Soaring the Heavens

"It's true!" Shen Huaixin acknowledged.

Ji Ze immediately stepped forward and continued, "Hall Master, normally, the annual income of a Manor Head is far greater than one thousand Orbs of Will. There should at least be another five hundred Orbs of Will that each of them have yet to hand over!"

Naturally, Huang Jizhang weighed in as well, "The three of them are dishonest and show no regard for their superior's official decree. If the others start to follow in their example, then the consequences will be dire! They must be punished! I suggest that their Manor Head positions be revoked!"

A Deacon by the name of Gao Sheng immediately stepped forward and added, "Disobeying a superior's decree is a heavy crime. If such habits were allowed to persist, then everyone will start to think they can simply ignore their orders. Where will Suppressing Tenth Hall's authority be then? I suggest that these three be beheaded on the spot!"

Miao Yi and the others were just quietly listening when they heard this sudden statement. They immediately turned their heads towards that Deacon Gao Sheng. They never thought someone would actually give an even more ruthless suggestion and have them suffer a death sentence.

The other five Deacons also voiced their approval for the idea.

'So they held it in for half a year just to join hands and kill the three of them in a single stroke!' the crowd mused in astonishment.

Shen Huaixin gazed at Miao Yi and the others and asked, "Do the three of you have anything to say for yourselves?"

Miao Yi replied, "What a load of bullcrap. Hall Master, I would advise against paying these mangy mutts any heed. They are clearly trying to get payback under the pretense of punishment!"

Although the other party's words were ruthless, his weren't any weaker either. The crowd's lips inadvertently twitched. To think someone would actually use the words 'mangy mutt'.

Meanwhile, the Deacons and Advisors were immediately inflamed. Xu Jinsong shouted furiously, "Who did you just call a mangy mutt?!"

Miao Yi mocked, "Whoever was the one trying to use punishment as an excuse for his own ends. Why? Are you telling me I can't even scold such a petty man? I'm already being very lenient. Otherwise, I would've asked the Hall Master to kill such a scoundrel right away for trying to sow discord in Suppressing Tenth Hall!"

Xu Jinsong snarled, "Then are you actually going to tell me that the three of you have handed over all the Orbs of Will as planned?"

Miao Yi replied with a question, "Don't tell me that handing over all the Orbs of Will received from our vassal cities didn't count as everything?"

Ji Ze barked, "What about the Orbs of Will gifted to you from your subordinate Mountains then?"

Sikong Wuwei asked, "Are you saying you want us to hand over the Orbs of Will that we use to provide for our subordinates as well? Where will the main troops get their resources if we do that? They're different from you lot. They don't have that many people handing presents to them!"

Huang Jizhang immediately pointed at him and shouted, "Sikong Wuwei! You're way out of line! This is no place for you to spout such drivel! In normal circumstances, after deducting the amount used to provide for the main troops, a single Manor should still have at least five hundred Orbs of Will. Where is the rest of it?"

Zhao Fei scoffed, "Advisor Huang, you said it yourself. In normal circumstances, that would certainly be the case. However, given the unusualness of the current situation, it is natural that we need to employ different means. We have already rewarded the remaining Orbs of Will to our subordinates."

Huang Jizhang shouted, "What do you mean by unusual situation?"

Zhao Fei also raised his voice, "I mean the very situation we are in right now! With the forces of our three Manors halved, there aren't enough hands to go around maintaining the safety of our domains. As a consequence, the troops have had to work overtime, with one person requiring several days to finish the job of an entire squadron. Don't you think it's only right that they be properly rewarded then? Or are you saying that that's against the rules? If the rest of you can return our forces to us, then with sufficient manpower, things will naturally go back to the way they were before. What's wrong with calling this anything other than an unusual situation?"

Since the three of them had dared to do such a thing, they naturally had a valid justification.

The other party hadn't thought that they would use this as an excuse against them at all! Huang Jizhang scoffed, "Excuses! The three of you are clearly rewarding your subordinates as a ploy to challenge Suppressing Tenth Hall's decree!"

