The Azuresoul Sword Hall was the only place not kept under surveillance by Yin Chen. However, it was an area where mostly only Gujian Qingshuang stayed.
Everywhere else was covertly filled with little Yin Chens. They were tiny and didnât move at all, so it was like they had disappeared. Hidden in the dark corners, they quietly watched everything. Up until now, apart from when Yin Chen took its work break and found somewhere to wash itself, nothing was missed by the omnipresent Primordial Chaos Beast. Tianming wouldnât be wrong to say that he would have been blind at the Azuresoul Palace if it werenât for Yin Chen.
Tianming was training in the Violetglory Pagodaâs seventh floor when Yin Chen rushed him out to show him what it had seen. After hearing a short bit, Tianmingâs face darkened.
Yin Chen was still slowly describing, âThen that⊠Ye Buzhichen⊠started saying.âŠâ
Tianming immediately set off and, after dragging Yu Ziqian out of dreamland, rushed over to Jiang Qingliu.
âWhat is it?â Yu Ziqian shouted.
Tianming ignored him and spoke to Yin Chen. âEnough, just display what you want to say to me!â
Inside the lifebound space, the remaining tiny silver eggs were succinct. âStupid fool.â However, it still knew it was slow, which was a critical flaw for a messenger. Hence, the small eggs transformed into tiny cockroaches that spread out, forming words.
Ye Buzhiquâs words were quickly displayed in text form. It only took one quick glance for Tianming to understand.
âIf Iâd made you say all this, it wouldâve taken an hour,â Tianming muttered.
âStupid fool.â The antennae of the cockroaches all stood up.
Tianming felt like it was pointing the middle finger at him. It hadnât been alive long, and it had been spending most of its time eavesdropping and watching Yu Ziqian tease his junior and senior sisters. It had also learned some uncouth words and spoke like a delinquent.
Jiang Qingliu was currently in the Sixth Sword Branch. Gujian Qingshuang and the rest were currently at the ancestral tomb, which was located in the First Sword Branch. They wouldnât be coming over in a hurry, so Tianming quickly seized the time and rushed to Jiang Qingliuâs residence.
He immediately barged in.
âMaster, master!â Yu Ziqian shouted.
A middle-aged man in green clothes appeared in front of them. His hair and clothes were a complete mess, and there was no light in his eyes. He didnât seem very steady on his feet, either. Clearly, his mental state wasnât the best during this time.
âWhat happened?â Jiang Qingliu rubbed his eyes, looking slightly lost.
âSomething huge.â Tianming was someone who always worked fast. He quickly conveyed the conversation in the tomb to Jiang Qingliu before finally summarizing, âThey have actual killing intent toward you now. Not because of the Empyrean Sword Sect or the matter of the Xuanyuan Dragon Sect, but because they want your Azuresoul Tower. If Gujian Qingshuang is coming, it means heâs been convinced. Either that, or the Azuresoul Tower has always been plaguing his mind.â
Jiang Qingliu calmly listened. He just chuckled bitterly and downed more wine, shaking his head.
Yu Ziqian had been furious to find out the truth. âFuck them! Itâs Gujian Qingshuangâs own fault for being anxious when the Azuresoul Tower was choosing its owner, and ended up losing its trust. My master didnât even approach the tower and it chose him!â
It was inexplicable. The chief instructor of the Azuresoul Palace didnât have the divine artifact with the same name.
When Tianming and Yu Ziqian looked at Jiang Qingliu and asked him what to do, Jiang Qingliu hoarsely laughed. âActually, I knew his real intention from the moment he didnât say anything.â
As expected, the ones who understood the situation best were those involved.
âBastard! Heâs blaming others for his own ineptness. Youâve done so much for the Azuresoul Palace!â Yu Ziqianâs eyes were turning red. âEven worse, they want to chop down the tree. Taking care of it has been an ancestral instruction for generations. Itâs the foundation of the continent! â
Compared to simply dying, the Azurecloud Divine Tree falling would be the pain of centuries and generations. Many natives of the continent saw the tree as their origin and the support of their heart. Even if not many saw it bear fruit in their lifetimes, it still represented thriving through the ages and every scar on its body told a story and symbolized history. It was something core to the blood flowing through everyone on the Azurecloud Continent.
