At the desk, illuminated by candlelight.
Su Yi opened the scroll that Huang Qianjun had brought.
"Before clarifying the relationship between Tea Jin and the 'Moon Wheel Sect' of Da Wei, remember not to startle the snake in the grass."
"If her identity is confirmed, capture her alive and send her to the Yu Jing City."
"If you need assistance, you can rely on my jade plaque to go to the Prefectural Government. Qin Wenyuan will surely lend you a hand."
"As for the matter concerning my sixth brother, you need not involve yourself."
"After reading this scroll, burn it immediately!"
... Seeing this, Su Yi let out a sigh. Indeed troublesome.
On the Blue Continent, there are hundreds of secular nations.
Da Zhou is just one of them.
Adjacent to Da Zhou are two secular nations: Da Wei and Da Yan.
Among them, Da Yan is the most powerful.
Da Zhou and Da Wei are evenly matched, and conflicts and confrontations between the two nations are frequent, with constant warfare throughout the year.
Da Yan has always adopted a stance of watching the tigers fight from the mountain.
After all, when two tigers fight, it is most advantageous for Da Yan.
"The Moon Wheel Sect of Da Wei... Tea Jin's identity is indeed not simple. She is likely a chess piece planted by Da Wei beside the Second Prince."
"So Qin Wenyuan was originally affiliated with the Second Prince. If we consider this, regardless of whether I kill this Southern Elephant today, just Qin Wenyuan's death alone may make the Second Prince see me as an enemy."
Su Yi pondered silently.
The current Emperor of Da Zhou has eight sons and three daughters.
The names of these eight sons are quite interesting; it is said that they were determined by the national teacher, Hong Canshang, based on the principles of the Bagua.
They are Qian, Kun, Zhen, Xun, Kan, Li, Gen, and Dui.
For example, the Sixth Prince is named Zhou Zhili.
Naturally, the Second Prince is named Zhou Zhikun.
"No matter what disturbances or storms arise, if they come my way, a single sword will suffice."
After a moment, Su Yi tore the scroll to shreds, his gaze deep and calm.
The conflicts in the secular world are also a kind of trial.
For those born into the world, they experience the tribulations of heaven and earth.
For those who enter the world, they undergo the tempering of the mortal realm.
Both are indispensable.
Su Xuanjun, having been reborn here, how could he fear the battering of the mortal world's turbid waves?
Without dwelling on it any longer, just as before, Su Yi began his monotonous and arduous cultivation.
The night grew deeper.
Outside the gourd lane, the lamplight dimmed.
A haggard old man arrived at the entrance of the gourd lane, his gaze fixed on the darkness deep within, showing some hesitation.
The old man's hair and beard were unkempt, dressed in tattered hemp clothes. His tall figure was withered and gaunt, walking with a hunched back, resembling someone in the twilight years of their life.
After a while, the old man suddenly turned around and approached a stall selling wontons by the street, saying, "Give me a bowl."
He casually took a seat.
The wonton seller, a thin man, quickly busied himself upon hearing the request.
Before long, a steaming bowl of wontons was presented.
However, the old man didn't eat. A murky expression appeared in his eyes as he sighed, "Disciples of the Yinsha Sect have fallen to the point of selling wontons to make a living. It's truly becoming more and more pathetic."
The thin man's face changed dramatically, dropping the ladle in his hand and fleeing.
Thunk!
A bamboo chopstick shot like an arrow, piercing his neck, and he collapsed to the ground with a thud.
But the old man didn't spare him a glance. He picked up the spoon and chopsticks, and began to savor the wontons before him, eating with relish.
He continued until he finished the broth in the bowl. The old man licked his lips and then got up.
This time, he had no hesitation and walked deeper into the gourd lane.
Until he arrived in front of a modest dwelling.
The old man took out a bone flute from his bosom and lightly blew into it.
A soft and ethereal flute sound wafted through the profound darkness of the night.
