Night fell.
Zhang Yuchun arrived at Li Qingqiu's dwelling and reported on the sect's recent developments.
"This Lord Jing really is formidable. As expected of someone who once controlled the imperial court—he reorganized the specific authorities within each hall. Many previously vague powers have now become clear. From now on, those great clans won't be able to exploit loopholes so easily."
Zhang Yuchun said with a smile. At first, he had been somewhat worried about Lord Jing. After all, when Chu Jing had served as Grand Director Xuan, he had turned the court into utter chaos. Yet as Lord Jing continued to take action, Zhang Yuchun discovered that the burden on his shoulders had lightened considerably.
In the past, various halls would come to him to arbitrate internal matters. Now that no longer happened. He even felt he could free up some time to cultivate.
Li Qingqiu smiled and said, "In any case, he's a ghost now—there's no such thing as exhaustion. Let him work himself hard. If he does anything wrong, just tell me anytime, and I'll deal with him."
During this period, more and more disciples learned that a Lord Jing had been added to the sect's upper ranks. This Lord Jing held the Sect Master's Token and wielded immense authority.
Lord Jing's domineering style naturally stirred dissatisfaction among many, but for now no one dared complain to Li Qingqiu—perhaps those people felt guilty themselves.
Chu Jing, who had once dominated the courts of two dynasties, knew all too well how great clans liked to extract benefits for themselves.
Zhang Yuchun nodded and continued, "I've already promoted Qiao Dingbei, as well as his junior brother and junior sister. Their actions truly surprised me. Without realizing it, more and more disciples are beginning to play an active role, becoming forces that cannot be ignored."
Without Qiao Dingbei releasing Piercing Cloud Thunder, Zhao Zhen would very likely have died.
This matter made Zhang Yuchun both proud and deeply reflective.
Li Qingqiu smiled. "Indeed. Never underestimate the strength of any disciple. They are living people—each one represents variables and limitless possibilities."
This was also the advantage of sending disciples out to gain experience. Even if Qingxiao Sect did not control the entire world, it could still stay informed of movements everywhere and provide mutual support.
Disciples like Qiao Dingbei might be inconspicuous within the sect, but in their own lives, they were the protagonists, each playing out their own brilliant story.
"When July comes, Seeking Immortal Town will hold an auction. The main purpose is to draw in powerful figures from all regions and build up Seeking Immortal Town's reputation. Will you go?" Zhang Yuchun asked.
He was full of anticipation for Seeking Immortal Town, which he had personally built.
He wanted to turn Seeking Immortal Town into the number one town under heaven, the number one city under heaven—perhaps even a symbol of Qingxiao Sect itself.
"I won't go. You focus on doing a good job. From now on, put your attention on Seeking Immortal Town. You can do even better there and also have more time to cultivate," Li Qingqiu shook his head.
Zhang Yuchun nodded. He thought the same way. He was already trying not to interfere in other blessed lands or hall affairs. The fact that the sect had not fallen into chaos showed that Qingxiao Sect's order was already established.
After that, he asked whether some disciples should be dispatched to the Northern Barbarians' lands to investigate traces of demons and monsters.
Li Qingqiu rejected the idea. He did not want to alert the enemy. Qingxiao Sect was developing quite well at present and should not provoke the Demon and Monster Lands prematurely.
After hearing this, Zhang Yuchun felt it made sense. If demons and monsters were to march south, the momentum would certainly be overwhelming—they would not act through secret schemes.
The senior and junior brothers talked about many other matters. Only deep into the night did Zhang Yuchun finally take his leave.
…
After Zhao Zhen returned, the turmoil completely came to an end. Qingxiao Sect disciples then began paying attention to events across the world.
The lords of the realm jointly marched to the northern frontier to drive out the Northern Barbarians. However, the Northern Barbarians unleashed terrifying military power and actually managed to withstand the combined offensives of all the lords.
At the same time, news spread within the sect that the Training Hall was hunting down the Sword Extremity Sect. Many new disciples grew curious about why the Training Hall was pursuing Sword Extremity Sect, and past events were once again brought up in discussion.
At the end of June.
Xue Jin came to visit Li Qingqiu to report on the matter of hunting down Sword Extremity Sect.
"The Sword Extremity Sect has already been annihilated by our hall's disciples. During the process, we encountered experts from the Xuanji Sect. Quite a few disciples were injured, but fortunately none were killed. In addition, Xuanji Sect is a hidden danger. They'll likely come looking for trouble again in the future. My suggestion is to take the initiative—Xuanji Sect daring to support Sword Extremity Sect's return already shows their hostility toward us."
Xue Jin said solemnly. For this operation, he had not personally gone down the mountain, but the other members of the Thirteen Swords of Qingxiao's Might had led the teams, and the matter had been handled very steadily.
Li Qingqiu nodded. "Xuanji Sect comes from the Northern Barbarians. Even without personal grudges, destroying them is only right and proper. That's the stance of Jiuzhou."
"Sect Master, leave dealing with Xuanji Sect to our Training Hall," Xue Jin proposed. "I'm confident, and I also want to temper the disciples."
The Training Hall disciples' performance had greatly satisfied him. His entire demeanor was brimming with confidence.
Li Qingqiu asked, "Do you need assistance from other halls?"
"No. Only hardship can temper them. If there are casualties, I will take responsibility."
"Alright. As for the rewards for this operation, I'll have Lord Jing go to the Training Hall later to announce them publicly."
"Thank you, Sect Master."
"Mm."
Xue Jin saluted and took his leave.
Li Qingqiu watched his retreating figure and briefly considered whether to have the Sword Sect assist, but he quickly dismissed the thought.
Chu Jing was right—each hall's authority had to be clearly defined. They could not be mixed together.
