Liang Qian looked at Yang Tie with a smile. "I haven't had the chance to congratulate you for reaching the Essence Soul realm previously."
Yang Tie also replied with a smile, "Your Majesty, you're exaggerating. Your Majesty is only one step away from breaking through. Your Essence Soul is in sight."
At this time, Liang Qian was still at the late Nascent Soul stage. Although the Great Zhou Dynasty had recovered in recent years, it was naturally far from its peak. With Yang Tie's current cultivation and status, although it was a bit excessive for the two of them to speak as equals, it was not too much.
However, Yang Tie respected Liang Qian because Liang Qian had an extraordinary relationship with his master, Zhu Yi.
The two of them had already gotten to know each other when Zhu Yi returned to the Great Zhou Dynasty to take the imperial examination during the Golden Elixir Period. When Zhu Yi lived in Tianjing City, Liang Qian took care of him.
Previously, as the relationship between Xuanmen Tianzong and the Great Zhou Dynasty worsened, Liang Qian was in a difficult situation facing his father, Liang Pan.
Although Liang Pan did not have the intention to make things difficult for him, it was inevitable that Liang Qian was boycotted and monitored in the Great Zhou Dynasty at that time.
After suffering for many years, when many families joined forces to attack Zhou and Liang Pan fled to Ying Sea, Liang Qian finally saw the light.
All these years, Liang Qian and Zhu Yi had never broken contact. As the Emperor, he worked hard to govern, treated the people well, and was open-minded. He was also quite popular in the Great Zhou Dynasty.
Therefore, Yang Tie had always been very respectful towards Liang Qian, who was of the same generation as his master. Many times, he even treated him as a junior.
"The Essence Soul realm is indeed not that easy to reach." Liang Qian smiled and shook his head. He was rather calm.
When he inherited the throne, he was already at the late-stage of Yuanying. His cultivation level was even higher than Yang Tie's at that time.
However, all these years, he had been stagnant, while Yang Tie had already soared to the sky and attained the Primordial Soul Realm. The encounters he had had made him sigh.
Xuanmen Tianzong's superior Taoist technique resources and Yang Tie's outstanding aptitude and temperament were undoubtedly the main reasons, but they were not the only reason. Liang Qian himself was well aware of this.
As the ruler of the Great Zhou Dynasty, the resources he could mobilize were actually extremely abundant.
Due to the uniqueness of ascending to the throne back then, Liang Qian was not suppressed by the Essence Soul elders of the Great Zhou Empire even though his cultivation level was rather low.
Because of Xuanmen Tianzong, he was the most suitable candidate to be the Emperor of Zhou. Even if others wanted to make him a mere figurehead, they would have to think twice before doing so.
Liang Qian himself wasn't a useless person, and he was very nimble. He quickly balanced the various powers in the imperial court and stabilized his position. Even though his words couldn't be said to carry enormous weight, he had the initiative in his grasp.
Many experts of the Great Zhou Dynasty who accepted him as the Emperor simply gave him their full support, hoping that his cultivation level would become higher and higher. This would naturally be more and more beneficial to the Great Zhou Empire as a whole.
Thus, as the Emperor of Zhou, Liang Qian did not lack resources at all. The Taoist techniques that he cultivated, the Taihuang Dharmic Scriptures, were also extraordinary. He also had some scriptures from Buddhism and Heavenly Gates.
More importantly, as the Emperor of Zhou, he cultivated imperial techniques. With the blessing of the Dragon Vein Qi, he could achieve twice the results with half the effort.
Even though his talent couldn't be compared to Yang Tie's, he wasn't mediocre either.
It was just that the difficulty of the Primordial Soul Realm far surpassed any previous bottleneck in the process of cultivation.
Moreover, on the other hand, cultivating imperial techniques was a double-edged sword. There were pros and cons. With the Dragon Vein Qi, it was beneficial for cultivation. If one could continuously expand one's territory, it would be greatly beneficial to one's cultivation level.
However, on the other hand, if one's overall strength was damaged or even reduced, losing one's territory, then for an emperor, cultivation would be like falling into a quagmire and stagnating.
If one lost their country, the Dragon Vein Qi would be crippled and one's cultivation level might even regress.
Over the past decade or so, the Great Zhou Empire had been facing pressure from the ancient empire. Even though they had been careful and didn't fall into chaos, they had also lost some territory. The emperor's reputation had also declined.
This was like shackles that slowed down Liang Qian's progress to the Primordial Soul Realm.
Liang Qian looked at Yang Tie and sighed inwardly, "The Xuanmen Tianzong's direct lineage is indeed extraordinary. The difficulties in the eyes of others are so easy for them."
However, looking at the calm and polite young man in front of him, Liang Qian couldn't help but smile inwardly, "However, for the ancient empire, it's not something to be happy about that he fell behind in the competition with Tang Jun."
As for Tang Jun's colder and more domineering style, Liang Qian wasn't worried. Even if the sky collapsed, the first to fall was not the Great Zhou Empire.
Although the Great Zhou Empire had lofty ambitions and wanted to rise strongly, it would definitely be more difficult to face a more domineering leader like Xuanmen Tianzong. However, for the current Great Zhou Empire, they had to be down-to-earth and steadily improve their own strength.
Liang Qian believed that it wasn't just him. Emperor Qin Shi Zongtang, Bei Rong First Chanyu, as well as the leaders of the Heavenly Sword Sect, Canghai Sword Sect, Thunderbolt Sword Sect, and Reincarnation Sect were all happy to see this happen.
Getting close to Xuanmen Tianzong, following Xuanmen Tianzong, or relying on Xuanmen Tianzong didn't mean that they would give up on their own development. This wasn't contradictory.
