Chapter 207: Undying Tree Ganmu
The people from the Guardian Family came to contend with the Royal Family for control of the Medical Affairs Department. Hua Changxi had maintained a completely detached attitude, but now that she knew the Guardian Family was targeting the Qihuang Hall, she couldn’t ignore it.
The Wooden Token is the key to unlocking and opening the Qihuang Hall. I have ten of the eighteen Wooden Tokens, and the other eight each have their owners. I’m very curious how the people from the Guardian Family will try to seize the Qihuang Hall.
Prince Shou saw that the white-haired old man intended to lay claim to the Qihuang Hall. Unable to openly confront the people from the Guardian Family, he could only say to Chu Junhao, who stood behind him, “Junhao, lead the Hall Masters forward to pay respects to Senior Xia.”
Upon hearing the command, Chu Junhao quickly stepped forward and bowed to the white-haired old man, “Chu Junhao, Hall Master of Number Fourteen Qihuang Hall, pays respects to Senior Xia.” He then cupped his fists towards the group on the right, “Greetings, fellow Daoists.”
Like the group of cultivators brought by the Xia Family, they did not announce their names.
The white-haired old man smiled at Chu Junhao and nodded.
Next, the Hall Masters rose in order according to the Qihuang Hall’s numbering to pay their respects.
“Mu Qingying, Hall Master of Number One Hall, pays respects to Senior Xia and greets all fellow Daoists.”
“Xie An, Hall Master of Number Two Hall.”
“Huo Yunxiao, Hall Master of Number Three Hall.”
“Hua Changxi, Hall Master of Number Thirteen Hall.”
Hua Changxi followed behind the other Hall Masters, reporting her name in the same manner, and then retreated behind Huo Yunxiao.
“Duan Yuyan, Hall Master of Number Fifteen Hall.”
“Wei Xiao, Hall Master of Number Eighteen Hall.”
The white-haired old man and the cultivators he brought were scrutinizing these eighteen Qihuang Hall Masters with extreme seriousness, showing no contempt.
The Capital City is a place where power converges. Those who can stand out in the vortex of power are definitely not incompetent individuals.
Although they had obtained detailed information on the eighteen Hall Masters before coming to the Medical Affairs Department, information is static, while people are dynamic. A few pages of information could not fully encompass a person, and moreover, some information was inaccurate or incomplete.
The white-haired old man, Xia Zhen, is the Sixteenth Elder of the Xia Family, a Guardian Family from the Central Continent. He had already reached the Spiritual Platform Realm, a cultivator capable of freely projecting and retracting his Spiritual Sense for investigation. It could be said that no one in the entire Assembly Hall could escape his Spiritual Sense probe, unless they wore a Magic Treasure that could isolate Spiritual Sense.
Isolating the Spiritual Sense probe of a Spiritual Platform Realm cultivator is entirely different from isolating the probe of a Nine Netherworlds Ghost Messenger. To resist the probe of a Spiritual Platform Realm cultivator, the Magic Treasure must be at least Fifth Rank or above.
In the Medical Affairs Department, only Prince Shou could produce a Magic Treasure of such a grade. Even Department Head Gu did not possess one, let alone anyone else.
With a sweep of his Spiritual Sense, Xia Zhen saw through everyone’s background. However, there are always exceptions, and to his surprise, he could not ascertain the depth of Hua Changxi, the Hall Master of Number Thirteen Qihuang Hall.
When his Spiritual Sense swept over her, that girl even glared at him discontentedly. Although she quickly averted her gaze, he still caught it.
Interesting. This girl could actually detect his Spiritual Sense probe. Is she naturally sensitive, or has she already cultivated her Spiritual Sense?
Xia Zhen recalled the information on the eighteen Hall Masters. If he remembered correctly, Hua Changxi was one of the only two individuals without any significant background or backing. Both Fifth Rank or above Magic Treasures and Cultivation Methods for cultivating Spiritual Sense are not easy to obtain. Without family support, how did she acquire them?
Initially, Xia Zhen ranked the importance of the eighteen Hall Masters based on their backing forces. But now, Hua Changxi’s ranking had abruptly risen to the top few positions.
People who grow up without backing are the most underestimated. Such individuals possess opportunities and talent that many scions of noble families can only envy.
This girl even dared to glare at him; she has quite a bit of nerve!
Xia Zhen withdrew his attention from Hua Changxi and smiled at Prince Shou, “The Medical Affairs Department is full of talented individuals, which shows the prosperity of the Medical Dao in the Central Continent. I am very pleased.” He then looked back at the Hall Masters, “By the way, which Hall Masters obtained the Wooden Tokens?”
Upon hearing this, the nine Hall Masters who had obtained their positions through the advantage of their status and background looked somewhat unnatural. Prince Shou’s brows furrowed.
When Department Head Gu heard Xia Zhen ask about the Wooden Tokens, his tense heart suddenly relaxed. That’s right, how could he forget? Even if the people from the Guardian Family wanted to seize the Qihuang Hall, those who possessed the Wooden Tokens were not afraid of being robbed. They would only try to rob those held by the Royal Family or Nobles.
