Chapter 268 – Pan-Fried Shrimp Bun (e)
Translated by Gumihou
Edited by Gumihou
For the next few days, Shiyu left the College at night as usual.
[1] This time, when she ‘visited’ the noble houses, Huan Mo was right next to her.The atmosphere within the Capital was getting more and more serious. Tension was brewing over the entire city.
Naturally, the general public was not affected. At most, they lament over the death of a little girl who died in vain at Hai’er Valley a few days ago. However, besides cursing the girl’s parents for being selfish and negligent, there was really nothing else they could do about the matter.
Aside from this, life went on as usual for normal people.
For the Cultivators, things were a little different.
The men in black living at the Ge Estate did not bother to conceal their movements. With so many Divine Transformation Masters gathered in one place, the pressure went beyond the normal.
A lot of people predict that the Imperial Dong-Fang family would abdicate on their own to avoid going against the foreign forces lurking within the country.
Naturally, not everyone has the same opinion. Those who knew of the good relationship between the Imperial Family and the Imperial College believed that the combined forces of the two sides could stand their ground against these foreign powers. After all, the Imperial College has its own powerful backing. All one has to do was look up at the sky over the College to see the rift and feel the barrier around the place to realise the strength of its backer. Moreover, if there was even a chance of preserving their standing, who would be willing to give up their territory just like that?
There were also a bunch of people on the fence, unsure who to support.
However, no matter what the Cultivators of the Imperial Capital thought, the people directly involved in the power struggle were the ones who felt the pressure most.
“If this thing goes on, I’m afraid we have no hope of winning at all,” the Dean said solemnly.
The gap between Core Condensation realm experts and Divine Transformation realm experts are just too wide. Unless they could gather more powerful people on their side, they would really have to hand the Eastern Empire over to these invaders.
“The opponent has too many people on their side. I heard that Patriarch Ge has been very active these days. They have been luring the officials on the court through coercion and enticement. Doing everything they can to force people over,” there was a trace of anxiety in Elder Feng’s face. “I’m worried that once they are done with soft tactics, they would start to eliminate people who oppose them.”
When it came to sheer strength, their side was just too weak.
“I’ve thought over the matter. Right now, the speediest option is this,” said the Dean. “However, I must speak to Elder Lin and the others first.” He must obtain their consent first.
Elder Feng frowned at him, “You mean…”
“The Fortune Pill!”
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That morning, when Shiyu returned from her nightly trips, she found the rare occasion where everyone had gathered together.
Moreover, from their expression, it looked like they had been discussing something serious.
“You’re back,”
Shiyu had been popping out late and coming back during the wee hours of the morning so often that everyone was pretty much used to it.
“En,” Shiyu nodded. She glanced around the room. “It’s rare to see everyone gather together like this. Are you discussing something?”
“Yes,” said Lin Fan. “We were waiting for you. We’ve already talked about it and are waiting for you to come back to discuss it properly.”
“En? What is it?”
“The Fortune Pill. Surely you remember this!” said Feng Luo.
Naturally, it was something Wen Heng had given to the elders to use as a final prize for their tournament. There were 10 pills altogether. 1 of the pills had been promised to Elder Liu, therefore there were only 9 left.
Shiyu said nothing and let them continue.
Feng Luo explained, “There are 8 of us here, if we take one each, there’s still 1 remaining. The Dean asked for our permission to use this 1 pill to attract some Core Condensation – Great Perfection Level expert to our side. The situation within the Imperial Capital is not good now. The other side has almost a dozen Divine Transformation powerhouses. On our side, we only have 7 members, that’s nearly half of their manpower. If we try to rebel, not only would the Imperial Family suffer, but the College would be eradicated by them too.”
The most painless move would be to withdraw and not fight. However, once the local imperial power is replaced, their influence would be greatly diminished.
The moment they accepted Dong-Fang Zhen into their group, they have already drawn the line against these people. There are some things that one could never retreat from.
Shiyu nodded, “I understand where the Dean is coming from. However, you still have something else to say?” after all, if it’s only this much, surely there’s no need for them all to have this serious discussion?
Qing Chen said, “How could a tumbled nest maintain intact eggs? One Fortune Pill could only produce a single Divine Transformation expert at most. Even if that one pill attracts many Core Condensation at Great Perfection level, it might not be enough to keep them. We might end up in more trouble in the end.”
“So… you mean to say… you want to let the Dean use all of the pills?” Shiyu looked at them.
“Yes,” everyone nodded.
Shiyu was a little surprised. There was a very odd sensation in her chest. She blinked and said, “If you give these pills away, you might never be able to crossover to Divine Transformation. As far as I know, these pills are rare even at the Eight Realm. If you missed this opportunity, you might never get it back. You’re sure you want to do it?”
“Right now, aside from asking for outside help, what else could we do? The coming struggle will be very harsh. My family once collapsed under such a power struggle and ended up as ghosts under their swords. If the elders and the Dean lost this fight, others might be able to escape but do you think they would allow the Dean and the College elders to live? Feng Clan and Liu Clan would be eliminated too,” [3] stated Qing Chen calmly.
It’s not that the enemy is cruel. Under such a power struggle, they could only be cruel. If their side ended up as the victor, they would have to be just as cruel.
One must cut the weeds and eliminate the roots of their enemies for their own peace of mind.
“Under normal circumstances, we would never be so generous as to give up this opportunity. However, right now we could only use these pills to gather more support. After all, as long as we are alive, we can still have the opportunity to advance. The dead have no such opportunity.”
They have spent so much time at the College, moreover, the Dean had spent a lot of effort on their growth too.
A gentleman recognises the grace of virtues.
Shiyu studied her companions. They all looked very sincere. In fact, they all looked expectantly at her, as though hoping she would approve their plan.
A little moved, she said, “You can do as you like. There’s really no need to consult me. After all, it’s not like you’re going to stop if I’m against it, right?”
Each person in this group is a genius of their own right. How could they deny their own ideas due to the thoughts of others?
“That’s true. However, we would be glad to have your consent,” said Qing Chen. Your thoughts… have a great influence on us.”
Shiyu smiled, “Then, should I be glad that your mood isn’t ruined by me? Alright, alright, I must say your idea is very… touching. However, have you thought of another way? Let’s say if you can break into Core Condensation – Great Perfection level within half a month. Wouldn’t it be better for you to take the Fortune pill yourself and enter Divine Transformation? After all, it’s always better to depend on our own people compared to outsiders.”
[Gumihou: Why is Shiyu suddenly so intelligent today? Has she sucked some IQ from somewhere? I think she sucked a lot from Qing Chen. He’s also a little OOC from the lack of IQ and was oddly talkative. AutoGumi offset some of Gumi’s pain]
We now have Glossaries for Character, Cultivation Terms, Clan Names, Restaurants & Places
[1] Adjusted Details for Logistic Purpose: In the previous chapter, Shiyu ‘agreed to meet at same time and place’ same time meaning after she had ‘visited’ other people. However, the sentence is followed by ‘they visited the families together’. So I guess it’s NOT the same time? Circumvented the issue by deleting ‘meet at the agreed place’ and just go right into robbery. [2] Adjust Details to Avoid OOC: Can’t imagine Lin Fan speaking in ‘!’. Changed to ‘?’ Unless it’s Feng Luo speaking? Let’s switch to Feng Luo and keep the ‘!’. Add ‘Feng Luo said’ dialogue tag. [3] Adjusted Details for Logistic Purpose: We don’t know who said all this until a couple of paragraphs later because it’s kind of OOC for him to speak so much. Moved Qing Chen’s dialogue tag up.
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Thanks for the chapter 😍