Dawnless Sovereign

Neither Mu Linyuan nor Hou Fang had been selected through the Parasite Ascension Project. They were both vagrant cultivators who had joined the church after the General tier, so they were only elders with no jurisdictive power.

A hint of envy flashed through their eyes upon hearing mention of the project.

This was the most legitimate pathway of ascension in the church.

Without taking part in the project, one was doomed to languish in the lower ranks.

Vagrant cultivators like them could only serve as elders, and they could never be considered even for a position like helmsmaster.

"We have over two hundred Generals that we can choose from to take part in the Parasite Ascension Project. They've been training in the Enforcement Hall and the Battle Hall for close to three years, and they're certainly ready to go, but..."

Yin Shengong's voice trailed off into a forlorn sigh here.

"How many of them are actually loyal to us, Pope Yin?" Mu Linyuan asked.

The cold glare that he received from Yin Shengong told him that he had asked the wrong question.

Of course, some of those Generals had been selected by him, but he had left them completely to their own devices for three years, so who knew if their allegiance to him still remained true?

They had all been his people in the past, but would he dare to use them in the future?

At the moment, the safest assumption was that none of those two hundred Generals were still loyal to him!

The more Yin Shengong thought about this conundrum, the more frustrated he became.

"It's a pity that Night Demon is still only a Lesser Grandmaster right now..." Mu Linyuan sighed.

Night Demon?

Once again, Yin Shengong's thoughts went to Night Demon.

Is it possible? Given the rate of progression he's displayed so far...

His heart quickly sank again as reality set in.

Even with Night Demon's unheard-of rate of progress, it was surely still too much to ask of him.

"Let's go to the White Cloud Prefecture. I'm going to pay Night Demon a visit," Yin Shengong sighed in a resigned manner.

"Should we notify him? If he doesn't know we're coming, he could go out on an academy mission or something, and we'll miss him," Mu Linyuan said.

"Sure," Yin Shengong replied, still feeling very frustrated.

Internally, he felt like a failure of a pope.

His complacency had driven him into a corner where he had to rely on a Lesser Grandmaster to reach the pinnacle of the General tier in under five months.

However, it seemed that Night Demon really was his only hope.

Even if he were to act immediately and eradicate Ren Zhongyuan and all of his forces in the One Heart Church, it would still be too late for this edition of the Parasite Ascension Project.

Securing a lackluster outcome was a normal occurrence, but refusing to field a roster at all was a different matter altogether.

***

Fang Che was still waiting for a reply from Yin Shengong. Surely Yin Shengong had to say something about the Huo Clan's demise.

However, even after a long wait, there was still no reply, and that left him feeling rather perplexed.

Only after several hours had passed did he suddenly receive a message from Mu Linyuan: "The pope will be visiting you tonight. Wait for us at home and don't go anywhere."

Fang Che was given a massive fright.

Yin Shengong's coming? Why?

It was already afternoon, and Fang Che immediately left the academy and returned home, paying no heed to Mo Ganyun yelling after him.

Fang Che was in such a hurry because he had to arrange for Ye Meng to leave the manor before Yin Shengong arrived.

Sun Yuan wasn't able to discern Ye Meng's true cultivation base, but she was not going to be so lucky in the presence of a Sovereign like Yin Shengong.

For a warrior of Yin Shengong's caliber, even the sound of Ye Meng's heartbeat could be enough for him to tell that she was hiding something.

He had to get Ye Meng to leave the manor right away. Otherwise, even if Yin Shengong killed her on the spot, he wouldn't be able to do anything but watch.

However, at the same time, he had to be strategic and somehow send Ye Meng away without tipping her off to Yin Shengong's visit.

Otherwise, if she were to report this matter to her higher-ups, then all of the most powerful warriors in the city would be deployed to kill Yin Shengong, and that would completely ruin his plans.

Yin Shengong had to be kept alive no matter what!

I have to worry about everyone! I have to worry about the Guardians, I have to worry about the Church of the Self-Righteous, I'm a little ant having to fret over a bunch of giant dragons! I must be the first in history to be in this position!

Out in the yard, Ye Meng was practicing her sword techniques, and she was already looking quite proficient, but Fang Che was in no mood to watch.

"If I were you, I'd be too ashamed to show off those sloppy sword techniques! Hurry up and go run an errand for me!"

"What do you need, Young Master?" Ye Meng asked with a displeased pout.

"Go and make me some clothes. You've been improving far too slowly of late, so I need to put you to use. Otherwise, you're going to turn into a pig if you don't do any work all day!"

Ye Meng: "......"

What do you mean? I've been doing all the work around the house!

However, she knew not to argue with Fang Che when he was in this mood.

"Where do I need to go, Young Master?"

"The Divine Needle Tailor Shop."

The Divine Needle Tailor Shop was the number one tailor shop in the entire White Cloud Prefecture, boasting the most comprehensive selection of materials, as well as the best quality and workmanship, and they could even craft suits of armor.

If you had any other requirements, such as waterproofing, fireproofing, stabproofing... As long as you had the money, it could be arranged.

