"Master is currently unavailable to receive guests," Qingcuo said coolly.
"If there's something important, you can tell me and I'll pass it along."
Although Chen Kuang had never explicitly asked her to pledge her loyalty, Qingcuo had already fully accepted him as her third master.
When speaking directly with him, she favored efficiency, remaining silent most of the time and only reporting essential details or nodding in response.
But in front of outsiders, it was necessary to clearly establish her role. Otherwise, it could cause unnecessary confusion.
She personally didn't mind, but having a Sea-Cleaving Realm expert refer to someone not even in the Innate Realm as "Master" was something that defied common logic.
Zhou Yanwei, also a Sea-Cleaving Realm cultivator, twitched at the corners of his mouth, suddenly getting the illusion that perhaps this man was also a hidden royal.
He himself was the legitimate second prince of the Zhou Dynasty, yet even he had only one old, near-retired Master Realm guard left in service.
In his previous fight with the young and vigorous Di Wu, Zhou Yanwei had clearly felt his limitations.
And among the experts in his service, few were stronger than Sea-Cleaving Realm, and those who were mostly did it for benefits, not true loyalty.
To cultivate his own power without being too obvious, he had to keep a low profile, lest he be accused of forming a private army.
And even if he did recruit top talents, they were often seasoned veterans who could not be fully trusted.
Someone like Qingcuo, young, powerful, proud, with ambitions to challenge the Canglang Evaluation, was not someone easily kept under another's command.
If she were merely a secret guard sent by the Liang royal family to protect the little princess, that would be understandable.
But her words made it clear, her "Master" was Chen Kuang.
Just how capable was this man?
With no background, he had somehow convinced a Sea-Cleaving Realm genius to serve him loyally as a maid.
If he had even a bit of a noble origin, wouldn't that be terrifying?
Zhou Yanwei and Lin Eryou exchanged a glance. Lin Eryou then handed over the list he was carrying.
"This is important. Please be sure to deliver it to your master. Tell him, the people on this list are..."
Qingcuo took it, glanced over it, and finished the sentence: "These are the ones the prefect plans to offer as sacrifices to the Lake Dragon King."
Lin Eryou blinked. "You knew... Wait, he figured it out?"
Qingcuo nodded calmly.
"He said, if you two came to see him, there could only be one reason-"
"To save people."
As soon as he heard they had gone to the prefect's manor, Chen Kuang had guessed their purpose.
First, he knew they wouldn't go to chat idly. Second, they certainly wouldn't go there to collaborate.
Lin Eryou, while unpredictable and opportunistic, was a person of interest.
Anyone interesting would not waste their time doing uninteresting things.
And the prefect and Enlightenment Envoy were precisely the kind of boring, bureaucratic figures one would avoid unless necessary.
As for Zhou Yanwei, he was rare: someone who remained loyal and chivalrous despite being a prince. That day on the boat, believing Lin Eryou would betray Chen Kuang, he stepped up without hesitation to give Chen Kuang time to escape.
An interesting and righteous pair.
In such a moment, what would they be doing at the prefect's manor?
Obviously, they were trying to save lives.
But with just the two of them, it was a fool's errand.
And even that disregards the matter of political stance.
Chen Kuang was sure they'd come back to seek his help, and with it, good news.
What items were important enough to retrieve directly from the prefect?
There were only two: the prefect's head, or what was inside of it.
With the Enlightenment Envoy and the Canal Gang backing him, the former was useless.
So only the latter remained: the full list of those selected for sacrifice.
Lin Eryou shook his feather fan and let out a long breath.
"What else did your master say?"
He had thought this move of his would be surprising, at least matching wits with Chen Kuang on the same board.
But arriving here, he realized he had been completely predicted, like a piece moved by someone else's hand.
So all of Chen Kuang's earlier awkwardness must've been due to being caught off-guard on the boat, not due to a lack of capability.
And this only confirmed Lin Eryou's earlier suspicion.
Chen Kuang must already be in contact with one of the last hidden factions from Liang.
If he had deduced this without access to intelligence, then all the top sects in Heaven-Earth divinations might as well come over and worship him.
But this also meant winning him over would be even harder.
What had once been an unexpected boon was now an expected piece, making it a lighter bargaining chip.
Worse, it meant Chen Kuang understood Lin Eryou's intentions and would not let him take the lead.
That hidden faction might be capable of the same thing, it was just that Lin Eryou got there slightly earlier.
How many could be saved, and how efficiently, would determine everything.
