Chapter 599: The Rising Star

In the cave dwelling, Wen Jing's face was half in light and half in shadow, her eyes still filled with deep thought and worry that had not faded.

Truth be told, she was actually a bit panicked.

From the time she was secretly subdued by Taibai Xingjun until now, so many years had passed. At the beginning, Taibai Xingjun was still posing as the Sea God, gathering incense and merits along the shores of the South Sea as preparation for his meteoric rise. Back then, for some unknown reason, she had caught the eye of Lord Xingjun. Looking back, it was probably because she had schemed against the minor Du Xian Gate. As a standout among the Hong Meng ferocious beasts, the big sister of the Blood Sea, she had never dared to provoke Old Ancestor Minghe back in the Blood Sea, yet she ended up falling victim to a careless little scheme.

Wen Jing the Daoist still remembered her miserable ordeal from back then. First, she inexplicably encountered Zhao Gongming, who collapsed without a word, and then Qiongxiao came crying from the side, leaving her completely off guard and utterly confused. Though she eventually pretended to be a virtuous woman and escaped, her Dao heart was thrown off balance, allowing the Sea God to easily break through her defenses...

It was all schemes!

This was Lord Xingjun's method!

Wen Jing always felt that even if all the saints' disciples from the Western Teachings combined, they wouldn't be enough for Lord Xingjun to scheme against. And facts had proven as much. No need to mention those unimportant old Daoists— from Jin Chan Zi to Xu Po Ti, and then to Di Zang and Maitreya, which of them hadn't been thoroughly defeated, crippled, or left in disarray by Lord Sea God? If the struggle continued, another thousand or eight hundred years, and the core disciples of the Western Teachings' saints would likely all meet their downfall.

Of course, the main reason Wen Jing was loyally devoted to the Human Teachings was still because of her great consort...

Wen Jing covered her lips and chuckled softly, standing at the cave entrance lost in thought.

Yet, during her time lurking in the Western Teachings, her status had risen with the tide, and she had even reached the position of head of the dark operations. Although her life and death still hinged on a word from the saints, she could now attend occasions that only core disciples were allowed to join.

Now that things had come to this point, why hadn't Lord Xingjun ordered her to act? In fact, every time she took the initiative to deliver valuable intelligence, Lord Xingjun would advise her not to worry about such trivial matters, to stay hidden and avoid arousing the saints' suspicion.

In other words, what Lord Xingjun wanted her to do was a hundred times, a thousand times more important than just relaying information. Correspondingly, the danger and difficulty were probably a thousand times greater.

How could this not make her panic?

Wen Jing the Daoist truly couldn't imagine what skills she possessed that made Lord Xingjun value her so highly, placing such an unknown heavy burden on her delicate, fair, and radiant shoulders that exuded a queenly aura the moment they were exposed.

She, as a senior disciple's wife, couldn't handle it.

And today, the troops had directly surrounded Ling Shan. The Heavenly Court army, fresh from crushing the demon clan's main forces, was advancing aggressively, clearly intent on settling old scores with Ling Shan.

Wen Jing the Daoist couldn't help but think more deeply...

In fact, she was quite looking forward to it, hoping to receive a voice transmission at that very moment, instructing her on what to do next; perhaps to produce the evidence she had gathered over the years and expose the secret deeds of Ling Shan to the world.

Then, the Taiqing Saint could announce that she would enter the Taiqing Temple as a young Daoist attendant, spend a thousand or eight hundred years there, and head to Xuan Du City.

To have a final showdown with that Kong Xuan of the Phoenix Clan!

'This queen will never lose to that little... woman who's only just decided her gender!'

Suddenly!

A flute's sound echoed in her heart, and Wen Jing the Daoist perked up, standing at the cave entrance and alertly scanning left and right before calmly closing her eyes.

On the shores of the South Sea, at a certain secret beach, a handsome 'maiden' was playing the flute.

Before long, several fish swam to the shallow waters, and as she played, the maiden transmitted a message to the fish, speaking just eight words.

Stay calm, self-preservation first.

Then, the maiden's figure merged into the rocks at her feet and vanished.