Of course, more difficult jobs required payment in the form of spirit crystals, but thankfully for Fang Che, he was filthy rich!

"Su Yue" had just declared in front of hundreds of witnesses that Fang Che was free to spend the Su Clan's estate as he saw fit.

With all that money under his belt, he even hired a horse-drawn carriage for Ye Meng.

He escorted her onto the carriage, then instructed, "Stay there and keep an eye on the job until it gets done. I have really high standards!"

Really high standards?

Ye Meng was feeling very suspicious.

Could it be that he's intentionally diverting me away? What is he up to?

The problem was that with Fang Che keeping such a close eye on her, she couldn't sneak away to send a message.

Upon their arrival at the tailor shop, Fang Che took off his cloak before placing it onto the table, and it was finally revealed to Ye Meng just how high his standards were.

"I want this cloak upgraded. At the moment, the material is very ordinary, and the embroidery on it is also quite lackluster. Also, I need the job done urgently!"

"What are your specific requirements?"

"I want the color changed to a purplish-blue that's close to black. You know what I'm talking about, right? The kind where, at first glance, it looks like black, but visually, it ripples blue and purple when you walk."

"Got it."

"Use the best materials that you have. I have more than enough money to spare! As for the gold embroidery, I want it to be invisible normally, but only show up in flashes when I'm walking, you hear me?"

"Loud and clear!"

"Also, I want the embroidery to flash and give off a metallic sheen, like... starlight, you know what I mean?"

"I do. All that's needed to create that effect is starlight gold."

"And I want it to be in silk!"

"Got it!"

"In summary, I want it to make a statement, but also be sophisticated and understated, understood?"

"Got it!"

"I want one by tomorrow morning. Can you do that?"

The shopkeeper didn't reply right away. Instead, he asked, "How many pieces would you like in total?"

"One hundred!" Fang Che replied without any hesitation. "If that's not enough, then two hundred!"

"That's most certainly enough!"

The shopkeeper was ecstatic. This was a massive business opportunity!

"Any requirements for the collars?"

"I'll leave it to your judgment."

"Alright."

"Also, I want sets of boots and everyday clothing as well. Make thirty sets of each for now. I want the boots to be similar to my cloak, but I'm a warrior, so make them fit for a warrior."

"In that case, we can make the boots from our toughest demon beast hide, but it'll be a little more expensive, is that alright?"

"Money is not an issue!" Fang Che declared. "You can take the measurements now. Can you have everything done in one night?"

"One night should be enough with all of our tailors working together. It's just that there are quite a few requirements, making them difficult to remember, so we could be prone to mistakes."

"That's not a problem. My maidservant here doesn't have anything to do at home anyway, so she'll be overseeing all of you. If you have any questions, you can ask her."

"Er... Alright then. For such a large job, we're going to need a deposit..."

"Will a hundred thousand taels of silver be enough?"

The shopkeeper was stunned into silence, as was Ye Meng.

What an idiot! I mean... What a generous young master!

"Yes, that's definitely enough!"

"Good. Get someone to take my measurements now."

This amount of expenditure was nothing to Fang Che.

The tailors of the shop began to meticulously take his measurements from head to toe, taking incredible care throughout the entire process.

This was a major business opportunity that they could not allow to slip away!

They were constantly consulting Ye Meng about figures and requirements during the measuring process, so Ye Meng was very busy as well.

Fang Che was extremely cooperative, and by the time he left the tailor shop, close to two hours had already passed.

After that, he left Ye Meng there and went home himself.

"The first set of clothes, including a cloak and boots, have to be ready for me by next morning! There's a major event taking place in the academy tomorrow, so this is very urgent!"

Ye Meng was convinced.

In any case, she was only spending a night, so she surely wasn't going to miss much.

"Rest assured, Young Master, I'll get it delivered to you as long as they can get it done!"

While Ye Meng was busy at work, internally, she was still feeling rather suspicious.

It was very abnormal for Fang Che to suddenly request such a large batch of clothes, and she decided that this was a matter that she had to report.

With that in mind, she began to make her way out of the shop.

"Where do you think you're going?" Fang Che asked.

"I... I need go to the lavatory..." Ye Meng replied in an embarrassed manner.

"Me too. Let's go together," Fang Che proposed.

Ye Meng was flabbergasted.

"Come on then," Fang Che urged

Ye Meng could only comply.

Following their brief lavatory visit, Fang Che continued to wait at the tailor shop with Ye Meng.

Only when it was very late at night did he finally make preparations to depart.

"Keep a close eye on them!"

Following his departure from the tailor shop, Fang Che went on a shopping spree at a pastry shop and a tea shop, spending an exorbitant sum of money to purchase a kilogram of premium tea fit for consumption for high-grade cultivators.

As he returned to the Virtue Manor, he knew that Ye Meng was definitely suspicious, and that she was definitely going to report this matter.

However, she didn't know anything, and she had already been delayed by several hours.

Under the dark veil of the night, the Virtue Manor remained brightly lit as Fang Che diligently practiced his sword techniques.

On the stroke of midnight, some shadows flashed through the air, heralding the arrival of Yin Shengong's trio.