Was he planning to take the opportunity to attack Yashan’s eldest senior sister Jian Chou, whom he had long found displeasing?

Or was it because he had also been deceived by the new Esoteric School back then and wanted to get some revenge?

Or was he simply trying to intimidate them?

No, no, no—no matter what, they didn’t dare agree to let him go.

The Kunwu elders standing behind True Person Hengxu were the first to object: “Though the Sword Emperor’s strength is certainly transcendent, he is after all the host of the star sea. Abandoning matters here to participate in the plan to eliminate the Snow Region first doesn’t seem quite appropriate, does it?”

“Yes, how can we let the Sword Emperor go?”

Hearing this, everyone feared something might go wrong with this crucial matter and all echoed their agreement.

Only True Person Hengxu himself, the involved Xie Buchen, the Yashan group, and several monks from Chanzong strangely remained silent, not immediately expressing any opinions.

Of course, Jian Chou also said nothing.

As early as when True Person Hengxu had said they should eliminate the Esoteric School first, she had already guessed she would be involved in this trip, but she hadn’t expected Qu Zhengfeng to also propose going.

No matter how formidable the Snow Region Esoteric School was, it was just a larger sect. Moreover, first, it was severely weakened by internal strife, and second, it had been split by the old Esoteric School’s departure, greatly damaging its strength. Even with two remaining Dharma Kings, it wasn’t fearsome, not to mention they had both Chanzong and the old Esoteric School helping—no matter how you looked at it, it should be sufficient.

Even if they couldn’t claim absolute certainty, it wasn’t far from it.

But for this lofty Mingri Xinghai Sword Emperor Qu Zhengfeng to suddenly say such words and want to insert himself into the matter—that was quite thought-provoking.

Listening to everyone’s objections, Qu Zhengfeng didn’t even change his expression, only looked toward True Person Hengxu and asked with a smile: “I wonder what True Person thinks?”

True Person Hengxu had his own concerns.

Just a few days ago, he had finally used every means possible to help Xie Buchen forcefully pass the Heart-Questioning Dao tribulation. The “Kunwu Hundred-Year Calamity” prophesied by the Zhou Tian Star Formation was not far off. Xie Buchen was the Dao disciple shown by heaven who could save Kunwu from fire and water—someone who would one day replace him and turn the tide.

No matter what, he didn’t dare let Xie Buchen face danger again.

Therefore, when Qu Zhengfeng asked him at this moment, he unexpectedly didn’t object, saying beyond everyone’s expectations: “Young Friend Qu has the heart to contribute another effort to the soon-to-restart Yin-Yang Realm battle. Naturally, we have no objections. With the greater situation at hand, Young Friend Qu has wisdom and foresight—he can surely handle things appropriately. If Young Friend participates in the Snow Region raid, it will naturally provide another layer of assurance—nothing could be better. Kunwu has no objections.”

Xie Buchen couldn’t help but frown.

On Chanzong’s side, Monk Yichen first glanced at Xie Buchen, then at Qu Zhengfeng, and also smiled: “This is also good. We’ve long heard that His Majesty the Sword Emperor’s cultivation has reached a transcendent realm. Having the Sword Emperor’s assistance in the Snow Region raid will naturally be like adding wings to a tiger. Chanzong also has no objections.”

That left only Yashan.

This Fudao Shanren, who was lounging and gnawing on chicken legs, looked at Hengxu, then at Yichen. When he looked up and found everyone staring at him, he started shouting.

“They all have no objections—why are you all looking at this mountain person? Of course this mountain person can’t have any objections!”

Well, he had casually pushed the responsibility away, light as a feather.

Fudao Shanren’s position wasn’t really his own position—it sounded completely like “they’ve already agreed, so even if I disagree, there’s nothing I can do about it.” He wiped himself clean and didn’t expose his attitude toward the Qu Zhengfeng matter.

Everyone hearing this cursed silently in their hearts.

But since the big shots had no objections to this matter, it was naturally decided. After all, as an elder of Yashan, if even Fudao Shanren had no objections, even if they had opinions, they could only hold them in.

The most uncomfortable were the Kunwu elders who had initially expressed opposition.

They were already stunned when they heard their sect leader didn’t object, then they heard that Chanzong’s Monk Yichen also had no objections, becoming even more bewildered. When they heard Fudao Shanren’s indifferent words, they nearly suffocated themselves holding back their frustration!

After all, no one had expected these few people to agree so casually!

Even Jian Chou felt somewhat astonished.

