Chapter 1 Although Decided, Not Yet Departed

Although he had decided to go to the Barren Battle Realm, Ye Chuxiao didn't rush off impulsively.

Before going, he still needed to make thorough preparations.

First, he needed to arrange and delegate his current work. Although, given his current standing with Yuan Shen, the Minister of Justice, his position as the Chief Warden was as secure as Mount Tai, as long as he didn't want to move, he would not be moved. However, if his daily management work was not up to par, it would be dereliction of duty. Gossip was a minor issue; loss of benefits was a major one.

As for the Time Capsule, it couldn't be used too frequently, or it would be risky.

Those convicted officials with lighter sentences needed to be taken care of in advance to maintain good relations.

Although these people could only be considered casual acquaintances, they were still useful for inquiring about ordinary gossip or exchanging specific cultivation experiences.

Of course, he couldn't count on them for high-level secrets or cultivation insights.

The reason convicted officials were convicted was not only because they had committed crimes, but also because they were important... but not that important.

Moreover, these fellows were very cunning. Once Ye Chuxiao mentioned issues that involved key, sensitive points, they would evade the question and offer no real information.

Secondly, he had to use his available merits to exchange for some trump cards in the Six Fan School's vault. If he could also obtain some unowned Dao runes, that would be even better.

This time, he might be away for a slightly longer period, so he needed to inform some acquaintances.

At the Ministry of Justice's Six Fan School, Ye Chuxiao knocked on the door and, after receiving permission, entered Divine Constable Shi Huang's study.

Inside, Shi Huang was listening to a report from a Gold Badge Constable.

Ye Chuxiao stood quietly to the side, as if he didn't exist.

About ten minutes later, the Gold Badge Constable, whose hands were particularly thick, finished his report, gave Ye Chuxiao an envious look, and then pushed the door open and left the study.

After several incidents, Ye Chuxiao was already considered a 'confidant' valued by Shi Huang. Although he was still a Gold Badge candidate, his influence on the higher levels of the Ministry of Justice could not be underestimated.

In short, he had a promising future.

"You're here?"

"What's the matter, you rascal?" Shi Huang relaxed slightly, his gaze towards Ye Chuxiao gentle with anticipation.

Shi Huang's particularly friendly attitude might have been partly an act, but it undoubtedly made people more relaxed and comfortable.

Ye Chuxiao smiled and said, "A lot has happened recently, and I feel like my cultivation is a bit weak. I want to strengthen it."

Shi Huang nodded and said, "Entering the Profound Realm for the first time is indeed a bit ordinary. To get a Gold Badge, you must have at least the Transcendent Realm cultivation to be able to control people."

In other words, he directly promised Ye Chuxiao a Gold Badge, waiting for his cultivation to qualify.

Ye Chuxiao had not been in the Six Fan School for long, but the things he had done were all major events.

It was only right that Shi Huang made an exception and promoted him.

"The Dragon King and Dragon Queen have repeatedly applied to go to the summit of Yao Mountain. I have also discussed it with His Majesty. It is set two days later that Prince Zhao will invite them to stay for a few days at the royal manor on Yao Mountain in the form of a banquet. At that time, you will also go as a host!"

After Shi Huang finished speaking, he was worried that Ye Chuxiao didn't know the benefits, so he said more directly, "In the royal manor on the summit of Yao Mountain, there are secret realms such as the Snow Peak Hot Spring, the Enchanted Immortal Forest, the Myriad Treasures Garden, the Heavenly Wine Pool, and the Evergreen Orchard. If you can travel through them, it will be of great benefit to your cultivation."

The words that Ye Chuxiao had on the tip of his tongue were swallowed back.

Going to the Barren Battle Realm? It wasn't that urgent. It wouldn't be bad to enjoy the royal manor first.

So the words on the tip of his tongue turned, and he asked, "Has there been a conclusion to the matter of Divine Constable Lu?"

Shi Huang's expression darkened. "A lot of effort has been spent, but that eunuch's mouth is very hard. Now we can only start with his identity, but it involves the inner court, which is very troublesome!"

Shi Huang didn't plan to go into detail, and Ye Chuxiao didn't press him.

"What's the matter with you coming?" Shi Huang brought the topic back.

Ye Chuxiao said, "I just want to improve my cultivation and want to use my merits to exchange for some cultivation resources in the vault."

Shi Huang nodded and said, "You can go directly to Old Qin, the chief manager of the vault, and let him take you to Warehouse A-2. The warehouses below A-3 are all stocked with recently received items. Although they are also good, they are a bit too new and have too much fire energy. Warehouse A-2 was originally only open to Gold Badges and above. You are now a Gold Badge candidate, so you can barely be considered qualified to take a look."

