Chapter 460: Taking Turns to Work

Lu Yang politely declined the Sword Pavilion's treacherous banquet, while his eldest senior sister, true to her word, penned a letter at a side table, suggesting that the Daoist Buyu pay a visit to Jizhou.

"Eldest sister, can you actually find Master?" Lu Yang suddenly recalled that the old man’s enemies spanned the globe, and his style was very much that of a cunning fox with three burrows, leaving a trail too elusive to trace.

"I can."

In the brief span of their conversation, the letter to the Daoist Buyu was completed, and she quietly, methodically folded the envelope into the likeness of a paper crane.

Cradling the creature in her palms, she exhaled a soft breath; the crane’s eyes blinked with sudden life, its wings quivered, and it soared out of the cavern dwelling.

"This is..." Lu Yang had never witnessed such a technique.

"A small spell I conjured in my leisure to pass the time; I call it the Art of Origami," she remarked casually.

Lu Yang caught his breath; creating a spell just to idle away the hours—how did she manage that?

Was the disparity between individuals truly so vast, when his own way of passing time was listening to the Immortal Fairy recount ancient scandals?

If previously he had been hesitant to listen to her tales for fear that the ancient immortals might unite to eliminate him, he was now utterly fearless.

There was no need to fear; if the matter leaked, he would be eliminated regardless.

Death was death either way, so why fear a few more stories?

"Creating a spell is a mere trifle," the Immortal Fairy chimed in, finding Lu Yang dreadfully provincial, for what difficulty lay in fashioning a spell?

"This Immortal created spells back in the Golden Core stage—the Art of Playing Dead was born then. Learn well from me, and you shall create them too!"

Faced with the pie-in-the-sky promises the Immortal Fairy drew for him, Lu Yang kept a respectful distance, entirely unmoved.

What use was an art for playing dead? She could have at least created a water-repelling charm.

Lu Yang resumed scanning the documents.

The elders were all crying poverty, requesting a larger allocation of spirit stones; the First Elder claimed the mission hall required them for rewards, the Second Elder argued the spirit stones maintaining the herb garden's array were depleted, and the Third Elder complained that as a master, he possessed less wealth than Meng Jingzhou...

Every plea seemed reasonable enough, leaving Lu Yang uncertain how to render a verdict, whether to deny them or grant the funds.

"Leave this to me." The eldest senior sister took the initiative to gather the elders' complaints; managing such matters was still too premature for Lu Yang.

Lu Yang mused secretly that dealing with the elders required a certain finesse, and being young and unversed in their relationships and dynamics, he ought to learn more from his eldest sister.

Then, with his own eyes, he watched her pen two words at the conclusion of the file: *Denied*.

She had worried Lu Yang might be too thin-skinned to refuse them directly.

On and on it went, until Lu Yang finally processed the last of the paperwork, exhaling a long breath as he leaned back against his chair.

"Whew—all done at last."

Throughout the task, he had felt none of the intoxicating thrill of absolute authority; instead, he realized the trials of the immortals were indeed formidable.

Fortunately, he had weathered this test without further mishap.

"My turn, my turn!" Seeing the great task accomplished, the Immortal Fairy possessed Lu Yang’s body, eager to go out and flaunt her presence once more.

"Splendid. Now that the paperwork is finished, it is time to organize the invitation list for the sect celebration." The eldest sister gazed expressionlessly at the Immortal Fairy, who now commanded the body.

The Immortal Fairy froze.

"I have been working for so long without a single moment of rest!" she grumbled, glaring at the eldest sister, though the expression looked rather peculiar on Lu Yang's face.

Unmoved, the eldest sister saw straight through her little ploy. "The one processing files just now was Lu Yang; now it is you."

A radiant smile broke across the Immortal Fairy's face as she turned coaxingly to Lu Yang. "Lu Yang, shall I return your body to you?"

Lu Yang remained steadfast, seeing straight through her hollow smile.

Left with no recourse, the Immortal Fairy slumped her shoulders in defeat and obediently began to screen the names.

"These are all the Transcendental and First-Class sects registered with the imperial court."

The eldest sister had prepared the list long ago.

The imperial court and the four great immortal sects were mandatory guests.

The Immortal Fairy counted the sects listed: "Eight Transcendental sects, and one hundred and sixteen First-Class sects."

This meant that aside from the five great immortal sects, there were eight other sects guarded by Tribulation Transcendence masters.

"No, it is nine now. The Corpse-Driving Sect counts as a Transcendental sect too."

The master of the Corpse-Driving Sect had barely scraped by, managing to elevate his sect into their ranks.

The number of Transcendental sects rarely shifted even across centuries; the list provided by the eldest sister had been compiled only last month, making it theoretically the most recent.

It just so happened that the Corpse-Driving Sect master had been forced into his breakthrough shortly thereafter.

Lu Yang calculated the known number of Tribulation Transcendence masters: at least five from the five great immortal sects, and eight from the eight Transcendental sects.

The imperial court undoubtedly possessed many; there were four such generals guarding the borders, one of whom he had glimpsed at the end of the Hanshui City incident.

Furthermore, during the annihilation of the Immortal Cult headquarters, the court had dispatched another Tribulation Transcendence master.

The court’s Luoshui Guard, specialized in handling ancient cultivators, surely possessed such masters to achieve their task, and certainly more than one.

These were merely those in the open; in the shadows, there were bound to be others, for anyone reaching that stage—save for the Corpse-Driving Sect master—possessed immense seniority and rarely intervened.

"The nine Transcendental sects must be invited, but these one hundred and sixteen First-Class sects require screening..." The eldest sister patiently instructed the Immortal Fairy on the method of discernment.

Exceedingly clever, the Immortal Fairy quickly grasped the logic. "Should we exclude all those who hold a grudge against Daoist Buyu?"

Her reasoning was sound; if they invited a horde of his enemies, the celebration could hardly proceed.

"Then there would be no sects left to invite."

"Very well." The Immortal Fairy’s grand scheme fell short at the start.

Under the eldest sister’s close guidance, the Immortal Fairy soon compiled an invitation list that aligned with her wishes.

"Ask the eldest sister how to handle Second Senior Brother’s matter," Lu Yang remembered just then; during her absence, a complaint had arrived from the Golden Buddhist Kingdom regarding his second senior brother, and he had been unsure how to reply.

The Immortal Fairy clumsily drew a document from the very bottom of the stack.

The eldest sister unfurled it, her eyes sweeping over the text with instant understanding. "So it is my second junior brother's doing once again."

"What should we do?"

"No matter. This is not the first time he has done such a thing; the Buddhist Kingdom has complained before. Ignore it."

The Immortal Fairy murmured an assent and wrote upon the reply to the Buddhist Kingdom: *Pay him no mind.*

Resuming control of his body, Lu Yang recalled how the document described the majestic power of the Sixteen-Foot Golden Body, and felt a pang of envy. "By the way, eldest sister, can I learn the Sixteen-Foot Golden Body?"

To let out a thunderous shout in battle, to have the golden form rise from the earth, majestic as a deity, solemn as a great Buddha, sweeping through thousands of troops.

The mere thought of it was magnificent!

"You can try."

The second update will be at eleven o'clock.

(End of chapter)