Mo Duan wasn’t quite sure how to feel about his meeting with Ling Jun’s father as he made his way out of their compound by himself. He trusted them enough to know nothing bad would happen to his disciples while he was out handling a few errands.

Ling Gengxin was a hard man to read. Mo Duan was half certain the man had only made him wait for their meeting out of some kind of petty power play, but the meetings had progressed smoothly for the most part.

At least… it did after Ling Gengxin finished subtly interrogating Mo Duan about his intentions for the Ling clan heir while wording his questions in a way designed to avoid causing offense. Thankfully, the Woodland Dominion method was genuinely a very good cultivation method for Ling Jun, and Mo Duan didn’t have any bad intentions toward the kid. He had a feeling that Ling Gengxin was canny enough to have noticed if he did.

The only other matter that the Patriarch had tried to interrogate him over was the Verdant Valley Sect’s tournament. Once it became clear to Ling Gengxin that Mo Duan was just stonewalling him by giving him evasive answers, the Patriarch had given up and moved on to other topics.

It hadn’t taken long after that for the two of them to agree to form a cooperative relationship between Tranquil Garden Valley and the Ling clan.

The exact details would only be agreed upon after Mo Duan met with the so-called ‘Mystic Flora Merchants,’ which was a mid-sized merchant group that effectively controlled all spiritual plant sales going through the city. There was a lot that Mo Duan needed to learn from them, including which spiritual plants would actually earn him the most spirit stones in the local market, but Ling Gengxin seemed optimistic about their partnership.

As a Late Core Formation cultivator with a wood spirit root, it was hard to overstate how much Mo Duan brought to the table. Not only would he be able to act as a font of pure wood Qi for his spiritual plants, but his reputation alone would provide significant protection to his valley’s business. A substantial portion of costs for things like this was spent on hiring cultivators to protect shops and transport shipments, so Mo Duan already had a sizable advantage. Only those who were truly daring would risk offending him, and he could always assign his disciples missions to protect his shipments if necessary.

Before any of that, however, there was something else that Mo Duan needed to do.

Unlike his previous time walking through Emerald Forest City, Mo Duan kept his aura suppressed as he made his way to one of the less wealthy portions of the city. His predecessor’s long experience as both a criminal and a demonic cultivator allowed him to easily avoid attracting attention while doing so. A quick change of robes and a spirit tool to change his features were enough to render him unrecognizable to anyone who might be familiar with him.

Mo Duan kept a sharp eye on his surroundings, making certain to keep his body language casual and uninterested as he searched for what he was looking for. The slums of Emerald Forest City were a far cry from the opulent streets in which the Ling clan had built their compound. Thanks to the abundant presence of magic and spirit tools in this world, Mo Duan often felt that there were certain places in this world that were as affluent and comfortable as the world he left behind.

And then… there were also places that were like this.

Mo Duan found himself surrounded by the grim realities of poverty as he continued to walk through the city’s slums. The streets were a chaotic mix of narrow alleyways, decrepit buildings, and cluttered market stalls. The pedestrians were wary of everyone else around them; they were covered in a layer of grim that looked impossible to wash away, and few of them possessed even the slightest bit of cultivation.

Although it was some of the worst poverty that Mo Duan had ever personally seen, it was still far better than some of the horrible places his predecessor had passed through.

As Mo Duan continued to take in the area, his attention was suddenly drawn to a nondescript man whose internal Qi suddenly fluctuated. This wasn’t unusual as even mortals possessed Qi and Qi at times shifted in intensity, but this was different because the mortal’s Qi fluctuated in a particular pattern that Mo Duan recognized. The man seemed to be an ordinary pedestrian, but a closer look revealed that he was abnormally vigilant of his surroundings.

After spending a few more moments observing and sweeping for any hidden observers with his spiritual sense, Mo Duan was satisfied and didn’t hesitate to approach the mortal.

“Good evening,” said Mo Duan, waving at the man as he approached. He noticed that the man’s eyes moved to the jade bracelet that Mo Duan had placed around his wrist after leaving the Ling compound.

