Chapter 56: Countermeasures

"The fact that the village is a burial ground—naturally, Father would know that."

Ever since he had been standing by, smiling silently, Xu Yinhe finally spoke softly at that moment: "But how did you come to know of this place, Long Tian?"

Meanwhile, Xu Changge, who had just been recounting all the information about Qin Wei Jiu, furrowed his brows and remained silent.

Xu Yuan felt no burden whatsoever and casually replied:

"It was that fox-witch who told me."

As soon as the words left his lips, the massive circular crystal before them momentarily fell into stillness.

In the study of the Imperial Chancellor's residence, Xu Yinhe and Xu Changge exchanged a quiet glance.

What the demon-soul body said was equivalent to what Qin Wei Jiu had said.

Yet, few people in the world knew of that burial village.

Its danger seemed to demand careful consideration.

But this line of thought did not last long. Xu Yinhe spoke with a calm and steady tone, revealing no trace of anomaly:

"Then how did she tell you?"

Xu Yuan cleared his throat, his voice firm and upright:

"I know she has a lover."

"Is it that Qin Mo, the young man?" Xu Yinhe immediately named the main character of the plot.

This startled Xu Yuan, yet he quickly responded.

It was likely that Ying and the others had reported all his recent actions to him.

After a moment of silence, Xu Yuan did not answer the Chancellor, who held power throughout the realm, but instead bluntly asked:

"Dad, are you monitoring me?"

"Hmm..."

Caught the discontent in the third's words, the spherical crystal emitted a soft, amused chuckle, its tone laced with a hint of irony:

"This is entirely voluntary—they chose to report directly to me. I can't be forced to."

A silence passed.

Xu Yuan's mind clicked into place, his voice tinged with irritation:

"You don't issue orders, and they wouldn't report to you?"

With that single sentence, the old man had effectively assigned Shadow, Si Ziyu, and Zhou Chen—the three Grand Masters—to him.

If you have the strength to subdue them, they become your retinue, your vassals. Once they are your vassals, they naturally cease reporting to this Chancellor.

But if you lack that strength, then everything remains as before.

For heaven's sake, playing games with family members like this.

Xu Changge spoke at that moment:

"It was me who gave them the order. You seem to have strong objections, Long Tian?"

"........"

Xu Yuan fell silent.

His father wouldn't beat him, but Xu Changge would.

And let's not forget that Xu Changge had recently returned to Jingjiang Prefecture.

His father had already promised him cultivation resources—there was no reason to risk another beating from Xu Changge.

After a few seconds of silence, Xu Yuan spat out irritably,

"Fine. Isn't that enough?

"Earlier, a man named Fan Wencheng mentioned to me about Su Jinxuan. He said she looked like a celestial goddess, but apparently she had a lover on the Nine Dragon River named Qin Mo. After I returned to Jingjiang Prefecture, I sent people to investigate them. But then Su Jinxuan just showed up herself."

Xu Yuan simply dumped the entire blame onto a corpse.

Dead men meticulously plucked from memory.

According to the narrative's timeline, the protagonist happened to be touring the Jiulong River with Su Jinxuan during that very period.

Fan Wencheng had been a local tyrant with considerable influence along the Jiulong River, one of the original host’s lackeys, though he had been slaughtered by Xu Changge in a fit of rage over two months prior.

Sometimes the dead proved far more useful than the living; after all, dead men made the finest scapegoats.

"..."

Hearing these words, Xu Changge raised a hand to rub the bridge of his nose.

Great, yet another bout of petty jealousy.

Yet in the very next instant, a meaningful glint flickered across his eyes.

That Fan Wencheng had actually managed to mention the existence of the Charm-Soul Demon Body months ago; had the Imperial Master's apprentice not captured his third brother, he likely would have acted even sooner.

A pity he was killed so early, or perhaps something useful might have been coerced out of him.

Xu Yinhè nodded slightly, his fingers lightly tapping the tea tray:

"So, it's Qin Mo who's connected to the Burial Village?"

