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Novel: [The Primordial Law]
Volume 4: [Shuangsheng Dao Sect (Twin Rice Sect)]
Chapter 132 (387): [Challenge]
(132nd of Volume 4)
Translator: Shadow Knight AK
Editor: Shadow Knight AK
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"The fourth one! But there's no guarantee we can save him. He said he'll do his best."
Tai Shi Yu stood with his hands clasped behind his back, sighing: "I've always been wary of him, suspecting the rumors of him being the Heretical Sect's Fourth Divine Son weren't entirely baseless. But his indomitable spirit has earned my respect."
"Faced with such a mess, even I considered retreating. Yet he chose to confront it head-on. How could someone with such resilience and responsibility possibly betray us?"
Jiang Ning remained silent, simply standing there and waiting.
She knew Li Weiyi better than anyone.
After completing his refining process, Li Weiyi retracted the Spiritual Light (Lingguang) threads and turned to the stunning immortal maiden standing in the shade of a tree, forcing a smile.
"How was your harvest last night?"
"A resounding victory. Very few escaped the net. Tell me, how should I thank you?" Jiang Ning asked.
Li Weiyi replied, "How about breakfast?"
"Deal! You pick the place, I'll pay," Jiang Ning said.
Tai Shi Yu didn't understand what they were talking about, but he trusted them implicitly.
Both were level-headed individuals.
He said, "Don't bother choosing. Let's eat at the Grand Temple of Eternal Harmony. Feather Immortal, once you enter, you might not be able to leave for a while."
As Jiang Ning entered, she sensed an unusual atmosphere and asked, "What did you find out during the interrogation last night?"
Footsteps echoed.
Tai Shi Bai strode in, his armor stained with blood. He hadn't even had time to change before rushing to the Grand Temple of Eternal Harmony.
He had just checked on Long Xiangcen, learning that she had been forced to drink from the Mother-Child Spring.
Seeing his accusatory expression, Tai Shi Yu spoke first: "Just tell me, did I let her live until dawn? She only drank a ladleful of the Mother-Child Spring. Who knows, next year you might get a free baby."
Tai Shi Bai replied, "Do I look like I'm joking right now?"
Tai Shi Yu's smile vanished: "Don't you want to know what she confessed?"
"I don't want to hear it from you."
Tai Shi Bai turned to Li Weiyi: "Tell me. I trust you. You wouldn't lie to me, would you? So, yesterday, she deceived me again?"
Li Weiyi sighed: "There's nothing wrong with genuine and devoted love, but she's not worthy of it."
Tai Shi Bai was calmer than Li Weiyi had expected.
He pondered for a moment before nodding: "What exactly happened at the Grand Temple of Eternal Harmony? When I entered, everyone looked so grave. The Undead strongman was eliminated - that should be cause for celebration."
Li Weiyi could only force a bitter smile and remain silent.
Tai Shi Yu was in a foul mood, convinced Tai Shi Bai held a deep-seated prejudice against him.
"Something major has happened! Your cousin confessed that the Ghost Infant Incident is far more complex than we thought - ten or even a hundred times more terrifying. The old man went to the palace last night to see the Third Palace Master and still hasn't returned."
Tai Shi Bai and Jiang Ning were rising stars in the Imperial Court, known for their courage, dedication, and strong sense of responsibility.
Upon hearing this, both their expressions changed dramatically.
Li Weiyi reminded them, "Lord Tai Shi has issued an absolute order. Anyone who violates it will have their Nine Clans executed."
"If he dares to execute even himself, there's nothing we can do about it."
Tai Shi Yu, unconcerned, immediately revealed everything Long Xiangcen had confessed.
Then he berated Tai Shi Bai, "Look at you, trembling like a leaf! Did this scare you so badly? Would she have revealed this secret if we hadn't forced her to drink the Mother-Child Spring? Now you can't blame us, can you?"
Tai Shi Bai trembled with rage: "Is this the time to argue about who's to blame? Can't you distinguish between what's urgent and what's not? Do you even understand what this means? Something major has happened - something that will shake the entire world!"
Jiang Ning couldn't believe it and turned to Li Weiyi.
Li Weiyi gave a slight nod.
"I must return to the Phoenix Terrace immediately," Jiang Ning said.
Tai Shi Yu said, "You can't leave! Besides, the city's top figures were definitely summoned to the palace for discussions last night. Just wait patiently; there's no use in rushing. Shall we go eat breakfast first?"