As he spoke, he threw a token to Ye Chuxiao.

"Take my token, and you can get a 50% discount on the exchange price."

Ye Chuxiao took the token, feeling very happy.

Old Shi handled things... flawlessly!

He spent the public's money, gave away his own favor, and won people's hearts so smoothly.

"That's too embarrassing!" Ye Chuxiao said after putting the token in his arms.

Shi Huang completely pretended not to see Ye Chuxiao's inconsistent words and deeds, and naturally continued, "The idea you came up with has greatly alleviated the financial crisis of the Six Fan School, and even has some surplus. It's only right to give you some convenience."

After exchanging a few more polite words with Chief Shi Huang, Ye Chuxiao left Chief Shi Huang's office contentedly.

On the way to the vault, Ye Chuxiao felt uneasy, so he turned around and went to Yuan Shen's place again.

Half an hour later, Ye Chuxiao walked out of Yuan Shen's private archives with a jade tablet worth a thousand merits.

Inside Warehouse A-2, Ye Chuxiao started a shopping spree.

The materials stored in this warehouse were all accumulated by the Six Fan School over the years, rather than the 'fresh goods' received recently.

Compared with those fresh goods, the things here fully demonstrated the Six Fan School's deep foundation.

Perhaps it couldn't compare to the royal secret vault, or perhaps it couldn't compare to the Ministry of War's armory, but it could already be considered one of the top treasuries in the Great Heng Dynasty.

There were many things worth exchanging.

After much hesitation and consideration, Ye Chuxiao still prioritized his own safety. He first spent a great price to exchange for a pair of magic boots that solidified a high-level Instant Light Technique.

This thing usually collects solar energy for storage, and at critical moments, it can activate the Instant Light Technique to transform into light and travel. It is an excellent magic weapon for escaping and traveling.

Of course, there is an upper limit to energy storage. At critical moments, you can use burning Sunstone Gems as energy to support the duration of the light transformation.

So Ye Chuxiao also exchanged for several precious Sunstone Gems for emergencies.

In addition to the boots, Ye Chuxiao also exchanged for a Prison Suppressing Divine Artifact talisman, and some useful gadgets to help him escape, kill enemies, and trap enemies.

Until he had spent all of his merits.

After leaving the vault contentedly, Ye Chuxiao returned to the Ministry of Justice's dungeon and then went to chat with the retired old eunuch Feng Yu.

The old eunuch was, after all, someone who had been by the late emperor's side. He might be able to get some clues from him.

Unfortunately, the old eunuch was very shrewd. No matter how Ye Chuxiao tried to guide the topic to the inner court, this old fellow dealt with it flawlessly.

At the end of the chat, Ye Chuxiao didn't get any of the news he wanted, but he gave away a lot of unspeakable information for nothing.

"Forget it! It's boring. You've eaten more salt than I've eaten rice. It's too difficult to get information from you." Ye Chuxiao scattered the chess pieces in his hand, got up, patted his butt, and prepared to leave.

"So impatient?"

"Young man, don't be so hot-tempered. Sometimes getting information is like training a falcon. You have to find the right opportunity, first probe the other party's needs, and then start from the needs."

"It doesn't matter if you lose, what matters is winning once at a critical moment."

"If you win, you can turn the tables."

"General! I still won this game... don't think about going back on your word." Feng Yu accurately pushed aside the chess pieces scattered on the chessboard by Ye Chuxiao, and then pushed the pawn across the river forward.

Ye Chuxiao taught Feng Yu how to play chess, but now this old fellow played much better than Ye Chuxiao.

Ye Chuxiao curled his lips and said, "Okay! Tomorrow, I'll arrange for a few dancers to come in and dance for you. You said you don't have that function, so why are you still thinking about visiting brothels?"

Feng Yu smiled and said, "I just have this little hobby. Being able to meet an interesting person like you in this dungeon is not so bad as to end up in a miserable old age."

As he spoke, his expression became serious. "So, boy! You have to be careful and don't leave before me, otherwise if someone else takes over, maybe my peaceful days will be gone."

"For the sake of my peaceful days, let me remind you a few more words, don't get too close to those convicted officials. In prison, they are all your people. Out of prison, they are other people. The more you tell them, the easier it will be for them to betray you. Don't have any requirements for their moral character. How do you think they all got in here?"

Hearing this, Ye Chuxiao calmed down, clasped his fists at Feng Yu, and accepted his reminder.

In short, it was not worth mentioning, it was just that Ye Chuxiao had not fully adapted to the change in 'position'.

Before the Cloud Dream Lake Dragon Palace incident and the Lu Baimei incident, he was just an unimportant Chief Warden and an unimportant Silver Badge of the Six Fan School. The little bit of 'benefit' he had was insignificant to the convicted officials in the Ministry of Justice's prison.

