Moments after sending this message, Number Two was the first to respond: [Emperor Yuanjing was assassinated?]
…No, what’s wrong with this little brother? Every other sentence is about Emperor Yuanjing’s demise. Did he eat your rice or steal your money?
Xu Qi An mentally labeled “Number Two” as an angry youth—an ancient version of an angry youth.
[Nine: Yesterday, both the inner and outer city were sealed off, prohibiting any civilians from entering or leaving. I knew something must have happened.]
Daoist Jinlian was still hiding in the capital, quietly recovering from his injuries.
Xu Qi An had only written half of his message when Number One, who was used to lurking, seized the opportunity to show off, revealing a shocking truth to the other Ground Talisman fragment holders:
[One: Sangbo has been blown up, the Yongzhen Shanhe Temple destroyed, and whatever was sealed within Sangbo has vanished.]
Such explosive news was met with silence.
The Ground Talisman chat group fell quiet for three minutes. No one sent messages, nor did anyone express shock.
[Two: What did you say? Sangbo was blown up? The Yongzhen Shanhe Temple was destroyed? Number One, are you sure you’re not mocking us?]
Number Two’s reaction was understandable. It was as unbelievable as if Emperor Yuanjing had been killed by a commoner single-handedly breaking into the palace.
It was utterly inconceivable.
It was like eunuchs discussing state affairs—nonsense.
Number Four was equally incredulous. He knew better than Number Two what kind of place Sangbo was and how heavily guarded it was.
But Number One would never speak without foundation.
[Four: Number Three, is this what you wanted to say?]
[Three: Yes, Sangbo is gone, and whatever was sealed beneath the Yongzhen Shanhe Temple is missing.]
With Number Three’s confirmation, despite how unbelievable it seemed, it was now almost certainly true.
Both Number One and Number Three were in the capital and knew the situation in Great Feng’s capital best.
[Nine: This is truly unbelievable news. Do you have any relevant clues, Number One?]
Interesting. Daoist Jinlian didn’t ask me, a member of the Night Watchmen, but directly inquired with Number One. Does this mean he believes Number One is more likely to know about such high-level secrets than I am?
But saying it like that would be too careless… Is it intentional? Or is it because the impact of Sangbo’s destruction was so great that it made him think less carefully?
[One: This case has been assigned to the Night Watchmen’s Office, the Ministry of Justice, and the Prefecture Office to handle. I don’t know the specific details.]
The members of the Ground Talisman chat group couldn’t hide their disappointment. If Number One, who held such a high position in the court, didn’t know the specifics, then Number Three surely wouldn’t know either.
[Three: As it happens, our academy has learned quite a few secrets through appropriate channels. We’ve roughly figured out the outline of the case.]
Number Three knows?
Number Three knows!
He just said he learned the news through the academy’s channels. It seems the Cloud Deer Academy has planted quite a few spies in various offices throughout the capital.
Seeing Number Three say this, Number Five, who originally wasn’t very interested in what was happening in Great Feng’s capital, also jumped in to get the gossip.
[Five: Number Three, your academy’s reach seems quite deep. Even Number One doesn’t know about things that your academy knows. By the way, what’s your position in the academy?]
Could an ordinary student know such important secrets?
[Three: I naturally have my ways.]
Xu Qi An didn’t explain further. The importance of leaving things unsaid lies in the fact that the smarter people are, the more likely they are to overthink.
They would suspect Number Three’s identity as an ordinary student and wonder if he had other identities. In the absence of strong evidence, they would only become more confused the more they thought about it.
Hmm, Number One is a problem. He (or she) isn’t so easily fooled. It doesn’t matter. Number One and I don’t have any conflicts for now, and besides, I’m becoming increasingly certain about his (or her) identity, at least narrowing it down to a specific range.
[Three: So, what will you offer in exchange for my information?]
Seeing this message, everyone felt a bit strange, as if the debts they owed were piling up inexplicably.
If Number Three were to do business, he’d surely be a successful merchant… Number Four sighed inwardly and replied: [I’ve only been focused on cultivation lately and haven’t acquired any valuable information. Let’s just put it on the tab for now.]
