Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Chen Shanglue was not just Chen Yuanshen’s son, but also his only son. At first glance they seemed to be rather similar, but in fact, they were completely different.

As a man who grew up in the wilderness, Chen Yuanshen was a wanderer in his early years. When he joined the army he fought for his life and made great achievements. The Desolate King rewarded him greatly, giving him the honor and status that he had today.

In his early years, he rarely got close to women. His only son, Chen Shanglue, was an accidental product. When he became a high-ranking cultivator later on, his cultivation realm had reached the level of a True Saint. Even though he had many wives and concubines, it was by no means an easy task to conceive another child.

This was why Chen Yuanshen only had one son until now…under such a circumstance, this accidental product had become a real treasure.

And now, Chen Yuanshen’s only son, whom he had high hopes for, was kidnapped by an unknown person. After hearing the report from his subordinates, his hand trembled, causing the wine in his glass to flow out.

Ever since Hundred Saint entered the City Governor’s mansion, he was suppressed by Chen Yuanshen’s aura and felt very uncomfortable.

When he saw Chen Yuanshan spill his wine in shock, he instantly felt overjoyed. Of course, he could not reveal what he was feeling. But he was also curious as to what had happened that would cause Chen Yuanshan, who was usually calm, to lose his composure.

Of course, if Chen Yuanshan was not going to tell him, Hundred Saint would not take the initiative to ask either. He drank his wine with a smile and continued talking about the topic they were on earlier, without the slightest change to his face.

After a few more vague exchanges about the situation in the capital, Chen Yuanshen sighed. Hundred Saint, who sat opposite him, immediately shut his mouth, smiling calmly.

Chen Yuanshen put down his wine glass with a soft ‘clink’ sound, his eyes showing a little self-deprecation and helplessness. “Nephew Hundred Saint, Shanglue was messing around and caused some trouble. I’m afraid that I will need to excuse myself for a while to take a look at the mess he made, lest the problem becomes bigger and affects your family business. By then, it would be difficult to explain things to your uncle.”

With a soft ‘squeak’ in his heart, Hundred Saint resisted the urge to show any expression on his face. “Oh, which business is uncle talking about?”

“Moon Brothel.” Chen Yuanshen chuckled lightly, “Young people are full of absurdities and nonsense, and I don’t know when they will be able to calm down.”

After all, Chen Shanglue was his only son. He looked calm and composed, but how could he truly not be anxious?

Immediately, Chen Yuanshen stood up and took his leave.

Hundred Saint stood up too and said, “Uncle Chen, let me go with you. I want to see who dared to oppose Brother Shanglue.”

Chen Yuanshen thought that Hundred Saint was only there to show his attitude. After all, Chen Shanglue had made a commotion in Moon Brothel. Since even Hundred Saint was concerned, it meant that the matter was definitely not simple. Chen Yuanshan smiled and nodded his head, “Then nephew, let’s go together.”

The City Governor was here!

The people who were already in Moon Brothel were shocked by all the turbulent changes, and their eyes could not help but widen. They were worried that if things continued this way, the City Governor would lash out suddenly.

The fact that the City Governor was here meant that this matter would not be settled easily no matter what!

They were all startled and fearful, but also curious…who the hell was this person that dared to openly provoke the City Governor’s mansion?

Although the City Governor’s mansion seemed to have an uncertain future because of that incident, everyone knew that the City Governor was a close confidant of the Desolate King. As long as His Majesty still trusted him, even if there was more turmoil that they had to go through, the City Governor’s mansion would never go down.

Xu Shen bowed, “This subordinate is incompetent; I’ve caused the young master to fall into a trap. I’ll gladly accept any punishment!”

Behind him, the city guards that barricaded Moon Brothel went down onto their knees as well. “Greetings to the City Governor!”

The sound roared loudly…at this moment, the power and status of the City Governor was evident.

At the lakeside, those eyes that were waiting for the situation to change were suddenly filled with fear and apprehension.

Chen Yuanshen!

Just this name was enough to suppress half the city, making it difficult to breathe.

