87. Perfect Answer
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Back at Yue City, most Elders and Sect Warriors still patrolled the city to ensure safety through the night, and Sect Leader Xu led them himself.
"Did you see our Sect Leader fight?!" One Sect Warrior said to another. "It was spectacular! He's close to moving mountains with a single swing of his sword!"
"Come now, that's a term used for immortals! No need to embellish the truth so much!"
"Heh! It's because you weren't there!" Another put in. "Besides, only a few people died from such a large invasion... Don't you think the Sect Leader is spectacular?!"
But someone suddenly cuffed him on the back of his head...
"Ow-! Who is tired of livin-?!" He began, but fell silent when he saw Elder Zhou. "Ah! Ahaha, Senior! I'm so sorry!" He hastily bowed.
"I understand your admiration for Sect Leader Xu, but those few casualties were living people... Don't mention them so flippantly." Elder Zhou chastised.
He and the other elders knew Sect Leader Xu was heartbroken over the few who had died.
It would have been far worse if they were even just a little less prepared, but a loss remained a loss.
As Sect Leader, Xu Fengyan bore that weight and the weight of worry for the future, all while keeping his cool exterior so everyone would be encouraged and keep looking forward.
Thankfully, almost all Yue City elders, officials, and House Heads realized just how bad things might have been if the Sect Leader hadn't been prepared, and they were now firmly rallied behind him, determined to share his burden.
The Sect offices were determined to remain open till dawn, tirelessly working towards a joint funeral of honour for the dead the very next day, and preparing compensation for their families...
A few officials were recording damages and queuing the extreme cases for compensation the day after, while arranging temporary accommodation for displaced citizens.
The Pill Pavillion would be open overnight as well, catering to the needs of the many physicians who needed pills for the wounded, and the Head Alchemist had declared all pills beneath grade four free for the next few days.
The Herb Gardens did the same, ensuring necessary herbs and emergency potions were available.
And the physicians ran here and there, tending to the wounded, while several House Heads opened their doors to any displaced citizens or families assigned to them...
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The next morning, the joint funeral was held, and Yue City gathered as one to honour the dead.
Sect Leader Xu Personally etched their names on Yueyan's Honour Wall, and then bowed his head to the bereaved families, followed by the Clan and Sect Elders who did the same.
In the end, it left an impression on all present, reminding them that life was fleeting and it could really be gone in a blink...
A little later, the numerous guests and their accompanying elders all left Yue City with hearty thanks from Sect Leader Xu and the elders, Clan and Sect alike.
"Senior! I can't thank you enough!" Lord Xu gave a final bow to Lord Huo, who was the last to leave.
"Aiyaya, don't turn this old man into a stranger!" Lord Huo waved the salute away. "If you're grateful, come over for tea!"
"Ehehe, Senior, after seeing your level recently, wouldn't I be raising a rock to strike my own foot?!" Lord Xu replied, making both of them laugh.
Whenever Lord Huo invited him over for 'tea', it involved drinking tea, yes, but it was mostly to test his student's cultivation growth, thereby leading to several embarrassing duels, reminding Lord Xu that his cultivation journey was still far!
"But Xiaofeng, I must ask you..." Lord Huo had turned serious. "Do you trust everything your son-in-law said?"
At dawn, before the funeral, Luoyin had boldly approached Lord Xu and Lord Huo, with Weiyan and Yin Xing in tow.
Luoyin first apologized for causing worry the previous day, and then he informed Lord Xu about the presence of the floral deity and the cloaked woman, smoothly lying that Yin Xing was a passing immortal who had saved Yue City.
This was a plan the two had hatched- a way to let the mortals know exactly what they might be dealing with, without revealing too much of their own business.
Weiyan had been roped in to identify Yin Xing as the Immortal who had 'saved' them from the eye-eater, and then Yin Xing himself went on to explain how the floral deity and cloaked woman were likely behind the black dragon, and how he intended to report the case to the Sky Emperor.
At present, Lord Xu didn't hesitate to nod. "Even if I didn't trust Xiaoyin (Luoyin), I trust my daughter's words. But I do trust Xiaoyin...
"Asides from the fact that he hasn't let me or my Yanyan suffer a single loss, there's more."
Both men instinctively leaned closer. "I'm fairly certain Xiaoyin is far more powerful than we realize, and I suspect he's the anonymous tipster!"
He had found the tipster's handwriting familiar, and after Zhang Furen's hearing at Moonlit hall, his eyes had suddenly fallen on the new-year's gift Luoyin had sent him.
His gaze lit on the written wishes...
Both handwritings were different. But the differences felt deliberate!
