Yang Qing woke up the next day feeling renewed, refreshed, and reinvigorated. Normally he would wake up groaning and moaning from dread as he imagined what misery the day promised as another menial worker, but today it was different. It was the first day of his leave, he didn't have to deal with any case, he didn't have to see old fiend Lei's face, and he would be visiting the library today and going to a floor that countless had dreamed of.

He couldn't wait, but first, he had a few loose ends to tie down, one of which was checking in on Hao Da with the other visiting the auspicious wood grove tree to see if there was any way of helping Meifeng to send her clones over long distances.

As he had expected, it didn't take long for Meifeng to call him to pester him if he had found any solution. Luckily she had called when dawn was just arriving, giving Yang Qing ample time to enjoy his sleep. Knowing she would likely continue asking about it, Yang Qing decided he might as well sacrifice a few minutes of his allotted library time and find out if the auspicious wood grove tree had a way to help her.

...

Medical Valley, Crystal Lake Pavillion.

"How was it being a branch chief?" Hao Da asked with a carefree smile with his eyes closed seated in a lotus position while absorbing the pure milky white mist coming out from a lake. Seated next to him was Yang Qing chewing on some fried sunflower seeds.

"You didn't tell me you were making so much money. Hao Da, I thought we were brothers, after all the scallion pancakes and the crimson hogs I shared with you, I'm hurt.." Yang Qing said with an aggrieved tone as he angrily munched on a few more sunflower seeds.

"The scallion pancakes that Aunt Mei asked you to share with me, or the crimson hogs that were being thrown out. I'm glad I didn't eat that thing considering what happened.."

"Their origin doesn't matter, it still doesn't detract from the fact that I SHARED.."

Hao Da knowing where this was headed, and the likelihood that the shamelessness of the person seated next to him wouldn't stop, sighed as he said,

"Fine, before I leave will buy a whole buffet from the Thousands Flavor, and should you decide to come to the Three Fires Empire, I will sponsor your food tour..""I knew you were good brother.." Yang Qing excitedly said before he added with some solemnity in his voice,

"Remember, no going back on your words, lest you suffer the wrath of the heavens. As cultivators, our words are as heavy as the heavens.."

Hao Da couldn't help but break his meditation as he glanced sideways at Yang Qing with a strange look. He couldn't believe the shamelessness of Yang Qing when he was the biggest welcher he knew.

"What?" Yang Qing asked as he cast a suspicious glance at Hao Da before his expression soon turned smug as he said,

"I know, I know, I've noticed it too.. I've been looking more and more like a banished immortal lately, I was even able to make a sacred flame swan propose to me. She couldn't withstand my charms.."

"You've always been shameless, but I didn't think you'd be this shameless. A sacred flame swan proposing to you? Did she have corpse poison in her system?" Hao Da said with clear disdain in his tone.

"You!! You!! .." Yang Qing said with shaky hands almost choking on his sunflower seeds.

"She proposed.." he added vehemently.

"Sure she did, same as all the other millions of cultivators who claimed to have married a sacred flame swan.." said Hao Da, clearly not buying it.

"I am not lying, she proposed. She offered to be my dao companion.."

"Yes, yes, she did.."

"But she did.." Yang Qing said with a defeated tone. The one time he wasn't bragging shamelessly and was actually being truthful, but he wasn't believed.

"I should have recorded the whole thing.." he added bitterly prompting Hao Da's eyes to twinkle as he asked,

"Supposedly where did you meet this swan?"

Yang Qing instantly perked up, seeing this as an opportunity to redeem himself.

"You would never guess.." he said with a mysterious smile.

"At the Deer Mountain Range. Can you believe it?" he excitedly said.

"How come you've never told me there was an inheritance ground in that place?" asked Yang Qing.

"With how averse you are about leaving the headquarters, would you have come to see it, even if I'd told you there was one?"

"Maybe I might have.." Yang Qing muttered lowly unwilling to be rebuffed.

"You met her there? How did you even know about it?" suspiciously asked Hao Da. He was sure Yang Qing would spend his entire time as the Branch Chief completely sequestered at the branch instead of wandering around considering the amount of dangers hidden within the range.

Yang Qing went on to describe the case of the Hua Clan, Xin Clan, Flowing Fist Sect, and the Moon Essence Cauldron Sect and also the ensuing aftermath.

Hao Da sighed when he heard the complete story. He said,

"The Hua Clan leader has always been ambitious to the point of being reckless, while the Xin clan leader, has always been a sycophant to people he thought were stronger than him, dubbing it as being flexible. He would have done anything the Hua Clan leader told him, same with the sect leader of the Flowing Fist Sect.Though he wasn't as subservient,he still deferred to the Hua Clan leader.

The Moon essence cauldron sect is the surprising one. Even though their martial strength wasn't high, they had a lot of connections both within and outside of the range. The Hua Clan couldn't force their cooperation even if they were marginally stronger. They likely offered something substantial to gain their cooperation.

The price of greed huh.."

"But a celestial sacred swan...I always knew the range hid countless mysteries and secrets but after spending countless years there, I would have never guessed they had a sacred flame swan among those mysteries.."