Outside the imperial city, Yin Jiao'e and her daughter looked dejectedly at the gradually closing palace gates.
After Kong Lian was brought to her breaking point by Shen Zhao's rebuke, she and her daughter were kicked out by Wu Yousheng at Shen Zhao's behest.
As a result, not only did they fail to move into the palace, they also lost face in front of the Confucian sage's public trial panel, which was a net loss.
"Mother, what should we do? Those judges will definitely have a bad impression of us when they see us like this. Will I still be able to study at the Confucian Sage Sect?"
Su Xuejiao paced anxiously, more concerned with whether she could become a disciple of the Confucian Sage Sect than with living in the imperial palace.
Yin Jiao'e kept comforting her, "Daughter, don't panic. Things won't be as embarrassing as you think. The people of the Confucian Sage Sect are quite fair and won't hold a grudge against you because of this."
Actually, she was also annoyed.
He thought that by paying such a high price, he could climb up Kong Lian's tree and successfully get Su Xuejiao into the Confucian Sage Sect for further studies through back channels.
But to her utter surprise, Shen Zhao ruined her plans once again, and Yin Jiao'e truly hated him.
And Liang Hao, she never expected that Su Yunying's sworn brother would actually be a Nirvana Realm expert.
If I had known this would happen, I would never have treated Su Yunying like this. Otherwise, I could have used this relationship to get Su Yunying to help me out.
She really regretted her attitude towards Su Yunying back then; she should have at least pretended.
"Mother, what do we do now?"
Su Xuejiao was still worried about her future.
Yin Jiao'e forced herself to remain calm and reassured Xuejiao again, "Don't worry, Mother will definitely find a way to get you into the Confucian Sage Sect."
"But Shen Zhao is also a public judge now."
"Hmph, how can Shen Zhao, an outsider, compare to the Confucian Sage Sect? What you need to do is to fully demonstrate your strength during the competition and convince everyone."
Su Xuejiao remained silent; she knew her own limitations best.
Although the general level of cultivators in the Southern Region is not high, there are many who are stronger than her.
To stand out, it's simply impossible without some connections or backdoors.
Seeing that Su Xuejiao remained silent, Yin Jiao'e could only sigh.
"Don't worry, I've taken care of everything. I'll make sure you get into the top twenty, so you can rightfully join the Confucian Sage Sect."
"Really, Mother?"
"When has your mother ever lied to you? Let's go back and find your brother first."
After saying that, the mother and daughter helped each other and walked together toward the shady hotel.
Meanwhile, inside the palace, Shen Zhao and Liang Hao were discussing the rules of the grand competition with the public trial panel.
After a long silence, Kong Dang, the chief judge of the Confucian Academy, said, "This competition must be conducted in a fair and just manner, and there must be absolutely no favoritism or perversion of justice."
He glanced at Shen Zhao as he spoke.
Shen Zhao, however, looked completely indifferent and didn't care what they were saying at all, which made him look displeased.
"Fellow Daoist Shen, is there anything you would like to add?" Kong Dang asked.
Shen Zhao stretched and then said, "I have no objection. After all, anyone can say nice things. As for whether it's fair or not, that will only be known on the day of the competition."
Upon hearing this, Kong Lian immediately questioned, "What do you mean by that? Are you implying that my Confucian Sage Sect is guilty of cheating?"
Upon hearing this, Liang Hao immediately retorted: "This female boxer, please don't take it personally. Nobody here is talking about you. If you keep this up, I'll sue you for defamation, believe me."
Kong Lian was speechless.
After realizing Liang Hao's strength, he lost all his former aura as a female boxer.
The so-called feminist nature is just about targeting the weak; once they encounter a tough opponent, they'll cower like idiots.
"Alright, stop arguing. Since Fellow Daoist Shen has no objections, let's proceed according to the old rules."
Kong Bai stood up and said, "Let's set up the venue in the next few days. The competition is expected to last about a month."
"So long?" Shen Zhao retorted. "Couldn't it be shortened a bit?"
"How can we shorten it?" Kong Bai asked. "The Immortal Martial Arts Competition has always been held at this time, after all, there are thousands of cultivators from all walks of life participating."
"Then set up more competition venues and adopt a preliminary elimination system."
"What kind of elimination system?"
"The preliminary round determines the winner, who advances to the next round, while the loser is eliminated. Finally, 64 people are selected to enter the second round of the official elimination tournament. In this way, the time is not so long and the economic pressure on the organizers can be alleviated."
After hearing this, everyone thought about it for a moment and felt that there was some truth to it.
