A book dropped from the highest shelf.

Multiple gasps had piqued in the library, where many scriptures and scrolls had been stored as artifacts of the ancient times. Dust and cobwebs had already grown up to the ceiling of the library, but the falling book merely descended past them all.

A servant girl was merely trying to place a book back on its shelf.

She had climbed the ladder (to twenty metres high), trying to shelf her book away. Instead, she lost her balance. "AHH!"

The ladder tilted backwards, and she tripped on the hem of her robes. Then, her book slipped out from her fingers. Thus, the servants in the library had been greeted with the scene of a girl falling twenty metres away from the ground.

They thought, The poor girl can't be saved.

However, the sound of a few running steps had pitter-pattered on the floor. Then, a wealthy robe of a crestfallen blue colour had flashed before every servant's eyes. A figure had jumped high up into the air, with the falling servant collapsing into their arms.

The figure belonged to an elegant woman. Her face was bewitchingly beautiful, with skin as smooth as porcelain glass. The blue robes swished in the currents of the wind, revealing the black-coloured pants that the woman wore underneath.

The elegant woman's hair wavered in midair, as if it were strands of wheat being spun into gold.

"Hah!" The servant girl in the woman's bosom had let out a gasp.

In the end, they both landed peacefully on the ground. To prevent any more harm, the elegant woman had caught the fallen book as well. Her slender fingers tapped on the book's cover, as if pondering what punishment to deliver to it.

It took a while for the servant girl to recover.

She clasped her hands, "Greetings to the Civil Goddess, Ling Wen Zhenjun!" The servant girl's eyes were still shaking, "It is all thanks to Ling Wen Zhenjun that this lowly one is still in one piece. I cannot thank Ling Wen Zhenjun enough!"

The elegant woman, Ling Wen had batted her eyes at the grace.

She merely scolded, "Look around you, girl." Books were littered all over the ground. It was as if a tsunami of books had attacked the library. "This place is still a mess. I didn't save you without a reason." Ling Wen closed then opened her eyes, revealing a gentle hue of melancholic blue.

The servant opened her mouth, but was interrupted. "Since you still have time for idle chitchat, would you mind placing all of the littered books back on their shelf?"

A faint blush had fluttered on the servant girl's cheeks.

Ling Wen sighed. "And try not to fall next time." She walked away, with her hips swaying to the wavelength of her mood.

As she bypassed several unorganized bookshelves, the elegant woman stopped in her tracks. It was as if Ling Wen could feel a presence lurking around. Her eyebrows furrowed, then smoothened out. The dark eye bags underneath her eyes were overshadowed by her impeding aura.

Nobody would dare to look her in the eye, especially when she acts so aloof and noble.

Then, Ling Wen poured some spiritual energy into the book she held. With a lift of her sleeves, the book levitated out from her arms.

Easily, the book shelved itself on the highest bookshelf.

The remaining servant girls continued to work.

All of a sudden, the doors to the library/Ling Wen's Palace had slammed open. In came a group of six people, all wearing their own palette of coloured robes.

Ling Wen raised her eyes at two familiar figures, Xie Lian and Hua Cheng.

"Ling Wen." The Martial God had greeted. "I'd like to introduce you to my friends. This is the Yiling Patriarch Wei Wuxian, HanGuang-Jun, Peak Master Shen Qingqiu, and Demon Lord Luo Binghe."

The Civil Goddess remained unfazed at the introductions.

She couldn't give much of a reaction. After all, nobody expected Xie Lian to befriend the Ghost King, and even become married partners! At that point, she wouldn't even be surprised if His Royal Highness the Crown Prince had managed to befriend an ancient dragon.

"Guys, this is Ling Wen. She's the Civil Goddess of Literature." Xie Lian gestured.

Wei Wuxian looked at the surroundings. "A Civil Goddess... no wonder there's so many literatures in this Palace...."

Ling Wen batted her eyes. "Thank you for stating the obvious."

Wei Wuxian pointed out, "There's so many books, on the shelves and on the ground."

Ling Wen stood still. "Yes. My Palace is quite unorganized at the moment. However, you do make it sound like as if there is no room for you to stand on."

Wei Wuxian tried again. "How do you make sure everything is in place?"

Ling Wen didn't move. "It is a wonder. Many like you... cannot handle the curiosity. If you must, you can apply as one of my assistants and undergo severe training. Don't be polite. There is enough room for everyone to join."

Wei Wuxian, "..." This Civil Goddess is such a conversation killer!

A cough situated from the side. Xie Lian held a fist around his mouth. "Ling Wen, we're not here to assist you on organizing your Palace, unfortunately." He added the last word to show empathy.

"I knew that, naturally." Ling Wen stated coldly. "What I've said was merely a joke. Your new little friend ought to learn some humour."

Wei Wuxian didn't know what to say. Normally, he was a humorous type of person. Now... his identity as a shameless wannabe main character was being... unacknowledged!?!

Ling Wen looked at him. "That was a joke as well."

Wei Wuxian, "..." He should've known.

On the side, Shen Qingqiu quietly sighed. To him, Ling Wen seemed like one of those extremely strict librarians, who would smile reassuringly at you if you misplaced a book, but actually come up with loads of blackmail behind your back.

Luo Binghe didn't care much about the Civil Goddess. After all, as long as his Shizun was within his eye's view, nothing else really mattered.

Meanwhile, Lan Zhan felt that the Civil Goddess was extremely calm but perceptive. You would entrust her with your secrets, but never actually know that she had already written an entire essay on the secret and delivered it all around the world.

