Qingxuan City, Zhao family.
Shen Yi revealed his identity and was immediately invited into the courtyard.
The Zhao family patriarch had long been waiting. Upon seeing Shen Yi, he respectfully offered him a cup of tea.
"Patriarch Zhao, there is no need for such courtesy. Time is pressing; please tell me the details."
Patriarch Zhao let out a long sigh before speaking.
"My Zhao family consists entirely of mortals. It is only because we possess considerable resources and offer much tribute to the Qingxuan Sect every year that we enjoy its protection. In recent years, the sect has grown stronger, and my Zhao family has risen with the tide. Half a month ago, my useless son failed to return home for the night. At first, I thought nothing of it. Later, I received a letter demanding that I hand over wealth before they would release my son. Only then did I learn that my only child had been abducted by evildoers."
As he spoke, the steward presented a letter. Shen Yi opened it and found that it was indeed as Patriarch Zhao had said. A lock of severed hair was tucked inside, clearly placed there by the kidnappers as a threat.
"After receiving the letter, how could I dare disobey? I immediately gathered gold and silver and delivered them to the designated place. Yet the next day, I received another letter saying only that the amount of gold and silver was insufficient and demanding more. This old man had no choice but to comply, but all I received was yet another letter, once again demanding more money."
Patriarch Zhao sighed. "Five times in a row. This old man followed the evildoers' demands, and more than half my family fortune has already been scattered away. I truly have no other way, so I can only seek the sect's aid. I beg you, Immortal Master, to act!"
Shen Yi picked up the remaining letters. Their contents were all much the same, and each mentioned the same place: Qingqiu.
"May I ask where Qingqiu is?"
"It is northeast of the city. There is a ruined temple there. Every time, I personally placed the valuables there and waited in secret for a long while, but I never saw the evildoers."
Shen Yi bade farewell to Patriarch Zhao and decided to investigate personally. He always felt that this matter was far from simple.
"There are traces of residual spiritual power."
When Shen Yi arrived at the ruined temple in Qingqiu, he found no traces of mortals and no secret passages or the like. Feeling the lingering fluctuations of spiritual power in the air, he concluded that cultivators were behind this. Yet why did they not want Spirit Stones and only demand gold and silver? That left him unable to make head or tail of it.
Restraining his aura, Shen Yi concealed himself amid the grass and trees, quietly waiting.
For three days straight, nothing unusual happened at the ruined temple in Qingqiu. There was not even a mortal's shadow, let alone a cultivator. Shen Yi had once suspected that Patriarch Zhao was deceiving him.
Just as he was about to give up, a series of sounds came from nearby. Someone was actually approaching. Shen Yi saw five figures cautiously make their way to the ruined temple. They knocked three times on the temple door—knock, knock, knock—then two figures darted out from the nearby field of disorderly graves.
"My son, you have worked hard. This is the last of the valuables. Tonight, take these and leave first. Once your father has made the arrangements, I will come find you."
Judging by the voice, it was Patriarch Zhao. The thin figure opposite him must have been his son, Zhao Xiaotian. As for the person behind Zhao Xiaotian, his aura was long and steady; he was likely that cultivator.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Xiaotian stepped forward and rummaged through several bags. Suddenly, he shouted in rage, "Something's wrong! Old bastard, you still have wealth hidden away!" As he spoke, a cold gleam flashed before him, and he stabbed toward Patriarch Zhao.
"Good! You little beast, I suspected long ago that something was wrong with you. So you really are a beast willing to kill even your own father for the family fortune!"
Patriarch Zhao also sprang into action, kicking the dagger from Zhao Xiaotian's hand. With his eyes wide, he cursed furiously.
Hiding nearby, Shen Yi sighed inwardly. What a splendid scene of fatherly kindness and filial devotion.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Before Shen Yi could move, the man behind Zhao Xiaotian began clapping and cheering. A burst of force whipped up a wild gale, blowing father and son together and sending them tumbling until they were battered senseless.
