Chapter 9: Azurehold Self-Inspection!

The woman glanced at Taylor Yale, lips curving into a faint smile. "Not bad, kid." Taylor suddenly rose. "Senior, may I ask you something?" "Of course," she said, still smiling. He fixed his gaze on her. "Senior, say there's a ruler of a universe, a wise and just sovereign. Around him are countless factions and powers. But those forces are greedy. They control an enormous share of society's resources... Does that ruler truly not know they're corrupt?" The woman smiled. "Of course he knows." Taylor frowned, confusion creeping in. "Then why would he...?" She stepped in front of him, her expression gentle. "Because of replacement." Taylor's brows knitted tighter. He still did not understand. She spoke slowly, each word measured. "A wise sovereign doesn't move against them for one main reason: replacement. Even a wise sovereign can't manage everything alone. He needs capable people to help govern the universe. But he can't demand that everyone be as desireless as he is." She lifted a finger, as if drawing a line in the air. "Even if he replaces them with a new group, it might be the same. It could be worse. That's what you called human nature. So he replaces when he must. He allows you to take, but you must be loyal, and you must do the work. As for where the red line is drawn, that depends on the person." She chuckled softly, then added, "And beyond replacement, you also need balance. If the 'good' have no 'bad' to restrain them, then when they turn rotten, they can be even worse." Taylor lowered his head slightly. "I understand. So... I really passed?" She smiled. "Of course. You passed not only because you spoke well, but because of something even more important. Do you know what it is?" Taylor looked puzzled. "What?" "You dared to tell the truth." He froze. Her gaze turned deep, meaningful. "This world needs more people who dare to speak the truth." Taylor met her eyes. "What this world really needs is more people willing to listen to the truth." She blinked, then laughed. "Good... That was very good." Off to the side, the woman in the purple dress shot Taylor an astonished look. Taylor continued, "Senior, I have another question." "Ask." He looked at her steadily. "Did the Arcavis Sword Master truly want countless ordinary people to live better lives?" "Why do you ask?" she replied. Taylor said, "If the Arcavis Sword Master truly wanted that, why did he set the Arcavis Path to be so brutally difficult?" He shook his head slightly. "Senior, do you know how hard it is for ordinary people in this world to fight for their rights?" The woman fell silent for a moment. Then she said, "Kid, if the Arcavis Path weren't difficult, do you think you could have made it here?" Taylor stiffened, but understanding came quickly. If the Arcavis Path had no difficulty, then each path would probably have had an Emperor standing guard... The woman patted his shoulder lightly, a trace of tenderness in her eyes. "The higher you climb, the darker it gets. It will overturn everything you thought you knew. But don't lose hope in this world. I look forward to meeting you again." As her voice faded, everything before Taylor's eyes turned hazy and unreal. Not long after, he found himself back on the Arcavis Path. The moment he appeared, a third gate manifested not far ahead. At that sight, the entire crowd fell dead silent. Felix Santee and Elder Vernell went pale as paper. The second trial was cleared. Azurehold, Eldergem Spire Square. "Holy hell! Yes!" the Yale family shouted first, snapping out of their daze. Every last one of them roared like madmen, fists pumping, faces flushed with wild excitement. Isaac Yale, still in his wheelchair, gripped Lena Looske's hand so tightly his knuckles whitened. His face shook with emotion. "Good... Tianming did good." In the shadows, Abel Showyer, Azurehold's deputy city lord, watched alongside Campbell, the Eldergem Spire manager. When they saw Taylor clear the second trial, they exchanged a look, both stunned. Damn it. Was this kid really that monstrous? Abel's voice dropped. "Damn it, this is going to explode. Release Jones Yale, now." Campbell hesitated. "He's still got one more trial. Isn't it too early? And Roy Zorn..." "No, wait!" Someone suddenly screamed in the crowd. "The third gate disappeared! Holy shit, holy shit, look! There's a character above Taylor's head. It's 'Inspect'! Damn, he cleared it. Azurehold has entered the