I'm not a fortune teller.

Chapter 91 Tianyimen!
Zhang Rui has never been sensitive to these lofty words. Anyone who talks about these things is usually the one who cares least about the country and the people.

"Minister Jiang wants us to help, so we have to share information, right?" Zhang Rui said calmly, "How did you get here? Isn't it inconvenient to tell me?"

"Being chased here" Jiang Linfeng was also a decisive person. He quickly recounted the situation he had just encountered.

After listening to each other's description of the situation, the princess and Hong Lie looked at Zhang Rui with even more puzzled eyes. Everything was exactly as she expected. The Nine Ministers were led out of the palace as a trap, and the one who ambushed the Nine Ministers outside was actually Master Yi from Donghuang Island!
"So after Minister Jiang accepted the bet, he did not choose to fight, but fled here?"

Jiang Linfeng did not show any anger at the princess's ridicule, and said calmly: "Master Yi dared to make such a bet, he must have been well prepared. Facing such a top warrior, the chance of winning is extremely low in a hurry. I am responsible for the lifeline of the Jiang family and the court. If I lose, the whole situation will be ruined!"

"Minister Jiang said it very well!" The princess immediately looked sarcastic.

As a legitimate son, he gave up his seriously injured father without hesitation. As the head of the Jiang family, he abandoned all the elders without hesitation, and also took away the Yin God, the only one who could confront Master Yi head-on. As a minister, he took away the Jiuqing Seal and abandoned other colleagues without hesitation. He was disloyal, unfilial, and unrighteous, yet he shamelessly said that he was in charge of the overall situation?

"What the Minister said is quite right." Zhang Rui said calmly, "If I lose, I will lose everything. I am not willing to gamble on this either. However, this Xuanwu District is full of people. You came here alone. Do you have anything to rely on?"

"If there is any way to deal with the Grandmaster in the capital, these famous families in the martial arts world have the most means."

"But you don't dare to go?" Zhang Rui said with a smile.

"The other party had planned this long ago. Since they were able to set up an ambush at the Jiuqing Yamen, no one can say for sure whether there is an ambush outside the gate of Xuanwu District. People like me are the least able to resist an ambush."

"Lord Jiang is indeed cautious. So you came here to invite the Tianyi Sect, which is the least likely to be thought of?" Zhang Rui said with a smile.

The garrison point of Tianyi Gate is closest to Xuanwu Gate. The other party came to this direction not because they guessed that he and the princess could come out from Xuanwu Gate, but because they also knew that Tianyi Gate had the greatest chance of dealing with Master Yi.

"Does the young lady have the same idea?" Minister Jiang said with a smile, "Does the young lady have any solution?"

The Tianyi Sect can be said to be the sect with the longest history among all the martial arts sects. It is rumored that before the extinction of immortals and demons, the Tianyi Sect was an orthodox sect of immortal cultivation with a very pure Taoist tradition. Even now, the warriors of the Tianyi Sect have to recite the Huangting Sutra every day and regard themselves as Taoists.

This sect has never had deep entanglements with the imperial court. It has never participated in power struggles within the court, nor has it joined the warlords who dominated the troubled times. It is unique and has kept its distance from every dynasty. Even though the Jin Dynasty today attaches so much importance to warriors and has set up military governors throughout the world, they still maintain this attitude of neither being close nor distant.

Such a sect is even more difficult to convince than the martial arts sects that are hostile to the imperial court.

The four of them soon arrived at the Tianyi Sect's base. The imperial court had never stopped trying to win over the Tianyi Sect. Among the more than seventy states in the Central Plains, the Tianyi Sect's martial priests occupied thirteen seats, making it the undisputed number one sect in the world. The imperial court had never been suspicious of it, and whenever there were outstanding children born into the Tianyi Sect, the court would never suppress them. The base in the capital allowed the Tianyi Sect to garrison in such a core position, which showed the court's trust in them.

But even so, Tianyi Sect's attitude remains so cold.

"Everyone, please stop. This is Tianyimen's station. Outsiders are not allowed in!"

There were two men in Taoist robes holding swords guarding the door, and their attitude of refusing to let anyone in was very obvious.

"Please also inform the elders of Tianyi Sect that Jiang Linfeng wants to see you!"

Jiang Linfeng frowned and walked forward. The first-rank official uniform on him was very conspicuous, but the two Taoists guarding the gate turned a blind eye. Although they had expected this, the attitude of Tianyi Sect was really annoying.

"It's you, Lord Shangshu." The Taoist at the door was unmoved, but stepped forward and saluted, saying, "The station is closed today. The elders have ordered that it will not be open to the public. If Lord Shangshu has any instructions, you can come another day."

"Is this how Tianyi Sect treats guests? I, Jiang, don't even have the qualifications to enter?" Jiang Linfeng said with a bad look on his face.

"Your Excellency, you are too kind." The Taoist said quickly, "The resident elder is out for some business, so there is really no one here to entertain us today. According to the sect rules, we really cannot let outsiders in. Please forgive me, my Excellency. When the elder returns, I will come to apologize."

His attitude was neither humble nor arrogant, but he refused to give in, which made Jiang Linfeng look gloomy.

The two Taoists from Tianyi Sect also had firm expressions.

The Four Spirits' riot began, and even these warriors could sense it. The elders immediately and urgently summoned the disciples of Tianyi Sect in the capital, and retreated to their garrison, ready to break out and evacuate the capital at any time.