This was the result of being in charge of Seascape City for so many years. Chen Yuanshen gradually established his position and power through practical means and strong tactics.

Qin Yu could immediately feel his terrifying power. Chen Yuanshen’s expression was calm but his eyes were cold and were releasing a powerful oppression. Even though Qin Yu knew that in terms of cultivation, he had nothing to be afraid of, his heart still trembled slightly.

Yet, underneath the black robes, Qin Yu maintained a calm expression. He slowly exhaled before truly becoming relaxed. This was because he saw Hundred Saint who had come along with Chen Yuanshan. This made Qin Yu feel a little strange. Could it be that this City Governor was the person who Hundred Saint said he was going to visit?

Hundred Saint secretly lamented in his heart. He was expecting something bad to happen, was it going to become a reality? When he heard that it was Moon Brothel, he already did not have a good feeling!

It turned out that his hunch was rather accurate.

It really was the Darkness Ruler!

Hundred Saint did not even go away for a long time. In fact, he had personally made arrangements for the Darkness Ruler. Was it not good enough to enjoy some time with a beautiful woman? Why did he have to get the City Governor involved!

Seeing Chen Shanglue in Qin Yu’s hands, Hundred Saint could not help but get a headache and at the same time feel a little chill in his heart.

He believed that the Darkness Ruler was not an idiot. How could he create trouble when he had just entered the Desolate Area? This matter was probably not as simple as it seemed.

Apart from all this, Seascape City was among the top few cities in the West Desolate. In addition, Chen Yuanshen was deeply trusted by the Desolate King and thus had a high status in the West Desolate. He had many connections with other ministers in the court too.

Of course, with his family background, Hundred Saint was not afraid of Chen Yuanshen. Furthermore, they always had a good relationship with each other and there was no conflict of interest…however, now Chen Yuanshen’s only son was involved, and he would definitely not back down so easily. Whereas bringing the Darkness Ruler into the capital city was Hundred Saint’s mission and he could not afford any surprises along the way.

He had reached a dilemma!

He did not want to offend the City Governor nor the Darkness Ruler, but he still had to resolve the matter…so at this time, Hundred Saint was not in a rush to reveal his identity. Instead, he gave Qin Yu a look. He was unsure whether the Darkness Ruler could understand what his gaze meant, which made him feel slightly uneasy.

In fact, Qin Yu understood it. He could see Hundred Saint’s dilemma…of course, he could tell that Hundred Saint merely felt troubled, but not anxious or panicked.

This made Qin Yu even more certain about Hundred Saint’s background. He was more and more interested and curious to know. For Hundred Saint not to be afraid of the City Governor even though he was just at a True Saint cultivation level…cough, well, the word “just” was not too appropriate here, but in this situation, it still made sense.

In short, today was not going to be a day of bad luck!

The thoughts turned quickly in his head. Qin Yu, who was still under the black robes, said, “Hundred Saint, you have finally returned. Chen Shanglue, the son of Seascape City’s City Governor, condoned his subordinates to take action against me. I suspect that this matter is not simple, so I took him down. I will let you be in charge of the rest! However, I still demand an explanation!”

Wonderful.

Hearing Qin Yu’s direct words, Hundred Saint could tell that he had found out about his background. He laughed bitterly in his heart. He was pleasantly surprised. Truly, the Darkness Ruler was extremely clever, understanding Hundred Saint’s meaning in just a few words.

His words were a reminder that since he dared to say such a thing, it meant that he had confidence to ensure that Chen Shanglue would not go unpunished.

Whether or not there were other oddities about this incident today, his words were enough to get them out of trouble!

Chen Yuanshen’s eyes flashed and his brows furrowed, “Nephew Hundred Saint, do you know this person?”

Hundred Saint bowed and replied, “Uncle Chen, this was the Darkness Ruler that I mentioned…I am not too sure about whatever happened here either.”

He then turned and shouted, “Darkness Ruler, no matter what happened, please let Brother Shanglue go first; there must be a misunderstanding!”

