Chapter 610: The Price of Acting

"This is really troublesome."

On Bai Ze's back, the paper effigy of Taibai Jinxing sat quietly, with his true form hidden in the collar of the effigy's robes.

At that moment, Li Changshou showed no sign of joy; instead, he frowned deeply and gestured for Bai Ze not to fly too fast, muttering these words under his breath.

Bai Ze also furrowed his brow slightly. Having observed everything from the sidelines, he now understood why Li Changshou had called it troublesome.

What had happened today was far more than just a simple hassle—it was a major problem.

On a grand scale, this involved the rise of the Heavenly Court challenging the authority of the Dao Gate's Three Teachings. Li Changshou was caught in the middle, needing to balance his position as a Dao Gate disciple while considering the Heavenly Court's prestige.

Fortunately, Li Changshou had anticipated a solution. Before acting, he had kowtowed and used several weighty accusations to frame Ju Liusun's actions as personal misconduct, doing his best to preserve the reputation of Chan Jiao.

But Bai Ze could clearly sense that...

Capturing just Ju Liusun was not enough to quench the anger of the Heavenly Court and the Jie Jiao immortals.

Although he was one of the Twelve Golden Immortals of Chan Jiao and a great divine being in the Great Wilderness, his capture had diminished Chan Jiao's prestige and boosted the Heavenly Court's destiny.

Still, it fell short in some way.

And could they really kill Ju Liusun?

That was unrealistic. As a direct disciple of the two Dao Gate saints, killing him would invite inevitable retaliation from the saints.

Who could guarantee that there wasn't a deep master-disciple bond between Ju Liusun and the two saints? Even if the saints didn't act, it would trigger a series of crises within Chan Jiao.

Even saints, standing at the forefront of such waves, had many concerns and couldn't turn back easily.

Bai Ze estimated that the most they could do was suppress Ju Liusun, list his crimes and exile him from the Five Parts Continent,

or perhaps hand him over to Yuanshi Tianzun for judgment, where Yuanshi Tianzun might impose severe punishment to maintain Chan Jiao's purity.

The fury of the Heavenly Court's immortals and gods remained hard to appease.

This was a prime opportunity for the Heavenly Court to establish itself as the central power of the Three Realms, all depending on how they handled Ju Liusun.

'The trouble that the Water God mentioned is probably something like this.'

Bai Ze sighed inwardly and began thinking along these lines for countermeasures, planning to offer some constructive advice later.

This was his responsibility as the mount and chief strategist of Ren Jiao.

Behind them, Yang Jian carried the unconscious Ju Liusun and flew slowly forward.

Yang Jian appeared expressionless, but his eyes held a hint of contemplation.

How had he been exposed?

He had made considerable progress in his shape-shifting techniques recently.

Yang Jian was well aware of the complexities of today's events. He had hidden in the shadows and watched for a while, worried that Chan Jiao and the Heavenly Court might clash.

He didn't have much approval for Chan Jiao, having spent most of his cultivation days at Jade Spring Mountain, but since his master had given him Chan Jiao's origins, Yang Jian naturally felt a duty to uphold it.

Yet...

Watching Li Changshou face hundreds of Chan Jiao immortals alone and considering all that had transpired, Yang Jian felt a surge of indignation in his heart.

This very Water God, who had once swatted him down from the clouds with a single palm, now commanded his utmost respect for some reason.

Although this "uncle" who liked to act old had once arranged everything for him so meticulously that he couldn't make a single move, nearly leading to a demonic deviation in his Dao heart,

he had dared to confront the Western saints directly;

he had boldly challenged Guang Chengzi today;

and he had worked tirelessly for the Heavenly Court's authority, striving to create a just order to protect the weak, even expressing his noble aspiration to retire once the Heavenly Court prospered...

Yang Jian couldn't help but reflect inwardly—had he been too willful in his efforts to save his mother?

Probably.

'If I get the chance, I should apologize to Uncle Changgeng.'

Uncle Changgeng had directly issued a divine order, commanding him to bring Ju Liusun back to the Heavenly Court, which didn't conflict with his past "obeying orders but not proclamations." This was truly the Heavenly Court's command.

As Yang Jian was thinking this, they arrived at the Zhongtian Gate.

Bai Ze suddenly halted, and Yang Jian stopped immediately as well.

On Bai Ze's back, Li Changshou waved his hand to retract the heart-piercing lock and replaced it with an immortal rope to bind Ju Liusun again.

"Yang Jian?"

"Present!"

Li Changshou said, "Take Ju Liusun to the Lingxiao Hall and request an audience with His Majesty the Jade Emperor. State that Ju Liusun is the mastermind behind this scheme, but he must be thoroughly interrogated to uncover the causes, events, and all details, so that it can be proclaimed to the Three Realms."