Zhao Fei tilted his head and looked over. He said bluntly, "As far as Manor Heads like us are concerned, I believe it is entirely up to us whether or not to reward our subordinates, as well as the size of said reward. You have no place to comment on that. This does not fall under the control of an Advisor like you! If you have the authority to question how much each Manor Head should reward his subordinates from now on, then I have nothing to say! However, let me be so bold as to ask, does that mean that the Hall Master must also report to Traversing Water Palace every single reward he so rightfully gave out?"

Xu Jinsong scoffed, "Regardless of how you put it, the three of you are still challenging Suppressing Tenth Hall's decree under the guise of rewarding your subordinates. Anyone who isn't blind can see it!"

Miao Yi said, "Advisor Xu, don't you think you're being a little too controlling? Let's say we were indeed rewarding our subordinates as a pretense. So what? As long as it's within our authority, we can reward the troops however we want. It's not like we broke any rules. Why do you need to interfere?"

Zhao Fei flicked his sleeves, "I suggest you Advisors just stick to your own jobs. Once you become Hall Master, you will then have the right to decide how to reward your own troops."

There wasn't the slightest hint of consideration in their words. But then again, the other party was already trying to kill them. What was the point in trying to keep up appearances now?

"You…" The three Advisors were fuming with rage. Xu Jinsong cupped his fists towards Shen Huaixin, "The three Manor Heads have no respect for their superiors. Hall Master, I'd like to ask that they be heavily punished!"

Ji Ze, Huang Jizhang, and the other six Deacons also cupped their fists, "We wholeheartedly agree!"

Miao Yi, Zhao Fei, and Sikong Wuwei looked at each other. They cupped their fists towards Shen Huaixin as well. "We would like to ask that the Hall Master punishes these scoundrels for misuse of authority, harboring ill intentions, and transgressing beyond their jurisdiction!"

The rest of the people in the hall couldn't help their astonishment. These two parties were out for blood, with neither side willing to give their opponent any time to rest. What a spectacular show indeed!

Bang! Shen Huaixin suddenly slammed on his armrest and stood up. He barked, "Are all of you done messing around?! Dismissed!"

With a swing of his arm, he turned around and left, followed by his two handmaidens. He didn't plan on punishing anyone at all.

"We wish the Hall Master farewell!" Everyone cupped their fists and bowed.

The remaining crowd soon left the main hall one after the other. Xu Jinsong turned his head to look at the three Manor Heads walking together and scoffed, "A bunch of conceited fools who don't know their own limits!"

Sikong Wuwei casually looked up to the sky and replied, "A bunch of narrow-minded, greedy scum!"

"Insolence!" Xu Jinsong couldn't hold back his anger any longer. He had never seen someone act so arrogant towards him. He barked, "Slap his mouth!"

The two Deacons beside him immediately rushed over to subdue Sikong Wuwei and give him a slapping.

Miao Yi and Zhao Fei obviously couldn't let this pass. They brandished their Inversed-Scales Spear and halberd respectively, then quickly forced away the two Deacons. Miao Yi yelled, "Who dares to be impudent?!"

"How dare you take up arms within the confines of Suppressing Tenth Hall!" A two-petaled red lotus shone on Xu Jinsong's forehead. Having found a perfect excuse, he swiftly shot over with his hand outstretched.

Not just Miao Yi and the others, but everyone else was also taken by surprise. They never thought that Xu Jinsong would really launch an attack.

A powerful wave of Yin energy quickly erupted from Miao Yi's hand. He had wasted no time in using the Mystic Yin Mirror to protect himself against Xu Jinsong's attack. The bastard was attacking them in a fit of rage. There was no telling what he would do. All Miao Yi was sure of was that Xu Jinsong definitely wouldn't be merciful, so how could he allow himself to fall into the other party's grasp so easily?

Not a single person in the hall dared to make light of that powerful Yin energy. Moreover, no one knew what kind of transcendent artifact it was. Xu Jinsong was also taken by surprise. With a flick of his sleeves, he swiftly changed his trajectory mid-air and shot up to the sky, narrowly brushing against the wave of Yin energy that swept by.

The Mystic Yin Mirror's attack had missed its target. Xu Jinsong was now hovering up in the sky. He brandished a spear that glowed with a blue hue, pointing it downwards as he bellowed, "Impudence! How dare you attack me!"