As for Zhou Yanwei, he now felt like a naive rabbit who had stumbled into a den of wolves back on that boat...
And he'd thought he was saving people.
Turns out everyone was deeper and darker than he imagined.
Qingcuo said, "He also said: he will remember your help. If you wish to take Jishao Prefecture, now is the time. But if you want all of Liang... you'd better help us escape."
"The more you give, the more you'll get."
Lin Eryou's eyes twinkled. "Great minds think alike."
Qingcuo tucked the list away. "Will you be leaving, or will you wait a while?"
Zhou Yanwei glanced at the sky. "We'll wait."
They had come to help the Chen family. Even if Chen Kuang was currently unavailable, there was no need to leave.
They couldn't save everyone, but they could buy time.
Qingcuo nodded. "Please move into the courtyard. I'll make tea."
"There are some matters here at the Chen residence I must attend to..."
At the gates of the Chen estate, a group of soldiers had formed up.
One officer stepped forward and shouted: "The Dragon King appeared in a dream to the prefect! The entire Chen family is to be sacrificed! Everyone, come out!"
Inside, the Chen family turned pale.
The main hall was filled with boxes and bags, gold and jade glinting everywhere, clear evidence they had tried to pack and flee.
Chen Rong's face darkened. "The Canal Guild... they really want to exterminate us."
Chen An said firmly, "Father, I won't let anything happen to our family today!"
Most of the southern docks were under Chen family control. Everyone was armed and prepared.
He had already contacted the Soil True Officials. A single Innate Realm expert and a Nine Meridian fighter were now lying in wait.
Still... whether they could break out was uncertain.
Chen An knew better than anyone just how deep the Canal Guild's roots ran.
Gantang clutched Chen Ning's hand nervously. "Go get your brother to leave by the back gate. No one outside knows he's returned yet. If he gets out, he can avoid all this."
Chen Ning paled, nodded, and quickly turned to leave.
"Wait!"
Chen Rong suddenly called her back. He grabbed a pile of banknotes and silver, stuffing it into her hands. "You go with him. Don't come back."
"Father..."
Chen Rong's tone grew heavy. "Your brother is not simple. Even your second brother and I couldn't trace his past."
"If you follow him, you might have a better chance to survive."
"It was my fault, back then, for relying on a six-year-old child to save us all... I can't let him suffer again."
"Go, now, before it's too late."
Chen Ning wiped her tears and sprinted toward the east wing.
Outside, the soldiers had grown impatient.
The officer raised his arm. "Break the gate! Arrest everyone!"
"Kill anyone who resists!"
Even if they surrendered, they'd still be dragged off.
The first person they saw, a young servant, dropped to his knees, crying, "Please spare me!"
The soldier laughed cruelly and stabbed him through the chest.
"You dare resist? Using your head to strike me? You must be tired of living!"
The servant coughed blood. "I... I didn't resist..."
The sword withdrew. The servant's body flew back, crashing into a stone screen, blood pooling beneath him.
Thunder cracked high above.
Rain poured down, drenching the earth as the Bamboo trees bent further under the onslaught of the torrents.
On a nearby rooftop, the white-browed Daoist, Jingshan Daoist, floated in midair, soul banner in hand.
He released a wave of vengeful spirits from the flag.
Then, he saw a young girl sprinting toward the east wing.
"So devoted to her kin, hm?" he smiled serenely.
"Then we'll start with you."
The ghosts lunged, only for a flying sword to strike his soul banner.
He turned cold-eyed. "Who dares?"
The mist swirled. The sword glowed brightly but corroded rapidly in the miasma.
Both were destroyed.
Qingcuo stood atop a nearby roof, completely silent.
The next moment, she vanished.
Jingshan narrowed his eyes, then laughed. "Just a newly advanced Sea-Cleaving Realm? Brave indeed!"
Clang!
A sword slashed his neck. Sparks flew.
His head rotated unnaturally, and he grinned.
"Kill you, and Chen Kuang has no more protectors."
Qingcuo stabbed him in the mouth.
"Urgh!"
From his throat spilled a swarm of centipede-like parasites, each one shaped like internal organs.
Qingcuo frowned. "Blood Affliction Sect corpse magic... you're from the southern barbarians."
Jingshan blurted, "How do you know?!"
"You don't need to know."
Her blade sliced her own arm. Blood flowed as she chanted in an arcane tongue.
The parasites froze midair, shriveled, and dropped like dead leaves.
"Stop!"
The old man grew panicked,"I can tell you something about Chen Kuang!"
Qingcuo paused. "Speak. Quickly."