“Misunderstanding?” Qin Yu’s voice was cold. “I think this is a conspiracy secretly planned by the City Governor’s mansion!”

Hundred Saint’s eyelids twitched and he shot a look at Qin Yu. He thought to himself, ‘I am already here, stop creating trouble! If you really dare to attack Chen Shanglue, the matter will be blown up.’

“Darkness Ruler, I promise you, it has nothing to do with the City Governor. Let him go first, we can talk about this!”

Qin Yu hesitated for a while before letting Chen Shanglue go with a cold snort.

Feeling that he had escaped from hell’s gates, Chen Shanglue suddenly rushed away with a ‘swoosh’, his face full of fear and trepidation.

“Father, he…”

Pa –

A loud slap interrupted Chen Shanglue. Chen Yuanshen’s face was gloomy and his eyes were ice cold, “You useless thing, never mind that all you do is frequent brothels, now you even created a conflict with Nephew Hundred Saint’s guest. Immediately go back to the mansion and reflect about what you did. Without my orders, you are not allowed to step out of the door!”

Chen Shanglue’s eyes showed a trace of fear and his lips trembled, not daring to say another word. A few guards from the City Governor’s mansion escorted him away and very quickly, he was out of everyone’s sight.

What a smart and cunning move!

In just a few breaths, Chen Yuanshen had understood what happened and knew that the matter arose because of his son’s jealousy.

This way, even if the matter was blown out of proportion, only Qin Yu’s reputation would be damaged. Qin Yu did not give anyone the opportunity to stir up any more trouble…he could also use this chance to read the reactions of the people around him. If anyone had any objections with how he handled this matter, then they must have been involved in today’s incident.

Hundred Saint secretly admired him and said with a smile, “Darkness Ruler, let me introduce you. This is Seascape City’s City Governor, Chen Yuanshen. He is a very important official in the West Desolate, and is deeply trusted by the Desolate King.”

This introduction was also a reminder.

Qin Yu’s eyes flashed. He cupped his hands and said, “Greetings, City Governor.”

Chen Yuanshen said with a smile, “I’ve heard about you for a long time. The rumors do not do you any justice today, after seeing you in person. You have been summoned to the West Desolate by the Desolate King, so you will definitely have a bright future if you are dedicated.”

After a pause, Chen Yuanshen cupped his hands too and said, “This misunderstanding was all caused by my useless son. Please forgive us if we have offended you.”

He was a dignified City Governor, and his demeanor now felt very sincere.

First of all, Chen Yuanshen had already realized that there were a lot of strange things about this incident. In addition, he already knew about Qin Yu’s identity. There were many information channels in the capital city, so he guessed that there was someone that was making use of Chen Shanglue, turning him into a scapegoat. Since they had already fallen into the trap, in the future, the immediate priority was to not give anyone the opportunity to take advantage of them again.

Secondly, Hundred Saint had the blood of the imperial family. Even though he was only a distant relative of the Desolate King, his uncle was extremely capable and brilliant. It was difficult to even gauge what his uncle’s future achievements would be. By then, even the Desolate King would have to treat him with respect.

Thirdly, Qin Yu’s had a strong cultivation. Even though he did not make a move, he would definitely be able to make judgments. This Darkness Ruler that was standing in front of him was even stronger than what the rumors made him out to be. It was no wonder that whoever had plotted this had failed.

Amongst the strong, it was necessary to temporarily respect each other and retreat if need be.

Hundred Saint sighed internally. Evidently, Chen Yuanshen was able to take whatever came to him. He did not take too much pride in his identity or his status…sure enough, whoever was valued by his uncle was someone to be respected.

“Hahaha! Darkness Ruler, Uncle Chen has already apologized so sincerely. Why don’t we just let this matter go?”

Underneath the black robes, Qin Yu exhaled. In his opinion, this was the best outcome, so he immediately nodded in agreement.

However, his eyes swept across Hundred Saint. At this moment, with a bright smile on his face, he could not help but secretly sneer in annoyance. I am not a free shield. You still owe me an explanation!