Chapter 297

Chapter 297: I Am the Rule

The temperature inside the Heaven’s Secret Pavilion plummeted after Ye Xu’s words, chilling everyone as if they were in an ice cave. Each one trembled uncontrollably.

Bai Muyue’s expression brimmed with unease.

She stared at Ye Xu, weighing the consequences.

Judging by the strength he had displayed, her chances of victory stood at less than one percent if a fight erupted.

After a whirlwind of thoughts, Bai Muyue ultimately abandoned her impulse to strike. She cupped her hands in a salute and apologized, "Master, please do not take offense. I was reckless."

Ye Xu appeared astonished. Since Bai Muyue stepped into the pavilion, he had known her identity—she was the daughter of the innate god White Emperor, a spy placed by her father in the mortal realm.

Her purpose in coming was for Su Mu.

Had Bai Muyue attacked just now, Ye Xu would have been justified in subduing her. The so-called three promises could also have been voided over this incident.

But Bai Muyue, shrewd and cautious, avoided the trap.

I thought about recruiting him for divine dragon, Bai Muyue mused inwardly. But now it seems utterly impossible.

How could someone as unfathomable as Ye Xu ever willingly bow to another?

Detecting her thoughts, Ye Xu offered no comment.

The last one who’d tried to "recruit" him was now running errands in the Heaven’s Secret Pavilion.

Watching Bai Muyue relent, both the Seven Immortals of Cloud Capital and Gu Daojin flashed disappointment in their eyes.

"Your schemes against me in the Divine Court ruins…" Bai Muyue fixed her gaze on Gu Daojin, speaking lightly, "…I’ll drop the matter in deference to the Master. But if there’s a next time, even if I must oppose the Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, I will end you all."

"Our gratitude, Esteemed Senior," the Seven Immortals of Cloud Capital promptly bowed in thanks.

Gu Daojin stood motionless, snorted coldly, and turned away.

"Gu Daojin." Ye Xu called.

"Your subordinate is here." Gu Daojin bowed.

"Find Su Mu. He’ll arrange your lodgings." Ye Xu stated coolly.

"Yes."

Gu Daojin and the others accepted a jade slip before leaving the pavilion.

Once outside, they looked up at the sky and sighed deeply.

They’d come to seek employment at the Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, yet ended up losing nine hundred million Star Yuan to Ye Xu without pay—how could this be?

Dazed, they wandered as if trapped in a bewildering dream.

"Elder Brother, don’t dwell on it," Heavenly Talisman Old Man consoled. "At least the Master promised us a century of safety. Star Yuan can be earned back; life cannot."

"You see clearly, Elder Brother," Nine Palaces Emperor Venerable nodded.

"Enough talk. Let’s go."

They faded into the distance.

In the Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, only Ye Xu and Bai Muyue remained.

"Master, I have another matter on this trip, I hope the Master can help me find out the whereabouts of a person." Bai Muyue said: "As for the price, the Master can set it."

"As expected of the daughter of the White Emperor, rich and imposing." Ye Xu praised.

Bai Muyue’s expression became stern—had Ye Xu already seen her origins? It made sense to think about it: she had never met Ye Xu, and upon entering, he could call out her surname and deduce her identity, fitting reason.

"I already know your purpose for coming, but this is not a matter of money." Ye Xu smiled faintly and said.

Su Mu, to obtain the Divine Tree, had once made three promises to the White Emperor. Ye Xu had not expected that someone would come so soon to demand Su Mu fulfill his promises.

After all, Su Mu only possessed Emperor Venerable cultivation, had not yet attained immortality, and could not assist the White Emperor temporarily.

Not a matter of money? Upon hearing, a sense of foreboding arose in Bai Muyue’s heart.

"What does the Master mean by this?" Bai Muyue frowned and said.

Wasn’t Heaven’s Secret Pavilion a place for business? The master of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion was greedy and profit-loving—why decline money?

Perceiving Bai Muyue’s thoughts, Ye Xu frowned. It seemed he had been labeled.