[Two: I’m busy suppressing bandits. Well, once I figure out the forces behind the various strongholds in Yunzhou, I’ll be able to repay Number Three’s debt.]
At this point, Number Two felt a bit bitter about owing debts for no apparent reason.
[Five: I have some important news recently, but revealing it would expose my identity.]
[Four: Heh, you’re from the Southern Borderlands, aren’t you?]
[One: Probably a noble from one of the Gu clans.]
[Two: Seems to be somewhat bellicose as well.]
[Five: … You, you all knew?]
Isn’t it obvious? You know the history of the Myriad Beast Kingdom like the back of your hand, constantly refer to yourself as “this old lady,” and you’ve even revealed before that your father holds a high position!
Number Five seems to be not very bright… on the same level as my dear Caiwei… Xu Qi An thought to himself.
He mentally redefined the characters in the Ground Talisman chat group:
Number One holds a high position in the court and is a lurking maniac.
Number Two is the ultimate angry youth, but very wise. It was him (or her) who probed me and Number One during the ancestral worship ceremony.
Number Four has a good relationship with the Humanist Sect leader and once served in the court, but now wanders the world.
Number Five is a girl from a Southern Borderlands Gu clan, and is not very bright.
Number Six is a Great Feng version of Lu Zhishen, with high cultivation.
Number Seven ran away, and the Ground Talisman fragment is in Number Two’s hands. Number Two and Number Seven have an unusual relationship.
Number Eight is in deep seclusion and has been silent for a long time.
Number Nine is Daoist Jinlian, the initiator of the Earthly Connection Society, an old fox.
Number Five remained silent for quite a while before finally sending a message: [Fine, this old lady is indeed from the Southern Borderlands Gu clan, open and aboveboard. I have important news to share. Number Three, I’ll use this to exchange for the Sangbo case.]
[Nine: Number Five, this poor Daoist’s injuries have not yet healed. If you want to share, first let everyone agree to owe you one piece of intelligence or an equivalent amount of silver.]
The Earthly Connection Society members fell silent for a moment, then agreed to owe Number Five one piece of intelligence.
[Five: The Gu God has begun to awaken.]
The Gu God? A being beyond classification, the creator of the Gu Master system? Xu Qi An was shocked. Although he knew a bit about the possible truth of the existence of “immortals and Buddhas” through freeloading off the Earthly Connection Society’s internal information, he still found it absurd.
No one in the Ground Talisman chat group spoke for a long time. It seems this news shocked everyone as much as the destruction of Sangbo.
[Five: Yesterday, a wisp of the Gu God’s aura seeped out from the Extreme Abyss. All the low-level Gu in our village died, and the high-level Gu went berserk, attacking clan members. This old lady’s natal Gu almost lost control too. Father said that after thousands of years, the Gu God has finally awakened, but this isn’t a good thing.]
[Two: Not a good thing?]
[Five: Yes, the Gu God is the source of chaos. Devouring and reproducing are imprinted in its instincts. If it awakens, all living creatures in the Southern Borderlands will become objects for its mating and devouring. It will turn the entire Nine Provinces into a world of only Gu! So, our Gu clan is gathering strong cultivators, planning to enter the Extreme Abyss in a few days to investigate the situation.]
Damn, there’s such a thing? The Gu God is this kind of creature?
Xu Qi An was startled, not because he was imagining things like tentacles or silver demons, but because he was truly shocked by the evil nature of the Gu God. Yes!
Xu Qi An was eager to know more information about the Gu God, but unfortunately, no one asked.
[Nine: This is indeed shocking news.]
[Three: Daoist, is the reason for the Gu God’s slumber also related to being sealed?]
Xu Qi An indirectly probed for information about the Gu God.
[Nine: I don’t know. The Gu God’s existence predates human use of written language. It existed before humans learned to write. You can ask Number Five, but the mere fact of the Gu God’s awakening alone is probably worth more than your Sangbo case.]
Worth more than my Sangbo case? Xu Qi An felt unconvinced.
[Five: Haha, Number Three, if you want to know more information about the Gu God, you can choose to trade with me.]
