There wasn’t much that needed to be settled in Jiang Yi Prefecture; besides the name change, everything else was as per usual. Xiao Hong was going to handle everything while the Xiao Clan had also become a vassal clan of Jiang Yi. Although outsiders might mock Xiao Hong for doing something stupid, Xiao Hong was actually rather pleased with his decision and had actually declared his allegiance to Jiang Yi.
The Divine Eagle City became Commander Liu’s.
Although Commander Liu was from the Demon-Killing Pavilion—as Jiang Yi had set a precedent, it wasn’t a big deal that Commander Liu had taken over from him. Furthermore, the entire prefecture was Jiang Yi’s fiefdom; the higher-ups did not bother with matters in Jiang Yi Prefecture anymore. Since all the cities in the prefecture belonged to Jiang Yi, he naturally could give any city to anyone he liked.
He Wei was transferred to the Blue Eagle City and became a commander; in terms of authority, he was now even higher than his father. He Wei was thankful that he had not left Jiang Yi at the start. If not, he might not have had such a chance his entire life if he had gone to look for his father instead.
Gu Mu became Jiang Yi’s head of internal affairs and took care of all matters with regard to taxation. He was Jiang Yi’s soul slave; Jiang Yi was naturally assured that nothing would go wrong.
Jiang Yi intended to bring Poison Spirit along to the Demon-Buster Army. Poison Spirit’s assassination arts were too formidable; with him around, Jiang Yi would be much safer. The Black Deity was to remain in Blue Eagle Mountain while Mo Shangxing would accompany Jiang Yi to the Earth Emanations City. One more person was going to join them: Di Ling’er!
The four teleported to the Earth Emanations City. Jiang Yi did not immediately look for Di Ming but went to pay his respects to the Earth Emanations Sovereign first. After all, the Earth Emanations Sovereign had given him such a lavish reward; it would be rude if he did not go and greet the Earth Emanations Sovereign.
Mo Lingqiu had long returned; since the situation had stabilized, he could organize the entire domain’s defenses from the Earth Emanations City. After knowing that Jiang Yi had arrived, Mo Lingqiu personally headed out of the Earth Emanations Castle to receive him and brought him to the back garden of the Earth Emanations Castle while Poison Spirit, Mo Shangxing, and Di Ling’er waited within the castle.
Coming to Nameless Island for the second time, Jiang Yi saw that the Earth Emanations Sovereign wasn’t alone this time. An extremely sexy lady dressed in a red dress was present as well; it was Mo Huaisang. Mo Huaisang saw Jiang Yi as a smile appeared on her face, and she politely greeted, “Greetings to Battle God Jiang Yi!”
“Jiang Yi pays his respects to the Sovereign! Greetings to you, Young Mistress Huaisang!”
Jiang Yi first greeted the seated Earth Emanations Sovereign who was drinking tea and then nodded towards Mo Huaisang. The Earth Emanations Sovereign looked much better already. This time, he did not ask Mo Lingqiu and Mo Huaisang to leave but smiled and asked Jiang Yi, “What is this I heard? You want to join the Demon-Buster Army?”
“Yes!”
Jiang Yi nodded and said, “It is easier to gain battle merits in the Demon-Buster Army. Also, I can grow and gain more experience from battling; I need to increase my strength.”
“Keke!”
The Earth Emanations Sovereign laughed a little as Mo Huaisang poured a cup of tea for Jiang Yi. The Sovereign gestured for Jiang Yi to take a seat and drink some tea. After Jiang Yi was seated, the Earth Emanations Sovereign said, “It is indeed easy for one to grow and mature on the battlefield. Since you have decided, I will not try to dissuade you. Bring Huaisang along! Coincidentally, she also wants to go join the Demon-Buster Army. Her father is within the camp; he can also look out for you guys!”
“Uh—”
Jiang Yi was a little taken aback; a dainty young mistress like Mo Huaisang actually wanted to join the Demon-Buster Army? Mo Huaisang’s battle experience should be rather limited; young mistresses like her that headed out always brought along many bodyguards; when would they ever have to fight themselves?
However, since the Earth Emanations Sovereign had made this arrangement, Jiang Yi didn’t want to go against his wishes. Jiang Yi nodded and said, “I will go and look for Pavilion Lord Di first; I will then return and look for Young Mistress Huaisang then!”
“En!”
The Earth Emanations Sovereign nodded as his face became very serious suddenly. He said seriously, “Jiang Yi, it is a good thing to put pressure on yourself. However, don’t overdo it. Work hard for ten years. No matter the end result—as long as you have done your best, it doesn’t matter. I hope that you can come back alive to see me.”
“Many thanks for the Sovereign’s guidance!”