If Tang Jun really ascended to the throne in the future, the first people he had to consider were Taixu Temple, Mount Shu Sword Sect, the ancient dynasty, and even the demon race of Tianhuang Mainland.
However, Liang Qian looked at Yang Tie and sighed in his heart, "This kid's future is also limitless. Although his cultivation is slightly weaker than Zhou Yuncong and Han Yang, his talent and reputation surpass them. It's a pity that he met that Tang Jun. I wonder if this is the intentional arrangement of the Daoist Sect Master, Emperor Yan, and Master Yi?"
He sized up Yang Tie and saw that the latter's eyes were gentle and clear. He couldn't help but nod to himself, "It doesn't matter if he's shrewd or if he really doesn't have any grudges. Anyway, his state of mind isn't messed up at all. It's really rare."
After all, although it was still far from the end of the matter, Yang Tie might have missed out on a position that was more important than his, Liang Qian's, position as emperor!
Based on the current trend, it was very likely that he would become the most powerful person in the human cultivation world of the Divine Land in the future.
At this moment, on the other side, there were also people looking at Yang Tie.
They were two women, one in green and the other in white.
The woman in white looked at Yang Tie with a complicated gaze. There was nostalgia, doubt, uneasiness, and even some sadness.
The green-clothed woman beside her tugged at the corner of her clothes. "Sister, I heard from father that he's at a disadvantage in the competition with Dao Master Vast Sky, Tang Jun."
The woman in white pursed her lips, "Maybe … maybe it has something to do with me. I've dragged him down."
Hearing this, the woman in green had a bitter expression on her face. She looked at her sister, not knowing what to say.
The woman in white was called Gu Qing. She was Xiao Zhen 'er's nephew. After Xiao Zhen' er and Gu Liancheng, she was the most outstanding rising star of the Ancient Emperor's bloodline.
In the past, she got to know Yang Tie and fell in love with him. As they got along, they gradually got closer, but there seemed to be a layer of distance between them.
Although Yang Te had never mentioned it, Gu Qing understood in her heart that it was because Yang Tie still remembered his lover from the past, the cultivator of the Purple Firmament Path, True Monarch Jade Domain, Fang Shaolan. Although the two of them had been separated for a long time, Fang Shaolan still had a place in Yang Tie's heart.
The Ancient Emperor was naturally happy to see Gu Qing and Yang Tie become dao companions.
Dao companions were not necessarily husband and wife, but they would definitely accompany each other and help each other along the long path of cultivation.
Yang Tie was at a disadvantage in the competition with Tang Jun. When this matter fell into the eyes of the ancient dynasty, it gave rise to other interpretations. Some people's hearts were heavy, thinking that this was a hidden expression of dissatisfaction from the Celestial Sect of Wonders.
The woman in green hesitated and said, "But Xuanmen Tianzong has always let the matter between you and Yang Tie go. Could it be that because Aunt Zhen 'er and Flame Emperor have officially established the marriage agreement, they misunderstood that we are placing our bets on both sides? That's why they are interfering with you and Yang Tie?"
"I don't know. I only know that I don't have any thoughts about this. Whether Senior Martial Brother Yang is the successor of Xuanmen Tianzong or just an ordinary disciple, to me, it doesn't make any difference."
Gu Qing looked at Yang Tie with a complicated gaze. The expressions of the two sisters suddenly changed and they looked at their elder sister, "Elder sister, do you think Yang Tie will completely draw a line between him and you in order to reclaim his lost territory and compete for the position of the next Disciple of Sect Master?"
A hint of pain appeared in Gu Qing's eyes, "He won't. Even if he wants to draw a line between him and you, it won't be to compete for the position of the next Disciple of Sect Master, but because …"
She sighed softly and turned her head to look into the distance. There was a tall woman in purple standing there. The woman's gaze also fell on Yang Tie.
Gu Qing recognized her. She was the disciple of the Purple Heaven Path, True Monarch Bihuan, Fang Shaolan.
Fang Shaolan's gaze stopped on Yang Tie for a moment before she retracted it and turned to leave.
A long time after she left, Yang Tie ended his conversation with Liang Qian and watched as Liang Qian left with his entourage.
Whether it was Fang Shaolan or the Gu sisters, their cultivations were all lower than Yang Tie's. Even when Yang Tie was talking to Liang Qian, he could still sense their location and movements.
His gaze turned to the place where Fang Shaolan had disappeared and sighed softly. After that, he turned and walked towards Gu Qing.
"It's only been a few days since we last met, but your cultivation has improved again." Yang Tie smiled warmly.
Gu Qing also smiled, "At least I didn't waste my time." She turned to her younger sister and said, "Don't delay the welcoming ceremony. You go first, I'll be there soon."
The green-robed woman glanced at Gu Qing with some worry, but after bidding farewell to Yang Tie, she turned and left.
Yang Tie looked at Gu Qing and asked curiously, "Do you have something you want to ask me?"
Gu Qing stared at him for a moment, then said softly, "Senior apprentice-brother Yang, what do you think of our future?"
Yang Tie was slightly startled, then his expression turned solemn. He looked at Gu Qing for a moment and seemed to understand what she was thinking. Slowly, he said, "Junior apprentice-sister Gu, if you're referring to my sect, you don't have to worry. My sect is not keen on marriage alliances, but the elders will definitely not interfere with the matters of the younger generation's dao companions as long as both parties are willing.
"I even have a grand-disciple now. When I accepted a disciple, that's what my master taught me. When my disciples accepted disciples, I also taught them the same thing. Senior apprentice-uncle and Dao Lord Qing Ye are in the same situation.
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