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Novel: [The Primordial Law]
Volume 4: [Shuangsheng Dao Sect (Twin Rice Sect)]
Chapter 13 (268): [Yin Wu]
(13th of Volume 4)
Translator: Shadow Knight AK
Editor: Shadow Knight AK
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The dark red wooden door of the cabin creaked open.
As it swung inward, formation glyphs materialized within the space, causing the surrounding air to solidify.
Yin Wu's tall, imposing figure appeared in the doorway. He looked to be in his early thirties, with slightly curled long hair and rough, textured skin. Simply standing there, he exuded a heroic aura that seemed to reach the heavens.
"Ninth Brother, we finally meet as members of the Hidden Sect. I've been waiting for this day for a long time," Li Weiyi said, looking at Shi Jiuzhai as he entered.
Shi Jiuzhai had been the first true human Li Weiyi had encountered upon arriving in this world. Back then, witnessing him exhale clouds and stride dozens of meters with each step had felt like witnessing a god.
Now, meeting again in this manner, Li Weiyi felt a surge of pride: "We are no mere mortals!"
Once, he had seen Shi Jiuzhai as a god.
Today, I too am a god.
Li Weiyi had long suspected that Shi Jiuzhai was either a member of the Hidden Sect or connected to them.
First, a year ago, Li Weiyi and Li Qing had just infiltrated the Jiu Li Hidden Sect when the sect received news of their presence.
Yin Ershi Si later revealed this to Li Weiyi.
Second, after being captured by Shi Jiuzhai and Shi Shishi, Li Weiyi had inexplicably escaped from the ship.
What truly convinced Li Weiyi that Shi Jiuzhai was suspicious was the meeting between the Hidden Lord and the Eldest Master of the Earthwolf King's Army in the Immortal Realm Space of Burial Immortal Town.
During a conversation, the Hidden Lord had revealed his plan to use the Immortal Star to lure their enemies to the Cangli Tribe's Ancestral Mountain, where they could be annihilated. This would sacrifice the Cangli Tribe to secure the Jiu Li Clan's peace.
For the Hidden Lord to have even considered such a plan, Shi Jiuzhai must have been his subordinate.
Later, obtaining the Hidden Ones Registry confirmed this.
"Greetings, Divine Hidden One!" Shi Jiuzhai clasped his hands in a respectful bow and sat beside Hidden Two.
He sighed in wonder: "Fate is truly miraculous! Just over a year ago, we met on the mountain in Burial Immortal Town. You and your companion were as destitute as two wolf cubs. Who could have imagined that in such a short time, we would be sitting here tonight, together, admiring the night scenery along the riverbanks? And you have become our Leader!"
"At the time, under orders from the Heavenly King, I led a Wolf Army composed of cultivators of lower cultivation levels, with no prominent figures among them, disguised as Buddha's Salvation Bandits. Our mission was to raid Li Province, seize the Otherworldly Coffin, and provoke conflict between the Jiu Li Clan and Coffin Mountain."
"I first met with the Hidden Lord to discuss countermeasures. That's why I separated from the army and arrived at Burial Immortal Town a day later... Hehe, being a day late actually led to this unexpected fate."
Li Weiyi smiled: "Looking back now, our escape from death was all thanks to your deliberate leniency."
Shi Jiuzhai sighed: "After fifteen years of infiltrating the Earthwolf King's Army, I had little control over my actions. Any slip-up could have led to a fate worse than death. Sometimes, compromise and sacrifice are necessary."
"Publicly, it appeared that the Earthwolf King's Army, disguised as Buddha's Salvation Bandits, was responsible for the attack, and Long Ting weighed the consequences for Cang Li. In reality, the Sui Sect had two other experts lying in ambush, ready to kill Li Songlin and Cang Li together in Burial Immortal Town, escalating the conflict to the brink of war."
"Your escape to Yaoguan for help, along with Zhao Zhizhuo, was only possible because the Hidden Sect Elders secretly aided you."
"The Hidden Sect couldn't reveal themselves publicly at that time."
Li Weiyi recalled their chance encounter on the Sui River boat with Yang Qingxi and Yang Yun. At the time, Yang Yun had carelessly revealed their secret - that he and his sister were hiding in Yaoguan.
It was clear the Sui Sect must have been involved.
Li Weiyi turned to the matter at hand: "What happened to Qi Xiao? A Dao Seed Realm Martial-Mystic Cultivator, a ruler of the mortal realm, vanished without a trace."
Only those with exceptional talent could reach the Dao Seed Realm.
Hidden Two's claim of average talent was only relative to the other Hidden Ones. A Dao Seed Realm cultivator in their forties, at the Second Heaven, would be one in a hundred thousand, or even one in a million, among all Martial-Mystic Cultivators.
In each Sixty-Year Cycle, only a handful of the sixty Hidden Ones would ever achieve Immortal.
Initially, everyone assumed Qi Xiao had gone to the Underground Immortal Mansion.
The Qi Clan was the first to realize something was amiss.
After extensive investigation, they discovered that before his disappearance, Qi Xiao had sent people to search for Yang Qingxi.
