CHAPTER 37: QI YUAN'S SCHEME

Sharpening his knife, Qi Yuan swept across the Black Mountain Sect like a storm. Since time was of the essence, he focused on one particular place: the sect’s Hidden Library.

Qi Yuan prioritized cultivation methods above all else. Countless manuals meant boundless knowledge. With the aid of his eyes, he could continue refining the Qi Yuan Scripture and carve out his own cultivation path.

Time to go.

Estimating the risk of lingering too long, Qi Yuan turned and vanished from Black Mountain Sect at lightning speed.

***

Duan Qianrou wore a pale, elegant high-waisted robe atop a Cloud Rabbit carriage.

The Cloud Rabbit was a wondrous beast of three heads and eight legs. It could tread the earth or soar into the sky, and was as steady as a mountain. Thanks to that, its fate was quite fortunate, valued as an excellent beast for pulling carriages. No one ever worried about Cloud Rabbit’s head ending up on someone’s plate.

A dozen men and women sat within the carriage. They were mine owners from all over Bloodless City. A few days ago, Black Mountain Sect had demanded their tribute be raised from twenty percent to thirty. Naturally, it sparked an outrage.

A burly man screamed in a booming voice. "Everyone, we must stand as one in the negotiation with the Black Mountain Sect! Handing over twenty percent of the blood crystals is our absolute limit, no more!"

Bloodless City wasn’t under the sect's rule to begin with. As if twenty percent wasn’t insulting enough, now it was thirty. That was outright tyranny!

A Foundation Establishment realm old man muttered bitterly, "Old Wang, what good is a united front? Black Mountain Sect is backed by Black Rooster Demon. Even the three major sects are forced to acknowledge them. We're just scattered cultivators, how can we resist?"

The others fell silent, grim expressions settling over their faces.

It was business as usual for the Black Mountain Sect. Its elders were all ruthless men. Even the fragile-looking Yu Linglong had carved a bloody path through cultivation before the Black Rooster Demon claimed her. The disciples were no better. Most were former bandits and murderers, rotten to the core.

Someone sighed. "Ah, if only a Sword Immortal would descend and fell Black Mountain Sect in one fell swoop."

"A Sword Immortal? Even the three major sects can't deal with them, where would a Sword Immortal come from?"

"Old Wang, hush! If someone from Black Mountain Sect hears you, you'll be dead before dawn."

Duan Qianrou sat quietly, melancholy clouding her thoughts. Just then, the Cloud Rabbit slowed to a halt. Everyone's heart tightened, afraid they’d encountered Black Mountain Sect’s men.

Then, the curtain was drawn back, revealing a handsome young man.

Duan Qianrou blinked in surprise. She recognized him. Didn’t her mother speak warmly to him earlier that day?

But why is he here, in Black Mountain Sect territory? And so close to their very headquarters? Could he be a disciple of Black Mountain Sect?

The thought gave rise to a chill of disgust in her heart. The Black Mountain Sect was devoid of good men.

Having freshly massacred the sect, Qi Yuan clasped his hands and asked politely, "Pardon the disturbance, everyone. May I trouble you for directions? Which marketplace nearby has a Ling Tian Pavilion?"

Relief swept through the group. It turned out he was only asking for directions!

Duan Qianrou replied, "Tianyuan Market has one."

Qi Yuan bowed with perfect courtesy, thinking there were still more good folk than bad in this world. "Many thanks."

Then, something occurred to Duan Qianrou. She asked curiously, "Why have you come to Black Mountain Sect?"

The others relaxed when they saw Duan Qianrou was familiar with him. Clearly there was no danger here.

Qi Yuan's eyes darted mischievously. Terrible at lying, he made something up on the spot. "I came here to look at the stars."

Duan Qianrou burst into laughter. "Forgive me for asking. But seriously, this place is dangerous. Don’t linger if you have no business here."

Qi Yuan grinned and dashed off. "You're right, far too dangerous. I'd better run!"

Everyone watched him vanish like a puff of smoke in bafflement.

Old Wang asked, "Master Duan, do you know that boy? He has a rather amusing temperament..."

Duan Qianrou denied softly. "No."

No one pressed further. They simply thought she was being too generous. Soon, the trivial interlude was forgotten. The Cloud Rabbit carriage sped onward, arriving at the Black Mountain Sect's gates in no time.

The only way into the sect, the White Bone Bridge, now lay in ruins.

"Eh? Why is the White Bone Bridge broken?"

"Look! What's that?"

They used Dao techniques to peer inside the mountain gate and froze. The great gates of Black Mountain Sect had collapsed. Corpses lay strewn everywhere within.

Someone stammered, teeth chattering, "That's a Core Formation realm elder..."

"Black Mountain Sect has been exterminated!"

Shock rolled through them like thunder. The domineering Black Mountain Sect had been wiped out overnight?! It’d require at least a Nascent Soul realm monster to pull off such a feat! Were they not afraid of offending Black Rooster Demon?

All eyes suddenly turned to Old Wang, who had wished for a Sword Immortal only moments ago.

Old Wang waved his hands frantically. "Not me! I didn't do it!"

Duan Qianrou narrowed her eyes, her thoughts drifting back to the man they'd just met on the road. Could he have seen something?

Everyone's mind spun differently, but one truth became clear: chaos was about to engulf the Great Shang Kingdom.

***

At Tianyuan Market...

Qi Yuan moved faster than usual. Descending from Black Mountain Sect, he realized he had overlooked something crucial. Certainly, he had mercifully annihilated Yu Linglong, but...

What if she isn't the only Violet Bamboo Physique within Black Mountain Sect? What if the Sect Master, that Black Wind Daoist, was one as well? What if Black Rooster Demon was playing a far deeper game? What if Yu Linglong was the bait, while his foster son and others carried the true Violet Bamboo Physique in secret?

Still, Qi Yuan dared not return. So after a long thought, he devised a solution, which involved the Ling Tian Pavilion.

The Ling Tian Pavilion was a unique power within the Great Shang Kingdom. Eighty percent of gaming jades, ninety percent of projection jades, half of communication jades—all came from them. To Qi Yuan, they were nothing less than that '10cent' of his previous life.[1]

His goal was simple: through Ling Tian Pavilion's vast distribution channels, he’d broadcast to the cultivators of Great Shang Kingdom that Black Mountain Sect possessed Violet Bamboo Bodies.

For the chance to break through realms, what wouldn't cultivators do? The madness of such desperation was beyond imagining. Countless reckless souls would descend on the sect like wolves.

Then, by the time Black Rooster Demon emerged from seclusion, all he would find would be an empty ruin, the corpses long spirited away.

1. 凌天阁 (Ling Tian Pavilion) is not a literal building but an organization / commercial power within the Great Shang Kingdom. It's essentially a dominant, monopolistic distributor and producer of information, entertainment, and communication jade slips in this world, a cultivation-era equivalent of a massive tech-media conglomerate. ☜