"Please clarify, Master." Bai Muyue said solemnly.

"The person you seek is named Su Mu." With a light flick of his finger, Ye Xu sketched a vivid image of Su Mu in the air.

Ye Xu looked at Bai Muyue and asked, "Is this the person?"

Bai Muyue was deeply shocked; her admiration for Ye Xu’s methods had turned to awe. She knew that from entering Heaven’s Secret Pavilion to the end, she had not revealed a hint about Su Mu.

How masterful must one be in the art of calculations to deduce all?

"It’s him." Bai Muyue had Su Mu’s information and recognized him instantly. Turning, she flattered, "Master, you are truly Heaven and Man!"

Ye Xu brushed it off, having heard too much flattery, he was weary.

"Truthfully, Su Mu is now working for Heaven’s Secret Pavilion." Ye Xu said.

Swoosh! Bai Muyue’s eyes narrowed, that sense of foreboding instantly swept through her. The incident with the Seven Immortals of Cloud Capital was a recent lesson. When Heaven’s Secret Pavilion members were involved, Ye Xu clearly showed favoritism.

"Master, this person once made three promises with my divine dragon; I, this young lady, am here seeking his pledges." Bai Muyue said solemnly. "The master knows all, so this must not escape you."

Ye Xu nodded. "Then, how will the Master handle it?" Bai Muyue asked.

What a headache.

Ye Xu showed a troubled expression and said, "Su Mu is a virtuous gentleman. If he breaks his promise, wouldn’t that tarnish his good reputation?"

"However, if he follows you away, who will handle the pile of matters at Heaven’s Secret Pavilion?"

"Daoist friend’s request truly puts me in a difficult position."

As soon as these words were spoken, Bai Muyue’s face immediately turned unsightly.

The implication in Ye Xu’s words could be understood by anyone who wasn’t an idiot.

He wanted to renege on the debt.

Bai Muyue gritted her silver teeth and said, "Master, do you mean to renege?"

Bai Muyue couldn’t see through Ye Xu at all.

Ye Xu knew everything and could truly be called a peerless talent of the era, yet he clung to wealth as if it were life itself, fiercely protected his inner circle, and reeked of jianghu habits.

Shouldn’t a transcendent expert rise above worldly concerns, untouched by mundane dust?

Apart from his handsome looks, Ye Xu showed none of a transcendent expert’s traits.

"I never said that."

Ye Xu said lightly, "I can’t decide matters for Su Mu. But affairs concerning Heaven’s Secret Pavilion and its people, I certainly have the authority."

"Right now, the Star Yuan system has just been established. Su Mu is the executor; he absolutely cannot be disturbed in the slightest. Do you grasp my meaning, Miss Bai?"

"Master, this was Su Mu’s oath to the divine dragon," Bai Muyue said coldly.

Since the facade had been torn, Bai Muyue no longer concealed her true feelings.

"Master possesses vast divine abilities, but the divine dragon is no obscure figure either."

"Are you threatening this Master?"

Ye Xu said with a half-smile, "Not long ago, I subdued a Great Dao imprint of the Dark Emperor in Heaven’s Secret Pavilion. Adding one of the White Emperor would neatly complete the pair."

"The divine leaf from the Divine Tree of Light carries a shred of the White Emperor’s imprint. Call him out—I’ll settle this logically."

Bai Muyue’s pupils abruptly contracted.

The Dark Emperor’s Great Dao imprint had been subdued in Heaven’s Secret Pavilion?

It was unbelievable.

The Black Emperor and the White Emperor: one dark, one light. Though the White Emperor edged ahead in cultivation, he hadn’t surpassed the end of the Great Dao. If the Dark Emperor suffered defeat at Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, the White Emperor wouldn’t fare better if he descended.

"Let me help you."

At Ye Xu’s mental command, Bai Muyue’s Purple Palace flew open. The divine leaf from the Divine Tree of Light drifted out, manifesting the innate light Great Dao. A figure was forcibly drawn into visibility.