But by then, Yang Qingxi and the Sui Sect's forces had already left Qiu Prefecture City, leaving the investigation at a standstill.
The world was vast and filled with danger.
Countless people vanished every day, and finding someone was incredibly difficult.
Often, no trace of their bodies remained.
At the time, Li Weiyi was feigning severe injuries and paralysis. He didn't learn about Qi Xiao's disappearance until three months later. Naturally, he felt guilty, fearing Qi Xiao's fate might have been linked to Yang Qingxi.
Shi Jiuzhai said, "Over the past three months, I've investigated two leads: the Underground Immortal Mansion and Yang Qingxi."
"First, I checked the city gate entry and exit records. There's no record of Qi Xiao leaving the city during the days he went missing."
"That leaves only two possibilities. One, he encountered a top-tier expert who subdued or killed him silently, then destroyed the evidence."
"Two, he used some method to evade the city gate guards."
"Therefore, we can largely rule out the possibility of him going to the Underground Immortal Mansion."
"If it was the first scenario, according to information gathered by the Hidden Sect and investigations by the Qi Clan and Zuoqiu Sect, there were only three Sui Sect masters in Qiu Prefecture City at the time with the power to do that, including Yao Qian."
"The Qi Clan has already investigated this lead, and it's unlikely to yield any results."
"I focused on the second scenario: Under what circumstances would Qi Xiao deliberately try to avoid registering with the city gate guards?"
Li Weiyi pondered, "Unless he was trying to avoid someone other than the guards."
Shi Jiuzhai nodded: "He was tailing someone!"
"Who?" Li Weiyi asked.
Shi Jiuzhai replied, "He wouldn't dare tail someone too powerful. And there's no point in tailing someone too weak."
"Yang Qingxi?" Li Weiyi guessed.
Shi Jiuzhai said, "That's very likely! I followed this line of reasoning and continued my investigation, and I actually uncovered something."
"First, I checked Yang Qingxi's entry and exit records at the city gates during that period, but found nothing. So, I changed my approach and copied down all the records of carriages and horses leaving the Qi Manor on the day Qi Xiao disappeared. It took a lot of time to sift through and eliminate irrelevant entries."
"Eventually, the Azure Cloud Carriage Company, which had ties to the Sui Sect, became my primary focus. The owner of Azure Cloud Carriage Company was originally from the Sui Sect, a secret known only to the Jiu Li Clan."
"The Sui Sect understood the Jiu Li Clan very well, and the Jiu Li Clan understood them just as well."
"Azure Cloud Carriage Company kept detailed records of every driver and every Exotic Beast Carriage or horse-drawn carriage, including their departure and return times. I secretly stole their ledger of carriage movements and made a copy. That's when I found the trail!"
"Wang Zhi had joined Azure Cloud Carriage Company two months before the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival, using a letter of introduction from Yang Qingxi."
"On the day Qi Xiao disappeared, Wang Zhi disappeared as well! The city gate guards recorded him driving a carriage out of the city that night, and he never returned."
"Where is Yang Qingxi?" Li Weiyi's eyes were cold and terrifying.
Having reached this point, it was almost certain that she was involved.
Although Li Weiyi had planted the Six Desires Talisman on her, he wasn't currently a Spiritual Master or in the Dao Seed Realm.
Therefore, he couldn't use the talisman to sense her location.
Moreover, half a year had passed!
Yang Qingxi hadn't contacted him, indicating she had already found another way to neutralize the threat of the Six Desires Talisman.
Their swift agreement back then clearly meant they had prepared escape routes.
Hidden Two said, "We've investigated, but found nothing. Even our people planted within the Sui Sect haven't been able to trace her. She's likely in closed-door cultivation, attempting to break through to the Dao Seed Realm."
Shi Jiuzhai added, "The Wang Zhi lead hasn't been broken."
"Oh?" Li Weiyi was surprised.
Shi Jiuzhai smiled faintly: "Yang Qingxi wouldn't have planted a chess piece like Wang Zhi just for the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival. His disappearance was likely just a temporary measure to avoid suspicion, fearing Qi Xiao might have already sent word back to the Qi Manor after tracking them."
"After half a year, he probably thinks he's safe. The Qi Clan hasn't discovered the Azure Cloud Carriage Company, and my investigation was extremely cautious, careful not to alert anyone."
"Ten days ago, the person I planted in the Azure Cloud Carriage Company reported back. Wang Zhi had returned, and in a shocking twist, he had become the adopted son of Wang Shouxin, the company's owner."
Li Weiyi had regained his composure. He picked up his wine cup and downed his sixth glass: "Why would someone who had already left suddenly return?"
"Is the Divine Hidden One preparing to strike?" Shi Jiuzhai could sense Li Weiyi's concern for Qi Xiao and the cold fury he held for their enemies.
Li Weiyi said, "Let's capture him first, before things get complicated. Ninth Brother, will you come with me?"
Shi Jiuzhai hesitated, then nodded.
"Second Brother, the Hidden Sect should have some Extreme Spirit Light Dew, right? Send me a hundred drops." Li Weiyi stood up, unwilling to wait another moment.