The man’s Qi once again fluctuated in a particular pattern and Mo Duan responded by fluctuating his own in a slightly different manner. The mortal didn’t outwardly react and merely turned to walk down the street and into a nearby alleyway, with Mo Duan following closely behind.

After making certain that they hadn’t been followed, the man pointed to a seemingly ordinary wall of the alleyway. Having received the message, Mo Duan nodded in thanks toward the man and approached the wall before placing his palm against its cold surface.

Mo Duan felt a subtle energy emanating from the bracelet, and within moments, the wall began to shimmer and dissolve, revealing a hidden passageway. He knew that anyone not wearing a bracelet like his own would have seen nothing, and would have found their attention drifting away.

After stepping through the entrance, Mo Duan sensed the wall reform behind him and suddenly found himself in an entirely different environment. Stretching his spiritual sense as far as he could, Mo Duan was unsurprised to find himself in a large building that reminded him somewhat of a modern mall and was completely filled with cultivators. He could even sense the distinct feeling of demonic Qi emanating from several individuals.

A few people turned their attention to Mo Duan, but everyone understood that to cause trouble in a store belonging to the Crimson Lotus Union was to seek their own death. So the majority simply minded their own business.

Images of illegal goods available for sale were proudly on display throughout the building, although Mo Duan knew the genuine items would be stored elsewhere and only delivered after purchase. The Crimson Lotus Union was one of the most prolific sellers of illegal goods and services in this part of the world. Their shops could be found by those who knew what to look for in nearly any major city in the Celestial Jade Empire or the Shadowed Isles.

Mo Duan didn’t know how they did it, but their hidden formations were the most powerful that he had ever seen. Even as a Late Core Formation cultivator, he had no doubt he would have been unable to find this place without being guided to the location. It was only thanks to his predecessor’s memories that Mo Duan knew the special signals needed to gain the trust of the guide.

Although he was mostly there to purchase information, that didn’t stop Mo Duan from scanning the displayed items as he walked through the store. As he did so, Mo Duan found his heart hurting at the absurd prices that were far outside of what he could reasonably afford.

Two high-grade spirit stones for a soul puppet at the Mid Foundation Establishment Stage? Ten high-grade stones for Immortal Binding Chains capable of immobilizing a Core Formation Cultivator? Fifty mid-grade stones for a needle that sucks all the blood out of its victim and stores it within?

The prices were obviously inflated by their illegal nature, although Mo Duan couldn’t deny many of them would be extremely useful. The needle in particular would make it much more convenient for him to feed his bloodvines…

As he traveled deeper into the store, the displayed goods started to cost more spirit stones than Mo Duan’s predecessor had ever seen in his life.

Five hundred high-grade spirit stones for a portable pagoda with defensive formations powerful enough to withstand the assault of a Nascent Soul cultivator. Three hundred for a puppet at the Mid Core Formation stage that would loyally follow any order given to it by its master. Four hundred for a powerful flying tool shaped like a massive battleship.

It felt a bit strange to see such powerful items being displayed in a relatively unimportant city, but Mo Duan reminded himself that they weren’t physically there. If he actually was able to buy one of them, the Crimson Lotus Union would almost certainly send a Nascent Soul Cultivator to deliver the goods from wherever they were actually being stored.

They were one of the most powerful criminal organizations in the region and the fact that the Crimson Lotus Union could even let it be known that they possessed these objects was an open display of strength.

Seeing items like these reinforced to Mo Duan that resources and power were inextricably linked in this world. This was why the majority of powerful cultivators made the effort to establish their own powerbase which they could use to gather spirit stones.

It was also one of the reasons that he had chosen to stay with the Verdant Valley Sect rather than simply becoming a wandering cultivator. Incidentally, it was also probably one of the reasons the sect’s leaders weren’t overly surprised that he wanted to stay with the sect, given the significant benefits of doing so. His predecessor had never intended to stay for obvious reasons and explained this by implying that he intended to one day return to the land the sect’s leadership thought he came from.

