After obtaining more detailed information, the three parties launched a joint operation to crack down on the assassin organization.

Lu Ziyin led the disciples of the academy in a frontal assault.

Zhang Haoran was among them.

As the Peak Master of Mount Shushan, Lu Ziyin had also heard some news about Daxia.

He knew this was the person who wrote those famous words about establishing the heart of heaven and earth and setting the destiny for the people.

Even Mount Shushan had heard of this matter.

Lu Ziyin looked at Zhang Haoran and nodded.

Zhang Haoran felt somewhat uncomfortable under Lu Ziyin's gaze.

Lu Ziyin walked over and patted Zhang Haoran's shoulder. "A student from the academy? I've long heard of your reputation!"

Zhang Haoran forced a smile. "Peak Master Lu."

Lu Ziyin had visited the academy before and seen those stone tablets.

Although not a Confucian cultivator, Mount Shushan's cultural education had never been neglected.

However, Lu Ziyin had failed more than once.

The old emperor's poetry was simply too overpowering.

After hearing someone succeeded, Lu Ziyin had specifically inquired about it.

How wonderful it would be if this person were a Mount Shushan disciple.

Lu Ziyin couldn't help but think this way.

What a pity...

"Senior Brother Zhang, I'm scared~"

At this moment, a long-legged girl approached.

Zhang Haoran remained unmoved.

Why couldn't he escape these romantic entanglements no matter where he went?

Li Xuanxiao's mouth twitched slightly.

......

In a detached house in the wilderness of Great Sui,

Two female assassins in flamboyant outfits were dancing.

"Big brother, big brother, send more gifts!"

"Don't talk nonsense, we're not doing anything indecent - these are standard assassination moves."

"That's right, we're just dressing lightly."

"We're conducting professional assassination tutorials. Clothing freedom now, you misogynists!"

"Watch carefully, gentlemen - this poison was developed by our own team,"

A man wearing a monkey mask spoke passionately in front of a live-streaming crystal.

"Completely handmade, 100% lethal - you can rest assured about that.

What? You say our poison is fake? Watch this."

The monkey-masked man immediately fed a bottle of poison to his companion.

"Three, two, one!!"

The companion immediately foamed at the mouth and collapsed.

"How about that, brothers? Our poison's the real deal.

All orders are anonymous now, anonymous delivery - guaranteed safety.

Don't worry, even Mount Shushan couldn't track us down."

"Folks, send some gifts now and we'll begin the real assassination. See our target?"

The image shifted to show a white-bearded old man drinking tea in a teahouse.

"He's today's mission. What do you all want to see?

Which body part to stab? What technique to use? We can fulfill all requests.

I can even film up close so you can clearly see his dying moments. I'm risking my life for this footage."

*Knock knock!*

Suddenly there was pounding at the door.

"Who is it?"

*BANG!*

"Nobody move! Stop the broadcast!"

Lu Ziyin charged in first, only to find several women striking suggestive dance poses.

Lu Ziyin frowned slightly - this was an assassin organization?

For a moment he thought he'd entered the wrong building.

"Run away!"

Chaos erupted inside.

Lu Ziyin quickly regained control of the situation.

"Nobody moves!"

Zhang Haoran followed closely with his drawn blade.

......

In the dense forest,

Li Xuanxiao in green robes emerged from the earth.

An old Daoist in flying fish-patterned robes arrived from afar.

Zhang Haoran in Confucian scholar robes quickly joined them.

The three generations - young, middle-aged, and old - met for the first time.

Jia Sidao and Zhang Haoran both stood motionless.

Li Xuanxiao took a deep breath and bit his finger to draw blood.

He smeared the blood on his fingertips.

Li Xuanxiao then took out a key item from his storage ring and swiftly dissected Zhang Haoran's chest.

A flash of pain crossed Zhang Haoran's expression.

His fingers twitched but were immediately suppressed by Li Xuanxiao's hand seals.

There truly was the embryo of consciousness forming.

Li Xuanxiao frowned slightly.

His creation had become too lifelike, already possessing some spiritual essence.

Combined with this righteous energy...

Fortunately, he had seized this opportunity to meet early.

The heart pulsed.

This was the artificial heart Li Xuanxiao had painstakingly crafted.

With bloodied fingers, Li Xuanxiao quickly traced patterns on the heart.

Then he repeated the process with Jia Sidao.

When the blade cut open Jia Sidao's chest, his struggles intensified.

Not only did his fingers tremble, his whole body shook.

His beard quivered, and a glimmer appeared in his eyes.

Li Xuanxiao didn't dare slack off, maintaining the hand seal with one hand.

After restraining Jia Sidao, he performed the same procedure - swiftly drawing blood sigils on the heart.

Then he chanted incantations to erase their self-awareness, carefully inspecting everything.

Only after ensuring complete destruction of consciousness did Li Xuanxiao relax.

He placed numerous restrictions on both bodies.

Consciousness could never be fully eradicated.

As long as one continued cultivating at the Confucian academy and the other served as a Great Sui court official,

new consciousness would inevitably form. Regular purging was necessary to avoid nurturing future threats.

Though they might not necessarily become threats.

After all, their fundamental logic still followed his original self.

But when you couldn't predict whether something would turn out good or bad,

it was better to prevent it from happening at all.

After completing everything,

Li Xuanxiao quickly sutured their chests closed.

In less than an hour, the stitching was complete.

Li Xuanxiao retrieved his Crane Summit Silver Needles and controlled both men to leave the area.

Then he erased all blood traces before swiftly departing himself.

......

The operation proceeded unusually smoothly.

Though only a branch was destroyed - the headquarters had already fled upon receiving warning -

they obtained the assassin roster, capturing over a hundred killers in one sweep.

After bidding farewell to Lu Ziyin, Jia Sidao returned to Great Sui with his men.

"Honored One, this was just capturing some assassins. You didn't need to come personally."

Jia Sidao shook his head. "This demonstrates Great Sui's stance - it cannot be taken lightly. With the new emperor enthroned and Elder Sun's passing, Great Sui must align with Mount Shushan."

The group voiced their agreement.

Upon returning to Great Sui, Emperor Ye Yunzhou led his officials out of the city to welcome them.

This marked Great Sui's first joint operation with Mount Shushan since Ye Yunzhou's ascension.

Given the importance placed on it, the successful Jia Sidao was naturally regarded as a meritorious official.