"Pfft!"
Hidden Two choked on his wine, sputtering in shock.
"A hundred drops? Extreme Spirit Light Dew is a treasure born in the Polar Day Land, like spiritual liquid itself. A single drop can be used to refine a hundred Radiant Flame Pills!"
"Even the Jiu Li Divine Temple has to buy Extreme Spirit Light Dew from Thousand Mile Mountain. A single drop costs between thirty and forty thousand Yongquan Coins."
"I can only get you ten drops at most. It's the usual arrangement: you pay half, and the Hidden Sect covers the other half."
Li Weiyi frowned, surprised by the Extreme Spirit Light Dew's rarity.
Indeed, every shortcut in this world was paved with money.
Fortunately, Yang Qingxi owed him five million Yongquan Coins - he had to collect that debt.
To quickly become a Spiritual Master, he had no choice but to make a significant investment.
Li Weiyi said, "Make it thirty drops. No less. I'll gather 500,000 Yongquan Coins for you as soon as possible. If that fails, go to the Clan Head of the Cangli Tribe and say it's for his daughter's cultivation expenses."
"Also, check the Hidden Sect's treasury for fragments of the Spirit Platform Blazing Star Stone. If there are none, buy some publicly in my name. The price is negotiable."
Hidden Two's eyes dimmed: "Is it true that Divine Hidden One can only become Spiritual Master?"
"Even a Spiritual Master who reaches the level of the Zuoqiu Family's Confucian Dao Founding Ancestor can still command the wind and rain and laugh at the world," Li Weiyi replied calmly.
Li Weiyi and Shi Jiuzhai drove towards the Azure Cloud Carriage Company.
Shi Jiuzhai observed Li Weiyi's eyes and expression, smiling: "Seeing your fighting spirit rekindled makes me feel much better! If I had been one level higher in cultivation back then, I might have been able to take that sword strike for you."
Even when facing an Immortal Realm Great Power, Shi Jiuzhai and Shi Liuyu had acted without hesitation to rescue Li Weiyi.
Regardless of their character or whether they succeeded, Li Weiyi deeply appreciated their willingness to face such extreme danger.
That's why Li Weiyi believed Shi Jiuzhai when he said he wished he could have taken that sword strike for him.
"Ninth Brother, what realm are you in?" Li Weiyi suddenly asked.
Shi Jiuzhai replied, "Sixth Heaven of the Dao Seed Realm."
Li Weiyi was secretly shocked.
No wonder Yin Shiyi had said that among their generation, Yin Jiu had the strongest foundation, but Hidden One and Yin Wu had the fastest cultivation speeds.
A Dao Seed Realm Sixth Heaven in his thirties - his cultivation speed might even surpass that of Zuoqiu Cangwu at the same age.
This was a seed of an Immortal Realm Great Power!
Great Powers of the Immortal Realm are exceedingly rare in the world.
Even Coffin Mountain, one of the top three Major Powers in the Southern Territory, only has two Immortal Realm Great Powers.
While there might be some hidden figures of lesser renown, it's difficult to keep them secret. At most, they might have one or two more.
A major sect like the Sui Sect has only three Immortal Realm Great Powers and Holy Spirit Masters combined. Most of the top experts from the sect's seven major families are only at the Dao Seed Realm.
Only the Hidden Sects of Ancient Myriad Sects-level Major Powers, with their complete talent selection systems, vast resource reserves, and millennia-long foundations, can secretly cultivate large numbers of experts.
Even then, among the Jiu Li Clan, one of the Ancient Myriad Clans, not all Clan Chiefs of the Nine Great Tribes or the nine Priests of the Jiuli Clan Divine Hall are Immortal Realm Great Powers or Holy Spiritual Masters. Many remain stuck at the Dao Seed Realm or Spiritual Master level.
The twenty Immortality Pills lost during the Hidden Dragon Lantern Festival are bound to reshape the world's power dynamics, secretly elevating many old cultivators trapped in the Dao Seed Realm to the Immortal Realm.
Shi Jiuzhai said, "Each Triple Heaven in the Dao Seed Realm marks a major transformation. The Fourth Heaven involves condensing a Dao Lotus, and the Seventh Heaven involves condensing a Dao Fruit. If I were to condense a Dao Fruit, my strength would undergo a complete metamorphosis... But this step is incredibly difficult. It's possible that even after cultivating for another decade or two, I still wouldn't succeed."
"I truly envy your generation for having the opportunity to compete for Dragon Seeds..."
Shi Jiuzhai trailed off, realizing he had touched a sore spot for Li Weiyi.
He chuckled awkwardly: "I'm dying to know - did you and Yang Qingxi... sleep together?"
"What's it to you?" Li Weiyi asked with a smile.
Shi Jiuzhai replied, "Yang Qingxi is a woman who can ignite any man's desire for conquest. If you've already had her, I'll naturally abandon my own conquest. In the future, I'll either kill her outright or spare her life."
Li Weiyi hesitated, unsure how to answer.
"Haha, I get it!" Shi Jiuzhai laughed.
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END OF CHAPTER
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