' once helped her prepare a flawless lotus body... if there wasn't a perfect fit method, she wouldn't have made this choice. Although she later gave up this path, she cultivated the truth with a puppet body and achieved Moon Wu Gou琉璃 Pure Land, which is today's Moon Heaven Slave."

"This puppet body and lotus body are both her bodies. Moon Heaven Slave can still attain the truth, with a far-reaching future. Perhaps that 'Painting Middle Person' has already solved the fit problem?"

"Furthermore, according to secret news. Mu Taizu conquered Cangtu Heaven Country, and the world was filled with descendants of his bloodline to enhance their quality. Only in this way could they directly confront the Cangtu Gods and kill each other for thousands of years. I think bloodline closeness might also be a strategy."

Star Witch had heavily consumed herself in her early years, and later entrusted her spirit to Zhanghua Terrace, acting in the human world with the Yellow Path Twelve Star Gods.

Therefore, she had very deep research into paths like seizing and borrowing bodies.

Zhuge Zuo, as the only successor of Star Witch, spoke about the laws of this world, ancient and modern techniques, as if he knew them all and certainly had a profound understanding: "Besides, Zhuang Taizu back then entrusted his remnant soul to Town River True Monarch, borrowing him to fill the Wusheng Tribulation. Using the power of the Underworld White Bone Venerable God as a forging hammer, he forged the soul life of Town River True Monarch, subtly making their fates similar... finally desiring to seize the body and return. Isn't this also a path?"

"Crack!" Bao Xuanjing chewed another pill.

Facing Zhuge Zuo's gaze, he vaguely said: "Meaning is... these favored sons of Jing country might be the first generation Tianshi, collectively borrowing corpses to return their souls?"

Zhuge Zuo's face was calm, as if the matter did not concern him: "I may not say so. The first generation Tianshi were all sages of the human race, they would not have such conduct."

Bao Xuanjing embodied the self-awareness of a young favored son on the world stage and quickly said: "Oh, I'm saying... it's possible!"

Chen Yanxun, who had been listening seriously for a long time, said: "Rumors are still just rumors! If it's just suspicion, everyone has suspicious aspects. If it's possibility, any possibility exists."

"Just like this Outer Tower Field."

"Ji Sansi, they say he's always been in the army... do you all understand? Are you familiar with Bao Xuanjing?"

"The Army God has a disciple named Rao Bingzhang. According to the order of entry, he should be the second, after Chen Zeqing and before Ji Zhaonan. He suffered torment in the demon realm and was squeezed into a bear demon by Hu Taisui, named Bear Sansi..."

He stopped there, but this information was enough to trigger associations.

Bao Xuanjing shook his head: "Rao Bingzhang's spear art was brought back by Town River True Monarch from the demon realm after a narrow escape from death. If there were other things that followed him back initially, Town River True Monarch is definitely the one who knows best."

"Although I haven't experienced the army yet due to my age and am not too familiar with Ji Sansi... I absolutely trust Town River True Monarch."

"Even if the whole world is fake, Town River True Monarch is the only real one."

This youngest earl of the East Country had eyes full of belief: "Since he acquiesced to Ji Sansi ascending the stage, this person definitely has no problem."