Hunyuan Immortal Sect

Chapter 21 The dust has settled
Xuanyuan Sect is the overlord of Pingyuan County. It has set up similar offices in various cities in Pingyuan County to safeguard the interests of Xuanyuan Sect in each city.

Liu Zikai is the spokesperson for Xuanyuan Sect in Changping City.

Seeing him coming, Qin Yang took the initiative to greet him and bowed to him: "Fellow Daoist Liu."

"Senior Liu." Zhang Hunyuan, as if he had seen a savior, quickly stepped forward, bowed respectfully, and then could not wait to complain: "The Yuanyi Sect, arrogating their power, not only interferes with our internal affairs, but even leads most of their disciples into our mountain gates. I implore you to take action for our sect."

Seeing this situation, everyone knew that Liu Zikai must have been invited by Zhang Hunyuan. No one expected that he had such a trick up his sleeve. No wonder when Qin Yang arrived, he was only angry but not panicked.

As the chief of Xuanyuan Sect stationed in Changping City, Liu Zikai was treated with respect by everyone in Changping City, and no one dared to disobey him.

If he helped Zhang Hunyuan, Qin Yang would have no choice but to leave in disgrace.

Things suddenly took a turn for the better, and Song Xian and the others all looked happy. Fortunately, they did not leave the team like Yu Lian and the others, otherwise they would be ashamed to death now.

The disciples who walked to Feng Zihua all had red faces and lowered their heads.

On the other hand, Chang Jinmian's face looked very ugly with a dark pale expression.

As everyone expected, Liu Zikai was indeed invited by Zhang Hunyuan.

The founder of Qingyun Sect, Chang Qingyun, was originally a disciple of Qianqing Sect and had many connections in Qin State. After his death, his son Chang Zhi succeeded him as the head of the sect and also inherited some of Chang Qingyun's connections.

By the time it came to Zhang Shilin's generation, he no longer had many connections, but because of Chang Zhi, he still maintained a certain relationship with Liu Zikai, the person in charge of Changping City, for many years.

Because Master Liu Zikai has a good relationship with Chang Qingyun, he also has a close relationship with Chang Zhi.

On that day, Chang Jinmian insisted on waiting seven days before holding the succession ceremony for the new leader. Zhang Hunyuan and Zhong Wenyuan suspected that he had other intentions. To be on the safe side, they secretly sent someone to report the death to Liu Zikai and invited him to attend the succession ceremony for the fourth generation leader of Qingyun Sect.

Unexpectedly, Chang Jinmianguo had ulterior motives. Not only did he bribe the disciples who were in charge of the sect's treasury to testify, he also secretly colluded with Yuanyi Sect.

Liu Zikai put his hands behind his back, glanced at the crowd, and said calmly, "Fellow Daoist Qin, what are you trying to do by having so many disciples from your sect flock to the Qingyun Sect's mountain gate? If I remember correctly, the Qingyun Sect has been established for less than three hundred years. Fellow Daoist Qin, you must remember the laws of the Qin State! Could it be that you don't take the laws of the Qin State seriously?"

"How dare I? Our sect has been established for many years and has always abided by the law, never daring to transgress. Today, it was Qingyun Sect Elder Fellow Daoist Chang Jinmian who invited me here. Our disciples all entered openly, and it was Elder Chang who activated the mountain protection formation to invite us in. Since then, we have not engaged in combat with the Qingyun Sect disciples."

"Is that right?"

"Yes." Chang Jinmian replied immediately: "The Taoist friends from Yuanyi Sect were all invited by the younger generation."

"If that's the case, then I won't be involved. You should resolve your sect's internal conflicts yourselves."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Hunyuan's face changed drastically. "Senior, our sect's Elder Chang is colluding with the Yuanyi Sect to plot rebellion. A large number of Yuanyi Sect disciples have entered our sect's mountain gate just to deal with me. How is this different from attacking the mountain gate? Senior, I beg you to consider the three generations of inheritance of our Qingyun Sect and make a decision for me. Please ask the disciples of the Yuanyi Sect to leave."

Liu Zikai said calmly, "Yuan Yi Zong is the guest of your sect's elders. How can I drive them away? You should resolve your internal grievances and personal hatreds among yourselves."

When Song Xian and others heard what he said, they were all shocked and their faces turned pale.

They originally thought that Liu Zikai was a helper invited by Zhang Hunyuan, but they didn't expect him to have such an attitude.

Chang Jinmian was overjoyed: "Senior, you are wise and fair in your dealings. I respect you deeply."

When Zhang Hunyuan saw Liu Zikai's attitude and Qin Yang standing calmly beside him, he immediately reacted.

The news that he had sent someone to invite Liu Zikai must have been known to Emperor Yizong of Yuan, so he had made preparations in advance. I don't know what benefits he promised to bribe Liu Zikai to keep him out of the matter.

This is because he had given Liu Zikai a lot of treasures before.

If Liu Zikai had not received any benefits from Yuan Yizong, he would definitely be biased towards him.

"If anyone still refuses to change their ways and decides to follow Zhang Hunyuan in rebellion within the next ten minutes, don't blame me." Chang Jinmian was afraid of further complications, so she immediately shouted, "Ten, nine..."

"Wait." Liu Zikai interrupted him.

"Senior, do you have any instructions?" "The Qingyun Sect and I have some connections, and fellow Daoist Zhang Shilin and I are acquaintances. I really can't bear to see you killing each other before his body is cold. I came here today to resolve this conflict." Liu Zikai said.

This statement undoubtedly showed that he had long been aware of Chang Jinmian's collusion with Yuan Yizong and predicted that there would be a drastic change in Qingyun Sect today. It also indirectly confirmed that he had indeed benefited from Yuan Yizong.

