Wielding the Thunders Across Two Worlds

After seeing off Ye Ruyan and Miaoyun Princess, Gu Zhao began selecting the next candidates.

’Martial Uncle Qingyuan and Martial Uncle Qingwei have contributed greatly in several major battles. Their merits are sufficient. Shouldn’t I also summon the other three Shi-generation Daoists from the Sanfeng Sect?’

’The three old Yan-generation Daoists from Qingcheng Mountain have also broken through to the next realm. Should the others also be put on the agenda?’

’Hmm, there are still a few from Feiyun Mountain and West Mountain that I haven’t brought over.’

’But these people are all relatively young, so they can wait a bit longer. Maybe I should bring a few of the older newcomers first?’

Gu Zhao lay under a purple sandalwood tree behind Daluo Palace, a tree so large it nearly shaded half the courtyard. His reclining chair swayed gently in the mountain breeze. He couldn’t help but let out a soft sigh, thinking to himself, ’I still don’t have enough Thunder Seeds!’

"Why are you sighing, Young Master?" Silk Embroideress asked curiously.

"I’m sighing because these pastries you make are just too good. I can’t eat them when I’m in seclusion, so I can’t have them every day. What am I to do?" Gu Zhao said with a perfectly straight face.

"You love to jest, Young Master."

Although she knew Gu Zhao was joking, Silk Embroideress’s eyes still curved into crescents. "I’ll make some for you to keep in your gourd, Young Master. You can take them out whenever you want to eat."

"Great idea!" Gu Zhao had no objections. He then glanced at Bai Ke, who was playing Chinese checkers with He Cailian and Xu Sirou not far away. "How come she hasn’t been causing any trouble lately?"

Before Silk Embroideress could reply, Bai Ke whipped her head around. "When have I ever caused trouble?"

Gu Zhao nodded repeatedly. "Right, right, right!"

Just as Bai Ke was about to argue, Xu Sirou beside her jumped a marble seven times in a row. A shocked Bai Ke’s fox-like eyes widened, and she turned to nervously inspect her own marbles.

Meanwhile, Zhuo Qingyan walked over leisurely with Bi Yingying and Chen Zhi. It turned out that Bi Jingjing had sent a letter inviting them to be guests at Green Water Pool. She had found a spirit medicine on Wuya Ridge that protected the skin and enhanced beauty.

"You guys still need to protect your skin and enhance your beauty?" Gu Zhao couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

Never mind Zhuo Qingyan and Bi Yingying—one a ghost, the other a demon. Even Chen Zhi, a human, was only eighteen, with skin so tender you could practically squeeze water from it. What skin was there to protect? What beauty needed enhancing?

"According to Bi Palace Master, it’s a very rare type of cochineal. She found the Insect Mother in a valley by chance. It might take seventy or eighty years to collect this much cochineal again," Chen Zhi said earnestly.

The moment her voice fell, Chen Zhi found He Cailian and Xu Sirou suddenly appearing on either side of her, which gave her a start.

Xu Sirou’s eyes sparkled. "Can you take us with you?"

Bi Yingying smiled and nodded. "Of course. My sister said that anyone who wants to come is welcome."

"Then everyone who wants to go, go," Gu Zhao said with a wave of his hand.

With the Ink Flood Dragon eliminated, the Dragon King had promised friendship with Chaoyang Island and Silent God Mountain. With White Spirit Mountain’s backing at the Court, Daluo Palace could be said to have no more crises in this world. It was fine for them to go down the mountain for fun, to say nothing of their destination being Green Water Pool in Jiangzhou.

He Cailian and Xu Sirou wanted to go, but Silk Embroideress shook her head and declined. She wanted to stay by Gu Zhao’s side.

But Gu Zhao told her to go too. "You haven’t been down the mountain in a long time. Go have fun with them. I’ll be entering seclusion again soon, and it’ll be boring for you to stay on the mountain alone."

Bai Ke hopped over, pointing a finger at her own nose. "Am I not a person?"

Chen Zhi laughed and slung an arm around her shoulder. "You’re a fox!"

Everyone burst into laughter. Then, led by Zhuo Qingyan and Bi Yingying, the fairies of Daluo Palace descended from the mountain, making their way toward Green Water Pool in a leisurely journey.

