I Became the Intelligence Hub? The Two-Faced Insect Spirit!

Inside the quiet chamber.

Jiang Tu sat alone behind the table and spread open his palm.

The little emerald-green grasshopper hopped from his palm onto the table. Its antennae swayed gently as it lifted its head and stared straight at him, likely confirming his identity.

Jiang Tu also studied its every movement.

The evolving Land Spirit had landed vividly before him. The sight truly carried a dreamlike quality.

Man and insect stared at each other for several breaths. The Insect Spirit's belly suddenly swelled, growing larger and larger, before abruptly shrinking. It opened its mouth and spat... a neatly folded letter flew from its mouth and landed on the table.

Pfft! Thud.

Jiang Tu: "..."

He looked at the letter on the table and fell silent for a moment.

Huh?

So... this was not a native Land Spirit that had come to acknowledge him as its master of its own accord?

It was actually a message-bearing Insect Spirit that had already acknowledged someone else as its master, yet had run over to report to him midway through its journey?

There was such a move?

That was what he thought! Xiaopei County was not some gathering place for the Agricultural Path. Logically speaking, it should have been impossible for a Land Spirit to be born here. This Insect Spirit had clearly taken a turn while delivering a letter and been drawn to him!

Why had he never realized that Insect Spirits possessed the potential to be such two-faced traitors?

Not loyal at all! It turned around and joined the cold noodle faction!

Could it be... that all special spirit creatures connected to Sequences were naturally drawn to him, the Lord of the Great Dao?

At first glance, that seemed like a good thing. But when he thought it over carefully, one or two isolated cases were fine—but what about in the long run? If hundreds or thousands of Insect Spirits, or even more Land Spirits of other kinds, all came running to him one after another, would his little courtyard not become a Land Spirit nest?

Even if he did not want to expose himself, he would have no choice but to do so!

No, he needed to think of a reliable way to reject these spirit creatures' allegiance—or find a way to hide all the Land Spirits that came running here midway, so outsiders would not discover them.

For now... he lowered his head to look at the letter on the table, then at the Insect Spirit.

After spitting out the letter, the little fellow lay to one side, its tiny belly rising and falling as it panted. As it looked up at him, Jiang Tu inexplicably sensed a hint of bootlicking flattery from it. It was as though it were saying: Did I do well? Praise me, praise me!

You betrayed your master, and you still wanted me to praise you?

Mm, it truly deserved praise. Well done!

He picked up the letter... It was not good to peek at someone else's correspondence, but who told the Insect Spirit to deliver it here?

He was a softhearted person. He did not want to see the Insect Spirit make the trip for nothing, so the letter was his now.

Let the Insect Spirit take the blame!

Rustle—

Jiang Tu unfolded the letter with a clear conscience and swept his gaze over it. His pupils suddenly constricted.

It was a letter written by Qin Niangzi!

Since their parting after the Strange Calamity in Dajiang County, ten years had flown by. Most of what he knew about Qin Niangzi and Xiao Tuyun came from the feedback records of the Sequence Golden Codex, but those had been nothing more than hollow lines of text and strings of accumulated karma values.

Yet what he held in his hands now was a genuine letter. The handwriting was neat and simple, suffused with sincerity.

In a daze, he could even recall Qin Niangzi's appearance and mannerisms from her handwriting. Back then, she had merely been an ordinary village woman, possessing a village woman's warmth and diligence... As the saying went, handwriting reflected the person. The saying was true.

The letter was addressed to Wang Congyun.

It began with pleasantries, asking whether Daoist Priest Wang was in good health.

Then came news of the Qin Household. Thanks to Daoist Priest Wang's continued rescue of Farmers outside and his sending people to Green Mountain Lake, the Qin Household had now taken shape. They had over a hundred Farmers and more than twenty Field Stewards.

The letter also made particular mention of the Insect Spirits and Snake Spirits. It said that these two kinds of Land Spirits had been born of heaven and earth, arising at Green Mountain Lake to protect the region. Each performed its own duty: the Insect Spirits carried messages, while the Snake Spirits guarded the fields. They got along exceedingly well with the Qin Household.

Should he encounter an Insect Spirit, he was not to alarm it. If he had a reply, he could also safely entrust it to the Insect Spirit to carry back.