âWas I at fault? Am I the greatest sinner? Haha.âŠâ Jiang Qingliu slowly sat on the ground, his expression growing bleaker. He recalled how before he was thirty, he had wanted to fight for his homeâs glory. However, ignorant then, he had lost half of his talent. For hundreds of years afterward, he had tried his hardest. He had campaigned for the Azurecloud Continent, accepted disciples, and always put in his best. He had loved this land, but was now being called a sinner by these people.
âMaster, donât listen to them. You need to fight back! Weâve all been to the ancestral tomb. Theyâre the ones whoâve gone against the ancestral teachings. Theyâre the traitors to the Azuresoul Palace and our ancestors!â Yu Ziqian grit his teeth.
âProtect Azurecloud.âŠâ New light shone in Jiang Qingliuâs eyes. The people he had once respected the most, including Granny Mu Hua, had said words that had made him despair. His entire world had collapsed. However, the conviction in his heart and his veneration for that tree had relit the fire in his heart.
âSenior Jiang, I hope you can stand up again. After all, you arenât alone. You still have me, Ziqian, Auntie Ying, and the friends from the Group of Celestial Maiden Halls. Even if the entire Azuresoul Palace stands against us, history will determine the party thatâs in the right. Following our hearts is the path of a cultivator, and the treasure we try to grasp our whole lives. You cannot give up hope. At least, you canât let down your children and their children because of short-term benefits.â This matter had made Tianming quite emotional.
He did get it. On the surface, the Azuresoul Palace barely got any fruits. However, that amount was enough to make the sect rank thirty-eighth on the myriad sect ranking. One could only imagine the value of the full haul.
The tree sucked up most of the nova source of the continent to produce these fruits. Clearly, the tree could raise the efficacy of nova source by several times! It wasnât at fault; the only fault lay with the Azuresoul Palace and Supracloud Sanctuary not having the strength to protect this treasure, which let outsiders occupy it.
The outsiders using their strength to snatch treasures didnât seem wrong either. Thus, the original sin lay with the weak. However, wanting to cut down the tree because they were weak was both short-sighted and insane. Perhaps the Azuresoul Palaceâs ancestors had more reasons for making protecting the tree a teaching!
Jiang Qingliu inhaled deeply. âIâm impressed with your understanding at your age. Iâm several centuries old, yet I was so confused.â
âItâs just because senior wasnât able to take an objective view and was too emotionally invested in this. Since the opponent doesnât care about bonds, senior can also ignore any past ties. Take a stand regardless of life and deathâ
Jiang Qingliu laughed. He stood up and patted Tianmingâs shoulder. âThank you. My fate wouldâve been to die, and I wouldâve done so in ignorance as well.â
âSo?â Tianming asked.
âWait for me.â Jiang Qingliu went back inside.
âWhat will master do?â Yu Ziqian asked.
âI donât know. However, theyâre about to arrive.â Tianming knew that Gujian Qingshuang had arrived in the Sixth Sword Branch from Yin Chenâs report.
Jiang Qingliu reappeared from inside. He had cleaned up. He had changed into new green robes, tidied up his hair, and washed his face. Now, he gave off a positive vibe. He seemed completely different than the man he was before.
âDid you transform inside?â Yu Ziqian asked, surprised.
âYes, itâs a new me,â Jiang Qingliu chuckled. Now, he seemed to have an immortal air around him the way Gujian Qingshuang did.
Gujian Qingshuangâs group had arrived outside. They directly entered when they saw the gate open. As they entered, their faces resumed peaceful expressions instead of their previous coldness.
âQingliu.â Gujian Qingshuang entered and immediately caught sight of the three of them. He noticed that Jiang Qingliu seemed to be in a much better condition than before.