“Yu Yan, are you sure your master and second master won’t come?” Shangguan Haitang was naturally worried about this as well. Many people had already witnessed the terror of a Grandmaster of the Innate Realm.

He slew four ghosts with a single strike. These were four veteran innate masters who had practiced a special Phantom Divine Skill that was both a formation and a martial art. Even innate grandmasters would find them extremely troublesome, as they would be worn down to death by the four brothers. Yet, in the hands of an innate grandmaster, he slew four ghosts with a single strike, as cheap as if they were free.

“I can’t come. You think breaking through to the Innate Grandmaster level is as simple as reaching a certain realm and it all falling into place? That might be possible for wild Innate Grandmasters, but it’s not that simple for some famous sects and martial arts holy lands.”

Someone like my second master has long been targeted by various forces. There are no shortage of spies around Yihua Palace. When someone breaks through to the Innate Grandmaster realm, there are extraordinary phenomena in the heavens and earth. You can tell at a glance that someone is communicating with heaven and earth to break through to the Innate Grandmaster realm.

My master is already terrifying enough. Who would want another Grandmaster of the Innate Realm to emerge in our Yihua Palace, especially since they are sisters who cultivate the same divine skill?

Such a lineup would be difficult for even the imperial court to tolerate, so the real trouble lies with the Human Tribulation.

“At that time, many forces will definitely try every means to prevent my second master from breaking through. My eldest master will naturally have to stay by his side every step of the way, not only during the breakthrough itself, but also during the initial period after the breakthrough; he cannot leave and must block such tribulations. This is also why the three of us siblings must travel outside—we fear that when gods fight, mortals will suffer.”

Upon hearing this, Shangguan Haitang suddenly realized why she had felt that Yihua Palace had been so strange in the past six months.

Are there many Grandmasters of the Innate Realm?

“I’m not in this circle, so how would I know? But I estimate there are at least seven or eight. The imperial court has at least one, maybe even two or three. Wudang and Shaolin are definitely gone now, but some mysterious forces certainly do. For example, the little old man who is invisible, as Lingyu mentioned, and Yan Nantian, who has disappeared but whose death is uncertain. Once he breaks through to the ninth level of the Wedding Dress Divine Skill, he will be no less than the Night Emperor and Tie Zhongtang back then.”

The Buddhist and Taoist schools are not limited to Shaolin and Wudang; each may have its own grandmasters. Add to that those from beyond the Great Wall and the Mongol Yuan dynasty, such as Bashiba, Yu Luosha, and the suddenly appearing Demon Blade Ding Peng. Roughly speaking, there are quite a few.

This time, at least two, perhaps even three, have come to cause trouble, hoping to prevent the emergence of a second Grandmaster of the Innate Realm in the Yihua Palace. There are also some lurking in the shadows, hoping to gain an advantage. Retreating to Yihua Palace and simply holding on will be difficult enough; the First and Second Masters naturally don’t have time to step forward and meddle in such trivial matters.

“So this really was just a spur-of-the-moment idea between you and Xiao Bei, Yu Yan?” Shangguan Haitang truly admired Jiang Yu Yan’s courage; she could make such a decision on her own.

“The leader of the Five Mountains Alliance isn’t as valuable as you think. Xiao Bei is indeed qualified. But he underestimated Yue Buqun. He truly deserves the title of Gentleman Sword and a follower of Confucianism. His scholar’s degree wasn’t wasted.” Jiang Yuyan’s words were full of sarcasm, clearly showing her disdain for Yue Buqun.

Shangguan Haitang felt the same way. She had never seen such a hypocritical and despicable person before, and said with a gloating expression, “Then our Alliance Leader Yue has been a villain for nothing this time.”

“Not really. Judging by the time it will take, we should have a result in about six months at most. I’m not sure how my master will react when he finds out. It all depends on what happens to Alliance Leader Yue.” Jiang Yuyan, who had been using her lightness skill to travel as quickly as possible to reach the capital, directly asked Shangguan Haitang, “Haitang, are you coming with me to Lingyu, or are you going back to your No. 1 Manor?”

“You know how troubled the Dragon Guard Manor is right now. There’s a lot going on, and I’ll probably have to go straight there. Don’t worry about me. I’ll definitely be there for the wedding.” Shangguan Haitang was also a little helpless. Wan Sanqian was probably finished, and she didn’t know what the investigation results were. Anyway, she definitely had to go to her godfather to report first, so she probably wouldn’t have much free time.

Seeing this, Jiang Yuyan sped up, mainly because she really wanted to solve the Six Ren Divine Dice in her arms. She also didn’t really want Shangguan Haitang to know about this, so she didn’t ask her, the master of the number one manor in the world, a famously intelligent woman in the martial arts world.

Shangguan Haitang naturally wouldn’t completely trust Jiang Yuyan either; they were both very intelligent, and everyone knew who was who.

After watching this Southern Martial Arts Conference, even those who didn’t know before now know very well who Jiang Biehe is.

Now that the father and daughter have reunited, and Liu happy happens to be in Jiangnan recently, Jiang Yufeng will soon enter the palace. Strictly speaking, everyone’s positions are not entirely the same. Compared to Cao Zhengchun, Liu Xi is naturally a greater threat. Unfortunately, Liu Xi is more difficult to deal with than Cao Zhengchun. Cao Zhengchun is the one who does all the bad things. If you want to bring down Liu happy, you must first bring down Cao Zhengchun, this loyal dog.

Seeing Jiang Yuyan speed up, Shangguan Haitang, who believed her lightness skill was no less than Jiang Yuyan’s, also sped up. As a result, the two were evenly matched. One had a deeper level of skill, while the other had slightly better lightness skill but not as profound. So, just like when they chased Tian Boguang last time, they were still evenly matched.

As they approached the capital, the two women quickly parted ways; one headed directly towards the Zhang residence, while the other headed towards the Dragon Guard Manor.

Hulong Villa was converted from the former Wu King’s Mansion. It is located in the suburbs, not in the inner city, and it was impossible for it to be built in the inner city, so it is not in the same direction.

The first to arrive was naturally Shangguan Haitang. Just as she had guessed, she was indeed very busy and had a lot of things to do.

That’s the frustrating thing about being a civil servant. You’re really busy, with hardly any free time. Forget about dating, it’s even hard to take a proper break and give yourself a vacation.

Seeing that his “adopted son” had finally returned at full speed, Zhu Wushi immediately summoned Duan Tianya and Gui Haiyidao. In terms of brains, Shangguan Haitang’s were still the most useful.

Duan Tianya is mainly meticulous, but not quick-witted, and a bit too straightforward.

As for Guihai Yidao, he was just a henchman and a tool, with no thinking ability whatsoever, and the easiest to fool and deceive.