Chapter 269: Hidden Threat

You don’t need to do anything. While Brother Bai is away, the mansion has surely been in chaos, and with the battle just now, it’s only gotten worse—go take care of matters within the mansion first; I’ll have a few words with Lord Wenguan.

Shen Kangbo spoke.

Bai Yu replied, “Uncle Shen, please speak with Lord Wenguan first, but afterward I’d like to chat with you about something—may I?”

She looked at Shen Kangbo with hopeful eyes.

“Alright,” Shen Kangbo agreed. After Bai Yu left, he smiled at Lu Fang and said, “Lord Wenguan, what a coincidence—I never expected to see you here.”

“Thanks to you, I arrived sooner than I otherwise would have; had I been late, my old friend might not have survived.”

Lu Fang paused, then asked, “You said earlier that when I sent you the voice talisman, you were already on your way here—why? Bai Yu told me you haven’t had contact with Bai Feng these past years.”

Shen Kangbo nodded. “On the surface, we’ve had no contact, but secretly we’ve exchanged messages often and met a few times.”

“That’s why I paid off the southern border troops and came to Beiyacheng—for Bai Feng. According to schedule, he should’ve contacted the Shen family’s people here days ago, but he didn’t.”

“If not for your voice talisman warning me, even if I’d sensed something was wrong, I might’ve arrived later. It’s truly my old friend’s fortune.”

Clearly, Shen Kangbo had no intention of hiding anything—he didn’t conceal his relationship with Viscount Bai Feng from Lu Fang.

Lu Fang was no fool; hearing this, he quickly pieced together the truth.

“Viscount Bai Feng is one of your Shen family’s intelligence agents.”

Lu Fang stated this with certainty.

Shen Kangbo admitted, “He’s a very important one. That’s why I learned of his predicament so quickly.”

He paused, then asked, “Not long ago, Lord Wenguan published the first installment of the refined text ‘Journey to the West’ in the Da Zhou Wen Bao. To be honest, I was deeply shocked after reading it.”

“Some passages contained things that astonished me greatly—for instance, the dialogue between the Old Monkey and the Monkey King.”

“The Monkey King said: ‘Though today we are beyond the laws of human kings and unafraid of beasts and birds, when old age comes and blood weakens, the Lord of Hell will govern us in darkness. Once we die, will we not have lived in vain, unable to remain long in the realm of heaven and mortals?’”

“Who exactly is this ‘Lord of Hell’ mentioned here?”

“And further, the White-Armed Monkey’s reply: ‘Your Majesty, if you think this far ahead, you truly have awakened your Dao heart! Among the five classes of beings, only three types are beyond the Lord of Hell’s control.’”

“They are the Buddha, the Immortal, and the Sacred—those who escape reincarnation, neither born nor destroyed, coexisting with heaven, earth, and mountains and rivers in longevity.”

“What exactly are these ‘Buddha, Immortal, and Sacred’? How can they escape reincarnation, avoid birth and death, and match the lifespan of heaven and earth?”

“Does this world truly contain immortals who can grant the path to eternal life?”

On Shen Kangbo’s face appeared a rare expression of confusion, like a schoolboy humbly seeking answers from Lu Fang.

For people at their level, the path to immortality was deeply desired, yet until now, they’d only speculated—never understood how it might truly work.

After all, no sage in this world had ever achieved eternal life.

They themselves could not do it—how much less could they?

Yet Lu Fang’s refined text ‘Journey to the West’ had stirred a hurricane in the hearts of those at Shen Kangbo’s level.

If the Dao itself recognizes this as refined text, doesn’t that imply it acknowledges the book’s contents? And Lu Fang’s first chapter already set the tone: this is a refined text about immortals.

Fortunately, Lu Fang had already fled.

Now in the imperial capital, numerous half-sages were eager to speak with him about the book’s passages on immortals.

Even the Son of Heaven was among them.

Lu Fang chuckled bitterly. “My refined texts are tied to my dreams, mixed with ancient texts and my own imaginings. Honestly, when you ask me this, I’m just as puzzled.”

“These terms were entirely invented by me—I have no idea why they came to be.”

“So I can’t answer you.”

Shen Kangbo sighed, shook his head with a wry smile. “True enough—we old men can’t fathom these great truths, let alone you.”

Having received his answer, he felt a sudden relief.

He’d likely already suspected the truth—he’d merely come to confirm it.

Lu Fang changed the subject: “Did you kill the Fog Calamity Clan’s king?”

Shen Kangbo shook his head. “The Fog Calamity Clan’s king was severely wounded. In that state, he was no match for me or my old friend—but he refused to fight, fleeing relentlessly. I couldn’t stop him.”

“These foreign clans are truly stubborn. Even with the Dao’s restrictions on them, I can’t imagine how powerful they were in their prime.”

“Recently, it’s not just the Fog Calamity Clan that escaped from their seals. Reliable intelligence confirms the Yao and Man clans have already released several other ancient foreign clans.”

“These foreign clans are immensely strong and recover their power rapidly. The Da Zhou will likely face severe hardships on both northern and southern borders in the future.”

“Fortunately, Lord Wenguan, your refined texts published in the Da Zhou Wen Bao have strengthened our nation’s combat power—otherwise, the consequences would be dire.”

Lu Fang frowned. “You say the Yao and Man clans have released several ancient foreign clans? If true, this is dire indeed.”

Even with one Fog Calamity Clan king and four guardians, three half-sages and numerous super-ninth-rank cultivators failed to capture them.

If more ancient foreign clans are released, the current balance could shift entirely.

Most critically, if the Yao and Man clans continue releasing ancient foreign clans, they’ll gain a formidable force.

Shen Kangbo shrugged. “His Majesty is deeply troubled by this. Even at court, some have proposed offering amnesty to certain ancient foreign clans—but the outcome remains uncertain.”

“If only a few ancient foreign clans have escaped, His Majesty will never approve amnesty—it’s far too great a threat.”

“Likely, not many have escaped. The seals remain powerful. I suspect the Yao and Man clans simply got lucky, finding a few seals with cracks.”

“His Majesty has long known the Yao and Man clans secretly collude, searching everywhere for these sealed sites.”

“They’ve refrained from stopping them precisely because breaking the seals is so difficult—it’s not worth the effort.”