Chapter 560 - 559: Conspiracy, Open Robbery

The Star God Temple, serene and peaceful.

Despite the widely known troubles of the previous temple master, the Eastern Emperor Donghua has shown no signs of either dealing with it or showing any targeted hints, thus no situation of "everyone pushing the falling wall" will occur.

The inside story is indeed intriguing.

If the emperor doesn’t make a move, who dares to disturb the soil above the head of the Nine Great Immortal Gates in the Cangming Region?

Even if the peak power from other realms comes, the strong dragon does not suppress the local snake.

It’s out of the question to place within the top three domains.

In some realms of the Immortal Realm, no door can climb into the top ten easily.

Perhaps their doors in the corresponding realms are not so powerful.

But their strength in Zhong Shen Zhou generally exceeds the ordinary person’s imagination.

To be strict.

The prerequisite to call themselves the Nine Great Immortal Gates is to have enough strength to stand firm in Zhong Shen Zhou, and then settle within their own domain.

However, when it comes to it.

At this point, the tranquility of the Star God Temple is merely superficial.

Behind this tranquility, the people inside the temple are terrified at this moment.

No other reason.

The Eastern Emperor Donghua, who was supposed to be "gone forever," has returned.

Though previous "eyewitness information" about the Eastern Emperor Donghua entering and exiting Chen Tang City had circulated, how did the saying go?

"Seeing is believing, hearing is not."

The so-called "eyewitness information" is nothing more than someone witnessing Xiang Dong coming in and out of Chen Tang City.

No one knows where he has gone.

In and of itself, he did not go to the imperial palace in Zhong Shen Zhou.

Neither did he greet the turbulent Donghua Imperial Palace that has been in chaos ever since his disappearance.

This.

Could it be that someone saw it wrong?

The four emperors controlling the four sections of the Immortal Realm each have their individual characteristics, but they all share one common trait.

That is to be duty-minded.

As long as they are in position, they will never ignore any turmoil.

The hope within the Star God Temple that the Eastern Emperor Donghua might genuinely be gone forever coupled with the significant internal doubts about the "eyewitness reports" led them to instinctively deny it.

But the reality is tough.

Xiang Dong, he truly came back...

Now, he is in the Donghua Imperial Palace in Zhong Shen Zhou, and he conducted a massive purge as soon as he came back.

The Star God Temple was not the only one in turmoil during Xiang Dong’s absence.

Even from a certain perspective, the Star God Temple can be considered to have been relatively "well-behaved".

The emperor’s seat commanding a region of the Immortal Realm is there, who wouldn’t want to sit in it?

When Xiang Dong was there, some dared to scheme covertly.

Now he is gone, and theoretically, he cannot come back.

Under such a pattern, the number of those who couldn’t help themselves was truly too many to count.

"When the mountain has no tigers, the monkey becomes king."

There wasn’t much impact on the Eastern Immortal Domain, but many forces stirred up considerable turmoil around the Donghua Imperial Palace in Zhong Shen Zhou, and some even attempted to occupy the Imperial Palace.

Receiving news from Zhong Shen Zhou that the emperor has returned and conducted a mass cleansing, how could the internal state of the Star God Temple calm down?

Compared to the situation in Zhong Shen Zhou.

Their collusion with the Greedy Wolf in the Eastern Immortal Domain can only be said to be a trifle.

From the perspective of fact, they indeed haven’t had time to do any significant "expeditions".

But if Xiang Dong learns about all of this, the ultimate fate of the Star God Temple will be annihilation.

In this unease, there is now a taste of being "driven to the wall" among the people of the Star God Temple.

The deeds which should not have been done have been done.

Xiang Dong’s return left no room for anything to change.

People only don’t know what they have done or simply don’t have time to care about them.

Once he realizes and clears his hands, the Star God Temple, which has stood for millions of years, will be completely chilled.

The only choice for the Star God Temple at this moment is to walk down the dark path no matter what.

They indeed did so.

Under the clear sky and bright sun.

The Star God Temple’s Protection of the Sect Array silently opened, as if the human and material resources maintaining the array were not being spent at all.

The surrounding area of the Mountain Gate and the door.

Several Twelfth Realm elders hid in the dark, eliminating all possibilities of outside encroachment and peeping.

If someone oblivious comes at this moment.

They might mistakenly think that the Star God Temple is going to war with one of the Nine Great Immortal Gates, and is on guard against sneak attacks from others.

Of course.

Everything here has an ulterior motive.

...

The main hall of the Star God Temple.

The council hall.

Unlike the tense surroundings around the location of the portal.

