My disciples are all villains.

Yu Shangrong maintained this posture without moving. If this had happened to anyone, they would consider their options carefully. Put aside the possibilities of dying, if one were told to sever one's leg to continue living, would one be brave enough to do it?

At this moment, Yu Shangrong was facing such a choice. Although it was not as cruel as severing his legs, severing the Golden Lotus was just as difficult to accept. For cultivators, their cultivation base was their life. Without their cultivation base, they would be a good-for-nothing. It was no different from being dead.

…

Night fell. There was no light at all inside the Melilot Graveyard.

Yu Shangrong held his scabbard. He occasionally lifted the Longevity Sword with his thumb. The sound of the Longevity Sword sliding against the scabbard was exceptionally clear and piercing at this moment. It sounded like a butcher was sharpening his knife.

This went on for nearly an entire night.

When the dim light from above shone into the graveyard, Yu Shangrong's thumb had stilled.

There was a predetermined end to everything. Perhaps, this ending had been written in stone since the day he left Brackish Mountain in his youth.

Was death terrifying? He would die without his cultivation base, sooner or later, anyway.

Zing!

Yu Shangrong lifted the Longevity Sword forcefully with his thumb. With a force greater than before, his Longevity Sword shot into the air.

Yu Shangrong's expression was determined as he rose to his feet and gripped his Longevity Sword. Meanwhile, his Hundred Tribulations Insight avatar illuminated the entire Melilot Graveyard. He did not even look as he swung his Longevity Sword.

Swoosh!

Sometimes, a forceful swing was not used to kill opponents.

After Yu Shangrong swung his sword, he looked at his Hundred Tribulations Insight avatar coldly.

The purple Golden Lotus was detached from the avatar above, independent of one another.

His avatar stayed in the air while the Golden Lotus fell!

Even under such circumstances, Yu Shangrong did not wish to appear miserable. He quickly tapped a few meridian points on his body before he sat with his legs crossed.

The instant he sat, his face turned ghastly pale, and sweat broke out on his face.

The lower half of his avatar fell on the ground and vanished as the upper half merged with his body.

Shortly after, his dantian's sea of Qi underwent a sudden change. He felt as though a tsunami had broken out within himself. How powerful could a person be? He was still capable of maintaining a calm attitude even when he was so close to death. His expression remained unchanged. He was determined and indomitable.

He felt as though he was being roasted inside a volcano. His Primal Qi seemed to be trying to escape its vessel as it ricocheted inside his body. He remained unmoving as a mountain and endured it.

...

Time passed.

After an unknown period of time, Yu Shangrong sensed that his consciousness was still intact. He opened his eyes suddenly. His cultivation base had deteriorated greatly. From the Eight-leaf stage, it fell to the Seven-leaf stage, and then, to the Six-leaf stage.

The Primal Qi contained within his dantian's sea of Qi leaked out slowly.

Five-leaf, Four-leaf, Three-leaf, Two-leaf, One-leaf.

Blood started to trickle from the edge of his lips.

However, Yu Shangrong did not despair from this. On the contrary, a satisfied smile appeared on his lips. Although he was gravely wounded and lost his lotus leaves, at the very least, he was still alive. Without his Golden Lotus, it was only natural for him to be without any leaves. That much was expected.

"That's nothing. All I have to do is to sprout leaves again." His voice sounded confident and lively inside the Melilot Graveyard.

His glory merely existed in his memories now. However, If one failed in life, all they had to do was to start over.

…

Meanwhile. Great Yan's Liang and Yi Provinces were experiencing rapid changes.

Inside the Evil Sky Pavilion.

Mingshi Yin brought Jiang Aijian's letter into the great hall. He looked at his master seated on his throne and said, "Master, Jiang Aijian wrote in his letter that the Imperial family has dispatched the army to Liang Province… The nations, Lou Lan and Rouli, have also sent their cultivators over. With Si Wuya's intelligence, he would not likely miss this. We'd have to wait patiently for any changes in the situation."

Lu Zhou said nothing. Instead, he looked at the value of his merit points on the system dashboard. He was deliberating about the best way to spend them. He was about to capture Si Wuya and Yu Zhenghai. Indeed, he would have to wait and see.

Merit points: 17,900.

Perhaps, he was already used to the system's tricks, Lu Zhou found that he no longer had a temper. He was quite calm.

'It's only 100,000 merit points. I'll just have to take it slow.'

When he saw that his master did not respond, Mingshi Yin left the great hall in a respectful manner.