Mo Duan hadn’t offered any explicit explanation for his perceived change of mind, but he had implied to Elder Yuanlei more than once that he had personal reasons for not wanting to return.

Pulling his attention away from the things he couldn’t hope to afford, Mo Duan turned his attention to a particular door that had a crimson lotus engraved onto its surface. Making his way through the door without any hesitation, Mo Duan found himself standing in a shadowy void with nothing but ominous dark clouds surrounding him. Knowing that it would take some time for the Crimson Lotus Union to send one of their representatives, Mo Duan took a seat on the ground and decided to pass the time through meditation.

Approximately fifteen minutes later, Mo Duan was pulled back to reality by the sound of an androgynous voice echoing throughout the darkness. “Greetings, fellow cultivator. You may refer to me as Pan Yu. How may the Crimson Lotus Union assist you today?”

“I’m here to purchase information on a variety of subjects,” Mo Duan declared, deciding to move straight to the point. ”Once that is done, I would also like to sell a number of items to your organization.”

Given that his predecessor was a demonic cultivator who had acquired all kinds of horrible things during his life, Mo Duan had many items in his possession that he could never see himself using. That being the case, he would be better off simply selling them and making back some of what he spent investing in his valley.

“Of course, fellow cultivator. Please inform me of what you would like to know, and I will tell you the price for such information,” replied the neutral voice of Pan Yu.

“Firstly, I would like to purchase any information that the Crimson Lotus Union has about Elder Mo Duan of the Verdant Valley Sect,” Mo Duan said immediately.

Now that he intended to stay with the sect long-term, Mo Duan needed to verify that the identity his predecessor had created was still intact. Although his predecessor had been extremely thorough before daring to infiltrate a sect of righteous cultivators, Mo Duan still wanted to be certain that the past wasn’t going to suddenly come back to haunt him.

After a few moments of consideration, Pan Yu eventually replied with the price for the information, “As our organization knows little about this individual that isn’t already public knowledge, the price will only be two mid-grade spirit stones.”

Pleased with the relatively cheap price and what it implied, Mo Duan quickly tossed the two spirit stones into the black clouds and received a jade slip a few seconds later.

Hmm. They know a decent amount about current events, but barely anything about my past,” Mo Duan mused as he studied the information contained within the jade slip.

That wasn’t particularly surprising given the lengths his predecessor had gone to when hiding his identity, but it was rather reassuring. After traveling to a distant kingdom and capturing an unaffiliated Core Formation stage cultivator, he then performed a demonic ritual that required him to permanently sacrifice his own body. He had then spent the next few years living as that cultivator, and painstakingly crafting a verifiable history for anyone who went looking.

Love what you're reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

Mo Duan was absolutely certain that his predecessor would have spat blood in anger if he had known that his efforts to infiltrate the Verdant Valley Sect would only end up benefiting somebody else.

Having verified that his current identity was still safe, Mo Duan quickly placed the jade slip into his spatial ring before asking Pan Yu for any information the Crimson Lotus Union had on his new sect.

The information this time cost him a steeper ten mid-grade stones, but Mo Duan didn’t hesitate to pay it. He needed to know if anyone had picked up even the slightest hint of the Pre-Separation Secret Realm. Thankfully, it seemed that the Crimson Lotus Union also lacked any dangerous information about his sect.

There was a lot of speculation about what the Verdant Valley Sect was up to internally, but it seemed like the sect’s leadership had done a good job of muddying the waters. When Mo Duan and the rest of the leadership had discussed how they would hide the Secret Realm, none of them had been foolish enough to believe they could prevent suspicion from falling on them entirely. They were the most powerful cultivation organization in the region and everyone who mattered was watching them closely.

If the sect wanted to get its disciples into the Secret Realm, then it was obviously impossible to stop outsiders from noticing all of their best disciples suddenly disappearing. Even if the Verdant Valley Sect purged every spy within its valleys and locked everything down completely, the information would still get out eventually.

