Chapter 482: Saint Emperor’s Token
Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
Meng Qi decided to send Gu Changqing to Huan Duke’s Mansion. Even if the Wang family from Zhou County had contrasting principles and stances, they would still hold themselves to a fundamental code of ethics. Besides, based on his understanding of Wang Zai, he believed that Gu Changqing, who had lost the escort item, wouldn’t be in any danger there.
Wang Wenxian greeted them personally when they entered the mansion. Once he received the detailed account of what happened, he ordered the servants to take Gu Changqing to the guest courtyard. He began pacing back and forth, contemplating the issue.
“The Myths, the Immortals, the Destruction Sect, and the Luo Denomination all showed up one after another in Luoyang. What is their goal?” He pondered over it before questioning Meng Qi once again.
With the incident of the Myths assassinating the Crown Prince out in the open, the organization was no longer a secret among the ministers of the imperial court.
Frowning, Meng Qi said, “From the looks of things, everything seems to link back to the escort item. If we can figure out its value and whereabouts, maybe we can finally uncover the conspiracy behind it all.”
He paused before continuing, “Now the escort item is with the Destruction Sect, the Luo Denomination, and the Immortals. We can only start with whomever entrusted the escort item to the agency in the first place.”
Wang Wenxian was still pacing in front of Meng Qi. “If whomever entrusted the escort item to the agency were aware of everything, I think they would’ve spread the news far and wide once they heard about it being lost. Even if it’s a mistake on their part, they won’t allow the Luo Denomination, the Destruction Sect, or the Immortals get it either… I fear that even if we find them, it won’t be of much help.”
“Perhaps there’s a reason that they can’t spread the news. We can’t easily dismiss any leads,” Meng Qi said, expressing his opinion.
Take, for example, the Samsara tasks — whoever gets discovered, dies!
That was the opinion that he had formed after the Immortals joined the tussle for the escort item.
“You’re right. I’ll order the Six Fan School to investigate it,” Wang Wenxian said nodding.
This was the might of someone engaged in politics.
“Uncle, have you discovered the whereabouts of the Luo Denomination or the Destruction Sect?” Meng Qi asked.
Wang Wenxian shook his head. “No. Though the Six Fan School is doing its best and has mobilized all the aristocratic families and turf lords in Luoyang, they’re nowhere to be found. It’s as if they never set foot in Luoyang at all. It’s the only way for them to disappear into thin air. Perhaps they’re hiding in some place that we won’t expect.”
“The impartation of the Nine Evil Paths is old history, much older than our current dynasty. It appears to be normal to have a cover identity.”
“This is the outstanding part of a veteran’s influence…” Meng Qi silently sighed to himself. “What about the Myths?”
“It’s the same.” Wang Wenxian’s expression appeared solemn.
Suddenly recalling something, Meng Qi said, “Uncle, the Chief Arrester of the Escort Agency of Central Province was your good friend. When you found his body, did you find any clues?”
“From the damages done to the body and surroundings, the fatal strike should have come from the Disillusionment Demon of Eight Skyscraping Devils. There were also traces of the Six-annihilation Palms in the vicinity. I suspect Six-annihilation Devilman has shown up,” Wang Wenxian muttered to himself.
“Six-annihilation Devilman?” Meng Qi felt like a frog living in a well.
He had heard Gu Changqing explain what had happened and knew that Six-annihilation Devilman of the Destruction Sect had a hand in the matter. The information slipped his mind, however, as he thought the Devilman was just a small fry.
Wang Wenxian smiled. “It’s understandable that you don’t know of him. With the suppression of Evil Master by Kong Wen, the divine monk, Six-annihilation Devilman disappeared for many years from the Destruction Sect.”
“Though not every Six-annihilation Devilman can become the head of the clan, anyone who can learn the Six-annihilation Palms and earn the moniker is basically being groomed to be the future head of the clan.”
“So it’s a big shot in the making…” To Meng Qi, Six-annihilation Devilman was akin to the Goddess of the Luo Denomination. But Six-annihilation Devilman of this generation was a devil with a perfect Half-step realm at most.
Meng Qi bade Wang Wenxian farewell and left Huan Duke’s Mansion, feeling relieved all over. With the escort item gone, it seemed like there wasn’t any need for him anymore. If the sky collapsed, it would be the problem of Luoyang alone. There would be the Political Affairs Hall and Six Fan School taking care of the problem anyway. With his inferior realm, it wouldn’t do much for him to participate. Instead, it might even endanger his life.
