Da Xuan Martial Saint

In a secluded pavilion,

a figure in blue robes sat cross-legged within a quiet room. The room was empty, furnished with nothing but an incense burner placed in the center, exuding threads of sinking sandalwood smoke. The white smoke twisted and turned but did not rise; rather, it settled downwards.

"Qin Mengjun..."

The figure in blue robes murmured softly while looking at the talisman in his hand.

The blue robes he wore were embroidered with pale golden dragon patterns.

He was the King of Yan, Ji Xuanming, one of the Eight Princes of the Da Xuan Dynasty Court, and the younger brother of King of Jin, Ji Xuanchu.

The bloodline of the Da Xuan Royal Family had always been flourishing, with hundreds of princes in this generation, but so far, only eight had been crowned as kings. Currently, only these eight had the qualification to succeed the throne and ascend to the imperial position in the future.

Even the most minimal qualification to be crowned as a prince required one to step into the Marrow Cleansing Realm and become a Marrow-Cleansing Grandmaster. After all, not just anyone could easily reach such a realm, even if they were princes of the Da Xuan with all the world's resources at their disposal and exceptional innate talents due to their bloodline. Among the hundreds of princes, still, only a dozen had become grandmasters, and of those, only eight had been crowned.

"Heh, brother King of Jin, you thought someone had been discarded, but they broke through and reached the Blood Exchange Realm. Now, if you want to win over that faction, I'm afraid it won't be so easy anymore," Ji Xuanming muttered to himself with an intentful smirk, his tone tinged with sarcasm.

He knew that his brother, the King of Jin, had made many arrangements in the Cold North Path. However, the Cold North Path was too remote and, with ambitious individuals like Yuan Hong, the situation was chaotic. Although there seemed to be endless strife among the various sects, in reality, they had countless connections with the Imperial Court, as at the pinnacle of one state, it was impossible to have no ties with the Imperial Court.

As one of the Eight Princes of the Da Xuan Imperial Court, the secrets King of Yan knew vastly exceeded those of ordinary people. For instance, why did the Heavenly Corpse Sect of Ice State, which caused chaos years ago, provoke the Da Xuan Dynasty Court into a forceful crackdown?

Their practice of Corpse Refinement was not the key issue; they were actually a secretly nurtured private army for a certain faction.

But that was all centuries ago.

Now that the Heavenly Corpse Sect has re-emerged, he is unclear who's pulling the strings, undecided if it's King of Qi or King of Qing, but certain it's not the King of Jin. The King of Jin is the eldest among the Eight Princes and has the deepest foundations. He operates with overt and righteous tactics and has no need to be involved with the Heavenly Corpse Sect, which is no comparison to its former self.

As for others like the Sky Demon Sect, he was even less informed. His arrangements on the Cold North Path were minimal, with only Linjiang Pavilion being a cooperative associate; moreover, he never actively interfered with the situation in the Cold North.

In the end, it was just too remote.

Even if he were not to ascend to that position in the future, securing a retreat for himself would not be in the Cold North.

"In fact, living too long may not be a good thing. Life and death are decreed by the Heavenly Mandate; why resist the will of heaven?" Ji Xuanming suddenly sighed and slowly closed his eyes, grinding the talisman between his fingers to dust.
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The root cause of the world's turmoil was the battle between princes for the throne, which tore the once united strength of the Imperial Court into disarray, causing the gradual loss of absolute control over the various states and paths.

Yet, the source of their internal strife was indeed their father, the emperor, who was unwilling to accept his fate despite his advanced age. He even resorted to wicked methods to prolong his life, resulting in decades of semi-consciousness and madness, which eventually led to this situation.

Actually,

he wasn't so intent on that position at first.

However, it was the chaotic situation within the Imperial Court that gradually drove the princes apart, intensifying the conflict until they reached a point where no one could retreat or dare to retreat.

One step back could mean dying a miserable, inexplicable death.

He too wished for an end to the turmoil, but without the half-mad emperor passing away completely, there seemed to be no end in sight. Even when that day came, it might not resolve anything; the subsequent struggles could be more fierce, more brutal, and beyond anyone's control.

...

The slight ripples caused by the Da Xuan Imperial Court had no impact on the Seven Profound Sect.

Or rather,

the Cold North was too remote and desolate. Maybe the Marrow-Cleansing Grandmasters would pay some attention to the great powers in the distant Central Prefecture, but for the many Viscera Realm protectors beneath them, it mattered not, as it had no effect on them.

After all, the Cold North Path with its Eleven States was already quite extensive. For the majority of Martial Artists in the Five Organ and Viscera Realm, they might only move within two or three states in their lifetime, never being able to traverse the entirety of the Cold North, let alone the far-off Central Prefecture.

However,

Qin Mengjun's advancement to the Blood Exchange Realm still ushered in significant changes within the Seven Profound Sect.

The first was that Qin Mengjun, as a grandmaster of the Blood Exchange Realm, became the Supreme Elder of the Seven Profound Sect, a status superior to the Sect Master, Elders, and Peak Masters, placing him on equal footing with Yin Heng.

The second was that following Qin Mengjun's ascension as the new Supreme Elder, Chen Mu, formerly the Vice Peak Master of Spirit Profound Peak, succeeded him as the Peak Master. This change was unopposed, partly because Chen Mu, being the True Disciple of Qin Mengjun and ranked third on the Wind Cloud List, had the status, identity, and strength to qualify.

On the other hand, although Wu Gu Marquis's death was tacitly attributed to Qin Mengjun's intervention, the death of Tuguhou spread quickly, causing a stir. Many were taken aback to discover that Chen Mu had the capability to kill Tuguhou, a powerful foreign tribe master.