"Let him come up," the State Preceptor of Yankang said flatly.
Khan Luandi was wrapped in chains, bound fast, and several soldiers followed behind him, shoving him forward.
"Your guilty minister Luandi—"
Just as Khan Luandi was about to kneel, the State Preceptor of Yankang's expression changed slightly. He raised a hand to hold him up and said with a half-smile, "Senior Brother Luandi, would you drag me into disloyalty?"
Khan Luandi took the chance to rise and said with a smile, "If I could ruin your friendship with Emperor Yanfeng, I might still have a chance to rise again."
The State Preceptor of Yankang shook his head. "You cannot. Even if you knelt to me before the whole army, the Emperor would not doubt me—it is those purist ministers who give me headaches. One matter less is one matter less. Senior Brother Luandi, shed those chains. I will not accept your surrender. When we return to the capital, you may bind yourself and beg the Emperor to accept it."
Khan Luandi gave his body a shake, and the chains on him snapped apart inch by inch, scattering across the ground. The soldiers were startled and all stepped forward, but the State Preceptor of Yankang raised a hand to wave them back. "No need for such caution."
Khan Luandi's eyes flickered. "I heard the State Preceptor fought against gods and was gravely wounded. Even with the Little Poison King and the Little Divine Physician tending your injuries, your cultivation has not returned to its peak. Are you not afraid that I might suddenly erupt and strike to kill you?"
"I am not."
The State Preceptor of Yankang said, "A month ago I would have been. But now I have comprehended the Dao of the Sword. Though my wounds remain, I no longer need to fear. You strike, you die."
Khan Luandi felt a chill.
The State Preceptor of Yankang looked up at the Golden Palace of Loulan ahead and said leisurely, "Senior Brother Luandi, look. The Golden Palace of Loulan is impregnable, guarded strictly by the Grand Shaman King—easy to defend, hard to attack. If we stormed it by force, my army would surely suffer heavy casualties. I also sense waves of terrifying auras hidden within the palace; they should be the Great Venerable's past-life bodies. I sense eighteen terrifying auras like gods, which is why my troops are massed here and have not moved."
Khan Luandi said, "Those eighteen bodies—like god, like devil, like Buddha—are the Great Venerable's flesh of eighteen lifetimes, dreadful beyond measure, and the strongest force guarding the Golden Palace of Loulan. Besides the Great Venerable's eighteen bodies, the palace holds twelve cult-master-level beings who have cultivated to the God-Connecting Realm, and the strongest of them is the Shaman Venerable. That one's strength is no lesser than mine."
The State Preceptor of Yankang asked, "And how many experts of the Celestial Being Realm and the Life and Death Realm?"
Khan Luandi laughed. "How would I know?"
"If you imitate Emperor Yanfeng, you should know."
The State Preceptor of Yankang glanced at him and said softly, "For instance, I hold the names, abilities, and spirit weapons of every expert of the Heavenly Saint Cult, the Dao Sect, and the Great Thunderclap Monastery. Above the state, no holy land is permitted to lord over it. You are the emperor of the grasslands; surely you will not allow the Golden Palace of Loulan to sit upon your head. You know this well."
Khan Luandi said in admiration, "The reason I could not beat Emperor Yanfeng is precisely that he had you, State Preceptor. Had I a helper like you, why would I ever have been forced to surrender? As for the Celestial Being and Life and Death experts of the Golden Palace of Loulan, I have already prepared a roster and present it to the State Preceptor." With that, he took out a booklet.
The State Preceptor of Yankang handed the roster to the Duke of Wei behind him and said, "Let the officers look it over, each find his opponent, and prepare to kill the enemy."
The Duke of Wei summoned the famed generals of the Celestial Being and Life and Death realms in the army, and they gathered to study the roster.
The State Preceptor of Yankang said, "The Golden Palace is guarded by arrays—restrictions and killing arrays laid down by the Great Venerables and Shaman Venerables of successive generations, and now all of them have been roused to guard against my army. Since Khan Luandi means to overthrow the Golden Palace, you must have made your calculations and found a way to break it."
Khan Luandi did not answer. Instead he asked, "Why did the State Preceptor not ask why I surrendered? Seeing me come to surrender, you trusted me so completely, took no precautions, and even asked me for the way to break the Golden Palace. Are you not afraid this is a false surrender, that I feed you false intelligence and lead your whole army to ruin?"
The State Preceptor of Yankang shook his head. "You surrendered because of the shamanic poison."
Khan Luandi fell silent.
"The Great Venerable ordered the Grand Shaman King to unleash the shamanic poison. Nine of ten households on the grasslands were emptied, and the people of the grasslands died until only one in ten remained. Only the residents of the few great cities of the grasslands were spared."
