Chapter 272: Chapter 6: Elected to the Third Seat
The outcome of the vote was as expected.
After three rounds of voting, Wang Ping received an average of thirty-two votes for the Third Seat, placing him second. The cultivator from the Earth Cave Sect came in first with forty-three votes.
This meant that the two of them alone accounted for the majority of the votes. Among the other five candidates, the highest vote count was a mere three, which went to the cultivator from the host, Lishui Prefecture. The remaining four each received a single consolation vote.
As for the votes for the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Seats, the proportions were nearly identical to the vote for the Third Seat, as the candidates were simply retainers and disciples from the factions of the new Third Seat holders.
It had even become customary to only read aloud the vote counts for the Third Seat.
"Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Changqing and Fellow Daoist He Feng..."
Yang Shu rose and activated an Array on the wooden table before him. "The formal appointments of our two Fellow Daoists will be announced personally by the two Lords..." he said.
As he spoke, he moved to the left of his chair, respectfully clasped his hands, and announced, "We respectfully welcome Lord Xiao Shan and Monarch Rongyang!"
The others saw this and immediately rose to bow as well, calling out the titles of the two Lords in unison. Two illusory figures then appeared on the cloud beds at opposite ends of the long table. A few moments later, the ethereal forms solidified.
"We pay our respects to Lord Xiao Shan and Monarch Rongyang!" everyone chorused, bowing as one.
"Has the selection been made?"
The question came from Monarch Rongyang, seated on the left. He sat cross-legged upon his cloud bed, dressed in purple silk, his hair tied in a topknot with a simple wooden pin. He was clean-shaven with a square jaw, and his gaze was direct and unpretentious.
"Yes. After three rounds of voting, Fellow Daoist Changqing of Qianmu Temple and Fellow Daoist He Feng of the Earth Cave Sect have been elected to the Third Seat."
Monarch Rongyang gave a slight nod, his gaze falling on Lord Xiao Shan opposite him. He seemed to want to say a few words to catch up, but perhaps held back because of the juniors present. Swallowing his words, he gestured with an open hand. "Fellow Daoist, you may announce first."
"Mm."
Lord Xiao Shan’s current demeanor was aloof and distant, lacking the warmth and approachability he had shown in the courtyard Dao Field.
"Changqing!" he called out, his eyelids lowered.
"This junior pays his respects, my Lord!"
"You have cultivated virtue and performed good deeds for over two hundred years to reach the Heaven-Reaching Realm. You are a true talent of the Taoist Sect. For your upstanding conduct a century ago, you were appointed a Circuit Inspector. After another hundred years of service, you were named a candidate for the Third Seat. Today, you have lived up to all expectations and are hereby appointed to the official post. It is our hope that you will continue to serve with diligence and uphold the tenets of the Taoist Sect."
"Yes, my Lord!" Wang Ping replied, solemnly performing a formal Taoist salute. By the time he straightened up, Lord Xiao Shan had already vanished.
"Congratulations, Fellow Daoist!"
Zi Luan turned to congratulate Wang Ping.
Next was Ruan Chunzi, who stood beside Wang Ping. He clasped his hands and said, "We parted in a hurry, and two hundred years have already passed. I’ve been at leisure lately. When this is all over, I must visit you for a cup of tea. I hear the light tea you brew is considered one of a kind in the south."
"I will be sure to have a place ready for you!"
The moment he finished speaking, the room fell silent again, for Monarch Rongyang was still present.
Monarch Rongyang was considerate enough. Seeing that no one else was congratulating Wang Ping, he proceeded to announce He Feng Taoist’s appointment.
The wording was similar to Wang Ping’s. It first summarized his cultivation history in the most concise terms, then briefly stated his contributions to the Daoist Scripture Hall, and finally bestowed upon him his official title.
Afterward, Monarch Rongyang also severed the communication link.
Far more people congratulated He Feng Taoist; nearly every Third Realm Cultivator around him offered their felicitations one by one.