As for what happened inside the palace, he naturally pretended to be deaf and dumb, followed the traditional rules of Tianyi Sect, and never asked any questions!
Not to mention a Minister of Personnel, even if the emperor himself came to ask for help, Tianyi Gate would not be able to respond!
Such a resolute attitude made Jiang Linfeng immediately realize that it was impossible to do anything. The situation was urgent. If it was before, he would definitely choose Longxiang Temple as the second target, but now it was different. He looked at the mysterious woman with a veil next to him.

Zhang Rui glanced at Hong Lie, who had a look of struggle on his face. He finally stepped forward and knelt down reluctantly, saying, "Disciple Hong Lie, please protect me, Master!"

Ok?
The two Taoists guarding the gate were stunned. They had all heard of the reputation of the commander-in-chief Hong Lie. In the competition thirty years ago, he defeated Zhang Lingyu, the prodigy of their Tianyi Sect, and made him go into seclusion ever since. He has not set foot out of Tianyi Sect in the past thirty years.

Many disciples of Tianyi Sect gritted their teeth when talking about the arrogant Hong Lie and did not have a good impression of him. But... What did this guy just say?
That he is a disciple?
"Commander Hong!" The Taoist at the door frowned: "This is not a joke!"

Hong Lie lowered his head and said in a muffled voice: "Disciple Hong Lie, I want to see my master and ask for your protection!"

"Who is your mentor?" another Taoist nearby asked puzzledly.

"Taoist Qingyun."

"This..." The two looked at each other, and finally one of them said, "Commander Hong, please wait a moment."

Jiang Linfeng was also stunned. He had never heard of Hong Lie. He was actually a disciple of Tianyi Sect? Or a disciple of Qingyun Taoist?

He glanced at the mysterious woman again. Did she know about this a long time ago? Judging from the situation when he was questioned by the princess in the palace, Hong Lie should have just met this woman, but this guy knew Hong Lie's secret.

She can hide from the Four Spirits, walk easily in the inner courtyard of the imperial palace, know Hong Lie's past, and know Hua Ling's background. Who is she and what is her purpose?
-
When the Taoist walked quickly into the inner hall, he found that many elders stationed inside had already gathered in the inner hall, discussing Hong Lie's entry.

The Taoist walked aside obediently without saying a word. Hong Lie's voice just now was so loud, and the elders inside were not deaf, but now they did not choose to see Hong Lie first. Obviously there was a reason.

"Brother, your disciple is asking you for protection, why don't you say anything?"

The person asking the question was a fat Taoist priest on the right, with white hair and a youthful face, and a very kind expression. He was also the most popular elder in the sect and a potential candidate for the next leader: Taoist priest Ling Yunzi.

Sitting on the left is Qing Yunzi, the most senior elder in the Rūjī sect.

It is said that he missed the position of the headmaster because of an incident in the past. Even the current headmaster is very respectful to him. So even though Ling Yunzi is very popular now, he still sits on the right in front of this elder with the highest seniority.

"What else does a traitor who was expelled from the sect need to say? Just ignore him." Qing Yunzi closed his eyes and rested, unmoved.

Ling Yunzi frowned when he heard this.

In his opinion, this is a great opportunity!

From ancient times to the present, the Tianyi Sect has been unwilling to have any connection with the imperial court, but things are different now. Throughout the dynasties, the imperial court was dominated by sorcerer families, and occasionally used the martial arts sects, but they were used as lackeys and had an extremely low status. The Tianyi Sect has a long heritage, so it naturally disdains to do such a thing.

But this dynasty was different. Taizu of the Jin Dynasty was a heroic ruler who was unwilling to let the aristocratic families control the dynasty. He found another way to make use of the martial arts world and set up the Wu Mu, which gave great dignity and authority to martial artists all over the world. Under such circumstances, he thought it was actually inappropriate for Tianyi Sect to still stick to the old rules.

The imperial court did not attack the Tianyi Sect, but it did not support it either. The Longxiang Temple, which was on good terms with the imperial court, became a major sect that could compete with the Tianyi Sect in just a hundred years. Wasn't it because that bitter-looking man was willing to curry favor with the emperor?
Today, the Tianyi Sect wants the imperial court’s resources but is unwilling to curry favor with it. How could such a good thing exist in the world?
"Brother, there is a riot in the palace now. Something must have happened to the Li family. You have seen the consequences of the last time the noble families forced Emperor Hongzhi to death. The share of martial artists in the world decreased, and the noble families became rampant again. If what happened back then happens again, the current prosperous era that is good for martial arts in the world may be over."

"Before the Li Dynasty, there was only one Grandmaster in the world in a thousand years. Only in the current Jin Dynasty can martial arts flourish and Grandmasters emerge frequently. If it weren't for the obstruction of the aristocratic families, there would be more than five Grandmasters in the world."

"Junior brother, you have great ambitions." Qing Yunzi sighed, "But how can a small sect like our Tianyi Sect influence the situation in the world?"

"If you don't fight, you won't have any influence. Many results are the result of fighting!" Ling Yunzi hated the other party's evasive look the most. Taoism emphasizes inaction, but it is because of this kind of thinking that the Tianyi Sect has been neither good nor bad. Back then, the ancestor of the Li family was just the son of a farmer, but he was able to change the situation in the world. The Tianyi Sect has such a profound foundation, but it always misses good opportunities.

Nowadays, the aristocratic families have long been dissatisfied with the prosperity of martial arts in the world. If they don’t seize the opportunity, I’m afraid that after the Li family, there will be no chance for martial arts to come to the fore!

(End of this chapter)