Ling Wen had already walked up and stood beside the throne. He was dressed in black and looked very serious. He pointed at a book and said, "Emperor, several priests are out on patrol and haven't returned yet."
Jun Wu nodded slightly and said, "They have already informed us in advance."
Lingwen nodded in agreement. Jun Wu then turned to Xie Lian and said, "Xianle must know why I summoned you here today."
Xie Lian still bowed his head. “I can probably guess. But I thought the matter concerning General Pei had already been decided.”
At this time, a man's voice said, "How to decide this matter? I'm afraid it's hard to say."
The voice came from behind him, clear and resonant. Xie Lian turned around and saw a Martial God step into the hall, sword in hand, heading straight for the front. As he passed him, he paused, curled his lips, and said, "Your Highness, I've long admired you."
This Martial God appeared to be about twenty-six or twenty-seven years old, with a graceful demeanor and decisive actions. His features were even more handsome than the statue Xie Lian had seen on Yujun Mountain, the kind of handsomeness that easily pleases women. It was obvious at first glance that he was a man of many talents. Before Xie Lian could reply, he added, "Thanks so much for taking care of our little Pei."
Xie Lian silently thought, "This is truly an offense." He said, "Not at all. General Pei is the one I've admired for a long time."
The phrase "I've long heard of you" is true. These past few days, Xie Lian had been comparing scrolls and reading scattered legends about famous priests, chief among them the legend of General Pei Ming. While this Northern Martial God had achieved remarkable military success as a human, what people relished most were the legends, both good and bad, he left behind in the red-light district. Good stories included lavishly saving a prostitute, becoming her lover, and remaining a virgin, while bad stories included galloping a thousand miles in a single night, climbing over a city wall, and spending a night with a married woman. These stories were, in a way, quite impressive. After reading them all, Xie Lian felt it was unbelievable that this man had only managed to provoke one woman, Xuan Ji, in all his years.
Because he was so successful on both the battlefield and in the romantic arena, many of his rivals and colleagues cursed him to death, hoping for syphilis. But this man was incredibly resilient, roaming through countless brothels without suffering any illness. Not only did he refuse to die, he even outlived them. Finally, one day, he was defeated. Everyone thought, "Hahaha! This is the end!" But then, boom, boom! At the critical moment, he ascended to heaven.
This time, even the opponents he didn't kill were pissed to death.
After ascending to the Celestial Realm, Pei Ming maintained his style, greatly expanding his scope of pursuits. From fairies and court ladies to goblins and ghosts, he sought out anyone with even a hint of beauty. However, his favorites were the beauties of the mortal world. Numerous erotic novels featured him as the protagonist, and if it weren't for Xie Lian's purifying path, he might have even picked up a couple out of curiosity. Therefore, in addition to his status as the Northern Martial God, he was often worshipped by the common people as a deity that brought men good luck in love. Even many priests who encountered him in the Heavenly Palace, brushing shoulders and then passing by, would secretly turn around and pay their respects, hoping to bask in his romantic aura. It must be said that, despite their similarities, he was far more fortunate than Feng Xin, who had unjustly earned the title of "Giant Sun."
The priests knew full well what these two men were "long admired" for, and many of them secretly laughed out loud. After the polite exchange, Xie Lian asked, "What does General Pei mean by 'hard to say'?"
Pei Ming snapped his fingers, and a hanging corpse suddenly appeared in the center of the hall.
Strictly speaking, it was a reclining, empty shell. This humanoid form lacked a soul, its interior hollow. Furthermore, it was covered in blood from head to toe, making it indistinguishable from a corpse. Looking at the face again, eyes closed, features delicate and delicate. It was Ah Zhao. Or rather, General Xiao Pei's clone.
In the Divine Martial Hall, amidst the elegantly appointed priests, something like this suddenly appeared. The scene was a bit shocking. Jun Wu, however, made no comment, but continued to watch. His throne was high, but for some reason, when he looked down upon the priests below, he did not appear to be looking down upon them. While majestic and solemn, he did not appear to be superior. Xie Lian asked, "What do you mean, General Pei?"
Pei Ming said, "A few days ago, I went to visit Xiao Pei, and he mentioned something that I found very strange."
As soon as he opened his mouth, Xie Lian vaguely guessed what he was going to say.