Jiang Yi rose and gave his thanks. The Earth Emanations Sovereign then gestured for Mo Lingqiu to bring Jiang Yi away.
After the duo had left, the Sovereign turned to look at Mo Huaisang and said, “Huaisang, I know why you want to join the Demon-Buster Army. What I want to say is—a truly good man would not care about a woman’s background or appearance. They care more about a woman’s personality, upbringing, and internal beauty. If you do not change yourself, you will not be able to match-up to the Little Eagle King or Jiang Yi. It is not that I haven’t given you any opportunities, but it’s that you do not know how to treasure them. If after this trip to the Demon-Buster Army, you still cannot change yourself; you will return to find an arranged marriage proposal waiting for you.”
The Earth Emanations Sovereign’s words were rather direct and unprecedentedly harsh. Mo Huaisang’s eyes reddened but didn’t say anything. She only respectfully replied, “Huaisang knows she has done wrong!”
“Go then!”
The Earth Emanations Sovereign waved his hand and said, “The Little Eagle King is a true dragon; Jiang Yi is a divine dragon. If the two of them do not crash and burn, they are destined to soar into the high heavens. This is your last chance. I will tell you one last thing: in order to take, one must first give. You must put your whole heart into it. As for who you choose in the end, it is up to you.”
…
“Jiang Yi, since you have already decided, I will not say anything else!”
Mo Lingqiu brought Jiang Yi outside and back into the Earth Emanations Castle backyard. Mo Lingqiu then said seriously, “Rest assured and go forth to fight for what you want! Do not worry about the Stellarsky Domain; I will take care of everything. If someone from your domain ascends, I will take care of them. Also, Mo Shangxing will not be following you along. That place is a military camp, after all; no one is allowed to have a bodyguard. You can ask Poison Spirit to join the army together with you, then.”
Jiang Yi heard what Mo Lingqiu had said and was very relieved. He bowed deeply, didn’t say anything else, and stepped outside, bringing Poison Spirit and Di Ling’er away. Mo Lingqiu and Mo Shangxing watched as the group vanished into the distance. Mo Shangxing asked worriedly, “Assistant Pavilion Lord, why can’t I follow along this time? What if something happens to Jiang Yi?”
“This is what the Sovereign intends!”
Mo Lingqiu sighed deeply and continued, “The Sovereign said that regardless of whether Jiang Yi will make it big or not, he has to be tested; he cannot grow if he remains in the Earth Emanations Domain. Only after he goes to the battlefield can he truly shine and spread his wings. He will either die in battle or soar into the high heavens; that is Jiang Yi’s destiny!”
Mo Shangxing still did not understand as he paused for a moment and asked, “Why does the Sovereign think so highly of Jiang Yi? What on earth is so special about him? Why does the Sovereign think that he will be extremely powerful and successful?”
Mo Lingqiu shook his head and said, “I do not know. The Sovereign did not explain why. However, you should know well the Sovereign’s judgment of people; he is very accurate. Let’s wait and see.”
On the other hand, Jiang Yi, Di Ling’er, and Poison Spirit had gone to the Demon-Killing Pavilion General Pavilion and met with Di Ming. Di Ming did not say much but asked Jiang Yi to bring Di Ling’er along. Di Ming also informed Jiang Yi that after they reached the Demon-Buster Army, they could go look for Di Ling’er’s third uncle first.
Jiang Yi’s guess was accurate.
Although the Demon-Buster Army did not belong to any faction, every faction had its people embedded in it. It was definitely going to be dangerous in the Demon-Buster Army. However, if he didn’t go, he was not going to be able to gain battle merits as quickly as he wanted. The Demon-Killing Pavilion only had that many missions; he couldn’t possibly always ask Mo Shangxing and the rest to help him complete missions, right?
After leaving Di Ming’s place, Jiang Yi was a little lost for words. Although he had not seen Mo Huaisang in battle, he had seen Di Ling’er battling during the Netherworld Realm attack. Although Di Ling’er level of attainment was rather high, her real battle experience was severely lacking; the Poison Spirit could probably kill her easily.
However, since two higher-ups had requested such, Jiang Yi could only bring the two young mistresses and Poison Spirit to a great hall in the Earth Emanations Castle. Mo Lingqiu asked someone to activate the Teleportation Formation as Jiang Yi and company were teleported for a full half-day before they reached their destination.
“Uh…”
Jiang Yi stood up groggily for a moment; after he was fully lucid again, he looked around and finally understood why these two dainty young mistresses wanted to come along. Far in the distance—in the high skies, two men were battling; one of them was actually the Little Eagle King.
“Enemies are fated to meet; will the Little Eagle King find trouble with me?”
Jiang Yi was in a bind internally. How was he so unlucky? The Little Eagle King had come to join the Demon-Buster Army as well?