They spoke deliberately loudly, as if in mockery of Wang Ping.
But Wang Ping remained unmoved.
Perhaps because their juniors were watching, the congratulations did not last long. Yang Shu seized a lull in the noise to announce, "That will be all for today. Everyone may rest for three days. We shall meet again after that."
With that, he deactivated the Array on the wooden table.
"Congratulations, Fellow Daoist."
Zi Luan offered his congratulations again, then added, "There will likely be a meeting of the Third Seats shortly. You’d best be on time. And whatever is said in that meeting, do not reveal a single word of it to anyone outside—not even your master. It’s for his own good."
"Understood." After replying, Wang Ping’s gaze shifted to the window.
"Fellow Daoist Zuo has been waiting downstairs for you for nearly two hours. She should have good news; you should hear what she has to say." Zi Luan also glanced toward the window, a pleased smile on his face.
...
At the main entrance of the pavilion, Zuo Xuan held a square wooden box engraved with a Sealing Array. The Array on the box’s surface pulsed with streams of dark green light, which teemed with a rich life force.
"Daoist Zuo, Daoist Changqing will see you now. Please, follow me."
Two guards in yellow Daoist Robes stood before the pavilion’s main gate. Ever since Wang Ping and Zi Luan took up residence here on the second day of the ninth lunar month, the place had become a restricted area. No one was permitted to enter without Wang Ping’s approval.
"Thank you for leading the way, Fellow Daoist."
Zuo Xuan responded politely, but the cultivator in front said nothing more. He pushed open the door and walked silently into the pavilion, passing the first floor, which was filled with all sorts of documents, and then the second floor, where real-time intelligence was stored.
Finally, the cultivator leading the way stopped at the entrance to the third floor.
Zuo Xuan ascended to the third floor, holding the wooden box reverently with both hands. As sunlight from the window cast a beam upon her, she held up the box and reported to Wang Ping, "Wulang’s head is here. It was sent by express boat from Ningzhou Road. We can still read his memories completely!"
"You’ve been very thoughtful..."
Wang Ping’s face held a hint of impressed gratitude. Yu Lian, however, couldn’t wait and coiled her tail around the wooden box. Just as she was about to open it, she suddenly whipped her head around to stare at the southern sky outside the window.
Zi Luan, Zuo Xuan, and Wang Ping all did the same, their faces filled with astonishment as they stared at the southern sky.
A moment ago, an incredibly dense surge of Fire Spirit Qi had suddenly erupted. It was already spreading rapidly. Wang Ping’s brow twitched violently—Qianmu Temple was in that direction!
Just then, a cultivator in a blue Daoist robe from downstairs bowed low and called out loudly, "The surveillance system just registered a sudden eruption of Fire Spirit Energy exceeding the Second Realm from the direction of Qianmu Temple in Shang’an Prefecture!"
"Calm down!"
Zi Luan instinctively grabbed Wang Ping’s arm. "You have to stay calm, especially now! This could be a trap!"
Zuo Xuan added quickly, "There is a Second Realm Cultivator from the Daoist Scripture Hall stationed in Zhonghui City—"
A thousand thoughts flashed through Wang Ping’s mind. He shoved the wooden box into his storage pouch and, without hesitation, enveloped himself and Yu Lian in Wood Spirit Qi, transforming into a streak of light that vanished over the horizon in an instant.
After a moment’s thought, Zi Luan shot three signal flares—a type unique to his followers—into the air before taking off in pursuit. Zuo Xuan likewise leaped from the pavilion and fired three red signal flares of her own into the sky.
The next moment, more than a dozen identity tokens were projected high into the sky, a spectacular sight that caused the common folk nearby to stop and stare. Then, their owners all transformed into streaks of light, following behind Wang Ping and Zi Luan.
At the same time, the monitoring arrays and Barrier Devices placed throughout Nanlin Road began to activate...
