Chapter 1156: The Way of the Shyster

It was night at Young Aurora Hall, and the lanterns shone brightly.

Inside, Xu Qing was thinking about everything that just happened with Immortal Lord Aurora. On the road, Aurora was an Immortal Lord. Outside the Nineshores Grotto-Heaven, he was a father. And in the Desert of Time, he was a lonely man who had lost the love of his life. By the time night fell and he was back in the immortal palace, he was back to being an Immortal Lord.

Before this event, Xu Qing had considered Immortal Lord Aurora to be little more than a symbol. Granted, the imp in the second world had called himself a scrap of discarnate will from Immortal Lord Aurora. But whether or not that was true would require further investigation. From the very beginning until now, Xu Qing had had his doubts. That was why, to him, the words ‘Immortal Lord Aurora’ had been just that: words.

But everything he had experienced just now, and the different versions of Aurora that he had seen, all painted a very different picture. Without even realizing, he had come to view Aurora as a real and complex person.

And now I’m getting an inkling of what’s going to happen in a month....

Otherwise, how was it possible to explain how Aurora had essentially entrusted his son to another like an orphan? And what explanation was there for what he had said in the desert? However, even as some of the puzzle pieces clicked into place in his mind, more questions and suspicions proliferated.

Immortal Lord Aurora already had space-time canon, and has pushed it much closer to completion than I have. He has to know what’s coming in the future. It’s not going to come as a surprise to him.

So what’s going to happen in a month that will cause the Immortal Paragon to interfere? Why does the historical record call it a rebellion? And why am I instructed not to go see him at nighttime? Does it have something to do with that sinister, black-garbed version of him I saw under the lake?

Furthermore, he’s made all sorts of arrangements, including entrusting his son to someone else. So why does his son die in a month? What’s more, why does everyone else in the immortal palace die as well? Why does the Immortal Paragon wipe out every living being here?

Even stranger, why does the palace get left behind to exist for such a long time afterward....

There were too many questions swirling in Xu Qing’s mind. Even after much analysis, he didn’t come up with any good answers.

I’ll see it all play out in a month!

Xu Qing looked up at the moon in the night sky, then entered the main hall and sat down cross-legged. For the time being, he put Immortal Lord Aurora out of mind, and instead focused his attention on how to create waves in space-time.

For most people, the space-time of the fourth world was about the people and the scenery. But to someone like Xu Qing with his space-time canon, things were completely different. To his senses, the space-time here was fixed, like a pool of stagnant or even frozen water. It was still, with no fluctuations or ripples much less waves. Directly tampering with it wasn’t possible, even with Xu Qing’s space-time canon.

I need more elements at play. They need to be like rocks, thrown one after another to disturb the stagnant water....

***

Time passed.

The sound of music and soft laughter drifted out from the Hundred Flowers Palace. The melodious sounds fused with the darkness. Even Xu Qing, who was still seated cross-legged in the main hall, could hear.

The laughter of the fox maiden was particularly clear. Clearly, the fox maiden was having a good time regardless of whether Xu Qing was there or not.

Eventually, dawn arrived. The shining sun rose, casting its light out everywhere.

The melodious sounds faded away, and soon, a voice spoke outside of the hall.

𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

“Greetings, Young Lord, and welcome back to the palace!”

It was none other than Li Mengtu, who was playing the role of Young Lord Aurora’s study partner, Zhong Chi. Hurrying forward, he entered the hall and bowed. Of course, he had a lot of speculations about what was going on, considering that he hadn’t seen Young Lord Aurora for an entire day. He had searched Young Aurora Hall high and low, all to no avail. He couldn’t help but be very curious about where the young lord had gone off to. Though he had a general idea of what happened in this time period, there was no way that he could know the details of what happened every hour of every day.

Xu Qing looked up at Li Mengtu and said, “You’re late. I actually came back last night.”

Li Mengtu carefully replied, “Young Lord, might I ask how yesterday fared for you...?”

Xu Qing’s expression remained placid as, instead of answering the question, he simply stood and casually said, “Come with me to the Magic Legacy Pavilion.”

And with that, he walked out. Given that he had the opportunity in this place, he was not going to miss out on the chance to go to the immortal palace’s Magic Legacy Pavilion and see what kind of magical techniques were available in this time period.

Li Mengtu, of course, hurried to follow.

The sun was still rising as Xu Qing made his way through the immortal palace. The cultivators he encountered along the way didn’t think much of Young Lord Aurora. But given his important status, all of them bowed in greeting.

Li Mengtu hurried along, looking like he wanted to say something, but ultimately biting his tongue.

As the Magic Legacy Pavilion appeared off in the distance, Xu Qing calmly said, “Zhong Chi, you’ve been acting differently lately.”

Li Mengtu’s guard instantly went up, but he didn’t show it. Smiling wryly, he said, “You’re very observant, Young Lord. There’s something that’s been bothering me lately, and though I tried to keep it inside, I guess you noticed the clues.”

“What is it?” Xu Qing asked calmly.

Li Mengtu hesitated. “It’s Li the Chosen! Young Lord, please don’t accuse me of tattling, but I just have to say that he’s really a disgrace! Didn’t you say that he should work at your beast ranch? Well he didn’t go there at all! In fact, he just disappeared altogether. He hasn’t even been seen at the university anymore!”

