Unsheathed

The imperial study of the Great Li Empire’s ruler wasn’t actually very big.

If someone wanted to enter the imperial study to sit down and talk, however, then either their official rank needed to be high enough, or their cultivation base needed to be lofty enough.

Song He, the young emperor, was currently resting his mind with his eyes closed. He had made an exception and canceled the imperial meeting today, all for the sake of the meeting that was about to commence.

Moreover, the situation was unique, and there would be far more cultivators in the meeting than officials of the Great Li Empire. There would only be three officials: the head minister of the Ministry of Rites and two assistant ministers.

Song He opened his eyes. There were approximately fifteen minutes until the meeting, so the young emperor glanced at his study desk, looking at the mountains and waters illustrated by Li Yingqiu. This was left here by his late father, and following Song He’s ascension to the throne, he hadn’t removed a single item from the imperial study. He had only added a few items, but after finding the imperial study too bloated, he had quietly removed some of these additional items.

The painting scroll by Li Yingqiu was placed inside a porcelain brush holder crafted by a dragon kiln in the Jewel Small World, and this brush holder was actually a bit of an eyesore on the table.

Li Yingqiu wasn’t someone from the mountains. Music, Go, calligraphy works, and paintings from the mortal world were often dismissed by immortals in the mountains, though there would naturally be some exceptions as well. Li Yingqiu was a figure who couldn’t be ignored when discussing the history of calligraphy works and paintings in the Great Sui Nation, and not only were his works fancied by the Imperial Song Clan of the Great Li Empire, but they were desired by many immortal forces in the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent as well.

Apart from the painting of mountains and rivers by Li Yingqiu, there was also a painting of flowers and birds by Bian Ye in the brush holder.

Song He glanced at the painting scrolls inside the brush holder, and the young emperor almost wanted to apologize to Li Yingqiu, saying that it was unfair for his painting of mountains and rivers to be placed together with Bian Ye’s painting of flowers and birds.

Indeed, Song He had a very bad impression of Bian Ye, regardless of whether it was his paintings or his character. He felt like Bian Ye was severely lacking in both areas. This person was a destitute painter from the fallen Lu Empire, but he was one of the few outsiders who had settled down in a vassal region of the Great Li Empire, thereby gaining the trust and high regard of the Great Li Empire’s ruler of that generation. As such, his paintings were all stamped with the many imperial seals of two emperors.

It was very likely that Bian Ye would have never expected things to turn out like this less than one hundred years after his death. He had only run to the barbaric Great Li Empire to feed himself after failing to achieve any success in the Lu Empire, but in the end, he had mysteriously become a sage in the artistic world of the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent.

All kinds of titles and praises had been heaped onto him, labeling him as ”the most talented in depicting the wonders of flowers and birds, with exquisite colors as large as life,” possessing ”immaculate skills that defined the genre,” and so on and so forth.

During his childhood, Song He had received lessons here with some other princes, and a few of them had been of the same opinion as him, commenting that the paintings by Bian Ye were truly very rich in color. The late emperor had opined nothing of these paintings, simply stating that they had to stay regardless of who became the owner of this imperial study in the future, and no matter whether they liked these paintings or not.

In any case, one of the calligraphy works inside the brush holder was genuinely a valuable treasure. This was a calligraphy work named Better to Stay Put Than to Return Home.

In fact, this could be regarded as the number one treasure of the Great Li Empire’s imperial study.

This was a calligraphy work by Song He’s master, Imperial Preceptor Cui Chan of the Great Li Empire. Thus, it was naturally a genuine item.

Cui Chan’s calligraphy works, especially his cursive writing, were extremely wondrous and were widely recognized as being worth a fortune in the Majestic World.

Once the first disciple of the Scholarly Sage, Embroidered Tiger Cui Chan could indeed live up to his nickname, just like the Southern Whirl Continent’s Chen Chun’an could live up to his title as a pure Confucian scholar.

There were sixteen calligraphy works by Cui Chan that were legendary in the world: the four flower works, the four cloudtop works, the four spring-side works, and the four mountaintop works.

