"Living...comfortably?"
The response from the White Bone Scholar sent Zhong Shenxiu into contemplation.
After a moment, however, he had to admit that the other party was correct.
Those from a major sect, especially a disciple that carried the True Inheritance, would certainly be hunted down to death after fleeing.
Even if Zhang Taiyi had astounding Divine Skills, could he defeat the Primordial Pill Old Monster?
Even if he fled to the frontiers, it would be impossible to avoid pursuit completely.
Therefore, his background must be extremely remarkable, and the more so it was, the likelier it was that he possessed superior legacies and treasures.
"I’ve made a special effort to inquire about this person’s past... You would never know how dominant the Zhang Family is in the Supreme Dragon and Tiger Sect, and Zhang Taiyi is well-known within the family as a natural Daoist genius..."
At this moment, the White Bone Scholar continued to explain slowly, "It’s just unfortunate that this genius, who should have been first among his peers and had made rapid progress in cultivation since the beginning, earning him the title of Dragon and Tiger True Man ahead of time, eventually, got stuck at the Core Formation stage and failed to advance to the Primordial Pill, not living up to his reputation... and in the end, he left the sect dejectedly."
"Fled the sect just because he failed to advance to the Primordial Pill?" Zhong Shenxiu noticed something amiss and frowned.
"The specifics, I’m not too clear on, but after he declared his defection from the sect, the Supreme Dragon and Tiger Sect didn’t actually send out people to kill him... Thereafter, Zhang Taiyi disappeared from sight for some time, and when he reappeared, he was in the Fufeng Protectorate... And he has been collecting precious Spiritual Objects everywhere, even seizing a Five Fire Six Qi Furnace. There’s a high probability that he intends to refine Spiritual Medicine that can help achieve the Primordial Pill and wants to tackle the bottleneck once again."
The White Bone Scholar said, "How is it? Is my information sincere enough?"
"No wonder you mentioned the Primordial Pill last time," Zhong Shenxiu nodded his head.
"That batch of Spiritual Medicine, the Fei Hua sisters and I are determined to obtain it. If there is any surplus, as long as you help us, we are willing to make a Heart Demon great oath to share with you... Even if there’s none, Zhang Taiyi has many treasures on him, which should be enough to compensate you."
The White Bone Scholar was very earnest.
"And you dare to take on the Dragon and Tiger True Man because you’re planning to strike when he’s vulnerable, during his breakthrough to the Primordial Pill? How will you grasp this opportunity?"
Zhong Shenxiu voiced his doubts.
"The inner details are not to be disclosed to outsiders, what do you think?" The White Bone Scholar skillfully avoided the question.
Zhong Shenxiu nodded, "Then let’s exchange information, Zhang Taiyi is hiding out in the Poison Dragon Cave!"
"Poison Dragon Cave?! The Poison Dragon Venerable? Tsk tsk... so he had help from this person, thank you for the clarification, fellow Daoist, some of my previous doubts have finally been resolved..." The White Bone Scholar was momentarily surprised but then quickly regained composure, showing excellent restraint in cultivating his Qigong: "The Poison Dragon Venerable was rumored to be at odds with Zhang Taiyi; I didn’t expect it to be just a smokescreen. Without the reminder from fellow Daoist, our plan might have been severely flawed... That half of the White Bone Scripture, I’ve entrusted it to the little raven at Black Wind Ridge for safekeeping, you may collect it at any time."
After the communication, Zhong Shenxiu left the goods shed through the back door.
He used his Divine Skills and instantly disappeared from sight.
"That little raven from Black Phoenix Ridge? Looks like Crow Elder still decided to side with the White Bone Scholar after all, heh heh... The White Bone Scholar still wants to pull me onboard, too bad I really don’t feel like it..."
That Poison Dragon Cave, it’s practically a huge pit.
Zhong Shenxiu had decided, he absolutely couldn’t be a pawn who gets buried without even being aware of it.
He sped away, disappearing around the corner.
Thirty minutes later, Zhong Shenxiu, wearing another unfamiliar face, walked into an inn.
This place was a relay station in the Daoist Official’s intelligence network, as recalled by the Spiritual Crane.
Beforehand, he had left some clues about Poison Dragon Cave and the White Bone Scholar in that mountain goods shop, intentionally framing them.
However, if one were to investigate further, they would find that it was true!
"As a law-abiding good citizen, it’s certainly my duty to act as a whistle-blower at this time."
Zhong Shenxiu walked into the inn.
In the memory of Spiritual Crane Daoist, this inn was semi-official, not only connected to the Protector Mansion but also linked to the Cloud Mirror Sect.
In a sense, it also acted as the half-seeing eye of the Cloud Mirror Sect within Fufeng City.
’The Poison Dragon Cave holds extraordinary dangers; the muddier the waters, the better.’
Zhong Shenxiu found a seat and sat down, watching as the waiter approached with a smile on his face, his expression suddenly turning into a bizarre grin.
A gust of cold wind swept through, the temperature inside the inn dropped suddenly, and mist condensed into a layer of frost.
Inside a secret room, a tall and robust Daoist opened his eyes wide, standing up agitated.
On his body, a layer of Evil Qi surfaced, turning into a black Magic Robe to protect his entire body; he was indeed a Gang Sha Realm cultivator!
Even so, he still felt unsafe, sensing danger was near.
"Spiritual Eye Technique!"
The Daoist’s eyes flashed, and the scenery around became hazy, as if enveloped in fog.
Within the mist, a humanoid figure slowly approached.
The Daoist snorted coldly and drew his sword, chanting solemnly, and the blade was immediately enveloped by a layer of golden light.
This was a Golden Light Spell enhancement, granting the sword the power to slay malevolent spirits and Yin souls.
The ghost closed in slowly, suddenly bursting into black flames all over.
The Daoist, sensing trouble, immediately flew backward.
Next, the ghost slowly vanished without a trace.
Only on the floor, burnt by the flames, were rows of writing left behind.
"Zhang Taiyi... Poison Dragon Cave? White Bone Scholar... mountain goods shop?"
The Daoist only glanced once, and his face became very grave, "This is a big issue... I must report this to the Protector Mansion, and also inform my sect... Qingfeng!"
Footsteps rushed outside the door, a Daoist boy stumbled into the secret room, "Master... our inn has been exposed, someone came just now, froze half of the inn with a wave of his hand, and then disappeared..."
"This place is no longer safe, follow me and relocate."
The Daoist made a quick decision; although the person seemed to have no ill intent and only came to deliver a message.
But this stronghold was considered compromised.
By this time, Zhong Shenxiu had already turned back into Su Daoshi, leisurely returning to his residence.
"White Bone Scholar, Protector Mansion, Zhang Taiyi, perhaps even the Cloud Mirror Sect... this is going to be lively."
As the instigator of all this chaos, Zhong Shenxiu didn’t feel the slightest bit guilty and was already prepared to make himself comfortable and watch the show unfold.
As for the idea of personally delivering the information and establishing credit, he did consider it but then gave up.
After all, matters involving Superpower Experts were simply too significant.
Su Daoshi was just a minor Innate Martial Practitioner; attempting to seize such greatness could easily lead to his doom.
Better to play it safe, grow quietly and unobtrusively—that’s the real way to play the game.