"Zhao Ye, what are you doing?!"
Patriarch Zhao and Zhao Xiaotian shouted in unison, demanding an explanation from the cultivator named Zhao Ye.
The two then looked at each other and finally understood: while the mantis stalked the cicada, the oriole waited behind. Zhao Ye had actually wanted to be the oriole behind.
"Zhao Ye, my Zhao family is protected by the Qingxuan Sect. Do not forget that! If something happens to me, you certainly will not escape either!"
"That's right! Do not forget who sent you to the Qingxuan Sect and helped you achieve Foundation Establishment!"
The Zhao father and son put on a fierce front while trembling inwardly, their bodies shaking without stop. Mortals before a Foundation Establishment cultivator were like ants, to be kneaded and pinched at his whim.
"The sect? Were you not also planning to have me kill the sect cultivator who came to help you, to silence him forever? Once I kill you, I will be the Zhao family head. Do you think the Qingxuan Sect would care about the lives and deaths of a group of mortals?"
Zhao Ye sneered, mercilessly exposing the Zhao father and son's delusions. With their hopes shattered, both men went pale as ashes.
"You two have harbored betrayal in your hearts and sought to break free from the sect's control. I, Zhao Ye, refuse to let you have your way. With the Zhao family's resources, I can go one step further. Once I receive the Great Elder's patronage, I will grant the Zhao family a thousand years of protection. That would be an immense honor for your Zhao family!"
Seeing that the time was right, Shen Yi leaped out and blocked the Zhao father and son behind him, watching Zhao Ye with an amused expression.
"Blame yourself for wanting to attach yourself to Wang Shangren!"
"Old bastard, I did not expect the Qingxuan Sect to really send someone. But you are only in the Qi Condensation Realm. Before my Foundation Establishment cultivation, crushing you would be as easy as crushing an ant."
The flicker of panic in Zhao Ye's eyes vanished in an instant. Seeing that Shen Yi was merely at the Qi Condensation Realm, he immediately relaxed.
Shen Yi said nothing. The Coiled Dragon Halberd flashed with black light, releasing icy killing intent as it charged straight at Zhao Ye.
Seeing this, Zhao Ye also drew out a magical sword and blocked Shen Yi's strike. Though shocked inwardly, he was swallowed by greed and wanted to kill Shen Yi for his treasure. After all, that was a high-grade spirit artifact.
Shen Yi's attacks became even fiercer. Black light danced through the air, scattering sparks before Zhao Ye. Zhao Ye exhausted every trick in his arsenal before barely managing to withstand Shen Yi's assault. Fear rose in his heart, and he wanted to flee, but how could Shen Yi give him such a chance? The Coiled Dragon Halberd crashed down at his face once more.
The black light collided with the longsword, and a shower of light burst through the air. The longsword shattered into pieces in an instant. The halberd cleaved vertically down, splitting open Zhao Ye's chest. Blood gushed forth like a spring, and Zhao Ye died with his eyes still open.
The Zhao father and son had never seen such a spectacle. Even immortals battling might have looked no more terrifying. They trembled all over and nearly fainted dead away. After a long while, they both knelt before Shen Yi, repeatedly kowtowing and begging him to spare their lives.
"Take the valuables and do not come back."
Shen Yi was somewhat angered. The Zhao father and son had used him, nearly making him the sacrifice for their escape from the Qingxuan Sect. Still, he chose to spare them, unwilling to touch the karmic consequences of cultivators slaughtering mortals.
The Zhao father and son thanked him profusely, tears streaming down their faces. Claiming they had no way to repay him, they could only offer Shen Yi their properties within the city as compensation and reward for this day.
As Shen Yi watched the Zhao family members depart into the distance, he held Zhao Ye's storage ring in his hand and pondered how he should report back on the sect's mission.
At that very moment, three streams of killing intent struck toward him, making Shen Yi feel as though he faced a great enemy.
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