The figure was draped in moon-white robes, eyes gleaming like stars—radiant, resplendent, holy, almost the world’s primal source of light.

"Divine dragon!"

As the White Emperor appeared, Bai Muyue instantly knelt on one knee in salutation.

She gazed at the White Emperor, her expression bewildered and suspicious.

Had the divine dragon truly been forced out by the master of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion?

If this was true, how terrifying would the strength of the master of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion be?

"Daoist friend, White Emperor."

Ye Xu’s gaze fell upon White Emperor, indifferent.

This was merely a Great Dao imprint, comparable in strength to Dark Emperor’s Great Dao imprint.

"The master of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion?"

White Emperor’s voice was magnetic, his eyes filled with confusion.

He still felt somewhat bewildered.

Anyone thrust unprepared into manifestation within an unfamiliar place would likely feel the same.

"It is me," Ye Xu said lightly.

"I heard Dark Emperor suffered a loss by your hand. I originally didn’t believe it, but seeing it today confirms it’s true." White Emperor gave a faint smile. "Daoist friend, by forcing my manifestation, could you intend to destroy this strand of my Great Dao imprint?"

"That thought did cross my mind," Ye Xu replied indifferently.

"……"

White Emperor stiffened. Could he not speak properly?

After all, he was the first wisp of light in the universe, commanding the innate light Great Dao itself, a powerful being at the end of the Great Dao. Even within the Purple Star Heavenly Court, he was a figure of significant standing.

Apart from the Heavenly Emperor, this was the first time he encountered someone showing him no deference whatsoever.

Bai Muyue was equally terrified.

Now that her divine dragon had descended, yet the master of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion remained utterly unyielding. This matter might not end peacefully.

"Daoist friend of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, this Divine Emperor has no wish to feud with you," White Emperor said, his expression darkening slightly. "That reincarnated Immortal King formed a vow with me. Violating it would condemn him to eternal damnation."

"He serves you, Daoist friend. Doubtless, you would not wish him to prove faithless?"

Ye Xu nearly laughed aloud.

Su Mu was, of course, no faithless man; otherwise, he wouldn’t have searched endlessly over countless ages for Yue Lingxi (Shen Yueyi).

The idea of reneging first occurred to Ye Xu.

To ensure Su Mu served the Heaven’s Secret Pavilion wholeheartedly, Ye Xu naturally aimed to resolve all his difficulties.

No time suited better than the present—what fortune that Bai Muyue came knocking willingly. Ye Xu fully intended to accept this boon.

"Regarding Su Mu’s commitment, I propose a solution," Ye Xu stated leisurely. "Once his duties for Heaven’s Secret Pavilion are fulfilled, I shall have him personally deliver on those three promises."

"Daoist friend, you face two choices regarding this arrangement."

"Accept it, and all ends well."

"Reject it, and then we shall reason."

"Reason?"

White Emperor frowned, blurting out the word.

He was utterly perplexed. With Ye Xu’s belligerent stance, was he truly talking about reasoning?

His skepticism was justified.

Before White Emperor’s words could fade, an overwhelming aura instantly engulfed him.

"Master! Weren’t you just speaking of reasoning with me?"

White Emperor cried out, equally aghast and incensed.

The exalted master of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion—now stooping to ambush?

Worse yet, that terrifying force instantly sealed his Great Dao entirely. Not even a shred of his strength remained accessible.

"Within Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, this Master is reason."

"My reasoning holds this truth: all must abide by my rules."

Ye Xu’s tone was indifferent.

Boom!

The power of rules suppressed him. Despite White Emperor’s status as a powerful being at the end of the Great Dao, against the pressure of rules, his struggle proved utterly useless.

A breath later, that strand of Great Dao imprint was utterly obliterated.

The leaves of the Divine Tree of Light crumbled into dust, scattered in the wind.

Witnessing this, Bai Muyue stood rigidly frozen. Her lips paled. Stricken by terror, color drained entirely from her face.