My disciples are all villains.

Li Yunzhao was the one who wanted to bring Zhao Yue back to the palace to meet the Empress Dowager. Moreover, he had guaranteed with his head to keep Zhao Yue safe. It was only natural for Lu Zhou to hold him accountable. However, the Imperial city was the Imperial City, after all. There should not be a huge problem with Li Yunzhao and the Empress Dowager there.

"Mo Li is from the Second Prince's faction. What kind of person is the Second Prince, Liu Huan, like?" Lu Zhou asked.

Qin Jun replied honestly, "The Second Prince is long-sighted and has forbearance. He's not one to give up until he has achieved his goals."

Lu Zhou looked at Qin Zhou and asked, "Is that your personal appraisal of the Second Prince?"

Qin Jun was an official after all. It seemed out of turn for him to be commenting about a member of the Imperial family in such a manner.

Qin Jun sighed and said, "In the beginning, His Majesty had ten heirs. Due to several reasons, he's left with five. The First Prince, Liu Zhi, who's also the current Crown Prince, will be the one to inherit the throne if nothing untoward happens to him." Then, he continued to say, "However, the Crown Prince is obsessed with the customs of Rubei and can't control himself. He even built a tent and had dancers performed dances from the Other Tribes in the palace. When the Emperor found out about this, he was in a fit of rage. For that reason, he's nothing but a nominal Crown Prince. The Second Prince, Liu Huan, has exceptional abilities and is decisive. However, he's vicious and has many schemes. The Third Prince, Liu Chen, was highly favored by the Emperor and was deemed as the most probable to become the Crown Prince. Alas, ill fate befell him. There was a fire in Jing He Palace one night. 1,000 men were burned to death, and the Third Prince went missing. I once investigated the incident and discovered that the mastermind behind the fire was the Second Prince." After he finished speaking, he bowed as a show of respect. He was speaking about the secrets of the palace after all. If someone else discovered he had spoken these words, the consequences that awaited ranged from being fired to being beheaded.

Lu Zhou did not expect the Second Prince to be so ruthless. Well, since Mo Li was willing to follow him, there was no doubt they were birds of the same feather. He asked, "Do you think the Second Prince will make a move against the Fourth Prince at the enclosure?"

Qin Jun hastily said, "I don't dare to speak with certainty. However, based on his past actions, I would say it's possible. The hunt in the enclosure is organized by the Second Prince so I don't think he'll make a move in the enclosure. However, the same can't be said about other places in Rubei. The Second Prince can easily find himself an alibi after all. Even if the others know that he's the culprit, there's nothing they can do about it."

"I have no interest in the palace's power struggles. The lives and deaths of the princes have nothing to do with me." Lu Zhou stroked his beard, waved his arm, and said, "Send him down the mountain."

"Understood." Zhou Jifeng brought Qin Jun down Golden Court Mountain.

After that, Lu Zhou glanced at Duanmu Sheng who was still under the waterfall. He was still painstakingly. He turned to look at Little Yuan'er and said, "Yuan'er, keep working on your cultivation. Don't slack off."

"Oh." Little Yuan'er continued punching with her fists as she watched her master leave.

…

At this moment, the only disciples left on the mountain were Duanmu Sheng and Little Yuan'er. With the other disciples gone, Lu Zhou did not even have the chance to be a good teacher. Halfway through his walk, he made a turn and walked toward the Cave of Reflection.

Upon seeing Lu Zhou, Zhu Honggong was overjoyed. He was so moved that tears began to brim in his eyes. He bowed and kowtowed before he said, "Greetings, master! I'm so happy about your visit that I won't be able to sleep for three days and three nights."

Lu Zhou was had already grown immune to these low-level flatteries. He walked into the Cave of Reflection and said, "Tell me what you've done wrong."

Zhu Honggong nodded and began listing out his wrongdoings. "First, I shouldn't have been fooled by Seventh Senior Brother into leaving the mountain. Second, I shouldn't have helped Seventh Senior Brother. Third, I shouldn't have sent him news about the Evil Sky Pavilion. Fourth, I shouldn't have modified the Nine Tribulations Thunderblast."

"Aren't you going to justify your actions?" Lu Zhou asked.

"I don't dare!" Zhu Honggong fell to his knees as his body trembled.