self-inspection procedure...!" The instant Abel saw that character, his face changed violently. He stomped hard. "Roy Zorn can kiss my ass. Go release Jones Yale right now!" Campbell's voice trembled. "O-okay. I'll have someone go immediately..." "Damn it!" Abel raised his hand and slapped Campbell across the face, furious. "What do you mean, 'have someone go'? We're going ourselves. Ourselves! Move!" He grabbed the still-stunned Campbell and bolted. The square erupted into dumbfounded silence. He cleared it? Even the Yale family stood like statues, eyes wide as saucers. Then they snapped back to life. The entire Yale family began to roar in unison, shouting until their throats went raw. Some cried as they laughed, tears spilling freely. Isaac's eyes glistened. He stared at Tianming on the Arcavis Path and smiled. "Good... good job..." Around them, a few sharp-eyed opportunists had already started drifting toward the Yale family. ... Arcavis Academy, outside the Examination Hall. Elder Vernell and Felix Santee looked as if they had seen a ghost. They stared at Taylor in the distance, faces full of disbelief. Felix suddenly snapped, "No. He only cleared two trials. How did he pass? He cheated!" "Cheat your ass." Malcolm Farrell sprang forward, pointing at Felix as his anger flared. "Bastard, you've got lard for brains. This is the Arcavis Path, left behind personally by the Arcavis Sword Master. You think anyone can cheat?" Felix tried to speak again, but a voice rang out from the heavens. "Azurehold self-inspection." Azurehold self-inspection! As that voice fell, countless top-tier Arcavis Guards across Azurehold received the same order at once: proceed to Azurehold Arcavis Academy immediately and protect the challenger. Not only that, every realm-guardian in Azurehold appeared above the Academy, one after another, their auras pressing down like storm clouds. Elder Vernell stared hard at Taylor. "Felix, notify your clan head. Now." Felix finally grasped how serious this had become. He pulled out a transmission talisman and crushed it. Elder Vernell did the same. They were not about to sit and wait for the blade to fall. Before long, the air filled with experts. More than ten thousand Arcavis Guards arrived. Every Arcavis Guard in Azurehold had come. A middle-aged man stepped forward and stopped before Taylor. He studied him, eyes sharp. "Young Master Yale, I am Kelvin Showyer, commander of the Azurehold Arcavis Guards. From this moment on, we will protect you with our lives. Please come with me." Taylor said, "Senior, please protect my family as well." Kelvin turned to an Arcavis Guard expert not far away. That man immediately led a hundred Arcavis Guards away, vanishing toward the Skyline's edge. Kelvin looked back at Taylor. "Young Master Yale, please come with us to Arcavis Hall. The formations there have already been activated. We'll wait there for the Outer Cabinet's directive." Taylor nodded. He turned toward Malcolm. Malcolm grinned. "Kid, relax. They won't dare touch me, and they definitely won't dare touch you. If you die here, the Inner Cabinet will do a full purge." Taylor said, "Senior, there's a lot I don't understand. I want to ask you for guidance." Malcolm considered it, then nodded. "Fine." He looked at Kelvin. Kelvin would not refuse Taylor's request and nodded at once. "Come." And so, under the escort of nearly ten thousand Azurehold Arcavis Guards, Taylor and Malcolm disappeared into the distance. Almost at the same time, the head of the Inspectorate and all its elders, as well as the head of the Inspection Court and all its elders, set out for Arcavis Hall immediately. Not only that, every elder in seclusion at the Academy came out. Every ranked instructor outside the grounds dropped what they were doing and rushed back at once. Even Colson Joslen, the Azurehold Arcavis Academy head who had been in the Arcavis Realm, moved immediately to return. In that moment, every high official in Azurehold faced it like an approaching catastrophe. Elsewhere, the Santee family also went on full alert. Theodore Santee, the clan head, summoned every elder and top expert. Inside the Santee family hall. Theodore slammed the table, rage boiling over. "How did Felix handle this so badly?" An elder spoke in a low voice. "From what I know, he swallowed twenty Divine Tribulation Pill and two hundred thousand Spirit Crystal for himself, then only gave that Taylor Yale ten Lunar Energy