These sixteen calligraphy works were scattered throughout the nine continents and held in the hands of world-renowned collectors. Among them was a powerful cultivator standing at the pinnacle of the mountains in the Middle Earth Divine Continent. He had deep ties with Cui Chan, and he had spent an absolute fortune to purchase two calligraphy works. Afterward, he had destroyed the calligraphy works Child Begs for Rice and Fighting for a Seat in public, an impressive act that greatly satisfied the masses.

It was only one hundred years later that the truth came to light. This powerful cultivator and renowned collector had proclaimed himself Cui Chan’s number one hater, but his descendants finally revealed the truth, allowing outsiders to learn that the old bastard had destroyed only two replicas back then. Meanwhile, he had secretly kept the two calligraphy works and passed them down as family heirlooms.

Apart from this powerful cultivator, it was rumored that the Pure White Continent’s Liu Clan, White Emperor City, the Middle Earth Divine Continent’s Yu Clan, and the Jade Tablet Sect’s Jiang Shangzhen each owned one of the sixteen legendary calligraphy works.

Cui Chan stepped inside the imperial study, bowing in respect and saying, ”We can commence the meeting, Your Majesty.”

This was the etiquette between rulers and officials.

The young emperor immediately stood up and returned the gesture. This was the etiquette between masters and disciples.

There was no need for this, in reality, but Song He persisted the entire time, acting the same way even in front of all the pillar officials during the small imperial meetings.

Only after Cui Chan sat down did the head minister of the Ministry of Rites sit down, and only after that did the two assistant ministers sit down.

And then it was the immortals from the mountains of the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent.

There was the sect leader of the Divine Edict Sect, Great Heavenly Lord Qi Zhen from the Daoist Sect.

There was the chief guest elder of the Great Li Empire, Sect Leader Ruan Qiong of the Dragon Spring Sword Sect.

There was the old ancestor from the Wind Snow Temple, someone who had attained Dao and had the appearance of a young child. He had last appeared during the three sparring matches between the Wind Lightning Field and Sun Scorch Mountain.

There was a man carrying a sword on his back from True Martial Mountain, and he had just been promoted to the position of disciplinary elder in the ancestral hall.

In the eyes of outsiders, having Ma Kuxuan alone was enough to guarantee True Martial Mountain’s future.

The Wind Snow Temple wasn’t far behind either, having the Divine Platform’s Wei Jin. The only blemish was the fact that Wei Jin didn’t have too many strong ties with the Wind Snow Temple. In fact, he had always been cold and distant to the Wind Snow Temple because of his lineage. Wei Jin had even traveled to the Sword Qi Great Wall now, or else he would have had a seat inside the imperial study for today’s meeting as well.

There was the chief guest elder of the True Realm Sect, Bamboo Scroll Lake’s Vagrant Cultivator Liu Laocheng.

There was a noble scholar from Lake View Academy.

There was the mountain master from Cloud Drape Mountain’s Forest Deer Academy.

There was Old Dragon City’s City Lord Fu Qi.

There was the old ancestor of the Great Sui Nation’s Geyang Gao Clan.

There were four of the five great mountain gods of the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent’s Five Mountains, including the Northern Mountain’s Wei Bo and the Central Mountain’s Jin Qing.

Only the Southern Mountain’s Fan Junmao wasn’t present.

There was the leading figure of Mohism.

There was Mohist Wanderer Xu Ruo, who had a sword on his back.

There was an old ancestor from the Cloud Forest Jiang Clan.

There were two great river gods from the central region of the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent.

It was rumored that there were plans to converge six great rivers and twelve normal rivers, creating a gigantic river that flowed into the sea.

By the looks of it, this astonishing claim wasn’t without merit.

The clan leader of Light Breeze City’s Xu Clan was like a tiger given wings after obtaining the scaly armor, with his destructive power soaring to new heights.

There was a young-looking woman from Sun Scorch Mountain, and it was said that she was an old ancestor who had recently started to look after the finances of the immortal force. However, she was largely unknown compared to the group of sword cultivator old ancestors of Sun Scorch Mountain.

She was sitting at the very back today.

