Li Hai Mo pondered for a moment. The most likely candidate was indeed his nominal master, though his knowledge of the Mad Daoist was sparse—scant even compared to what Dong Jun knew.
"Did he have a very distinctive sword? One with a blade entirely crimson, like flowing molten metal," Dong Jun asked, looking at Yan Ling Ji.
Li Hai Mo nodded as well. The Mad Daoist's signature weapon wasn't Xue Ji but Chi Tong, a blade renowned alongside East Emperor Tai Yi's Frost Soul. If that was the case, Yan Ling Ji might even be his junior sister.
Yan Ling Ji thought back, but drew a blank. Who would casually draw their sword just to show a child? She shook her head—even whether the master had carried a sword was a foggy memory.
"I'll have someone send this bamboo slip back to Tai Yi Mountain for handwriting comparison. That way, we'll know who it was," Li Hai Mo said to Yan Ling Ji.
She nodded; this was the only surefire way to confirm the master's identity.
"What did you want with that elder? If memory serves, weren't you under Tian Ze?" Li Hai Mo asked next. What business did one of Tian Ze's followers have seeking a Daoist predecessor?
"I'm no longer with Tian Ze. After you all met with him, he disbanded the group," Yan Ling Ji replied.
Li Hai Mo was taken aback. He'd only sought out Tian Ze to keep him from being used as a pawn by the Mohists and the Six States. But what on earth had Tian Ze been thinking to dissolve the entire Bai Yue faction?
Dong Jun parted her red lips in surprise. What had she and Xiao Meng done out there to trigger Tian Ze into disbanding his own group?
"You have a past you'd rather not face, sealed away with Daoist arts. If I'm not mistaken, it ties to your inner fire source power," Hei Bai Xuan Jian said from under the tree. He spoke from hard-earned experience—both he and Ba Ling Long were living proof of such burdens.
Yan Ling Ji nodded. It was a tragedy sparked by her flame powers awakening; she'd avoided it ever since, suppressing it with Daoist seals.
"So, you hope someone can help you resolve it—and you've lost the ability to keep that fire source in check," Hei Bai Xuan Jian continued.
She nodded again. That loss of control was why she desperately needed to find the elder who could guide her, and perhaps show her the path forward in life.
"Few in the modern Heaven and Human Sects cultivate fire-attuned methods, aside from Mad Daoist He Guan Zi. The Yin-Yang School has more practitioners, though," Xiao Meng noted.
It wasn't that Daoism lacked fire-attuned techniques; simply, few pursued them, mostly in the Human Sect. But none of the Human Sect elders specialized in fire. The Yin-Yang School's Five Phases Elders, by contrast, included the Fire Phase's Great Si Ming, with dedicated cultivation paths.
"We can't confirm your identity yet, so we can't pass on our core Daoist classics for now. Stay in Xin Zheng in the meantime; once it's verified, we'll reach out," Li Hai Mo said after a moment's reflection.
Daoism's rule was clear: arts not lightly transmitted, passed down one generation at a time. That was why Chi Song Zi had sought out Bei Ming Zi to emerge and instruct Xiao Meng. Li Hai Mo's self-taught path was a rare exception. Yan Ling Ji needed a proper guide for her Dao arts, but aside from the vanished He Guan Zi, no one in Daoism fit the bill.
Yan Ling Ji nodded and was escorted back by Xue Nu.
"Her inner fire source is immense—if unleashed, she'd rival a heaven-human unity expert," Hei Bai Xuan Jian observed.
"Cultivating Supreme Goodness Like Water would squander her natural gifts. Switching to fire-attuned Dao arts would require shattering her current foundation with an enlightenment infusion, wasting her hard-earned cultivation," Li Hai Mo replied.
"The real issue is, no one can deliver that fire-attuned infusion. Even our Yin-Yang School's Great Si Ming couldn't manage it," Dong Jun added.
The Yin-Yang School was in a generational drought. The Mohists had struck hard, and Lord Long Yang's defection had left them without standout experts. Of the Five Phases Elders—Fire's Great Si Ming, Wood's Lesser Si Ming, Metal's Yun Zhong Jun, Water's Xiang Jun, Earth's Xiang Fu Ren—only Yun Zhong Jun and Great Si Ming were in place. The others lacked successors.
"I recall your Soul Roaming Dragon technique is fire-attuned, evolved to the Three-Legged Golden Crow stage. Outside of He Guan Zi, you're probably the farthest along in the fire path, aren't you?" Xiao Meng suddenly asked, turning to Dong Jun.
"You want me to infusion-enlighten a Daoist disciple for your sect? Dream on!" Dong Jun shot back. She was already a captive—now they wanted her to bolster Daoism's ranks? Treating her like less than nothing.
"Do you think you have a choice?" Xiao Meng pressed.
Dong Jun froze. The weak have no rights, sure—but I'm a heaven-human unity expert. Am I that shameless?
"We Daoists can't do much to you, but I bet the Mohists would love a piece," Xiao Meng threatened.
Dong Jun fell silent. She was still young, far from unyielding in the face of death—and it wasn't even about leaking Yin-Yang secrets.
"Speaking of, you've been captured this long, and no one's come from the Yin-Yang School? You must not hold much sway," Xiao Meng asked curiously.
