Mo Beiming had always operated beyond the frontier and rarely ventured inside the passes.
He had come to Qingcheng City this time for something. Could it have something to do with the Fifth-grade Lotus Platform?
At the thought, Ling Tianhe's eyes narrowed.
Perhaps investigating Mo Beiming would yield a major breakthrough.
He touched a thin cord beneath the table.
A moment later, a figure dressed in black appeared before him.
"Investigate Mo Beiming. I want to know everywhere he's been recently, as well as where he's staying now."
Ling Tianhe gave the order.
"Yes!"
The black-clad figure quickly left.
After he was gone,
Ling Tianhe glanced at the hourglass before him, rose, and went to a spot where he pressed his palm against the wall.
A hidden stairway opened.
The intelligence bureau of Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower was located beneath the tower.
At that moment,
Su Chen's carriage had arrived in front of Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower.
He stepped out of the carriage. The sky was overcast, and a fine drizzle fell from above.
"I've only been here a few days, yet this drizzle keeps falling. It's really looking after me!"
Su Chen looked up at the sky and spoke softly.
Qingcheng City lay beyond the frontier.
Weather like this was rare here, and he had no idea why it had been so frequent lately.
He strode into Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower.
"Greetings, Tower Lord! Greetings, Tower Lord!"
The disciples inside bowed when they saw Su Chen.
They knew Su Chen was a puppet of Deputy Tower Lord Ling.
But no matter what, Su Chen was still the Tower Lord, and they had to show him respect.
Before long,
Su Chen reached the fifth floor.
The fifth floor was as quiet as ever. Not long after he sat down, Ling Tianhe appeared.
After bowing to Su Chen, he stood silently, waiting for him to speak.
"What's the Lei Family up to?"
Su Chen asked.
Last night, he had hung Lei Ao's and the assassin's severed heads in front of Lei Hall.
Lei Hall couldn't possibly let that stand. They were bound to make a move.
"Lei Mu and the others from Lei Hall gathered early this morning, but then the demonic wanderer Mo Beiming showed up!"
"They spoke for a while. After Mo Beiming left, Lei Mu and the others remained inside Lei Hall."
Ling Tianhe answered.
"Who is this Mo Beiming?"
Su Chen asked.
"Mo Beiming is a demonic wanderer, at the Mid-stage Spirit Refining level. He's unscrupulous and ruthless, and the Ten Great Sects of Lingnan Commandery, including Sword Sect, have been hunting him. He rarely comes to Qingcheng City."
"His appearance at the Lei Family's residence suggests he's allied with the Lei Family and Qin Hao. I suspect they may be after the Fifth-grade Lotus Platform."
Ling Tianhe explained.
"The Fifth-grade Lotus Platform!"
Su Chen's eyes narrowed slightly.
Some time ago, news like that had spread through the black market.
"Investigate this at once. I want to confirm whether it's true."
Su Chen said.
He had a mission related to Qin Hao coming here.
If he confirmed that Qin Hao had come for the Lotus Platform, he could complete that mission quickly.
"I've already sent people to investigate."
"Also, someone took away the assassin's body last night, after you killed him. I haven't been able to find out who it was!"
Ling Tianhe said.
"I know who took it. You don't need to look into it."
Su Chen waved a hand.
The assassin's body had been taken by one of Shangguan Ziyun's subordinates.
Bai Tianyu had already informed him last night.
Hearing that Su Chen knew who had taken the body,
Ling Tianhe asked no more. He bowed and withdrew, ordering the others not to enter the fifth floor.
Not long after Ling Tianhe left,
a young attendant dressed in Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower's uniform came up from downstairs.
Su Chen's eyes flickered slightly, but he pretended not to notice and leaned back on the couch to doze.
The attendant entered the room.
He went straight to Su Chen's door and pushed it open.
He seemed to have no intention of hiding his arrival.
Su Chen opened his eyes and looked at the newcomer. "You're not actually from Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower, are you?"
"Tower Lord Su, I've come on behalf of our madam to invite you to meet with her."
An elderly woman's voice came from the attendant's mouth.
The voice was completely at odds with his appearance. He must have been in disguise.
The man watched Su Chen, a trace of doubt in his eyes. Both Su Chen's manner and his voice were far too calm.
"Your madam?"
Su Chen's eyes sharpened.
"Our madam is from Changhen Palace. If Tower Lord Su wants to take control of Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower, cooperating with our madam would be your best choice."
The attendant flicked a letter from his hand. It landed on the table in front of Su Chen.
Su Chen glanced at the letter.
At that moment, the young attendant sprang through the window and landed on the roof of a nearby building.
Lightly touching down on the roof, he quickly disappeared.
Su Chen studied the letter, his eyes narrowing slightly.
He opened it.
The message was brief: in the city, Ziyun Lake, boat number fifteen, eight o'clock that evening.
"Changhen Palace? A madam? Could it be the woman behind Yuchun Courtyard?"
Su Chen wondered.
Changhen Palace's Lingnan Commandery branch was one of the Ten Great Sects in Lingnan.
The organization controlled a fifth of the flower houses in Lingnan Commandery, and its wealth and intelligence network were formidable.
Su Chen had learned a few things over the past several days and knew that Yuchun Courtyard belonged to Changhen Palace.
"What do they want with me?"
Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower and Yuchun Courtyard were rivals to some extent, even if only behind the scenes.
"Could they be hoping to use me to swallow up Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower's intelligence network in Qingcheng City?"
Su Chen mused.
"I'll meet this madam from Changhen Palace and see what she has in mind."
With a Refining Soul Realm expert like Bai Tianyu by his side, and his own strength being nothing to scoff at, there was no danger to worry about.
So Su Chen wanted to see what game she was playing.
At that moment, on the street,
Mo Beiming, dressed in a black robe, was heading toward Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower.
A powerhouse like him had no need to conceal himself.
He intended to kill Ling Tianhe in front of everyone.
Killing Ling Tianhe would make Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower feel the threat and hand over the Kongming mine obediently.
Ling Tianhe received word at once that Mo Beiming was on his way to Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower.
His expression shifted between light and shadow.
"Could the Lei Family have hired Mo Beiming to deal with Golden Wind Fine Rain Tower?"
Ling Tianhe wondered.
Then he came through the secret passage and entered Su Chen's room.
"Mo Beiming is coming. Who do you think he's after?"
Su Chen asked.
"Based on my analysis, he may be here to kill me. The Lei Family believes I hired someone to kill Lei Ao!"
Ling Tianhe said.
Lei Ao had come to see him twice, and after the second visit, someone had cut off his head. Who else would the Lei Family suspect?
At that thought, he grew tense.
His strength hadn't even reached the Innate Late Stage, while his opponent was at the Mid-stage Spirit Refining level.
He probably wouldn't last three moves against him.
"Don't worry. Someone will help you when the time comes."
Seeing Ling Tianhe's nervous expression, Su Chen spoke up.
Su Chen decided to have Bai Tianyu reveal himself and step in.
Elsewhere,
in an underground chamber beneath a residence in Qingcheng City,
Qin Hao was immersed up to his waist in a pool of blood.
The blood in the pool ate into his skin, seeped into his body, and fused with his blood and bones.
Pain twisted his face into a grimace.
Hiss, hiss!
As time passed, a crimson glow rose from Qin Hao's body, sending out a wave of heat.
After a while,
Qin Hao opened his eyes and sighed. "I'm just a little short of breaking through to the Spirit Refining Realm."
Before you continue