Chapter 1708: Old Seventh’s Plan

Jiang Aijian recounted the entire process in a very casual manner, but all of them knew very well how difficult it must have been to make this decision.

Li Yunzheng looked to the left and right, looking confused. He did not know why he was here or why his grandmaster was here. His face that seemed like it was made out of tree bark did not have any expression, only his constantly shifting eyes revealed his emotions. His body was thin, and his skin looked like they were covered in mud. It was unbearable and too heart-wrenching to look at him.

In the past, Li Yunzheng, the emperor of the red lotus domain, was like Si Wuya. He had the air of a scholar. He was polite, refined, and elegant. Now that he had become like this, it made everyone sigh.

Jiang Aijian patted Li Yunzheng’s shoulder and said, “It’s been hard on you. Senior Ji already knows.”

Li Yunzheng turned to look at Lu Zhou. His demeanor now was completely different from Ling Guang. He called out, “Grandmaster!”

Lu Zhou sighed softly. “Stand up and speak.”

“Yes.”

After Li Yunzheng rose to his feet, Lu Zhou asked, “Is it worth it for you to do this?”

Li Yunzheng said, “A teacher for a day, a father for life. Teacher treated me well back then. How could I do nothing when something happened to him? If it weren’t for him, I would’ve long died in the red lotus domain. All the days I live after that are just extras and a blessing…”

Jiang Aijian was filled with admiration for Li Yunzheng’s attitude. In a way, he understood Li Yunzheng’s feelings. After all, Si Wuya had also helped him to change his fate. Similar to Li Yunzheng, since he lost his life and came back to life again, the days after that are just extras.

Lu Zhou stared at Li Yunzheng intently. After he walked over, he raised his hand.

Li Yunzheng instinctively took a step back, but he quickly realized his reaction was a little extreme. He smiled sheepishly and scratched his head.

Lu Zhou patted Li Yunzheng’s shoulder gently and said, “In my life, I only have ten disciples. I’ve never interfered in the matters of them accepting disciples of their own or not. I know Old Seventh preferred to define your relationship as teacher and student, but in my eyes, you’re Old Seventh’s disciple. This means that you’re my granddisciple. From now on, your business is the Evil Sky Pavilion’s business.”

In the past, when Li Yunzheng met Lu Zhou, he felt that Lu Zhou was strange. After witnessing Lu Zhou’s cultivation, he wanted to acknowledge Lu Zhou as his masterbut was rejected. Later, Lu Zhou recommended him to become Si Wuya’s disciple, but Si Wuya had defined their relationship as teacher and student. There was no formal ceremony of acknowledgment.

The relationships between a master and a disciple and a teacher and a student were very different. One was like that of a parent and children while the other was that of a superior and a subordinate.

Hence, Li Yunzheng was very moved upon hearing Lu Zhou’s words. He was about to bow when Lu Zhou stopped him.

Lu Zhou said, “You’re an emperor of a country so there’s no need for formalities.”

Li Yunzheng said, “I’m only the emperor of the red lotus domain. Outside of the red lotus domain, I’m just your granddisciple.”

At this time, Zhu Honggong moved to stand next to Li Yunzheng and put his arm around Li Yunzheng’s shoulders and said with a laugh, “Kid, I didn’t expect it to be you! Not bad! When I first came to the Great Void, the person I saw you was you, right?”

Li Yunzheng nodded and said, “Junior uncle, please don’t take offense. At the time, I had no choice. I couldn’t reveal any flaws and could only deceive you.”

Zhu Honggong laughed. “Your acting was very good! I couldn’t tell it was you at all!”

Li Yunzheng smiled. “No. I could feel you were getting suspicious so I found a way to distance myself. Fourth Senior Uncle is the most suspicious! It gave me quite a headache for a long time.”

“Well, your Fourth Senior Uncle is a smart man,” Zhu Honggong said before he asked, “Then, he… he’s appeared before, right?”

