Chapter 512: 466 Holding the Sun

These young people... such hot-blooded passion is truly infectious.

Tang Zhao was also a young man, and he also possessed hot-blooded passion; in the past, he even had moments of being "impulsive and hot-headed." But having shouldered a heavy responsibility, he was no longer allowed to make rash decisions. These past few days, he had even weighed himself down with gloom due to the pressure; merely maintaining stability and a kind demeanor had already exhausted much of his strength, and he truly had no energy left to be high-spirited.

Instead, watching the unyielding spirit of the young people who had come from all over Yunzhou gave him a great deal of encouragement.

The young people of the Land Inspection Division were all very heroic; not one of them feared hardship or death. They understood more firmly why they were fighting, and many of them took the initiative to seek him out for missions or were even willing to serve as a suicide squad to charge into the fray. Even that somewhat arrogant Fang Jianke, though his temper was a bit poor, possessed a heart that forged ahead with sincerity—that was beyond doubt.

Previously, Tang Zhao had not wanted teammates. Aside from knowing that those people could not escape the erosion of the Sun Power, he had also always felt that teammates were useless and could not help with anything.

This feeling might have stemmed from his experience with many adventures, where he had always focused on fighting alone and had not gained much benefit from team coordination. It might also have been because he became arrogant after becoming a Sword Hero, feeling that he was too strong and that no teammate could keep up with his pace.

It was not until he truly began leading a team this time, not only coming into contact with all kinds of specialized talents and realizing the various deficiencies in his own knowledge and experience, but also being encouraged by those young people who were more passionate and brave than himself, that he began to change his way of thinking:

Having a few teammates, it seemed, was not such a bad thing?

If one had a knowledgeable and meticulous strategist by their side, it could make plans go smoothly, and they could check for gaps and deal with emergencies. Having a powerhouse with exceptional strength could allow them to open paths side-by-side and defeat strong enemies. It went without saying that having good support and medical care would greatly enhance combat effectiveness. Even having a spirited young man or woman to boost morale was great.

This was also why, apart from large-scale army operations, the front lines mostly used small squads as units for combat. In the vast and complex Suiyu, no matter how strong a single person was, their margin for error was too low; if an accident happened in those remote places, there would be no one to rescue them.

Even right now, in a mission primarily focused on communication that likely required no combat, if there were a teammate like Tang Zhao who could be immune to the sunlight following him, they could at least serve as a backup. For example, if he met with an accident and his mission failed before it began, they could take over his task, follow in his footsteps, and continue forward, so that the final hope would not be severed.

Yet, if not for such people, with whom could I return?

The current mission had extremely harsh conditions for those participating; unsuitable candidates would be unsuitable for anything. The only person Tang Zhao could think of who could go with him was Xiangyangzi; others could at most perform some logistical support work.

And Xiangyangzi... Tang Zhao sensed that it seemed to resist taking the risk of going into the water when communication failed. It was not from Yunzhou, and the sinking of Yunzhou ultimately had nothing to do with it. If it was unwilling to go, Tang Zhao had no reason to force it.

In the end, it was likely that only Tang Zhao would be left.

With complex emotions, Tang Zhao entered the gates of the Wen Shi Guan and immediately felt that atmosphere of reading and scholarship. On the first floor, dozens of scholars were mostly buried in a sea of books, doing tedious clerical work.

But there were exceptions. In front of a bookshelf, two scholars were arguing fiercely over a passage of text, nearly coming to blows.

Most of the people around them turned a blind eye. A few who might have wanted to take a break watched the battle from the sidelines, incidentally throwing a few "peaceful punches." Only the two people who had the best relationships with them—or even fellow students with ties of apprenticeship—helped them out in earnest.

Such things were commonplace; Tang Zhao could see similar disputes seven or eight times out of ten visits, and two or three times he could even see the scholars physically brawling.

When it comes to scholarship, how can there not be arguments?

However, they were mostly mortals, and their bodies were not as strong as ordinary burly men, so they could not make much of a scene; after a while, they would get tired and stop on their own. But since Tang Zhao had come, it was not good to turn a blind eye, so he stepped forward to mediate.

Tang Zhao knew well that these scholars were all talented individuals with academic honors, the kind of gentlemen the common folk called "descended stars of literature." By the traditional evaluation system of scholars, any one of them had knowledge ten or a hundred times greater than his own; at the very least, they were of the caliber of imperial scholars. Having them collect and organize data on Dongjun was already a waste of their talents. Therefore, he treated them with great respect and did not forcefully pull them apart, merely separating the two and soothing them: "Speak properly, don't use your hands."

After asking a few questions, it was indeed an academic dispute—a difference in interpretation of a recorded passage. Tang Zhao listened and felt that both sides had a point. With his own knowledge base, he was not in a position to arbitrate. After distinguishing a bit more, it did not seem to be a matter of great importance, so he smoothed things over, spoke a few words of encouragement as briefly as possible in front of the scholars, and then turned to go upstairs to the second floor.

Once upstairs, it suddenly became quiet. He saw Zhang Rong at a desk, talking to a young woman. He walked over, and Zhang Rong looked up and nodded, while the woman stood up and said, "Tang Xiansheng."

Tang Zhao smiled and said, "Fan Guniang has finally arrived; we have been waiting for you for several days."

This woman was Fan Haiyu, who had been sent to the Human World by Caiyun Gui and had once sought help from Tang Zhao.