In the hall, there are dozens of beautiful female disciples, scantily clad, swaying their bodies to the music in a grand atmosphere of wine and song.

On the seats.

All the key figures of the Star God Temple were present one by one.

If someone recognizes this fat man, they would certainly be surprised by this scene.

The fat man’s name is Fang Donghe.

He’s quite powerful and considered a figure in the Cangming Realm.

He is the owner of the Manchun Trading Company.

Although it’s called a trading company.

In actuality, it’s a brothel.

More than half of the brothels in the Cangming Realm are owned by them...

Such a figure would certainly be treated with respect in front of some small-to-moderate forces.

Being able to expand brothels across the Cangming Realm, one cannot belittle his capabilities.

But in front of a huge entity like the Star God Temple, Fang Donghe can’t even be called a little brother.

What merit or ability does he possess to have the dignitaries of the Star God Temple from Zhong Shen Zhou wait upon him and have so many female disciples try to please him by selling their beauty?

At this moment.

He even had a Star God Temple elder in his arms, his claw from Lu Mountain’s wandering restlessly under her collar...

After the third round of drinks.

Looking at the flushed elder of the Star God Temple in his arms, Fang Donghe turned his gaze to the three Venerables seated on the table.

"Venerables, your Star God Temple has shown ample sincerity for the cooperation in the recent period. Today I’m here on behalf of Shadow Honors Alone to officially accept you."

Hearing these words, both the three venerables at the top and the leaders of the Star God Temple below couldn’t help but show a hint of joy on their faces.

As previously mentioned.

The Star God Temple had no options left at this point.

If they could not truly bind themselves to one of the lone honors from the Greedy Wolf, they had no other way out.

In order to climb the high branch that Fang Donghe claimed to represent as a lone honor, they had not spared any efforts recently.

Just to get in touch with the lone honor has cost them a fortune, human resources, and a lot of energy.

Fang Donghe, who was now regarded as their "representative", had been in the Star God Temple for half a month, making various demands but had made no definite statement.

They had been waiting for his decision for so long, the anticipation had almost cooled.

Finally, the waiting was over.

However, all those present were wise.

The lone honor had prolonged his decision.

The sudden strange expression today obviously means that he’s trying to "bargain".

Everyone was clear about this.

But they had no choice.

"Mr. Zou, I have been waiting for you to speak for a long time," said the head of the group jokingly.

"In terms of sincerity, we of the Star God Temple have had it from the beginning. Of course, the need for the lone honor of the Greedy Wolf to test us can also be understood. But these are not problems now, as we will all be on the same side from now on."

With these words, he raised his cup in a gesture of toasting.

"Mr. Fang, I toast to you.. If you had not acted as a mediator and spoken for our Star God Temple, we, who have offended Shadow Honors Alone, might not have been able to win the favor of the lone honor."

While speaking, he sent a sharp glance to the female elder in Fang Donghe’s arms.

The female elder, seeing this, momentarily stiffened, a bit of reluctance flashing in her eyes, but then she quickly hid it. She snuggled deeper into Fang Donghe’s arms, allowing him to become more intimately acquainted with her fiery curves.

Fang Donghe, naturally, was extremely happy.

The elders of the Star God Temple.

Could ordinary people hold them in their arms?

Not only was he doing it now, but she was also taking the initiative to come close.

What made him even happier was.

While the venerable with the surname Qin was speaking, a venerable beside him quietly took out a storage ring and handed it over.

The force in his hand made the female elder in his arms let out a soft yelp. As he collected the storage ring without changing his expression, Fang Donghe raised his cup in response to the venerable Qin.

"I have just done what I should do, Mr. Qin. As you said, we will be on the same side from now on, so there’s no need for such courtesy."

Having said this, he raised his cup to the other two venerables.

Seeing this, the two of them raised their cups in response.

The four men at the table all tipped their heads back and drank their cups clean.

Fine wine entered their bellies.

Before the three venerables of the Star God temple could say anything, Fang Donghe put down his cup and spoke.

"With the approval of the lone honor, the Star God temple is officially part of the Greedy Wolf. You don’t need to worry about Shadow Honors Alone. The lone honor will communicate with him. The losses he suffered a few months back can’t really be attributed to the Star God temple. With the lone honor stepping in, it won’t be difficult to ease this situation."

With these words, he continued.

"However, here, the lone honor has some requirements for the Star God Temple."

Hearing this, everyone present was not surprised.

"Please carry on," Qin venerable said, with an appearance of complete attentiveness.

Fang Donghe saw this and whispered.

"First of all, the Star God Temple still needs to stay in the Cangming Realm on the surface, and cannot go underground."

