Yefutidaolu

Chapter 430 You Are Invited
The aura that Qilin Rui Rui saw was not a malicious act deliberately released by Gao Jian, but rather a "mark" that naturally stained the depths of his soul after he had experienced some indescribable grand scenes, a mark that could not be completely washed away.

Just as a person who has spent a long time in a sea of ​​corpses and blood will inevitably carry a trace of rust and the aura of death even after being cleaned, Gao Jian carries the "rust" of countless worlds' birth and death, the level of which and the terror of its meaning far surpassing the ordinary.

Li Jun's cultivation was still shallow, and he couldn't perceive the terrifying vortex of life and death on Gao Jian's body as directly as Rui Rui could. However, he could already glean some information from the Qilin's unusual reaction. He suppressed the turmoil in his heart, took a step without making a sound, completely shielding the trembling Rui Rui behind him, and then stepped forward, revealing his usual smile: "Master, you've arrived."

His subconscious protective gesture made Rui Rui behind him breathe a sigh of relief. The fear in her round eyes gradually disappeared, replaced by a warmth and a sense of pride.

This is the demeanor of a saint! No wonder she chose him! Knowing that the person before him was dangerous and far more powerful than himself, he still stood in front without hesitation.

The brave are fearless; nothing surpasses this.

Gao Jian took in Li Jun's subtle movements and Rui Rui's reaction. He smiled and said, "A bit scary, isn't it? Sorry, this aura is a 'souvenir' brought from the depths of the Yellow Springs. I haven't found a way to completely conceal it yet. I guess it will be fine once I can completely control it."

He spoke frankly, without hiding his condition.

"It's alright." Li Jun waved his hand, indicating that it was nothing to worry about, and then got to the point, "So... Master, why did you come over so late?"

"I have something to tell you." Gao Jian walked to the stone table in the courtyard, sat down casually, and the moonlight shone on him, making the invisible vortex appear even more profound.

He got straight to the point: "Those aristocratic families in Cangzhou who are the most active, the Shui family, the Wang family... their top forces left in the mortal world, along with any possible hidden agents, should be wiped out in the near future. As for the underworld, their ancestors and core members will never be able to return."

His tone was calm, as if he were talking about a trivial matter, but the bloodthirstiness in his words sent a chill down Li Jun's spine.

"Next, I will cooperate with Lord Sima to take advantage of their leaderlessness and panic to uproot their power in Cangzhou." Gao Jian's gaze was sharp as a knife. "The property that should be confiscated will be confiscated, and the property that should be dismantled and confiscated will be confiscated. We will leave no future troubles. As for the personnel, the ringleaders and their die-hard followers will be severely punished according to the law to set an example for others. The rest of the collateral branches and dependents may be given a way out after screening, but they must be dispersed and resettled. We will never allow them to have any influence again."

His plan was clear and ruthless, full of iron-fisted methods, aiming to eradicate the malignant tumor that had plagued Cangzhou for hundreds of years in one fell swoop, leaving no possibility of its resurgence.

Li Jun listened quietly, his fingers unconsciously tracing the cold edge of the stone table, a bitter smile rising in his heart.

Just as he expected... ruthless and decisive, leaving no room for maneuver. He was a double-edged sword... capable of severing old despair, yet equally capable of burying new hope along with it!
He took a deep breath, preparing to speak and try to persuade Gao Jian to consider a more moderate approach that would reduce turmoil.

However, before he could even organize his thoughts, Gao Jian seemed to read his mind and continued, his tone still calm:
"I know what you're worried about. The central government of the Divine Dynasty will definitely react accordingly. Leave this pressure to me; I already have a plan."

He looked at Li Jun with a calm gaze: "You and Lord Sima should join forces to temporarily eliminate all the problems in Cangzhou and those petty scheming individuals. Take this opportunity to resolve them all. Streamline the canal transport, appease the people, and rebuild order. You are better at these things than I am, and you have done a very good job."

He paused, his voice slightly lower: "And during this time, you'll have to work hard. You'll need to deal with and appease all the miscellaneous matters, trivial matters, and even any potential backlashes. But there's no other way; since I've chosen to do this, the central government of the Divine Dynasty will inevitably turn its attention to me."

At this point, Gao Jian's gaze turned south, as if piercing through the endless night sky and landing on the magnificent divine capital that floated above the sea of ​​clouds.

“So—” He withdrew his gaze, looked back at Li Jun, and said, word by word:

"I will make a trip to the capital city of Yangjing."