Wu Yousheng looked at Shen Zhao with even more gratitude.
As the host of this Immortal Martial Arts Competition, I have to bear tremendous pressure. If I follow Shen Zhao's advice, the time will be shortened to half a month, and the pressure will be greatly reduced.
"Isn't deciding the outcome in one match too hasty?" Kong Bai suddenly asked. "Doesn't the loser have a chance?"
Shen Zhao smiled and said, "There is a chance, but it's limited to the losers' bracket of the top four. The top four will be divided into two groups, with the winners advancing to the finals and the losers competing for third place."
This way it's less trouble and more convenient, and everyone can enjoy some peace and quiet. What do you think?
Kong Bai nodded: "That saves a lot of trouble. I'll go back and revise the rules immediately so that they can be distributed to all the cultivators as soon as possible."
Shen Zhao stood up: "In that case, I'll be leaving now. You can continue with your work. Just send it over once the rules are set."
After saying that, he walked directly out of the Huibin Hall.
Wu Yousheng thought for a moment and quickly followed.
...
"Father, please wait."
"My son, what's wrong?"
After catching up with Shen Zhao, Wu Yousheng immediately explained his purpose.
"Father, I have a request, and I hope you will grant it."
"What's up?"
Wu Yousheng took a deep breath, wanting to speak but not knowing how.
Seeing this, Shen Zhao said impatiently, "Just say what you have to say, stop beating around the bush, okay? You're supposed to be the ruler of a country, how can you not even have this much courage?"
Wu Yousheng then mustered his courage, bowed to Shen Zhao, and said, "I... I would like to ask Father if he could go to Zhongzhou on my behalf after the Immortal Martial Arts Competition?"
"Central Continent? Is it the Dragon-Han Celestial Dynasty, or the Xiongnu Empire?"
Wu Yousheng's eyes lit up: "Father actually knows about these two behemoths. I've come to the right person."
"Nonsense, the strongest nation in the Central Continent is the Dragon-Han Celestial Dynasty, followed by its neighbor, the Xiongnu Empire. Who in the world doesn't know that? What's the matter?"
"I have had a spiritual exchange with Prince Rui of the Longhan Heavenly Dynasty through writing. I wonder if you could go and meet him on my behalf and tell him that I am now the ruler of a country?"
Shen Zhao was stunned upon hearing this: "Why didn't you just ask me to do it for you?"
Upon hearing this, Liang Hao said meaningfully, "Could it be that you and Prince Rui are best buddies who have been through thick and thin together, the kind who know each other's strengths and weaknesses?"
Shen Zhao narrowed his eyes: "Looks like you know a lot. If the Empress of the Celestial Empire heard this, do you think you'd still have your head on your neck?"
"With my elder brother here, I have nothing to fear."
Wu Yousheng added, "No, my relationship with Prince Rui is purely based on our shared passion for calligraphy and painting. He has taught me many life philosophies, for which I would very much like to thank him in person."
However, as the ruler of a nation, I find it truly difficult to leave and travel to the Dragon Han Celestial Dynasty, so I can only ask the immortal to arrange a meeting on my behalf.
"Let's talk about it later. I'm going out for a walk."
Shen Zhao didn't agree directly, but just gave a few perfunctory words and walked straight towards the palace gate...
"Brother, please wait a moment."
As soon as Shen Zhao stepped out of the palace gate, someone called out to him.
Looking back, he saw a middle-aged guard beckoning to him, as if he had something important to say.
"What's up?"
Shen Zhao frowned, sensing a faint aura of a holy body emanating from the guard, which piqued his interest.
"My name is Zhuge Xiaoyao, the squad leader of the guards in this imperial city. I noticed your extraordinary bearing, and I knew you were no ordinary person the moment I saw you yesterday, so..."
"Wait, your name is Zhuge Xiaoyao?"
Shen Zhao seemed to have discovered something new, his eyes widened in disbelief.
Zhuge Xiaoyao nodded: "That's right. My surname is Zhuge, my given name is Bai, and Xiaoyao is my nickname."
Shen Zhao was stunned. Pointing at him, he said in a trembling voice, "You...you are the founder of the Xiaoyao Sect, the Xiaoyao Emperor, also known as the Xiaoyao Divine Dragon?"
Zhuge Xiaoyao grinned: "I never expected this. I thought that after tens of thousands of years, no one in this world would know about my past."
I didn't expect someone as young as twenty-three to remember me. Yes, I am... Brother, what are you doing...?