Those few fish also turned back into the sea, leaving no trace behind.

At the foot of Ling Shan, in a hidden cave dwelling, Wen Jing the Daoist felt a wave of dizziness. She pressed her fingers to her forehead, her red lips parting slightly, feeling a bit light-headed.

As expected...

Lord Xingjun really wanted her to slap the saint in the face!

With this level of confrontation today, and it having nothing to do with her, besides directly shaming the saint, she truly didn't know what else she could do for the Human Teachings, for the Daoist path, or for Lord Xingjun...

It couldn't be that he wanted her to become the deputy leader of the Western Teachings and then, while the great leader was away, announce the dissolution of Ling Shan, could it?

"Ah."

Wen Jing the Daoist sighed with some frustration, her expression showing a touch of melancholy.

"Wen Jing."

A call sounded beside her ear, and Wen Jing the Daoist's delicate hand trembled slightly. She immediately straightened up, accentuating her alluring curves, clasped her hands in front of her abdomen, and said softly:

"Second Lord, Wen Jing is here."

"Mm," the voice responded, seeming a bit hesitant, then continued: "Later, when the Heavenly Court makes its move, I need you to do something."

"Second Lord, please give your orders," Wen Jing the Daoist said with a soft sigh. "In this world, if not for this place, I'm afraid there's nowhere left for Wen Jing to take refuge."

The voice fell silent for a moment, then continued with a few more instructions.

Wen Jing the Daoist showed a look of sudden realization, smiled and agreed, her eyes full of determination, while subtly revealing just the right amount of thoughtfulness.

After all, for someone like her, even if a saint assigned her a task, agreeing outright and being ready to risk her life would be truly suspicious.

Showing a bit more hesitation in her eyes, paired with some reluctance, and then reluctantly compromising—that was just right.

No wonder she was one of the top contenders for the title of Hong Huang's shadow queen.

On the other side, after Li Changgeng had actively sent a message to Wen Jing the Daoist via a paper effigy and turned it to ashes, he began arranging the follow-up matters.

The recording orbs that Jinpeng had brought back—Li Changgeng had already seen them, and the effect was excellent, clearly the result of Jinpeng, the Grand Mage, and Kong Xuan working together.

The only downside was that there were no backups, making them easy to damage.

Fortunately, Li Changgeng had long developed a divine ability to copy the contents of recording orbs, and he made ninety-nine backups of those three orbs.

To be honest, in the Hong Huang world, there was no such thing as 'video editing,' so these recording orbs couldn't be faked.

Over the past half-year, Li Changgeng had carefully selected a group of bold and capable generals in the Heavenly Court and specially notified Yang Jian, asking him to come to Ling Shan today to observe.

Li Changgeng used his immortal sense to check on Ling E, who was in seclusion, and calculated the solidity of her Dao foundation, nodding in satisfaction.

Then, his true body, carrying the Xuan Huang Pagoda and the Li Di Yan Guang Banner, flew out of the Taibai Palace on clouds, ordering Jinpeng to lead those dozens of heavenly generals to Ling Shan first, while he hid his presence and headed toward Emei Mountain.

Along the way, colorful clouds accompanied him, and sometimes immortal cranes circled around.

Upon reaching the entrance of Luofu Cave, Li Changgeng shook his duster and held the jade talisman that Zhao Gongming had given him last time, entering the grand array.

Emei Mountain was a pleasant place, with distant mountains like a forest and clouds like a sea. As one of the top cave heavens in Hong Huang, it was densely inhabited, though the best spots were all occupied by great powers like Zhao Gongming, and no one dared to complain.

Compared to some who selfishly claimed entire strange mountains, Zhao Gongming's way of just taking a cave was quite benevolent.

—And this doesn't even mention Ling Jiu Mountain.

As soon as Li Changgeng entered Zhao Gongming's array, he saw two men lying in front of the cave...

But don't misunderstand—this was Zhao Gongming teaching Bian Zhuang some unique postures for struggling against the evil forces of Hong Huang.

Zhao Gongming propped himself up with one hand and laughed:

"Little Zhuang, run through it again for Old Brother Changgeng to see."