...

The next day, Mingshi Yin went into the great hall with Jiang Aijian's letter in his hand again. He saw his master painting. This meant that his master was in a good mood. He felt emboldened by this. He walked up to Lu Zhou and said directly, "Master, Jiang Aijian wrote in his letter that the Imperial family has intentionally given up on Yi Province. They sent the Fourth Prince, Liu Bing, to quell the disturbance in Liang Province… However, Si Wuya seemed to have predicted this. The Nether Sect's branches in Great Yan's nine provinces are deliberately wreaking havoc. Currently, the empire is in a mess."

Lu Zhou stopped moving his hand. As expected, these two rascals wanted to cause a great disturbance under the heavens and go against the Divine Capital.

Could they do it? Nobody knew.

If Yu Zhenghai had operated alone, it might have been impossible. However, with Si Wuya's help, the outcome became uncertain. Si Wuya's Darknet was an unbelievably vast force. Even Jiang Aijian was wary of it. Needless to say, everyone else feared it as well.

After muttering to himself for a while, Lu Zhou said, "Did Jiang Aijian mention anything about the Imperial family's research on the Nine-leaf stage?"

"He didn't."

"Remind him."

"Yes, master."

Lu Zhou did not care about the disturbances in Yi and Liang Provinces. Even if the whole world was plunged into chaos, it was nothing but the doings of the Nether Sect behind the scenes. Without clear information, he would not easily make a move.

What Lu Zhou needed was to stay patient, and patience was what his host, Ji Tiandao, lacked the most.

Before making any move, it was better for him to find out more about the Nine-leaf stage.

...

On the third day…

Mingshi Yin was clearly in more of a rush compared to before. Apart from him, even Little Yuan'er and Duanmu Sheng entered the great hall as well.

"Master, a letter from Jiang Aijian."

"Cut to the chase," Lu Zhou said.

"Jiang Aijian says that Princess Yong Ning will head to Liang Province with the Fourth Prince… The Nether Sect is pincered by enemies on both sides. It seems that they weren't able to escape." A hint of incredulity could be heard in Mingshi Yin's tone when he read the letter.

Lu Zhou was slightly taken aback. He stopped writing. With a wave of his hand, the letter in Mingshi Yin's hand flew into his own.

Lu Zhou scanned its contents before he said with a frown, "With Si Wuya's skills, they shouldn't have been surrounded this easily… Princess Yong Ning?"

"Princess Yong Ning is only a woman. Why would she go to Liang Province with Liu Bing?" Mingshi Yin was puzzled.

At this moment, Zhu Honggong's loud voice rang from outside. "Greetings, master!"

When Mingshi Yin heard this fellow's voice, he felt annoyed for some reason. He said with a hint of threat, "Eighth Junior Brother, just spit whatever it is you have to say, and be quick about it."

Zhu Honggong chuckled and said, "Master, I know about this Princess Yong Ning."

"Go on." Lu Zhou sat down.

"Princess Yong Ning fancies Seventh Senior Brother… I've only heard Seventh Senior Brother mention her once. I don't know anything else," Zhu Honggong replied.

"An old acquaintance?" Mingshi Yin's eyes widened. "It's no wonder he managed to escape from Han Yuyuan. That's why he knew so much about the happenings inside the palace. That's how he managed to force Jiang Aijian to take shelter inside the Evil Sky Pavilion… He had a princess supporting him all this time! I never took the cultured Seventh Junior Brother to be such a beast!"

"…"

Everyone could hear the envy in Mingshi Yin's words. It sounded like the whining of a single man.

Duanmu Sheng glanced at Mingshi Yin. Then, he blew on his Overlord Spear before he began wiping it with his sleeve.

With a smile, Little Yuan'er said, "Is Sister Yong Ning pretty?"

"I've never seen her before," Zhu Honggong replied.

Mingshi Yin said, "Little Junior Sister, don't interrupt us. Master, this isn't as simple as it seems… It must be a trap by Old Seventh."

Little Yuan'er nodded as though she was a chick pecking for grains.

Lu Zhou stroked his beard as he nodded and considered it. He had two more strengthened Binding Cage Cards, one Deadly Strike Card, and his extraordinary power was sufficient. He had the means to capture Si Wuya and Yu Zhenghai. The problem was… where would they show themselves?

After thinking about it for a moment, Lu Zhou stood slowly. He looked at Mingshi Yin and said, "If you were Si Wuya, what would you do?"