Seven Star Sect, Sect Master Peak.
“The First Elder must have come to see me today for more than just a game of chess.”
A beautiful woman placed a Chess Piece and looked at the old man across from her, whose beard was long enough to trail on the floor.
The First Elder smiled and picked up a Chess Piece.
“The Sect Master has guessed correctly, though I truly did want a game as well. It has been a long time since I last tested my skills against you.”
The First Elder of the Seven Star Sect was a well-known chess fanatic.
In the entire Seven Star Sect, very few could hold their own against him.
Lu Qian thought to herself that it was just as she expected.
These old fellows from the Elder Council never came to the Treasure Hall without a reason.
“Speak then. What business brings the First Elder here this time?”
The First Elder flicked his finger, and two Jade Slips floated before him.
“This one is a Jade Slip sent by Elder Wu not long ago. And this one is from the Yin Sect, sent via the Imperial Capital Branch.”
The First Elder looked at Lu Qian.
“As far as I know, the Sect Master has not made the information within these Jade Slips public.”
Lu Qian’s delicate brows furrowed slightly.
Hmph, these old fellows really did have eyes and ears everywhere.
“This matter involves the Demon Clan. Is there a reason why the Sect Master has chosen not to make it public?”
“The First Elder should just pretend he hasn’t heard anything about this. Otherwise…”
Clack.
The Chess Piece landed, followed immediately by Lu Qian’s overwhelming pressure.
The First Elder felt the Sect Master’s pressure and was inwardly terrified.
He hadn’t expected her to have reached such a realm!
“Since the Sect Master says so, I can put my mind at ease.”
After finishing the game, the First Elder left in a hurry.
Lu Qian watched the First Elder’s departing figure.
Hah!
These old fellows wanted to play their old tricks again.
Their greed truly was bottomless.
Lu Qian understood their methods all too well.
When they caught members of the Demon Clan, they would kill a portion to show the world their determination to eradicate the Demon Clan; they would release a portion to ensure the Demon Clan wasn’t wiped out entirely; and they would keep a portion to negotiate with the Demon Clan and line their own pockets.
These old fellows were experts at playing this whole routine.
This time, Lu Qian would not let them interfere no matter what.
She intended to take action personally and deal a heavy blow to the Demon Clan.
***
At the foot of the Mountain, an Elder had been waiting for the First Elder for a long time.
“First Elder, the Sect Master, she…”
The First Elder waved his hand, cutting off the Elder’s question.
“It didn’t work. The Sect Master’s strength has progressed yet again. This won’t do.”
Ever since nearly eighty percent of the Elder Council’s power had been seized by Lu Qian, the First Elder’s influence had grown weaker and weaker.
If not for his seniority, he would likely be unable to stand his ground alone.
Since ancient times, no matter where the Human Clan went, internal strife was inevitable.
The Elder was shocked to hear this and whispered, “According to our information, the Sect Master has been especially doting on a certain junior lately.”
The First Elder was indifferent to this and said calmly, “Keeping a male favorite is nothing to be surprised about.”
“But this junior is the younger brother of the two Holy Maidens of the Qin Family.”
“Hmm?”
The First Elder’s eyes narrowed.
“Is this true?”
The Elder paused and said, “I am certain. This news comes from the faction hostile to the Qin Family and to Qin Ruoshuang and Qin Mengyu.”
The First Elder stroked his beard as a plan began to take shape in his mind.
“Find a way to capture this junior.”
The Elder was stunned.
“Capturing a junior… is that…”
The First Elder said with full confidence, “By capturing him, we will have the capital to negotiate with those two girls from the Qin Family. We can force them to make concessions, then support the rival faction of the Qin Family to slowly devour them. Without the support of the Qin Family, the Sect Master’s power will surely be weakened.”
“When the time comes, we can hand him over to the Demon Clan. I believe they will offer a good price. Moreover, given the relationship between the Sect Master and the Qin Family Sisters, they will surely try to rescue him personally. At that point, we can demand a king’s ransom in the negotiations.”
The Elder bowed after hearing this.
“The First Elder is brilliant! But by doing this, aren’t we helping the Demon Clan? We…”
“Heh.”
The First Elder rubbed his cane with his fingers.
“You are still too concerned with such things. Whether it’s the Human Clan or the Demon Clan, as long as interests align, anyone can be a partner. Being so timid makes it hard to achieve great things.”
Then, the First Elder said as he walked, “Spread word to the Demon Clan and the Devil Path. Tell them that we can provide some assistance regarding the Great Prison of the Imperial Capital Branch.”
Heh.
Sect Master, oh Sect Master.
I want to see how you place your next piece.
Life is like a game of chess; he liked that saying very much.
Was the deception of reality not just like a game of chess?
Everyone wanted to win.
However, in the game of life, once a piece is placed, there are no regrets.
***
At night, Qin Mu, who had been sleeping soundly, suddenly opened his eyes.
For some reason, he felt exceptionally uneasy tonight, as if something was wrong.
Qin Mu quietly moved the leg draped over him and tiptoed out of the Room.
Arriving at the entrance of the Great Prison, the guard Disciple looked at Qin Mu with confusion.
“Junior Brother Qin, why have you come here so late?”
Qin Mu wasn’t quite sure himself; he just felt a strong calling in his heart telling him he needed to come and see.
“It’s nothing, Senior Brother. I just wanted to take another look at the imprisoned Jing Kun.”
“Oh, I see. In that case, Junior Brother, just sign the register.”
After Qin Mu finished the registration, he entered the Great Prison.
Dark and damp—these were the classic descriptions of a Great Prison.
After walking a short distance, Qin Mu reached the cell where Jing Kun was held.
After all, there weren’t many prisoners here.
Most were disciples of the Seven Star Sect who had committed crimes within the Royal Capital, while the rest were notorious figures from the Devil Path and the Demon Clan.
Arriving before Jing Kun’s cell, Qin Mu took one look and realized his intuition was correct.
At that moment, Jing Kun’s head was hanging low.
He seemed exhausted and was sleeping soundly.
However, a blood-red glow was flickering at Jing Kun’s Dantian.
If it were on his chest, one might immediately think of a silver giant superhero.
The thing calling to Qin Mu was exactly this glow.
“This is the bead he swallowed earlier.”
Qin Mu remembered that Jing Kun had swallowed this bead and instantly became like a Super Saiyan, his strength skyrocketing to the Golden Core Realm.
Even with a cheat-code level upgrade, it shouldn’t have been that fast.
As if sensing Qin Mu’s proximity, the glow grew brighter.
If it continued like this, it would definitely be noticed by the guard disciples.
Qin Mu wanted to stop it but didn’t know how.
Just then, Jing Kun, who had been sleeping soundly, woke up.
“Heh, I knew you would come.”
Jing Kun lifted his head.
Unlike the bloodshot eyes and the aura of violent rage he had during the day, he looked much more normal now.
However, his aura was exceptionally weak, his face was pale, and he had deep dark circles under his eyes, giving off a sense of complete depletion.
“Does this thing only work for the two of us?”
Qin Mu’s brow furrowed.
If there was one thing he and Jing Kun had in common, it was that they were both transmigrators.
“Your guess isn’t bad.”
Jing Kun’s voice was somewhat hoarse; it seemed he had done quite a bit of shouting during the day.
“My original plan was to get the one in the Imperial Palace, but unfortunately you got it. As a second choice, I had to take this one.”
Qin Mu stroked his chin.
The Imperial Palace…
He punched his palm as he remembered.
Qin Mu pulled a shimmering golden stone out of his Storage Pouch.