That being the case, the sect was better off focusing its efforts on obfuscating its actions and leading people to incorrect conclusions. According to what the Crimson Lotus Union knew, there was a lot of speculation about whether or not the sect had found a way to increase how often people could make use of the Ascending Dragon Caverns. Outsiders didn’t know specifically how the caverns worked, so it was certainly possible.

There was also speculation that the Verdant Valley Sect had genuinely learned of a future threat that they were preparing for. The Crimson Lotus Union found this possibility to be the highest, but Mo Duan didn’t see any explanation as to why…

There were some who correctly connected the sect’s actions to the Vanishing Mist Woods but seemed to reach the wrong conclusions. The woods were located deep within the sect’s territory and weren’t easy for outside forces to investigate, but the Crimson Lotus Union still knew quite a bit about its irregularities. They attributed it to either a powerful spiritual beast or some kind of natural treasure, but there wasn’t really any indication that a Secret Realm was involved.

Mo Duan wasn’t particularly surprised. The effect of the Prismatic Veil Blooms was too powerful to be a regular formation and Secret Realms didn’t tend to cause such a phenomenon. It probably helped that Elder Yuanlei was doing everything she could to spread false rumors and lead people to incorrect conclusions.

Still, there was enough that made it clear to him that there was still a decent amount of spies within the sect, but that was to be expected.

Mo Duan also purchased information about the Mystic Flora Merchants, so that he wouldn’t be walking into his meeting with them blind before then doing the same for the Ling clan. He hadn’t actually expected to learn any more about them than what he already knew, but Mo Duan was surprised to discover the Crimson Lotus Union actually had a section dedicated to Ling Jun.

Apparently, Mo Duan was correct to assume internal clan drama was the source of the complicated relationship between Ling Jun and his father. According to the Crimson Lotus Union, Ling Gengxin’s favorite wife was killed by Ling Jun’s mother during some kind of crazy harem drama…

Mo Duan wasn’t exactly sure what he would do with this information, but he would keep it in mind for the future. Aside from that, he also purchased information on a few topics unrelated to himself.

“Thank you, Pan Yu,” said Mo Duan after putting away the second jade slip. “My next topic is a tad broader than the previous ones. I need any information that you have on unaffiliated Qi Condensation cultivators within Emerald Forest City who have shown a willingness to work as mercenaries.”

One of the biggest reasons that Mo Duan had decided to bring his disciples away from the sect and to a place with a large population of wandering cultivators was that he wanted to hire a few of them to fight his inexperienced disciples. If there was one thing that Mo Duan had thoroughly learned from his predecessor’s memories, it was that those who had experienced life-or-death battles were completely different from those who hadn’t.

Cultivators raised within sects held a significant advantage due to having access to abundant resources. However, Mo Duan knew that wandering cultivators of a similar cultivation level was not to be underestimated as the majority of them had climbed over a mountain of corpses to achieve what they had.

Mo Duan’s disciples would have been thrown into a merciless environment and already been sent to experience their first kill if they were members of a demonic sect, but such things were considered unacceptable in the Celestial Jade Empire. That being the case, Mo Duan believed the best way to prepare his disciples to fight their peers in the sect’s annual tournament, was to have them practice against experienced wandering cultivators.

Pan Yu seemed relatively surprised by his request because their response only came after several moments of hesitation. “Fellow cultivator. Are you certain that you wish to purchase the details for so many individuals? Your request will cost at least twenty mid-grade spirit stones due to the amount of work required to gather this information.”

Mo Duan held back a wince and agreed to pay the twenty spirit stones. It wasn’t actually all that bad considering the number of people involved, mostly because the details of Qi Condensation cultivators were naturally much less valuable than those who were more powerful.

