A Pawn's Passage

Chapter 505: Upper Palace (I)

For Qi Xuansu, the Wanxiang Daoist Palace was all too familiar.

However, this familiarity only applied to the Lower Palace. Zhang Yuelu, who had stayed at the Upper Palace for three months, knew more about it than he did.

There was no helping it. The difference between the Upper and Lower Palace was like that between high-ranking and low-ranking Daoists. They were entirely separate worlds.

Whenever he thought of this, Qi Xuansu could not help but mimic the sighs of literary scholars, lamenting, “The joys and sorrows of two worlds would never align.”

It was somewhat melodramatic. But he came to understand a deeper truth—it was not just between two worlds, but even the joys and sorrows between two people were never truly connected. @@novelbin@@

When Wan Xiuwu and Yue Liuli nearly killed him, he was filled with grief and rage, but to others, it might have been nothing more than gossip and amusement. When he sought justice, people did not sympathize with him and merely thought that he was kicking up a fuss.

The distances between the Daoist palaces and state palaces of the Quanzhen Sect were not particularly vast—from the Chongyang Palace of Immortality in Difei Mountain to the Wuxu Palace in Xijing Prefecture, then to the Summer Palace in Beimang Mountain, and finally, to the Wanxiang Daoist Palace in Longmen Prefecture. On a big map, they even seemed a bit clustered. Traveling by land would take several days, but by air, it would only take a few hours.

Around noon, Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu arrived at the Wanxiang Daoist Palace.

Wanxiang Daoist Palace was like a city within a city, with endless grand and towering buildings. Although Qi Xuansu had grown up in the Wanxiang Daoist Palace, he had never once walked through the main gate. Whether sneaking out or following the instructors, he had always gone through the side gates.

The main gate was grand and imposing, its foundation alone towered above all the side gates. There were 99 steps that led up to the main gate, wide enough for 20 people to walk side by side without feeling cramped. This instantly displayed the distinction between the higher and lower ranks.

Only those entering the Upper Palace for advanced studies were allowed to pass through this main gate.

Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu arrived at the main gate of the Wanxiang Daoist Palace. Below the steps, a group of stationed Spirit Guards stood in formation, arranged like spread wings.

Leading them was a fourth-rank Spirit Guard. When he saw a young man and woman approaching the gate, he initially assumed they were either Apprentice Mages or Prospective Mages. However, upon noticing the badge and license hanging from Zhang Yuelu’s waist, his expression immediately turned solemn.

A fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist was not uncommon, but such a young one was exceedingly rare. When the Spirit Guard clearly saw the woman’s insignia, he quickly deduced her identity and immediately stepped forward to salute her. “Greetings, Deputy Hall Master Zhang.”

Zhang Yuelu was slightly surprised. “You recognize me?”

The Spirit Guard said honestly, “I deduced it from your age and your Deputy Tiangang Hall Master badge. Besides, the Golden Tower Council has already issued an official bulletin announcing your promotion to the third rank. You are the youngest third-rank Youyi Daoist master in the past 90 years, and currently the youngest among all third ranks.”

Usually, a promotion to the third rank would not warrant an official bulletin. However, Zhang Yuelu’s case was special. Being the youngest third-rank Youyi Daoist master in the past 90 years was not only a striking headline but also carried significant meaning, making it worth highlighting in the bulletin.

The bulletin even published a short biography of Zhang Yuelu, detailing her involvement in solving the Jiangnan case, the Purple Immortal Mountain case, and surviving the Jinling Prefecture calamity.

Qi Xuansu suddenly recalled Qin Xiang addressing the young Deputy Tiangang Hall Master as the legendary Zhang Yuelu. He could not help but chuckle.

In truth, he thought the same of Zhang Yuelu before his first time boarding the flying ship to Jade Capital. Zhang Yuelu was a name he only heard of in stories—unattainable and legendary like Sage Donghua.

These stories and legends came from the Daoist bulletins.

It was apparent that the news of Zhang Yuelu’s promotion had spread before Pei Xiaolou told them of the good news. This showed that Zhang Yuelu’s promotion to the third rank had long been decided before Pei Xiaolou was released from the Golden Tower Council inquiry. Someone had already leaked the information to the Qingping Publishing House in advance.

However, this Spirit Guard clearly did not recognize Qi Xuansu, which suggested that the bulletin had only mentioned Zhang Yuelu’s promotion and omitted any mention of Qi Xuansu’s advancement to the fourth rank.

After all, Qi Xuansu was older than Zhang Yuelu yet one rank lower. He was at best footnote material, unworthy of mention. Moreover, given his murky past, it was better to handle it discreetly.