Qu Zhengfeng’s heart should be full of hostility toward Kunwu, and he was also the current ruler of Mingri Xinghai. Leaving the star sea to go to the distant Snow Region during such a major event was absolutely “unwise.”

Unless he had reasons he absolutely had to go.

And Jian Chou couldn’t help but glance twice at her carefree chicken-leg-eating master who showed no panic at all, finding that he truly wasn’t anxious at all. The doubts in her heart only grew heavier.

Intuition told her things weren’t that simple.

But with so many people present now, even if she had doubts, it wasn’t good to ask them out loud, so Jian Chou remained silent.

Qu Zhengfeng seemed to have expected this result all along, raising his eyebrows with a smile: “Since everyone has no objections, then the matter is settled. Fellow Daoist Jian Chou from Yashan, Fellow Daoist Yang Jin from the old Esoteric School, fellow Daoists from Western Sea Chanzong, plus myself. Since the Eastern Extreme Ghost Gate is experiencing frequent disturbances, the matter of setting out for the Snow Region to eliminate the new Esoteric School first should be done sooner rather than later—delays bring complications and changes may arise. We should choose a day after the council to depart, right?”

“Correct.” True Person Hengxu pondered for a moment, then said, “Now it’s just us gathered at the star sea for council, but in recent years, rumors of war with the Extreme Domain have been widespread, and various sects have their own preparations. So all parties will subsequently deploy personnel to accompany you all to the Snow Region, striving to accomplish everything in one stroke.”

Everyone knew this battle couldn’t be taken lightly.

When they had discussed candidate selection earlier, people hadn’t felt much, but when True Person Hengxu spoke that phrase “accomplish everything in one stroke,” that oppressive, suffocating tension and gravity gradually began to spread throughout Lanyue Hall.

Everyone’s thoughts grew heavy.

Only Fu Chaosheng, after hearing these people’s discussions, couldn’t help but quietly furrow his brow. Under those eyes that seemed truly untainted by worldly affairs yet held traces of years of vicissitude, there was subtle doubt and discomfort.

Especially when looking at Qu Zhengfeng.

He didn’t understand—he was Jian Chou’s friend, and he had said long ago that he came here only because of Jian Chou. So why was he not even mentioned regarding the Snow Region matter?

The powerful cultivators seated on both sides of the council table had already begun discussing the strength of the Snow Region’s remaining two Dharma Kings and various detailed issues after entering the Snow Region.

The more Fu Chaosheng listened, the more uncomfortable he felt.

He had originally been standing beside Jian Chou, so at this moment he moved closer, lowering his voice to ask: “Old friend, what about me?”

The great demon born of heaven and earth carried in his aura a kind of evil qi bestowed by heaven and earth—powerful and cold. His pale face would also naturally inspire a sense of wariness in people.

Jian Chou was listening to everyone’s council and hadn’t expected him to suddenly come close.

Hearing this abrupt “what about me,” she even had to react for a moment, turning to look at Fu Chaosheng once before realizing what he meant, and couldn’t help but smile.

So she thought for a moment. Though her gaze still watched Monk Yichen speaking in the hall, she moved her head toward Fu Chaosheng’s direction, leaning over to whisper something in his ear.

Fu Chaosheng immediately looked at her.

But Jian Chou had only said that one sentence. Having finished, she was done, and her figure that had leaned over also moved back, as if she had never moved at all.

Such a scene, happening in the corner, should have attracted no attention.

But everyone present was a cultivator. Even without extending their spiritual consciousness, their five senses far exceeded ordinary people’s, not to mention that when Fu Chaosheng had asked that question, he hadn’t used sound transmission, so almost everyone in the hall had heard it.

What everyone hadn’t heard was only Jian Chou’s answer.

Moreover, someone in the hall was positioned just right to easily take in their every move with a slight glance.

Xie Buchen had one hand at his waist and one hand behind his back.

On the surface, no one could see anything unusual, but when he saw Jian Chou approach Fu Chaosheng earlier, the hand behind his back had quietly clenched into a fist.

That posture was extremely measured and wouldn’t appear very intimate, but in that light, casual manner, one could easily see it was a kind of unguarded trust.

Trust appearing on Jian Chou.

Xie Buchen lowered his eyes slightly. The azure robe on him carried a gentleman’s noble elegance, while the coldness between his brows was like cold green painted in landscape brush strokes. He finally pressed down the things that had suddenly surged up in his heart, silently.

In Lanyue Hall, the council continued.