Inside the room, Su Yi, who was cultivating, suddenly opened his eyes silently. He furrowed his brows slightly, wondering why all these strange things and creatures were coming out tonight.
They didn't intend to let him have a peaceful time?
Almost at the same time, a panicked voice sounded from the Soul-nourishing Gourd, "Master, someone is trying to forcibly take me away using Soul Control Technique..."
Su Yi couldn't help but be surprised. It turned out to be for Qingwan?
Clang!
The Profound Sword was unsheathed and pressed horizontally against the Soul-nourishing Gourd.
"Don't panic, I'll go take a look."
As Su Yi spoke, he took the Purple Reflection Sword and walked out of the room.
It was already late at night, with sparse stars and a bright moon, and all was quiet.
Faintly, there was a wispy flute sound drifting in the air above the courtyard.
When Su Yi walked out with his sword, the flute sound abruptly stopped.
Outside the courtyard, the old man in the hemp clothes fell into a momentary silence and said, "If the young master keeps Qingwan by his side, it may bring disaster upon you. I hope the young master can return her."
Su Yi stood in the courtyard and suddenly said, "Weng Yunqi?"
elder's eyes revealed a touch of coldness. "It seems that my unworthy disciple, Wu Ruoqiu, was indeed killed by the young master."
The two of them were conversing across the closed doors, unable to see each other, but the atmosphere suddenly became tense and oppressive.
"You said it yourself, he was unworthy. Killing him can be considered as eliminating a threat to the world," Su Yi said, silently approaching the side wall of the courtyard.
"Very well, I will come back another day," the old man's voice echoed, but Su Yi's figure had already leaped onto the top of the wall in a flash.
To his surprise, the voice was still lingering, but he only saw a figure that had long escaped from the gourd lane, disappearing in a flash.
"This old man is quite cautious," Su Yi forcibly suppressed his urge to chase.
He was worried that this could be a ploy to divert his attention, considering that he was not the only one residing in the Zhuo'an Cottage.
"Weng Yunqi must be carrying that Soul Jade, and perhaps it is with this jade that he sensed Qingwan's presence and found his way here."
While pondering, Su Yi had already returned to his room.
Weng Yunqi and his disciple Wu Ruoqiu had taken three treasures when they betrayed the Yinsha Sect years ago—a mysterious Soul Jade, a scroll containing techniques for nurturing ghostly corpses, and a Soul-nourishing Gourd.
Among them, the scroll, the Soul-nourishing Gourd, and Qingwan were all under Wu Ruoqiu's control back then. With Wu Ruoqiu's death, these items fell into Su Yi's hands.
The only thing missing was that mysterious Soul Jade.
During their time at the Guimu Mountain, Su Yi learned from the testimonies of the Yinsha Sect disciples that Qingwan initially slumbered within that mysterious Soul Jade!
As for where this Soul Jade came from, it remained a mystery to this day.
"I was just worrying about not being able to find you, old man, and yet you came knocking on my door. That works too. Once I find that Soul Jade, perhaps I can uncover some clues about Qingwan's origins."
Su Yi understood that as long as Qingwan was by his side, he didn't need to worry about Weng Yunqi disappearing.
Returning to his room, he put away the Profound Sword and said to Qingwan in the Soul-nourishing Gourd, "It's fine now."
"Master, did someone from the Yinsha Sect come?" Qingwan's soft and timid voice came out.
"Yes," Su Yi replied. "Be more cautious lately. If you sense anything suspicious, immediately notify me."
"Understood!"
Outside the Gourd Lane.
Beside a dumpling stall, a person squatted in front of the corpse of the skinny man killed by bamboo chopsticks, frowning as they observed for a moment.
"Weng Yunqi, this old fellow is too ruthless. He even killed the little spy. Could he have sensed the danger?"
This person was thin and sickly-looking, dressed in tattered clothes. He was none other than Chu Silang, one of the four guardians of the Yinsha Sect's Gunzhou Branch, known as the "Consumptive Ghost."
