Chapter 1359: Ask The Annon Sutra

“How am I going to get out of this one?”

After Papersmith took his leave, Ye Qing looked at the sky with a grave expression and unfocused eyes.

Yes, he had agreed to Fang Zhiyong’s demand with barely any hesitation. Yes, he had told his friends with great confidence and determination that he would save their families no matter what.

But the fact was, he wasn’t confident in his chances at all.

He absolutely needed to save both his friends’ families and his fellow Strangers.

Therefore, he must go to the capital.

But how was he going to make it out of the death trap that was surely waiting for him at the capital?

He just could not think of anything.

Just charging right in and praying for the best was... absolutely not going to work, obviously.

For starters, the net Fang Zhiyong had prepared for him was almost certainly going to be impenetrable. Yes, he was a Half-Sage with quite the formidable force under his name, and he could even invite a Sage or two to help him. Looking at it that way, he was probably one of, if not the most connected Half-Sages in the entire world.

But so what? Fang Zhiyong was the world famous Grand Mentor of Chu. The guy had cultivated his influence and connections for over a

century

. No matter what, Fang Zhiyong could always muster a bigger and better force than him. To try and beat him in terms of influence and connections was akin to committing suicide.

Besides, even if by some miracle he managed to muster a bigger or better force than Fang Zhiyong, it still wouldn’t matter. After all, the battle would be taking place at the imperial capital.

What was the imperial capital? It was the heart of Chu, the center of the empire’s influence, and the receptacle of the Will of the Empire and the Will of the Dragon. To put it simply, the imperial capital itself was a gigantic array. Anyone who entered it without the official acknowledgement or imperial permission would find their powers greatly suppressed. Forget a Half-Sage like him, not even a Sage would be able to exert their full strength.

On the other hand, those with official acknowledgement or imperial permission would receive the blessings of the Will of the Empire and the Will of the Dragon. Their strength would skyrocket far beyond what they could normally exert. Take Fang Zhiyong for example. He was probably a Trueman or a Great Trueman. However, he was the Grand Mentor of Chu and an important official of Chu. Within the imperial capital at least, it was very likely that he could bring forth the power of a Sage.

In short, the imperial capital was a scary place. To try and breach it by force was akin to carrying a lantern in the toilet—committing suicide!

So, the brute force method was impossible. He must rely on his wits instead. However, Fang Zhiyong was an old fox who did not just survive the deadly politics of the imperial court, but thrived so much that he became the Grand Mentor of Chu for many decades. How could he possibly hope to outwit such a man?

Looking at the situation, he was already cornered in every way possible. This was a dead end he could never break out by himself.

“What do I do, what do I do, what do I do?!”

Ye Qing clutched his head with both hands and groaned. His heart was in disarray, and helplessness and despair were creeping up his limbs like an inescapable disease. “What a headache!”

To be honest, he had one out. He could ignore everything and leave Chu this instant.

There was likely no one who could stop him if he chose to leave now. Once he crossed Chu’s borders, then the sky was the limit. Literally nothing and no one could threaten him anymore.

But could he really do that?

He was no sage whose heart was big enough to accommodate the entire realm; no wiseman who would push themselves to their limit just to improve everyone’s lives, ensure justice for all and more. However, he was no heartless animal who saw no evil and heard no evil either.

He was a human before anything else. He would never shirk away from his duties, his responsibilities, and those he loved, much less run away or abandon them.

This entire thing had begun because of him. His friends’ families and his fellow Strangers—Wawa and Kungfu Frog—were also dragged into this because of him. If he left them to their fate, then what difference was there between him and the two-legged animals he so despised?

So, running away was never an option to begin with. One way or another, he must save both the humans and the Strangers.

But how?

He was back at the starting point.

What a despairing situation this was.

“Maybe the Annon Sutra knows a way?”

Ye Qing produced the Annon Sutra from his lap and composed a question, “How can I save my friends’ and my family?”

Ye Qing then forced his blood essence out of his fingertip and dripped it onto the piece of vellum.

The Annon Sutra’s response was unusually quick. His blood essence had just hit its surface when it wriggled into three words:

“Enter the capital!”

What a useless answer. Actually, scratch that. It proved that the only way to rescue the hostages was to enter the capital.

“Can I survive this?” Ye Qing asked another question.

“You can!”

“How can I survive?”

“Not entering the capital!”

“......”

What an utterly useless answer. Also are you seriously playing word games with me right now?

“Can I enter the capital

and

survive?”

This time, Ye Qing asked his question a little more specifically.

“It will be a very, very close call!”

This time, it took the Annon Sutra dozens of breaths before it finally produced its answer.

“A close call?” Ye Qing’s eyes lit up, however. If it was a close call, then that meant he

could

survive. “What do I need to do to enter the capital and survive?”

It took even longer for the Annon Sutra to produce an answer this time—an entire teatime to be exact—but it did, and it was just two words:

“Seek help!”

“Seek help? From whom?”

Ye Qing thought long and hard. Who would help him? Who could help him?

First, he filtered everyone below the Sage-stage[1]. This endeavor was probably going to take a Sage-stage warrior at the minimum.

Who among his Sage acquaintances would lend him a hand?

Papersmith was obviously not the right answer. Of course the man was going to help him as a matter of course, but he was only an ordinary Sage with no faction or background. There was no way he was the help the Annon Sutra was referring to.

Murong Xianxian was not the right answer either. Yes, she was very powerful. She was the master of one of the Nine Dark Ways, the Li Hentian Palace, and she had recently consumed Westwind and Taisui Mountain. She definitely possessed the power to help him.

However, why would Murong Xianxian take on such a risky mission for him? They might address each other as siblings, but they weren’t actually that close. Take their earlier cooperation for example. It had cost him quite a lot to convince Murong Xianxian to help him, and this venture was going to be so much more troublesome and dangerous. He did not think he had anything that could convince Murong Xianxian into shouldering such a risk besides the Earthly Sovereign Bell.

That wasn’t the only problem. Even if Murong Xianxian was willing to help him, she alone might not be enough to tip the scales in his favor.

So, who else could lend him their aid?

Xiahou Zun? They had only spoken to each other once. No matter how good of an impression he left in the Sage, there was no way the guy was going to challenge another empire for him.

Long-browed Divine Monk and Wan Lingxiao were out as well.

Xuanyuan Xin? Hah! Even a braindead zombie would know that she wouldn’t help him. Forget that there wasn’t a real connection between the two of them, Xuanyuan Xin herself had much to hide. There was no way she was going to risk exposure for him.

What about Tao Youran? Nah, Tao Youran was Feng Qingyou’s ally. The guy had zilch to do with him.

“Wait a second. Qingyou?”

The thought of Qingyou gave him an idea.

It was true that Feng Qingyou wasn’t a Sage, but in a sense, she was even more mysterious and powerful than one.

Her origins were mysterious, her connections were far and wide, her wisdom knew no bounds, and her methods were absolutely sublime. Since the day he met her, there seemed to be nothing she couldn’t do, no one she couldn’t trick, no danger she couldn’t overcome. Be it plotting the murder of Fang Muyun and Chu Wangsun, exposing the dragons of the four seas, or toying with the one hundred thousand Nanjiang Pacification Army and ruining Chu’s century-old conspiracy, there was never a moment where she did not astound her.

These were all things that even a Sage might not necessarily be able to accomplish, but not only did she succeed, she had succeeded almost perfectly.

She wasn’t a Sage, but she was superior to a Sage in many ways.

All things considered, could Feng Qingyou be the one to get him out of this impossible situation?

1. First, I’m going to eliminate the correct answer from the list. ☜