These words instantly soured Teng Qingshan’s expression. If this were the Sword Sect Master 'Li Chao' or the Beast King 'Wu Hou', they would likely just smile off the furious outburst of the Snow Lotus Sect Master. Li Chao and the others knew the Snow Lotus Sect Master’s tyrannical temper well enough to simply ignore her scolding, as if she were a close sibling.
But Teng Qingshan was not yet close enough to her for such casual, back-and-forth mockery.
“Master,” Li Jun interjected softly.
“Xiao Jun, shut your mouth,” the Snow Lotus Sect Master declared, slightly lifting her chin. She fixed Teng Qingshan with a sharp glance. “Hu He, remember this: you are merely an esteemed guest of my Heavenly Spirit Palace, not one of us. You have no right to view this intelligence.”
“Snow Lotus Sect Master, I won’t impose any longer.”
Teng Qingshan swallowed his rising anger, gave a brief bow, and turned to leave with Xiao Jun.
“Don’t be in such a hurry to go,” the Snow Lotus Sect Master allowed a small, triumphant smile to surface. “Hu He, I was only speaking to you in your capacity as Xiao Jun’s teacher. You are a talent of your generation. Don’t resort to such underhanded tricks; it diminishes your standing! First, you claim Xiao Jun is unwell and shouldn't handle affairs. Now, you have her searching for intelligence on your behalf. Truly... I still don't see anything wrong with Xiao Jun’s health.”
Teng Qingshan turned back to face the Snow Lotus Sect Master, letting out a cold snort.
“Snow Lotus Sect Master, you are the Palace Master’s daughter and Li Jun’s teacher—I respect you,” Teng Qingshan stated, his gaze chillingly calm. “However, you are correct about one thing: I am not a member of your Heavenly Spirit Palace; I am a guest elder! Therefore, stop giving me orders as if I were your subordinate. I am no servant of yours.”
“Even before the Palace Master, I am a guest elder,” Teng Qingshan emphasized, his eyes suddenly sharp.
The Snow Lotus Sect Master choked on her words: “You—”
In all these years, who had dared to argue with her?
“As for the intelligence... Didn't your Heavenly Spirit Palace ask Xiao Jun to serve as the Acting Sect Master in the first place? An Acting Sect Master naturally has the authority to review intelligence. I am her husband; is it wrong for her to tell me?” Teng Qingshan understood perfectly... The Heavenly Spirit Palace appointed Li Jun as Acting Sect Master precisely to tie him to the Heavenly Spirit Palace’s grand vessel.
“You, you...” The Snow Lotus Sect Master wanted to retort, but Teng Qingshan stood firmly on logic, leaving her flustered and unable to formulate a rebuttal.
“And one more thing,” Teng Qingshan added coldly. “Xiao Jun truly does need time to recuperate. She is now pregnant, which is why I asked her to temporarily step back from handling Snow Lotus Sect matters. Since... Xiao Jun manages your Snow Lotus Sect affairs, knows your intelligence, and then reports it to me, causing you such displeasure. Then there is no other solution... Xiao Jun is my wife, and I am her man. Of course, she must tell me.”
“To avoid leaking your Heavenly Spirit Palace’s intelligence, and to prevent Xiao Jun from being put in a difficult position, starting today...”
“Xiao Jun will no longer serve as Acting Sect Master.”
Teng Qingshan cupped his hands in a final gesture. “Snow Lotus Sect Master... That is all I have to say. There is no need to trouble you about finding the Palace Master. Farewell!”
With that, Teng Qingshan seized Li Jun, who looked like she wanted to speak, and leaped directly onto the Six-Legged Saber Cicada.
“Go!”
Teng Qingshan pointed eastward.
“Roar~~” The Six-Legged Saber Cicada shrieked once and swiftly ascended into the sky.
“This, this Hu He, this Hu He!” The Snow Lotus Sect Master’s face flushed crimson with rage, her chest heaving with gasps. “This fellow is too, too...” In all her years, no one had dared to address her like this.
“Pregnant? Saying Xiao Jun is pregnant? I haven't seen Xiao Jun’s belly grow any larger.”
“Lying, and choosing such a poor excuse.”
The Snow Lotus Sect Master stood rooted to the spot for quite some time, until her fury slowly subsided and her mind cleared slightly.
