Starting with helping Zhao Kai ascend the throne in the snow

"It's time to make a trip to the Eastern Yue Sword Pool and see what their attitude is. If they can be used by me, that would be great. If not, then I'll just have to make them disappear." After putting down the letter, Shen Qing looked at the location of the Eastern Yue Sword Pool on the map and muttered to himself, his eyes narrowing slightly as if he were sizing up prey.

During his few days in Lujiang County, Shen Qing realized one thing: if he wanted to bring Lujiang County completely under the control of the Yue King's Mansion, the Eastern Yue Sword Pool was an insurmountable hurdle.

Therefore, Shen Qing planned to take advantage of the time before the martial arts examination began to deal with the matter of the Dongyue Sword Pool as soon as possible.

As news of the upcoming martial arts examination spread, more and more people from the martial arts world flocked to the scene, and the entire Yuezhou became chaotic due to their arrival.

Where there are people, there is a world of intrigue; where there is intrigue, there are grudges. These people might not meet on ordinary days, but when they do, they have to settle for who has the bigger fist.

Therefore, even though Han Shengxuan was in Kuaiji County to suppress the fighting on the surface, the fighting in private was still rampant, and every day there were martial artists injured or even killed because of the brawls.

The patrol teams originally used to maintain order in the city were expanded threefold, and hundreds of disobedient martial artists were arrested, filling the prison to the brim, which barely made them think twice and dare not act openly anymore.

Zhao Kai could only arrest these people, not kill them, otherwise it would trigger a crisis of trust among martial artists. Moreover, there had to be a limit to arresting them. If too many people were arrested, it would cause everyone to feel insecure.

This caused Zhao Kai's resentment towards Shen Qing to grow day by day, and he wished he could write to Shen Qing every day to complain.

In fact, as news of the martial arts examination spread, it wasn't just Kuaiji County that suffered; the entire Yuezhou region became much more chaotic. It's just that other places weren't the main venues, so the impact wasn't as severe.

West of Lujiang City.

Looking at the magnificent buildings built against the mountain in the distance, Shen Qing felt a surge of pride. Dongyue Sword Pool, the top sword sanctuary in the martial arts world that has dominated the southeast for hundreds of years, was now his home.

From afar, Shen Qing could see that the gates of the Dongyue Sword Pool were wide open, with disciples standing on both sides to welcome guests. The elders of the Sword Pool, led by Sect Master Song Nianqing, were ready to greet the guests, giving the Yue King's Mansion full face.

Yesterday, Shen Qing informed Li Yibai of his intention to visit today, in order to observe the attitude of Dongyue Sword Pool and prepare for how to deal with Dongyue Sword Pool in the future.

Seeing this, Shen Qing nodded in satisfaction. At least for now, the attitude of Dongyue Sword Pool was quite good. After all, he was representing the dignity of the Yue King's Mansion at this moment, and it was naturally best that Dongyue Sword Pool was so sensible.

Strangely, on the other side of the elders stood two middle-aged men dressed in blue brocade robes and a white-faced, beardless, plump old man, who seemed somewhat out of place, which puzzled Shen Qing.

"My name is Shen Qing. Today, I have come to visit the Sword Pool of Dongyue on behalf of King Zhao Kai of Yue. I hope that the sect leader and elders will not blame me for disturbing you without cause." Since others have given him face, Shen Qing is not the kind of person to put on airs. He immediately dismounted and took the lead in greeting them.

As a time traveler, he didn't have the pretentious manner of the ancients; he preferred to act directly and straightforwardly.

"Lord Shen, you are too kind. It is my Dongyue Sword Pool that is deeply honored by your presence and it brings glory to our humble abode," said an elderly man with a goatee and a shrewd expression as he stepped forward.

"Brother Shen, this is Zhang Fakui, the second elder of our sect, who is in charge of handling external affairs. This is my master and also the sect leader. This is the third elder, Qin Shiming..." Li Yibai, who had a good relationship with Shen Qing, stepped forward and introduced the people from Dongyue Sword Pool to him one by one.

"Brother Shen, it's been a long time."

"Brother Shen, we meet again."

