Meetings Of Importance

Qiang Wang found himself facing the Emperor in his private office. The emperor's father in-law and Creation God sect master was curious as to the purpose of his summon. The battle was over but there was still remnant chaos from the brief period of unease. Perhaps Hu Wenxi had something important to discuss with him.

"Your majesty, may I inquire to the purpose of this summon?" Asked Qiang Wang uneasily. Hu Wenxi seemed to ignore him, he reached into his sleeve and pulled out a gem stone in which he placed on to his desk. The emperor calmly took a seat on his swivel chair with both elbows on his desk and hands below his chin.

"There's been a complication" Hu Wenxi finally said. Qiang Wang took a seat on a wooden seat on the side and nodded. "Yes, we've been too lax these past two hundred years. We must repair the Zodiac formation immediately and root out any indirection".

"I suggest begin with…" Hu Wenxi raised his hand and stopped Qiang Wang. The sect chief looked curiously at the emperor who sighed before tapping on the gem stone. The image of an amulet depicting a peculiar diagram with the face of a ferocious demon and petals arranged in a circular shape. The construct looked incredibly complex but Qiang Wang recognised it in an instant.

"Is that not that paperweight previously buried beneath our sect?" Asked Qiang Wang. Hu Wenxi nodded, "We initially thought it was some sort of ancient artefact that's lost its power as it had no obvious signs."

"But outside forces are very keen on it for some reason. Perhaps we've looked at it wrong the entire time" Hu Wenxi continued. Qiang Wang also began thinking about the possibilities.

That particular image was an amulet found buried beneath the Creation God sect. For whatever reason it contained an extraordinary amount of Qi yet did not posses any qualities of a combat treasure nor did it have any utility. Its only feature was the large amount of Qi stored within.

Yet even this was a disadvantage as the Qi could not exit the amulet and could not be used in any meaningful way. In fact it was all but undetectable unless one 3 inches close to it. It was uncovered completely by accident several millennia's ago by a previous elder of the Creation God sect but was left in their treasure vaults after extensive testing revealed nothing.

As such for thousands of years it was stored away and forgotten, nothing more then an odd trinket. When Hu Wenxi married into the chief's family he discovered the amulet and added it to his collection of treasures. It wasn't worth much in the eyes of the sect hence they allowed the then rogue cultivator to keep it.

Hu Wenxi on the other hand had different thoughts regarding the matter. Knowing troops from a previous life there was a chance for the amulet to be something special. In the previous battle he had spied on Aadar and his comrades and already knew what they were.

It was obvious when the design on the amulet resembled a mandala symbol in hinduism. It didn't take long for him to put two and two together. Mystical treasures relating to the devas had always been rare and previous. Any connections to them could give lesser factions a major boost in strength.

In ancient times, the triumvirate of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva where the only ones capable of standing on equal footing as Taoism's three pure ones. Although those three had all but disappeared in modern day their legacy can still be felt in multiverse.

"The strongest faction of gods in the primordial era. The greatest collection of mighty figures whom predated the Heavens courts and Buddhism" murmured Hu Wenxi. Just the implication was massive. This Mandala amulet could represent a huge opportunity for him.

Hu Wenxi looked at Qiang Wang who was slightly confused on the matters of the amulet. It wasn't a surprise, Hu Wenxi had connections beyond this corner of the universe. Hu Wenxi took this opportunity to inform Qiang Wang about a possible large opportunity but also warned of danger.

"That Aadar does not come from a simple background, his soul is heavily protected against searches and any attempt will likely kill him" stated Hu Wenxi. After he had dismantled Aadar previously he tried to search the souls of the people with him but they all spontaneously combusted.

Qiang Wang nodded his head while Hu Wenxi continued, "Since father's sect is most familiar with the amulet, I want you to give me all records". Qiang Wang accepted this task without hesitation, however he could not help but feel there was also something else Hu Wenxi wanted to talk about.

Thankfully he didn't have to wait long, Hu Wenxi next took out a crumbled roll of paper. It was a scroll looked heavily damaged but did possessed a design that once indicated wealth. On it were faded runes and symbols of stars.

Qiang Wang was confused for a minute before widening his eyes, "Is that?". Hu Wenxi nodded, "This is the formation map of Xin Da Kong's battle formation he used."

"Although it was heavily damaged it should still be salvageable. See if any of your trusted elders can decipher it and reconstruct it. It can be a great asset to us".

Qiang Wang accepted the beat up scroll and stored it away. He had a bright smile on his face after receiving the scroll. The sect chief gazed at the emperor and asked, "What about the Star Busting formation that protects star city?".

Hu Wenxi shook his head, "Destroyed" he said as a matter of fact. While feeling dejected Qiang Wang still felt there had been great gain today. The foundation of his Qiang family is set even further in stone, there was just one issue that could prove a huge problem.

Seeing Hu Wenxi about to motion for him to leave Qiang Wang decided to speak his mind on a subject that has been bothering him for the past few hours. "Your majesty who was that woman? What was she doing with you?".

Hu Wenxi raised an eyebrow, "What about her?". A tension seemed to permeate the room making Qiang Wang feel uneasy. Hu Wenxi had an curious face that Qiang Wang found difficult to respond to. However the sect master had to ascertain the position of his daughter.

