Chapter 3016 - Chapter 3016: Chapter 1565: The Plan is in Xu Palace, the Plot is with Bazhun'an, Unchanging yet Adapting Dao Qiongcang_2
Chapter 3016: Chapter 1565: The Plan is in Xu Palace, the Plot is with Bazhun’an, Unchanging yet Adapting Dao Qiongcang_2
Hallmaster Dao Qiongcang turned and asked, “Now that Bazhun’an has become nothing but a rotten stump, has there always been someone accompanying him since he entered the Southern Region?”
“Nangong’s technique, having encountered the Storyteller and even managed to obtain his bodily fluids without the other party noticing.”
“Is there a possibility…”
“Here.”
The submissive figure extended a hand, passing over a wrist neatly severed.
Hallmaster Dao Qiongcang’s pupils dilated, a look of disbelief crossing his face, “You cut off Bazhun’an’s hand?”
As the words fell, he felt it was too fantastical, too unreal.
For the palm clearly had five fingers.
“This is my hand,” Nangong stated.
What use would I have for your hand… A common person might bluntly utter such words, but Hallmaster Dao Qiongcang’s gaze simply flickered with anticipation.
Nangong clearly inherited the essence of being a tease, beating around the bush for a while before Hallmaster Dao Qiongcang finally heard what he most wanted to hear:
“It’s also the hand ‘that’s about to touch Bazhun’an.’”
Hallmaster Dao Qiongcang opened his chest and drew out a beautifully crafted azure jade box, casually tossing in the promotional flyer, and then placed the severed hand inside, treating it like a treasure. He secured the lid, tucked the box back into his chest, and looked up.
“Well done!”
A smile spread across Nangong’s face.
Rarely had he heard such pure and absolute praise from his father’s lips.
He clearly remembered that since birth, his father’s expectations of him were the strictest.
He had been praised a total of six times, four times with a “not bad,” twice with an “acceptable.”
The word “well done,” Nangong once thought his father had not mastered, was seemingly more difficult than the Divine Thirty-Six Form.
It seemed it was simply because his previous efforts were not enough.
“You’ve traveled with Bazhun’an before, shouldn’t it be simple for you to obtain something similar?” Nangong asked, puzzled.
“It’s not the same,” Hallmaster Dao Qiongcang slowly shook his head, “Guarded and unguarded are worlds apart, he’s even more vigilant against me than against Sword Deity Hua… much stricter.”
“What do you plan to do with it?” Nangong was curious.
“The Way of the Heavens’ energy movement…”
“This is something I obtained for you!”
“Alright,” Hallmaster Dao Qiongcang nodded in satisfaction, indicating that the threat was well placed, then changed his wording, “Actually, there might not be a need to use it, and hopefully there won’t be.”
Nangong felt like he caught onto something, yet also as if he caught nothing. Out of helplessness, he steered the conversation back to the main topic:
“You wish to go to the Xu Yue Grey Palace? Calculating the time, Bazhun’an should indeed be about to leave… What do you want to do there?”
“What do you think?”
“It seems that I’m the one asking you?”
“But I want to test you.”
“Um… You also intend to cooperate with the Xu Yue Grey Palace?”
“Not accurate.”
“You want to ruin their cooperation with Bazhun’an?”
“Also not accurate.”
“You…”
“This isn’t suited for elimination. You should consider all the factors, such as Bai Zhou not being home, the possibility that Bazhun’an might have already reached cooperation with both factions, and the variable that might arise if Xu Xiaoshou returns,”
Nangong was silent then.
He had thought his father was just acting on a whim.
Wanting to go to the Xu Yue Grey Palace just because Bazhun’an went too.
It was not impossible—the world perceived him as stern, but in actuality, his father always had a playful heart; he was just a child.
He didn’t expect it to be a major game that his father had been calculating for a long time!
After much pondering, Nangong finally uttered a word:
“Path Division?”
Hallmaster Dao Qiongcang smiled without answering. He rose from the medicinal barrel, wrapped himself in white-clothed robes, and barefooted, he pushed the door open and left the room:
“Time is up.”
“Next time, remember to also consider the location of our conversation and the fact that the Divine Sect has expanded its power.”
“I don’t like to repeat myself, of course, nor do I like to do repetitive things.”
Creak…
The door closed.
Nangong stood there, staring blankly at the empty medicinal barrel.
He didn’t know where he had irritated his father again or why he had left so abruptly, because…
Was it all because of the word “Path Division”?
Soaking in the medicinal barrel, Nangong thought for a long time and could only recall the key issue likely related to the real person from the Path Division.
“Indeed, demi-saint Dao Xuanji’s eagerness upon taking office did burn out quickly, breaking my father’s overt arrangements, it’s a fact.”
“The Path Division matter must have struck her quite hard.”
Compared to himself, Nangong felt that Hallmaster Dao Qiongcang’s love for Yu Zhiwen was even more like that of a father’s.
He would amuse her when she was a baby; teach her as she grew up; guide her psychology, praise her progress, although sometimes in an alternative way…
But at least, it was one of the few genuine, non-calculating concerns from “Hallmaster Dao Qiongcang!”
The “Path Division” matter, after years of plotting, could have perfectly concluded with a flourish, while also serving as an instructional setup with a substantial impact on her.
Yet, due to some uncontrollable factors, at an inappropriate time, it cruelly tore open.
This had a direct, adverse effect, like ripping open a wound–it must hurt.
“He must feel guilt over this, shouldn’t he?”
But one Yu Zhiwen is too minor, insignificant in the grand scheme of things and not his true daughter.
In the current situation, he simply doesn’t have the time or the mind to spare for relationship mending or compensation.
Yet without compensation, it’s like a splinter in the finger, small and unnoticed until it sporadically causes discomfort.