Lan Zhan felt... the Civil Goddess was quite complex.

"What is Your Highness coming over here for?" Ling Wen asked. She waved her long sleeves away.

Xie Lian said, "We were wondering if we could help you out on any commissionaires."

"What for?" Ling Wen raised an eyebrow.

"To pass the day." Wei Wuxian softly chuckled.

Ling Wen thought for a moment, then sighed. "I do have one in mind for Your Highness and your friends. However, it may be more than just a simple commissionaire to pass the day."

"That's fine." Lan Zhan stated.

They were cultivators. They deal with whatever they must face.

Ling Wen sighed again. The dark eye bags seemed more obvious than before. "Actually, I've already set General Nan Yang and General Xuan Zhen out on this order."

Xie Lian was surprised. "Feng Xin and Mu Qing?"

Hua Cheng confirmed. "Yes. I saw them leave the other day."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Xie Lian pouted.

Hua Cheng could only try to coax his lover.

Ling Wen shrugged. "However, this case isn't simple. I believe that it takes more than just General Nan Yang and Xuan Zhen to complete this. Well? Do you guys still dare to try?"

The three couples looked at one another.

Then they nodded. "We agree to take on this commissionaire."

There were no windows in Ling Wen's Palace, thus, it seemed a bit dark and overwhelming. Not a single shred of sunlight had managed to peep in. However, Ling Wen's Palace had one giant chandelier, which managed to spread light to every nook and cranny.

Ling Wen straightened her robes. "Then, I'll explain the mission."

"Once, there was a big and almighty kingdom, full of prosperity and life. However, it was overthrown in the chaos of war." This Kingdom had perished, and all of its citizens died. Not a single person survived. Only the Kingdom's remains hadn't disappeared.

However, most unexpectedly, the citizens of the Kingdom didn't completely leave.

Their resentful spirits turned them into ghosts, and they remained lurking in their destroyed Kingdom. They wanted to create a new Kingdom. A Kingdom for only ghosts.

Thus, they renamed the Kingdom into: Ghost Nation.

"What would you like us to do in Ghost Nation?" Shen Qingqiu asked. He fanned himself, with light winds cooling his chin.

Ling Wen told them, "Tonight, there will be an auction. At the auction house, many esteemed artifacts will be pawned. However, there is a specific artifact that the Heavenly Capital needs to collect, lest it causes danger and wreck havoc."

Luo Binghe was curious. "What kind of artifact is it?"

The atmosphere grew quiet and ominous. Ling Wen raised her pair of dull eyes, as if with one glance, they could look through every single secret that a person has hidden away.

"It's a sword." The Strongest Sword.

The user of this sword had been a soldier fighting in the war. They represented the kingdom that Ghost Nation was before. This single soldier had slaughtered hundreds of other soldiers. They were unbeatable in battle. Thus, their sword had gained the name of "The Strongest Sword".

However, the despair of war had overcome their fighting prowess. The soldier lodged "The Strongest Sword" into a rubble of stone, then committed suicide. This lead to the kingdom's fall down.

Ghost Nation became what it was.

Many other soldiers tried to pull "The Strongest Sword" out from the rubble.

However, they heard a voice enter their heads, Only those that are worthy can pull me out. Prove your worth to me, and I will give you unparalleled power. Many people from all around the world tried to pull out this ancient sword. Soldiers, Kings, Queens, Eunuchs, Immortals, and etc. had all tried. Nobody succeeded in doing so.

Thus became the legend of The Strongest Sword.

Only those worthy can pull out the sword.

"Excalibur?" Shen Qingqiu muttered under his breath. Nobody paid him any mind. "This ancient artifact is being pawned?" Xie Lian was curious.

Ling Wen nodded. "Although it is being pawned, the sword still hasn't been pulled out. If someone does manage to pull it out though... there will be a lot of danger in this world. Therefore, the Heavenly Capital has decided to keep it under our control."

The three couples got a gist of the situation.

There was an ancient sword stuck in rubble, which was renowned as the strongest sword. Those that can pull it out will be the strongest.

The Strongest Sword is being pawned at an auction house, within Ghost Nation.

"I have confidence that you guys will be able to get your hands on the sword," Ling Wen spoke solemnly. "However, I am particularly worried about one thing."

The three couples looked at one another, then at Ling Wen.

Wei Wuxian asked, "What is it?"

Ling Wen sighed. "Originally, the auction house in Ghost Nation is only for ghosts. Thus, only ghosts are certified to enter. However, somebody leaked the news of the Strongest Sword being pawned there, so it captured a lot of cultivators' attention."

"There may be more than one person after the sword."

The three couples finally understood what Ling Wen meant. Naturally, they have the skills to sneak into Ghost Nation and attend the auction. However, it wasn't just them aiming after the sword.

This auction night was going to be a thrilling one.

What kind of strategy would you use in an auction?

Wei Wuxian: Naturally, go shameless! Add 1 more coin from the latest bid!

Lan Zhan: You would get a lot of resentment from that

Wei Wuxian: Really? 🥺

Lan Zhan: ...

Lan Zhan: I'll do the same ☺️

Shen Qingqiu: Based on my knowledge from my previous life, it's better to stay hidden in the shadows before striking out—

Luo Binghe: Whatever Shizun tells me to do, I will do so ❤️ Wait—What was the question again?

Xie Lian: Go all in! I'll give all my money away!

Hua Cheng: But... that's over—

Xie Lian: GO ALL IN!

Hua Cheng: Then... I just won't bid. I'll naturally steal after the bidding is over 😌 Aren't I smart, Gege?