The Ninth Lady is a rebellious person.

Chapter 240 The Beginning of the Xuan Clan's Split

Seeing Lang Jiuchuan protecting Shen Qinghe so much, Gong Qi felt a strange mix of emotions, a bittersweet feeling of envy and jealousy.

Well, Lang Jiuchuan looks weak and easy to bully, but it is precisely this appearance that makes people lower their guard and not take her seriously. As a result, she suffered a great loss. Rabbits will bite, let alone this one, which is not a rabbit but an eagle. For a specific example, just look at those unlucky members of the Rong family.

She's incredibly capable and beautiful—a typical cunning woman who pretends to be weak to actually harm others. How lucky must that person be to protect her? Even the Lang family isn't as fortunate as Shen Qinghe.

Yes, don't be fooled by Lang Jiuchuan's friendly demeanor towards the Lang family. He's actually quite distant. He appears peaceful, but he keeps everyone at arm's length. Yet, this same person is openly protecting an official.

What's the basis for that? Is it just a feeling of first impression?

If Jiang Che could see what Gong Qi was thinking, he would naturally answer that it was because of Shen Qinghe's pride. Although the cause and effect of their transaction were considered over once that pride was lost, how could their fate be severed so easily?

For the sake of this backbone, Lang Jiuchuan would definitely protect him; this madman is very protective of his own.

Not to mention, what Shen Qinghe did was upright and also beneficial to her.

That's right. Anything that can restrain the Xuan Clan is beneficial to her. The person who made this suggestion is one of her own, and she must protect them.

Seeing that Lang Jiuchuan's hostility had not dissipated, Gong Qi quickly said, "Don't worry, even if someone is really courting death, we won't make a big fuss. Besides, this Surveillance Bureau will most likely be established. Once it's established, the matter will be settled. No matter how angry we are, we won't do anything to him."

Lang Jiuchuan was somewhat surprised upon hearing this, and said, "The Xuan Clan is actually willing to put on these shackles?"

The establishment of this supervisory department is tantamount to installing a pair of eyes that are always watching for one's mistakes. How could anyone be willing to do that?
Gong Qi paused for a moment before saying, "The establishment of this should be something the imperial family would be happy to see."

Lang Jiuchuan's eyes flashed, and he leaned forward slightly, perking up his ears, as if to say, "If there's gossip, I'll listen to more."

Seeing her expression, Gong Qi's lips twitched, and he said helplessly, "The Xuan Clan has a tradition of intermarriage, especially those with Dao roots, who are even less likely to marry outsiders to avoid confusing their bloodlines..."

Lang Jiuchuan laughed: "Actually, I've always been curious. You always talk about the Dao root, but how exactly do you determine whether someone has the Dao root? In my opinion, having the so-called Dao root is actually about comprehension, or wisdom root, being destined for the Dao, and naturally having a stronger understanding than ordinary people. What is the Dao root like? Does it have a color?"

Gong Qi was rarely stumped by the question, and his expression turned somewhat strange. He said, "The Xuan Clan has special magic treasures and pills for testing one's Dao roots. After using the pills, one enters the magic treasure for testing. As long as one can draw the Five Thunder Talisman within an hour inside the magic treasure, one can comprehend the Daoist mental cultivation method within the magic treasure."

Lang Jiuchuan interrupted him again: "Isn't this just comprehension? Are the Five Thunder Talismans difficult to draw? I saw that you guys had quite a few in stock before."

"Everyone's like you, creating talismans with just a spark of inspiration? We accumulate them little by little. For ordinary Taoists, having even one is a treasure for protecting their home and their lives." Gong Qi rolled her eyes at her, annoyed, and said, "Of course, it's not just about that little bit of comprehension, it's about blood."

Can you please listen to him before interrupting?

"Blood?"

“Those who possess the Dao root have a touch of gold in their blood. The more concentrated the gold, the purer the Dao root.” Gong Qi saw her open her mouth and immediately said, “Don’t ask why. Just say that our ancestors have always been like this, that it’s a tradition. If you insist on asking, you’re just being stubborn.”

Lang Jiuchuan: "..."

Jiang Che chuckled, "Look what you've done to him! He's so anxious he's getting angry."

Seeing that Gong Qi's face was flushed with anxiety, Lang Jiuchuan said sullenly, "That magic weapon, could it be a formation?"

"How did you know?" Gong Qi asked, somewhat surprised. "You've had it done?"

Lang Jiuchuan was taken aback by the question. Yes, how did she know?
For a moment she was bewildered, her brows furrowed tightly. She didn't really know either, but after hearing what Gong Qi said, she felt that the magic treasure must be a formation, like her Little Nine Tower, which could be entered to comprehend the Dao and cultivate within it.

“I don’t know, but you said you were drawing talismans inside. If there’s no formation, how could you do that? Only a formation can be used to draw talismans and comprehend them.”

Gong Qi said, "You're not wrong. That's a supreme treasure of the Xuanmen, called the Heavenly Treasure Mirror. As long as you drip your heart's essence into it, you can test your bloodline. Those with Dao roots will have light gold blood, and their souls can enter the treasure mirror to comprehend it."

"Who's going to keep this thing safe?"

“Naturally, it’s the Hall of Enforcement. Testing one’s Dao Root also takes place there.” After saying this, Gong Qi frowned: “No, why did I tell you about these mystical secrets?”

"It's not like it's something shameful, so why can't we say it? Continue with what you were saying before, how could the Xuan Clan agree to establish the Surveillance Bureau?" Lang Jiuchuan pretended to be indifferent, but in his mind he was imagining what kind of magical artifact the Treasure Mirror was.

"If you hadn't interrupted me, I would have finished speaking by now," Gong Qi said angrily.

"Yes, yes, it was my fault. I won't interrupt anymore, please continue." Lang Jiuchuan immediately admitted his mistake and even fawned over him by pouring him a cup of tea to soothe his throat.

Gong Qi felt even more frustrated upon seeing this, and choked on a mouthful of tea.

This tea is indeed poisonous!

After he coughed until his face and neck were red, he slowly said, "The Tantai family has had few people with Dao roots in the last three generations, and now it has been fourteen years since a new person with Dao roots has emerged."

Lang Jiuchuan was a smart man and immediately understood: "Sure enough, once you get used to being the eldest brother, the brothers below you grow up and become stronger, and the eldest brother feels uneasy about his position."

Tantai is a member of the royal family and has always held the throne. This requires strength; otherwise, if someone were to overthrow the throne, someone else would be in his place.

If no new Dao roots emerge for more than ten years, or even a few in several generations, it proves that the bloodline is mixed up. But the other families are not. So, isn't the Tantai family afraid?

Fear is what drives people to try to suppress their fear.

The royal family does not follow the Daoist school, but they have imperial power. Having this power means having people and a strong army, enough to suppress the other Xuan clans. Now that someone has proposed to establish an inspection department, it is like a pillow being delivered to someone who is dozing off. They are extremely happy to do so.

Imagine, such a supervisory body could restrain the rest of the Xuan clan. With one more eye on them, it would be perfect to keep an eye on whether they would want to rebel. Why not?
In any case, such an inspection bureau is entirely beneficial to the royal family.

As for the disciples and followers recruited by the royal family, they are also among those being monitored, but that doesn't matter; it's just a matter of seeing if they can be bribed.

Lang Jiuchuan's eyes sparkled. This was truly a great act of kindness. Without her intervention, the Xuan Clan had already begun to split up on its own, thus eliminating any sense of kinship among them.