Pill..." "Animal!" Theodore erupted. "That damned animal!" The elder's face darkened. "He underestimated Taylor Yale. He thought the boy was nobody. He never imagined he'd actually clear the Arcavis Path." Theodore's expression turned frighteningly grim. Every Santee expert in the hall looked awful. None of them had ever imagined that someone from an Inferior Family could clear the Arcavis Path... who could have seen that coming? Now that Taylor had cleared it, the flames would inevitably spread to the Santee family. Theodore said sharply, "We can't wait for death. This could even affect Xiao Tian's future at the Main Academy... Second and Third, go to the Ades family in Azurehold and the Yale family in Azurehold. Make sure they help us mediate with the Outer Cabinet. Fourth and Seventh, send people to the Tabbitt family, the Norvin family, the Sparnan family, the Negas family, the Undying Emperor Clan, the Denison family, the God Clan's Joncey family, the Looske family... Tell them we need them to help us mediate. Do not let the self-inspection procedure reach final review." One elder hesitated, then said, "Clan Head, isn't that excessive? Even if Azurehold enters self-inspection, with our connections in the Arcavis Realm, the Inspection Institute and Procuratorate will still give us some face. If we go begging, we'll owe favors." "Idiotic!" Theodore snapped. "Under normal circumstances, the Inspectorate and the Inspection Court would give us face. But what is this situation? This is the Arcavis Path, left behind by the Arcavis Sword Master to prevent injustice within the Academy. Even if the Inspection Institute and Procuratorate give us face, will the Inspection Court and Dark Court do the same?" At that, the faces in the hall worsened again. The Inspection Court and Dark Court were the most terrifying departments, and the least sentimental. Once they moved, they moved like a guillotine. For years, the Santee family had spent everything they had to push someone into those two courts and the Inner Cabinet. They had failed again and again. Only Xiao Tian had shown the talent, and though his future looked boundless, he still had not grown into his power. Theodore continued, "With something this big, the Inspection Court and Dark Court can't be unaware. Even the Disciplinary Court bastards are definitely watching what's happening at Azurehold Academy. The Santee family cannot take this lightly. This time, we must be ready to bleed." His face twisted, ugly with the thought of the price. To truly smooth this over, they would pay in flesh and fortune. An elder snarled, "It's all because of that bastard Taylor Yale... The Santee family really is cursed this time." The hall sprang into motion as everyone rushed to pull strings. Soon, only Theodore and an old man remained. The old man was Great Elder Remington Santee. Theodore asked, "Great Elder, what do you think?" The Great Elder slowly closed his eyes. "The Farrell family." Theodore's eyes narrowed. Remington spoke evenly. "Even if Taylor Yale is a monster, he's still only from an Inferior Family. Without backing, he can't shake the Santee family, at least not yet. The real problem is the Farrell family. If Malcolm Farrell and the Farrell family insist on backing him and keep this matter alive, it becomes extremely hard to handle. We must deal with the Farrell family. Once they stop interfering, a boy from an Inferior Family can't turn the sky upside down. And once this passes, cleaning him up will be easy." Theodore's voice sank. "You know Malcolm. He's a brainless idiot who only cares about the Farrell family's ancestral rules. Getting him to stop backing Taylor... will be hard." Remington's tone remained calm. "If we can't solve him, we start with the Farrell family's juniors." Theodore frowned, worry surfacing. "Great Elder, going after the Farrell family... that..." Remington looked at him. "I'll talk first. If the Farrell family insists on opposing us for no reason, then we wipe them out. The Farrell family has offended more than just us over the years. The people who want them dead, in the dark, are beyond counting. If we're willing to lead, plenty will follow." A flash of savagery crossed his eyes. "That bastard Taylor Yale cleared the Arcavis Path because of the Farrell family. Fine. Then we finish it in one stroke and kill them all. Azrael Farrell? Who the hell is he... Our Santee ancestor and the Arcavis Sword Master were brothers!!!"