The Snow Lotus Sect Master looked up toward the east: “He’s heading east? Hmph... Not entirely stupid. He knows to run east to find my father. However—if you want to see my father, I’ll make sure you don't. A mere Idle Void Realm expert dares to act so arrogantly in front of me.” The Snow Lotus Sect Master gnashed her teeth in anger.
Having followed her father for so long, her judgment of power was sharp. She truly did not regard a Void Realm expert with any respect.
At this moment, she failed to realize that her own arrogance was the true issue.
“Uncle Chen. Let’s go.”
The Snow Lotus Sect Master also mounted the Lightning Divine Eagle, pointing sharply toward the east. “Caw~~” The Lightning Divine Eagle let out a cry and swiftly flew east.
High above the clouds.
The Six-Legged Saber Cicada cleaved through the air, surrounded by whistling gales, with Teng Qingshan and Li Jun leaning against each other atop it.
“Xiao Jun, I won't put you in a tough spot. At worst, I will try to avoid meeting your master in the future. Will that work?”
Teng Qingshan smiled, holding Li Jun’s hand. “But honestly, your master truly seems to take an instant dislike to me. And I can’t say I'm fond of her either... Your master is quite old, yet she seems completely devoid of social graces, as if she’s never experienced human warmth or coldness.”
“Master is the Palace Master’s daughter, so she has always been held in high esteem and probably never suffered any real hardship,” Li Jun conjectured.
Teng Qingshan sighed inwardly.
Though his encounters with the Snow Lotus Sect Master were few, he could easily discern that she was someone without much inner calculation. She loved those she favored, like Li Jun, fiercely. But even toward those she cared for, she could be sharply critical without hesitation. Everything—her dissatisfaction, her anger—was laid bare externally, and her words were never tempered.
Despite the humiliating encounter that had left him boiling with anger moments ago, he understood this: a person who displays all their emotions—anger, affection, displeasure—without any subtlety was ultimately not a significant threat.
“It’s much better for Xiao Jun to have a master like that than one who is devious and full of hidden schemes,” Teng Qingshan muttered with a self-deprecating smile.
“Xiao Jun, we’re almost there,” Teng Qingshan announced.
“Will the Palace Master be there?” Li Jun asked uncertainly.
“I’m not sure,” Teng Qingshan shook his head. “But based on the intelligence we saw earlier, the three most crucial armies—the Blood Lotus Army, the Divine Guard Army, and the Slaughter Yuan Guard—are all gathered here. So, even if the Palace Master Pei San isn’t present, at least the Heavenly Gods 'Su Mengte' and the others should be. Su Mengte and the others are certainly less prone to petty squabbles than the Snow Lotus Sect Master.”
Previously, he couldn't pry the location of Pei San from the Snow Lotus Sect Master’s lips.
A thought striking him, Teng Qingshan had come to this location.
...
This was a massive, rigidly organized military encampment, currently housing the Divine Guard Army, the Blood Lotus Army, and the Slaughter Yuan Guard.
As Teng Qingshan and Li Jun descended on the Six-Legged Saber Cicada, the sky in the east was just beginning to lighten, showing a pale, milky dawn along the horizon.
Whoosh!
Teng Qingshan and Li Jun landed in a rather elegant courtyard.
“Haha, Brother Hu He, what breeze blows you in?” Pei Hao, clad in a white robe, walked out with a warm smile. Pei Hao possessed less arrogance than his elder brother 'Pei San' but carried more honest sincerity.
“Brother Pei Hao,” Teng Qingshan greeted, bowing with a smile.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
As if teleporting, two streams of light appeared in the courtyard, resolving into two figures: the imposing monk 'Su Mengte' wearing loose yellow monastic robes, and the Beast King 'Wu Hou', draped in a cyan robe over divine armor. Both appeared smiling and cupped their hands toward Teng Qingshan: “Brother Hu He.”
“Brother Su Mengte, Brother Wu Hou,” Teng Qingshan returned the greeting with a smile.
“Haha... Congratulations, Hu He,” Wu Hou’s gaze settled on Li Jun. “It seems you’ll be a father soon.” Li Jun’s fetus now possessed a heartbeat, a pulse, and a faint trace of life energy. Though incredibly weak, all the Void Realm experts present could sense it clearly.