During this time, Song Tinglu and Shan Eryi also greeted Shen Qing warmly from the crowd.

Each time Li Yibai introduced someone, Shen Qing would nod with a smile to avoid being impolite.

After the introductions, Shen Qingxiao's face was almost frozen, but he had a general understanding of the important figures in the Dongyue Sword Pool.

As a grandmaster of swordsmanship, Song Nianqing was taciturn and possessed the strength of a first-grade Finger Profound Realm expert. He was indifferent to everything, which was a common trait among many swordsmen. Shen Qing could understand this; only those who focused their minds solely on the way of the sword could reach the pinnacle of swordsmanship. Of course, exceptionally talented individuals like the Old Sword God were a different story.

Song Nianqing devoted himself entirely to the sword path, so the sect's affairs, large and small, naturally fell to Zhang Fakui. He needed to handle all sorts of miscellaneous matters within the sect, maintain relationships with major sects in the martial arts world, and also manage affairs with the imperial court, thus developing a remarkable ability to navigate all situations. It's no exaggeration to say that the smooth operation of the Dongyue Sword Pool, besides the sect's high-level combat power, owes a large part of the credit to Zhang Fakui. Without his hard work, the Dongyue Sword Pool probably wouldn't even be able to maintain basic expenses, let alone become one of the two great sword-wielding holy lands in the world. However, due to the burdens of worldly affairs, Zhang Fakui only possessed the strength of a top-tier second-rank cultivator.

Third Elder Qin Shiming is mainly in charge of the sect's sword-making affairs. He is a pragmatic and top-notch sword-making master. Just like Song Nianqing, who is obsessed with the way of the sword, he puts all his mind into the path of sword-making. Therefore, he often forges iron and has developed a Vajra physique, making him a strong person at the first-grade Vajra realm.

As for why the Grand Elder of Dongyue Sword Pool was not present, this matter involves an interesting anecdote about Dongyue Sword Pool. It is said that the previous sect leader intended to step down from the position, but neither the eldest brother, Chai Qingshan, nor the junior brother, Song Nianqing, wanted to take over the position, fearing that worldly affairs would entangle them and affect their swordsmanship. Therefore, Chai Qingshan fled overnight and hid for several years until Song Nianqing inherited the position of sect leader. He only reappeared after that, and was therefore somewhat ashamed to see Song Nianqing. When there was nothing to do, he would usually claim to be traveling and honing his swordsmanship.

"Please come in, Lord Shen. I have already ordered tea to be prepared. We can enjoy tea and chat over the years," Zhang Fakui said, gesturing for Li Yibai to enter after the introductions were completed.

"Hmph, I thought the Prince of Yue's mansion had sent some important figure. I didn't expect it to be just a greenhorn who hasn't even grown his hair yet." Just then, a sarcastic voice suddenly rang out, silencing the entire scene.

Upon hearing this, Shen Qing's smile vanished instantly. He then looked in the direction of the voice and saw that the one who spoke was the white-faced, beardless, plump old man, who was now looking at him with a mocking expression.

Seeing this, Shen Qing quickly pondered, but still couldn't guess the other party's origin. However, he was certain that this person was not from the Dongyue Sword Pool. Otherwise, the Dongyue Sword Pool would not have made such a grand welcome for him while sending someone to mock him. That would have been completely pointless.

“Eunuch Gao, please be careful with your words. Lord Shen is a distinguished guest of Dongyue Sword Pool. It would be best if you did not offend him.” Zhang Fakui stepped forward with an ugly expression. If he did not step forward to explain after the eunuch’s commotion, Shen Qing might think that Dongyue Sword Pool was behind it.

"Tch, he's just a greenhorn. So what if I offended him? What? Does Dongyue Sword Pool want to attack me because of him?" The fat old man's disdain was evident on his face as he faced Zhang Fakui's words.

"You..." Zhang Fakui's face turned ashen with anger. He clenched his fists tightly, but in the end, he chose to give up.

Song Nianqing and Qin Shiming seemed to take this in stride, while the disciples of the Dongyue Sword Pool around them were filled with righteous indignation, but were calmed down by Li Yibai and Zhang Fakui.