Xie Qing blinked, looking at the general who had been watching him continuously since he began battling the demonic monster. With two or three steps, Xie Qing managed to halve the distance between them. And on the fourth step, he found himself right in front of the man.


    "General, you look bored. Is there something you need?" Xie Qing asked curiously, looking into the general''s bottomless eyes.


    "It seems the rumors were not false. You improve with each passing day," the general said with a strict, familiar to all face. Although he was praising Xie Qing, it could not be felt due to his indifferent tone: "Since we have been fighting together for so long... I will get straight to the point."


    The general looked at Xie Qing and continued:


    "Imperial Censor, a banquet will be held at Her Majesty''s pce to celebrate the victory over the horde of monsters. You, including Miss Lu Yin and Li Yun, are invited to the banquet. Her Majesty hopes that you will fulfill your role at this banquet."


    "..."


    Xie Qing did not respond - and there was no need for it. The general nodded to him and left immediately after delivering the Empress''s message. The young man was left standing alone.


    The role of the imperial censor. He was to be the nightmare of all geniuses and their beacon, showing the way forward.


    Thanks to his talent, the Empress had proposed using Xie Qing as a poprization target and making him the representative and leader of the geniuses of this generation.


    Of course, the devilish cultivators were bound to have spies, and when Xie Qing''s face was poprized, there would be a lot of attention on him, and consequently, it would be a bit dangerous.


    "Interesting...tely, I''ve had a feeling that I''m not training well enough. Maybe I''ll be able to fight against devilish cultivators?" Xie Qing thought and furrowed his brow: "If I can kill them... maybe I can umte Positive Karma and use it for a breakthrough?"


    In the cultivation world, Karma was something akin to school grades. If you had a lot of Positive Karma, there was a high chance that you could enter the Wheel of Samsara and have a good start in your next life.


    And Negative Karma could even prevent you from entering the Wheel of Samsara, turning you into ashes.


    Positive Karma could also be used for cultivation purposes. In fact, back when the Buddhist sect was thriving and deciding the fate of the entire world, they promoted the Dao of Great Kindness and umted Positive Karma.


    Thanks to this, the average level of disciples in the Buddhist sect was at the Soul Nascent level. Madness, right?


    "I don''t know if I can... break through. There''s some difort," Xie Qing thought.


    He had been stuck at the first stage of Soul Integration for so long. Although for others this might be a good result, especially in such a short time, Xie Qing was already used to fast cultivation.


    "Maybe I''m just a coward? I hate my character..."


    ***


    Li Yun, Lu Yin, and Xie Qing got into a carriage and set off. The soldiers watched them leave with somewhat mncholic expressions.


    "Sigh. Now without Mr. Xie Qing, it''ll be harder for us..."


    "And without Miss Lu Yin''s pills, it''s even worse..."


    "Did you forget about the formations? Miss Li Yun was even better than Elder Shan..."


    In such a short time, the trio had managed to build a respected reputation for themselves. Of course, it couldn''t be said that without them, thend remation process would be much more difficult, but still...


    "Back to work. We don''t have time to waste," General Liu Bei said after some silence, waving his hand.


    ***


    In arge hall where shadows enveloped the walls and floor, three people sat at a round table. Their faces were hidden behind ordinary white masks without any distinctive features or patterns.


    "The Empress has organized a banquet for the first time in many years. Are our spies ready?" one of them spoke. As it turned out by the voice, it was a woman.


    "Ready. I ordered them to infiltrate the banquet. Although their cultivation level is too low," another replied in an elderly voice.


    "That''s even better. The Empress will have suspicions if someone tries to infiltrate with a high cultivation level..." thest person replied, who had a... um... childish voice?


    Silence fell. It seemed that everyone was thinking about something until someone voiced their thoughts:


    "Amazing. So many geniuses have appeared in the Righteous path, huh?"


    "The Heavens have always blessed the righteous path. Devils, demons... so many races subject to darkness have perished due to the whims of the Heavens? We are considered filth in the face of others. The Heavens have never helped the Devilish path."


    "Not surprising. The philosophy of the Devilish path rejects the Heavens themselves..."


    Sighs were heard.


    ***


    "..."


    Xie Qing silently looked at himself in the mirror. His face twisted.


    "I really hate suchvish clothing..." he thought.


    It was the same hanfu, but not the usual white, but red with gold patterns. The difference was the long sleeves, a wide belt with dragon patterns. The robe reached all the way to the feet.