The deeper they discussed, the more specific the topics became, and the more serious the expressions of the powerful cultivators grew. Every person clearly knew that what they discussed today would bring what kind of changes to the Nineteen Continents in the coming period.

But no one had a way out.

The matters discussed were nothing more than three things:

First, was this battle unavoidable?

Second, if they had to fight, should they defend or attack—should they wait for the Extreme Domain to attack, or should Nineteen Continents strike first?

Third, if they really fought, how could they defeat the enemy?

The first two were easy to say—everyone’s opinions were unanimous: they definitely had to fight, and they absolutely couldn’t sit and wait for death. They had to strike first and catch the Extreme Domain off guard!

But discussing the third would take considerable effort.

From early morning until evening, until not a trace of light could be seen at the horizon, everyone had only just begun to see some direction. But since it was already quite late, they all tactfully stopped, leaving the rest for tomorrow’s discussion.

Having taxed their minds all day, everyone stood up to bid farewell to each other.

After the council dispersed, several people were still talking with Fudao Shanren, so Jian Chou and the other juniors first exited Lanyue Hall.

Looking up, the night sky of Mingri Xinghai was still overcast.

Perhaps because today’s entire discussion had been related to the Extreme Domain, making her involuntarily recall everything she had experienced in the Extreme Domain, seeing such a sky suddenly reminded her of that equally sunless and moonless sky in the Extreme Domain.

The same oppressive gloom.

They really were going to fight. The restart of the Yin-Yang Realm battle was already beyond doubt.

The atmosphere seemed somewhat heavy. The Yashan people all stood outside, waiting in silence without speaking.

Someone walked out of the hall, and with a glance, headed straight toward them.

Jian Chou noticed and looked up to find it was Wei Xie, the head of the Southwestern aristocratic Wei family who had smiled at her earlier in the hall.

“Fellow Daoist Jian Chou, greetings.”

Wei Xie was quite a handsome male cultivator.

In today’s cultivation world, you couldn’t tell age from appearance alone. Generally, you could tell by cultivation level that some people, though they looked good, might secretly be old monsters who had cultivated for hundreds or thousands of years.

Jian Chou was somewhat puzzled but still cupped her hands in return: “Senior is too kind. May I ask who you are?”

“Nothing too important, just that seeing you in the hall earlier, I thought I’d come thank you after the council ended.” Wei Xie had no malice whatsoever and was very friendly toward Jian Chou. “My son once left home and caused trouble at the Left Three Thousand minor gathering. Thanks to Fellow Daoist Jian Chou’s repeated care, preventing this little devil from causing any real trouble—our Southwestern Xin, Wei, and Jin families are truly grateful.”

Your son?

Jin and Wei families?

When Jian Chou had looked at Wei Xie earlier, she had some suspicions based on his appearance. Now hearing these words, she felt she had guessed correctly, but had other doubts she couldn’t resolve: “But this junior heard that Xiao Jin was the young master of the Jin family…”

“Haha, our Southwestern aristocratic families’ affairs are complex and complicated, with the major families intertwined. Fellow Daoist Jian Chou simply doesn’t know the background.”

Hearing Jian Chou’s words, Wei Xie laughed, his manner quite carefree.

“This little devil is my only son. My wife carries the bloodlines of both the Xin and Jin families. She married me hundreds of years ago and gave birth to my son, whom we named ‘Zun.’ But not long ago, she quarreled with me and stubbornly took the child back to the Jin family, changing his surname to ‘Jin’ and calling him ‘Jin Zun,’ making him the Jin family’s young master. But within two years, his grandmother—that is, the old matriarch of the Southwestern Xin family—took a liking to his talent and brought him back to the Xin family to raise for a while, making him the Xin family’s young master. So this mischievous child shoulders the future of three families. These are all domestic matters that should make Fellow Daoist Jian Chou laugh.”

“…”

These intricately complicated relationships left people speechless. Even the Yashan people standing not far from Jian Chou twitched their mouths hearing this.

That melon-eating brat actually had such a background?

Jian Chou could be said to have opened her eyes, but having seen even more incredible things over the years, she could still maintain composure. She only said modestly: “Xiao Jin’s talent is indeed rare in the world. But whether at the minor gathering or elsewhere, Jian Chou didn’t care for him much. Instead, with his pure childlike sincerity, he helped our Yashan considerably. We should be the ones thanking Family Head Wei.”

“No matter, no matter. It’s good that this kid can make friends.”

Wei Xie waved his hand dismissively. Seeing everyone coming out of the council hall, he didn’t linger, exchanged a few more pleasantries with Jian Chou, then took his leave alone.