His expression suddenly turned serious after taking a few steps. Would everything that had happened involve the Sumptuous Fruits Banquet? Would it hinder the completion of his main task?
Even if he wasn’t willing to get too involved in this matter, it wasn’t a difficult or dangerous task to contact Primogenitor Guangcheng. He would only feel reassured once he cleared up the matter of the escort item.
Since it was something he had been hoping for, his heartbeat sped up. He quickened his pace and headed straight for Langya Duke’s Mansion!
Even before, he had noticed someone following him. How could he be careless now that he was going to contact Primogenitor Guangcheng?
No matter how strong the person was or what he was scheming, he definitely wouldn’t dare sneak into the Ruan family manor without prior planning!
Outsiders would never be able to figure out the layouts of the aristocratic family manors. Furthermore, the little glutton’s uncle was a Peerless Master Pro. It wasn’t anything strange for him to visit the little glutton as well. Who would take the risk of following him into the manor?
He would get the little glutton to be his cover, change his appearance and breath, and join the group of Ruan family servants in leaving the manor. Later, he’d make a quiet return to the manor and leave again openly. That would dispel the person’s doubts!
In the span of a few short steps, a plan came to Meng Qi’s mind.
With the help of his friends, everything was made so easy and relaxing. If he was all by himself, it would be hard to break away from a pursuer of such caliber!
The Langya Duke’s Mansion was incredibly affluent, with many servants and maids going in and out of the manor. In the span of two hours this afternoon alone, there were more than ten people entering and exiting.
Servants responsible for procurement filed out of the manor in a group. They all maintained their silence without so much as a whisper, demonstrating the standards of a member of an aristocratic household.
Once they reached the crowded streets, they separated to carry out their individual tasks. A yellow-faced servant carrying a money bag joined the crowd and began heading outside the city walls.
The servant was, of course, Meng Qi. After he told Ruan Yushu what had been going on with the Myths, the Immortals, the Luo Denomination, and the Destruction Sect, she helped him to hide in the group of servants who was going to leave the manor.
He left a mark at the predetermined spot outside city walls and then speedily ran back to the Ruan family manor. He changed back into his original clothing and strutted out of the manor. No one had noticed anything abnormal about the entire process.
Just as he stepped into his family manor, Meng Qi came across Su Yue.
“The Chief Arrester will meet you at the Red Attire Villa at dusk tomorrow. The Emperor will be there as well to personally bestow upon you the Silver Badge,” he said, his expression solemn.
Meng Qi felt only curiosity regarding the Chief Arrester and the Emperor, not any feelings of inferiority. When he thought of how he was about to become a Silverly-badge Arrester and could pick out an Exterior-level item, a smile instantly lit up his face. He nodded in acknowledgment and said, “Fifth Uncle, do you have any news of the Luo Denomination or the Destruction Sect?”
“No.” Su Yue snorted as he closed his eyes. “We at Six Fan School had suspected that some aristocratic families were cover identities that the Evil Spirits adopted after the change in dynasties. From what we see now, it appears to be true. Hopefully we’ll be able to root them all out with this case!”
“I hope it all goes well.” Meng Qi wanted nothing more than to see all those on the Evil Nine Paths destroyed at their roots. He was the nemesis of evil, after all, who had offended quite a few Paths.
The next day, after he completed his Qi-circulation harmonization, Meng Qi stepped out for a stroll to think about the worldly affairs. He passed by the rendevous spot outside the city walls and saw that, as expected, Primogenitor Guangcheng had responded. His reply included their meeting place and time.
Once again, at the same time and using the same technique, Meng Qi used Langya Duke’s Mansion as cover and hid himself. He arrived in the vicinity of a certain secluded courtyard. He changed into a black robe and put on a mask before entering the study.
A man was standing inside the study, his back facing the door. He was tall and large, with a head of jet-black hair. His breath resembled that of a profound, imposing mountain. It was heavy and filled with the will of destruction.
The man turned his head and said in a banter-like manner, “Whenever I see you with this mask, I feel uneasy.”
The man was wearing the mask of Primogenitor Guangcheng while Meng Qi was wearing the mask of Heavenly Primogenitor. The two masks faced each other, giving off a particularly delightful feeling.
Meng Qi gave a dry laugh and put the topic aside. “Primogenitor, did you steal the escort item of the Escort Agency of Central Province?”