    Such luxurious clothing was mostly heavy and ufortable, but it was necessary to adhere strictly to the dress code to avoid ridicule.


    The young man sighed.


    "The Master was very angry when she learned about the Empress''s n. If not for my ''efforts,'' the capital would now be aze..." he thought, twisting the corners of his mouth.


    His Master''s fiery character was both her good and bad side. Xie Qing was afraid that one day the cultivation world would lose a continent...


    "Young Master..."


    The door to the room opened, and a modestly dressed maid entered. Hearing her voice, Xie Qing turned and looked at the maid''s astonished face.


    "Yes?"


    "Th-this... Miss Li Yun and Lu Yin asked you to help them choose their clothes..." the maid said, blushing. Her gaze fell on Xie Qing''s face, and meeting his eyes, she averted her eyes, blinking timidly.


    "They still haven''t chosen?" Xie Qing asked, losing hisposure, and then nodded: "Alright. I''ll have to rely on you to get to their room. May I bother you?"


    "C-certainly!"


    The maid replied in a high, piercing voice. Xie Qing smiled.


    Only after seeing his smile did the maid realize her mistake and, blushing, lowered her head in embarrassment.


    "She''s so cute," Xie Qing thought, but he didn''t tease her.


    In fact, he really did need the maid''s help to get to the girls'' room. This mansion, which had been allocated to him for his stay in the capital, was, to put it mildly, huge and resembled abyrinth.


    And Xie Qing, who had a poor sense of direction, felt ufortable going into every room looking for them.


    And... he sweated when he realized that they had to turn around about ten times, walk through two corridors, and only after fifteen minutes did they reach their destination.


    "It''s good that I didn''t build such a huge mansion for myself," Xie Qing thought with relief.


    This mansion was literally a nightmare for any thief. You could get lost here for centuries!


    The maid curtsied and left. Xie Qing wanted to ask her to stay, but she left so quickly that he didn''t even have a chance to speak.


    "But how do I... get back?" he thought, losing hisposure.


    However, it was more important now to help the girls get dressed quickly and get to the banquet as soon as possible.


    Knock-knock.


    Xie Qing knocked on the door, and after a few seconds, he heard a soft voice:


    "Who is it?"


    "Xie Qing. You asked me toe here..." the young man said.


    "Ah! Come in!"


    The young man sighed and opened the door. Almost immediately, he closed it behind him to avoid revealing to the world what should not be seen.


    Looking around, he was greatly surprised.


    "Oh? I thought you needed my help, but you''ve already managed on your own," he said with a smile and raised his thumb: "Beauties!"


    "Hehehe..."


    Lu Yinughed cheerfully. Li Yun reacted more modestly and only smiled gently.


    They were dressed in luxurious light pink dresses that perfectly matched their figures. The dresses were intricate, and Xie Qing could only admire how they managed to put them on by themselves.


    "You look very beautiful. Really," Xie Qing praised.


    "Thank you. You''re not bad either."


    "''Not bad''?"


    "Hehe."


    Lu Yin giggled. Xie Qing snorted and turned away.


    ***


    The banquet organized by the Empress herself could not leave anyone indifferent. Even the most hardened bandits were talking about it.


    Many sects with great influence had arrived at the pce. The castle''s security system was activated to the fullest.


    Moreover, this was the first banquet held by the Dynasty in many years. Therefore, the capital was now particrly lively.


    Xie Qing walked behind and apanied Lu Yin and Li Yun. Despite his calm and proud expression, he was vignt.


    With so many cultivators gathered, the Qi in the air was thick and heavy. Moreover, it was impossible to rule out the possibility of disturbances.


    And the young man did not want Lu Yin and Li Yun to suffer because of brawlers. So he carefully watched all the guests.


    And during his observation, he was indeed greatly surprised. So many diverse cultivators with different cultivation levels. Moreover, there were those from whom Xie Qing felt danger.


    There were also cultivators whose cultivation levels were unknown to him - this could only be the case if the opponent surpassed him in level.


    "I suspect that the banquet will not end peacefully. Well, let''s see..." Xie Qing sighed.


    And the two girls... they were just chattering carefreely. Not including Xie Qing, there was too much attention on these two.


    "No wonder. Beauties always attract a lot of attention!" Xie Qing smiled.


    Then he muttered aloud:


    "Of course, I''m still far from them..."


    Brother! Moderate your arrogance!