"Yes!" Yang Jian replied firmly, then frowned and asked, "Where will the Star Lord be going?"

"To find a quiet place," Li Changshou sighed, "to think about how to handle the aftermath. I'll join later."

With that, Li Changshou waved his hand, pushing the floating bronze mirrors around him toward Yang Jian, then rode Bai Ze leisurely into the Zhongtian Gate.

Rows of heavenly generals and soldiers knelt on one knee, bowing their heads in silent respect.

Yang Jian carried Ju Liusun forward, and these soldiers and generals quickly stood up, glaring fiercely at Ju Liusun as if they wanted to flay him alive.

For now, let's not dwell on Yang Jian escorting Ju Liusun, surrounded by the heavenly soldiers and generals, rushing toward the Lingxiao Treasure Hall.

Meanwhile, Li Changshou and Bai Ze swiftly returned to the Taibai Palace.

Once inside the Taibai Hall, Li Changshou dismounted from the sheep and instructed Bai Ze to transform into human form and wait in the corner.

In no time, the Jade Emperor's incarnation, Quan Tong, arrived in a hurry. Li Changshou activated multiple layers of grand arrays and, seeing Quan Tong's face beaming with joy, poured a basin of cold water over it, like the bathwater of Chang'e left overnight in winter.

"Your Majesty, this matter is a big mess."

Quan Tong was startled, and beside him, Bai Ze smiled knowingly.

The Water God's difficulties were something he, as the mount and chief advisor, naturally understood.

Bai Ze performed a daoist bow in greeting, and Quan Tong nodded in response before asking busily, "Changgeng, isn't this something we orchestrated?"

"It's already out of control."

Li Changshou sighed, his eyes filled with worry and his voice quicker than usual:

"Senior Brother Guang Chengzi is too impulsive and completely unstable! Now, not only are we in a passive position, but he's also put himself in a tough spot."

Bai Ze: ?

Quan Tong: ???

Quan Tong said, "Guang Chengzi stood up at the time, though it put pressure on the Heavenly Court, but from his position as the senior brother of Chan Jiao, he had to do it. If he didn't even try to stop you from taking the person, his authority as senior brother would be gone."

"Your Majesty might not know the details," Li Changshou said seriously, then gestured with his hand.

Quan Tong understood and immediately invoked the power of the Heavenly Dao to envelop the area, blocking any external scrutiny except from the Heavenly Dao itself.

Li Changshou even paced back and forth to show his agitation.

After walking for a bit and organizing his thoughts, he dispelled his empty and clear Dao heart and explained the severity of the issue:

"The internal factions of Chan Jiao appear harmonious on the surface, but they're divided! Senior Brother Guang Chengzi is the leader of the Twelve Golden Immortals and the one who strikes the golden bell in Jade Void Palace, but he's not the eldest disciple of our Second Uncle Master— that title belongs to Nanji Xianweng, who rarely shows himself and doesn't get involved in worldly affairs.

"According to information leaked by Senior Brother Taiyi, Chan Jiao is at least divided into three factions: one neutral, one loyal to Guang Chengzi, and one loyal to the deputy leader of Chan Jiao, Ran Deng.

"Guang Chengzi is the nominal senior brother, on par with Duobao Daoist in status, and slightly inferior to my senior brother Xuandu in the Dao Gate.

"Ran Deng, however, is an elder figure with good relations to our Second Uncle Master;

he has vast connections and questionable loyalties, leaning toward the Western Teachings, yet the Twelve Golden Immortals still have to address him as their teacher.

"These two factions have been contending. Ran Deng wants to pit Chan Jiao against Jie Jiao, while Guang Chengzi neither supports nor opposes it, and it's hard for us to see the layers of intent here.

"This time, Ju Liusun's actions must have Ran Deng's shadow behind them; it's a scheme typical of Ran Deng and Maitreya.

"I suspected Ran Deng from the start!"

Quan Tong asked in confusion, "Well, now that Ju Liusun has been captured, as long as we interrogate him and he admits it was Ran Deng's instruction, what's the problem?"

Bai Ze inhaled sharply:

"Your Majesty, Ran Deng may not be the most upright, but he is the saint-appointed deputy leader of Chan Jiao.

"Capturing Ju Liusun can be seen as him being controlled by calamitous fate and making foolish mistakes;

"but if we go after Ran Deng, things will escalate completely.

"Water God, is it that out of control?"

"No."

Bai Ze blinked, suddenly feeling a bit awkward.

"Going after Ran Deng was already in my plans; even if Ju Liusun doesn't talk, I have ways to bring him in," Li Changshou shook his head. "The problem lies with Guang Chengzi.

"That senior brother is truly too impulsive!