For the sake of those comfortable days in prison, the convicted officials didn't mind playing with Ye Chuxiao, teaching him some things that were not critical in cultivation, and telling him some so-called court secrets... in fact, they were mixed with truth and falsehood, and they were not really secret.

At that time, Ye Chuxiao did not need to be too wary of the convicted officials because of his own 'weakness'.

Now it was different. Especially after the Lu Baimei incident, Ye Chuxiao showed his considerable connections. He could call three Intent Realm cultivators to help at once, and he was also Lu Baimei's savior, and was deeply valued by Shi Huang and Yuan Shen. Even in the capital city, such a person could be considered outstanding.

His own position was low, but his ability to radiate influence was moving and eye-catching.

It was enough for him to become a bargaining chip for those convicted officials to use for 'transactions'.

In other words, the questions he had asked the convicted officials in the past, whether in cultivation or other aspects, might have been compiled into a record and appeared on the desks of some so-called big shots, to be carefully analyzed and interpreted.

Thinking of this, Ye Chuxiao's heart sounded the alarm again.

He had to 'upgrade' himself, otherwise, once someone wanted to harm him, they could analyze a lot of means to target him from those information.

After leaving Feng Yu's cell, Ye Chuxiao thought about it, but still did not go down to the fifth floor of the dungeon to see Ying Shu or Jin Buyi.

Now was not the time to face them face to face.

The gap in realm was too great, and even if he was careful, he might fall into the trap.

Two days later, Ye Chuxiao drove a carriage with Shi Huang to send the Dragon King and Dragon Queen into the royal manor located on the summit of Yao Mountain.

Although it was located on the summit of the mountain, in fact, from two-thirds of the way up Yao Mountain, it was all within the scope of the royal manor and the royal hunting ground.

The manor and the hunting ground were connected, and in fact, they shared the same formation.

"Duke Zhenhai publicly stated that he would not let you go to the top of the mountain, so even if you enter the royal manor, you cannot climb to the top of the mountain to search. You can only search below the top of the mountain for the Cloud Dream Cauldron."

"As for the top of the mountain, Ye Chuxiao can do it for you. His realm is low, but his merits are enough. He can apply to soak in the Snow Peak Hot Spring." In the carriage, Shi Huang told the two dragons and Ye Chuxiao.

The Dragon King and Dragon Queen looked a little worried at this time, and did not have the joy of finally being able to enter the royal manor.

"What's wrong?" Ye Chuxiao asked.

Dragon Queen Yuan Meng gritted her teeth and said, "News came back from Cloud Dream Lake that the Turtle Chief Steward in charge of guarding the Crystal Palace has betrayed us. That old turtle... actually let that old castrated dragon go, and escaped into the East Sea with him."

"The overseas aquatic race is not compatible with our inland aquatic race. It will be even more difficult to go to sea to capture that old castrated dragon."

As she spoke, Yuan Meng was angry and puzzled. "That old castrated dragon is narrow-minded, mean, and ungrateful. I don't know what that old turtle sees in him, that he is willing to save him."

Yuan Jia was calmer and said, "The matter has not been concluded yet, so don't make rash judgments. The arrangements we made before we left were extremely proper. There is more than just the Turtle Chief Steward in charge of guarding. General Xia He, General Yellow Belly, and Mr. Qin Carp are also guarding the Crystal Palace. They all have blood feuds with that Yuan Zhen. Even if the Turtle Chief Steward betrays us, it is completely impossible to take the token from their hands."

For some reason, Ye Chuxiao was not surprised to hear the news that the old Dragon King had escaped.

That old fellow had a secret. Perhaps finding the missing Cloud Dream Cauldron could unlock part of it.

On the way from the mountainside to the summit, the originally wide broad-leaved forest gradually turned into a coniferous forest.

Cold-resistant plants grew on both sides of the road.

Looking up from afar, in the deep clouds, it seemed that the sparseness of the trees could be seen.

Only black stones and meadows underfoot.

But the snow line was not yet visible, and the road seemed to be still long.

In the deep mountain forest, thick fog was swirling and rising, completely covering some buildings in the depths of the forest.

The carriage did not stop. In order to avoid the two dragons, it deliberately chose a steed with Qilin blood to pull the carriage, rather than the regular dragon horse.

So compared to the speed of the dragon horse, the Qilin horse was slower in pulling the carriage, but it was more stable.

After handing in the invitation letter at the mountainside and entering the great formation, the carriage traveled for about an hour before it finally arrived at the manor.

On the summit of Yao Mountain, it seemed that there was a secluded little world hidden.