Everyone frowned at this.

Venerable Qin spoke.

"The Eastern Emperor Donghua has already returned. Isn’t it too risky for us to continue operating openly as one of the Nine Great Immortal Gates of the Cangming Region?"

"I understand your concerns."

Fang Donghe responded, and said,

"But you can be rest assured. The Greedy Wolf has reliable information. After returning to Zhong Shen Zhou and carrying out a massive purge, Donghua has invited many researchers of various ancient objects to his Imperial Palace to decipher something. So it looks like his harvest from the Ancient Fairyland wasn’t small."

With these words, he continued,

"Donghua’s attention will not be on the Star God Temple for a while and there’s no reason for it be. He wouldn’t be paying much attention to the Eastern Immortal Domain either. Unless you can’t handle your own internal affairs and a traitor sends news of you joining Greedy Wolf to his ears."

Hearing Fang Donghe’s words, everyone relaxed a bit, and couldn’t help but think of Sikong Lu, who had not yet returned from Cangming Entertainment City.

They were in an urgent need to empty Sikong Lu’s position.

From the beginning, it was because she had connections with the envoy responsible for the Shadow Demon matter in Donghua Immortal Palace.

Now she was refusing to return from Cangming Entertainment City which was causing them a lot of anxiety.

At the moment, Sikong Lu didn’t show any signs of rebellion. But after all, she already knew about this.

And that’s not all.

Cangming Entertainment City was backed by Chen Tang City, and Donghua has been in and out of there recently!

Under the influence of various factors, to say that Sikong Lu was a thorn in the side of the Star God Temple would not be an exaggeration.

Yet they really had no solution for Sikong Lu.

Sikong Lu was the most powerful venerable left in the Star God Temple, her abilities no less than the three who had returned from Zhong Shen Zhou.

Attempting to forcefully bring her back or simply kill her, will be difficult.

They couldn’t possibly go to Chen Tang City to do anything either.

That would be equivalent to openly announcing that the Star God Temple was in a huge crisis.

The question now was.

Sikong Lu was outside and undeniably an uncontrollable super-high-risk factor.

If this wasn’t resolved, they would be restless.

At this stage of the matter, they certainly couldn’t allow Sikong Lu to be "free out there".

The three venerables present exchanged a silent glance, then the female venerable who had handed over the storage ring earlier spoke up.

"The Star God Temple is currently a united front, but we might need some assistance from the lone honor to resolve the issue with Sikong Lu inside our temple."

Fang Donghe had been in the Star God Temple for half a month already and naturally knew about Sikong Lu’s situation.

Upon hearing the female venerable’s words, he fell into thought and then said,

"Indeed, Venerable Sikong is a problem, and a rather troublesome one at that. But it’s not impossible to manage."

With that, he gave a knowing smile.

"Venerable Sikong holds the lives of many from the Shadow Demon Clan in her hands, and Shadow Honors Alone has not stopped thinking about her. I could contact someone from Shadow Honors Alone later, and we could collaborate to capture her and hand her over to Shadow Honors Alone. In this way, Shadow Honors Alone will gain some merit and we can get rid of a huge problem."

Hearing what Fang Donghe said, the three venerables present all raised their eyebrows.

"Brother Fang, that’s a brilliant strategy!"

Venerable Qin exclaimed, raising his cup as if to say something, when suddenly a resounding "boom" came from outside.

The next instant.

A terrifying, Emperor-level aura enveloped the entire Star God Temple.

???

Everyone present, including Fang Donghe, was stunned.

What...

What’s going on?

Why did an emperor, exuding his presence, suddenly appear in the Star God Temple!?

....

At the same time.

Near the gate of the Star God Temple.

The dozen or so inner disciples responsible for guarding the gate were trembling, watching a young man and woman walk out from a spatial rift that had opened almost in front of their faces just a moment ago.

Their strongest venerable, Sikong Lu.

They definitely recognized her.

So...

Who is the other person?

From him...

Why is he radiating such terrifying Emperor’s aura?

This...

Clearly, he’s not here for good!

Li Jing, exuding the aura of an Emperor, was clearly not coming to reunite Sikong Lu with her ’family’. He was here to stir up trouble.

Over here.

Li Jing glanced at the dozen or so disciples who stood guard at the gate of the Star God Temple, then looked inattentively towards the active Protection of the Sect Array, and turned his head towards Sikong Lu.

"Why is your ’home’ Protection of the Sect Array maintained active?"

Sikong Lu was speechless.

She had not returned for more than two months, how would she know why the Star God Temple’s Protection of the Sect Array was activated?

