Chapter 815: Senior Lu Has Spoken
The voice was piercing and loud; it resounded through the 12 peaks with unusual clarity. Only an elite from the inner palace would be able to pull off such a powerful sound technique.
The elders and disciples of the Twelve Sects of Cloud Mountain assembled swiftly.
Nie Qingyun hurried out from the hall and scanned his surroundings before he said, âGo and fetch Senior Lu, quick!â
âSenior Lu has already been notified. Heâll arrive shortly.â
âGood.â Nie Qingyun tidied his clothes and said sternly, âCome with me to welcome the emperor.â
The elders and the core disciples bowed in unison. âUnderstood.â
They flew toward the cloud platform. After they descended on the platform, they spread out.
The huge chariot was still hovering above the cloud platform.
At this moment, Nie Qingyun led the others and greeted loudly, âNie Qingyun welcomes His Majesty.â
Nie Qingyun did not expect the emperor to personally visit. In truth, he did not like to deal with the palace. Over the years, the palace had tried to extend its hand to Cloud Mountain through the Flying Star House. Recently, they had almost annihilated Cloud Mountain.
In the chariot, the young emperor dressed in dragon robes sauntered to the edge of the flying chariot with his hands on his back and looked down on Cloud Mountain.
âIs this Cloud Mountain?â
A middle-aged man behind the young emperor said with a smile, âYour Majesty, this is Cloud Mountain.â
The young emperor, Li Yunzheng, nodded and said, âIf you didnât tell me, I wouldnât have dared to believe that this is a part of my land.â
The person who accompanied Li Yunzheng was Wang Shizhong from the Wang Family, one of Great Tangâs Great Families.
Wang Shizhong held a high position and had many cronies in the royal court. He also possessed an unfathomable cultivation base. Over the past millennium, the Wang Family became one of the Great Families in Great Tang. Even the former emperor did not dare to act rashly against the Wang Family, let alone Li Yunzheng who had no supporters. For someone like him, how could he miss the implications of Li Yunzhengâs words? He waved his hand said, âEvery land under the heavens belongs to you, Your Majesty. There is no need to be modest... Your Majesty, Nie Qingyun awaits.â
Several men appeared. They were capable subordinates of the Wang Family.
The several thousand cultivators at the sides of the huge chariot. Half of them were from the Sky Martial Court and the other half were from the palace.
It was a grand lineup.
Li Yunzheng glanced at Nie Qingyun who was bowing on the cloud platform and said, âRise.â
Nie Qingyun and the others straightened their backs and looked at the sky.
At this moment, Eunuch Gao who was next to Li Yunzheng said, âYour Majesty, Iâll escort you.â He supported Li Yunzhengâs arms and brought him down in a slow descent.
Wang Shizhong turned to look back.
A girl poked her head out. âFather, this is fun!â
âShuâer, behave yourself.â The girl who was dressed up as a man was Wang Shu, Wang Shizongâs daughter.
âI get it. Itâs just Cloud Mountain anyway. Youâll be able to deal with everything easily,â Wang Shu said dismissively.
âThese are some extraordinary circumstances. That old fiend, Yu Chenshu, doesnât want to come and wants me to deal with this. In my opinion, nothing good is going to come out of this. When weâre down there, you better not cause any trouble for me!â Wang Shizhong sternly said.
âDonât worry, donât worry... I wonât...â
Neigh!
At this moment, a horseâs neigh rang from the distance.
Wang Shu who was standing in the flying chariot turned to look in the direction of the sound and immediately saw a handsome horse flying here from one of the peaks. The horse was too eye-catching with its white coat, red mane, and golden eyes. She said excitedly, âFather... My horse! Thatâs my horse!â
The huge chariot provided a wonderful vantage point. They could see the entirety of the 12 mountain peaks.
Wang Shizhong had a profound cultivation base so it was easy for him to see the unique horse. He said in confusion, âYour horse?â
Wang Shu said, âFather, you donât know this, but Wang Tuo and the others went to the beach and found a wild horse. They went through many troubles before they finally captured it and gave it to me...â
âWhy is it here then?â Wang Shizhong frowned.
