Divine Emperor Demon Emperor

Chapter 425: Chapter 425: Battle of Wits and Courage

As Li Tian and He Yuntian’s plan in Wind City began to unfold, Lin Yun, back in the Flawless Palace, also made his move. And so, early one morning, Lin Yun sauntered over to Bai Zhicheng’s small courtyard.

Upon seeing Lin Yun arrive, Bai Zhicheng enthusiastically welcomed him into the main hall. The two sat down, and Bai Zhicheng even personally poured Lin Yun a cup of tea.

"Haha, Brother Lin, your visit to my humble abode truly brings it great honor," Bai Zhicheng said with a hearty laugh. Judging by his demeanor, it seemed he really considered Lin Yun a brother.

"Not at all, Brother Bai. You’re too kind. I have always been under your care, so it is only natural that I pay you a visit," Lin Yun replied with a smile.

The two made small talk for a while. Seeing them like this, any outsider would have surely thought they were the best of friends.

After chatting about many trivial matters, Bai Zhicheng suddenly said, "Brother Lin, since we are friends, there are some things I feel I must remind you about."

"Oh? Please, go on, Brother Bai," Lin Yun said upon hearing this.

"Brother Lin, are you aware that the struggle between the Ten Core Disciples is not as simple as it appears on the surface..." Bai Zhicheng explained at length.

According to Bai Zhicheng, the most powerful factions among the Ten Core Disciples were those led by Gong Lingqi and Chang Jing. The two had not only roped in many Direct Disciples and Inner Sect Disciples, but even other Core Disciples had joined their camps.

Furthermore, in the Flawless Palace, power alone wasn’t enough to win these struggles. After all, the Punishment Hall was always watching. If someone was caught with incriminating evidence against them, they would inevitably face the Punishment Hall’s discipline.

To put it simply, conflicts within the Flawless Palace were not like the brawls outside, where you could just kill anyone who annoyed you.

Inside the Flawless Palace, you had to compete not only in strength but also in wits and strategy. In other words, eliminating an opponent right under the nose of the Punishment Hall was not something that could be achieved through brute force alone.

This was why the Ten Core Disciples were all busy cultivating their own factions, winning over Direct Disciples, Main Seat Elders, and even Inner Sect and Outer Disciples.

After listening to Bai Zhicheng’s advice, Lin Yun feigned a look of sudden enlightenment. He raised his teacup and said to Bai Zhicheng, "Thank you for the guidance, Brother Bai. I’ll toast you with this tea in place of wine."

The two raised their cups and drank together. Then, Lin Yun looked at Bai Zhicheng and said, "Since you’ve reminded me of so much, Brother Bai, there is also something I wish to remind you about."

"Oh? Please speak, Brother Lin. I am all ears," Bai Zhicheng said, looking at Lin Yun.

"Brother Bai, you must be aware of my recent trip to Jincheng. However, while passing through Wind City, I heard something... something about the He Family," Lin Yun said, intentionally lowering his voice.

The moment he heard it was about the He Family, Bai Zhicheng no longer treated the matter lightly, and he listened intently to what Lin Yun had to say.

"Back when I was in Wind City, I was fortunate enough to be hosted by the Bai Family. However, I was ambushed and nearly killed by some traitors from the He Family. I was lucky to escape with my life, but just before these ’traitors’ died, I heard them say..."

At this point, Lin Yun leaned in close to Bai Zhicheng’s ear and spoke in an extremely low whisper.

Hearing Lin Yun’s words, Bai Zhicheng immediately shot to his feet. "Brother Lin, are you telling the truth?"

"It’s absolutely true. I captured them, and to save their own skins, those He Family ’traitors’ told me everything. They said they hadn’t betrayed the He Family at all. Their real mission was to kill me and frame the Bai Family for it. What’s more, they said the He Family has already made secret contact with the Death Row Shelter and has been working for them from the shadows," Lin Yun said with a firm nod.

Hearing this, Bai Zhicheng quickly calmed down after his initial burst of excitement. He sat back down in his chair, his voice once again composed as he said to Lin Yun, "Thank you for the reminder, Brother Lin."

"It’s nothing, it’s nothing. I only learned of it by chance. Since the He Family is the second-largest family in Wind City, I figured I should let you know," Lin Yun said with a smile.

After a bit more small talk, Lin Yun made an excuse and left. As he walked out of Bai Zhicheng’s courtyard, a faint smile appeared on his face.

’Bai Zhicheng is very smart, but also deeply calculating and exceptionally cautious. However, it is precisely because of these traits that he will soon leave the Flawless Palace for Wind City.’

’Because of Bai Zhicheng’s caution, and because this involves both the He Family and the Death Row Shelter, he knows that if he can find real evidence linking the two, the Bai Family can use the Flawless Palace’s authority to completely suppress the He Family. They might even be able to eradicate them in one fell swoop.’

’It’s too good an opportunity for him to waste. It’s a classic case of ’better to believe it and be wrong, than to not believe it and be sorry.’ He has to go back to Wind City to investigate. Besides, with He Yuntian having already left the Flawless Palace this morning, Bai Zhicheng is bound to be suspicious. It will only make him more determined to go to Wind City himself.’

Sure enough, just after Lin Yun left, Bai Zhicheng summoned a Direct Disciple and inquired about He Yuntian’s whereabouts. When he learned that He Yuntian had left the Flawless Palace for Wind City early that morning, claiming he had family matters to attend to, a flicker of doubt appeared in Bai Zhicheng’s eyes.

"He left the Flawless Palace this morning?" Bai Zhicheng muttered to himself.

The matter Lin Yun had raised could be either a huge deal or nothing at all. Honestly, Bai Zhicheng didn’t fully believe everything Lin Yun had said.

However, if it *was* true, then this was the perfect opportunity to eliminate the He Family. With He Yuntian also having left the Flawless Palace, Bai Zhicheng had already decided in his heart that he had to make a trip to Wind City.

Whether Bai Zhicheng believed it or not, just as Lin Yun had predicted, he left the Flawless Palace that very day, hurrying to Wind City after He Yuntian.

After finishing his cultivation, Lin Yun received the news while sitting on a stone bench in Lu Bingning’s courtyard. A smile touched his lips as he remarked, "That Li Tian... his predictions are practically divine. Bai Zhicheng really did rush to Wind City the same day."

Hearing this, Lu Bingning, who was beside him, asked, "Lin Yun, have you met with Li Tian?"

At her words, Lin Yun realized that Lu Bingning and Lan Xi hadn’t seen Li Tian in a very long time, and he’d forgotten to tell them about him.

He immediately smiled at the two women and said, "I forgot to tell you, Li Tian is in Wind City right now. I’ll take you to see him when some time has passed. Come to think of it, we all came from Yanhuang Academy together."

Hearing this, both Lu Bingning and Lan Xi smiled and nodded.

With Bai Zhicheng now out of the palace, the rest was up to Li Tian. As for Lin Yun, all he needed to do was focus on his cultivation in the Flawless Palace. After all, in two years, he had a life-or-death duel scheduled with Song Tianyang.

He only had two years to catch up to Song Tianyang—by no means an easy goal. To be honest, it would be incredibly difficult, but Lin Yun had no other path to take.

(Tenth update today! Please add to your library, vote with your Monthly Passes, leave a recommendation, and send a tip!)