Flying at full speed, Wang Ping seemed to move as fast as light itself. He completely unleashed his spiritual power, his soul driving a wave of Wood Spirit Qi that covered an area for dozens of miles around him. This, combined with his incredible speed, caused the very color of the sky to change along the route from Jinhuai Prefecture to Shang’an Prefecture.
Zi Luan, who was right behind him, was in a similar state. The dozen or so figures following them looked as inconspicuous as sparrows in the shadow of a great hawk.
The massive disturbance drew the attention of cultivators from every sect in Nanlin Road. In response, countless identity markers were projected across the horizon, as if to warn Wang Ping and Zi Luan not to harm them by accident.
「A quarter of an hour later.」
Wang Ping saw a sky filled with smoke and dust. He knew the place well—it was in the direction of Qianmu Temple!
"Don’t be reckless! Be careful!"
Yu Lian warned.
Wang Ping’s rapid advance halted, though not because of Yu Lian’s warning. He had spotted Yu Cheng Taoist hovering safely high in the air. His master’s Wood Spirit Qi was wrapped protectively around Shen Xiaozhu. Several iron bamboo swords circled him, and in one hand, he held a bloody, severed head, sealed by Wood Spirit Qi.
Beside him hovered a cultivator in a light purple Daoist Robe, the back of which bore the insignia of the Daoist Scripture Hall. This must have been the secret agent from the Hall whose identity was now public—the Second Realm Cultivator Zuo Xuan had arranged to station in Zhonghui City.
Below them, a ferocious fire raged. The magnificent front hall of Qianmu Temple was completely engulfed in flames. Most of the disciples inside had been injured, and those who managed to escape were fleeing toward the Inner Sect.
Zhonghui City had fared even worse. The southern district near the canal was now a wasteland, an entire half of it turned to rubble. The buildings, seemingly struck by some unknown Magic, had been reduced to dust, and the ground was pockmarked with blackened craters.
When Wang Ping arrived at Qianmu Temple, Yu Cheng and the purple-robed Daoist immediately flew over to him. Yu Lian transformed into her enormous true form, scanning the area for any potential dangers while conjuring Water Spirit Qi in an attempt to extinguish the blaze consuming the temple’s front hall.
"Greetings, Daoist Changqing!" the purple-robed cultivator said with a respectful bow.
"How could this happen?"
Wang Ping looked to his master, Yu Cheng Taoist. He had just been elected to the Third Seat—the seat wasn’t even warm yet—and now this had happened. If he failed to handle this properly, he would be forced to keep his mouth shut and make himself invisible at all future meetings. Otherwise, anyone and everyone would use this incident to ridicule him.
"I’ve read his memories. He was a pawn Wulang left at the base of the mountain. If Wulang met an unfortunate end, this man was to detonate the Fire Spirit Vein inside his body." Yu Cheng Taoist looked toward the newly arrived Daoist Zi Luan and held up the severed head. "He was half-crippled, but he still counted as a Second Realm Cultivator. If we hadn’t discovered him in time, he would have destroyed all of Qianmu Mountain."
Zi Luan waved away the purple-robed cultivator who was bowing to him, his eyes fixed on the head in Yu Cheng Taoist’s hand. "This is Wulang’s style, all right. But did he not once consider what this would bring down upon his own disciples?"
Just then, Yu Lian finished extinguishing the great fire on Qianmu Mountain. She scanned the area and announced, "I can’t find any trace of anyone else."
Wang Ping calmly gazed down at the city and the Daoist Temple. With a point of his finger, an All-Purpose Talisman imbued with the ’Cyan Wood Technique’ materialized. It then dissolved, showering down over the city and the temple grounds.
As new life began to sprout from the ruins and the injured townspeople and disciples watched their wounds heal at a visible rate, Wang Ping glanced at the figures arriving from all directions, gestured toward his Dao Field, and said, "Let’s go down and talk."