Zhang Hunyuan gritted his teeth and said, "Resolve the conflict? I wonder what you mean by that, Senior? Chang Jinmian betrayed his master and ancestors, betrayed the sect, and colluded with the Yuanyi Sect. It's obvious that he wants to kill me."

Chang Jinmian shouted, "Zhang Hunyuan, stop your nonsense and your attempts to confuse right and wrong. It's clearly you who stole from the sect's treasury, pocketing all the treasures. Yet, you're still unaware of your guilt, and you're even committing treason by gathering your followers and plotting rebellion."

Liu Zikai stopped the two from arguing. "I don't know the right and wrong of Qingyun Sect's internal affairs. Fellow Daoist Zhang, judging by the current situation, you have no chance of winning. If I had arrived a moment later, I'm afraid you would all be dead. At this point, there's no turning back. For now, the best course of action is for you to relinquish your position as Sect Leader."

Zhang Hunyuan was furious and was about to argue, but Liu Zikai waved his hand and said, "Listen to me. Your father and I have some friendship. If you can give up the position of Qingyun Sect's headmaster, I will ensure your safety."

"You will certainly say that Fellow Daoist Chang and Fellow Daoist Qin will not kill you while I am here today. But I am afraid that after I leave, they will not be able to keep you."

"How about you quit Qingyun Sect and leave Pingyuan County?"

"I do have a good place to go. You probably don't know it yet. Some time ago, the Muhe Grassland sent an envoy to sign a peace treaty with the Qianqing Sect. This time, the Muhe Grassland was very sincere and made great concessions, bringing all the previously disputed territories under the jurisdiction of the Qin State."

"With the signing of this peace agreement, we no longer have to worry about the Muhe Grassland invading our Xishu County for at least a few hundred years. Therefore, the Qianqing Sect has decided to relocate some sects from the inland areas of Xishu County to fill the new territory assigned to Qin."

"Of course, the Qianqing Sect also knows that the western border is a cold and harsh place with a harsh climate. It can't compare to the comfort and ease of the inland. I don't think many people would want to go there. Therefore, they offered very generous conditions."

"Any sect willing to relocate to the western border to strengthen the population and defenses there will be granted the right to establish a new sect and the same three hundred years of protection as the new sect."

"For three hundred years, no force will be allowed to capture the mountain gate in any form or under any pretext."

"How's that? That's a generous offer, isn't it? If Fellow Daoist Zhang is willing to lead your people to the newly established territory on the western border, I can issue you a certificate and report it to the higher authorities, allowing you to migrate there and establish yourself."

Zhang Hunyuan remained silent, knowing that if he did not agree, he would surely die today, but he was unwilling to give up the position of the headmaster of Qingyun Sect to Chang Jinmian for nothing.

"Now that you've thought it through, I can only help you up to this point. After all, this is your internal matter, and I shouldn't interfere. However, I have a personal connection with several generations of Qingyun Sect masters, and I don't want you to end up with your head and body torn apart. I'll give you one stick of incense to discuss this matter."

"Thank you, senior."

"Since I'm here, I might as well go and burn some incense for Fellow Daoist Zhang Shilin. You all listen, you must not take action against them before Fellow Daoist Zhang Hunyuan makes a decision." After Liu Zikai said this, he casually pointed to a disciple of Qingyun Sect and asked him if he knew where Zhang Shilin was buried. Then he asked the disciple to lead him there.

.........

"Hunyuan, as long as the green mountains remain, there will be no fear of running out of firewood. Judging from the situation, Yuan Yizong has already bribed Senior Liu, and he will definitely not help us. If we don't agree to his conditions, the result will be death. The only way to make any plans is to save our lives first." Everyone gathered together, and Zhong Wenyuan spoke first.

Chang Jinmian has already announced that everyone else can continue to stay in Qingyun Sect, but he and Zhang Hunyuan have no way out, so he has no choice at all.

"Junior Brother Lin, what do you think?" Zhang Hunyuan did not respond, but looked at Lin Zixiang.

In fact, he had already made up his mind, or he had no other choice but to agree to Liu Zikai's conditions and go to the western border.

However, others might not be willing to leave with him. The western border is a cold and harsh place, and there will definitely be no good resources or territory for them to go there this time.

Qingyun Sect is a good place. Apart from other things, this second-level spiritual vein alone is worth all the assets of some small forces.

So what he needs to do is to unite everyone's hearts. Lin Zixiang himself has reached the late stage of Qi Refining and has the rare dual-attribute spiritual root qualifications, so he is the first person he wants to win over.

"Wherever senior brother goes, I will go. Even if we stay here, there is no guarantee that we will not be liquidated by Chang Jinmian. Instead of that, it is better to go to Xijiang County together and try our luck. Maybe we can make a name for ourselves." Lin Zixiang understood the meaning of Zhang Hunyuan's words and immediately expressed his opinion.

"What do you think? If anyone doesn't want to leave, I won't force them, nor will I blame them." Zhang Hunyuan said with some guilt, "In the final analysis, it's all my incompetence. I never thought that old dog Chang Jinmian would collude with Yuanyi Sect for the position of headmaster, and end up like this. But if everyone is still willing to trust me, I promise to restore the reputation of our Qingyun Sect."

Everyone expressed their willingness to go together.

Just now, when life and death were at stake, everyone did not leave. Now that their lives are guaranteed, they are even more fearless. Besides, going to Xinjiang is not necessarily a bad thing. As George Lam said, staying here may not be a good thing. If things go wrong, Chang Jinmian may liquidate them.

(End of this chapter)