What was she going to do next?

Gone was Han Shuang’s usual straightforward candor. Instead, she stared assessingly at Jiang Chen, as if trying to divine his intentions.

“What about you, gentlemen?” she asked with a soft sigh.

“You’re the sectmistress, you do the honors.” Jiang Chen smiled calmly.

“Hmph!” 

Is he toying with me?

 But she immediately regained her usual fiery temper, making a grand exit like a gust of wind. “Let’s talk about it another time. You should go to bed early.”

So that’s how she wants to play it.

Jiang Chen followed her departing figure with a grin, then turned to Jiang Huan.

The latter was a picture of innocence. “Why are you looking at me for? I made myself scarce and never piped up while you two flirted away. I’ve been a model third wheel.”

Jiang Chen snorted. “Whatever, there’s no one else here, so you can drop the act.”

Jiang Huan grinned mischievously, his face taking on its usual cleverness.

“Young lord, there’s more to her than meets the eye. Just like us, she’s hiding her strength. She’s definitely up to something, but it probably has little to do with us. At a guess, it must be related to the Heavenly Crimson Lake.”

Jiang Chen murmured, “There’s no conflict of interest between us in that case. Should we turn a blind eye and stay out of her business?”

Jiang Huan considered his suggestion, but the younger man quickly changed his mind and shook his head. “No, we can’t. If she causes too big a ruckus, she might alert the godking’s people and get Fiendstar expelled. We’d have to kiss the conference goodbye then.”

“You’re right. We still need to keep an eye on this crazy woman, it seems. We’ll stop her before she compromises our plans,” Jiang Huan agreed.

Jiang Chen sized up the older man and grinned. “Hehe, uncle, you’re playing the part of an unabashed rogue anyway, so why don’t you sacrifice your body and try her out? Maybe she’ll fall for your handsome face.” 

Jiang Huan rubbed his nose. “Young lord, your servant is a decrepit old codger, but you’re in your prime. Aren’t you more suitable? Plus, that hot pepper’s clearly got a thing for you. She won’t spare a glance for an old fart like me, but she keeps finding excuses to chat you up. Hehe, love’s definitely in the air!”

Master and servant lightheartedly poked fun at each other.

Any talk of seduction was a simple joke, but they really had to keep an eye on a woman like Han Shuang. Her mischief might turn the lake upside down and spoil their plans.

Whatever she was scheming, they couldn’t let her loose before the godking conference. What came after that was none of their concern.

The conference was impossible to attend without an invitation, so they needed a legitimate pretext. No matter the extent of the young lord’s powers, he couldn’t possibly force his way in. Even a fool could envision the defenses at such an event.

After a successful competition, Fiendstar launched a large construction project at Heavenly Crimson Lake. After all, they’d been granted the right to establish their base there for ten thousand years.

For cultivators, it wasn’t an especially long time in the grand scheme of things, but it was significant enough to justify their efforts. 

The environment around the lake was truly superior in every aspect. Establishing a sect there had remarkable benefits for cultivation.

The five winners carved up the area into zones of influence vast enough that none of them could complain. For them, the Heavenly Crimson Lake was sacred land through and through.

But Jiang Chen cared little for these trifles. He immersed himself in cultivation like before. He simply took advantage of the situation and traded Fiendstar’s former territory for the lake’s shores.

As for Jiang Huan, he was indifferent to whatever merits the place might hold. He vanished completely after the competition’s end, so much so Jiang Chen himself rarely kept in contact with the man.

Still, he sometimes dropped by once or twice a year, always bringing back strange news with him. A riot surfacing in such and such fief, or an attack elsewhere on so and so, or perhaps the murder of a great figure in this or that territory.

In short, strange events cropped up one after another.

Jiang Chen knew full well Jiang Huan was alluding to incidents he’d caused himself. The old man was creating chaos to push Taiyuan Plane to the brink.

Not the most honorable method, but one couldn’t always take the high road in times of need.

Jiang Huan’s sacrifices and endeavours made the young lord even more determined to cultivate, and to cultivate some more.

By now, his body had begun to become one with the bloodlines of the sacred beasts. Once the assimilation was complete, he’d attain the peak of the godking realm in a single bound.

To that end, he holed up in his room every single day, calling upon the four sacred beasts to assist him.

The beasts had willingly gifted him with their bloodlines. Therefore, their continued assistance was invaluable in simplifying and hastening the process.

Added to the Four Symbols True Spirit Painting, Jiang Chen gained new insights by the day.

In fact, the sacred beasts grew stronger by the same occasion, the tacit connection between the four of them strengthened further.

All four of them were now at ninth level divine realm.

If they could reach the half-step godking level by the time he became a bonafide godking, their combined might would become a terrifying headache in combat. By then, their coordination and joint formation would reach an entirely different dimension. 

They’d possess the genuine power of plane creation, each of their moves imbued with the mysteries of the universe. Even an honest to goodness godking might not be their match.

In fact, they might be able to overwhelm a party of several godkings!

“Young lord, the assimilation’s already close to seventy percent. You have more than fifty years left, so the remaining thirty percent shouldn’t be an issue,” the Vermilion Bird proclaimed with a smile. 

The young lord nodded. “I can’t wait to find out how spectacular the end result will be. Come what may, I’m truly blessed to have the four of you as my companions!”

“Heh, we’re the lucky ones. Even with our bloodlines, we wouldn’t be where we’re at now if we hadn’t met you.” Indeed, not even sacred beasts were omnipotent!

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