After spending so much of his predecessor’s funds ever since he had woken up, Mo Duan was down to about three high-grade spirit stones, which converted to three hundred mid-grades. It was still an absolute fortune to most people, but his predecessor had earned it over several decades of being a powerful demonic cultivator. If Mo Duan’s valley didn’t become productive soon, then he was certain that it would quickly disappear.

After taking around fifteen minutes to gather the information, Pan Yu eventually returned and gave Mo Duan the jade slip.

There were at least a few hundred cultivators in Emerald Forest City who fit his criteria, but Mo Duan narrowed it down to those who were at a similar stage of cultivation to his disciples. The only reason that he had purchased the details for cultivators who he didn’t need, was because Mo Duan didn’t want the Crimson Lotus Union to realize he was one of their customers.

Once he made sure the jade slip contained the information he paid for, Mo Duan stored it away as it would take a decent amount of time to sort through everything.

“Thank you, Pan Yu, for gathering this information so quickly. The Crimson Lotus Union truly lives up to its reputation,” said Mo Duan, genuinely pleased with the good service. “I have one more topic I would like to purchase information about before I move on to selling the items that I mentioned earlier.”

“Please tell me what you need, fellow cultivator. I will do my best to accommodate your request,” said Pan Yu, their voice much more respectful than it previously was.

It was pretty clear by this point that Mo Duan was either a powerful individual or represented one by the number of spirit stones he was freely spending.

“I would like to purchase any information that your organization has about this talisman,” said Mo Duan, retrieving one of the talismans used to create the Jiangshi plaguing the Verdant Valley Sect’s territories.

When the poison derived from the spiritual beast Mo Duan had slain failed to exterminate all the Jiangshi, and Elder Feng was also unable to analyze their talismans, Mo Duan’s curiosity was piqued about the origin of the creatures.

The fact that something about them seemed vaguely familiar also contributed to his curiosity.

Pan Yu was quiet for a long time as Mo Duan waited for a response.

“I apologize fellow cultivator, but detailed information on this topic will cost forty mid-grade spirit stones,” said Pan Yu once they finally replied.

Mo Duan could feel his eyebrows raise as grew shocked by the stated price. That was five times more expensive than what they had charged for information on the Verdant Valley Sect! Such a price implied that the individual or organization who had created these talismans was either highly dangerous or any information about them was extremely difficult to acquire.

“May I ask why the cost is so expensive?” asked Mo Duan, unwilling to just hand over so many spirit stones without knowing what he might receive in return.

“Context around the source of that talisman requires that we also provide information about the significant recent changes to the internal politics of the Shadowed Isles,” Pan Yu quickly explained. “As this information is difficult to acquire elsewhere, its value naturally reflects that.”

There were significant changes to the internal politics of the Shadowed Isles? Mo Duan thought with surprise, instantly deciding that he needed to learn everything about the topic regardless of the cost.

His predecessor had grown up and trained in the Shadowed Isles, and he had made many enemies there. It was also home to the Abyssal Garden Sect, which was the source of Mo Duan’s cultivation technique. If something big had happened on the Shadowed Isles, then he absolutely needed to know about it.

Mo Duan quickly handed over the forty mid-grade spirit stones and was mildly surprised when a jade slip wasn’t given to him.

“For security reasons, I will be delivering this information personally rather than through a jade slip,” Pan Yu explained.

“Security reasons?” Mo Duan asked dubiously. “Why didn’t you have the same concerns about the Verdant Valley Sect? Are the people involved really that much more powerful?”

“We don’t know for certain, so our organization has chosen to act with caution.”

“I see. Very well then, please begin.”

“I’ll begin by addressing the source of the talisman directly,” said Pan Yu. “To the best of our knowledge, they are the sole creation of a former Elder who recently defected from the Cursed Inscription Sect, Mei Yujia. Her last known location is several miles west of Misty Lake City.”

“What? Are you certain?” Mo Duan asked in shock. Mei Yujia was a name his predecessor had been familiar with, and he hadn’t expected to hear her name now. “Why did she defect? The Cursed Inscription Sect is one of the most powerful demonic sects in the Shadowed Isles.”

