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Inside, he was weeping bitterly. The truth was that coming here this day wasn’t his idea. Frankly speaking, it seemed completely absurd for a Holytide to come to the Swordsage Palace and arrest some swordsages. Unfortunately, the Noble Marquis had given him clear orders to keep the Holytide emissary happy. Therefore, at this moment, he had no choice but to viciously grit his teeth.

Glaring aggressively, he said, “The Noble Marquis has issued clear orders. Take Kong Xianglong and his four companions into custody!”

Honor Guard Sima frowned slightly. Meanwhile, a dour smile appeared on the Holytide Black Guard emissary, while an imperceptible glimmer passed through his eyes. The truth was that causing trouble for Kong Xianglong wasn’t the real reason the emissary was here. His real mission was to assess the Yao Clan. During this entire time, he had been keeping a close eye on the facial expression of each member of the Yao Clan. What was more, he had been using a secret magic to determine whether or not their attitude was genuine or fake.

When the dozens of Yao Clan cultivators heard the emissary’s orders, they secretly groaned. However, because the orders had been given, they had no choice but to take action. As their cultivation bases flared to life, they charged toward Xu Qing and the others. Just when it seemed open fighting was about to break out, a cold harrumph echoed out from the dome of heaven.

“What madness is this??”

Mountain-toppling, sea-draining energy weighed down from above, crushing onto everyone present. The entire Hall of Regulations trembled, and everyone present reeled in heart and mind. That was especially true of the Yao Clan cultivators, who were suddenly as immobile as if a massive mountain were right on top of them.

A figure descended from above. It was an old man with a thousand daos streaming in his eyes. That indicated that he was in the first stage of the Void Returning level, Space-Shattering 1,000 Daos.

He wore a swordsage uniform, and the sky behind him rippled and distorted as countless illusory versions of himself stretched back upward, causing the entire Swordsage Palace to tremble. That was the sign of the second stage of the Void Returning level, Transform 10,000 Veracities.

But there was more. As he descended, the space around him seemed to split apart. It was almost as if his every movement forward caused new worlds to be born, except they were like bubbles that existed for only a moment before popping. That was... the sign of the third stage of the Void Returning level, 100,000,000 Thoughts Split Heaven.

That said, there weren’t very many worlds around the old man, which indicated that he hadn’t fully stepped into that third stage. He was only about halfway there. Even so, he was still immeasurably mighty, and his mere presence caused the entire Swordsage Palace to go silent.

Xu Qing instantly recognized him. This man was the very same person who had appeared when he swore his swordsage oath. He was one of Swordsage Palace’s deputy palace lords.

Honor Guard Sima was the first to react. Clasping hands, he bowed and said, “Well met, Deputy Palace Lord!”

Xu Qing, Kong Xianglong, and the others quickly joined him, along with all of the surrounding swordsages.

“Well met, Deputy Palace Lord!”

The deputy palace lord’s face was expressionless as he looked at the clearly shocked Steward Sun.

“Screw off!”

Steward Sun shivered from head to toe. He looked like he wanted to say something, but didn’t dare to. Instead, he bowed his head, clasped hands to the Black Guard cultivator, then quickly led the Yao Clan cultivators away.

Ignoring the Yao Clan, the deputy palace lord looked at the Holytide cultivator. “As for you, you’re an emissary, so I’ll give you the time it takes an incense stick to burn to flee for your life. And that’s only because we humans value etiquette. If you aren’t back in Holytide territory by then, I’ll personally cut you down.”

Expression flickering, the Black Guard cultivator turned and raced toward the teleportation complex.

When all that was done, the deputy palace lord turned to Xu Qing and the others. Snorting coldly, he said, “You five sure have guts, don’t you? Well, at the behest of the palace lord himself, I’m sentencing all of you to a month in the Corrections Division! Honor Guard Sima, I want you to personally take them there!”

Xu Qing kept his head bowed. Sir Mountain-River, Wang Chen, and Duskspirit all sighed inwardly as they also kept their heads bowed. Only Kong Xianglong stood there tall and straight. He would only show fear in front of the palace lord himself. That said, he was a bit disappointed. He had worked very hard to avoid repercussions from their deviation from mission protocol, but in the end, still ended up getting thrown in jail.

“Yes, sir!” Honor Guard Sima said somberly.

Obviously, the deputy palace lord wanted him to escort Xu Qing and the others as a protector, just in case there were repercussions from the Holytides or the Yao Clan.

“What are the rest of you standing around gawking for? Get out of here. And remember, you’re all swordsages!” With that, the deputy palace lord turned coldly and disappeared.

Honor Guard Sima approached Kong Xianglong and the others. Looking them over, he eventually focused on Xu Qing.

“I’m a swordsage honor guard first,” he said, “and a Supreme Arbiter Immortal Society cultivator second.”

Perhaps an outsider might not understand what he meant by that. But given Xu Qing’s background, he knew exactly what message was being sent. Clasping hands, he bowed deeply. That said, he wasn’t quick to believe words. He would need more evidence before he was convinced.