"He told me to wait and gave me a look, and I immediately understood he wanted to put on a show as the senior brother.

"But he overdid it!

"He completely ignored the limited room for de-escalation—it was so narrow it could only fit a fish or shrimp! He utterly disregarded the emotions of the Heavenly Court and Jie Jiao immortals!

"If I captured Ju Liusun and he wasn't one of his people, a couple of perfunctory words from him would have sufficed. Then, when I went to get Ran Deng, he could have shown anger and feigned a break with me to shift the conflict from Chan Jiao to the Heavenly Court.

"Then, we two could have met later, shared a laugh, and resolved it, turning it into a fine story while minimizing the damage to Chan Jiao's reputation.

"But what he did was invoke the Three Teachings' non-aggression pact and even emphasized it!

"If I go after Ran Deng now, what more could he say?

"Publicly distance himself from Ran Deng? Then his role as senior brother of Chan Jiao would be over!

"The first step he took was so massive that he blocked off all his room to maneuver. How can he move forward now?

"His threats back then have to be taken seriously.

"How can a senior brother, one of the top figures under the Three Teachings' saints, be so unsteady!"

Bai Ze and Quan Tong exchanged glances, both at a loss.

That certain mount silently slapped his own Yuan Shen in his mind.

Quan Tong asked gravely, "Why didn't you send a voice transmission to him at the time?"

Li Changshou sighed: "This matter must be handled openly and without any favoritism, or it would be like drawing legs on a snake and inviting backlash.

"Besides, the Jie Jiao senior brothers and sisters were there.

"Although Senior Brother Duobao didn't come, who can be sure he didn't have treasures there that could detect voice transmissions or divine sense exchanges?"

As he spoke, Li Changshou gave a bitter laugh:

"This is my fault. After I injured Ju Liusun, I should have interrogated him on the spot about any instigators and brought them back together.

"Now, if we don't go after Ran Deng, all our previous efforts will be in vain, and the matter will end abruptly, with the Heavenly Court barely maintaining its current dignity, let alone enhancing it.

"But if we do go after Ran Deng, Senior Brother Guang Chengzi will be forced to the edge of the cliff and must stand up for Chan Jiao's prestige.

"The split between Chan Jiao and Jie Jiao will happen today.

"The Heavenly Court and the Three Teachings will show clear bias, with Chan Jiao openly allying with the Western Teachings.

"The great trend of the Heavenly Dao is set, with the Three Teachings forming left and right camps of nearly equal strength, leading to an extremely fierce slaughter..."

Bai Ze asked quietly, "Could this be the Western Teachings' scheme?"

"The chances are slim," Li Changshou shook his head. "Guang Chengzi isn't an ordinary figure; he's deeply reserved and scheming, but he was just too eager to show off as the senior brother.

"Ultimately, it's due to the internal factional struggles in Chan Jiao.

"He probably hasn't realized it yet and is feeling quite self-satisfied, thinking the matter is settled."

Quan Tong asked, "What if we don't let Ju Liusun mention Ran Deng and point the blame at the Western Teachings instead?"

"A direct disciple of the saints secretly colluding with the Western Teachings? That would make Chan Jiao a complete joke.

"Ju Liusun wouldn't have enough lives for Second Uncle Master to take, and he might just bring up Ran Deng to make us back off."

And so, in the Taibai Hall, the number of people pacing back and forth increased from one to three.

The three of them pondered left and right, discussing strategies and the potential repercussions.

At that moment, Li Changshou deeply felt how difficult it was to control the great trend, especially under "open schemes," without resorting to any covert voice transmissions.

The more he thought about it, the more he realized...

The Heavenly Dao was truly formidable.

The Dao Ancestor was truly formidable.

And that Second Uncle Master, sitting in the Sanqing courtyard, watching everything from start to finish, was truly formidable.

Among the three, Quan Tong was the first to give up, sitting quietly to the side and waiting.

Bai Ze finally showed a bit of his demeanor as an ancient demon commander and the Heavenly Court's chief strategist, with his suggestions opening up new avenues of thought for Li Changshou.

Suddenly...

"Changgeng, let me interrupt you for a moment," Quan Tong pondered for a bit. "What you said earlier in front of Jade Void Palace and the bronze mirrors—about retiring after the Fengshen Tribulation is nearly complete—was that sincere?"

Li Changshou's eyes showed a hint of amusement as he nodded. "Of course, it was sincere."

"You can't! I won't allow it!"

"Your Majesty!"

Li Changshou performed a daoist bow and brought out the arguments he had prepared for over two hundred years, saying seriously:

"After the Fengshen Tribulation, the number of orthodox gods in the Heavenly Court will surge.