She was sitting even further back than the leaders of the top immortal forces from the Great Li Empire of old.

Theoretically speaking, Sun Scorch Mountain and Light Breeze City’s Xu Clan were allies with extremely strong ties, but when waiting to enter the imperial study just then, the clan leader of the Xu Clan had only nodded in acknowledgment when seeing the female cultivator from Sun Scorch Mountain. He hadn’t even made small talk with her.

However, the female cultivator had stood up and bowed in respect before sitting back down.

There were thirty-six cultivators and deities in total gathered in the imperial study, with most of them having some sort of relationship with another. For example, the Jiang Clan and Old Dragon City’s Fu Clan were related through marriage, while Light Breeze City’s Xu Clan and the Pillar Yuan Clan were also related through marriage. Because of the latter relationship, the Xu Clan also had some ties with the right minister of the Ministry of Rites. Meanwhile, the head minister of the Ministry of Rites was sitting beside Ruan Qiong and engaged in a cordial conversation with him.

Elsewhere, Wei Bo and Jin Qing were taking small jabs at each other, while the two newly appointed mountain gods appeared to have a decent relationship with each other as they discussed some proper matters. Qi Zhen and the leading figure of Mohism were having a hearty conversation. Even the old ancestor of the Geyang Gao Clan, who had lived in seclusion in Cloud Drape Mountain’s Forest Deer Academy for many years, could discuss scholarly pursuits with the great noble scholar of Lake View Academy.

In contrast, the pitiful female cultivator from Sun Scorch Mountain had no one she could talk to.

Cui Chan stood up and didn’t beat around the bush as he said directly, ”We’ve gathered everyone here today to discuss ten matters.”

It was like two completely different worlds inside and outside the imperial study.

Everyone held their breath and concentrated their attention, with not a single person appearing carefree.

Apart from today’s meeting in the imperial study being closely related to everyone present, the mystery surrounding the imperial preceptor’s cultivation base was also a key point.

As for the three top ministers from the Ministry of Rites, they further appeared like students listening to the teachings of their master.

”Firstly, the imperial court is about to designate the subsidiary mountains of the Five Mountains,” Cui Chan announced.

The four mountain gods listened carefully. This was something that pertained to the foundation of their Great Dao.

In reality, this pertained to more than just the Five Mountains, and it also affected the interests of everyone else present.

The head minister of the Ministry of Rites stood up and opened a notebook before starting to read a list of names.

He looked at Cui Chan after he finished, and only when the standing Cui Chan nodded softly did the elderly head minister return to his seat.

”Secondly, we need to select a few popular and favored immortal forces to become sects-in-waiting,” Cui Chan continued.

The clan leader of Light Breeze City’s Xu Clan sat up straight and proper.

The female cultivator from Sun Scorch Mountain also put on a serious expression.

It looked like she especially didn’t dare to look the Dragon Spring Sword Sect’s Sage Ruan Qiong in the eyes.

She hadn’t looked at Ruan Qiong even when waiting for the emperor to summon them just then.

The reason for this was very simple. Sun Scorch Mountain would need to swallow all of the Sword Dao Fortune from the Luminous Vermilion Empire if it wanted to become a sect-level immortal force, and it would also need to establish a secondary immortal force to recruit all of the innate sword talents.

In the end, one of the four selected immortal forces — including Light Breeze City’s Xu Clan and Sun Scorch Mountain — would have the chance to become a sect-level force, after which they would naturally receive bountiful wealth and resources from the imperial court of the Great Li Empire.

The third point of discussion was forming a huge river to enter the sea, as well as appointing the various immortals to oversee this task.

The two formal great river gods who enjoyed an equivalent standing to the Iron Talisman River’s Yang Hua could barely hide the excitement on their faces.

Even though no decision would be made today regarding the appointment of this huge river’s river god, being invited to attend today’s meeting was already a grand honor in and of itself.

The imperial court of the Great Li Empire appointed three people: Scholarly Official Liu Qingfeng, Martial General Guan Yiran, and Martial General Liu Xunmei.

The other supporting personnel were all cultivators from the mountains. At the same time, the immortal forces located near the planned route of the huge river were all able to provide suggestions.

