Cultivating In Secret Beside A Demoness

1457  Jiang Hao's Poem (2)

The Heavenly Note Sect's Law Enforcement Hall operated slightly differently than other sects. They would only act if they had sufficient reason.

For example, when an inner sect disciple had been killed, they had come to take Jiang Hao away because he was a suspect.

But this time, Jiang Hao could not think of any reason.

Seeing Jiang Hao's confusion, Liu Xingchen kindly asked, "Junior Brother, what is your current cultivation realm?"

"Peak of the Primordial Spirit Realm," Jiang Hao said.

"Recently, there have been rumors that you have already made it to the Soul Ascension Realm and are hiding your cultivation realm," Liu Xingchen said.

"Absolutely not," Jiang Hao said immediately. He then paused. "Is the sect taking me to the Law Enforcement Hall because of this?"

Liu Xingchen nodded.

Jiang Hao was surprised. Even if he were hiding his cultivation, what did that have to do with the sect?

The sect usually would not intervene in such matters.

"Normally, the sect wouldn't care about someone hiding their cultivation, but the issue right now is that you cannot be that person," Liu Xingchen said. "Do you know about the other status you hold?"

Before Jiang Hao could respond, Liu Xingchen continued, "You are a candidate for the position of a top disciple at the peak of the Primordial Spirit Realm category. Someone reported against you saying that you deliberately hid your cultivation and defeated your juniors to deceive the sect and gain resources meant for the top candidates."

Jiang Hao was speechless.

After a moment of silence, he asked, "So, a report from anyone at all triggers an investigation?"

"Normally, that wouldn't be enough, but the person has offered a million spirit stones. If the investigation proves that it was all a misunderstanding, it'll be a punishment for that person to lose that many spirit stones for wasting our time," said Liu Xingchen.

Jiang Hao was at a loss for words.

The demonic sect did not care about justice and evidence. They would not just come looking for him. The rumors were spreading rapidly, and they were offered a million spirit stones, so they had to investigate.

Whether there was evidence did not matter.

If they found something, they would be rewarded.

If they did not, they would still keep the spirit stones.

It was a win-win situation.

As for Jiang Hao, sacrificing a little of his time for the sect was expected.

After all, many in the sect had doubts, and the investigation would show the sect's fair treatment.

Although it was inconvenient, Jiang Hao heaved a sigh of relief.

The sect was just trying to profit from the spirit stones and was not serious about the investigation.

At most, they would use only a copy of the Heavenly Essence Soul Modeling Mirror.

That was not a big deal.

This way, the rumors about him should dissipate, and the pressure would shift to those three individuals.

He could then return to being seen as a weakling who advanced because of the Blood Wish Path.

As expected, Jiang Hao was not locked up in the black room like before when he went to the Law Enforcement Hall.

Instead, he was taken to a well-furnished room where he could rest for half a day before someone would bring the mirror for a formal check.

It would not take much time.

Actually, Jiang Hao was curious about who would spend a million spirit stones to report him.

Was the top candidate position really worth that much?

Even if it was, who had the cultivation realm to afford that many spirit stones?

Even if he was hiding his cultivation, that person probably would not get their million spirit stones back.

Expecting the Law Enforcement Hall to return the spirit stones was impossible.

They would be lucky if they did not demand more.

That afternoon, Liu Xingchen brought the mirror to examine Jiang Hao's cultivation.

"Junior Brother Jiang, did you rest well? If it's okay with you, we can go through with it," said Liu Xingchen. His eyes shone with excitement.

Jiang Hao was speechless.

He had not expected it to be Liu Xingchen who did the test.

The other party was here for a good show.

Liu Xingchen fully activated the mirror, and its light fell on Jiang Hao. Then, it probed for traces of his cultivation.

Jiang Hao felt Liu Xingchen was also secretly probing with his own power.

However, this was Liu Xingchen's power alone and did not involve the four remnant souls within him.

This surprised Jiang Hao.

Jiang Hao appraised Liu Xingchen.

[Liu Xingchen: True Disciple of the Clear Sky School. In the early stage of the Return to Void Realm. Born with the aura of a dragon. He is undercover at the Heavenly Note Sect's Law Enforcement Hall. The four remnant souls in his body have reached a complete agreement. They have begun to refine his body under the Great Era. The ancient demon has even begun to summon its clansmen to search for it. The sorcerer is not willing to be outdone and is thinking of ways to communicate with the Heaven and Earth Engraving Sorcery. The True Dragon has sensed the emergence of the Dragon Clan in the world and is thinking of ways to ask for help. Once they succeed, they will make this person beg for mercy. For entertainment, Liu Xingchen never uses their power unless it's to find other spies. For example, his attention is on a young alchemist in the Candlelight Pill Pavilion. He is observing that person and thinks it'll be interesting. His interest in you has never ceased. He's trying to find out if you are truly hiding your cultivation. If he can't find that out, he thinks it'll be even more entertaining.]