Wang Shu lowered her head and said sheepishly, âI wanted to bring it out for a ride... but, who knew that this livestock... this livestock wasnât completely tamed, and it ran away!â
âYou!â Wang Shizhong tapped her head lightly.
âFather, itâs a rare breed! You must help me get it back! Father...â Wang Shu stepped forward and pulled on Wang Shizhongâs arm as she spoke coquettishly.
âIâve spoiled you too much. Behave yourself. Weâre in His Majestyâs presence today. Otherwise, Iâll ground you for three months.â
âI know, I know.â
Then, Wang Shizhong brought his daughter, whom he trusted the most in the Wang Family, to the cloud platform. They landed behind Li Yunzheng.
Soon after, roughly 300 cultivators descended on the cloud platform as well.
Li Yunzheng looked at Nie Qingyun and politely asked, âAre you the Sect Master of Cloud Mountain, Nie Qingyun?â
Nie Qingyun replied, âYes, Iâm Nie Qingyun, the master of the Twelve Sects of Cloud Mountain.â
Next to Li Yunzheng, Eunuch Gai chuckled and said, âNie Qingyun, are you the only one whoâs here to welcome His Majesty?â
Nie Qingyun turned to look and discovered the members of the Ninth Temple were not here. Meanwhile, the members of the Thousand Willow Monastery were late and had just arrived.
When Xia Changqiu and Tian Buji arrived on the cloud platform, they did not greet the emperor. Instead, they looked at the peak where Lu Zhou was at.
Eunuch Gao said sternly in a tone laden with criticism, âWell? Arenât you going to greet His Majesty?â
Xia Changqiu, Tian Buji, Wuwu, and Ji Fengxing were taken aback.
However, Li Yunzheng frowned and said, âYou donât have to get so worked up about such a trivial matter.â He had always hated how Eunuch Gao took matters into his own hands, especially on an occasion such as this. Eunuch Gao had gradually become a thorn in his flesh over the years. However, he was powerless to free himself from the fate of being a puppet.
Wang Shizhong stepped forward and said loudly, âI disagree, Your Majesty. The rulers and the common folk have their own places. We canât do away with etiquette.â
Li Yunzheng looked at Wang Shizhong and remained silent.
Upon hearing these words, Nie Qingyun said, âSenior Lu will be here soon. Monastery Master Xia is waiting for Senior Lu. Theyâll offer their greetings later. Please forgive us, Your Majesty.â
Li Yunzhng nodded. âThereâs no need to make mountains out of molehills. Iâm not that petty.â
Wang Shizhong looked at Xia Changqiu and the others as he said, âArenât you going to thank His Majesty?â
Li Yunzheng. â...â
Nie Qingyun understood the emperorâs predicament. He hastily changed the subject. âWhat brings you here, Your Majesty?â
However, before Li Yunzheng could reply, Wang Shizhong said, âYou know why, Sect Master Nie. Why would you ask when you already know the answer to the question?â
Nie Qingyun did not beat around the bush. He said, âFor the Sky Martial Court disciples?â
âPrecisely.â
Eunuch Gao narrowed his eyes and said, âSect Master Nie, I heard that the Sky Martial Courtâs Mo Buyan visited you, but he was chased away. What are you trying to do? Are you trying to revolt?â
Nie Qingyun knew that it would come to this. He hastily said, âKindly have a seat. Since everyoneâs here, letâs make things clear on the cloud platform. Although Iâm the master of Cloud Mountain, I donât call the shots.â
âYou donât call the shots here?â Eunuch Gao frowned.
Nie Qingyun would have loved to call the shots. The funny thing was even a Ten-leaf cultivator had to bend their knees to Ye Zhen. If this were in the past, he would be flexible and adjust his attitude according to the people he spoke to. However, recent events had changed his mind. There were too many uncertainties in the world.
When the Flying Star Houseâs Ye Zhen tried to annihilate Cloud Mountain, the path Nie Qingyun had already been set. At this point, he no longer had a choice but to continue on the path that had been set before him.
With this thought in mind, Nie Qingyun said, âForgive me for being blunt, but Iâm not from the royal court. I wonât assume another personâs responsibilities. This isnât about etiquette or revolting. Senior Lu has said that Yu Chenshu should personally visit if he wants to free the Sky Martial Court disciples.â