"I am the one overseeing the tribulation and appointing them on behalf of the Heavenly Dao, so afterward, these gods will have very close ties to me.

"If I remain in the Heavenly Court, how will Your Majesty establish your authority?

"But please rest assured, Your Majesty; I will gradually withdraw and won't go too far from the Heavenly Court. If you wish to summon me, you can do so anytime."

Pausing for a moment, Li Changshou smiled: "Your Majesty, you must understand that founding an enterprise and maintaining it are entirely different concepts. My strengths lie in founding, not maintaining."

Quan Tong looked hesitant, closed his eyes, and sighed without speaking.

Beside him, Bai Ze's eyes sparkled as he looked at Li Changshou, as if gazing at the most precious and delicious delicacy in the world.

Ascending the mountain is difficult;

descending it is even harder.

Half a day after Ju Liusun was brought to the Heavenly Court by Yang Jian;

at the back mountain of Jade Void Peak, in that pavilion by the flying waterfall, Guang Chengzi, Chijingzi, Taiyi Zhenren, Yuding Zhenren, and Huanglong Zhenren each sat in their seats, while the other Chan Jiao immortals had returned to their caves.

Huanglong Zhenren said, "This farce is finally over."

"I once acted to cover up the aftermath for Junior Brother Ju Liusun," Chijingzi said quietly, "At the time, I didn't know why, but I felt that if this came to light, it would damage our Chan Jiao's reputation.

"Yet I never expected the Heavenly Court to take it so seriously, even making Changgeng go and consult the grand master.

"Senior Brother, should I go to the Heavenly Court later to explain about killing those loose cultivators?"

"No need," Guang Chengzi waved his hand. "Changgeng is smarter than you or me. If he notices anything amiss, he'll make the decision.

"Earlier, I just gave Changgeng a look, and he immediately understood. No matter how much pressure I applied, he stood firm.

"That way, we preserved our Chan Jiao's reputation.

"I'm responsible for Junior Brother Ju Liusun's actions, so I'll go to our teacher later to confess my fault."

"Confess your fault?" Taiyi Zhenren smirked. "More like claim credit, right, Senior Brother?"

Guang Chengzi frowned. "Why do you say that, Junior Brother Taiyi?"

"Never mind, I was just joking," Taiyi Zhenren picked up his tea and took a sip. "To be frank, Senior Brother, you went too far with your emotions this time.

"You really shouldn't have brought up the Three Teachings' non-aggression pact."

"That's not right..."

Yuding Zhenren suddenly spoke, opening his eyes and looking at Guang Chengzi. "Senior Brother, do you have some other plan?"

Guang Chengzi frowned. "What plan could I have? It was just for our Chan Jiao's reputation."

Yuding sighed: "If you have no other plan, then the pressure you put on Changgeng earlier might cause problems."

In any team, there are always one or two who might not catch on quickly.

For instance, at that moment, Taiyi Zhenren, Guang Chengzi, and Chijingzi all fell into thought.

Huanglong, true to the dragon clan's tradition of asking when unsure, said in confusion, "But would Changgeng hold a grudge? And end up favoring Jie Jiao?"

Taiyi Zhenren said, "Senior Brother, this isn't the time for jokes."

"How could I joke about something so serious? Junior Brother Yuding, what's going on?"

Yuding slowly exhaled and asked succinctly:

"If Ju Liusun reveals during interrogation that someone was behind him, and the Heavenly Court, unable to quell the public outrage, sends troops to demand the person, what do we do?"

Chijingzi looked shocked, Guang Chengzi's face turned extremely dark, and Taiyi Zhenren showed a sudden realization.

Huanglong Zhenren finally grasped the severity and whispered, "Can't Changgeng handle this properly?"

"The public outrage is hard to quell," Guang Chengzi uttered these four words.

Taiyi Zhenren sneered: "Is Changgeng one of our Chan Jiao disciples? Does he have to consider us at every turn?"

Huanglong grew anxious.

The one who instigated Ju Liusun, and the one Ju Liusun would likely name, had to be that Deng... Deng Deng...

Chijingzi said gravely, "Junior Brother Ju Liusun should know how serious this is. How could he escalate it further?"

"Does he have a strong backbone?" Taiyi Zhenren sighed. "If he did, he wouldn't be swaying with the wind."

It was as if to verify Taiyi's words—as soon as he finished speaking,

a thunderous rumble echoed!

The sky above Jade Void Palace suddenly filled with thunder, and the five Chan Jiao experts rose abruptly.

The power of the Heavenly Dao thickened rapidly, with dozens of golden dragons roaring and a black cloud carrying vast heavenly might approaching, bearing the Jade Emperor's carriage, several heavenly ministers, and hundreds of thousands of heavenly soldiers!

The Jade Emperor had arrived in person!