His surroundings finally quieted down. Before Gu Zhao could continue selecting candidates, the Five Thunders Order in his Sea of Consciousness trembled, and another Thunder Seed condensed.

Gu Zhao: ???

"Sect Leader, we took care of a demon that was ambushing a Daluo Palace disciple."

A telepathic message from Taoist Yan Song entered Gu Zhao’s Sea of Consciousness. "The other two are fleeing deep into the An Tai Mountain Range. Wei Yueyan is guiding us from the sky, and the Winged Fire Serpent is tracking them through the forest. We plan to pursue them all the way and wipe out their nest while we’re at it."

’So fast!’ Gu Zhao couldn’t help but marvel. He then urged, "Be careful."

’This is the downside of being a Sect Leader.’

Gu Zhao lay back down on the reclining chair. With a slight push, it started swaying back and forth. Sunlight streamed through the gaps in the branches overhead, making spots dance before his eyes.

’Stuck on the mountain all day, coordinating everything from the center... I can’t even wander the Jianghu myself anymore. It feels kind of boring.’

Gu Zhao thought about the wuxia novels he had read. It seemed that once someone became a sect leader, they were basically confined to guarding the sect’s headquarters and rarely had the chance to venture out.

’Well, except for the Gentleman’s Sword, who only had a handful of disciples.’

Just as Gu Zhao was wondering if he should also follow Zhuo Qingyan and the others to Green Water Pool to escape the summer heat, Changyi’s voice echoed in his Sea of Consciousness. "Sect Leader, Zhan Qing has been kidnapped by a banshee!"

"What?" Gu Zhao shot up and asked in a low voice, "What happened?"

A few days ago, Gu Zhao had brought four young people from Daluo Palace back to the Otherworld, and they had quickly gone their separate ways.

Although Changyi and the others were not old, they were all geniuses of the Taoist Sect. After receiving a Thunder Seed and activating their Innate Qi, they possessed over a hundred years of Dao Practice.

Now, they were roaming the Otherworld, upholding justice and punishing evil, and harvesting Evil Qi. None of them were weak. Furthermore, with the Spirit Flying Jade Talisman on them, they would be in no danger unless they encountered a Sect Leader Level figure.

But for one, there weren’t many experts of that caliber in the Otherworld. And for another, Gu Zhao trusted that they weren’t so clueless as to provoke such masters.

"Don’t worry, Zhan Qing isn’t in any danger," Changyi said hastily. "The banshee kidnapped him because she wants to form a Harmony with him!"

"What?" Gu Zhao almost stumbled.

"After we left the mountain, Jingyi went to find her master, Taoist Xu Ning. The three of us didn’t look for our masters and instead traveled together to Yazhou. We happened upon a big, dark-skinned man fighting with a woman, trying to drag her back to his mountain."

"We saw that the big, dark-skinned man was reeking of Evil Qi, while the woman’s Demon Power was pure. She was a Spirit Monarch, so of course, we stepped in to help," Changyi said. "We never expected that afterward, the woman would take a liking to Zhan Qing and want to form a Harmony with him."

"Zhan Qing naturally refused," Yangshuo chimed in. "But we didn’t expect the woman to have an expert with her. She called the expert out, and they tied Zhan Qing up and took him away!"

Gu Zhao immediately realized. ’That woman has powerful backing!’

"Zhan Qing!"

"I’m here!"

"Tell me what’s going on."

"Umm..." Zhan Qing’s weak voice came through the Five Thunders Order. "She wants to form a Harmony with me, to marry me..."

"Marry you?" Changyi felt a twinge of jealousy. "Yangshuo and I are handsome fellows too. Why didn’t she pick us?"

Gu Zhao understood now. It seemed the banshee was quite beautiful.

"But I definitely can’t agree!" Zhan Qing said helplessly. "If I marry her, what about traveling between worlds in the future?"

Changyi said nonchalantly, "Just hide it from her. Tell her you’re going into seclusion. Even the Sect Leader is hiding things from Miss Zhuo. What, you want to bring her back to Sanmao Mountain to show her off?"

"That’s a bit much," Yangshuo couldn’t help but add, his tone also slightly sour.

Gu Zhao couldn’t help but chuckle. "I’m coming to get you!"

Sensing Zhan Qing’s location, Gu Zhao took a step, and his figure vanished abruptly.