A Pawn's Passage

After Utu returned, he gave Qi Xuansu a detailed account of what he had found.

Though Qi Xuansu had seen what Utu transmitted in real time through the light screen, what the eye alone perceived was incomplete. For example, Qi Xuansu could not feel the old flood dragon’s immense and overwhelming aura. Only Utu, who had been there, could, so a verbal account was necessary.

Qi Xuansu was not one to act rashly. He would usually hear other perspectives before making a decision. So he convened a small-scale council and discussed the specifics of the plan based on the intelligence they had gathered.

The plan had three main parts. First, dealing with the Longevous on the outer perimeter. Second, confronting the old flood dragon itself. Third, guarding against the threat lurking in the shadows—Zhou Mengyao.

For Qi Xuansu, the first part posed no problem. With the old flood dragon asleep, it would be relatively easy to neutralize the Longevous’ senior fighters before the dragon awakened if they deployed two Pseudo-Immortals like Hun Ahau and Utu as well as Qi Xuansu. Sun Jiatu could then take advantage of the moment to bring the less dragon-like Longevous under their fold.

The second part was more challenging, but it was still within their control. The old flood dragon itself possessed combat power at the Immortal level but was still not a Quasi-First-Tribulation Immortal. Even at full strength, Qi Xuansu, Hun Ahau, and Utu together could hold their own against it. Now that the dragon had suffered grievous wounds and been forced into slumber, its cultivation level had surely been greatly diminished.

If luck was with them, the old flood dragon might have fallen all the way to Pseudo-Immortal level. If it was comparable to an Ancient Immortal’s incarnation, it could be dealt with directly.

If luck was not with them and the old flood dragon still held Immortal-level cultivation, it would most likely be tottering on the brink. In that case, the three of them would engage the dragon head-on, pinning it down, while the Horned Dragon fired the Grade-A Series Two Dragon Eye Bomb. The bomb could not directly threaten an Immortal, but it was sufficient to wound the dragon. This had already been proven in the killing of Yamata-no-Orochi in Fenglin.

The Horned Dragon was more like a fixed artillery platform lacking flexibility, but in terms of raw bombardment power, it was in no way inferior to the Yinglong Warship. That was sufficient.

This placed great demands on the gunner. A first-rank Spirit Guard could operate the weapon alone, but there were no First-Rank Spirit Guards present, only a crew of ordinary Spirit Guards who would need to coordinate themselves. Therefore, the role of the commander was crucial.

As the voyage leader, Yang Shaozhen bore a very heavy responsibility. Qi Xuansu hoped that she was as experienced as she said she was. He even invoked the legendary Zhang Yuelu to encourage her.

Yang Shaozhen pledged in the form of a military oath that she would absolutely complete the mission.

In truth, though the second part had its difficulties, it was not the most critical concern. Even if they could not defeat the dragon, they could still withdraw. The old flood dragon might not be able to stop them.

What mattered most was the third part of the plan. That was the core, and the part Qi Xuansu regarded most seriously.

Every part of a flood dragon was valuable, yet none of it compared in value to eliminating a constant threat like Zhou Mengyao.

Everyone present understood one fact clearly. Becoming the Grand Master and holding real power in that role meant commanding almost the entire world. After all, the world today was divided between the East and the West. The Grand Master was the Emperor of the East, master of half the world.

What treasure could compare to half the world?

Qi Xuansu had come this far and had long since lost any room for retreat, nor did he wish to retreat.

The only uncertainty was when Zhou Mengyao would strike. The most likely moment was when the fighting was at its fiercest, when Qi Xuansu was most fully occupied. By then, she would ambush him.

This meant Qi Xuansu had to hold some power in reserve. At minimum, he could not allow Zhou Mengyao to take him down in a single blow. Only then would he have the opportunity to deploy his countermeasures and surprise Zhou Mengyao.

Qi Xuansu also had another concern. Zhou Mengyao, sensing that things had gone wrong, might flee at once. But Qi Xuansu had no ideal solution. Having any means of counter-attack at all was already difficult enough. Hoping to actually trap an Immortal was a fool’s dream. All he could do was place his hopes in Zhou Mengyao’s arrogance and carelessness.

On this part of the plan, Qi Xuansu did not elaborate. He simply asked everyone to have a general awareness of it. The specifics of how to counter-attack were known to Qi Xuansu alone. After all, the others could not help him with this. He had only one requirement: that they do not lose sight of the primary objective even if unexpected developments occurred. Everyone was to concentrate their strength on dealing with the old flood dragon.

The group went through every specific detail several times, doing their best to account for every worst-case scenario and drafting several contingency plans.

After all, it was their own lives at stake. No one dared take it lightly. They racked their brains and contributed from their area of expertise, offering judgment from a professional perspective.

Tantai Ying, who commanded the reserve force, had already set sail ahead of the West Tiangang Hall’s fleet. There was no longer time to worry about alarming the enemy. Some matters were more urgent than others. The humanoid insects were a minor nuisance, while Zhou Mengyao was the true threat.

