The courtyard behind the Peaceful Inn was piled high with miscellaneous goods.
Under the man in brocade robes’ leadership, Su Yi entered a cellar, then walked along a dimly lit path for about seven minutes.
A grand hall built underground soon entered his field of view.
Su Yi had long since sensed that something was amiss. When he saw the hall up ahead, he couldn’t help but ask, “What is this place?”
The middle-aged man in brocade robes stopped, then turned and chuckled. “You’ll know once we’re inside.
His smile was amiable, but there was something strange about it.
“Oh,” said Su Yi. This was the place Weng Yunqi once saw as a way to get in touch, but Su Yi sensed that something had almost certainly changed since then.
The underground hall was hewn out of a giant boulder, and a pair of strange stone sculptures stood before the open gates.
The left stone sculpture was of a giant, pitch-black three-headed dog. It sat there, its heads raised, looking hideous and ferocious.
The stone statue on the right was of a lithe, graceful woman, but beneath the waist, she had the body of a coiling snake.
Her arms were crossed in front of her, and she carried a lantern shaped like a lotus flower.
When he saw these two sinister statues, Su Yi’s brow shot up. They somehow seemed a bit familiar.
A moment later, he recalled where he’d seen them before. That three-headed black dog looked just like the great evil beast, the “Soul-Rending Vicious Hound.”
As for the snake woman, she resembled the descendants of the Ghost Serpent Clan. All of them had half-human, half-serpentine bodies.
Amongst the dark denizens of the Netherworld, the Ghost Serpent Clan had another title: the Envoys of the Lamp. They occupied an extremely lofty position.
This place is actually somewhat interesting,?Su Yi thought to himself.
He wouldn’t have guessed that relying on the broken copper coin Weng Yunqi gave him would result in being led to a place like this.
But then, whatever came next, he’d just have to face it head-on.
It worked out; he was bored and had nothing better to do. He didn’t mind seeing just what secrets lurked within this underground chamber.
Two guards stood at attention before the two stone statues. When they saw the man in brocade robes leading Su Yi, they instantly clasped their fists. “Greetings, Elder Lu.”
The middle-aged man nodded back, but said nothing. He just led Su Yi directly into the underground chamber.
Lanterns illuminated the hall’s interior, but there were no other people in sight.
“Now then, Young Lord, let’s talk business.” The man took a seat in the center of the hall and chuckled. However, his gaze was increasingly dull. 𝒃𝙚𝙤𝙫𝒆𝒍．𝙘𝒐𝙢
“I’m just here to look around.” Su Yi sat casually on a nearby chair. “I didn’t expect you to lead me here. I’m actually rather curious: what are you doing all this for?”
The middle-aged man’s smile faded. “A straightforward man doesn’t resort to veiled words. Young Lord, I hope you cooperate, for your sake.”
His voice was noticeably colder than before, and it now carried an imposing majesty.
Su Yi smiled. Suddenly, he asked, “Are you a member of the Deathbringer’s Gate?”
“Since you’ve already figured that out, you ought to understand that although Weng Yunqi once saw this place a stronghold, the Peaceful Inn is now under our control.”
The man’s expression was now flat and indifferent, but his eyes flashed with cold light. “And you are now nothing but a little fish that’s foolishly thrown itself into the fisherman’s net. Whether you live or die depends on whether or not you cooperate.”
Su Yi’s expression was as calm as ever, and he didn’t seem at all surprised. “What is it you want to know?”
The middle-aged man in brocade robes leaned his fat body back into his chair and said flatly, “Tell me about your connection to Weng Yunqi and why you came to the Peaceful Inn. In short, if you want to live, tell me everything you know.
“Oh,” said Su Yi casually. “I defeated Weng Yunqi, and he agreed to bring me to see the leader of the Deathbringer’s Gate Imperatorial Province Branch, Huyan Hai, so he gave me this coin. He said if I went to the Peaceful Inn, I could get in contact with him….”
Before he could continue, the middle-aged man interrupted him. “What are you looking for the branch leader for?”
His eyes shone with imposing, sinister light.
“I’m investigating the origins of a piece of soul jade.”
“Soul jade?” The middle-aged man in brocade robes was visibly stunned, and he instinctively straightened up. “Weng Yunqi told you about that piece of soul jade?”
“That’s right.” Su Yi nodded.
The middle-aged man’s expression shifted erratically, and a little while later, he bellowed, “That can’t be right! Didn’t?you only just?say you defeated Weng Yunqi? In that case, why would you come looking for him at the Peaceful Inn? Kid, I advise you to be honest with me!”
His gaze was imposing, his glare sharp as knives. He stared intently at Su Yi, grand and terrifying.
Su Yi laughed. “You think I’m trying to deceive you?”
The middle-aged man snorted. “Don’t tell me you aren’t?”
“Then what if I told you that the Blood Balance Daoist, Chu Silang, and Liu Xianglan all fell beneath my sword?” Su Yi asked flatly. “Would you believe me then?”
For a moment, the man was stunned. Then, his anger peaked, and he laughed, “Kid, don’t tell me that you realized your predicament and hope this empty bluster will intimidate me?”
Su Yi sighed lightly. “It seems that if I were to tell you that just last night, I was the one who killed your branch leader’s son, Huyan Bao, you wouldn’t believe that either.”
“I’d have to be an idiot to believe that!” The man snorted coldly. “Young man, I’ve already been polite enough. Do you really think I’m a pushover?”
When Su Yi saw this, he couldn’t help but lose interest.