In the middle of the letter, Qin Xian's tone clearly changed. She asked after Daoist Priest Wang's recent circumstances and whether the Daoist Sect had shown any unusual movements.

The letter read: "Daoist Priest, while acting outside, you must never sacrifice yourself merely to preserve the seeds of our Agricultural Path. Caution must come first in all things... The Qin Household is no longer the scattered rabble of only a few people that it once was. The lives of a hundred people arose from the Daoist Priest's kind intentions, and everyone worries for your safety. Thus, should a true change arise, there remains a retreat to follow. Daoist Priest, you may come to Green Mountain Lake to speak with us and hide from the turmoil outside."

Several pages of Agricultural Path experience and insights were attached to the end of the letter, organized with great clarity. She hoped Wang Congyun would also cultivate diligently.

"If an opportunity arises in the future... perhaps you may abandon the Dao and turn to farming, seeking another way out. The Daoist Sect's path now appears fraught with peril, and the secrets behind it are unfathomably deep. Daoist Priest, you must take utmost care."

Jiang Tu read the letter from beginning to end twice, filled with countless emotions and unable to suppress a sigh.

Seeing the changes at Green Mountain Lake in the Golden Tome was one thing; reading a letter from the head of the Qin Household was another. Every word and every line let him feel Qin Xian's earnestness and expectations. She was not merely exchanging a few casual words—she was doing her utmost to pave a retreat for Wang Congyun.

And what Wang Congyun had done over the past ten years had far exceeded Jiang Tu's expectations!

At first, when he saw Wang Congyun saving people, he had somewhat felt that it might have been an impulsive decision born from youthful vigor. Yet he had never expected that, after so many years, Wang Congyun would remain consistent from beginning to end, his original intent unchanged.

The number of "Farmers" who had survived through his hands had already reached over a hundred. It could be said that without him, the present prosperity of the Green Mountain Lake Qin Household would not exist!

If their positions were exchanged, Jiang Tu asked himself whether he could do the same. The more people he saved, the greater the danger to himself. He was the sort who preserved himself when poor; as for whether he would help the world when prosperous, he was not sure. He was not prosperous yet—he had merely taken the first step upon the Great Dao.

Wang Congyun had risen from humble beginnings yet could still do this. Even if it was to leave himself a way out, deeds were judged, not intentions. This boy had the makings of a sage!

He truly regarded this matter as his life's mission. He had become a loyal guardian of the Sequence, forcibly tearing open a gap beneath the Daoist Sect's very nose and pulling the firewood from under the cauldron!

Jiang Tu folded the letter again and stuffed it back into the Insect Spirit's mouth.

"Keep delivering it! Go find Wang Congyun. I still want to see the reply and learn how little Daoist Wang has been doing. The updates cannot stop!"

He flicked his finger—

Whoosh!

The Insect Spirit swallowed the letter, circled the table twice to identify its direction, then drilled downward and transformed into a streak of green light that fled into the earth.

Jiang Tu pondered for a long while, thoughtful, his expression subtle.

The Insect Spirit's decision to pledge itself to him midway broadened his horizons and showed him an entirely new possibility.

If every Insect Spirit was instinctively drawn to him first whenever it went out to deliver a message... then it was not as simple as merely peeking at a letter.

He would become the core of this Insect Spirit Intelligence Network. He could inspect every piece of information transmitted through Insect Spirits before deciding whether to let it pass. He could keep what was useful, cut off what was dangerous, and even add something to valuable messages before releasing them.

After all, no one knew that the letters had passed through his hands!

As the Daoist Sect's Agricultural Path flourished, Land Spirits would surely be born there in the near future as well... The movements of Insect Spirits would then be closely tied to it! The messages they carried would certainly involve countless secrets of the Daoist Sect!

The development of Green Mountain Lake and Wang Congyun's whereabouts were the same!

All this information had originally been far too distant from him. He had been worrying over how to obtain more sources of intelligence, and the Insect Spirit's appearance was like a pillow arriving just as he grew sleepy!

This was the true benefit of being a Sequence pioneer!

More than twenty years had hurried past since the beginning of the Great Dao. In the future, even more benefits would likely be fulfilled one by one...!

Cloudshadow Mountain, Lingjiang Temple.