Lu Zhou noticed Zhu Honggong's back was riddled with injuries. They were scars from the beating he had been subjected to. Apart from that, he had also suffered from the backlash of the Nine Tribulations Thunderblast. Coupled with the cold wind in the Cave of Reflection, which was a sort of punishment, Zhu Honggong looked exhausted and haggard. However, Zhu Honggong's loyalty seemed to have gone up. It seemed like the zen tunic was much more important to Zhu Honggong than he had expected. Finally, he said, "Rise and speak."

"Thank you, master."

Lu Zhou asked, "How long have you been with the pavilion?"

"It's been 20 years."

Lu Zhou remained silent. After a brief moment, he walked out of the Cave of Reflection with his hands on his back.

"Safe journey, master." Although Zhu Honggong was puzzled, he did not dare to ask any questions.

When Lu Zhou stepped out of the Cave of Reflection, he stopped in his tracks and said, "The Nine Tribulations Thunderblast originated from Thunderblast. The eighth layer is samsara. If it's used well, you'll gain an unending supply of power from the circulation of Yin and Yang, and you won't fall into samsara. The ninth layer is the twin sal tree, which is half-withered and half-flourishing. When the sal tree blooms, the one who flourishes shall perish. Rid yourself of the backlash' effects in three months. If you fail, you'll spend the next three years inside the Cave of Reflection. If you succeed, you'll move into the south pavilion." After he finished speaking, he did not wait for Zhu Honggong's reply and made his way to the Evil Sky Pavilion.

Zhu Honggong seemed to have fallen into a daze when he heard Lu Zhou's words. He was startled for a moment before a wave of joy welled up in his heart. He kneeled and sincerely kowtowed. "Thank you, master… Thank you, master… Thank you…" The professional ass-kisser, Zhu Honggong, was at a loss for words that he could only repeat these words. His face was wet from tears.

Lu Zhou only received the notification from the system when he had returned to the Evil Sky Pavilion…

"Completed the Nine Tribulations Thunderblast cultivation method. Reward: 1,000 merit points."

"Instructed Zhu Honggong. Reward: 300 merit points."

Lu Zhou had only given Zhu Honggong some pointers to improve his cultivation base, he had forgotten that he would also receive merit points from completing his disciples' cultivation methods.

He searched his memories again. Among his nine disciples, it seemed like Zhu Honggong was the last one to have a completed cultivation method. The cultivation methods cultivated by Yu Zhenghai, Yu Shangrong, Si Wuya, and Ye Tianxin were complete. The four of them also possessed cultivation bases that were clearly superior to the others.

Lu Zhou glanced at the system's dashboard.

Merit points: 4,500.

Then, he looked at the price of the Nine Transformations Yin Yang and shook his head. In the end, he closed his eyes and continued to meditate on the Heavenly Writing.

…

In the following three months, Lu Zhou spent a lot of time instructing Duanmu Sheng and Little Yuan'er. He would occasionally visit the Cave of Reflection to see Zhu Honggong's progress and to make sure there were no mishaps.

Unfortunately, he did not receive any news from Mingshi Yin and Zhao Yue. If they had been on the mountain, he could have instructed them as well.

Early in the morning.

Lu Zhou had just finished with a meditation session when he saw Zhou Jifeng stepping into the great hall with a letter in his hand.

It was about time for him to receive information from the Divine Capital.

"Pavilion Master, a letter from Qin Jun."

"Read it."

"Old mister, Zhao Yue is by the Empress Dowager's side. Li Yunzhao said that the Empress Dowager is not doing so well. Also, Mingshi Yin isn't in the Imperial City. Li Yunzhao guarantees that'll protect Zhao Yue with his life again and wants you to be assured. Lastly, the Second and Fourth Princes have departed for the enclosure in Rubei for the hunt. If there are no surprises, the Empress Dowager should be departing in these few days."

"Pavilion Master, I'm willing to head to Rubei to investigate the matter," Zhou Jifeng said after he read the letter.

"It's pointless." If Jiang Aijian and Qin Jun, both of whom were in the Divine Capital, could not discover anything, what could Zhou Jifeng, an outsider, find out?

Lu Zhou stroked his beard and thought about how he should deal with Mo Li. As the master of his disciples, he could not allow her to roam free. At this moment, he noticed that there was a new mission on the dashboard; Kill Mo Li. He found it reasonable but also thought that it made no difference. Mission or no mission, Mo Li's fate was sealed.