The tis given to the others were all wrong!
The real eting ti was at 5:00 AM!
In an instant, everyone broke out in a cold sweat.
If soone laid a trap with that much foresight, who knew what other pitfalls might be waiting for them next?
"The remnants of the Zhu Family really deserve to die a miserable death!"
Several patriarchs cursed in unison, casting grateful and relieved glances at Lu Chang’sheng.
No one had expected Zhu Qing to ddle in this matter, let alone tamper with such things.
"This Zhu Qing is the empress of my world—naturally, her mind works in extraordinary ways. Fellow daoists, you must all be extra cautious,"
Lu Chang’sheng reminded them.
The group nodded solemnly.
······
The next day, at the hour of the Hare.
Lu Chang’sheng and several family heads arrived early at the West Gate Imperial Court.
At each of the four gates of Platinum Immortal City, courts had been built in varying numbers; these were smaller manors used by the Gu Family’s patrolling cultivators as places to rest temporarily.
The courts, refined and quiet, were already filling up—quite a few mbers of the Qi Cultivation families had arrived, despite the hour not yet reaching 5:00 AM.
The arrival of Lu Chang’sheng and his companions caught a lot of attention—especially the other family heads involved in the recent compound affair, who all looked over, wanting to carefully size up Lu Chang’sheng for themselves.
Of course, today wasn’t the place for confrontation. At most, these people would exchange a few words privately, but no one dared pick a public fight with Lu Chang’sheng now.
Over the years, Lu Chang’sheng kept a low profile and never clashed with other families, so he naturally encountered much less hostility.
With Xiao Feng and the others arriving, Lu Chang’sheng introduced the elders of White Cloud Pavilion to the Fang and Qu families; seeing this, many present beca noticeably more amiable.
Even those from the Gao Family lost their hostile edge—after seeing how Xiao Feng, Elder Li, and others chatted so amicably with Lu Chang’sheng, they dropped their animosity without a trace. Whether they were concealing it or had truly let it go was anyone’s guess.
Just as the ti was about to strike, Lu Chang’sheng distinctly felt an unusual gaze on him—one that flashed across and then vanished instantly.
He followed his instincts and saw, atop a nearby three-story Listening Rain Tower, that the Supre Profound Sect’s middle-aged cultivator had just turned away, leaving only his back in view.
Lu Chang’sheng simply smiled and continued his conversation with Xiao Feng and company.
"So he didn’t fall for it after all!"
The middle-aged male cultivator furrowed his brow.
"No surprise he didn’t. This man is more troubleso than we imagined." Zhu Qing, seated at the other end of the pavilion, rose to her feet and cast a glance at Lu Chang’sheng—a flicker of reminiscence passing through her calm eyes as mories surfaced.
"What a pity. If I could have brought him under my banner, he’d have been a true talent."
But she now understood Lu Chang’sheng well. Back when she was the Empress of Great Yuan, she couldn’t win his trust—how much harder would it be now?
"Heh, honestly, I think you’re being overly cautious, Junior Sister. He may be a problem for now, but with his limited innate talent, you’ll outpace him by far in the future. When that ti cos, taking care of him will be a breeze, so why waste your energy fretting about him now?"
The middle-aged cultivator, Xie Qing, couldn’t help voicing his thoughts; he was all too aware of Zhu Qing’s behavior these days, and was inwardly rather dissatisfied.
Disciples of the Immortal Sects have advantages over most loose cultivators in spirit veins, immortal techniques, magic, and more—the gap is massive.
To him, Zhu Qing’s handling of all this felt like bringing a broadsword to kill a mosquito.
Worse, Zhu Qing was putting Lu Chang’sheng on the sa level as themselves—disciples of an Immortal Sect. How could that possibly be acceptable?
Zhu Qing’s brows knit together. In Great Yuan, her cautious nature was what enabled her—just a woman—to seize the throne. Naturally, she couldn’t tolerate such words.
Besides—
"He’s no ordinary person."
Zhu Qing felt it necessary for Xie Qing to understand just how difficult Lu Chang’sheng was to deal with, so she imdiately recounted all that she knew about him.
Upon hearing that Lu Chang’sheng, as a re mortal, had slain immortals multiple tis, Xie Qing was shocked to the core.
Mortal flesh is worlds apart from cultivators. To butcher a cultivator as a mortal? That alone proved he was no common man. Xie Qing finally understood Zhu Qing’s wariness.
He also realized that Lu Chang’sheng and his group figuring out the true eting ti today was no coincidence.
"In that case, we ought to ask an elder to make a move."
······
Lu Chang’sheng was, of course, unaware of the plotting between the two above. Otherwise, he would no doubt be reflecting on all those days in Great Yuan.
He held the advantage of a latecor—unless forced, he would never draw attention to himself.
Exactly this was what he feared.
But now that things had co to this, regrets were useless—there was no choice but to move forward.
As ti passed, more and more late-stage Qi Cultivators arrived. With about a quarter hour to go before 5:00 AM, the Gu Family’s cultivators showed up. After that, no more Qi Cultivation families arrived.
As the hour struck, everyone saw two Foundation Establishnt cultivators descend from the sky—the glow of magical power rippling around them, their robes billowing in the flow of energy. They looked like exiled immortals co to earth.
Of the two who landed, one was on the stockier side, the other tall and thin—both wore stern, severe expressions.
Lu Chang’sheng could feel a faint oppressive aura washing over them. He thought to himself: These Foundation cultivators are here to pressure everyone.
Several of his friends apparently thought the sa, their expressions changing as they exchanged glances with Lu Chang’sheng.
When it was Xiao Feng’s turn, he simply gave Lu Chang’sheng a look that said: Wait and see what happens.
Lu Chang’sheng nodded slightly, suppressing his misgivings.
With such powerful arrivals, no late-stage Qi Cultivator dared make a sound. Immortal Sect disciples already held themselves above loose cultivators—let alone these Foundation elders.
But just then, the stocky cultivator broke into a smile and spoke: "The reason for the Sect’s presence today is to handle the matter of Red Cloud Daoist."
"Red Cloud Daoist had already been cornered by us. Unexpectedly, he’d been possessed by a great demon, and managed to escape in its body. That demon excels at concealnt—if we let ti drag on, it’ll be a disaster for our Platinum Immortal City."
"So, I must trouble everyone here to join us in seeking out the Red Cloud Demon—bring peace back to Platinum Immortal City!"
This chubby cultivator was none other than Gu Wei—the Gu Family’s Foundation Establishnt elder.
Lu Chang’sheng had never t him, but knew his appearance well enough. Any cultivator planning a long stay sowhere would do well to get hold of the local powerhouses’ portraits—just in case they ran afoul of them by accident.
Lu Chang’sheng never neglected such details.
The quiet cultivator sipping spirit tea nearby looked completely unfamiliar—he must be an elder from Supre Profound Sect.
The atmosphere turned somber in an instant.
They said "assist," but who could say what dangers lay ahead?
Up to now, things hadn’t been too bad—Red Cloud Daoist, after all, had to keep his identity secret. If late-stage Qi cultivators wanted to survive, there was still a chance.
But now, with Red Cloud Daoist’s cover blown, any encounter might cost them their lives.
Still, faced with two Foundation elders ahead, outright refusal was out of the question.
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