Xu Qing’s facial expression didn’t change in response to this information. He just turned to look at Li Mengtu. “Presumably you know what’s going on?”

The look in Xu Qing’s eyes caused Li Mengtu to shiver inwardly. The truth was that he had already gotten to the bottom of the situation. The reason he hadn’t mentioned something sooner was that he wasn’t entirely sure how the young lord would react. But given how terrifying Xu Qing’s gaze was, Li Mengtu didn’t dare to hide any of the details.

“I heard that after he returned to the university that day, he got into an argument with one of the teachers. The end result was that the teacher punished him by sending him into seclusion for three months.”

The real reason Li Mengtu was revealing this information was self-interest. He had come to the conclusion there was an eighty to ninety percent chance that Li the Chosen was also an outsider. Though he didn’t know who it was, he was certain that they were trying to alter history. That, of course, aligned with his own goal. Fundamentally speaking, he wanted Li the Chosen to succeed. That would give him the perfect point of reference to learn from and imitate.

Li the Chosen had lived up to expectations to an extent. Historically speaking, he had gone into seclusion after being defeated in the duel. But that had changed when Young Lord Aurora appointed him to serve at his beast ranch.

Obviously, someone else had interfered to maintain historical accuracy. Although there had been a slight deviation, in the end, things worked out the same.

As for who had interfered, Li Mengtu’s initial guess was that it was Fourth True Monarch! Unfortunately, whoever had taken that identity obviously had a major advantage. And if he could make sure Li the Chosen failed to alter history, then he would surely do the same to Li Mengtu. Therefore, Li Mengtu was hoping that Young Lord Aurora could do something about the situation.

If this was the real Young Lord Aurora, then he obviously wouldn’t have had any idea what was going on. But it was Xu Qing, who knew exactly what was happening.

Li Mengtu is trying to make use of my power. Although Li the Chosen’s story hasn’t played out exactly the way it did in history, the fact remains that someone corrected things so they got back on track. Whoever took the identity of Fourth True Monarch is obviously quite skilled.

Xu Qing thought about it for a moment. Whoever it was, they were using Li the Chosen as a tool to vie with Xu Qing. So far, both sides had succeeded and failed to varying degrees.

I don’t want to interfere any further. When it comes to Li the Chosen, I already made my move and lost. There’s no need to rile things up further. After all, keeping my true identity hidden is the best way to acquire good fortune here.

Eyes narrowing, Xu Qing continued onward toward the Magic Legacy Pavilion. Once inside, he started skimming through the various magical techniques, all the while continuing to analyze the situation.

Protecting my identity is the most important thing. As far as I can tell, no one suspects me at all, including the people playing the roles of Zhong Chi, Li the Chosen, Nineshores’ daughter Zhou Linshan, and Fourth True Monarch.

As far as they’re concerned, it’s not even possible for someone to have taken the identity of Young Lord Aurora. The only people who can come to the fourth world are either Quasi-Immortals or people who have canon or canon treasures.

Forgetting the ones I’ve already identified as outsiders, there should be at least four or five others here in the immortal palace. And there should be a few of them who are also trying to make waves in space-time. They are the rocks I need!

Xu Qing put down the jade slip he had been looking at and picked up a new one. As he scanned it, he continued thinking.

This entire thing is like one big game of Go. Fourth True Monarch wants to stop the ones breaking the rules. The rocks. And I... want to secretly help and protect them. Of course, they’re also going to be focused on taking care of themselves.

Li the Chosen already lost, the reason being that he got too anxious. Of course, part of that was because of the identity he acquired. He only had one shot on that specific day. If he didn’t take that opportunity, he wouldn’t have had another.

Unfortunately, everyone else has remained hidden too well. If I can’t figure out who they are, I have no way to help or protect them. So how is Fourth True Monarch finding them?

Time passed quickly as he pondered matters and simultaneously looked through the techniques. Around the time the sun was setting, he left the Magic Legacy Pavilion and returned to Young Aurora Hall. By that time, he had come up with a plan.

I don’t need to find all of the rocks. I just need to make sure they’re all staying cautious and on guard. I guess making them feel threatened would do the trick. As for Fourth True Monarch.... I’m still hidden, while he’s out in the open, although not completely. If I could unmask him completely, and force him to break his own rules, that would be perfect!

As Xu Qing sat down in the main hall, he closed his eyes and sent his divine will to the Hundred Flowers Palace. There, the fox maiden was lounging lazily and chatting with the other beautiful women. Suddenly, her eyebrows shot up, and she groaned inwardly.

That naughty man has really grown a spine. I almost can’t believe he’s giving me orders.... That said, seeing him so domineering just makes me like him more.

The fox maiden licked her lips and laughed softly.

***

For a few days, things were quiet in the Aurora Immortal Palace. But then two rumors spread like wildfire.

According to the first rumor, outsiders had possessed certain cultivators in the immortal palace. They were currently under cover plotting and scheming, and there were quite a few of them!

The second rumor was about Fourth True Monarch. Supposedly....

“Fourth True Monarch was possessed by the leader of the outsiders!”