Underestimated

The Central Hub of the Xiaoyun Hall in the Divine Continent of Dongsheng.

Chu Xingchen lazily yawned as he picked up a chess piece from the side. After pondering for a moment, he finally placed it on the board.

His opponent was Xie Lingyu. The two of them were playing Go like a pair of evenly matched novices, with neither of them giving way to the other.

Chen Baiqing was still handling affairs, but when it came to the rumors, the Xiaoyun Hall continued to deal with them—or rather, not deal with them—with deliberate indifference.

Their people could still be sent out, but the moment they were tasked with investigating this matter, they became utterly useless. Whenever anyone asked the Xiaoyun Hall disciples how things were going or whether they had found any news or intelligence, the disciples would answer:

“We’re investigating. We’ll continue investigating.”

The Divine Continent of Dongsheng was, after all, neither the territory of the Tianyan Sect nor that of the Xuanqing Heavenly Sect. Given the current sensitive circumstances, the two sects could secretly extend their influence here, but they could not openly slap the Xiaoyun Hall in the face.

At least while the Xiaoyun Hall continued to handle the matter coldly, the two sects were unlikely to make any significant progress.

Chu Xingchen had stayed in the Divine Continent of Dongsheng for quite some time this time. By his reckoning, more than half a month had already passed.

If Runan learned that Chu Xingchen had rushed to the Divine Continent of Dongsheng in such a panic merely to play Go and drink tea, he would probably drag Chu Xingchen back to the Western Ox Continent again.

The situation with Cui Hao in the Southern Jambudvipa Continent seemed not to be as optimistic as they had imagined.

At least for now, there was no good news for Chu Xingchen. Yet at this moment, he could only continue holding down the fort in this great continent that still appeared calm and peaceful on the surface.

Sometimes, the matters that did not immediately erupt into open conflict were the most troublesome—and the ones that required the greatest vigilance.

Since the Xiaoyun Hall’s decision to handle the slander coldly might stem from fear, then the next thing to do was to place that fear more concretely before the Xiaoyun Hall.

If fear itself had no solution, then deepening that fear might not be a bad answer.

Perhaps the only person who could resolve this matter was Chu Xingchen himself.

Though Chu Xingchen was so busy that he did not even have time to return to the Tianyan Sect, he had now been sitting quietly in the temporary central hub of the Xiaoyun Hall in the Divine Continent of Dongsheng for half a month. Every day, he did nothing but play Go, drink tea, and chat.

Such an abnormal situation naturally made it impossible for the Xiaoyun Hall to remain completely composed.

Yunxiao, one of the Xiaoyun Hall’s core disciples, once again appeared in the temporary central hub.

Inside the main hall, Chen Baiqing sat in the seat of honor, handling affairs without even raising his eyes. Lin Luoyu followed closely behind, assisting him with his work.

Chu Xingchen wore a languid expression as he played Go against Xie Lingyu.

After Yunxiao arrived, the four of them merely glanced at him before ignoring him again.

The only person who greeted him was his own younger sister, Ye Antao.

Yunxiao naturally understood that this was a deliberate show of displeasure. However, to have someone openly give him, a core disciple of the Xiaoyun Hall, the cold shoulder in the central hub of the Xiaoyun Hall…

That could only be described as—truly worthy of Chu Xingchen.

Yunxiao did not speak at once. Instead, he turned his gaze toward Ye Antao.

“You are, at least in name, the overall commander here. How can you be so relaxed that you do not even need to look at any of the reports?”

Ye Antao was taken aback. She hesitantly glanced at Yunxiao twice.

Was it not common knowledge, both inside and outside the hall, that Chen Baiqing handled everything here?

To say that her position as overall commander existed in name only would actually be giving her too much credit. So what difference did it make whether she looked at the reports or not?

Had this very elder brother of hers not praised Chen Baiqing repeatedly and urged her to learn from him?

Ye Antao thought for a moment, then answered with a solemn expression:

“I have naturally read through the reports I ought to read. Bai Qing also singles out the important ones and reminds me to review them.”

Yunxiao: “…”

He looked at Ye Antao’s utterly serious expression, as though she had just come to some great realization while answering his question.

If Ye Antao’s eyes could speak, Yunxiao suspected they would be saying: Rest assured, I’m learning properly alongside Bai Qing!

Yunxiao’s spiritual sense twitched faintly, and he sighed inwardly.