With this thought, Department Head Gu smiled at Xia Zhen, “Senior Xia, I am not talented, but I was fortunate enough to obtain one Wooden Token.” He then pointed to Mu Qingying and Yuan Tianchou, who stood behind him, “My two disciples also each obtained one.”
Seeing that the three of them had obtained Wooden Tokens, Xia Zhen smiled, “Department Head Gu, you have managed the Medical Affairs Department for many years, and your hard work and contributions are great.” He then looked at the other Hall Masters, “Which other Hall Masters obtained Wooden Tokens? Let me see them.”
Wen Lanzhou, Hall Master of Number Four Hall, gave Xia Zhen a cupped-hand salute, “Senior Xia, my Master, Master Zhang, was fortunate enough to obtain a Wooden Token.”
Gu Jin Fan, Hall Master of Number Ten Hall, followed suit, “Senior Xia, my daughter was fortunate enough to obtain a Wooden Token.”
Next was Shen Qianfan, Hall Master of Number Eleven Hall: “Senior Xia, I was fortunate enough to obtain a Wooden Token.”
Then came Zhu Qinghuan, Hall Master of Number Twelve Hall: “Senior Xia, my daughter was fortunate enough to obtain a Wooden Token.”
Huo Yunxiao, Hall Master of Number Three Hall, stood up as he was seated: “Senior Xia, my Master, the Heavenly Department Minister, was fortunate enough to obtain a Wooden Token.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Hua Changxi also reported like the others, “Senior Xia, I also obtained a Wooden Token.”
Xia Zhen looked at Hua Changxi. From her daring to whisper in public from the beginning, he could tell she was somewhat defiant. Such people liked to highlight their uniqueness and differences in their speech and actions. Therefore, he took Hua Changxi’s statement of obtaining a Wooden Token, rather than obtaining one Wooden Token, as her attempt to stand out and did not think too deeply about it.
The others also did not take it seriously.
Seeing that no one else stepped forward, Xia Zhen looked at Prince Shou and Department Head Gu and confirmed again, “Only nine people obtained Wooden Tokens?”
Prince Shou and Department Head Gu nodded.
Xia Zhen frowned, “Eighteen Qihuang Halls, eighteen Wooden Tokens. Have you not found out who obtained the remaining nine Wooden Tokens?”
Department Head Gu shook his head, “My abilities are limited, and I truly cannot investigate. Now that Senior has arrived, perhaps you can discover something.”
Xia Zhen did not respond. While the Xia Family is indeed a Guardian Family and knows many things others do not, the time elapsed from Ancient Times until now is too long. They do not know much about the internal affairs of the Five Great Sacred Lands. If they knew everything, they would have long ago arranged for their family members to take over the Sacred Lands.
Seeing Xia Zhen fall silent, Prince Shou smiled and said, “Senior Xia, today is Lunar New Year’s Eve in the Human World. The palace has prepared a Lunar New Year’s Eve banquet. Would Senior Xia and all the fellow Daoists be willing to grace us with your presence?”
Xia Zhen shook his head, “As for the Lunar New Year’s Eve banquet, let’s forgo it. I am here at the Medical Affairs Department today with a mission from the Guardian Family.”
After speaking, Xia Zhen stood up and began to tidy his robes.
Seeing him do this, everyone was somewhat bewildered. However, those who were seated all stood up, including Prince Shou.
Xia Zhen finished adjusting his attire, then raised both hands, palms facing upwards. The next moment, a bronze cauldron the size of a basketball appeared in his hand.
He carefully placed the bronze cauldron on the table, then took out eighteen one-meter-long green incense sticks. Three were as thick as a fist, six were as thick as two fingers, and nine were as thick as a little finger.
Prince Shou looked at the bronze cauldron and the green incense, “Senior Xia, what is this?”
Xia Zhen pointed to the bronze cauldron, “This is the Divine Wood Cauldron used by the Dan Sheng Hall to worship the Divine Wood.” He then pointed to the green incense, “This is the Incense of Pills that the Xia Family has guarded for generations.”
The people from the Medical Affairs Department looked surprised upon hearing this. Clearly, the Divine Wood Cauldron for worshipping the Divine Wood and the Incense of Pills were things they had never heard of before.
As soon as Hua Changxi heard the word ‘Divine Wood,’ her expression became serious. She also noticed that after Xia Zhen took out the Divine Wood Cauldron and the Incense of Pills, the young cultivators who accompanied him had their eyes instantly light up with eagerness.
The people from the Medical Affairs Department did not know what Xia Zhen intended to do with these two items and looked puzzled. Hua Changxi directly asked, “Senior Xia, are you going to lead us to worship the Divine Wood? Will the Divine Wood appear after the worship? Also, what kind of tree is the Divine Wood of the Dan Sheng Hall?”
Xia Zhen glanced at her, then at the others, “The Divine Wood guarded by the Dan Sheng Hall is the Undying Tree, Ganmu.”
