Starting with being handed over to the Imperial Concubine, building a family with a thousand-year hi

"Elder Su, you can't say that!" Xiao Anran quickly dissuaded him, her tone urgent. "Lin Zhengying isn't a good-for-nothing like Situ Jing. He's the Sixth Elder of the Tianwu Sect, and now a newly promoted Grandmaster. His strength is formidable, far surpassing Situ Jing's! He's only in his early seventies, in the prime of his life for a Grandmaster, at the peak of his power, much stronger than those older Grandmasters!"

"So what if he's a Grandmaster in his prime?" Su Mu put down the book, stood up, a confident smile on his face, and spoke firmly, "Although he's young, he's only just entered the Grandmaster realm, neither in the middle stage nor at the Great Perfection! With my current strength, even if he were at his peak, he wouldn't pose much of a threat to me! If he really angers me, he won't even have a chance to kill me!"

He knew very well that Grandmasters were extremely rare in the Great Qian Dynasty, and most of them were older figures whose strength had long passed its peak and was gradually declining. Lin Zhengying's breakthrough to Grandmaster in his early seventies was not due to innate talent, but rather because he obtained a treasure in the underground palace and barely managed to break through with the help of its power. His foundation was not stable, and his strength was not as formidable as he had imagined.

Just as Su Mu stood up, preparing to stretch his muscles and move his body, a series of footsteps came from afar. Immediately afterwards, Xiao Anxun led a large group of people into the library. The person in the lead was none other than Lin Zhengying, the sixth elder of the Tianwu Sect.

Among the group that entered the library were Xiao Anxun and Lin Zhengying, the newly crowned Empress Lin Wen, the newly appointed chief eunuch Li Lianqing, and several royal experts and disciples of the Tianwu Sect.

Among them, the tall, burly old man followed closely beside Xiao Anxun. He wore a dark blue brocade robe with faint patterns embroidered on it. His steps were steady, as if each step would shatter the ground. He exuded a strong and domineering aura, his expression arrogant, and his eyes filled with condescending indifference, as if he did not care about anything in the world.

It's obvious without much thought that this person is none other than Lin Zhengying, the sixth elder of the Tianwu Sect, Lin Wen's grandfather, and the newly promoted Grandmaster.

As soon as Xiao Anxun entered the library, he stepped forward with an embarrassed smile and bowed to Su Mu, saying, "Lord Su, I brought the Sixth Elder here today for two reasons. First, I want to apologize to you again for what happened yesterday. Second, I want you to get to know the Sixth Elder. In the future, I hope the Sixth Elder and the Tianwu Sect will provide more assistance to the Xiao royal family and the Great Qian Dynasty."

After speaking, he turned around and respectfully introduced to Lin Zhengying: "Sixth Elder, this is Lord Su Mu, the Grand Eunuch of Loyalty and Filial Piety appointed by me, a Grandmaster-level expert. He once quelled the rebellion of Situ and saved the royal family during the sacrificial festival, making outstanding contributions to the royal family!"

Then, he added to Su Mu: "Elder Su, this is Elder Lin Zhengying, the sixth elder of the Tianwu Sect, and also the Empress's grandfather. He recently broke through to the Grandmaster realm and his strength is unfathomable. He specially came to the capital this morning to help our royal family."

Lin Zhengying raised his eyelids, his gaze sweeping over Su Mu, a fake smile on his face, his tone flat yet carrying an imperceptible arrogance, and slowly said, "Eunuch Su, I have long admired your name! I heard that you performed exceptionally well at the sacrificial festival, killing Situ Jing, a peak Grandmaster, with your Grandmaster cultivation. Your strength is extraordinary. I have come here with His Majesty to pay my respects to you."

Such flattering words, if spoken by someone else, might be genuine admiration, but coming from Grandmaster Lin Zhengying, they are subtly barbed—seemingly praising Su Mu, but actually implying that Su Mu is merely a Grandmaster-level expert, insignificant in front of him, and that his personal "paying respects" is already a great honor for Su Mu.

Xiao Anxun stood aside, sighing inwardly and looking helpless. He had long anticipated that Su Mu and Lin Zhengying would clash when they met, and he was reluctant to let Lin Zhengying come to the library. However, Lin Zhengying insisted on coming, wanting to personally meet this loyal and filial eunuch who was highly regarded by the emperor.

As a newly promoted Grandmaster of the Tianwu Sect, Lin Zhengying had arrived in the capital. His gaze swept across the entire area, but he still couldn't find Xiao Yuanhou. He had already made up his mind that Xiao Yuanhou must have perished. If Xiao Yuanhou were still alive, given their friendship, he would not have avoided seeing him upon learning that he had broken through to the Grandmaster level and was personally visiting the capital. He would have come to see him immediately.

"I'm sorry, Sixth Elder, that mysterious Grandmaster is not in the palace. As for his whereabouts, I have no idea." Su Mu shook his head slightly, then changed the subject and said, "However, if Sixth Elder is not in a hurry to leave the capital, perhaps you will have a chance to see him in the future."

"Eunuch Su, could you tell me more about that Grandmaster? Even just a few words would be helpful." Lin Zhengying's doubts deepened, and he was still somewhat unwilling to give up, so he asked earnestly.

"No." Su Mu shook his head without hesitation, his tone resolute. But as soon as he finished speaking, a thought suddenly struck him. He leaned closer and added mysteriously, "However, I can reveal something: that Grandmaster is not from our Great Qian Dynasty, but came from an unknown place."

"Oh?" Regner, standing to the side, was taken aback upon hearing this, a look of surprise on his face.

Lin Zhengying frowned, instantly falling into deep thought. Not a person of the Great Qian Dynasty, but from an unknown land? Could it be that he comes from the depths of the vast western mountains?

Not to mention Lin Zhengying, everyone present knew that the Tianyuan Continent was vast and boundless, and the Daqian Empire was merely an insignificant corner of this continent, as small as dust. More than ten thousand years ago, the Tianyuan Continent was an extremely prosperous place, with countries exchanging goods and engaging in frequent trade, and martial arts flourishing as a result.

However, precisely because of this, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was excessively consumed, and cultivation resources became increasingly scarce. As a result, no one was able to break through to the realm above Grandmaster. Even those who had already reached the Grandmaster realm could not break through their own limitations and could not venture into a wider world. They were forced to retreat to this limited land and spend their entire lives there.

Over time, what lies beyond the edge of the Tianyuan Continent, and whether other creatures and forces exist in those unknown lands, has long been forgotten. All that is known is that to the east of the Great Qian Empire lies the vast and boundless East Sea, to the west the endless, miasma-filled Cangmang Mountains, and to the north the desolate lands inhabited by barbarians. Beyond that, there is no way to explore.

Lin Zhengying remained silent for a moment before slowly speaking, his tone somewhat distant: "If Eunuch Su is not pleased with my presence, then I shall take my leave." He paused, then added with a grave expression, "Old Master Su, let me remind you again, the situation in the Great Qian Dynasty is currently turbulent, with various forces lying in wait and ready to make their move. Even you, Eunuch Su, have already been drawn into this storm. You must be more careful in the future and temper your brilliance, otherwise, even with your current immense power and strength, you may still wither away like a blooming flower, perishing and vanishing."