The old ancestor of the Cloud Forest Jiang Clan felt like this was a very valuable trip, especially since the estuary of the sea was extremely close to his clan. Thus, he suggested that Jiang Yun, a descendant of the Jiang Clan, be involved in this matter as well.

Guest Elder Liu Laocheng of the True Realm Sect smiled knowingly.

The fourth point of discussion was categorizing the various mountain shrines and river shrines in the regions. If they were promoted to the level of official shrines, then the imperial court would issue the necessary edicts, and the local immortal forces and cultivators would assist with increasing the incense offerings. If they were classed as illegal shrines, however, then they would immediately be destroyed, and the various immortal forces would be responsible for suppressing them.

The two assistant ministers from the Ministry of Rites each read the contents in their notebooks.

The fifth point of discussion was relocating the replica White Jade Capital in the capital of the Great Li Empire to the territory of the former Central Mountain of the Luminous Vermilion Empire.

The leading figure of Mohism stood up and announced some key points in a concise manner.

The White Jade Capital was capable of killing anyone under the thirteenth tier, and the person responsible for guarding it was none other than Mohist Wanderer Xu Ruo, someone very familiar with the Central Mountain’s Mountain God Jin Qing.

The sixth point of discussion was introducing a law whereby all immortal forces in the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent would need to pay taxes to the imperial court of the Great Li Empire in the future.

The imperial study instantly fell silent.

”This is a complex matter, so a complete plan and a consensus won’t be reached in just one or two days,” Cui Chan said. ”Those present today simply need to express their approval or disapproval of this proposal. If the majority approves, then there will naturally be a team to work through the details. If the majority disapproves, then this proposal will be temporarily shelved.

”The imperial court of the Great Li Empire won’t target anyone in the short-term, and everyone sitting here today will receive a book detailing the proposal when they leave, regardless of their decision on this proposal. Different immortal forces will naturally be subject to different conditions, but these differences won’t be very major. There’s no rush to express your opinions, and the aim today is just to provide some advanced notice. There will be a buffer period of at most one year.”

The seventh point of discussion was the Great Li Empire borrowing money and personnel from the large immortal forces, as well as how the empire would repay these debts in the future. Another point of consideration was the immortal forces needing to send cultivators outside the mountains to train and ”placate” the remnant royals and officials of the destroyed nations and vassal states. They would be invited to the capital of the Great Li Empire for a certain period of time, and they could choose to stay if they enjoyed the culture and environment here.

The eighth point of discussion was rejuvenating Buddhism in the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, which included constructing temples and appointing an eminent monk to manage this.

Heavenly Lord Qi Zhen furrowed his brows upon hearing this.

The ninth point of discussion was re-establishing the Great Sui Nation’s Mountain Cliff Academy as one of the seventy-two Confucian academies. This was a necessity, and if it were possible, they should also fight for Forest Deer Academy.

The old ancestor of the Geyang Gao Clan was very pleased to hear this.

One after another, the nine matters were rapidly explained and discussed under Cui Chan’s lead.

The young emperor simply sat behind the study desk, not angry in the least about the imperial preceptor overstepping his authority. Instead, Song He was in very high spirits.

”These nine matters were all prerequisites for the tenth and final matter,” Cui Chan said. ”This final matter relates to the life and death of everyone present, including His Royal Highness.”

Cui Chan flicked his sleeve, allowing those in the imperial study to observe the mountains and rivers of the continent.

All of the key mountains and immortal forces were illuminated like lamps on the picture scroll.

”We need to discuss how the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent should set up its defensive lines and stop the large army of the demon tribe from marching north after the Sword Qi Great Wall falls, and once the entire Parasol Leaf Continent is destroyed.”

The Five Mountains would lead the many mountains in the continent, while the huge river in the central region would gather the water fortune of the entire continent.

Lake View Academy, Mountain Cliff Academy, and Forest Deer Academy represented the scholarly fortune of the continent.