He took out a piece of blood candle from his sleeve and sniffed it gently at the tip of his nose. The triangular eyes in his gaunt face immediately gleamed with a sickly green luster.
Then, he stood up straight and walked step by step towards the Gourd Lane.
When he arrived in front of the Zhuo'an Cottage, he paused, a hint of doubt appearing on his brow. "Why did that old fellow linger here for a while and then leave?"
He looked at the closed doors of the Zhuo'an Cottage, hesitated for a moment, and finally turned around silently and left.
Outside the Gourd Lane, Chu Silang couldn't help but pause as he saw a group of beggars excitedly rummaging through belongings beside the corpse of the skinny man.
"Dead man's wealth, it seems somewhat similar to the style of our Yinsha Sect."
Chu Silang chuckled and walked away.
Not long after he left, an old beggar suddenly lowered his voice and asked, "Did you get a clear look at that person's appearance?"
One of them quickly responded, "Yes, it seems to be one of the three targets we are looking for!"
"Finally, some leads. You guys can have the money from the dead man. I'm going to claim the reward first."
The old beggar stood up and hurried away.
Half an hour later.
In an abandoned mansion in the city.
It was midnight, and a beautiful woman looked satisfactorily at the newly constructed altar before her.
The altar was three feet tall, built from numerous snow-white arm bones, with nine skulls emitting a blood-red glow at the top.
Beside each skull, a black soul-calling flag was inserted.
"If it weren't for the sect leader providing so many precious materials, we wouldn't have been able to set up this 'Binding Spirit Blood Corpse' formation."
The beautiful woman spoke softly.
She was Madam Liu Xianglan, the Corpse Consort!
"With this formation, we have an ace up our sleeves."
On the other side, an old man wearing an old Daoist robe nodded and spoke.
He was Blood Balance Daoist, a Grandmaster at the Second Level of the Furnace Nurturing Realm!
As the two were talking, a faint sound of a door opening suddenly rang out, and Chu Silang, the Consumptive Ghost, walked in.
First, he leered at Liu Xianglan's impressive chest, then smiled contentedly and said, "I have probably located Weng Yunqi's whereabouts. If nothing unexpected happens, he is likely to visit a courtyard in the Gourd Lane in the city again soon."
"Who is the owner of that courtyard?" Blood Balance Daoist asked.
Chu Silang shook his head and said, "I'm not sure. I'm worried about alerting him, so I didn't investigate. Tomorrow morning, I'll have some little spies look into it, and we'll know the details."
Blood Balance Daoist's eyes flickered, and he said, "Starting tomorrow, I will keep watch outside the Gourd Lane. Once Weng Yunqi appears, he will have nowhere to escape."
"Old Daoist, didn't you say you found a prominent figure in the city to help us? Did he agree to intervene?" Liu Xianglan suddenly asked.
"No, he didn't," Blood Balance Daoist sighed heavily, feeling a bit frustrated. "Yesterday, the county magistrate, Qin Wenyuan, was killed, causing panic among the major forces in the city. My old friend was also frightened and unwilling to help at such a critical moment."
Chu Silang smiled and said, "Whether he helps or not doesn't matter. Dealing with Weng Yunqi is nothing. With the three of us, we can easily take him down."
"The county magistrate was actually killed..." Liu Xianglan was shocked, "Do you know who did it?"
Blood Balance Daoist shook his head and said, "I don't know. It is said to be a formidable figure whom even the influential people in the city dare not reveal the identity of."
"In any case, the situation in Yunhe County is currently confusing and turbulent. It's not suitable to stay here for long," Blood Balance Daoist said, pointing to the bone-constructed altar. "Cover it up and don't let anyone notice. Our target this time is Weng Yunqi. Once the job is done, we leave immediately!"
Chu Silang and Liu Xianglan nodded in agreement.