Time flew by, and a few days passed in a flash.
Outside the gates of the Ancient Divine City, the Great Jin Dynasty’s army hovered in the air on divine airships.
“Minister Meng, welcome back to the capital!” Lin Lu, the commander of the Imperial Guard, stood on the deck of the airship, cupping his fists and laughing loudly.
Three massive divine airships, carrying tens of thousands of the Great Jin Dynasty’s troops, floated in the sky, their banners fluttering in the wind.
Lin Lu turned his head and whispered to an old man dressed as a lowly soldier beside him, “Prime Minister, as per your instructions, we’ve kept the reception to the standard for a regular minister to avoid arousing the Empress’ Husband’s suspicion.”
The Prime Minister nodded slightly, looking at the man and woman standing close together below the clouds.
The woman was dressed simply, her face covered with a veil, her eyes curved in a smile as she chatted with Meng Qingzhou, exuding a serene aura.
Jiang Canghai’s eyes were distant.
Once, the Empress’ sighs often echoed in the Minister’s study, but now they were rarely heard. Qin Liuli, once known as a cultivation fanatic who constantly pressured herself, had learned to slow down and enjoy life.
Even the domineering aura that defined the Empress softened significantly after meeting Meng Qingzhou.
“Your Majesty, from this moment on, you truly possess the demeanor of an emperor,” Jiang Canghai said, tears welling up in his eyes as he bowed silently.
An emperor should embody both dominance and the Heavenly Dao, with a tender heart and compassion for the suffering of the people, yet also possess the wrath of a king, capable of subduing gods and immortals!
The Empress had always been dominant, but now she had integrated the Heavenly Dao, becoming a true emperor!
…
…
On the city wall.
Sister Qiong gazed into the distance, bidding farewell to Meng Qingzhou and Dongfang Liuli, though her eyes were searching for someone.
Until she saw a young man in a black robe following closely behind Meng Qin, her eyes lit up, and she transmitted a message: “Grandfather, are you also returning to the Great Jin with Meng Qin?”
The young man in the black robe replied, “Yes, the calamity of the gods has been suppressed for seven days and won’t erupt again soon. Remember, don’t act rashly. Wait until the once-in-a-century Divine Tribulation is over; only then will your strength be restored, and the calamity will disappear.”
During these seven days, Meng Qingzhou’s clone had stayed in the City Lord’s mansion, using the Sword Sense of Time and Space to suppress the calamity of the gods day and night.
But these seven days were undoubtedly a dark chapter in Meng Qingzhou’s life.
Though Sister Qiong kept her promise not to overstep boundaries, she often teased him with words and pretended to bump into him accidentally.
She would sleepwalk at night, using her cultivation techniques to sneak into Meng Qingzhou’s room, and in the morning, he would find her clinging to him like an octopus.
Because of this, Meng Qingzhou had to abandon his plan to stay in the Ancient Divine City for a month.
“Alright,” Sister Qiong said, resting her chin in her hands, gazing longingly at the young man in the black robe. Without turning her head, she ordered, “Inform the high-ranking officials in the city that I will be leaving for a while. Tell them to keep a low profile and not bring trouble to the city.”
“Yes,” an angelic guard replied, cupping his fists.
Sister Qiong smiled.
Trying to escape my grasp? Not a chance! Wherever you go, I’ll follow.
The foreign tribe residents of the city came out to bid farewell, many with tears in their eyes, full of gratitude towards Meng Qingzhou.
Some of the civil and military officials of the Great Jin who had come with the divine airships were also shocked by the scene.
“Farewell, Divine Doctor Meng! We will build a temple in your honor and inscribe your deeds on a monument. Your name will be etched in the history of the foreign tribes.”
“Rest assured, Divine Doctor Meng, if anyone dares to bully you, the Ancient Divine City will be your strongest support!”
“Come back often. The saintess of the Rhino Tribe will always be waiting for your proposal!”
“And the saintess of the Green Serpent Tribe!”
“Don’t forget the eldest daughter of the Mongoose Tribe’s chief, who has long harbored feelings for you!”