The Spirit Guard asked, “A promotion to the fourth rank requires advanced studies at the Wanxiang Daoist Palace, but there’s no precedent for a third-rank Youyi Daoist master having to return for further training. Deputy Hall Master Zhang, are you simply revisiting old grounds?”

Zhang Yuelu replied, “I’m accompanying a friend. Since the semester hasn’t started yet, I should be allowed entry, right?”

“Of course, of course,” The Spirit Guard responded, shifting his gaze toward Qi Xuansu.

Qi Xuansu saluted and introduced himself. “I am Qi Xuansu, newly promoted to the fourth rank. I’m here for my training.”

“Wow!” The Spirit Guard could not help but exclaim. “Mage Qi, you have a bright future ahead. Congratulations!”

Determining the age of a Daoist man was actually quite simple. One would only need to look for a beard. This was an unwritten but rigid custom. Before 30, young men favored a clean-shaven look. After 30, they kept short beards. After 50, they could grow long beards. At a glance, it was clear that the clean-shaven Qi Xuansu was still under 30.

A fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist master under 30—though not on par with Zhang Yuelu—was still ahead of 99% of his peers. Barring any unexpected mishaps, his path to becoming a Sage was practically guaranteed.

The Spirit Guard could not help but sigh that birds of a feather surely flocked together.

At that moment, three more individuals approached the main gate from Xingye Lake. The man leading the group was Lu Shuihan, a direct descendant of the Lu family from the Taiping Sect. His two companions were also considered outstanding among the younger generation—a woman named Bai Yuru and a man named Zhao Huang.

Lu Shuihan was currently a fifth-rank Prospective Mage, while Bai Yuru and Zhao Huang were sixth-rank Apprentice Mages. The trio once had a minor misunderstanding with Zhang Yuelu, which happened to involve Qi Xuansu.

During Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu's second meeting, they shared a bowl of beef noodles in Taiqing Square. This trio had seen the couple and made crude remarks, claiming Zhang Yuelu was keeping a boy toy. Unfortunately for them, Zhang Yuelu overheard their gossip and decided to teach them a small lesson.

Later, after Zhang Yuelu became familiar with Qi Xuansu, she mentioned the incident to him. However, at the time, Qi Xuansu’s cultivation was too low to notice their presence. He only knew of the trio’s existence but had never seen their faces.

After hearing about this, Qi Xuansu even teased Zhang Yuelu, saying that they were not entirely wrong. He was indeed Deputy Hall Master Zhang’s little lover. As a result, Qi Xuansu also got beaten up by Zhang Yuelu.

The trio froze when they spotted Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu, unsure whether to advance or retreat.

Zhang Yuelu noticed them and glanced over, making all three shudder involuntarily.

Back then, Zhang Yuelu was not yet a Heavenly Being. She was only a fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist master, yet they were already no match for her.

Now that she had risen further and had become a Heavenly Being, they stood even less of a chance against her. Moreover, in terms of both rank and position, they were obligated to greet her first, even though Zhang Yuelu was younger than them by a few years.

Summoning their courage, the trio stepped forward, bowed, and greeted in unison, “Greetings, Deputy Hall Master Zhang.”

“No need for formalities.” Zhang Yuelu returned a brief salute.

Qi Xuansu glanced at Zhang Yuelu with a puzzled expression.

Zhang Yuelu reminded him. “Taiqing Square, beef noodles.”

Qi Xuansu immediately recalled the incident and laughed. “Ah, so they’re your old friends! Are the three of you here for training as well? That means we’ll be classmates from now on. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

The trio also recognized Qi Xuansu as the boy toy they had mocked back then.

Judging by the situation now, it seemed that Zhang Yuelu actually ended up with this boy toy. Their jokes turned out to be true, and this uncouth wild Daoist was actually attending training at the Upper Palace!

Lu Shuihan maintained his composure and did not dwell on the matter. He cupped his hands and excused himself. “If there’s nothing else, we’ll head inside first.”

“Please, go ahead.” Qi Xuansu returned the gesture.

Once the trio walked away, Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu bid farewell to the Spirit Guard and proceeded toward the main entrance of the Wanxiang Daoist Palace.

Qi Xuansu whispered, “I thought we were about to witness a classic scene of romantic rivalry. By the way, Li Tianzhen wouldn’t happen to be in the Wanxiang Daoist Palace as well, would he?”

Zhang Yuelu shook her head. “I’m infamous for being stubborn and difficult to get along with. Not to mention, I’m not some unparalleled beauty. Besides, most people only covet my status and rank. They don’t actually like me. Li Tianzhen is much older than you. He’s already in his thirties and has long been a fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist master.”

Qi Xuansu nodded, taking note of this information.

He had never found Zhang Yuelu stubborn or difficult to deal with. Perhaps it was because he was not exactly easygoing himself. It seemed like these two oddballs had simply met their match.