It was like two different buildings with the same foundations, floorings, fittings, and pillars, but different roofs or trimmings...
And given the many bizarre events surrounding Luoyin since Weiyan's return, added to the fact that Zhang Furen had greatly offended him, it was more than logical to assume he was the tipster!
Which was a big push to make Lord Xu believe the letters...
"And besides," Lord Xu continued. "...what are the odds that this immortal had been 'passing by' Yueyan Region during the Eye-eater attack, and then now during the invasion? Two events which concerned Xiaoyin?!
"Considering all these, I believe Xiaoyin's words certainly have merit!"
Lord Huo was nodding at this new piece of information, and he sighed. "It's indeed suspicious, and this Zhang Luoyin fellow is indeed more than meets the eye.
"Besides something did happen yesterday. I think I glimpsed this floral deity during my fight with Lord Mo, and it worries me, because this attack won't affect Yue City alone, but all of Baishan, the Mortal Realm, and even Sky Realm...
"For Sky Realm, it might be a matter of simply catching the culprits, but for us, it's a reminder that there are beings with power beyond our reach, and we are at the mercy of their whims.
"And if this Immortal's words are true, then isn't there a black dragon still hidden out there? The Wulin will regret ignoring Xiaoyan's words." He said, recalling how they had dismissed Weiyan's words about the Eye-eater and the cloaked woman.
Lord Huo placed a comforting hand on Lord Xu's shoulder.
"Xiaofeng, you handle your Sect's matters, but also remember to take care of yourself, hmm?"
And with a final bow of respect from Lord Xu, the two men parted ways...
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Sky Realm...
The floral realm was a vast and vibrant place, full of numerous flowers who only sought to live their lives in peace, cultivating to maintain their life-spans and keep their vitality, or occasionally, to work in central Sky Realm, which was considered a peak achievement,
even if the flower in question was merely working as a servant.
Like most of Sky Realm, the Floral realm was divided into major kinds... Celestial flowers and regular flowers.
Celestial flowers belonged to the divine tribe and consisted of rare flowers like the floral deity, who was a Double-tiered crystal White Lotus, Jin Lan, who was a Gold orchid, and other magical flowers like sun-eared lilies, crystal lotuses, Ice orchids, and the like.
Regular flowers were ordinary orchids, lilies, dahlias, marigolds, lotuses and the normal flowers which dusted the world, but were immortals by some rare chance, or simply because their ancestors had the fortune of blooming in Sky Realm,
where the air itself aided their chances of enlightenment and immortality.
Celestial flowers were naturally more powerful and were born with lengthy life-spans, so though the regular flowers far outnumbered them in millions, the celestial flowers ruled over the floral Realm.
But this didn't lead to envy or any dissent...
Flowers were naturally a content lot, friendly, playful, unambitious, and even the celestial flowers were kind and mild-mannered, showing only patience and kindness in the face of hostility.
This was common knowledge around Sky Realm, as the floral realm had no known military structure over thousands of years, and its borders were wide open to any guests.
Which was why even the most happy-go-lucky flowers were now filled with a sense of apprehension, when the long-dead Floral Realm wards were suddenly activated, sealing them all within, and when hundreds of thousands of soldiers appeared from nowhere, patrolling the entire realm and its borders...
Most of the flowers had been in the dark all along, having no idea what their floral deity had been doing!
Meanwhile, at the Floral Palace, a few servants and officials were surprised to see a strange cloaked woman sitting on the throne, but even more surprising was that the Floral deity and the highest officials knelt before her like children being scolded!
Left with no choice, the rest fell to their knees as well.
"Rise." The cloaked woman calmly ordered. "I can't exactly blame you for yesterday's failure..."
"Thank you, my Mistress!" Qin Yuelian bowed, shocking the officials.
Qin Yuelian, the floral deity, was even older than the previous Sky Emperor.
Who was this woman to make her so obedient?!!
"My Mistress, the Sky Emperor will see this as a declaration of war." Qin Yuelian was saying. "What do we do now?"
"E- exactly!" One of the bolder officials spoke out. "We don't know who you are, but we know we don't want war... Floral realm is supposed to be peaceful!"
But then the official began choking.
"How disrespectful. Speaking out of turn in my presence." The cloaked woman said, and as they all watched, black veins pulsed across the official's skin and after struggling for a few seconds, he fell forward, completely lifeless.
The cloaked woman held out a hand, and black wraiths flew around, filling the throne room with an oppressive aura, and turning all the hanging flowers a stark black.
The frightened officials could certainly recognize a threat when they saw one, so they quickly bowed their heads in silence.
"Hmph." She waved a hand, and the wraiths vanished.
"War is the perfect answer!"
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