Bian Zhuang jumped up with a start, only then noticing Li Changgeng's arrival, and quickly bowed in salute.

Li Changgeng said warmly: "How's the learning going?"

Bian Zhuang replied hastily: "This subordinate has given it my all, hoping to learn even a bit from Senior Gongming, but I'm still not quite getting it."

"Ah, you're being modest," Zhao Gongming waved his hand and praised: "In this path, Little Zhuang has already grasped the essence."

Bian Zhuang smiled shyly, his hands pressed against the sides of his thighs, not daring to act arrogant.

Li Changgeng laughed: "Since that's the case, as Old Brother said, let's have a practice run."

"Yes!"

Bian Zhuang agreed and was about to fetch a chair for Li Changgeng, but Li Changgeng waved it off, saying the situation was urgent and there was no need.

A short while later, Zhao Gongming stood up to join Li Changgeng, while Bian Zhuang stood at the cave entrance, holding his breath and focusing, searching for that subtle feeling.

Zhao Gongming bumped Li Changgeng's shoulder and said with a smile: "Want me to tag along for a stroll later?"

"Old Brother, you should be avoiding disasters and tribulations."

"Can I avoid this one?" Zhao Gongming laughed. "Might as well walk around openly and face the tribulation head-on when it comes."

Li Changgeng asked: "By the way, Old Brother, about that disciple of your Senior Sister Jin Ling—the one named Wen Zhong— what do you think of him?"

Zhao Gongming immediately gave a thumbs-up: "Excellent in character, excellent in comprehension, and with an innate divine ability to discern right from wrong. He's quite impressive...

He's cultivating in Bi You Palace, and Senior Sister Jin Ling passed on some Dao methods but didn't interfere much. His future prospects are probably quite high."

Li Changgeng nodded with a smile, not saying more. Over there, Bian Zhuang signaled that he was ready.

Wen Taishi was, after all, another man with three eyes, who single-handedly supported the final days of the Great Shang—he was indeed a remarkable figure.

Unfortunately... his looks didn't match Yang Jian's.

Then, Bian Zhuang took a light breath, his expression calm, his gaze unfocused, and he casually walked forward two steps.

Suddenly!

Li Changgeng seemed to hear a soft 'crack,' as if he saw a flash of blood light hitting Bian Zhuang's heart meridian. Bian Zhuang instinctively lifted his left hand to clutch his chest, his hand veins bulging, his pale knuckles gripping his collar tightly, his body slanting weakly before collapsing...

Pfft—

Blood sprayed everywhere, his figure withered, his eyes filled with anger and reluctance, as he slowly lay on the ground, murmuring feebly:

"General, let's go back... They're too strong..."

"How was it?" Zhao Gongming wagged his thumb. "This kid is a real genius!"

"Mm, it's got that flavor now."

Li Changgeng nodded in satisfaction, then called out: "Get up and tidy yourself. Later, when I make this gesture, no matter who's in front of you, just perform this act.

Don't worry— the Heavenly Dao is protecting you."

"Understood!"

Bian Zhuang responded eagerly, leaping to his feet.

This was the special skill he had painstakingly mastered over the past half-year!

However, what made Li Changgeng a bit uneasy was that Zhao Gongming insisted on coming along, hiding his form to watch the excitement at Ling Shan.

Li Changgeng knew full well that Zhao Gongming was worried he might run into trouble when heading to Ling Shan and wanted to represent the Jie Teachings to make a stand against the Western side if needed.

But many things weren't easy to explain in a few words.

This trip to Ling Shan wasn't about stirring up a major war— the Heavenly Court didn't have the strength or the qualifications for that right now.

He was just going to sincerely offer Ling Shan some suggestions for improvement, ensuring the overall environment of Hong Huang remained harmonious, so that in the future, as the Heavenly Court established a new order, Ling Shan wouldn't extend its overly long arms.

That long-arm jurisdiction approach hadn't even worked in his previous life on Blue Star.

Since he couldn't persuade Zhao Gongming otherwise, Li Changgeng simply took out a jade talisman, casually wrote 'Special Guest Elder of Taibai Palace' on it, and gave Zhao Gongming this Heavenly Court backing.

