fifth form

Chapter 3168 Guidance
Hongku left after the agreed date.

Inside the mansion, the new emperor's gaze kept sweeping over Gongsun Hong.

Confucian masters are relatively rare these days, and those who have cultivated the Southern Bright Fire are even rarer.

Dong Zhongshu performed exceptionally well during the siege of Mayi, but Zhu Jiuyin's unleashing of his supernatural powers, coupled with the new emperor's intervention, left Dong Zhongshu without any follow-up attacks.
In the chaos of war, plans can never keep up with changes.

Dong Zhongshu was unable to verify the impact of Nanming Fire on Zhujiuyin.

The new emperor believed that the Southern Bright Fire could restrain the Yang Soul Transformation Technique, and he believed even more in seeing is believing.

Dong Zhongshu returned to Jiangdu according to the system of the court and the feudal lords, and it would be difficult to summon him to Chang'an for testing in the short term, but Gongsun Hong had the ability of the Southern Bright Fire.

The cultivation of the Yang Soul Transformation Technique requires a large amount of resources, supernatural abilities, talent, and time to bring this technique to its full potential. However, the threshold for cultivating the Southern Bright Fire Technique is not high.

This fire technique doesn't require advanced training; even a novice can unleash deadly power.

Finding an opponent to test against is a problem. After all, cultivators at the Divine Power Realm are not common, and those who have painstakingly mastered the Yang Soul Transformation Technique will not use it for testing.

"What a pity about that Hong Hu merchant. I wonder who's been monitoring him. Otherwise, he would have been a good test subject!"

The new emperor and Zhang Xuezhou discussed in hushed tones.

Zhang Xuezhou is always so capable; even if he doesn't offer solutions, he at least provides a direction.

Those skilled in flying and leaping have a much stronger grasp of the overall situation than ordinary ministers. Unlike many ministers who rely on hearsay from afar, Zhang Xuezhou actually went there and experienced it firsthand.

"Zongzi, has your bird tracked down this Hu merchant?"

Zhang Xuezhou turned to look at Yi Zong beside him.

No amount of ability can compare to his performance at this moment. As long as Yi Zong's night owls can keep an eye on people, Yi Zong's role will be very obvious, and he will be highly valued by the court.

"Brother-in-law, my bird is over there, but I'm not sure if the people are over there too!"

Yi Zong stood up and quickly pointed.

He wasn't sure if he had tracked them down properly. A night owl's eyes can penetrate the darkness, but a night owl can't see things that don't exist.

Hongku's body appeared and disappeared at different times, which was beyond the comprehension of normal cultivators.

This was also the first time Yi Zong had tracked down such a target.

The bad thing was his lack of experience, but the good thing was that Hongku went back and forth three times, which gave him too many chances to make mistakes.

He used twelve night owls to track it, and if one went the wrong way, he would try his luck with another.

Yi Zong sensed that the night owl had entered a state of alert, remaining motionless and keeping watch, while eleven other night owls were flying around searching. He felt that the chances of tracking them down were relatively high.

"Want to give it a try?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

The new emperor nodded and then looked at Gongsun Hong, saying, "The bandits are rampant, and I hope that Mr. Gongsun can lend us his full assistance!"

"That's...okay!"

Gongsun Hong felt he was doomed.

The theft of the Crimson Cloud Sword had a huge impact. His mistakenly entering and residing in this mansion had already drawn countless eyes to him. Many people who knew Gongsun Hong could guess his purpose in coming to Chang'an City, which would inevitably lead some to ruin his future.

He was caught between staying in the mansion and leaving.

Living here would inevitably draw attention to him. The forces that stole the Crimson Sky Sword would certainly see him as a thorn in their side, while the faction that protected the Crimson Sky Sword was an ally, but if the Crimson Sky Sword were to be stolen, he might be suspected of being an internal traitor.

If he were to leave, Gongsun Hong would not only lose access to information from the heart of Chang'an, but he would also find it difficult to observe the turmoil in the court, thus potentially missing out on what he wanted.

But Gongsun Hong never expected things to go on one after another. The court had been embroiled in disputes over the war with the Xiong people, and many soldiers had retreated from the front lines to return to Chang'an to recuperate.

Gongsun Hong learned from Dong Zhongshu that Zhang Xuezhou had also gotten involved, and he was seriously injured in a chaotic fight at the border.

Gongsun Hong thought Zhang Xuezhou would behave himself after being seriously injured, but he never expected that the other party would openly do shady business with cultivators from an enemy country.

After discussing their business, the two men decided to follow Hu Shang and double-cross him.

Zhang Xuezhou even ordered around his brother-in-law whom he had just met, and Gongsun Hong couldn't refuse, especially since there was also an invitation from the Marquis of Pingyang.

He stood up reluctantly, indicating that he could cooperate.

"Sir please!"

The new emperor extended a polite invitation, and Gongsun Hong had no choice but to stand at the front, second only to Yi Zong, who was leading the way.

Do you want me to protect you?

Wei Shao'er stood up, saw Zhang Xuezhou shake his head, and quickly sat down again.

"Liu Xuan, tell me, should I be happy or not!"

Seeing Zhang Xuezhou and the others leave, Wei Shao'er breathed a sigh of relief, but then felt a pang of regret.

She breathed a sigh of relief, naturally because she had avoided making enemies with the sorcerers. The reason for her sigh was most likely that Zhang Xuezhou didn't think much of her abilities, and that she wouldn't be of much use to him in the past.

"Teacher, you look beautiful when you smile, so it's naturally better to be happy!"

Liu Xuan, who was sitting at the end of the table, didn't say much until he was asked a question, at which point he answered seriously.

“I can’t be happy,” Wei Shao’er sighed. “I’m considered a top-notch fighter in the martial arts world, but it’s difficult to even guard the house here. Last time, that short guy who was half a person’s height slapped me, and before I could even react, he broke my bones!”

"You survived a fight with a great demon of the True Self Realm, that's quite an achievement!"

Liu Xuan replied.

His words weren't exactly flattery. If it wasn't Wei Shao'er who discovered Lao Tong, no one could get entangled with Lao Tong, which would inevitably lead to Lao Tong leaving easily.

"Dongfang Shuo looks down on my skills," Wei Shao'er said dejectedly. "Even if he sat there and let me chop him, I couldn't kill him!"

"The teacher is still young, and his future abilities will surely impress everyone!"

"You're the only one who would praise me like this. My sick child doesn't even think that way. He always laughs at me for not being as capable as others!"

"If you have any family secrets, please teach me some. I really want to improve!"

"Teacher, you should choose a place to cultivate. You are only one step away from the Realm of Selflessness!"

……

Wei Shao'er and Liu Xuan whispered to each other.

Although he was a teacher, Wei Shao'er followed Zhang Xuezhou's instructions very well and would often nag Liu Xuan a few words.

Their master-disciple relationship was quite absurd; Liu Xuan rarely sought guidance from Wei Shao'er, while Wei Shao'er instead clung to Liu Xuan.

After a series of back-and-forth exchanges, Liu Xuan was left feeling helpless.

“I visited the ancient capital of Xianyang last time. There’s still a barely usable old altar there. If you really want to risk breaking through to a higher realm and improve your cultivation, you can slaughter twelve pigs and sheep as a sacrifice. Perhaps this, combined with elixirs, will help you succeed in breaking through to a higher realm!”

Liu Xuan finally pointed out a path for Wei Shao'er, but he also clearly warned Wei Shao'er that this kind of sacrifice was not a good solution, and there were more or less some potential problems depending on the individual.

If one can safely advance to a higher level, then the sacrificial ritual is the least desirable option.