If one were to talk about familiarity with Dongjun, who could be more familiar than Caiyun Gui? Although their state was erratic and their actions secretive, giving the impression that they had mastered the Jinwu Sword, it was actually just a smokescreen; they must have been hiding other tricks. But Tang Zhao believed they possessed a lot of information; otherwise, would the Sun-Holding Envoys have been searched for in vain for so many years? If it were purely to deceive people, it could not have been hidden for so many years.

Therefore, Tang Zhao had always wanted to obtain some information from that side as a reference. Since they had come this far, knowing a little more, even if it were just a Fragment, was better than nothing.

But knowing the difficulty of the information Caiyun Gui held was not small. First, the whereabouts of the Jinwu Sword must never be revealed. After all, Caiyun Gui were all madmen; finding the Jinwu Sword was more important than anything else, so how could they care about the living beings on the land of Yunzhou? The two sides had fundamentally different positions and could not become allies. And Caiyun Gui was too overbearing; it was difficult to probe them tactfully, and they would never agree to share intelligence.

At this time, Tang Zhao thought of Fan Haiyu, with whom he had reached a deal. Fan Haiyu could be chosen to enter the Human World, so her status in the sect was not low, and she likely knew a lot of intelligence. Even if she didn't know, it would be easier to ask with her identity.

Therefore, he went to contact Fan Haiyu, but according to the previously agreed-upon method of contact, he left a message and received no response. Tang Zhao thought she might have been unable to hide it and had returned, so he had to send people out to search, not holding out much hope.

Unexpectedly, she was found again after a few days; this counted as a small surprise.

Fan Haiyu said, "I had been staying near Xun City, occasionally sending some intelligence to fool that side, and it went smoothly. But recently, Caiyun Gui suddenly sent my senior sister down, and she even contacted me. I thought I had been exposed and that she had come to catch me, so I didn't dare to see her for a while and went into hiding. Later, she used special means to send messages, becoming more and more urgent day by day, with a very stern tone. I knew I couldn't hide, so I returned to Xun City to seek your help. But you had already left; fortunately, Wei Xiansheng was still there..."

Tang Zhao interrupted: "Wait—who was still there?"

Fan Haiyu said, "It was Wei Se; didn't you leave him to guard the house? Actually, I have always been a bit afraid of him; last time I even thought he wanted to kill me..."

This was not her imagination; Wei Se had truly wanted to kill her.

As for Wei Se...

Tang Zhao was quite moved and wanted to say something, but he only let out a wry laugh.

Some fates, he could decide when they began, but he could not decide when they ended.

Wasn't that also quite good?

"Fortunately, I had misjudged him. Wei Se is a good person who is cold on the outside but warm on the inside. He didn't drive me away; instead, when he heard my request for help, he took the initiative to assist me. He analyzed my information in detail and then pointed out to me: 'Instead of guarding against them day and night, it is better to solve it once and for all.' It was just that the person who came was also my senior sister, and I couldn't make up my mind for a long time."

"Seeing that I couldn't get things done, Wei Se then formulated a new plan for me. He would take action to imprison my senior sister, and I would wait for an opportunity to rescue her and gain her trust. I agreed. We had just managed to find my senior sister when, unexpectedly, the government suddenly took action and detained my senior sister and the others. If Wei Se hadn't pulled me away, we would have nearly been captured together."

"However, after this incident, I was safe, and then I heard you were looking for me. Thinking that you wouldn't harm me, I came."

Tang Zhao suddenly understood. Caiyun Gui had sent a new person down; he had also heard about it. This time, the Gaoyuan Marquis had personally given the order to cut the Gordian knot and detain the newcomers. If Fan Haiyu could not provide effective information here, there was still a backup option.

As for falling out with Caiyun Gui—the fire was at his eyebrows, so he would just take care of the present. Once the matter of the Jinwu Sword was resolved, Caiyun Gui itself would undergo changes, and by then, they would be too busy to care for themselves, so how could they think of Yunzhou?

Zhang Rong said, "I have already told Fan Guniang about our requirements, and she has agreed to record everything she knows about the Jinwu Sword one by one."

Fan Haiyu said, "Since Tang Xiansheng is asking, I will naturally tell everything I know. It's just that my status is low, and what I know is very limited. Even if I know some things, I don't know if they are true or false; you gentlemen should judge for yourselves."

Tang Zhao nodded in praise and asked, "Fan Guniang, please speak freely. I want to know, is the Jinwu Sword in the hands of Caiyun Gui?"

Fan Haiyu's expression changed slightly, and then she chuckled softly: "It seems you have also guessed it. This kind of thing... perhaps it is tacitly understood at the highest level of the major powers. It's just that no one dares to say it out loud: if the Jinwu Sword is in Caiyun Gui, then it is just that Caiyun Gui's handling method is problematic; if the Jinwu Sword is not in Caiyun Gui, then the entire Sun Domain is in trouble."

"Of course, I am just a small Disciple, and I don't know the inside story. But I know that those Sun-Holding Envoys are definitely not there to wield the Jinwu Sword. They are just called to a place called 'Jinwu Lingjing'. It is said that there is still the legacy left by the Jinwu Sword there. It is very dangerous for them to enter. Those who are unlucky, needless to say, will have their souls scattered before they can last a few days. Those who are lucky can merge with the Lingjing, but they retain their bodies and consciousness and can also use a portion of the Jinwu's power, only to be controlled by the Lingjing for the rest of their lives, never to break free again. These people are called 'Sun-Holding Envoys'."

Tang Zhao was horrified to hear this and said, "It's like... a vengeful ghost?"