Crossing Over: The Strongest Mage

However, after Wen Shu Emperor ascended the throne, many loyal ministers were demoted, and the two assisting ministers had retired to their hometowns. In the common people, there were many unjust cases and no one paid attention to them. Corrupt officials? No one dared to correct the ministers in power. Last year, in the Jiang Province area, the An River flooded, and countless people suffered, but there was no major relief effort from the court. It was said that Wen Shu Emperor was young and made some missteps in handling state affairs. But what were all the ministers doing? Didn't they see the emperor making mistakes and stop him? And what about the always sharp and capable Empress Dowager Liu? Why didn't she come forward? Liu Yiqing had once talked with several friends in the court, but no one could answer him.

The word "narrow" in the secret letter completely solved Liu Yiqing's doubt. Why did the letter use "narrow" instead of words like "interfere in governance" or "block the government"? "Narrow" indicated restraint. Why did these eunuchs hide so deeply? It showed that they were very clever, not wanting to expose themselves to the world. So they used "narrow." The emperor had become their puppet. When they destroyed the Wang family, they didn't use the military or the court's power, because they didn't want to attract attention. Moreover, they were confident in their own strength.

At the break of dawn, the gates of Qingguan Temple opened, and the first batch of people came to offer incense. Among the dozens of people, four young men dressed in plain clothes with unremarkable appearances did not seem very devout. They looked around cautiously, as if they were not here to offer incense, but were searching for something.

When the four pieces of the golden jade map were joined together, they formed a circular map. On the transparent white jade, golden lines formed a mountain shape, with a Taoist Bagua (Eight Trigrams) symbol in the center. In the Bagua, there was a strange five-star mark.

Liu Yiqing was astonished to find that he was strangely familiar with the location depicted in the map. This map made him start to doubt the true purpose of the founding emperor Chen Yuan, who had tasked Liu Jia's ancestors, Liu Feng and Liu Yuan'an, to settle in Yancheng. The map clearly depicted Yanshan, and the location of the treasure marked on the map was precisely where the Qingguan Temple stood. The temple's history could be traced back to more than 150 years ago. The treasure was so close, and this greatly boosted everyone's confidence.

Seeing that there was no one inside or outside the temple, the four decided to split up and carefully search the area.

"I wonder how Brother Zhang Feng has been these years? Since we're here, we might as well check on him, even if it's just to learn about his current situation," Yan Huo said with concern.

"Master, is there a Taoist here named Zhang Feng?" Yan Huo asked a young Taoist who was passing by.

The young Taoist answered, "Are you talking about Xu Lingzi?"

Yan Huo's eyes lit up. "Yes! That's him."

The young Taoist replied, "You're too late. He's already gone to the back mountain, and he probably won't return until noon."

Yan Huo was surprised. "The back mountain? What is he doing there?"

The young Taoist answered, "I don't know. Since my junior brother went to the back mountain five years ago, he's been going there often. He stays there for half a day, and especially in the last two or three years, he goes every day without fail. Our master punished him many times for this, but it had no effect. In the end, we just let him go."

"I see." Hearing about Zhang Feng, Yan Huo couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness. "Brother Zhang must have gone for his own reasons. Even after three years, he's still thinking of me. I shouldn't have left him without a word back then."

"Once this matter is settled, I must sincerely apologize to him." The young Taoist asked, "May I ask, is there something you need with my junior brother?"

"Oh, no, it's just that I met him here a few years ago. I came back today to see if he is still here." After explaining, Yan Huo casually asked, "By the way, little Taoist, have you ever seen this kind of pattern in your temple?" Yan Huo then showed him a drawing of the Eight Trigrams with a five-star symbol. The young Taoist immediately responded, "Yes! I have seen it."

Yan Huo quickly asked, "Where!?"

"In the back yard of the temple, on the wall near the mountain," the young Taoist replied, pointing toward the rear yard.

"Thank you!" Without delay, Yan Huo expressed his gratitude and immediately went to find the other three.

"Yang... Brother Yang," Yan Huo first found Yang Lue in the temple hall, who was looking around. It was unclear whether it was because the disguise mask made by Wang Mang was so exquisite that Yan Huo still wasn't accustomed to it, or if it was because of the secretive nature of his identity that made him feel guilty toward Yang Lue. Yan Huo hesitated and stammered when speaking. "I... I found it."

"Really!? Where?" Yang Lue asked coldly. Since learning the truth yesterday, Yang Lue had not spoken to Yan Huo again.

The back yard of the temple was open to outsiders, so Yan Huo and the others easily found the wall. Over a hundred years had passed, and the wall seemed to have been renovated, but the Eight Trigrams with the five-star symbol were still well-preserved on the wall.

"Heh! Looks like this is another trick left by that clever old emperor," Wang Mang remarked. "He had the temple keep this picture without telling the Taoists what purpose it served. Interesting."

Fang Yu casually walked up to the wall, closely inspecting the image, as if he were a tourist enjoying the view.

"Young Master Fang, we are here to find something, not to sightsee!" Wang Mang was not here for a leisurely visit; he was driven by deep enmity.

Fang Yu smiled and said, "You're right, I do have 'mang' in my name, so I act rashly. But I am just looking for clues, to see if anything is left behind on the wall."

"Fang, have you discovered anything?" Yang Lue asked.

Fang Yu took another look at the wall and then replied, "It's strange, it's just a wall. There's nothing on it, not even a crack or a hidden mechanism."

"Could there be another such image elsewhere in the temple?" Wang Mang asked.

Yang Lue answered, "We've searched the entire temple thoroughly, except for the Taoists' rooms. There are no other images like this anywhere else."

"That's strange," Wang Mang remarked.

"Heh! If it's so easy to find, then what's the point of the map?" Fang Yu laughed.

"If it's not on the wall, should we check the other side of the wall outside?" Yan Huo suggested. The three of them immediately looked at him.

"Why didn't you say that earlier!" Yang Lue scolded.

"I..." Yan Huo started to explain, but Yang Lue had already left them behind, leaping over the wall first.