“Yes,” Primogenitor Guangcheng admitted frankly. “That’s an important segment of our main task. Don’t tell me it’s conflicting with your task?”
“So it really is because of the main task… ‘Our’, he says…” The thoughts crossed Meng Qi’s mind in a flash. In a feigned deep voice, he said, “There doesn’t seem to be a conflict at the moment. I just feel that the matter has involved many parties and has become a more dire matter. I’m worried it’ll affect the Sumptuous Fruits Banquet, so I came to you for guidance.”
“Even if our task at the moment doesn’t involve the Myths…” Primogenitor Guangcheng’s voice gradually became quieter as if he had recalled a particular incident.
Under the circumstances, of which no prior agreements were signed, he wouldn’t tell Meng Qi about his own task even if they were both members of the Immortals. This was his consciousness as a Samsara traveler. After all, there was still a possibility of their tasks conflicting one another.
Meng Qi could tell that something was off and instantly said, “Primogenitor, do you have any guesses?”
“Do you know the use of the escort item?” Primogenitor Guangcheng replied with a question instead of an answer.
“That’s what I’m here for.” That was the main reason for Meng Qi requesting a meeting with him.
Primogenitor Guangcheng was momentarily silent before saying, “We suspect it to be a slow-moving item that can quietly steal the lives of all living beings. It resembles a Saint Emperor’s Token of rumor. Meanwhile, the Grand Formation of Luoyang had been accumulating strength for generations like it was a boundless vast sea.”
“Steal the lives of all living beings…” Meng Qi found it to be rather strange.“What would Luo Denomination and the Destruction Sect need to steal lives for?”
The Destruction Sect didn’t have any cultivation methods with such an effect at all. And although the Luo Denomination had a Dharma Access method that borrowed strength from all living beings, that was completely different from stealing the lives of all living beings. One derived from the Immortal Path, the other from humans. It would defeat all purpose. Wouldn’t they be afraid of the conflicting effects backfiring on them? That was unless they were the ones who established the imperial court and combined Immortal power with imperial power. But from the look of things, this was completely impossible for them!
Just as he pondered over the issue, his expression suddenly shifted, albeit ever so lightly. “Does that mean that they’re secretly aiding one of the princes?”
It would be possible to increase one’s Emperor reach and elevate one’s fate by stealing the lives of all living beings. It would be incredibly beneficial to the cultivation method of the Human Path and share the same effects of the True Emperor Seal. The usage of the word ‘steal’ seem to have declared the identity of its user…
Primogenitor Guangcheng nodded and replied, “They might get the Sumptuous Fruits Banquet involved in this matter but it probably wouldn’t increase the difficulty of your task by much. It’s our task, after all.”
Meng Qi furrowed his brows. Could this be the work of the Crown Prince? Could Crown Prince be following the teachings of the Evil Spirit in secret while masquerading as a Buddhist? Or could Old Third Zhao be harboring tall ambitions and acting imprudently? Or could it be the other members of the royal family trying to provoke chaos and gain benefit from it?
If the Luo Denomination and the Destruction Sect were hiding inside their manors, it would explain why no traces of them were found. It was just like the time he had used Prince Wei’s mansion as a cover up…
“Poor Old Fifth…” Meng Qi couldn’t help laughing at Zhao Heng.
“You can apply to be an official member once you finish your third mission. Many benefits await you,” Primogenitor Guangcheng reminded him.
It was the Exterior movement, Skythrowing Palm, that killed Yang Wuliang. Primogenitor Guangcheng hadn’t made a move, so it was evident who had completed the mission.
“I’ll apply for it once this issue is solved.” Meng Qi nodded.
Once he had left place and changed into his normal clothes again, Meng Qi took a deep breath. Underneath the hot afternoon sun, he smiled quietly to himself.
“Fortunately I’m well-informed with many information channels and helping hands. Otherwise, I’d be completely in the dark. Humph! I don’t care what you’re cooking up but don’t you dare implicate me!”
Back at the Ruan family manor, he told Ruan Yushu all that he could reveal.
“This mission sure involves many parties…” she said, pulling her finger across the strings of her zither.
Meng Qi paced back and forth, deep in thought. He suddenly asked,
“The Exterior masters of the Zhao family from Luoyang are never included in the Terrestrial Rankings. Do you know what kind of masters there are in the royal family?”