Li Yunzheng nodded. “Yes. To be precise, he appeared thrice. The first time, he left the White Emperor’s Lost Land to find me in the red lotus domain. The second time is when he first entered the Great Void and met Great Emperor Ming Xin. The third time is he visited the Ten Pillars of Destruction to gain one of its recognition.”

“…”

Zhu Honggong looked surprised. “Ah! This means that Seventh Senior Brother has been planning for a long time! No wonder the White Emperor’s token was given to master. No wonder Emperor Yu was so respectful.”

Li Yunzheng nodded and said, “I followed master to the Evil Sky Pavilion then, but we couldn’t find anyone. Based on the various clues, master deduced that all of you have gone to the Unknown Land so we went to the Unknown Land as well. After he obtained the recognition from the pillar, he left a few seals at various runic passages he knew all of you were going to use.”

“Seal?” Zhu Honggong looked confused.

Li Yunzheng smiled and said, “He wrote ‘You can’t escape’ on the seals. I don’t know why he wrote that.”

“…”

Zhu Honggong was speechless. When he reacted, he said, “So it was him! I was wondering who knew us so well! It’s really him! The four elders were right!”

Li Yunzheng said, “If it weren’t for master, how could the people of the Great Void let the four elders go?”

“I see.” Zhu Honggong nodded.

Li Yunzheng said, “Master would frequently fall into a deep slumber so most of the time Uncle Aijian and I will take turns to pretend to be master and carry out his plans…”

Jiang Aijian coughed before he said, “Uh… I’m still very young. I can’t bear this title of uncle…”

“Don’t be so pretentious. Since he calls me uncle, do you think it makes sense for him to call you brother?” Zhu Honggong asked.

“You have a point. Very well. You can continue addressing me as uncle,” Jiang Aijian said.

Lu Zhou finally asked, “What’s the plan that requires so much effort?”

Li Yunzheng said, “Master said that it’s related to the collapse of the Pillars of Destruction and eternal life. The Great Void is already in the process of collapsing. In less than 300 years, it’ll definitely collapse. Before that happens, we have to think of a way to protect the nine domains.”

Lu Zhou frowned. He had also expected that the Great Void’s collapse was inevitable. However, his prediction was not as detailed as Si Wuya’s. Si Wuya had even calculated that the collapse would affect the nine domains.

Li Yunzheng continued to say, “The Heaven Suppressing Pestles come from the earth. It can stabilize the land. Only master knows how to use them. He asked us to think of ways to obtain all ten Heaven Suppressing Pestles. Apart from that, we’re to help my senior uncles and aunts and junior uncle and aunts comprehend the Great Dao and become supreme beings.”

“Where is he now?”

After speaking for such a long time, Lu Zhou finally asked this question.

This was also the question Zhu Honggong was most concerned about. He asked anxiously, “That’s right. Where’s my Seventh Senior Brother?”

Li Yunzheng smiled and replied, “Master has been recuperating in the Evil Sky Pavilion.”

“…”

“The changes in the golden lotus domain are very great. The method of severing the lotus is very popular in the golden lotus domain. This method is very different from the Unholy One’s method. No, I mean it’s different from grandmaster’s method, but the results are the same. In any case, master really wanted to stay in the Evil Sky Pavilion so he’s been recuperating there,” Li Yunzheng said.

No matter how hard Lu Zhou thought, he never expected Si Wuya to stay in the Evil Sky Pavilion. It was truly unexpected.

There were many coincidences that shocked people, and there were also many coincidences that made people feel regretful. They did not meet in the Unknown Land, the Great Void, or the Evil Sky Pavilion. These unfortunate coincidences happened time and time again.

Li Yunzheng continued to say, “Master stayed in the Great Void for a period of time. During that time, he realized that grandmaster has something to do with the Unholy One. I often heard him recite the poem over and over again. Later, I found out the Nihilist Congregation obtained your painting. After that, I basically confirmed your identity.”

“…”