Tai Shi Bai retorted, "Can you even stomach food right now?"
"If you can't eat, go ask your cousin again. See if she knows any useful information," Tai Shi Yu suggested.
"Fine, I'll go."
Tai Shi Bai had just arrived when an Immortal Realm Giant from the palace came to take Long Xiangcen away.
It wasn't until dusk that Tai Shi Qingshi returned to the Grand Temple of Eternal Harmony, his body exhausted and his spirit drained.
He moved like a zombie, as if he had lost all his essence, qi, and spirit.
Long Xiangcen was also carried back, looking listless.
Tai Shi Yu and Tai Shi Bai immediately rushed to the Official Hall to inquire about the Imperial Court's decision, both deeply concerned about the outcome.
Moments later, a fierce argument erupted within the hall.
"Utterly foolish! The Imperial Court is leading us to ruin!" Tai Shi Bai roared in fury.
Tai Shi Yu's voice rose, "Father, what are you so afraid of?"
Someone released a Psychic Field, isolating the voices and preventing anyone from hearing the argument.
Li Weiyi and Jiang Ning waited nearby. The Grand Temple of Eternal Harmony's gates and Formation had been opened; they couldn't remain sealed indefinitely.
After registering their departure, they could leave.
Soon, the Official Hall doors swung open with a thunderous crash.
A wave of Spiritual Light (Lingguang) blasted Tai Shi Yu and Tai Shi Bai out into the courtyard.
"Get out!"
Inside the room, Tai Shi Qingshi, abandoning his usual composure, roared in fury.
Outside, Tai Shi Yu and Tai Shi Bai, normally figures of great prestige - one the First Commander, the other First-Class - stood covered in dust, their faces contorted with resentment.
Li Weiyi and Jiang Ning hurried forward to inquire about the situation.
Tai Shi Bai's eyes were red-rimmed, his fists clenched tight, his voice a mixture of anger and frustration.
"Second Uncle said the Imperial Court had debated for an entire day and night, nearly coming to blows in the hall. But Six Thoughts Zen Temple wields an irresistible power. In the end, the officials decided to temporarily abandon the matter..."
Jiang Ning's tone was icy: "What do you mean by 'temporarily abandon'?"
Tai Shi Bai replied, "Temporarily abandon means pretending not to know, treating it as false information. Many believe the Mother-Child Spring couldn't have been flawed from the start; it must be a trick of the Demon Clan to sow discord. The words of a mere junior hold no credibility."
Li Weiyi narrowed his eyes, finally understanding their rage: "If ignoring the problem doesn't work, what happens when it erupts?"
Tai Shi Bai said, "Second Uncle said the Imperial Court will continue discussing this matter in the coming days, seeking a stable solution. They might even organize a special army to pre-emptively control everyone connected to the Mother-Child Spring. If the mutation spreads on a large scale, they'll be eliminated immediately."
"Is that a solution?" Jiang Ning asked.
Li Weiyi said, "If the Imperial Court can't pinpoint the exact problem with the Mother-Child Spring, a full-scale outbreak is highly likely. What did you mean by 'irresistible force' earlier?"
Tai Shi Yu had calmed down and sighed: "It seems the Six Thoughts Zen Temple is connected to the Demon Kingdom, but my father dared not say too much. He only said even the Third Palace Master is powerless in this matter."
"Meanwhile, war is about to erupt in the Western Territory."
"The Heretical Sect's strange methods have already turned vast stretches of land across several provinces into a wasteland of tombstones and burial mounds. Corpse Cultivation Rice is spreading like wildfire and may soon engulf the entire Lingxiao Realm."
"Without solid evidence, provoking the Demon Kingdom further would only give them an excuse to join the war to carve up the Imperial Court. Who would dare attack the Demon Kingdom based on a junior's word?"
"What if this is a scheme by Luansheng Linyou and the Demon Clan?"
Tai Shi Bai said, "They're too afraid of offending the Demon Kingdom. They don't even have the guts to storm the Six Thoughts Zen Temple and arrest people. Evidence? At this point, who cares about evidence? Are those Ghost Mother and Ghost Infant really fake? If even Transcendent and Immortal Realm Giants lack backbone, how can the younger generation live with dignity? How can they even survive? I'm going to Liang Prefecture right now to find my grandfather. I'll bring him back."