Pei Ming walked a short circle around Xie Lian and said with a smile, "I'm fully aware of Little Pei's abilities. Although his clone has been greatly weakened and is far less powerful than the real one, it's not particularly bad. It could have fought 'Xiong' to a draw. However, he actually told me that a mortal had beaten him to the point where he couldn't fight back. Isn't that quite remarkable?"
Pei Ming continued, "I asked him further, and he told me more. It turns out that at Half Moon Pass, there was a young man in red accompanying His Royal Highness Crown Prince Xianle."
At the mention of "red-robed," some of the priests began to look uneasy. Pei Ming's next words immediately turned their awkwardness into a state of unease. He said, "And this young man, in the darkness, slaughtered hundreds of ferocious Half Moon soldiers in a matter of seconds!"
"--Excuse me, Your Highness, who is this young man in red?"
If it’s not “evil”, then it must be “absolute”, and the absolute one who can kill hundreds of evil people instantly, is also a young man in red.
With so much information, anyone could tell who this young man was most likely to be. However, no one wanted to reveal that name.
Xie Lian rubbed his brow, thought for a moment, and said hypocritically, "Ah, is that so? Well, I really don't remember much about this. At that time, there was a group of merchants who were also trapped in the Half Moon Pass. We only spent a few days together. Maybe he was one of the caravan."
Pei Ming smiled and said, "Your Highness, your statement differs greatly from Pei Su's. From what Little Pei said, you and that young man were very close. It doesn't seem like you only spent a few days together. How could you forget about him so quickly?"
Xie Lian thought to himself, "No, you're wrong. I'm telling the truth. We really only spent a few days together."
Of course, his expression remained calm. At this moment, not far away, a Taoist monk in white robes leisurely waved his snow-white whisk and said, "General Pei, what you said is just one-sided words from General Pei. General Pei is guilty and currently in confinement, about to be sent into exile. How credible are his words? We need to consider carefully."
Pei Ming said, "It all depends on whether General Nanyang and General Xuanzhen can offer some assistance."
Following his gaze, Xie Lian indeed spotted Feng Xin and Mu Qing in the southwest and southeast of the hall respectively.
Feng Xin was still the same as he remembered him: tall, standing perfectly straight, his gaze resolute, his brows perpetually slightly furrowed, as if something was irritating him, though in reality, he wasn't. Mu Qing, however, was somewhat different. While his face was still pale and rosy, his lips slightly pursed, his eyes cast down, his whole demeanor conveyed a coldness that said, "I'm not flattering you." He stood with his arms folded, his right fingers tapping gently on his left elbow, a look of composure or perhaps more calculated. While both men were considered handsome, each had their own piercing qualities. At Pei Ming's call, they both looked at Jun Wu first. Jun Wu nodded slightly, and the two men slowly stepped forward.
This was the first time Xie Lian had met them face to face since his third ascension. He felt as though the gazes directed his way had become even more frantic.
Madness is inevitable. You must know that this Shenwu Hall is the Hall of the First Martial God. Those who are not priests of the Upper Heaven Court are not qualified to come here to discuss matters. When Prince Xianle ascended for the first time, he appointed Feng Xin and Mu Qing as generals. At that time, these two were low-level priests of the Middle Heaven Court and did not even have the qualifications to come in to do odd jobs. But now, the two former deputy generals can not only stand in the Shenwu Hall with dignity, but also have a higher ranking than their former masters. It is really a matter of time. This scene is really exciting. The three of them looked at each other randomly for a while, and quickly turned their faces away as if nothing had happened. No one could figure out what anyone was thinking. However, Xie Lian already knew what Pei Ming wanted them to do for him.
As expected, Pei Ming said, "General Nanyang and General Xuanzhen have both fought Hua Cheng before. They should have a say in his weapons."
He summoned Ah Zhao's hollow shell so they could examine the wound. Feng Xin and Mu Qing slowly approached the suspended shell. Xie Lian followed suit, taking a few steps to examine it. However, the blood was so thick, much of it congealed black and red, that it was difficult to see clearly. The two men stared at it solemnly for a moment, then raised their heads and glanced at each other, neither wanting to speak first.
Lingwen watched as these people fought with their eyes, fighting without saying a word. He could no longer bear it, so he coughed under Junwu's seat and said, "Generals, what do you think?"
Finally, Feng Xin was the first to speak. He said in a deep voice, "It's him."