Before she could say anything, Li Jing silently opened the realm behind him, swallowing the entire Star God Temple, and then manifested his Law Heaven and Earth.

The dozen disciples standing closest to him all fell to their knees with a thud.

If not for the terrifying aura of the Emperor and the Law Heaven and Earth, which rendered them little more than mere observers, these dozen disciples genuinely wanted to say one thing.

Mom.

I want to go home...

They were all puzzled at the moment.

What on earth had the senior management of the Star God Temple done?

Not only did they offend the Eastern Emperor Donghua, but they also attracted such a terrifying figure!?

What they found even more confusing was.

Why doesn’t the person in front of them care about finesse...

Not only did he come in person, but he also made a big move as soon as they met!

Is that really necessary!?

Even if Eastern Emperor Donghua understood the recent actions of the Star God Temple and wanted to take action, it would not be possible for him to come in person.

Even if the emperor has to do everything himself, doesn’t he have any sense of propriety?

What’s the point of being an emperor then?

Just as the dozen disciples of the Star God Temple were trembling.

The space behind Li Jing twisted, and the next moment over ten thousand people silently appeared.

The disciples at the gate were horrified at the sight.

Upon closer inspection...

Aren’t the people who appeared none other than our own disciples?

Disciples, elders, even the venerables, they were all there.

And there were even more people sent to the foot of the mountain where the Star God Temple was located...

Li Jing had forcibly moved all the people inside the Star God Temple, turning it into a ghost town!

What...

What is he trying to do?

Not only the disciples standing at the gate of the Star God Temple, but all the people who had been forcibly moved out had the same question.

As did Sikong Lu.

Mainly because Li Jing’s abrupt actions were too grand.

She was slightly confused about what exactly he was trying to do.

As she puzzled, Li Jing turned his head.

Then his indifferent gaze fell on three Venerables from Zhong Shen Zhou, making the three of them feel as though they were in a freezing cellar, almost suffocating.

The problem was that the person in front of them had no sense of decorum.

Not only did he fully release his Emperor’s aura, but he also specifically targeted the three of them, manipulating it like a weapon.

Emperor.

Also a Venerable.

But the two were entirely different levels.

What was happening right now, was outright bullying.

Fang Donghe, who was with the three of them and still holding onto the elder of the Star God Temple, was fortunate enough to catch Li Jing’s attention, and his legs were trembling uncontrollably.

What made him desperate was.

After Li Jing’s gaze fell on the three Venerables, he frowned and looked straight over, his pupils slowly turning golden.

This reaction.

Instantly made Fang Donghe wet a large area of his pants.

He didn’t know why he was so scared when the man hadn’t said a word.

Right now.

He sincerely wished he could throw away the elder of the Star God Temple from his arms, but faced with the Emperor’s aura that didn’t allow the slightest movement, he couldn’t do anything.

Fang Donghe did not know.

Li Jing looked at him not because he was holding an elder, but because he saw a health bar above his head.

Facing those captivating golden eyes, Fang Donghe experienced an extremely subtle feeling.

His life...

Seemed like a carousel lamp.

Many details that would usually be unimaginable or forgotten, emerged in his mind.

The fact that he...

Is he going to die?

Fang Donghe’s heart was trembling.

At this time, Li Jing shifted his gaze away.

With this change, Fang Donghe managed to breathe a sigh of relief.

"She, from now on, is a member of Chen Tang City and has nothing to do with the Star God Temple. Understand?"

The "friendly" voice rang out, addressing the three Venerables from Zhong Shen Zhou.

Faced with the direct pressure of the Emperor’s aura, the three of them were under not just a bit of stress.

In response to an "Understand?", the three hurriedly nodded their heads.

As experienced Venerables, they had often been exposed to Emperor-level beings in Zhong Shen Zhou, hence their resistance was stronger than ordinary people.

But currently facing Li Jing.

It wasn’t a matter of whose Sikong Lu was now.

But now, whatever Li Jing said, no one in the room had the courage to shake their heads or voice any disagreement.

This was the power of absolute strength.

Sikong Lu watched as everyone in her sect, from the Venerables to the disciples, didn’t dare utter a single word in front of Li Jing, leaving her with complex feelings.

Was this...

Letting the wolf into the sheep pen?

On this side...

Li Jing saw the three Venerables nodding continuously, pleased, he then turned his head to gaze at the gate of Star God Temple, then said,

"Master Sikong has given so much to Star God Temple, she even sacrificed her youth. In our Blue Star, there is even the concept of compensating based on years of service when an employee resigns. Star God Temple may not operate in this way, but we at Chen Tang City do."

