Chapter 76: The New Honorary Guest of the Dojo, Tao Yutian

“What gift?” Upon hearing there was a gift, His Majesty’s expression immediately softened.

The earthen jar flipped itself over and poured out Scarface and several others. “These people were hired by the Ren clan and also received orders from the Ghost Organization. Armed with Soul-Losing Incense, they lured ferocious beasts to attack us. Their aim was to destroy our new city and all its inhabitants.”

The jar’s attitude was impeccably upright. It now served His Majesty.

“So it’s them.” His Majesty examined the unconscious figures lying on the ground. “Who are these people?”

“That Scarface is closely associated with a certain Daoist from the Dao Court. He often takes care of troublesome subordinates for him, kills rivals, and engages in shady dealings like murder and robbery. The others are rogue cultivators he gathered. There were also two who died before the Stone Spirit Array, together forming the Seven Demons of Eastern Wilderness,” the jar explained.

“How do you know all this?” His Majesty asked curiously.

“Ahem, I’ve actually been hiding in Scarface’s storage pouch all along. The Dao Court and some wild monster spirits are extremely interested in us anomalies, always seeking to refine us for their own use. Hmph, do they think we’d willingly serve them? They should look at themselves and see what kind of creatures they are,” the jar said with disdain.

In truth, the jar had long been manipulating Scarface, acting as his golden-fingered mentor for years—though it never led him down a righteous path. But Scarface was just a mortal, unable to resist the jar’s influence and ended up as its puppet. Could this be the jar’s fault?

Certainly not.

“I, Tao Yutian, am destined to serve a master of Your Majesty’s caliber.”

“You’re quite selective, aren’t you?” His Majesty laughed.

“Well, I can’t just take any random spirit as my master, can I?” The jar chuckled sycophantically.

“Alright, deal with these people,” His Majesty said indifferently. “I’m heading back. Bai Rongrong, after the jar takes care of them, bring it to see Jinyuanzi. Jinyuanzi will arrange for it to enter the Dao Court properly and cultivate. As for you, you’ve handled this matter well. I’ll give you a chance: you may choose a Dao technique or secret art from the Court’s library.”

“Thank you, Master Daoist.” Bai Rongrong bowed deeply in gratitude.

His Majesty vanished even before the salute was complete.

Early the next morning, Qingjin had just drifted off when a guard rushed to his bedroom.

“Young master, something’s happened.”

Qingjin sprang up, quickly dressed, and stepped out. “What’s happened?”

“At the foot of Panlong Mountain’s Eastern Wilderness entrance, a great number of eighth and ninth-tier ferocious beasts have died. Their blood has stained the land red, and the murderous aura lingers. Commoners and livestock can barely approach the area.”

“How many is ‘a great number’? Exactly how many beasts died?”

“At least three thousand, possibly more.” Old Zhao strode in, his face alight with excitement. “This is a windfall for us. I’ve already sent guards and strong men down the mountain to collect the bodies.”

Qingjin was stunned. “So many beasts died, and so quietly. Are we really safe to go down and collect the corpses?”

“What’s unsafe about it? It’s clear: some ferocious beasts took advantage of our city’s construction to provoke us. Perhaps some other Dao Master or power is behind it all. But our patron beneath the waters is no pushover; provoked, he had to respond. So he wiped out those invading beasts. Isn’t that perfectly normal?” Old Zhao looked as if he’d understood everything from the start.

“Uncle Zhao, are you saying the one who killed the beasts was the Water Palace Dao Master—my teacher?” Qingjin asked in amazement.

“Of course. Who else could silently kill so many ferocious beasts?” Old Zhao replied.

“If it was him, we truly owe him our thanks. Without his intervention, our entire city would have been destroyed,” Qingjin said gratefully.

“Naturally. We all owe our lives to that Dao Master. If you ever need to repay the favor, just say the word. We’ll do our utmost. For now, though, you should head down to oversee the situation—I’m worried some shameless folks might steal our beast corpses. If you’re there, they’ll respect the Dao Master's face and won’t dare snatch Shen clan property.”

Qingjin chuckled helplessly. “Alright, I’ll go right away.”

By the time Qinghu woke, everyone except her had gone down to collect bodies.

Despite the carnage, with many beasts left in pieces, even the blood-soaked mud was valuable. It could fertilize fields, grow herbs, or feed crops—nothing would be wasted. Shen clan’s strong men dug deep, scraping up every bit of earth mixed with beast blood and flesh.

The Shen clan’s thorough scavenging left nothing for others, but if they couldn’t claim spoils for free, they could always buy. After all, the Shen clan couldn’t possibly consume so much beast meat.

Once the battlefield was cleaned up, merchants and shopkeepers flocked to Shen Fangxu to negotiate.

After settling his own affairs, Qingjin headed to the Dao Court.

A formal expression of gratitude was necessary.

Yet, upon entering the Dao Court, Qingjin noticed new changes. The realm, once filled only with endless light, now contained the auras of other great Daos—Shadow, Darkness, Water, Ice, and so on, each manifesting in turn.

These newly joined Dao auras were not mainstream, but they stubbornly thrived within the Court.

Thanks to the presence of Water and Ice Daos, Qingjin felt a deeper affinity with the Court as he entered.

He went straight to seek out Jinyuanzi, and as he drew near, he was surprised to find a middle-aged man in black robes standing beside him.

The man’s slender face was adorned with the neatly trimmed mustache favored by scholars. Though clad in black, his skin was pale, and his smile was gentle.

“Senior Brother Jinyuanzi, who is this?”

“Qingjin, you’re here. This is Tao Yutian, a newly awakened guest cultivator of the Dao Court,” Jinyuanzi introduced warmly.

“This is Shen Qingjin, our Dao Master’s personal disciple.”

No sooner had Jinyuanzi finished introducing Qingjin than Tao Yutian enthusiastically stepped forward, grasping his hand and refusing to let go. “Ah, Shen Junior Brother! I am your Senior Brother, Tao Yutian.”

Qingjin: “…”

The newcomer surnamed Tao was not only overly enthusiastic, but his introduction was odd. What did he mean by ‘newly awakened’?