The Sword Sect was established to purge sect traitors. If it also took on external campaigns, its disciple numbers would inevitably expand. Once such matters accumulated, things would only become more complicated.
"Forget it. Let the Training Hall continue to grow. The Training Hall observes the world— even if its disciple count doubles, that would still be normal."
Li Qingqiu thought this to himself. In his view, the Training Hall carried strategic significance and could help Qingxiao Sect prepare for future expansion.
He did not get up to leave, because he sensed Cheng Canghai's aura.
Before long, Cheng Canghai entered the courtyard to pay him a visit.
After saluting, Cheng Canghai spoke. "Sect Master, I want to organize a group of disciples to head into deep mountains across the world to search for traces of demonic beasts, expand the varieties of beasts under the Beast-Taming Hall, and at the same time establish a Myriad Beasts Record."
Li Qingqiu looked at him and asked with a half-smile, "If that's the case, do you have enough manpower right now?"
Cheng Canghai felt awkward. He gave a dry cough and said, "So… could you allow the Beast-Taming Hall to expand its number of disciples?"
Although he was a hall master wielding considerable authority, decisions regarding the number of disciples still had to be approved by the Sect Master. He did not dare expand privately. After all, hall disciples enjoyed benefits far superior to those of ordinary disciples, and he personally did not have enough money or spirit stones to support more people.
"Tomorrow, I'll have Lord Jing go to the Beast-Taming Hall to inspect it. You can explain your plan to him in detail, and he'll decide the numbers," Li Qingqiu said.
"Thank you, Sect Master!"
Cheng Canghai was overjoyed and immediately bowed in thanks.
Li Qingqiu waved his sleeve, signaling that he could take his leave.
After Cheng Canghai departed, Li Qingqiu finally stood up, preparing to find a place to cultivate Moving Mountains to Suppress the Divine.
He went to the back mountain. Just as he was about to leap, Yun Cai flew over from below the mountain.
Throughout the entire sect, only Yun Cai dared to fly her sword directly from the foot of the mountain to Li Qingqiu's dwelling. No one else—hall masters included—would dare commit such an offense.
"What is it now? What happened this time?" Li Qingqiu asked first.
Yun Cai's smile stiffened, and she said resentfully, "Sect Master, do you hate it when I come looking for you?"
Li Qingqiu shook his head. "No. I've just gotten used to asking like that."
This girl truly had no sense of etiquette—addressing him so casually instead of showing proper respect. Her nerve was certainly growing.
Yun Cai giggled and continued, "Through the Heart-Eating Bee Refining Technique, I came up with a method of controlling insects. I wanted to discuss it with you and see if it's feasible. If it is, I'll write it down and bring it to the Scripture Pavilion."
When Li Qingqiu heard this, his eyes lit up. "Quick, tell me about it."
The gu insects of Ancestor Su Xing had successfully ambushed Zhao Zhen. Otherwise, Zhao Zhen alone would have been enough to make Ancestor Su Xing suffer badly. This incident had made Li Qingqiu quite interested in gu insects.
He hoped Qingxiao Sect would possess cultivation methods for all kinds of techniques. If some techniques were too harmful, they could later be designated as forbidden arts.
Even demonic methods—Li Qingqiu wanted them. They did not have to be used, but they could not be absent.
Seeing his excitement, Yun Cai's smile grew even brighter, and she began explaining the method she had devised.
…
Inside the Spirit Management Hall.
Today, it was Zhang Ping's turn on duty again. Although the work was tedious, he did not want to give it up, because it was his easiest and most stable source of income.
Previously, following Bai Ning'er to Tianxuan Mountain had scared him half to death. Now he deliberately avoided Bai Ning'er, afraid of running into him.
Holding the disciple registry, Zhang Ping was organizing the housing arrangements for new disciples.
Footsteps approached and stopped in front of his desk. Without lifting his head, he asked, "Advancement, or applying for benefits or housing?"
"Your cultivation is not simple. Nurturing Essence Realm, fourth layer—placing you in this position is quite a waste. Is the hall master suppressing you?"
Hearing this, Zhang Ping looked up. His expression changed slightly, and he immediately stood up to salute.
The visitor was none other than Chu Jing.
Chu Jing was dressed in black, wearing his signature opera mask. He appeared mysterious and imposing.
Zhang Ping had seen this important figure before—the sect's newly risen high-ranking member. His momentum was fierce, daring to intervene in the affairs of various halls. Most importantly, his identity was extremely mysterious. No one knew who he really was.
"No, Hall Master Zhang treats me very well. I just need this income," Zhang Ping replied quickly.
He was secretly alarmed. Strange—he had clearly cultivated a qi-concealment method. How had his cultivation still been seen through?
Chu Jing looked at him, feeling rather emotional.
Back then, he had thought Zhang Ping was very mediocre. He had never expected Zhang Ping to reach the fourth layer of the Nurturing Essence Realm. Such cultivation, placed in the martial world, was stronger than even entry-level experts.
It seemed this kid had also encountered a fortuitous opportunity.
Chu Jing continued, "I'm preparing to establish the Guardian Immortal Guard, specifically to supervise those in power across the halls. Are you willing to join?"
Guardian Immortal Guard?
Good heavens—such immense authority?
What exactly was this person's relationship with the Sect Master?
Zhang Ping asked cautiously, "Why me?"
Supervising those in power within the sect sounded troublesome. He did not want to get involved.
Chu Jing said, "Because you're pleasing to the eye. You don't need to worry about trouble— the Sect Master will back us. Establishing the Guardian Immortal Guard isn't aimed at hall masters, but at the chaos beneath them: preventing people from buying positions of authority, and preventing negligence by those in power."
Zhang Ping swallowed and asked, "Can I refuse?"