Never Be Too High-Profile

The sunset clouds stretched a halo across the far end of the sky, bathing heaven and earth in a dark crimson hue.

As the saying went, "Morning glow, stay home; evening glow, travel a thousand miles." It looked like there would be clear skies for the next few days.

Gao Xian changed out of his Daoist robe and put on a long white gown, turning from side to side before the bronze mirror.

"Whoosh!"

As the Mountain River Qiankun Fan unfolded, brocaded mountains and rivers lay in his hand.

"Mm!" Gao Xian nodded in satisfaction.

Sure enough, Young Master Silver Flower was still eight streets behind this Great Immortal when it came to elegance and bearing. Only in this Great Immortal's hands could the Fan of Mountains and Rivers Brocade possess such free-spirited grandeur, as though he could point at the land and command the realm.

The Cloud Tower Painted Boat was a rather famous pleasure boat along both banks of River Court, and one of the few brothels that operated directly on the river.

It was said to stand three stories high and stretch dozens of meters long, with its roof painted yellow and its pillars carved with dragons and painted with phoenixes.

When all the lanterns aboard lit up at night, it was a sight too beautiful for the eyes to take in.

At night, one could cruise the river and admire the moon while composing poetry and matching couplets, with beauties like paintings and wine like nectar. It was greatly beloved by scholars and refined gentlemen.

Yet to board the boat, one had to make a reservation a day in advance and have a local provide a guarantee. The requirements were rather particular.

Those who came and went were either successful candidates and scholars, or high officials and nobles.

Yet on the surface, this vessel was a brothel. In truth, it was an important place used by the Poison God Altar to gather intelligence, recruit forces, and carry out assassination commissions in River Prefecture. That was why the Poison God Altar Master had been so shocked upon hearing that Kongchenzi intended to investigate this place.

The women aboard were divided into several kinds. The first were trained in the four arts of qin, chess, calligraphy, and painting, and could sing and dance. They usually accompanied scholars and officials in poetry, couplets, drinking, and music, secretly gathering intelligence from their conversations and careless remarks.

The second kind were courtesans skilled in seduction and bedroom arts. Paired with the soul-bewildering incense produced by the Poison God Altar, they caused River Prefecture's nobles and important figures to fall under their control without realizing it. They would pour out every secret in one breath, and some were even controlled by the Poison God Altar for long periods.

The last kind were assassins proficient in the arts of killing. River Court was the stronghold of the Five Gods Cult and the Poison God Altar, and the assassins aboard the Cloud Tower Painted Boat were naturally the Poison God Altar's finest killers gathered in one place. Among the underworld powers around River Prefecture, Poison God Altar assassins had once made people pale at the mere mention of their names.

The Poison God Lantern had been released from the Cloud Tower Painted Boat last time. This time, Gao Xian was going there to wait for that Poison God to crawl out from the depths underground, then sever the Five Gods Cult at its roots.

Otherwise, even if Gao Xian killed his way underground later, once those monsters drilled into the caverns and slipped into the rivers, finding them again would be harder than climbing to the heavens.

"Knock, knock, knock!" Urgent yet cautious knocking sounded from outside the door.

"Creak~" The door opened by itself.

Tang Yao slipped in furtively, as if spies were meeting in secret. She darted through the doorway, craned her head to check both sides outside, then gently shut the door.

On the second floor, Gao Xian, clad in a long white gown, was writing something by the window.

"Great Immortal! This is the token for the Cloud Tower Painted Boat. You can get in with this." Tang Yao crept forward and carefully took a token from her bosom, placing it on the table.

Tang Yao deliberately acted meticulous, leaning close to Kongchenzi's ear like a trusted confidante of Great Immortal Kongchen, and whispered.

"And I've settled your identity too. You're a scholar from out of town, also surnamed Gao. No one will ever trace it back to you."

Tang Yao was brimming with pride. Look how thoroughly she had arranged everything, how deeply she had grasped the Great Immortal's intentions.

She had both preserved the Great Immortal's reputation and completed the task he had given her.

Picking up the token engraved with a beauty's portrait from the table, Gao Xian suddenly realized that he had never been to such a place before. There was a good chance he would make a fool of himself.

And he really did need someone to stand in front of him and take the blame for him.

Kongchenzi carefully sized Tang Yao up from head to toe, then suddenly recalled that this girl's storybooks contained no shortage of scenes involving visits to brothels.

To write them so vividly, and to know every trick, code phrase, rule, and even unspoken convention inside and out—mere imagination could never achieve that.

"Heroine Tang, have you been to the Cloud Tower Painted Boat?"

Tang Yao waved her hand. "I haven't been to the Cloud Tower Painted Boat. Their inspections are rather strict, and it would be easy for me to give myself away."

Kongchenzi caught the meaning beneath her words. "So you've been to other brothels?"

Tang Yao covered her face in bashful embarrassment and waved her hand, as though a little ashamed. "I went a few times while gathering material."

Kongchenzi was rather curious. "They let you in?"

Tang Yao answered as if she knew the business like the back of her hand. "As long as you have money, of course they'll let you in. These brothels even have a service called accompanying a patron. Male regulars can bring women inside for a look, to satisfy their curiosity."

"But I always went alone, disguised and dressed differently. The first few times, my disguise was exposed, and they threw me out."

"..." Just how many times had she gone?

Still, this girl looked reliable enough.

Kongchenzi said, "Fine! Change your clothes. Tonight, you'll come with me to the Cloud Tower Painted Boat."

"??"

Tang Yao froze completely, countless question marks flooding her mind. The Great Immortal is... inviting me to a brothel?

Tang Yao was first startled, then delighted.

This was a famous scene. If she could take part in it, even if she could not write it down, it would still make excellent boasting material for her children and grandchildren when she grew old.

A moment later, Tang Yao had changed into a scholar's long robe, transforming into a graceful, dashing young gentleman as she stood before Gao Xian.

"How is it? You can't tell at all, right? I told you, when I travel the martial world and gather material everywhere, I rely on my skill in disguise and dress."

Clothes tailored close to the body by the famed Heavenly Robe Hall, exquisite Flowing Cloud Boots, and a jade pendant of mutton-fat jade.

One glance was enough to tell that she was not only young and wealthy, but also possessed handsome features that women would find exceptionally appealing.

Gao Xian looked at her, then at himself. Apart from the fan in his hand, his outfit could not compare at all.

Great Immortal Kongchen lifted his eyes and suddenly spotted that servant's outfit.

He said earnestly, "This trip is not for pleasure, much less to flaunt wealth and show off. Its main purpose is to investigate the Five Gods Cult."

"It is righteous business, an affair of upholding justice. We must never be too high-profile."

"This one is quite good. This Great Immortal likes it very much. Put it on later and follow me there!"

The carriage headed all the way toward the riverbank.

Heroine Hong Yuan looked at her drab servant's outfit, then at Great Immortal Kongchen, resplendent and holding a treasured fan. She suddenly felt that keeping a low profile had never really existed in the first place.

As soon as the carriage approached the riverbank, people along the way kept looking toward it, then secretly sending out messages.

Within the Cloud Tower Painted Boat, everyone stood ready for battle.

"They're here, they're here!"

"Whatever he asks for, give it to him. Remember, we must keep him steady!" The boat's steward was leading a group of Poison God Altar disciples as they arranged everything.

One side believed the other had walked straight into its complete trap and intended to use every possible means to hold him back before delivering a fatal blow.

The other side intended to pretend it knew nothing, quietly waiting for the other to take the bait.

Both sides harbored their own schemes, and the curtain of the drama was about to rise upon the great river.