Zhao Gongming readily agreed but clearly didn't take the title seriously, stuffing the jade talisman into his sleeve and urging Li Changgeng to hurry.

Li Changgeng furrowed his brow and tried to advise him a bit more...

A moment later, Li Changgeng rode the clouds, Zhao Gongming transformed into the appearance of a heavenly general, and Bian Zhuang put on his armor, flanking Li Changgeng on the left and right.

Along the way, Zhao Gongming kept telling Bian Zhuang not to be nervous, which only made the originally not-so-nervous Bian Zhuang start to feel tense.

But Bian Zhuang had his own confidence.

Who knew how he had spent the past half-year? He had coughed up blood to get here!

To achieve the perfect effect of that 'pfft,' Bian Zhuang had given it his all, with every mouthful of blood shaken out from within his body.

A dignified late-stage Tianxian realm cultivator had nearly depleted his blood!

The journey from Emei Mountain to Ling Shan was long, but for Bian Zhuang, it passed in a blink, and he saw the majestic mountain covered in golden light.

The highest point of Xi Niu He Continent— Western Ling Shan.

"Bian Zhuang, start getting into the mood," Li Changgeng transmitted.

Bian Zhuang nodded heavily, gripping the sword at his waist, his eyes clear.

Father, mother, grandmother, and those fairy sisters he might meet in the future but hadn't yet— today, Bian Zhuang was making his mark!

He was about to confront the Western Teachings head-on!

The peak of a man's life—wasn't it just like this?

If a man couldn't bloom like a forest of flowers, then he should do something earth-shattering!

A flash of determination appeared in Bian Zhuang's eyes, and in an instant, his face turned deathly pale, beads of sweat on his forehead, his gaze beginning to scatter, and his posture hunched.

He looked like he was recovering from serious injuries, with his vital energy not yet restored.

Just then, streaks of light flew in from the side, with Jinpeng at the front, escorting Li Changgeng and the others as they descended toward Ling Shan together.

Looking at Ling Shan now, it was ablaze with golden light, with dozens of saint disciples and hundreds of old and young Daoists standing at the mountain gate with smiles, appearing amicable on the surface.

This was exactly:

Li Changgeng leads the charge at Ling Shan, each with hidden agendas in this divine contest.

As Li Changgeng led the dozens of heavenly generals up the winding mountain path, the ten directions' heavenly troops advanced in unison, waves of vast heavenly might pressing in from all sides.

But the golden light on Ling Shan remained unshaken, with the subtle saintly pressure within it subtly countering the heavenly might.

Jinpeng strode forward quickly, being the first to step onto the final stairs in front of the Ling Shan gate, his handsome face expressionless as he said:

"The Heavenly Court’s Taibai Xingjun has come on the orders of His Majesty the Jade Emperor to thoroughly investigate the matter of a Western Teachings disciple secretly injuring our Tianhe Water Army's deputy commander. We request that the Western Teachings disciple Maitreya come out to respond."

Straight to the point— Jinpeng opened the confrontation.

An old Daoist stepped forward and bowed, frowning: "This matter might be a misunderstanding.

Since it's been widely rumored in Hong Huang that Senior Brother Maitreya is the second primordial spirit of the ancient villain Kunpeng, Senior Brother Maitreya has been in seclusion. We don't know his whereabouts either.

But something like secretly injuring a heavenly general— Senior Brother Maitreya wouldn't do that.

He has a proud nature, and if he were to fight, it would be against experts like Taibai Jinxing who have old grudges."

Jinpeng furrowed his brow; the other side's vague words were quite clever.

But having followed Li Changgeng for some time, Jinpeng had his own ways of responding, and he said calmly: "Whether it's true or not, let him come out for a confrontation, and we'll know."

Another old Daoist laughed: "Though the Western Teachings are weak now and targeted by Taibai Xingjun, this is still a saint's sacred ground.

Do you all no longer have even the basic respect for saints?

I'm afraid the Hong Huang world is about to turn upside down."

Jinpeng was about to speak when a soft sigh came from behind him.