Mu Qing said, "The curved sword brings misfortune."
Perhaps among the priests of the Shenwu Temple, Xie Lian was the only one who didn't know what these four words meant.
The scimitar of fate is the strange scimitar that defeated several martial gods and made them lose their souls and hearts when Huacheng fought against the thirty-three priests in his dream!
Inside the Divine Martial Hall, the priests gathered in twos and threes, whispering to each other, their gazes fixed on Xie Lian with insidious intent. Pei Ming, having achieved his goal, said, "If the young man in red accompanying His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is indeed the real one, then the matter may need to be reconsidered."
The Taoist in white robes from before said, "General Pei, are you trying to say that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince Xianle and the Ghost King of Despair might have colluded to frame General Pei?"
The Taoist had spoken twice, and both times sided with him. Xie Lian couldn't help but take a look, wondering who this extraordinary immortal was. He turned around and saw a Taoist with a pair of distinct black and white eyes, a white jade belt, a whisk draped over his arm, a long sword slung across his back, and a folding fan at his waist. He was a man of elegant demeanor, his spirit high and mighty. His features looked vaguely familiar, but Xie Lian couldn't recall where he had seen such a Taoist. Pei Ming also glanced at him and said with a smile, "Qingxuan, you shouldn't be trying to antagonize me at this moment, can you?"
The Taoist in white bowed slightly to him and said, "So I misunderstood. I'm sorry, General Pei, please don't take it personally. It's my fault, my fault."
This acting was truly exaggerated. Pei Ming smiled like a grouchy elder unwilling to argue with a child. He shook his head, waved his hand, and removed the floating shell of Ah Zhao. Turning around, he said, "It's not necessarily collusion. However, that person, who can cover the sky with one hand, is so powerful, and he may have used some kind of deception or trick to deceive others and His Royal Highness. Therefore, I think this matter needs to be discussed further. It would be best if the Ban Yue Imperial Preceptor, whom His Royal Highness took away, could also be handed over for further interrogation."
This meant that Hua Cheng was being portrayed as the mastermind behind the Ban Yue Pass riot. Once Ban Yue arrived at the Heavenly Court and was interrogated, the outcome would be very uncertain.
Xie Lian smiled and said, “General Pei, even if you can’t trust me, you should at least trust Master Feng. Back then, General Pei, at the bottom of the Sinner’s Pit, had already admitted that the passersby at Half Moon Pass were all lured there by his clones, and Master Feng heard the whole thing.”
Hearing this, Pei Ming glanced at the Taoist in white again.
Xie Lian continued, “Besides, we’re all in the Divine Martial Palace right now. If you find any signs of me being blinded, you can ask His Majesty the Divine Martial Palace.”
Upon hearing this, all the priests looked towards Jun Wu, who sat above them. However, Jun Wu's expression remained calm, unchanging. This indicated that Xie Lian was fine. So, the priests turned their gaze back to the two men in the palace. Xie Lian added, "General Pei, let's put this aside. Setting aside the question of whether the young man I was traveling with was Hua Cheng, even if we assume it was Hua Cheng, that has nothing to do with what General Pei did."
He spoke the name calmly, and a chill ran down the backs of the priests in the hall. Pei Ming stared at him intently for a moment, then suddenly smiled. Just as he was about to speak, and Xie Lian was also concentrating on responding, Jun Wu said, "Alright."
As soon as he spoke, Pei Ming stopped arguing and bowed slightly.
Jun Wu said slowly, "Since Pei Su has confessed his guilt, and Ke Mo's confession is exactly the same as what he said, then the matter of Banyue Pass is concluded."
After a moment of silence, Pei Ming said, "Yes."
Just as Xie Lian was breathing a sigh of relief, he heard Pei Ming say, "But Nanyang and Xuanzhen have confirmed that the wounds on this empty shell were indeed inflicted by Scimitar Evil."
Jun Wu said: "Well. That's another matter."
Pei Ming said, "This is true. I ask the Emperor to investigate thoroughly."
Jun Wu said, "I will naturally investigate this matter thoroughly. Mingguang and the other immortals can rest assured." After a moment's silence, he said, "We will disperse for now. Xianle, you stay."
It looked like he was going to keep Xie Lian to question and investigate thoroughly. In that case, Pei Ming had nothing more to say, and neither did Xie Lian. He bowed and said, "Yes."