The State Preceptor of Yankang said, "You are the emperor of the grasslands. So many of your people were slaughtered—on whom do you take vengeance? Only the Golden Palace of Loulan. So I trust you, and there is no need to doubt you."
Khan Luandi was silent for a long while before breathing out a foul breath. "When two nations war, the common folk are not slaughtered. If I invaded the State of Yankang, the people of Yankang's land would be my subjects, and I would not harm them. If Emperor Yanfeng invaded the grasslands, the herders of the grasslands would be Emperor Yanfeng's subjects, and he would not harm them. Yet the Golden Palace of Loulan exterminated my people—I cannot bear it. State Preceptor, I will tell you every weakness of the Golden Palace, without the slightest concealment."
A smile appeared on the State Preceptor of Yankang's face. "Do you know how long I have waited here for you? Now that you have come today, the world has one holy land fewer!"
Khan Luandi was utterly convinced. "For as long as the State Preceptor stands at court, Luandi shall never rebel! If I break this oath, may my eyes be pecked out by the gyrfalcon and my heart torn out by the eagle! May my sons and grandsons be slaves and servants for all generations!"
The Imperial Capital was the place where nine dragons converged—nine mountain ranges like dragons gathering to pool the qi of nine dragons. Such was the imperial capital.
"Coming down to the lower world this time and seeing the State Preceptor of Yankang conquer the grasslands, I finally understand—Yankang's army has more and more the bearing of a celestial army, more and more like the army of gods and devils of the Founding Emperor era."
Above the Imperial Capital, a reed canopy about an acre square hung in the air. Beneath it, upon clouds, sat several men and women of extraordinary bearing, shaded from the sun by the canopy, gazing down to examine the fortune of the State of Yankang.
These men and women were all strikingly handsome, and none of them looked very old, yet their cultivation was terrifyingly high, bearing the aspect of gods and buddhas.
One of them was Star Lord Qiao. Yu Liu and three other maids attended at the side; Xu Shenghua was there too, only he stood beside another young man. That young man was his master, the Jade Lord.
They were not the only ones who had come. The Higher Heavens had four heads, and besides Star Lord Qiao and the Jade Lord, there were also the Flower Lady and Star Lord Yan.
Because of the Village Chief leaving the Great Ruins, all four heads of the Higher Heavens had actually come down.
The four looked downward, and astonishment showed on all their faces.
"Last time I came down to bring calamity, I did not look closely."
The Jade Lord said thoughtfully, "At the time I only glimpsed the nine dragon veins of the capital and saw none of the others, so that the State of Yankang nearly became a grand trend."
The Flower Lady was a beautiful young girl, her voice as clear and pleasing as an oriole's. "These nine dragon veins are the Yellow Dragon Mountains. Besides these nine, there are four river-dragon water veins: the Tu River, the Jin River, the Yong River, and the Li River."
She swept her palm lightly, and vital qi condensed in the air into a mirror that shone down into the earth beneath the State of Yankang.
The mirror could actually pierce more than ten li deep into the ground. In it appeared three great dragons—the long rivers of magma beneath the earth.
The Flower Lady said, "Adding these three fire dragon veins hidden underground, the dragon veins within the State of Yankang already number sixteen."
Star Lord Yan shook his head. "More than that. Look at Yankang's coastline. The coastal mountains rise and fall without pattern, like two dragons coiled tail to tail—two more dragon veins. As for where those dragons coil their tails, who knows what mountains those are. Eighteen dragon veins. No wonder Yankang is a land so blessed that its people soar to greatness."
Star Lord Qiao said gravely, "The grasslands merging into Yankang was only a matter of time. The State Preceptor of Yankang invaded the grasslands this time—by my reckoning he has already reached the Golden Palace of Loulan. How many dragon veins are there on the grasslands?"
The other three lords felt a slight tremor in their hearts.
"And the snowfields of the frozen north, the State of Langjuxu. How many dragon veins are there?"
Star Lord Qiao said, "The number of Yankang's dragon veins already exceeds our expectations. A single dragon vein alone would be nothing, incapable of becoming a force, but a host of dragons rising to heaven means seizing the fortune of heaven and earth! The way I see it, killing the old Human Emperor is a small matter. Finding Yankang's master dragon vein and taking it away or shifting it, leaving the dragons without a head—that is what we came down to do."
The Jade Lord pondered, then said, "With the master vein gone and the dragons leaderless, fortune would splinter, heroes would rise across the land, and Yankang would be divided. It is indeed a fine idea. But which vein is the master of Yankang's dragon veins?"
The four all looked down and searched for a good while, but still could not make out the master vein.
"We had best summon the Dragon Keeper Lord of the Higher Heavens to find the master vein. He rears the dragon race, distinguishes every kind of dragon with clarity, and is skilled at drawing charts and reckoning geography."