Li Changgeng stepped forward slowly, holding his duster, and sighed:

"Always going on about respect for saints, but in the end, it's all about the saints' face. Why can't you all just search your consciences and think about how much of the face of the two Western uncles has been lost or damaged because of you?"

The group of old Daoists exchanged glances.

As the saying goes, things don't happen more than three times— this was already Li Changgeng's third visit to Ling Shan, and each time he was more aggressive than the last.

But this time, the Western Teachings' old Daoists had prepared in advance, discussing all the key points where Li Changgeng might cause trouble, and they had selected six old Daoists to form the 'Western Teachings' Best Debate Team' to face off against Taibai Jinxing.

Now, with Li Changgeng on the stage, those six old Daoists stepped forward confidently.

The wind blew their gray or silver hair and the edges of their patched robes, their composure and self-assurance shining brightly.

Come on, let's debate!

Even if Taibai Jinxing spouted profound truths today, these six could counter them. As long as they stuck to the line that Senior Brother Maitreya wasn't in the mountain and they knew nothing about it, the Heavenly Court couldn't do anything to them!

One old Daoist took the initiative: "Taibai Xingjun..."

"Dare I ask, are the two uncles in the mountain?"

Li Changgeng frowned and asked with concern, then sighed:

"Today, I truly don't want to create any conflicts.

I know that previously, I was a bit too aggressive, seizing on a few flaws of the Western Teachings and exaggerating them, which led to some misunderstandings on my part.

To achieve the position of saint is to be recognized by the Heavenly Dao as a great virtue and sage, and the two uncles are ancient masters of high moral standing, serving as the six pillars of the Heavenly Dao.

Today, I'm coming with a sincere attitude to resolve matters and clarify conflicts, seeking an audience with the two uncles.

I won't say much else— just ask the uncles to investigate the arbitrary actions of a small group of Ling Shan disciples that have disrupted the Heavenly Court's stability.

Could you all pass on the message for me?"

The six old Daoists looked at each other, each frowning in silence.

This script— how was it completely different from what they had anticipated?

A Ling Shan disciple laughed: "Why must Star君 use such tactics to mock us indirectly?"

Li Changgeng said seriously:

"As the saying goes, the color of light in your eyes determines the color of the world you see.

Don't assume that every being is like you, based on your own heart.

I, Li Changgeng, seek only to have a clear conscience, a bright heaven and earth, to establish order in this world, and to end the chaotic ages from ancient times, so that every being can live out their full lifespan.

This is also the will of Pangu God.

Life has dreams; let each be wonderful!

Now, could you pass on the message for me and ask if the saint lords wish to see me?"

The group of Ling Shan saint disciples stared at each other wide-eyed, clearly feeling that Li Changgeng's words were off, but for a moment, they couldn't find a way to refute.

Silence reigned on Ling Shan that day.

Li Changgeng furrowed his brow slightly, hands behind his back, about to call out loudly, but then he made a 'yes' gesture behind his back.

Bian Zhuang suddenly clutched his chest, and in an instant, his expression was full of intensity. He lowered his head and spat out a mouthful of blood.

Pfft—

His body swayed unsteadily and was caught by several heavenly generals beside him.

"General Bian! General Bian!"

"General Bian, wake up! Hold on, General Bian!"

"Ling Shan!"

The heavenly general transformed by Zhao Gongming jumped out, pointing at the mountain gate and cursing furiously, his eyes tearing up as he roared: "You executioners who shelter evildoers!

If General Bian comes to any harm, I'll make each of you pay with your life!"

At that moment, Li Changgeng also hurried over in concern, feeding Bian Zhuang a pill, patting his shoulder, and then turning to face the Ling Shan old Daoists.

"Everyone, are you truly unwilling to pass on the message for me? Is the Jade Emperor's decree not even allowed to enter the gates of Ling Shan?"

"This..."

"Ah."

With a soft sigh, golden lights swayed across Ling Shan, and shadows of golden lotuses floated up. The virtual shadow of Jie Yin appeared in the grand hall of Ling Shan.

"Please, Taibai Xingjun, enter and speak."