When they heard this, everyone present was confused.

Most of them ascended from Blue Star while others were natives of the Immortal Realm.

But what Li Jing was saying...

None of them understood a word.

Sacrificing her youth for Star God Temple, Sikong Lu had lived for tens of thousands of years, what youth was he talking about?

What about calculating compensation based on years of service for resigned employees? They didn’t understand what was going on at all.

Seeing the confused faces of the Star God Temple’s attendants as they faced his words, Li Jing clicked his tongue and said,

"The principle of this is quite complicated to explain in detail. If you all wish to understand, you can go to the Cangming Entertainment City under my Chen Tang City and learn about the Blue Star culture. Don’t always confine yourself to the mountains. The world is changing, you should keep pace with it."

After earnestly saying this, Li Jing smiled.

"My point is simple, if Sikong wishes to leave, Star God Temple must provide compensation, calculated based on the time she joined. Plus, since you guys forced her away to a large extent, triple compensation is due. None of you should have any objections, right?"

"..."

The people of Star God Temple.

At this point in Li Jing’s words, they roughly understood.

This man didn’t just want to take Sikong Lu away, he also wanted to rob Star God Temple.

Outright robbery!

This... damn...

Was he an Emperor-level power?

He was clearly a bandit!

Though that was the case, who among those present had the courage to object?

Even if they did...

They had no guts to voice it!

Sikong Lu stared at Li Jing as he rambled on seemingly making sense, but actually blatant robbery, a twitch spreading across her lips.

She had learned a lot about the Blue Star culture in Cangming Entertainment City.

She understood everything that Li Jing was saying.

And she truly admired him. This guy really knew how to talk nonsense.

What he was doing was clearly inhumane, yet he made it sound reasonable.

The most ridiculous part,

He was even calculating her "years of service".

How was that calculated?

She had been with Star God Temple for tens of thousands of years...

If compensation were calculated by the Blue Star method, triple times, wouldn’t the whole of Star God Temple be insufficient...

As she was thinking this, Li Jing’s domain gradually receded.

Then...

All the buildings of Star God Temple, other than the main gate, disappeared.

The entire stretch of land near and far,

became barren...

!!!

Sikong Lu.

!!!

The people of Star God Temple.

"Calculating in this way is a bit troublesome, so I’ll simply take the entire gate of the Star God Temple," said Li Jing, then he smirked, "Surely, no one would object to this? If anything, Star God Temple has benefited."

Saying that, he once again adopted a reasonable tone.

"The gate is merely a place of residence, the collections of the scriptures and books in the Star God Temple are of some value, but all the wealth and precious items should be on some of you present now."

"..."

Sikong Lu.

She didn’t have much understanding of Li Jing’s personality.

Considering their minimal contact.

She could only tell from the fact that he had deceived her that this thick-browed, large-eyed guy was actually very cunning.

Faced with Li Jing’s words, she couldn’t help but ponder.

What in the world was he...

Regardless, he was an Emperor-level power, being so ruthless, was a bit...

Every word he said...

Was mentally draining and exasperating.

If it was her still at Star God Temple, she would have collapsed at his provocation.

A gentleman uses his tongue and not his fists.

Yet his actions simply made the people of Star God Temple feel worse than being killed...

Being humiliated in the face was just the start.

The entire Star God Temple was gone, the situation couldn’t be hidden afterwards. In a few moments, it would have spread through the entire Cangming Region and even the Eastern Immortal Domain.

At that time, Star God Temple would be the laughingstock of the Eastern Immortal Domain.

Looking back...

The books and scriptures in the Star God Temple that Li Jing mentioned were the most valuable, even priceless treasures.

Those...

Not only were they the heritage of the Star God Temple, but they also represented the basis for the Temple’s future continuation.

Of course, the loss of these collections wouldn’t mean the end of the Star God Temple’s heritage.

As long as the people were still alive, so was the heritage.

The issue was that such heritages in the hands of others might become fatal to the sect.

See...

Watching Li Jing’s movements, the faces of everyone present from the Star God Temple were flushed with rage, wishing they could eat him alive.

Li Jing didn’t kill anyone.

But his actions were more annoying than killing someone.

Facing the murderous gazes of the Star God Temple people who wanted to peel him alive, Li Jing calmly opened his mouth,

"I am the ruler of Chen Tang City, Li Jing. If anyone is displeased with my actions today, you are welcome to visit my Chen Tang City to ’discuss the matter’. However, I won’t refrain as I did today."

As he was saying this, his gaze unintentionally rested on Fang Donghe for a moment. He grinned, took Sikong on his side, and tore a warp in space to leave.