Jian Chou and the others watched him depart.

Only after he had completely disappeared did Shen Jiu poke Jian Chou with his folding fan, laughing: “Senior Sister really is blessed by fate. The Wei, Xin, and Qin families are the three giants of the Southwestern aristocratic families. You’ve quietly gained the favor of two of them. Ah, that little brat was actually so formidable—truly unexpected.”

“It’s just coincidence.”

Jian Chou thought it was indeed marvelous, and could see Wei Xie’s intent to show goodwill. On the surface, it seemed to be because of Xiao Jin, but thinking carefully, if she weren’t now a Void Refining great cultivator, even if Wei Xie were grateful, his attitude wouldn’t be quite like this.

She saw through it clearly, and with sufficient personal strength, even being shown favor by such giants didn’t feel like much to her, so she didn’t think deeply about it.

Instead, Fu Chaosheng beside her asked: “What does ‘staying in the star sea is better’ mean?”

This was the answer Jian Chou had given him earlier in the hall when he asked her.

Now that Wei Xie had left, he asked directly.

Jian Chou smiled: “Doesn’t Fellow Daoist Chaosheng want to investigate reincarnation matters? The Eastern Extreme Ghost Gate is where the nine-headed bird carries ghosts back, and also the boundary point between the yin and yang realms. Staying in the star sea, you should be able to see many things you can’t normally see. Furthermore, you’ve already explored the Snow Region, and with Senior Yang Jin accompanying this trip, you going wouldn’t be of much use—it’s better to stay here. Moreover, I have something I need to trouble Fellow Daoist Chaosheng to help me watch.”

Something she needed his help watching?

Fu Chaosheng was somewhat puzzled and looked at Jian Chou.

But Jian Chou didn’t answer directly. She just turned her gaze toward the Kunwu group on the other side, where Xie Buchen stood in his azure robe, quite conspicuous.

He was the former noble young master who boiled snow and brewed tea, intelligent and far-sighted. Even in pale azure Daoist robes, he couldn’t hide his transcendent and refined bearing. Now his expression carried more detached ruthlessness, but the more so, the more people couldn’t help but notice him.

Like a flawless jade disc.

But “A petty man is no gentleman; a man without poison is no true man.” Hidden beneath this modest gentleman’s exterior was a heart with clear goals, cold enough to chill people’s courage.

When Jian Chou looked at him, he naturally noticed Jian Chou’s gaze too.

Their gazes collided across the void, but neither took a step forward, nor did either speak to the other.

Everything was silent—killing and hatred both in silence.

Fu Chaosheng naturally followed Jian Chou’s gaze over. Seeing Xie Buchen, he understood, and the Snow Region incident wasn’t long past. He easily recalled Jian Chou’s wariness of this person, and also remembered the various strange and inexplicable aspects of this person.

He pondered: “He’s very important to you?”

Jian Chou calmly withdrew her gaze and corrected him: “It’s that not having him is very important to me.”

Fu Chaosheng immediately understood and also smiled: “Then I’ll stay here and serve as my old friend’s eyes and ears, watching for my old friend.”

Jian Chou also smiled and thanked him.

After all, for Fu Chaosheng, he had come here not for the survival of Nineteen Continents at all, but completely because of her as his “old friend.” Now she was going to the Snow Region while he had to stay here—logically, it was somewhat unreasonable, yet he had easily agreed.

After waiting outside for a while, Fudao Shanren and Zheng Yao both came out of the hall, but obviously affected by the earlier council, their faces were somewhat grave.

That night after returning, Fudao Shanren spoke with Jian Chou for half an hour.

The next morning, before dawn, Jian Chou opened her eyes from meditation, bid farewell to her many Yashan fellow disciples, and headed to the square in Suixian City where Luye Laozu’s stone statue stood tall.

By the teleportation array, Qu Zhengfeng and Yang Jin had already arrived first.

The three of them stepped into the array together.

After a flash of gentle wave-like light, they had already disappeared without a trace, leaving only that stone statue that had stood in this square for hundreds of years, holding the “Nine Bends River Chart” and gazing longingly at the vast, boundless heavenly river. In the wind of dawn, it remained silent.

The bloody prelude had begun.

After today, war would ignite, blood would spill!

The fragile peace that had barely been maintained on the Nineteen Continents for eleven cycles finally shattered thunderously the moment they departed. Every person living on this land was part of it—no one could escape.

Not advancing meant death; not fighting meant annihilation!