"Yeah, before Su Jinxuan tried to control me and was caught, I used a few tactics to get her to share some information about Qin Mo with me."

Xu Yuan spoke plainly:

"She said Qin Wei jiu suspected Qin Mo might be connected to a place called the Burial Village, and specifically asked her to keep an eye out for him."

As soon as Xu Yuan finished speaking, the floating spherical crystal suspended in the underground space fell silent.

In the study of the Imperial Chancellor's residence.

Xu Yinhè's fingers, tapping the tea tray, paused momentarily, cutting off the connection with Jingjiang, and instead turned to look at his eldest son:

"Longge, what do you think about this?"

Xu Changge smiled with a touch of resignation:

"This third brother's bad habit of jealousy—finally, it's been put to good use."

A slightly relieved, teasing remark.

As soon as those words left his lips, a flicker of amusement danced in Xu Yinhe's deep, thoughtful eyes—but vanished as quickly as it came.

Xu Changge saw it too, and instantly smoothed his expression, steadying his tone:

"Father, according to Ying's intelligence, Qin Mo's low level of cultivation is currently no real threat. But Qin Weijiu might be more complicated.

"We know how rare the people of Zang Village are—fewer than a handful across the entire world. And even fewer who could simply observe and deduce Qin Mo's origins. It's likely Qin Weijiu knows a great deal about Zang Village.

"But we don't know if he knows the exact location of Zang Village, nor whether he's aware that Zang Village has already been destroyed."

"Yet, from the fact that he's willing to use a century-rare Mihun magic body as bait to control Changtian, it's clear he's after something of immense value."

As he spoke, a cold, murderous glint flickered in Xu Changge's eyes:

"It was a great regret that I couldn't have killed him with a single slash during the Tianyuan Gathering. Now, if we're to act, perhaps even Ying and the other three aren't enough—we'll need to send more people."

".........."

Xu Yinhe did not immediately reply, his eyes lowered as he remained in silent contemplation for several breaths.

And Xu Changge waited quietly, in stillness, for his father’s answer.

In the end,

Xu Yinhe slowly lifted his gaze, and his voice, soft and quiet, echoed in the stillness of the study:

"It is indeed insufficient.

'Changge, you must go personally to Jingjiang Prefecture.'

"........"

Upon hearing this, Xu Changge immediately furrowed his brow.

Just moments ago, he had been told to go to Jiuyuan City—only to scare his third brother. Now, with the political currents in the Imperial Capital stirring violently, how could he leave so lightly?

Now has Father truly sent him to Jingjiang Prefecture?

After a moment of silence, Xu Changge asked:

"Father, what about the Imperial Capital side..."

Xu Yinhe gently shook his head:

"Nothing to worry about.

"You previously killed the Seven-Life Python, and Gu Yuan has been quite peaceful since then.

"The current key issue is the conflict in the north.

"Although Wu Yuan has already moved north, the previous battlefield situation was utterly disastrous, and the war with that barbarian tribe will take some time to conclude. This period should be enough for you to travel back and forth between the Imperial Capital."

Xu Yinhe looked at his eldest son, his deep eyes resembling an endless abyss, his tone slightly heavier:

"Things on the Long Tian side must be settled first."

"……"

Xu Changge fell silent upon hearing those words.

He understood his father's meaning perfectly, of course.

Many things had already reached the point of no return; every volatile element that could be eliminated had to be rooted out in advance.

This Qin Weijiu had concealed himself far too deeply.

He possessed intimate knowledge of the Burial Village, was willing to discard a Charm-Soul Demon Physique, and even sought to control Changtian.

Had Changtian not acquired the Innate Dao Physique, he would likely be under the thrall of that Charm-Soul Demon Physique by now.

Had it not been for a stroke of serendipity allowing Changtian to stumble upon the truth, the mere thought of such a man lurking in the shadows was enough to send a chill down one's spine.