Star Lord Qiao said, "Qing Ying, Yao Hua, make a trip back to the Higher Heavens. Have the Dragon Keeper Lord come down and measure the dragon veins of the State of Yankang to determine the master vein."
Qing Ying and Yao Hua assented and hurried away at once.
The Jade Lord smiled. "The Sword God still has not shown himself—how disappointing. I thought that once we released our auras, he would hurry over to answer the challenge. I never expected him to lose his nerve. The old him would never have flinched. It seems the Sword God really has grown old."
"That is the sorrow of the mortal body."
The Flower Lady smiled. "No matter how strong one is in the prime of life, in old age the vital essence withers and fails, and when the essence fails, the heart fails with it. Counting the years, his time to die falls within the next two years, and to live out those two years he has avoided battle. What irony. Xu Shenghua, have you found the new Human Emperor?"
Xu Shenghua said, "This disciple encountered the man by chance, but did not recognize him, and so let him pass. I did give him a packet of tea, and he invited me to drink in Yankang's capital. I imagine I could see him again if I go to the capital."
The Jade Lord asked with interest, "How capable is this new Human Emperor?"
"Very."
Recalling the moment he had clashed with Qin Mu, Xu Shenghua said, "His magic power then was exceedingly robust—his vital qi cultivation was a shade deeper than mine, but his techniques and divine abilities were a shade inferior to mine, and his grasp of divine powers was weaker than mine."
"Cultivation deeper than yours?"
All Four Lords of the Higher Heavens showed astonishment. Xu Shenghua's cultivation crushed all of the Higher Heavens within the same realm—even the Four Lords at the same realm fell short of him. Yet there was someone in this world whose cultivation surpassed his!
"However, after I returned from the Little Jade Capital, I made up for the shortfall in my cultivation."
Xu Shenghua said, "If he has not had the same fortuitous encounter, then my cultivation is now simply stronger than his."
A smile appeared on the Jade Lord's face, and he laughed. "Go to the capital and kill him, then return to the Higher Heavens early. This mortal world is a filthy place, unfit for a long stay. The rest of us will find some fine spot to wait for the Dragon Keeper Lord and examine the master of the dragon veins. If the Sword God dares answer the challenge, so much the better; if he does not, once we have secured the master vein we shall return to the mountain."
Xu Shenghua assented.
Star Lord Qiao said, "I will have Jing Yan and Yu Liu go with you, lest some lowly villain move against you."
Yu Liu and Jing Yan were secretly delighted. Yu Liu bore a jade vase on her palms, Jing Yan cradled a pipa in her arms, and the two followed Xu Shenghua toward the capital.
Seeing the sky grow late, the Four Lords of the Higher Heavens lowered their clouds and came to a secluded spot, and the reed canopy settled down.
The place was lovely, with clear hills and fair waters, near no village and no inn—yet across from it stood a house. The door opened, and out walked a woman of dazzling radiance carrying a small wooden bucket to draw water. At the sight of her, the Four Lords of the Higher Heavens all flushed red to the ears, their hearts pounding violently.
Even the Flower Lady, beautiful as she was—the most gorgeous goddess of the Higher Heavens—felt shamed by her own looks, and yet at the same time her heart stirred and fell for this woman.
"Truly a beauty that even gods would envy and adore!"
The four lords steadied their minds. The woman glanced at the reed canopy that had suddenly appeared, then at them, and saluted the four. "Honored guests, the sky grows late. When night falls, do not go outside."
The Jade Lord's heart filled with admiration, and he smiled. "Fairy, this is not the Great Ruins. Why may we not go out at night? Even in the Great Ruins, we could go out as we pleased."
Star Lord Yan and Star Lord Qiao were also smitten, wishing to draw close to the woman, and they laughed, "Fine hour, fair scenery, a beauty for a neighbor—truly a sacred ground, this place."
The Flower Lady felt a twinge of sourness, a touch of jealousy, but at the sight of the woman's beauty her jealousy simply vanished.
Surprise showed on the woman's face. "So the four of you are immortal-like beings who can come and go in the Great Ruins even in darkness. I was overthinking." With that, she went off to draw water.
When night fell, the three lords of the Higher Heavens craned their necks toward the house across the way, and the Flower Lady too felt some anticipation, smiling, "Since your hearts are stirred, why not invite her over to sit with us?"
Just as she spoke, the door of the house across the way suddenly opened, and a laugh that set the blood boiling and the pulses surging rang out: "Four honored guests have come from afar, yet as hostess of this place, this humble one is late to welcome you."
Under the hazy moonlight, the Four Lords of the Higher Heavens looked over, and their hearts cried out as one: "A beauty that would topple even immortals!"