The council concluded, and Operation Dragon-Slaying Dance officially commenced.

......

Madam Qi finally departed Jinling Prefecture with Little Yin, heading back to Nanyang.

One reason was to escort Little Yin home, and the other reason was that Madam Qi still had affairs to attend to in Nanyang. Though the Eight Tribes had Shangguan Ya and the Fenglin Trading Company had Genki, Madam Qi was the true boss behind the scenes, so many matters required her personal decision.

Such was Madam Qi—perpetually busy, flying from place to place, running all over the world.

After dealing with affairs in Nanyang, she still had to make a trip to the Western Region, where she also had business.

Besides all this, Madam Qi’s return to Nanyang this time also included plans to pay a visit to Zhang Yuelu.

The relationship between Madam Qi and Zhang Yuelu was a delicate one. Like many mother-in-law and daughter-in-law pairs, had it not been for one man, they might never have crossed paths in their entire lives.

Once the two women were thrown together, the generational gap created clashes of principle and temperament. Above all, there was a question of where household authority lay. Mutual hatred was inevitable.

Now, there was a widely acknowledged truth. Female Daoists had a strong desire for control over their husbands and sons. Who should the man listen to—his wife or his mother?

The question was, who had the final say in the household.

In the past, under Confucian rule, such tensions were rare because men ruled the household. A woman was expected to follow her husband upon marriage and her son upon her husband’s death. Both daughter-in-law and mother-in-law deferred to the man, with the weight of filial piety pressing down from above. The only path was to endure the years as a daughter-in-law until one became a mother-in-law.

But under Daoist rule, men had been pushed aside. They were supposed to work diligently and do as they were told. Ritual propriety and filial piety had been smashed to pieces by the hammer of equality. As such, the power struggle between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law had only grown more severe.

The legendary Zhang Yuelu and the illustrious Madam Qi were both remarkable figures. But they were not exempt from this power struggle.

Zhang Yuelu disapproved of Madam Qi’s conduct and wished to correct it. But to do so, she needed authority. Madam Qi felt Zhang Yuelu was encroaching on her territory and naturally refused to yield.

In ancient times, people married young. A girl could be wed at the age of 14, while the mother-in-law was in her thirties and in the prime of life. How could a child prevail against a woman in her prime?

Now, things were different. Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu were both at their prime, fully mature, and no longer children. They had promising careers of their own and lacked nothing in experience or capability.

Meanwhile, Madam Qi was in her sixties, entering the twilight of her years.

The mothers-in-law of today were roughly the age that a husband’s grandmother would have been in ancient times. This was an age at which stepping back was fitting, when the authority of the household should be handed on.

But Madam Qi had her cultivation and had not grown dispirited with age. She had no wish to step back at all. She was still full of energy, which meant the fight would go on.

This should not be dismissed as a trivial matter because if Qi Xuansu truly became Grand Master, their household affairs might affect the nation.

That was because Zhang Yuelu represented the Zhengyi Sect, and Madam Qi represented the Quanzhen Sect. If Qi Xuansu rose to power, it would certainly be on the combined efforts of both sects. When it came time to divide the gains, discord between wife and mother could even escalate into an open rivalry between the two sects behind them. In such circumstances, it fell to the man to show some backbone and step forward of his own accord.

But stepping forward was one thing. It did not mean trying to please both sides. Trying to please both sides usually pleased neither. Paradoxically, pleasing neither side was more likely to satisfy both.

Thus, Qi Xuansu frequently assumed the role as head of the household, telling the two women to take a step back and simply follow his lead.

Both women would accept it as long as neither side gained the upper hand.

Precisely because Qi Xuansu was willing to take the lead, and because Madam Qi and Zhang Yuelu were both busy and rarely met, that the tensions had remained manageable. At least, it was restrained and not yet brought into the open.

Zhang Yuelu had not yet gone to Jade Capital. When she heard that Madam Qi was visiting, she was somewhat surprised.

Little Yin was not an ordinary child, so there was no need to escort her to the door. She could have made her own way back.

For Madam Qi to personally escort Little Yin meant she had something to say.

Zhang Yuelu invited Madam Qi in, assuming that Madam Qi had come to discuss wedding arrangements.

But Madam Qi did not mention the wedding at all, as such things were not her concern. After all, she was not Tantai Qiong. Madam Qi had not even intended to attend the wedding ceremony, so why would she trouble herself with further details?

Madam Qi drew Little Yin close and said, “Little Yin, tell her what Tian Yuan asked you.”

As instructed, Little Yin recounted her last conversation with Qi Xuansu.

With each word, Zhang Yuelu’s expression grew more grave.

Qi Xuansu had not told her any of this. He had mentioned only their wedding.

Zhang Yuelu was unaware that things were this perilous for him.

Being a sharp and perceptive woman, Zhang Yuelu immediately grasped the main point. She said, “Tian Yuan would not ask about this without reason. Does this mean that Zhou Mengyao has already reached the Southern Continent?”

Madam Qi said nothing and simply blew a puff of smoke.

Little Yin gave a solemn nod. “Exactly.”