Jiang Hao was speechless.

If he could not find anything, it would make things more interesting for Liu Xingchen.

However, Liu Xingchen was able to utilize the full power of the four remnant souls, which was worrisome.

With the arrival of the Great Era, it was very likely that these four would find their own kind.

At that time…

Even a hundred Liu Xingchen would not be enough to handle them.

Fortunately, Liu Xingchen did not use their power to probe him. Although they probably would not find anything, they had vast knowledge and might catch some subtle signs.

As for the young alchemist from the Candlelight Pill Pavilion…

Jiang Hao was not sure about that.

However, the investigation ended quickly. The result was that Jiang Hao was not hiding his cultivation.

Thus, he was allowed to return to his house.

Before leaving, a middle-aged man from the Law Enforcement Hall gave Jiang Hao five thousand spirit stones for his cooperation.

Jiang Hao thought he could cooperate every day if it meant getting five thousand spirit stones.

It was not a small amount. How long would someone take to earn that much?

In the past, he never had many spirit stones.

However, as he picked up spirit stones along the way, it had stacked up to 8,627,480.

He did not bother counting the change. It was not worth the trouble.

That evening, Baizhi received some news.

"They didn't find that Jiang Hao was hiding his cultivation realm?"

The black-robed man nodded. "The inspection was very thorough. We used a copy of the Heavenly Essence Soul Modeling Mirror."

"Who was the one who checked him?" Baizhi asked.

"Junior Brother Liu Xingchen," the black-robed man said.

"Him?" Baizhi frowned.

"Although Junior Brother Liu is a little suspicious, he has never done anything out of the ordinary. He's particularly diligent in matters concerning Jiang Hao, so there's no chance of him showing favoritism," the black-robed man said.

Baizhi did not suspect anything. She hesitated for a moment before asking, "Does Cliff of Broken Hearts have a disciple called Han Ming?" "Yes." The black-robed man nodded.

"What's his cultivation realm?"

"Late stage of the Primordial Spirit Realm. He has gained a lot from the Great Era. Perhaps he will reach the peak of the Primordial Spirit Realm soon."

"Does the sect have a lot of resources left?" Baizhi asked.

"Not much, but enough," Said the black-robed man.

"Alright. Give him the resources and help him raise his cultivation realm. Send him to the Bright Moon sect for further guidance."

"Understood."

Although the black-robed man did not understand what Baizhi intended, he nodded and did not ask anything more.

After he left, Baizhi looked at the center of the lake and muttered to herself. "We'll know if he's hiding his cultivation realm with Han Ming. But that might not reveal the upper limit of his cultivation realm. We can't use drastic measures to check, either…"

It was the only way to see if Jiang Hao was hiding his cultivation realm.

"However, if he continues to improve, he'll be close to the tenth position. If he really wants to be a top disciple, perhaps he can push himself more."

Baizhi had ideas, but she could not rush these things.

Otherwise, it might offend the person backing Jiang Hao. That would not be good.

It had to be done step by step.

However, there was one thing that gave her a headache, and that was the poem that the senior of the Bright Moon Sect wanted.

This was the demonic sect, and there were many talented people here, but they had no one who was good with words.

"I'll leave that aside for now. First, I have to deal with the matter of the Lawless Tower. As for the poem…"

...

"What? Everyone has to write a poem?!"

The next day, when Jiang Hao arrived at the Spirit Herb Garden, he heard someone exclaim in surprise.

"Even ordinary non-cultivators have to do it? Isn't that difficult? They can't even read!" said an outer sect disciple.

Jiang Hao was surprised.

What was going on with the sect? Why were they asking for poems?

After asking around, he learned that they wanted poems about wine, though no one knew why.

Cheng Chou was also clueless.

If a Golden Core Realm cultivator was clueless about it, others had no idea of knowing why this was happening.

"What poem do you plan to submit, Senior Brother? They said it has to be turned in within three days," Cheng Chou said.

Jiang Hao hesitated. He was deep in thought.

'Let me persuade you to drink another cup of wine, for there will be no old friends west of Yang Pass.

'Drawing a blade to cut the water only makes it flow more; raising a cup to dispel sorrow only deepens the sorrow.

'Facing the wine, I sing, for how many moments are there in life?

'Drunk, I no longer know where the sky is in the water, as the boat is filled with dreams that weigh down the Milky Way.' He thought up a verse.

He had several ideas.

He hesitated for a moment before he came up with another verse he thought was suitable.

It went:

"One cup after another,

"Two cups, three cups, four, five cups.

"Six cups, seven cups, eight, nine cups.

"Once downed, they all disappear."