He’d been bored to begin with. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have bothered visiting the Peaceful Inn. Who’d’ve thought he’d run into something like this?
Su Yi rose, but wasted no more words. Instead, he got straight to the point. “How about this? I’ll give you one last chance: be good and tell me your branch leader’s current whereabouts, and I’ll spare your life. Otherwise… You really will die. Take your time and think it over carefully.”
The middle-aged man was dumbstruck. Then, he couldn’t help but burst into uproarious laughter. He laughed so hard, he almost cried; it was as if this were the funniest thing he’d ever heard.
Some time passed before he slowly got to his feet, his laughter replaced with a murderer glare. “I’ve lived all these years, but this is my first time seeing someone so ignorant of life and death…”
Before he could finish, he saw Su Yi stretch out his right hand and slap him. The attack struck from a distance.
A single, understated motion.
Yet it formed the dazzling imprint of a palm in midair. The hand surged with streak after streak of swordlike Dao Astral Force, with hints of the faint, nigh-indiscernible charm of the Dao itself.
The middle-aged man’s pupils constricted, and he instinctively tried to block it.
But this slap contained the power?of Dao?Astral Force. It might?look?simple and understated, but how could a first-level Grandmaster like him possibly block it?
He could only watch as—
Bang!
It was as if an ancient mountain had slammed into the middle-aged man’s chubby body. It sent him flying through the air, shattering the chair and table beside him. The fragments flew through the air, while the man himself slammed into the chamber walls.
The man convulsed, and he coughed up a mouthful of blood.
The bones of his arms had shattered, and his sinews had split, leaving both limbs a bloody pulp. His entire body was in agony, and the muscles of his face?twitched?violently.
“You…. You….!” ?The man was stunned, and his eyes widened in terror. He couldn’t even begin to imagine how a Grandmaster such as himself had lost so quickly and so completely!
“Brazen!” The guards outside the chamber heard the commotion and immediately rushed outside.
Su Yi just extended his fingers and snapped twice.
Splurt! Splurt!
Two sharp, swordlike streaks of power flew from his fingers. Before the guards could react, their heads were flying through the air and spurting blood.
This bloody scene terrified even the middle-aged man, a Grandmaster, to the point that his soul practically left his body.
“Who exactly are you?” asked the middle-aged man. His voice trembled as he realized the full extent of his predicament.
“I said I was just passing through. Who’d have thought that no matter what I said, you wouldn’t believe me?” Su Yi shook his head.
“I believe you! I believe you!” The middle-aged man shrieked in panic. “Please, friend, spare me just this once! You’re looking for Weng Yunqi, right? I can help you find him!”
“I forgot to mention this, but I’ve long since discovered Weng Yunqi’s whereabouts,” said Su Yi flatly.
“????” When he heard that, the middle-aged man practically lost it. He wanted to roar in fury.?If you already knew where to find Weng Yunqi, what the hell did you come to the Peaceful Inn for?
What, were you just bored?
As if reading his mind, Su Yi sighed. “I really was a bit bored. Otherwise, how could I possibly go out and wander the streets aimlessly until I found myself here?”
“….”
This time, the man was completely bewildered. He couldn’t even work up the mood to curse him. He just felt indescribably bewildered.?How…. How could someone like him exist in this world?
“Perhaps it would have been different if there were someone in this city worthy of sharing a drink with me. Perhaps then, I would never have come here,” said Su Yi, sounding a bit insipid. “Or perhaps this is fate. I just happened to encounter you while I was in a bad mood.”
Fate? Yeah, like hell it is….?The middle-aged man wanted to cry, but he had no tears. This disaster had come out of nowhere!
“Do you recognize this?” Su Yi took out the soul jade and showed it to him.
“I do!” The middle-aged man hurriedly nodded. “That’s the mysterious soul jade that old thief, Weng Yunqi, ran off with. But…. Why do you have it?”
Su Yi thought for a moment, then said, “Today, I can make an exception for you. So long as you give me some clues regarding this piece of jade, I won’t kill you.”
The middle-aged man quivered, then hurriedly seized his last chance at life. “Young Lord, I clearly remember that ten years ago, Base Leader Huyan Hai received orders directly from Headquarters. They sent him to Bloodthistle Yao Mountain to participate in a secret operation. He returned a month later with that very piece of soul jade!”
The man paused, then continued, “But at the time, he was severely injured. As soon as he made it back to the Imperatorial Province Branch, he entrusted the jade to Weng Yunqi, the man he trusted most. Huyan Hai would never have guessed that Weng Yunqi would take advantage of his seclusion to seize both the jade and several other treasures, then flee and betray the sect.”
Su Yi mulled this over, then said thoughtfully, “All of this happened ten years ago?”
“That’s right!” The man hurriedly nodded.
“Every ten years, Bloodthistle Yao Mountain will erupt with a beast tide. Looking at it from that angle, it’s highly likely that the secret operation Huyan Hai participated in occurred during the last beast tide….”
Su Yi’s expression was somewhat strange.
Not long ago, the Spiritmartial Marquis, Chen Zheng, had once told him about Bloodthistle Yao Mountain and its beast tides.
But he was surprised to learn that it was highly likely that Huyan Hai had obtained the mysterious soul jade from Bloodthistle Yao Mountain during the last beast wave.
Don’t tell me Qing Wan’s identity is somehow connected to Bloodthistle Yao Mountain??As Su Yi pondered, he suddenly recalled something Ning Sihua once told him:
“This mundane realm is nowhere near as simple as it appears on the surface!”