Dong Jun shot her a look. I'm not an idiot. Look at your three heaven-human experts—send anyone, and it's a wipeout. With East Emperor Tai Yi and Duke Chu Nan confined, others were just cannon fodder. Even Duke Chu Nan might not overpower the three of them. If not for Daoism's mountain-sealing ruse, she'd never have danced into their trap. And who could've guessed they'd have the Absolute Heaven Formation, tailor-made to counter heaven-human unity?
The more Dong Jun thought, the more aggrieved she felt. All heaven-human unity experts should emerge to fame and adoration. But her debut? First clashing with Yan Ri Lao Ai, once Qin's top swordsman, then captured. Why the vast gap among peers? No wonder the enviably beautiful Lord Long Yang had bolted.
She was just like Gai Nie and Wei Zhuang—the most underwhelming generation. But she'd earned her heaven-human unity before venturing out! Yet the outcome was the same: starting on hell mode.
Xue Nu escorted Yan Ling Ji back, then spotted Han Fei—and instantly lit up with glee.
"What happened to you? Couldn't you just stay a quiet pretty boy? Oh, wait—I get it. You just offed the Emerald Tiger and reaped a bumper harvest, so you're role-playing as the divine beast Dang Kang to celebrate. Scholars sure know how to have fun!" Xue Nu doubled over laughing.
"Dang Kang? What's that divine beast?" Zi Nu and Nong Yu asked, intrigued.
As recorded in the Classic of Mountains and Seas: Eastern Classic, Fourth Section: "Qin Mountain abounds in gold and jade but lacks stone. The Shi River rises there, flowing north into Gao Marsh, teeming with eels and patterned clams. There dwells a beast shaped like a boar with tusks; it is called Dang Kang. When the Dang Kang calls out, foretelling great abundance, the world reaps a bountiful harvest." The Dang Kang resembles a wild boar and is an auspicious creature—its appearance guarantees crop plenty, so the common folk cherish sightings of it.
Ancient texts were rare rarities; even the Classic of Mountains and Seas wasn't for just anyone. The Zhang family, with five generations as chancellors, owned a copy. Xue Nu knew of it only because Li Hai Mo, while studying the Daoist Scripture, had flipped through the Classic to spin tales for her.
Han Fei's face darkened in utter misery. Divine beast Dang Kang? Your whole family are Dang Kangs! Where was this sharp tongue of hers before?
"What did you want with my master and uncle master?" Xue Nu finally asked, still chuckling.
Han Fei glanced at her before replying: "Just to know what your Daoism is up to. I finally pull Tian Ze to our side, and you lot disband him on the spot!"
"That was all Tian Ze—nothing to do with us. Master just chatted with him about the natural Great Dao, and he had an epiphany," Xue Nu said with a grin. She couldn't help it; the contrast of a handsome man turned horned Dang Kang was perfection.
"You expect me to buy that?" Han Fei said flatly. Casually debating the natural Great Dao? You really take me for a Dang Kang, huh?
"Whether you believe it or not is your problem. I just deliver the message," Xue Nu shrugged.
"That answer... classic Daoism," Zhang Liang and the others exchanged looks. Daoist ways were like this—Xue Nu might not even know Wu Chen Zi's plans, and Wu Chen Zi himself probably didn't either.
"We're gearing up to assassinate Ji Wu Ye. Can you all please not interfere this time?" Han Fei said seriously.
With the Emerald Tiger down, Ji Wu Ye was next on the list. But would Daoism leap in to sabotage again? Unavoidable worry—Daoism was too unpredictable a wildcard. The other schools' motives were readable, but Daoism? Even they might not know their own aims. They had to neutralize this factor first.
Xue Nu stared at him like he was a genuine Dang Kang, scrutinizing him before turning to Yan Ling Ji. "You didn't actually beat him senseless, did you?"
"No, I know my limits," Yan Ling Ji assured her.
"Then he must've gotten cocky on his own. Killing the Emerald Tiger and killing Ji Wu Ye are worlds apart," Xue Nu said, truly believing Han Fei had lost his head.
Back then, Seven States sword elites had stormed Lord Yan Chun's manor—half-step heaven-humans aplenty, top-tier experts in droves—yet only a handful survived. That was the Seven States' finest; did Han Fei think his Liu Sha crew could take Ji Wu Ye? Talk about overconfidence.
Daoism's Fourth Heaven-Human Dao Decree had executed Lord Chang Ping through encirclement, picking off guards one by one—no direct assault. And with tacit approval from all sides, including Qin, plus Chang Ping's own surrender, it had succeeded.
"You know what an array formation is?" Xue Nu asked. For old acquaintance's sake, she didn't want him marching to his death—might as well warn him.
"You think Ji Wu Ye has one?" Han Fei countered.
Array formations weren't widespread in the pre-Qin era; they flourished later, in Sui and Tang times. Unified under one rule, the Military School synthesized knowledge from all schools to refine them. The most famous? Zhuge Liang's Eight Formations Diagram. In the divided pre-Qin world, only the Hundred Schools held scraps of imperfect arrays.
Han Fei and his group had confirmed Ji Wu Ye lacked one—otherwise, Han wouldn't be so feeble. Even the Military School knew few. Han Fei's side had none either. Renowned arrays then? Mohist Earth and Marsh Twenty-Four Formations; Daoist Two Forms Sword Array, Three Talents Sword Array, and Zhou Tian Starry Vault Grand Array; Mohist Three Thousand Sword Array. The rest? Unheard of.
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