“The true reason is unknown, but our organization believes her to be responsible for the recent rise in Jiangshi,” said Pan Yu. “Significant events have recently been taking place throughout the Shadowed Isles’ various sects. The Soul Reaver Order disappeared completely several months ago, the Abyssal Garden Sect has sealed its borders to any outsiders, half of the Cursed Inscription Sect’s Elders have defected and fled, and the son of the Infernal Serpent Clan’s Matriarch was recently cured of his affliction.”

As someone familiar with the Shadowed Isles and their demonic sects, every single one of those events was significant enough to shock Mo Duan speechless. Taken together, it was clear to him that something extremely significant was happening with the nearby demonic cultivators.

The last in particular would have sent Mo Duan’s predecessor into a furious rage if he had heard.

The discovery that the Verdant Valley Sect secretly possessed a treasure capable of healing the Matriarch's son was the very reason he had gone to great lengths to infiltrate them. Learning that her son was finally cured after she had spent nearly a century searching the world for a remedy, and famously offering life-altering rewards to anyone who could provide one, would have driven Mo Duan's predecessor to madness.

“Why haven’t I heard anything about this?” Mo Duan asked once he recollected himself. If the Verdant Valley Sect had known about everything happening in the Shadowed Isles, then he would have definitely been informed.

“While I don’t know what sources of information you have access to, fellow cultivator, these events are all very recent,” Pan Yu reminded him. “The sects involved have also been making efforts to suppress the spread of the news, although such a thing is obviously not possible for very long. For now, these events are mostly only known to criminals and demonic cultivators. We suspect the Celestial Jade Empire is already aware, and the righteous sects will hear about it soon.”

“I see…”

The more Mo Duan thought about everything that he had heard, the worse he felt about it. Although he expected to never see them again, Mo Duan had inherited many… very powerful enemies in the Shadowed Isles from his predecessor. He absolutely needed to know what was happening over there.

Not only that, but a sneaking suspicion was beginning to grow within him. What were the chances that a once-in-a-generation Pre-Separation Secret Realm would open up at nearly the exact same time that things in the Shadowed Isles suddenly started to go crazy?

In a world where people could achieve truly ridiculous lifespans… such important events just didn’t happen very often.

“You said Mei Yujia was most recently seen near Misty Lake City?” Mo Duan asked thoughtfully. “How long ago was this?”

“Approximately two weeks ago, fellow cultivator,” Pan Yu immediately answered.

That should be recent enough for me to pick up a trail…

Mei Yujia was a demonic cultivator who had at least reached the Core Formation realm, as far as Mo Duan was aware. He knew exactly how sneaky and clever demonic cultivators of such power could be when they reached that level. It would almost certainly take years for the Verdant Valley Sect to catch her even if she was foolish enough to even stay in their territory for so long.

No… if Mo Duan wanted to solve the Jiangshi problem and figure out what was happening in the Shadowed Isles, then he would need to find her himself. Doing so wouldn’t be simple, and the fight itself was likely to be dangerous, but Mo Duan had nearly eight months before he needed to return with his disciples to the Verdant Valley Sect.

That should be enough time for him to find his target and figure out a way to deal with her.

“Does my payment include any information your organization might have about Mei Yujia’s history and her capabilities?” Mo Duan asked.

It seemed rather strange to him that Mei Yujia was doing something as conspicuous as creating Jiangshi if she was hiding from her sect. There were many mysteries around this situation, and Mo Duan hoped that the information provided by the Crimson Lotus Union would make things a little clearer.

“Considering the number of spirit stones you have already spent with us, fellow cultivator, it does,” Pan Yu responded after a moment of consideration. “Please keep in mind that the Crimson Lotus Union will pay quite well for any information about the ongoing matters happening in the Shadowed Isles.”

“I will,” Mo Duan said genuinely. Depending on what he learned, Mo Duan wouldn’t mind making back some of what he had spent. “Now, please tell me everything you know about Mei Yujia…”