A Pawn's Passage

The struggle among the Three Daoist Sects had already permeated every corner of the world. Time and again, its shadow appeared where one least expected it.

Qi Xuansu understood this principle, and he believed Ixchel would soon come to realize it as well. When that happened, she would probably no longer be so pleased with her new title.

Whom should she choose—Qi Xuansu, who represented Sage Donghua, or Li Changge, who represented Sage Qingwei?

It was a difficult choice.

As things stood, it seemed extremely unlikely that either sect would serve two consecutive terms as Grand Master. The two most likely combinations were Sage Donghua as the seventh-generation Grand Master, followed by Li Changge as the eighth-generation Grand Master, or Sage Qingwei as the seventh, followed by Qi Xuansu as the eighth.

No matter which path Ixchel chose, she was destined to offend one side. The only difference was whether she did so sooner or later. It was truly a dilemma.

However, there was one variable in the equation: the Western Daoist Order.

Although Tantai Zhenxiao and Gong Fu had yet to state their positions, Huangfu Ji had all but openly placed his bet on Qi Xuansu. The reason was simple. The Taiping Sect’s radical policies fundamentally undermined the interests of the Western Daoist Order that Huangfu Ji represented. By the time the Taiping Sect were to take control of the Daoist Order and truly begin implementing those radical policies, Tantai Zhenxiao and Gong Fu might have already ascended and departed this world, making the issue irrelevant to them. However, Huangfu Ji would most likely still be alive, and he would have to face the consequences himself, so he naturally had to prepare in advance.

The stance of the Western Daoist Order would also indirectly influence Ixchel.

Qi Xuansu could make the opening moves now, while Li Changge, upon succeeding him, could respond and attempt to overturn the board. But it was still far too early to tell how it would ultimately end.

One of Qi Xuansu’s greatest advantages was his status as the Daoist Order’s envoy. By the time Li Changge took over, the situation would likely have stabilized, so it was unlikely Li Changge would still be granted the title of envoy.

For Li Changge, the worst-case scenario would be receiving no special envoy status at all, serving merely as the Chief Deputy Beichen Hall Master. That would significantly diminish his authority on the Southern Continent.

The best-case scenario would be following Qi Xuansu’s precedent as the Daoist Order’s envoy, allowing him to wield the same sweeping authority. However, since there was no longer a war between the Northern and Southern Continents and Kukulkan was no longer a threat, there was no longer any need for a plenipotentiary envoy. Furthermore, Qi Xuansu had operated under Madam Wu’s supervision. Now that Madam Wu was unavailable, there were no suitable supervisors, making it less likely for this title to be granted to Li Changge.

These scenarios would determine whether Li Changge’s opening position would be favorable, ordinary, or exceptionally difficult.

This could be regarded as the first true contest between Qi Xuansu and Li Changge. Their encounter at Wuxing Mountain did not count, as they had both merely been pieces on the board. But this time, each of them had become half a player in the game.

Zhang Yuelu and Yao Pei had no choice but to fall one step behind. Had it not been for Qi Xuansu, Li Changge would have been far ahead of everyone else.

This inevitably brought up a problem. Qi Xuansu earned his promotion to Chief Deputy Beichen Hall Master through two major achievements. First, he brought down Wang Jiaohe and eliminated corruption within the Poluo Daoist Mansion. Second, he took advantage of the Westerners’ internal conflict to sell large quantities of arms and military equipment, successfully fulfilling the financial objectives assigned to him by the Golden Tower Council.

On the other hand, Li Changge was the Chief Deputy of the Imperial Capital Daoist Mansion, where there had been no comparable achievements to speak of. What entitled him to succeed Qi Xuansu?

The reason was not complicated. Li Changge would receive a special promotion.

Such promotions were uncommon, but by no means unprecedented.

Little Yin was one example. She was promoted directly to the fourth rank, a privilege that even the Three Prodigies had never enjoyed. Her later advancement to the third rank was an ordinary promotion.

Lin Yuanmiao was another example of a special promotion. He went directly from being an undocumented individual to becoming a second-rank Taiyi Daoist, while simultaneously being appointed as a Deputy Shangqing Palace Master.

The exceptional nature of their promotions was not only due to their special identity but also in their cultivation. Little Yin had already reached the Wuliang stage, while Lin Yuanmiao was a Pseudo-Immortal. Little Yin might not have cared about rank, but expecting a dignified Pseudo-Immortal to begin as a ninth-rank Daoist would have been downright insulting, inevitably breeding deep resentment.

The Daoist Order had no reason to create unnecessary instability for itself. So in situations like these, flexibility was required. That was how the practice of special promotions came into being. It was an unwritten rule universally acknowledged within the Daoist Order.

There were two prerequisites for a special promotion. First, the individual had to be a Daoist. Second, the individual’s cultivation had to be sufficiently advanced. At the very least, it had to be well beyond what would normally be expected for their age. A century-old Immortal was nothing extraordinary, but a 40-year-old Immortal was truly remarkable.

This was the loophole that the Li family wanted to exploit. Li Changge was already a Daoist, so he could not be granted a high-ranking Daoist Priest Kindred status like Ixchel. At the same time, he had successfully assimilated the Qinghuo Pearl, allowing his cultivation to surpass Qi Xuansu’s and enabling him to become a Pseudo-Immortal. The Taiping Sect would then advocate for his special promotion because his cultivation had exceeded the norm for his age.