…
Meng Qingzhou listened, sweating profusely, his smile stiff as someone pinched the soft flesh at his waist.
“You’re quite popular, aren’t you? Have you been flirting with foreign tribe girls behind my back?” Dongfang Liuli taunted, pinching Meng Qingzhou’s waist harder.
“It hurts, it hurts…”
Meng Qingzhou quickly begged for mercy, whispering, “Auntie, I’ve been so busy these past few days, where would I find the time?”
“It better be,” Dongfang Liuli huffed. “If I find out otherwise, you can imagine the consequences.”
Meng Qingzhou felt a chill down his spine.
He could only silently pray that Sister Qiong, that crazy sickly adorable girl, wouldn’t cling to him anymore. Otherwise, if the two powerful beings clashed, he might be torn apart.
On the divine airship.
Jiang Canghai looked puzzled and asked, “The foreign tribes hate humans to the core. Why are they so respectful to the Empress’ Husband, even wanting to build a temple and erect a monument for him?”
Even the Great Jin’s think tank was both shocked and confused.
“You and the Big Column Kingdom have always speculated that the Empress’ Husband is a Sage. It’s only natural for a Sage to be revered by the foreign tribes,” Lin Lu said matter-of-factly.
Jiang Canghai rolled his eyes, too lazy to respond.
The Sage theory was just a guess. If the Empress’ Husband were truly a Sage, he should know who the people around him were, rather than being kept in the dark.
But if he wasn’t a Sage, how could one explain his mysterious abilities?
The uninformed court officials of the Great Jin were even more agitated.
“The Empress’ decree said that Minister Meng was sent to the Ancient Divine City to establish friendly relations. I thought it was a joke, but he actually won over the entire city of foreign tribes!”
“My god, how did he do it?”
“The foreign tribes wish they could eat humans alive, drink their blood, and devour their flesh. Why is the Ancient Divine City so different when facing Minister Meng?”
“No wonder the Empress values him so much. I used to think that lacking cultivation was Minister Meng’s biggest flaw, but now I see that cultivation is his only weakness.”
“Indeed, if someone like him had strong cultivation, it would be terrifying. Other nations wouldn’t be able to sleep at night.”
…
Lin Lu and the court officials went to greet them, their compliments never-ending.
It was clear to everyone that the Empress valued Minister Meng highly, second only to the Big Column Kingdom and the Prime Minister.
He was becoming the third most powerful figure in the Great Jin!
“Minister, please board the divine airship and return to the Great Jin,” Lin Lu said, glancing at Dongfang Liuli, who was clinging to Meng Qingzhou like a little bird, his eyelids twitching uncontrollably.
As an actor in Present Village, Lin Lu knew very well who Minister Meng’s wife really was.
Even if she hid her figure and appearance completely and even concealed her cultivation, Lin Lu was certain that this woman was the Empress!
“No rush,” Meng Qingzhou shook his head, meeting Lin Lu’s puzzled gaze as he walked towards a group of young foreign tribe members.
These young foreign tribe members were all highly talented, their luggage packed and ready to go.
At the forefront stood the angelic girl Lian Yue.
“Divine Doctor,” Lian Yue greeted respectfully, then turned to the young man in the black robe and greeted him, “Sir.”
The young man, Fang Yuan, said indifferently, “Are you sure about this? I’ll remind you once more, what I said that day was to curb your arrogance and greed, not to misinterpret my words.”
Lian Yue nodded and smiled, “I understand, sir, but we have made up our minds. Every generation has its own mission.”
Another young foreign tribe member chimed in resolutely, “We want to carve out a place for ourselves, a place for the foreign tribes to call home!”
Fang Yuan sighed lightly, “I understand. As a parting gift, I hope we meet again in the future.”
With that, Fang Yuan waved his hand, and each young foreign tribe member found a jade pendant in their hands.
“In times of life and death, the jade pendant can save you once. Remember, each pendant can only be used once and can kill any enemy below the late stage of the Moonlight Realm.”
…
[End of Volume One. The next chapter begins Volume Two, titled: The Sword Saint Emerges! Identities Revealed. In this volume, all of the protagonist’s identities will be exposed!]
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