[Three: What do you want?]
[Five: My brother isn’t married yet. I heard that the wife of the Northern Marquis of your Great Feng is the most beautiful woman in the world. I want her to be my sister-in-law.]
You’re daydreaming… If I had that ability, wouldn’t it be better for me to have her for myself? Why should I give such beauty to your brother… Xu Qi An replied: [One Marquis’s wife isn’t enough. The Princess Royal is also a great beauty, and so is our Great Feng’s Imperial Tutor. I’ll package them all up and send them over to you.]
[Five: Great, great!]
[One: If it’s just this nonsense, then I’m going to rest. Please, you two, keep your mouths shut.]
Number One jumped in to interrupt the topic.
Number Five stopped joking around because she also wanted to know about the Sangbo case. She sent a message saying: [I only know that the Gu God is the source of the Gu Master system and the origin of all Gu in the world.]
Seeing that Number Five had finished speaking, Xu Qi An carefully chose his words and began to share what he knew about the Sangbo case:
[The thing sealed beneath Sangbo might be related to the demon race. Currently, Great Feng officials have preliminarily determined that the force that destroyed Sangbo is likely the demon race. But it’s unclear whether it’s from the north or remnants of the Myriad Beast Kingdom.]
Xu Qi An wasn’t afraid that sharing first-hand information would lead others to guess his identity.
There were many officials present at the meeting in the council hall at that time, including representatives from the Ministry of Justice, the Prefecture Office, and the Night Watchmen. The Cloud Deer Academy might have obtained the information through channels other than the Night Watchmen’s Office.
The demon race?
How did it become involved with the demon race again? Why would the demon race want to destroy the seal beneath Sangbo?
The members of the Earthly Connection Society were puzzled.
However, they realized one thing: the inside story behind the Sangbo case must be extraordinarily complex.
To unravel it all, they probably need to find out what exactly was sealed beneath Sangbo.
[One: Impossible. Sangbo’s defenses are impenetrable. Even high-level cultivators couldn’t infiltrate it. How could the demon race blow up Sangbo? Where did they get the explosives?]
[Three: The court has already investigated this matter. Niter mines were discovered in Daihuang Mountain in Taikang County, but they’ve been completely mined out. The collectors were indeed from the demon race. Number One, your information channels aren’t very good. Additionally, the spy who communicated with the demon race has been identified. It’s Zhou Chixiong, a captain of the Imperial Guard, but he has fled with his family.]
[One: So that lead is dead.]
[Three: Heh, not necessarily. Soon, the court will surely issue an arrest warrant. Zhou Chixiong will either leave Great Feng or hide in a safe place. Where do you think he might be hiding?]
Number Two was the first to answer: [That goes without saying, it must be Yunzhou.]
No one in the Ground Talisman Earthly Connection Society knew the situation in Yunzhou better than he (or she).
At this point, Xu Qi An had achieved his goal. He wanted to use this to open up the topic and get Number Two to keep an eye out for him in Yunzhou, to see if they could catch Captain Zhou.
But according to his character setting, he shouldn’t be so concerned about a fugitive. Because of patriotism? This reason was too perfunctory.
[One: Number Two, you have considerable influence in Yunzhou. Can you help me keep an eye out for Zhou Chixiong?]
Well done… Xu Qi An perked up.
In Number One’s mind, Number Two seemed more reliable than the government.
[Two: I refuse to help you.]
[One: I will provide compensation.]
[Two: No, I refuse to help you!]
Number One stopped talking, and the Ground Talisman group fell into a brief silence.
Number One and Number Two don’t seem to get along very well… and the others aren’t trying to mediate… Is it because they had a conflict or grudge before I joined?
Hmm… this won’t do. If Number Two doesn’t help, how can we find Zhou Chixiong in such a vast area as Yunzhou?
I should step in. This way, I can both do Number One a favor and collect on the “debt” from Number Two.
It’s a win-win!
Xu Qi An typed out a message: [Number Two if you help me keep an eye out for Zhou Chixiong, we’ll consider last time’s debt repaid. As for Number One, I’m sorry, but you now owe me another favor. How does that sound to both of you?]