“Let’s go. I’ll escort you to the Corrections Division.” Honor Guard Sima then led the way.

Kong Xianglong looked at Xu Qing and breathed a sigh of relief. Sir Mountain-River and Wang Chen blinked a few times, then edged closer to Xu Qing.

“Xu Qing,” Sir Mountain-River said, “since we’re visiting your home, we’ll stick close to you.”

Xu Qing nodded. All of them seemed relieved as they left with Honor Guard Sima toward the Corrections Division.

***

In the city center of the county capital there was a round building that resembled an altar. It was very large, and had an open center. Inside of that open area were three palatial halls. One was black, one was red, and one was white. There were many smaller side chambers attached to each hall, a whole network of majestic buildings and towers. Each of the three main palaces had roof tiles of a different color and style. It was a very impressive sight.

There was something very unique and unusual about this area. Though it seemed like the palatial complex existed within the altar, it actually didn’t. If you stood within the complex and looked out, you wouldn’t see the county capital. Instead, you would see an endless void with nothing in it. The palatial complex was the only thing that existed in that void.

Within the white palatial hall were three people. Two of them sat opposite of each other playing Go. The third stood next to the board watching them play.

One of the people playing Go was the palace lord. The person sitting opposite of him was a middle-aged scholar in an embroidered robe. The scholar had fair skin and seemed somewhat soft and feminine. Smiling faintly, he took a black game piece, put it onto the board, and slid it into place with his finger.

“Palace Lord, your gameplay is very aggressive. If you’re not careful, you’ll become an arrogant dragon that flies so far over the horizon it can never return.” [1]

Not looking up from the Go board, the palace lord said, “I heard something I liked over in the Swordsage Palace just now.”

The scholar in the embroidered robe smiled. “Oh, what was that?”

Face completely expressionless, the palace lord looked up at the scholar. “The Noble Marquis is a goddamn motherfucker!”

This scholar in his embroidered robe was actually the clan lord of the Yao Clan. He was this generation’s Marquis Yao, and thus, the person the governor and palace lords referred to with the respectful address ‘Noble Marquis.’

The palace lord’s words didn’t seem to anger the Noble Marquis. In fact, he was still smiling. Standing, he turned to the person who had been watching the game. Clasping hands, he bowed. “Governor, the game has been decided at this point. There’s no point in continuing to play. I have Holytide guests to accommodate, so I’d like to take my leave and go receive them.”

With that, Marquis Yao left, his garment swishing as he entered the dark void beyond the palatial hall. He seemed very lonely.

The person who had been standing to the side and watching the Go game was an old man in a rough hemp jerkin. He looked like a very ordinary person, with kind eyes and not a hint of might or grandeur. He had even smiled and nodded in response to Marquis Yao’s words a moment ago. This man was none other than the governor of Sea-Sealing County.

“Exalted Governor,” the palace lord said, “I still don’t trust him.”

The governor chuckled and sat down across from the palace lord. As he cleaned up the board, he quietly said, “Brother Liangxiu, I’m aware that you were intentionally playing the part of the ‘arrogant dragon’ in your gameplay just now. You wanted to remind Yao Tianyan not to turn the ruse into reality, and thus make himself the arrogant dragon. [2]

“But remember, your role is to be the aggressive killer, while Brother Tianyan’s job is to form alliances and friendships. The two of you are supposed to be as opposed as fire and water. That’s the secret plan the three of us devised years ago.

“For years now, people everywhere have been cursing the Yao Clan. They curse them for being shameless. They curse them as brainless. They curse them for being traitors. They curse them for intermarrying with nonhumans. They curse them for being arrogant and despotic. They call them worse than pigs or dogs.

“There are very few people in the Yao Clan who are privy to our plan. And those who do know the truth are required to keep it a secret. They can only bitterly endure all of that hardship. Yao Tianyan... was an outstandingly gifted scholar who shook the imperial city to the core. He was an amazing chosen cultivator. But now he bears the curses of all humanity on his shoulders. Things are a lot worse for him than you.

“All of that is thanks to my own uselessness. Because of me, Sea-Sealing County is unstable. Because of me, humankind continuously declines. Thus, we have no choice but to play out this strategy.”

The palace lord didn’t reply for a while. He just looked off into the distance. Then he said, “Governor, there’s no need for you to be so self-deprecating. Without your painstaking efforts, our Sea-Sealing County, which is so far away from the core of humankind here in the Holytide Region, would long since have been devoured by the Holytides.

“I understand everything you just said, and I also understand that he has a harder lot than me. I understand his sacrifice. But I’m worried that there are people in the Yao Clan who are going to push things far enough that they really become a bunch of arrogant dragons.”

The governor thought for a moment, then quietly said, “He’s a leader who has the interests of all humankind at heart. He has no choice but to move forward and forget about all his previous ambitions. Just like the Grand Duke Holytide of old. If you know the truth, yet still distrust him, then that means he’s done a good enough job that the Holytides will likely never suspect him.”