Had it been anyone else lacking the Taiping Sect’s support, even a special promotion would never have placed them in such an important position.

From this perspective, Sage Qingwei was not as lucky as Li Changge. Though the former held the Qinghuo Pearl before, it made little difference for him. That was because Sage Qingwei was already the Second Omniscient Sage of the Golden Tower Council, which was the pinnacle of his rank. Since Sage Qingwei had ambitions to become the Grand Master, he would not possibly be content as a Virtuous Great Sage.

For Qi Xuansu, bringing his mission to a perfect conclusion meant not only wrapping up his own affairs but also setting the stage for Li Changge’s arrival. He had already planted the first piece as the opening move of that new game—Lu Yujue. During the time that remained, he would continue placing other pieces on the board.

On the other hand, Sage Qingwei was not completely unprepared either. He had sent Shen Yubing ahead of time to pave the way for Li Changge. That was why, from the moment Shen Yubing met Qi Xuansu, he adopted an openly disdainful attitude, bordering on outright provocation. That was precisely the role he had been assigned.

It was only later that Qi Xuansu came to understand this.

As a result, Qi Xuansu reckoned that he would most likely fail in his mission to rebuild the Northern Continent’s intelligence network. No matter how capable he was, the Beichen Hall branches simply refused to cooperate. With Shen Yubing’s openly hostile attitude, success was simply impossible.

That was because rebuilding the Northern Continent’s intelligence network was an accomplishment reserved specially for Li Changge. Once Li Changge took over, all the obstacles would immediately disappear, the work would advance at great speed, and the task would be completed in short order.

It would create the impression that Li Changge could accomplish what Qi Xuansu could not, suggesting that Li Changge was more capable than Qi Xuansu in certain respects.

Qi Xuansu could only endure this in silence, unable to voice his grievances. After all, facts spoke louder than words.

Therefore, Qi Xuansu had to make up for it elsewhere and lay a few traps for Li Changge. One thing he was certainly going to do was help Lu Yujue gain his vengeance.

Of course, this amounted to placing personal rivalry above official duty, which could seriously harm the interests of the Daoist Order. It was wrong and would undoubtedly be condemned by the idealistic flowerbed Daoists.

But Qi Xuansu had no choice. The Taiping Sect struck first. Was he simply supposed not to fight back? The more he retreated, the more they would press their advantage. Only a forceful counterattack could preserve balance and stability, creating a temporary stalemate.

Only by fighting could war be brought to an end. Conflict was ever-present, so long as desire and human nature existed. Self-righteous flowerbed Daoists were often ignorant of reality, so it was rather laughable when they lectured others about their idealism.

Beyond that, Qi Xuansu also needed to minimize the negative impact of his failure to rebuild the Northern Continent’s intelligence network. The way to do that was to overshadow it with even greater achievements, like abolishing blood sacrifice and exterminating the humanoid insects.

Since there were no restrictions on the methods employed, the tactics of Juesheng Hall were inevitably more forceful and, at times, cruel.

Through interrogation, Juesheng Hall had now determined the approximate location of the Blue Cloud Sect. It was situated on a massive island in the waters between the Southern Continent and Sahul. Numerous formations had been established around the island, so infiltrating it would require considerable effort.

Juesheng Hall had considered the possibility of launching a direct assault. However, the island was capable of moving on its own. Such an attack would create far too much commotion. The humanoid insects on Blue Cloud Island would likely detect the approaching fleet and evacuate before the Daoists could even locate the island.

Moreover, in the ensuing chaos, it would be difficult to annihilate every single humanoid insect. Therefore, the best course of action was still to infiltrate Blue Cloud Island first and thoroughly gauge the situation before launching a coordinated assault to wipe them out in a single decisive strike.

This plan received approval from the higher-ups, and Juesheng Hall had already begun selecting personnel for the first infiltration mission.

Since the humanoid insects could disguise themselves as humans, the reverse was also possible. Before returning to the hive, each humanoid insect functioned as an independent individual rather than sharing a collective consciousness, making it possible to deceive them.

Tantai Ying had originally intended to lead the operation personally, but her subordinates persuaded her otherwise because they had heard that the humanoid insects were notoriously lustful. If Tantai Ying were to fall into their hands, none of them could bear the responsibility. They did not want to experience the thunderous wrath of Great Sage Tantai.

Regarding the abolition of blood sacrifice, Qi Xuansu put forward another proposal. It would not be enough to suppress the practice through force alone. People had to be encouraged to abandon it of their own accord.

One aspect was education and moral instruction, helping people understand that blood sacrifice was fundamentally wrong.

The other aspect was to cultivate more land and build more workshops. That way, there would be labor shortages. At that point, the value of human labor would continue to rise. From a purely economic perspective, sacrificing and killing large numbers of workers would become an extremely unprofitable practice. Thus, when abandoning blood sacrifice became more profitable, people would naturally do so of their own accord.

Violent suppression of blood sacrifice addressed only the symptoms, while societal development addressed the root cause.

This also tied directly into Huangfu Ji’s area of responsibility. The Western Daoist Order had recognized this long ago, but years of continuous warfare had left them with neither the time nor the resources to act on it. Now that they finally had breathing room, it was only natural to devote their efforts to development. Although the process would not be easy, once it succeeded, many of the existing problems would resolve themselves.