Tai Shi Bai, clad in bloodstained armor, stormed out of the Grand Temple of Eternal Harmony, his eyes blazing with fury.
Li Weiyi asked, "Did you ask Lord Tai Shi if they went to the Six Thoughts Zen Temple last night?"
Tai Shi Yu shook his head gently: "My father is very wary of that place. He strictly forbade me from going there, saying it's forbidden territory. Are we really just going to sit here and wait for death?"
"There's one more option."
Li Weiyi gazed at the towering, thousand-zhang-high Phoenix Pavilion complex nearby, its majestic presence radiating brilliance.
Jiang Ning understood immediately: "I'll go find Ge Xiantong. He's the only one who can ascend the mountain."
.....
Twenty-Seventh day of twelfth lunar month, night.
Darkness gradually descended.
Tai Shi Yu asked, "Based on your understanding of Luansheng Linyou, do you think this is his scheme?"
Li Weiyi shook his head: "If it were a scheme, he would have publicized the Ghost Mother and Ghost Infant Incident when it first occurred, letting the situation fester. Instead, he concealed it. Luansheng Linyou has been plotting to lure me to the Six Thoughts Zen Temple, intending to use me as a pawn to kill me. This precisely proves he truly knows the truth."
"Bang!"
Tai Shi Yu slammed his fist against the wall, sending countless array scripts cascading across the surface.
"When it rains, it pours. When a ship breaks, it faces a headwind. I feel Lingxiao City's fate is truly sealed. It was destined to fall over twenty years ago."
"Li Weiyi, I'll tell you a harsh truth. The reason the higher echelons still cling to illusions and hesitate to act is because when the Imperial Court collapses and all humans in the Lingxiao Realm become food, playthings, and livestock for the Demon Clan, they can escape to other Living Realms. They are the strong, but not every strong individual bears responsibility and a sense of duty."
"That's why the court was in such turmoil last night, split into two factions: those with a sense of duty and opportunistic schemers locked in a power struggle."
"During the clan-annihilation war, it was usually the strong who escaped, because only the strong had the ability to do so."
Li Weiyi fell silent, his mood growing even more oppressive.
As Tai Shi Bai had said, if the Transcendent and Immortal Realm Giants couldn't hold up the backbone, the masses below would be left to live neither as humans nor as ghosts.
Darkness had completely fallen.
Li Weiyi and Tai Shi Yu, far from their usual imposing figures, sat on the snow-covered ground, no longer speaking, engaged in a silent psychological struggle.
Finally, Jiang Ning and Ge Xiantong arrived.
Ge Xiantong sighed apologetically: "I know everything! I went to the mountaintop earlier, but... the palace gates wouldn't open. I couldn't get in, and Master didn't respond. I've tried everything! Jiang Ning and I also went to pay our respects to the Third Palace Master, but she wouldn't see us. Just when one crisis seemed to be resolved, another erupted. How did things suddenly escalate to this point?"
"It's snowing!"
Li Weiyi looked up, catching a snowflake in his palm.
He clenched his fist, as if finally making a decision.
"Then let's tear open the heavens! Force the Third Palace Master to make a choice. We'll use the overwhelming momentum of the situation to compel her to resist."
Tai Shi Yu's expression changed: "If you spread this news, it will cause massive unrest. Wouldn't the Demon Clan and Heretical Sect seize this opportunity to attack? In the end, you'll be made the scapegoat."
"No, I'm going to the Six Thoughts Zen Temple. I'm taking everyone with me - the entire city. I want to see what's really hidden inside. What is it that the entire Imperial Court fears so much?"
Li Weiyi retrieved ink and brush from his Boundary Pouch and wrote a challenge letter:
On New Year's Eve, at the summit of Six Thoughts Peak.
Under the cold stars reflecting on the snow, life and death are left to fate.
"Jiang Ning, deliver this challenge letter to Xie Chucai. Tell him that this will be a battle to the death."
"Isn't he supposed to have a powerful background? Isn't he working for the Demon Kingdom? Hasn't he been itching for a fight with me? I'll grant his wish! Tell him to accept the challenge if he has the guts. If he doesn't, he should crawl out of the Lingxiao Realm immediately and stop making a fool of himself."
"If even Luansheng Linyou knows this secret, Xie Chucai must know it too."
"If the Imperial Court dares not move against him, but I will."
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END OF CHAPTER
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