"You're planning to go to Yangjing? To weather these storms?" Li Jun's brows furrowed, his voice filled with disbelief and deep worry. "This isn't something that can be done just by being bold, Master! To be honest, with the power we currently possess, we simply cannot withstand the infighting within the entire central government of the Divine Dynasty—"

He tried to use straightforward language to make Gao Jian recognize reality.

This is reality. If Gao Jian goes to the Divine Dynasty, the most likely outcome is that he will be captured and killed as a warning to others.

“There’s no need to be able to defeat them.” Gao Jian interrupted him, his tone still calm, but with an almost certain composure. “The central government of the Divine Dynasty will eventually choose to let go of Cangzhou, or at least, it won’t take the most extreme measures. Trust me.”

"Master—" Li Jun wanted to argue. He genuinely wanted to believe Gao Jian, but he was no longer the hot-blooded youth he once was.

He had witnessed the vastness and deep-rooted nature of the divine dynasty system, and understood that it was an existence that could not be shaken by one or two top experts. Even the legendary Earth Immortals seemed insignificant in the face of a true divine dynasty.

"Have you ever guessed me correctly?" Gao Jian didn't continue to explain, but simply asked in return.

Li Jun was instantly choked up, all the prepared words stuck in his throat.

Looking back on Gao Jian's journey, his actions, though seemingly reckless, often yielded unexpected results, always managing to break through in unbelievable ways. His judgments indeed repeatedly exceeded Li Jun's expectations.

Seeing Li Jun speechless, Gao Jian's gaze passed over him and landed on the colorful little beast behind him, which still looked somewhat fearful but couldn't help peeking out with curiosity.

"That's your Qilin, isn't it?" Gao Jian pointed.

“Yes, but not ‘whose’,” before Li Jun could answer, Qilin Rui Rui spoke up, her voice clear and transparent, “All living beings in the world are ‘sentient beings.’ When those truly powerful beings talk about ‘sentient beings,’ they don’t add even a single superfluous adjective.”

She gently shook her round head, as if explaining a very simple truth.

We are all 'living beings'. In the face of those beings who truly transcend the rules, there is no essential difference. So why distinguish between who is big and who is small, who is an ant and who is a giant? For the Qilin, such distinctions are meaningless.

This is one of the reasons why the Qilin clan maintains a consistent attitude towards all things in the world. Of course, another reason is probably their innate kindness, which makes them instinctively reject this kind of hierarchical division.

"A powerful being..." Gao Jian sighed softly upon hearing this, as if he had touched upon some distant thought. "What rank would be considered a 'powerful being' as you speak of? Rank five?"

Upon hearing this, the Qilin Rui Rui, which had been lecturing, suddenly widened its big, bright eyes, and the multicolored scales on its body seemed to light up slightly!
With a light leap, she darted directly from behind Li Jun to in front of Gao Jian, tilting her head back and eagerly asking, "You know about ranks?! You are—? You're from 'outside'?"

The "outside" she referred to clearly did not mean outside of Cangzhou.

“I learned a lot in Hell.” Gao Jian didn’t answer directly, but gave a vague reply, then asked in return, “But it’s pretty much the same. You and I, and those true dragons, should all be considered… from ‘outside the heavens,’ right?” He used a word that Rui Rui could understand.

Upon hearing this answer, Rui Rui's small nose twitched slightly. She circled Gao Jian twice, carefully sensing the chaotic yet powerful aura emanating from him. Her tone became somewhat doubtful: "You... you have that scent from that world, but it's not pure; it's mixed with too many things from this realm... So? You're here for the 'Battle for the Dao'?" "I don't know what the 'Battle for the Dao' is," Gao Jian shook his head, his tone frank. "It's just that I can't stand some things."

He had heard the term "struggle of paths" before, and vaguely understood that it meant a struggle between paths and ideas, but no one had yet explained its deeper meaning and the levels involved to him in detail. This seemed to be a key point, but the information he currently had was insufficient to piece together the whole picture.

His answer was simple and direct, yet it plunged Qilin Rui Rui into a brief silence.

She looked at Gao Jian, the fear in her eyes slowly replaced by a deeper sense of inquiry. This human seemed to be more complex than she had imagined.

Qilin Rui Rui tilted its head, seemingly weighing Gao Jian's seemingly reckless plan.

She is naturally averse to conflict, but she is also more perceptive of the essence of things.