Inside the rear hall.

Dong Daozi sat facing another True Person of the Daoist Sect.

The man had a gaunt face, prominent cheekbones, and a long wisp of beard beneath his chin. His Daoist name was Qing Shuzi.

Between them sat a furnace trailing wisps of blue smoke. Pale-golden, supremely pure Daoist True Astral Force churned above the flames like dragons and serpents, white mist billowing as though they were discussing the Dao and contesting their arts.

Winds surged and clouds roiled, swallowing mountains and rivers.

Creak.

At that moment, the door was pushed open, and a slightly dark, lean young woman entered. She wore the Daoist robe of an inner disciple, her steps steady, her brows carrying some of a farmer's solid heaviness. Her features were fairly delicate. She was none other than Li Xiaobing, the "Field Steward" carefully nurtured by the Daoist Sect.

She stopped before Qing Shuzi and bowed.

"Disciple greets Master and Martial Uncle."

Qing Shuzi slowly opened his eyes and withdrew his domineering True Astral Force. His aura gradually calmed, yet nothing was lost from his bearing as an eminent master.

"Disciple, I have summoned you today because there is an important matter to entrust to you..."

"After inner disciples of our Daoist Sect receive the Dao, they all descend the mountain to gain experience and temper their Dao hearts. Though you were born of the Agricultural Path and differ somewhat from our Daoist Sect disciples, and need not undergo the empowerment of receiving the Dao, you have nevertheless reached the limit of the Second Realm of the Agricultural Path as a Field Steward. You have made no progress for five full years. Why not descend the mountain for experience and temper your Dao heart? Perhaps the day you break through will then come as naturally as water flowing into a channel!"

Li Xiaobing had long anticipated this beneath her lowered eyelids. She respectfully replied, "This disciple obeys Master's command. May I ask what the training mission is...?"

Qing Shuzi looked toward Dong Daozi.

Only then did Dong Daozi let out a deep, measured chuckle.

"My disappointing disciple, Wang Congyun, has been on his second descent from the mountain for training for a long time. Counting on my fingers, it will soon be his eleventh year. This child is too sincere, too honest. His heart is wholly devoted to the Daoist Sect."

"Every time this poor Daoist tells him that he may return to the mountain to receive the Dao, he always insists on remaining below the mountain to continue contributing to our Daoist Sect, obediently carrying out every instruction without a shred of divided loyalty."

"As his master, I am simply worried that he may have been bullied below the mountain, or that he may be facing some difficulty."

His tone was gentle and persuasive, without the slightest hint of suspicion.

"Therefore, your mission on this journey will be to stay by Congyun's side. If he has a task, accompany him in resolving it. If he has difficulties, lend him a hand. If he displays any abnormalities... report them promptly to the sect, so that I, his master, may better care for my disciple."

Li Xiaobing's heart tightened.

Follow him?

That made it sound pleasant enough.

This was clearly an order for her to keep watch over Wang Congyun, to monitor him without leaving his side.

They suspected him? So being too loyal and obedient to their orders was no good either?

Her expression remained unchanged as she bowed. "Yes, this disciple understands! This disciple will certainly devote herself fully to following Senior Brother Wang's side and will not dare to be negligent."

She turned to leave, but Qing Shuzi suddenly spoke. His lofty, distant voice poured straight into her ears.

It instantly made her feel as though thorns pricked her back, her heart and courage turning cold.

"Xiaobing."

Qing Shuzi's gaze was calm and still, his bearing as tranquil as an ancient well. Yet behind him, the hidden grandeur of a towering Great Dao seemed to press down.

"Do you still remember those Agricultural Path fellow disciples who, in order for you to achieve your present advancement, did not hesitate to sacrifice their cultivation and lives? While you are below the mountain, remember their past sacrifices at all times. And remember the assistance your sect has given you."

Li Xiaobing's expression changed instantly! Her face turned white as paper! She seemed to have recalled some immense terror...

Thud!

Her knees gave way, and she fell to her knees on the spot. Beads of sweat rolled down from her forehead as she answered, trembling, "Yes... This disciple has never dared to forget! This disciple belongs to the Daoist Sect in life, and will be the Daoist Sect's ghost in death!"

"Very good. You may leave."