***

Evening was gone and the dome of heaven was dark. Thankfully, a bright moon hung above, casting light onto the world below, including the area round the Corrections Division.

After escorting Xu Qing and the others there, Honor Guard Sima left.

Kong Xianglong looked at the familiar prison and sighed. Sir Mountain-River, Wang Chen, and Duskspirit all looked crestfallen. Xu Qing led the way, calling out greetings to the jailers that met them. Then he watched as the cold-faced jailers got out the manacles.

However... they didn’t put manacles on Xu Qing. In fact, one of the jailers who Xu Qing was familiar with actually handed him a pair and asked him to help with the others.

Xu Qing was the one to lock the manacles onto Kong Xianglong.

It wasn’t lost on Kong Xianglong and the others that the jailers smiled and chatted with Xu Qing, but hardly looked at them. They were already feeling a bit envious.

He really does get special treatment...

That was what they were all thinking

Ol’ Li was among the jailers. Eyeing Kong Xianglong and the others, he lowered his voice and said to Xu Qing, “I heard about what happened today at the Hall of Regulations. Come on, we already have the cell block ready.”

Winking, he led the way inside.

And thus, Xu Qing and the other jailers led the chained-up Kong Xianglong, Sir Mountain-River, Wang Chen, and Duskspirit into the Corrections Division.

They went to D-010, and when the door opened and Xu Qing looked inside, he smiled faintly. Although D-010 was a cell block, it had about thirty big jugs of alcohol stacked up inside, as well as stacks of food that surely cost a lot of spirit stones. Five cages had been specially prepared; inside of them were nice rush cushions perfect for use in meditation. It was all very simple, but definitely vastly nicer than what the normal inmates got.

Kong Xianglong and the others were happily surprised, and looked at the cold-faced jailers.

“We heard what happened,” Ol’ Li said coolly. “Since you’re being locked up as a punishment, we have to do our duty as jailers. But as swordsages, we think you did exactly what you should have done. You killed those who needed killing!

“We want you to feel at home here for the next month. Rest well. If you need anything, talk to Xu Qing. Xu Qing, you can’t be lax in tending to D-132, so feel free to go there as you please. Just make sure to come back here after your shift is over.” With that, Ol’ Li and the other jailers gave them a long hard look. “Finally, we want to say it one more time. You killed those who needed killing!!”

With that, the jailers all took out their command swords and saluted Xu Qing and the others. After that, they turned and left.

D-010 was quiet.

Xu Qing walked over to the jugs of alcohol. Waving his hand, he sent a jug each flying to the others. With jugs in hand, they exchanged glances then laughed.

“Bottoms up!” Kong Xianglong said loudly, then he took a big swig.

Chuckling, Xu Qing also drank.

Everyone took off their manacles, as they weren’t necessary inside the prison.

And then, time passed. Being locked up together made the five of them think back to the time after they slaughtered the Black Guard cultivators and fled. Laying in the grass, they had suddenly felt less like strangers, and had chatted extensively.

Sir Mountain-River and Wang Chen frequently got into verbal sparring matches. Duskspirit spent all her time next to Kong Xianglong. Even a blind person could tell that she was in love with him. [3]

As for Xu Qing, he would occasionally leave for D-132. Other than the fact he couldn’t leave the Corrections Division or do missions, things weren’t very different for Xu Qing. Whenever he left D-010, he would go to D-132. After all, he was in charge of D-132, so if he didn’t go there, it would be dereliction of duty. Xu Qing was not the kind of person who would ever be derelict in duty.

Half a month flew by in the briefest of moments.

To mortals, being locked up for half a month would be mind-numbing. But to cultivators, it wasn’t very much different than going into seclusion for cultivation purposes. What was more, they had alcohol to drink and nice food to snack on. And they could chat with each other. In the end, the days were passed in comfort.

However, one day when Xu Qing’s shift ended and he stepped back into D-010, he could sense that something was off. Things were too quiet.

1. The arrogant dragon is a reference to an idiom that, directly translated, means an arrogant dragon with regrets and essentially correlates to the English expression pride goes before a fall. ☜

2. Yao Tianyan: Yao is the surname of the Yao Clan. As mentioned before it’s #51 on the list of 100 common surnames, and also means “handsome, good-looking.” Tian means “heaven, sky” and Yan means “feast, banquet.” I included this name in a list of a handful of names to get reactions from Madam Deathblade, and she initially responded, “They’re weird names that no sane parents would give their children.” Then about Yao Tianyan specifically, she continued, “It means ‘feast in heaven.’ I mean… his parents expected him to be the Monkey King and be part of the heaven realm?” So... lol. Anyway, I think you get the picture for Yao Tianyan. It’s a sort of over-the-top, ostentatious, and fancy-sounding name. And incidentally, “Liangxiu” is the given name of the palace lord. Later on when we find out his full name including surname, I’ll explain what it means. ☜

3. Incidentally, the first hint that Duskspirit had a romantic interest in Kong Xianglong was actually in chapter 397. ☜