After the meeting, the priests left in twos and threes. Feng Xin glanced at him as he passed, wanting to speak but holding back. Xie Lian smiled at him, but he was startled and left anyway. Mu Qing walked past him without even glancing, as if he wasn't there. The Taoist priest in white came over, waving his whisk, a smile on his face. Just as he was about to speak, Pei Ming approached, one hand on his sword, the other on his nose. He said helplessly, "Qingxuan, for your brother's sake, can you please stop making trouble?"
The Taoist in white stopped smiling and said, "General Pei, don't use my brother to pressure me. I'm not afraid of him."
"You..." Pei Ming seemed to be so angry that his teeth were itching, but he couldn't do anything about him. Finally, he pointed at him and said, "You, you, Xiao Pei has been badly hurt this time."
The Taoist in white swung his whisk wildly and said, "That was Xiao Pei's own doing. It has nothing to do with me!" He ran off as if he didn't want to continue talking to Pei Ming. Xie Lian had been wondering if Pei Ming would stay and make some sarcastic remarks, but he didn't. He also left. In the vast Shenwu Hall, besides Jun Wu and His Highness Xie Lian, there was only one person left. It was Lang Qianqiu, the Crown Prince of Yong'an. Xie Lian found it strange. Why would he stay? He walked over to see that the man had his eyes closed and had fallen asleep while standing.
Xie Lian was instantly at a loss for words. He gently patted the young man’s shoulder and said, “Your Highness, Your Highness?”
Lang Qianqiu suddenly woke up and asked, "What's wrong?!"
Xie Lian said, “Nothing serious, the meeting is over.”
Lang Qianqiu had just woken up and was still groggy. He asked in confusion, "Are they leaving already? What did they just say? I didn't hear anything?"
Xie Lian said, “It’s okay if you didn’t hear it. It’s not important. Let’s go back.”
Lang Qianqiu said, “Oh!” and left. Before leaving the hall, he looked back at him in confusion. Xie Lian smiled and waved to him.
After everyone had dispersed, he slowly turned around. Jun Wu walked down from the throne with his hands behind his back, saying, "The curved sword will doom you."
Xie Lian couldn’t help but stand up straight.
Jun Wu asked again: "So, what's going on?"
Xie Lian glanced at him and suddenly knelt down.
The author has something to say: Huahua will be online tomorrow??? I seem to have set a flag, but it doesn’t matter, it will be tomorrow or the day after tomorrow anyway.
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● You all know me, except for the main CP, everyone else is straight, and no male character will have any romantic sparks with the top or bottom.
Many people in the comment section are struggling with this sentence and feel that their understanding is biased. Let me explain it again:
The Scum Villain is the Scum Villain, Demonic Path is Demonic Path, and Heaven Official's Official is Heaven Official. Since the Scum Villain is the first work, there are various exceptions that will not be discussed. Demonic Path and Heaven Official's Official have been the main CP only for two consecutive books. I have clearly stated this point more than once in the "Author's Words" during the serialization of Demonic Path, and have repeated it in many other places since then. As for Mo Xuanyu, although he is also a little gay, he died at the beginning and can't be considered a formal character... Everyone likes to use their imagination to do whatever they want, as long as they don't break up the main CP of the villain, that's fine. But personally, my writing style does prefer to have only one gay pair in the text, and I don't plan to write a secondary CP in this book. I stated this point to avoid some completely unnecessary controversy.
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As for ascension, I have actually talked about it before, but it seems that some students are still unclear about it.
In the setting of this article, to become a god, one must become a hero, that is, a particularly awesome person among humans.
Only ascended priests are truly priests, affiliated with the Upper Heaven. How can one ascend? One thing to consider is strength. If one is exceptionally strong in a particular area, one can enter the Dao through this means, such as through martial arts or literature. Another thing to consider is luck. If one is exceptionally lucky and has a great opportunity, such as finding a secret manual or elixir while walking, one can also ascend.
The priests of the Central Heaven Court are merely appointed. This means you only need a powerful acquaintance in the heavens to promote you. These are called "fellow priests," and while they're generally quite unreliable, they're still considered members of the heavens, and everyone is welcome. A priest might promote you if they were close to you in the past, or if they see a promising future for you. However, if you're a fellow priest, you can still become a full-time official, and if you do, you'll be a powerful figure.
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