Shen Zhao circled around Zhuge Xiaoyao, finally standing in front of him with a suspicious look: "Are you really Emperor Xiaoyao? Legend has it that Emperor Xiaoyao's cultivation reached the Feather Transformation Realm ten thousand years ago, allowing him to ascend to the Heavenly Realm."
His handsome, ageless appearance, like that of a brilliant twenty-year-old, and his dashing and debonair demeanor, how could he possibly be the image of a middle-aged, sleazy man like you?
Hmm? Looking at you closely, I have to say, your face is actually quite pleasing to the eye.
Upon hearing this, Zhuge Xiaoyao sighed, "Isn't it all because of this ridiculously handsome face, plus my Ancient Sacred Body? He's like a walking aphrodisiac."
Wherever I go, stunningly beautiful women throw themselves at me, for no apparent reason whatsoever. I remember once I ran into my enemy on the battlefield...
Before the fight even started, my enemy's daughter pounced on me and started tearing off my clothes, trying to put on a live sex show right in front of both armies.
Luckily, I ran fast, otherwise the consequences of being killed would have been unbearable.
I've roughly calculated that I've had sexual relations with at least five or six thousand women in this region, if not tens of thousands.
There were seventy-two people in total, and in the end, I ascended to the Heavenly Realm with them.
But to everyone's surprise, upon arriving in the Heavenly Realm, he gained another thirty-one celestial maidens because of this face.
Shen Zhao took a deep breath: "Wow, you have 103 fairy maidens in your harem. You must be enjoying all the bliss of the mortal world. Why would you come down to the mortal realm to be a guard here?"
As soon as he said that, Zhuge Xiaoyao stepped forward and grabbed Shen Zhao, saying with a wronged expression, "Brother, you're still young, listen to your older brother's advice..."
"Avoid creating a harem if possible. Those who just watch the story enjoy it, but only those who have experienced it firsthand understand the suffering involved."
"What do you mean? Why can't we have a harem? Isn't changing our tastes every night the most genuine desire in every man's heart?"
"What utter nonsense!" Zhuge Xiaoyao exclaimed, his handsome face beaming. "I, the Great Emperor Xiaoyao, was once a dashing and elegant figure."
With my handsome and dashing face, even Daniel Wu and Peng Yuyan would feel ashamed in comparison.
But it was precisely because she established a harem that she became this way.
"Are you kidding me? Even if you spend every night with your harem, with your cultivation level, you couldn't possibly become like this."
"That's why I said you're too young and don't understand at all."
Zhuge Xiaoyao seemed to remember something, and his whole body trembled uncontrollably.
"One or two a night is fine, but what if one hundred and three of them line up all night?"
Brother, think about it, try your best to imagine what a terrifying scene this is!
One hundred and three acres of farmland in one night, all of which are tough, fertile land, all relying on my efforts. Even a god-emperor would have to kneel before me.
Look at me, I'm supposed to be immortal, yet I've been tormented by these farmlands for thousands of years, and that's how I ended up like this.
If it weren't for the Ancient Sacred Body protecting my mind, I would probably have become a lonely, forgotten grave long ago.
To save my life, I went to great lengths to obtain this secret technique for suppressing cultivation from the God Emperor's realm.
That's why I ran down to the mortal realm to find some peace and quiet. These days, I can't even get an erection when I see a woman; it's terrifying.
After hearing Emperor Xiaoyao's words, Shen Zhao's left leg trembled uncontrollably.
Just imagining the scene of over a hundred women lining up to get to base made him break out in a cold sweat.
This isn't a harem, it's a harem!
Putting aside these unrealistic thoughts, Shen Zhao asked seriously, "Why did you call me?"
Zhuge Xiaoyao: "It's like this, the mother and daughter who just left the palace had contact with Kong Lian near the palace gate yesterday."
I happened to be passing by and, seeing that they were acting suspiciously as if they were hiding something, I quietly followed the mother and daughter.
As a result, I saw them scour the underground banks of Daliang City last night, borrowing a large amount of spirit stones and sending them to Kong Lian's place.
Shen Zhao was startled: "Is what you said true?"
"It's absolutely true. I can tell you the locations and names of all those underground banks."
I don't think this mother and daughter are good people, and they seem to harbor hostility towards Miss Su, who entered the palace with you that day. That's why I'm telling you about this."
"Thank you! This news is very important to me. Please tell me the names and addresses of those money shops."
"Here you go, I've written it all down. Brother, listen to my advice, when you find a partner, just find someone you truly love."
Don't ever try to build a harem like my brother unless it's absolutely necessary; you'll only end up hurting yourself.
-----------------------
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(End of Chapter)