Chapter 52: The Demon Monk
\n\u201cDragon Guards?\u201d
\nYu Ruyi instantly recognized the newcomers, making the group tense. Despite the fractured state of the realm, the royal family remained the supreme power. No faction dared openly oppose the Dragon Guards alone. Zuo Meng, lounging like a lazy fish nearby, noticed something odd\u2014wasn\u2019t this Si Mo, the Dragon Guards\u2019 ranked expert who\u2019d been thrashed by his three dirt dogs years ago?
\nAfter recognizing him, Zuo Meng glanced at his three dogs playing dead. Six years had changed their appearance, and their hidden auras kept them unnoticed.
\n\u201cNo need for alarm. We\u2019re here to invite Palace Master Yu and the Immortal Palace\u2019s strong individuals to join the Dragon Guards.\u201d
\n\u201cJoin?\u201d
\nZhi Hua and Zhang Tu exchanged puzzled looks.
\n\u201cYou\u2019ll be nominally under our banner. In return, the court will recognize your control over Suzhou.\u201d
\nThe Immortal Palace currently resembled rebel warlords\u2014holding territory but vulnerable to royal annihilation. Even with their growth, they couldn\u2019t rival the court. Si Mo\u2019s aura alone surpassed everyone present, marking him as a peak Golden Core expert. The group fell silent, unprepared for this sudden offer. Yu Ruyi herself seemed at a loss.
\n\u201cDon\u2019t dismiss this yet. Tianya Pavilion has already accepted.\u201d
\nSi Mo dropped another card. Tasked with unifying factions, he\u2019d subdued multiple groups already. The Immortal Palace was just another stop.
\n\u201cTianya Pavilion surrendered to the court?!\u201d
\nThe room stiffened. Their greatest rival\u2019s submission meant opposing Tianya Pavilion now meant defying the throne. Surviving such a conflict was impossible\u2014even with their strength, the Dragon Guards\u2019 intervention would doom them.
\n\u201cTwenty-eight clans have pledged allegiance, not just Tianya Pavilion.\u201d Si Mo\u2019s tone stayed flat. His guards remained stoic\u2014they\u2019d seen countless prideful factions kneel before imperial might.
\n\u201cGreetings, Lord Si.\u201d
\nYu Ruyi rose with a resigned bow. Reluctantly, the others followed. Though Golden Core cultivators, they paled against the court\u2019s numbers and the enigmatic Emperor of Chu\u2019s unfathomable cultivation. Resistance meant annihilation.
\n\u201cYour courtesy honors us, Palace Master Yu.\u201d
\nSi Mo returned the gesture. With their compliance secured, he signaled his guards to distribute documents. Zuo Meng, the \u201clazy fish\u201d shopkeeper at Foundation Establishment level, went ignored\u2014beneath their notice.
\nThe Dragon Guards operated openly, unafraid of scrutiny. Power was their strategy.
\n\u201cCold Mountain Temple?!\u201d
\nZhang Tu blanched at the document\u2019s contents.
\n\u201cCorrect. Last month, the Holy Emperor declared it a den of heresy. Its abbot, Demon Monk Jie Ming, must be executed.\u201d Si Mo eyed Zhang Tu meaningfully.
\nBefore joining the Immortal Palace, Zhang Tu had been Jie Nian\u2014Jie Ming\u2019s fellow disciple. This personal history explained Si Mo\u2019s presence. Eliminating the dangerously powerful demon monk required every advantage.
\n\u201cLord Si\u2026 what crime did Jie Ming commit?\u201d
\n\u201cSelfishly amassing followers and spreading chaos. Elder Zhang Tu, do you truly believe the current turmoil stems from Immortal Cultivators? Were it not for that demon monk Jie Ming, the Great Chu court would’ve restored order long ago.\u201d Si Mo sneered. \u201cDraining the cultivation of Daozi and Jianzi for his own gain, that monk built temples to seat himself like a god. Declaring himself Buddha reborn, he\u2019s deceived countless clans – the true root of this chaos!\u201d
\nZhang Tu\u2019s face grew clammy with sweat. Cold Mountain Temple had declined long ago. When he\u2019d first left the mountain, he\u2019d hoped to bring his fellow disciple Jie Ming back. But over years of cultivation, he\u2019d realized the insurmountable gap between them. He\u2019d abandoned his old identity, even stopped using his monastic name. Staying in Suzhou all these years… was it hiding?
\nNever did he imagine his former junior brother would achieve such infamy. Now branded Great Chu\u2019s official demon monk. And he remained linked as that monster\u2019s senior brother. More sweat beaded on Zhang Tu\u2019s brow.
\n\u201cI hear Elder Zhang and Demon Monk Jie Ming were fellow disciples?\u201d Si Mo pressed. \u201cThat zealous monks from Cold Mountain Temple plan to \u2018purify\u2019 their order – including the \u2018Living Buddha\u2019s\u2019 senior brother.\u201d
\n\u201cState your purpose plainly, Lord Si.\u201d
\nZhang Tu set down the ledger detailing Jie Ming\u2019s crimes. One glance had been enough.
\nThe Dragon Guard commander smiled. \u201cWe\u2019ve a plan requiring your cooperation. Our men will protect Cold Mountain Temple\u2019s monks.\u201d
\nZhang Tu sighed heavily. Yu Linglong and Zhi Hua stayed silent – this concerned their elder\u2019s past. Zuo Meng remained invisible in his corner, sipping tea.
\n————<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Chapter 52: The Demon Monk \u201cDragon Guards?\u201d Yu Ruyi instantly recognized the newcomers, making the group tense. Despite the fractured state of the realm, the royal family remained the supreme power. No faction dared openly oppose the Dragon Guards alone. Zuo Meng, lounging like a lazy fish nearby, noticed something odd\u2014wasn\u2019t this Si Mo, the Dragon Guards\u2019 ranked expert who\u2019d been thrashed by his\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","categories":[3],"tags":[],"fcn_genre":[],"fcn_fandom":[],"fcn_character":[],"fcn_content_warning":[],"class_list":["post-1431","fcn_chapter","type-fcn_chapter","status-publish","hentry","category-dreaming-to-become-a-creator"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_chapter\/1431","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_chapter"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/fcn_chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1431"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_chapter\/1431\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1431"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1431"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1431"},{"taxonomy":"fcn_genre","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_genre?post=1431"},{"taxonomy":"fcn_fandom","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_fandom?post=1431"},{"taxonomy":"fcn_character","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_character?post=1431"},{"taxonomy":"fcn_content_warning","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_content_warning?post=1431"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}