"I hope your majesty, no Hu Wenxi knows the proper roles of husband and wife" said Qiang Wang. Hu Wenxi sat up and glared, something Qiang Wang hardly experienced. It was a new yet terrifying experience for the man.

For what felt like hours he felt himself drowning in a vast ocean. His senses were distorted and he could hardly perceive the world around him. The only visible object were Hu Wenxi's eyes, eyes that glared intently in clear anger.

Finally he spoke and the pressure lifted, "Don't presume I do not know such things father". Qiang Wang was finally able to get his bearings and reconnect to heaven. Even though hours seemed to have gone by only seconds had passed in real time.

"Of course forgive me your majesty" kowtowed Qiang Wang. For now it was better for him to swallow his pride and appease his son-in-law. The difference between them is simply too vast.

This was the first time Qiang Wang had experienced open anger from the young emperor hence he was sweating bullets. Hu Wenxi sent him a gesture telling him to leave to which he obeyed. As he stepped out the door Hu Wenxi said, "Ao Changying is my longest friend, do not worry about such trivial things".

…

The next day in the imperial palace inside another room, several individuals were busy quarrelling intensely. Although a great battle had been won, tension was still felt. Due to the state their children returned in, several parents were raging at a pair of beaten up Human Immortals.

Hu Lanyue sat idly finding her feat strangely very interesting. After she woke up she discovered her ranting mother. Her brothers weren't much better. Xiang Shi Bo had dragged in both Hu Jin Shen and Hu Tong Shan for a screaming round.

Poor Yi Guang and Nan Fan were also forced to listen to the royal concubine criticise them. While it was very insulting for a woman of far lower cultivation to insult them like this, they took the assault without a sound.

"You're all useless. How can you let my daughter, your princess be in such a dangerous situation. I don't what my husband was thinking keeping you lot around. I it were up to me, you'll be dead".

Xiang Shi Bo screamed and vented towards the two men however a closer look could tell you that Nan Fu wasn't paying attention. Yi Guang on the other hand responded, "Out respect for you affiliation for his majesty I will not bear those words to heart. However we were simply outmatched".

The concubine's face morphed into an enraged one, "Then what good were you". She slapped the general across the face though this probably hurt her more then it did him. "Yi Guang, you are henceforth stripped of your general position. You are hereby exiled from the empire, never show your face again".

Yi Guang's expression became gloomy, "You do not have that authority" he said. Xiang Shi Bo became enraged, "How dare you talk to me, I am your queen".

"You are not" came the voice of Hu Jin Shen looking more aggravated as time went on. The first prince looked fine aside from some cuts. He had been in along with everyone else by the royal concubine after Hu Wenxi addressed the various experts in the throne hall. The empress had gone off somewhere as well.

Like always Xiang Shi Bo is throwing her weight around and abusing her authority. Nan Cui He only stayed silent while Yi Sun Jin was not present. The dynamic in the royal harem evidently wasn't great.

Qiang Mei Hua ruled the empire in all but name ignoring the other woman. This left Xiang Shi Bo to becoming queen bitch amongst the palace residents. Both Nan Cui He nor Yi Sun Jin participated in any politics unlike the other two.

"And you, what example are you setting. Gallivanting foolishly putting your siblings in danger" Xiang Shi Bo sneered at the crown prince. "I don't know what husband was thinking putting you in charge. That lazy mother of yours evidently didn't do a good job".

"Well he is the eldest" murmured Hu Tong Shan while Hu Jin Shen narrowed his eyes. "Watch what you say" Hu Jin Shen stood firm, "You insult both my father and mother, your emperor and empress".

This seems to have brought Xiang Shi Bo out of her tangent. She widened her eyes but gritted her teeth. She clenched her delicate hands, if she wasn't so angry then she definitely would've been a world class beauty.

Xiang Shi Bo glared at both Hu Tong Shan and Hu Jin Shen, the authority she wield was fundamentally still below that of the crown prince and his family. This very fact made her blood boil.

She married Hu Wenxi expecting to be empress yet fate saw differently. 150 of marriage yet she was only able to birth a daughter. There wasn't even a chance to gain favour with a girl. Hu Wang Tian wasn't much help there either.

Xiang Shi Bo felt very indignant at her position. Yi Guang and Nan Fan were definitely Qiang Mei Hua's men. Hu Wenxi was very passive in matters dealing with the empire. Xiang Shi Bo looked towards her daughter Hu Lanyue, she was signalling for her.

Hu Lanyue could tell what he rmother wanted, she wanted her to sell out her brothers and to give reason to diminish their reputation as well as getting rid of both senior experts. However Hu Lanyue was feeling unsure.

A moment passed and she stayed silent. Xiang Shi Bo was getting progressively more angry. "Perhaps that's enough for now" the soft voice of Nan Cui He called out. This woman wasn't even seen as a threat by Xiang Shi Bo, she was plain thing hardly of notice.

"You!" Uttered Xiang Shi Bo.

CLICK!

The door opened and outstepped a divine like figure. Qiang Mei Hua had entered, "Ah so that's where you all went".