Gao Jian gave her a vague feeling that this person might actually be able to create some miracles.

After thinking for a moment, she turned around gracefully and said to Li Jun, who still looked worried, "In that case, it's not that we can't let him give it a try. Ah Jun, let your master go to the capital, Yangjing. We just need to take care of the aftermath in Cangzhou, do what you do best—manage this place well and let the people live a good life."

Although Li Jun didn't quite understand the cryptic conversation between Gao Jian and Rui Rui about "rank," "the outer heavens," and "the struggle for the Dao," he had complete faith in Rui Rui's judgment. Seeing that Rui Rui had said so, he took a deep breath, suppressed his unease, and solemnly bowed to Gao Jian: "In that case... then, Master, please be extremely careful in the capital."

"Don't worry, I'm confident." Gao Jian smiled, his tone still calm, as if he were just going to visit his neighbor.

As for his grasp of the situation, it's actually quite simple.

His robes had clearly caught the emperor's attention, and coupled with certain actions by Lord Li Zoufang, he had likely been exposed.

Even a fool could figure it out: Lord Li Zoufang must have provided the information that Gao Jian had.

Investigating all financial transactions related to one's clothing would certainly require checking the accounts, and in the Divine Dynasty, the person in charge of the accounts was the Minister of Revenue.

If Li Zoufang doesn't cooperate when the Bureau of Astronomy retrieves data from the Ministry of Revenue, Gao Jian might actually be able to keep it a secret.

However, Li Zoufang chose to cooperate with the Emperor of the Divine Dynasty. Either he would betray Gao Jian, or he was confident that he could get away unscathed after handing over Gao Jian's information.

Gao Jian believes it is the latter.

That's why he said those words.

However, as soon as he finished speaking—

But then I noticed a breeze blowing outside.

As evening approached, a breeze arose, but it was no ordinary airflow; instead, it carried the crisp, melodious sound of flower bells!
The sound of the wind itself seemed to possess a spirit, playing the five notes of the pentatonic scale: Gong, Shang, Jiao, Zhi, and Yu. The harmonious and beautiful melody, accompanied by a visible pale golden radiance, scattered with the wind. Under this strange musical radiance, the starlight and moonlight seemed even brighter, reflecting in the valley and making the river seem to move gently without wind.

It was the dead of night, and all was quiet. The sudden sound of the wind seemed somewhat sacred.

As evening falls, a breeze rises, carrying the sound of flower bells.

The wind blows out five tones, and the wonderful sounds are scattered with the wind. Under the starlight and moonlight, the mountains echo and the valleys resound, and the wind rises and the water surges.

It was nearly midnight, and all around was quiet. Just then, a figure in white robes came from the east across the river.

It's important to understand that in this world, the rules of heaven and earth have long been stagnant. Under normal circumstances, there is no wind, rain, thunder, lightning, or the changing of the seasons. All natural phenomena require complex spells, sacrifices, or the reliance on certain powerful beings or magical artifacts to be activated.

For example, the "Grand Sacrifice at the Temple of Heaven" held annually by the central government of the Divine Dynasty had one of its core purposes as a means to gather the strength of the entire nation and promote the stagnant cycle of the four seasons.

For the vast majority of the people of the Divine Dynasty, "wind" itself is a rare miracle.

At this moment, the gentle breeze and melodious sounds that covered the surrounding area for thousands of miles were undoubtedly a grand "miracle" that transcended the comprehension of ordinary people! If someone could look down from a very high distance, they would see that, centered on Li Jun's small courtyard, within a radius of thousands of miles, a gentle yet undeniable breeze was blowing at the same time.

Across a vast expanse, a gentle breeze arose simultaneously—and the clouds dispersed.

A gentle breeze blows, and the clouds disperse.

Across a thousand miles of rivers and mountains, the moon and stars are all visible.

Amidst this grand spectacle, a figure quietly appeared in the very center of Li Jun's courtyard.

The newcomer was a woman dressed in simple white clothes. Her appearance was not particularly stunning, just pretty.

But between her brows and eyes, there is a natural sense of kindness and tranquility that makes people feel at ease and comfortable. The more you look at her, the more attractive she becomes.

She stood there, seemingly one with the world around her, which had just been cleansed by the gentle breeze.

A gentle and melodious voice, yet carrying an undeniable charm, softly emanated from her lips, clearly reaching the ears of the two people and the qilin in the courtyard:

"Mr. Takami, His Majesty requests your presence."

(End of this chapter)