The Divine Edict Sect, the Dragon Spring Sword Sect, the Wind Snow Temple, True Martial Mountain, Old Dragon City, the Cloud Forest Jiang Clan, Bamboo Scroll Lake’s True Realm Sect, Sun Scorch Mountain, and Light Breeze City’s Xu Clan were all critical defensive posts of the continent.

The many vassal forces and powerful immortal forces scattered around the continent were deep-rooted Go pieces that couldn’t be moved.

”Having a key defensive line along the shores, which includes forces like Old Dragon City and the Cloud Forest Jiang Clan, is definitely far from enough,” Cui Chan said. ”We also need strategic depth and coordinated support between the different immortal forces.

”The immortal forces should join together to form a complete defensive line, which should then stretch to cover an entire region. However, this isn’t enough, and it’s far too rigid.

”We also need a large number of offensive immortal ships, as well as more mountain-sized immortal ships. This will require colossal sums of immortal money.

”There are many other plans unrelated to those present, so there’s no benefit for me to talk about them here. You’ll naturally learn about them in the future.”

There was deathly silence in the imperial study.

Cui Chan pointed at some point further south of the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, as well as some point further west. One was the Parasol Leaf Continent, and one was most probably the Middle Earth Divine Continent.

His expression was cold and apathetic as he continued, ”The Majestic World actually needs to rely on the smallest continent, the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, to help obstruct the advance of the demon tribe. Is this not a huge joke? I want to see those seven continents of the Majestic World laughing themselves to death.”

In the end, his voice became solemn as he said, ”The extremely large Parasol Leaf Continent is unable to block the advance of the demon army, and they’re destined to crumble in the blink of an eye. That being the case, let the tiny Eastern Treasured Vial Continent pick up the pieces and stop the demon tribe. The great trend is about to bear down upon us, so please rise, those who wish to save the world from collapse.”

The young emperor was the first to stand up.

Everyone else in the imperial study stood up after him.

At this moment, someone who didn’t look like a cultivator walked into the imperial study, smiling faintly and saying, ”My surname is Fan, but I’m naturally not from Old Dragon City’s Fan Clan. I come from the Middle Earth Divine Continent, and I’m willing to become a main financier with my small wealth. I’m willing to offer some measly help to the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent.”

There was an old eunuch dressed in red python robes standing in the corridor outside the imperial study, and there was a strange expression on his face as he shot a sideways glance at the young boy in white squatting on the floor and leaning against the wall.

”I put my life on the line to busily run around and finally trick Old Fan over here, and I even had to stand around for half a day just then, so what’s wrong with resting for a while? Is this not allowed?” the young boy in white fumed. ”Does it look like I’m fucking pissing or shitting here? Does it matter to you whether I’m squatting or standing? Why don’t you try to glare at me again? Do you believe me when I say that I’ll show you the act of a monkey grabbing nuts and dragging the moon down from the sea? Are you scared?”

There was a barrier around the imperial study, so those inside were oblivious to the exchange taking place outside. Even so, Cui Chan still shouted softly, ”Cui Dongshan!”

The young boy with a birthmark on his glabella swung his sleeves, not striding into the imperial study but walking away instead. While doing so, he simply said, ”I have some good news to deliver. The Sword Qi Great Wall can hold on for two to three years longer than expected.”

Cui Dongshan made his way to the replica White Jade Capital, climbing up by himself.

After reaching the top level, he looked through the window at the sky outside, feeling a slight reminiscence of his childhood when he would be locked inside here to study.

Unexpectedly, he was still a youth, yet he was also a white-haired old man at the same time.

Youths didn’t know the bitterness of worry? To hell with that. All clamor ceases when the old crane cries out? Utter rubbish.

Talents failing to bloom had been a source of great tragedy since ancient times.

This was the case for several continents, and it rang true both in the mountains and outside the mountains.

Cui Dongshan slapped himself across the face and instructed, ”This is the time and place to start crying.”

He rubbed his cheeks and opened his mouth wide, howling, ”I’m so fierce!”

After he left the capital of the Great Li Empire, everyone walking along the official road couldn’t help but shoot sideways glances at him.

A frail and emaciated child appeared as pitiful as could be as he carried a young boy in white on his back. The child stumbled forward, and the young boy was exceptionally happy.