“Brother Hu He, this is truly great news,” Pei Hao chimed in with laughter. The great monk also grinned until his eyes narrowed.
“It is precisely because Xiao Jun is pregnant that I have been staying with her these past days. But I came here urgently due to important matters,” Teng Qingshan explained with a slight bow. “Gentlemen... I need to ask, where is the Palace Master right now? I have urgent business to see him.”
“The Palace Master?”
The great monk 'Su Mengte' and Wu Hou exchanged a glance, both looking toward Pei Hao. Pei Hao spoke with a smile: “Brother Hu He, my Third Brother is currently in a secluded location in Youzhou in deep retreat... Because we are waiting for the full assembly of the eighty thousand troops for the Yangzhou campaign, it will likely take another half a month. Furthermore, since the attack has just begun, Third Brother isn't needed yet. He will be required later. So, my brother is taking this opportunity to enter seclusion for a month. During his seclusion, no one is permitted to disturb him. If you want to see the Palace Master, Brother Hu He, that might be a bit difficult.”
“Seclusion?”
Teng Qingshan was momentarily stunned, feeling a surge of helplessness.
He understood; Void Realm experts cultivated almost daily. Even with his wife 'Xiao Jun' pregnant, apart from caring for her, Teng Qingshan devoted himself to practicing his martial arts. This drive was ingrained in their very bones!
And Pei San, as a Cave Void expert, naturally longed to reach the highest realm—the Supreme Expert realm!
Throughout the history of the Nine Provinces Continent, there had been many Cave Void experts. Perhaps they were renowned during their centuries of prominence, but after millennia, descendants would only offer faint praise. The beings most universally revered were the Supreme Experts!
The Four Great Supreme Experts—Emperor Yu, Celestial Emperor Qin Ling, Li Taibai, and Patriarch Shakyamuni—whose names shone as brightly as the sun! Which Cave Void expert would not wish to break through to that Supreme Expert realm?
“Pei San is entering seclusion for a month.” Teng Qingshan frowned. He could understand the logic; if it were him, he wouldn't waste the time either. But he urgently needed to see Pei San. The order to attack Yangzhou was issued by Pei San himself. Even if he explained the situation to the Beast King or Pei Hao now, they could not make the final decision.
He had to find Pei San.
“Do you know where the Palace Master is currently residing?” Teng Qingshan pressed Pei Hao.
“This...” Pei Hao hesitated.
Suddenly, Pei Hao, the Beast King 'Wu Hou', the Heavenly God 'Su Mengte', and Teng Qingshan all looked up at the sky. A streak of lightning flashed, landing directly in the courtyard. The enormous body of the Lightning Divine Eagle occupied a significant corner of the yard, from which the majestic Snow Lotus Sect Master elegantly leaped down.
“I knew you’d be here,” the Snow Lotus Sect Master said, glancing at Teng Qingshan before moving swiftly to Pei Hao’s side.
“Fifth Uncle, this Hu He wants to see Father, right?” the Snow Lotus Sect Master asked. Pei Hao nodded. The Snow Lotus Sect Master continued, “Father is in seclusion, as you all know. It is forbidden to disturb him during his seclusion. Therefore... None of you are allowed to tell this Hu He where he is.”
As the Snow Lotus Sect Master spoke, her gaze swept over the Heavenly God 'Su Mengte' and the Beast King Wu Hou. The two Void Realm experts exchanged a look of helpless amusement.
“Sect Master...” Teng Qingshan frowned and began to speak.
“Hmph,” the Snow Lotus Sect Master felt a surge of satisfaction seeing Teng Qingshan flustered. “Calling me Sect Master won't help. You claimed Xiao Jun was pregnant just now; do you think I’m that easy to fool?” As she spoke, the Sect Master deliberately let her eyes sweep across Li Jun’s abdomen twice.
Pei Hao, standing beside her, gently tugged at the Snow Lotus Sect Master’s sleeve.
“Hm? Fifth Uncle?” The Snow Lotus Sect Master turned, looking confused.
Pei Hao sighed, unable to decide whether to laugh or cry, and whispered, “Xue Lian, Li Jun really is pregnant. We can all sense the faint life energy within her abdomen.”