As expected, relying on his somewhat single-minded little sister to coordinate with him was rather difficult.

Having determined that Ye Antao was of no use, Yunxiao adjusted his mood and turned his gaze toward Chu Xingchen, who was lightly stroking his chin as though he were having trouble deciding where to place his next move. With a soft laugh, he said:

“Daoist Friend Chu, it has indeed been some time since we last met. I thought you would still be quite busy with all your affairs.”

“Of course I’m busy,” Chu Xingchen replied, continuing to play.

Hearing this, Yunxiao glanced at Chu Xingchen, who was still playing Go, and for a moment truly did not know what to say.

Chu Xingchen lifted his eyes and looked toward Yunxiao.

“You seem rather free lately. You look as though you have plenty of time on your hands.”

A hint of vigilance arose in Yunxiao’s heart. Afraid that Chu Xingchen might directly conscript him into service, he found an excuse and said:

“I only came here in my spare time. The various immortal clans are all undergoing changes lately, and there are many matters that require coordination.”

Chu Xingchen placed a stone on the board, then lazily leaned back in his chair. Looking at Yunxiao, he said in a languid tone:

“So you came today to coordinate me? Does the Xiaoyun Hall have some task for me?”

Yunxiao naturally remembered his sect master’s instructions and the strategy the sect had adopted, so he answered swiftly:

“Of course not. This is the central hub of the Xiaoyun Hall, and the sect is paying close attention to it. Whenever I have some free time, I come here personally. It just so happens that I encountered Daoist Friend Chu here as well. I know you have countless matters to attend to, so how could I presume to disturb you?”

Chu Xingchen let out a soft laugh.

“Since that is the case, go ahead. I will not disturb you while you conduct your inspection.”

Xie Lingyu stared at the chessboard, her brows tightly knitted. She had been suppressed for most of the game. Chu Xingchen’s moves were fierce, and every now and then he would even take advantage of her a little. She had been suffering terribly.

Suddenly, Xie Lingyu’s eyes lit up, and she placed a stone on the board.

Chu Xingchen heard the sound and looked toward the board. Seeing that his large group was about to be captured, he did not hesitate to say:

“Excellent move. I concede.”

Continuing to play would only mean making himself suffer for no reason. He had already taken advantage of her earlier, and that was enough.

Whether he won or lost was not as important as one thing—

Had he enjoyed himself?

Xie Lingyu finally revealed a trace of delight, but the moment she heard his words, it faded away again.

She had won, but why had the victory been so unsatisfying?

Xie Lingyu quickly caught the crux of the matter.

“No! You cannot concede the moment you fall behind.”

Chu Xingchen’s tone was filled with shock and a hint of grievance.

“You won, and that still isn’t enough? Do you have to humiliate me as well?”

Hearing this, Xie Lingyu began gathering the pieces, her tone displeased.

“I’m not playing with you next time.”

Chu Xingchen smiled at that.

He had already heard Ling Yu say those words at least six or seven times. Yet whenever he called for her, she always came running.

Once the two of them had finished speaking, Yunxiao continued:

“Since I happened to encounter Daoist Friend Chu today, if you need anything, you may tell me.”

“Sure.” Chu Xingchen agreed immediately. Then, with a smile, he continued, “I have noticed that your Xiaoyun Hall disciples lack experience with certain matters. I would like to mobilize disciples from the Xuanqing Heavenly Sect and the Tianyan Sect to come to the Divine Continent of Dongsheng and investigate together.”

“After all, we are all working to save the world. I imagine the Xiaoyun Hall possesses a sufficiently noble spirit to trust me and accept this small request of mine, right?”

Yunxiao neither answered nor spoke. He merely looked at Chu Xingchen calmly.

Chu Xingchen’s gaze met hers without a trace of hesitation.

The atmosphere grew slightly tense.

“Master.” Chen Baiqing’s voice broke the subtly stifling silence.

Chu Xingchen turned his gaze toward her, only to see Chen Baiqing standing before him with a jade token from the Tianyan Sect.

He reached out and took it, then sent his divine sense into the token.

After reading the message, Chu Xingchen could no longer conceal the shock on his face.

At this moment, he could only say one thing:

Everyone had underestimated Li Junzi.

Even Chu Xingchen was no exception.

Could this mortal world… truly produce another Sage-to-be?