Not every single White Lotus cultivator could afford to use a First Grade Transcendent Artifact, and not every single Blue Lotus cultivator could afford to use a Second Grade Transcendent Artifact. It's the same for Red Lotus cultivators; not all of them could afford to use a Third Grade Transcendent Artifact. Just the Third Grade Yao Core inside a Third Grade Transcendent Artifact cost one million Orbs of Will. Naturally, the spear in Xu Jinsong's hand was just a Second Grade Transcendent Artifact.

There were three people standing on top of the roof of the main assembly hall. They were the solemn Shen Huaixin and his two handmaidens. Evidently, they had come back out after hearing the commotion.

Strangely, Shen Huaixin was just narrowing his eyes down at Miao Yi and the others. He didn't say anything to stop the battle.

Realizing the situation, Miao Yi and the others immediately exchanged glances with one another. If not even the Hall Master was planning to put a stop to this, then there was no chance for Xu Jinsong to let them off easily. The three of them cursed at the situation!

As for the rest of the crowd, they instinctively backed away. Xu Jinsong charged towards Miao Yi and the others and swung his spear down at them. The powerful waves of transcendence energy he emitted were astonishing.

Miao Yi and the others immediately backed away from the plaza as best they could. A flying sword then rushed out from Miao Yi's sleeves and shot towards Xu Jinsong.

Xu Jinsong let out a cold laugh. He didn't think much of that little flying sword at all and swung powerfully against it with his spear.

Suddenly, right as Xu Jinsong's spear met the flying sword, it abruptly split into two. This transcendent artifact was Miao Yi's Mother-Child Flying Sword.

Boom! A powerful explosion erupted in mid-air as the Mother Sword was blown into a plume of black mist by Xu Jinsong's attack.

"Ahh!" Xu Jinsong also let out a painful wail. The suddenness had caught him off guard, and he was almost killed by the Child Sword.

Fortunately for him, he had reacted quickly enough. However, there was too little time and too short of a distance to evade the attack properly. One of his arms had already been sliced off, and blood was gushing out in the sky.

In a single confrontation, a Red Lotus Second Grade cultivator actually had one of his arms chopped off by the Child Sword of the Mother-Child Flying Sword.

However, because the Mother Sword was destroyed by Xu Jinsong's attack, the transcendent artifact's formation core was broken, and the Child Sword also turned to black mist upon cutting off Xu Jinsong's arm. To think a top-tier Second Grade Transcendent Artifact couldn't even withstand a single attack from the other party.

That said, it was evident from this that Xu Jinsong didn't have much battle experience, and was too careless for his own good. Otherwise, how could a Red Lotus Second Grade expert get his hand cut off by a top-tier Second Grade Transcendent Artifact in a single confrontation?

On the other hand, Miao Yi and the others were all hardened veterans of war. Their every strike was filled with decisiveness. Once they launched their attacks, there was no hesitation or mercy whatsoever.

Xu Jinsong landed on the ground, clenching his wounded arm. As Zhao Fei waved his arm, a large swarm of greatsword illusions started circling around and attacking Xu Jinsong.

Xu Jinsong was horrified. He frantically attacked, one arm launching his spear at great speed to knock back the flying greatswords coming at him. While he quickly discovered they were all illusions, he had no way of telling which was the real one. Perhaps even normal Red Lotus cultivators would have trouble dealing with this transcendent artifact.

Xu Jinsong then stomped on the ground, creating a large boom as dozens of blue bricks erupted from the floor of the plaza. Using his powerful transcendence arts, he controlled these bricks to rapidly hover around him and guard against the countless greatsword illusions trying to attack him.

"Die!" Sikong Wuwei bellowed as a mighty hammer was hurled out of his grasp, creating a thunderous roar as it broke past the countless greatsword illusions that blanketed the sky.

The force of this hammer was too overwhelming. The crowd spectating the battle couldn't help feeling as though their hearts were about to jump out of their chests.

The blue tiles hovering around Xu Jinsong were instantly crushed to dust. Using one arm, he hastily struck out with his spear.

Boom! The massive Mountain Suppressing Hammer was knocked back, its glow turning dim after receiving Xu Jinsong's attack.