"My lord, after we spread that information, the Five Mountains Sword Alliance and the Sun Moon Demon Cult, which had been about to call a temporary truce, started fighting even harder."
"The Five Mountains Sword Alliance wiped out another four Branch Altars of the Sun Moon Demon Cult, but its disciples suffered heavy casualties."
"Yue Buqun of the Huashan Sect took in a new disciple. Supposedly, he's the former young escort chief of the Fuwei Escort Agency in Great Song, with an exceptional talent for swordsmanship."
"The other major martial sects are all watching from the sidelines. Only Fang Zheng of Northern Shaolin said the two sides should sit down and talk things through-better to untie the knot of enmity than tighten it, avoid plunging the martial world into misery, and so on."
"It's harder to gather information on the Northern Beggars' Gang, the Moving Flower Palace, the Wudang Sect, and the like. The Moving Flower Palace only has women, so we can't infiltrate it. The men aren't willing to get close to beggars either-the stench is too strong. The Wudang Sect has been very quiet. Almost none of them come down the mountain."
"We have heard that the Golden Coin Gang has been very active lately. Its leader, Shangguan Jinhong, seems to have perfected his martial arts and is going around bringing martial experts under his command."
Wang Wu stood before Lin Lang, carefully reporting the intelligence he had gathered from the martial world.
The men of the Thousand-household Office had all been sent out, focusing their efforts on gathering information about several martial sects.
They did not necessarily need to infiltrate those sects. Sometimes, the taverns and teahouses nearby yielded plenty of useful information.
When it came to spying and passing on intelligence, the Jinyiwei were professionals.
Lin Lang nodded in satisfaction. "Well done. Remember to focus on gathering intelligence about the Five Mountains Sword Alliance, the Sun Moon Demon Cult, and Northern Shaolin. You must report on them to me every day."
The Sun Moon Demon Cult and the Five Mountains Sword Alliance would certainly keep fighting. Things would not settle down for at least a few months, and by then, Ren Woxing should be nearly ready.
He would let the two major factions wear each other down first, then lend a hand and wipe out the Five Mountains Sword Alliance completely.
With the Sun Moon Demon Cult as his foundation, he would build up his strength and gradually take control of the entire martial world of Great Ming.
It suddenly occurred to him that this approach seemed to carry some hidden risks.
If the Sun Moon Demon Cult forcibly destroyed the Five Mountains Sword Alliance, it would suffer considerable losses too. How would it then deal with top-tier sects such as Northern Shaolin and the Golden Coin Gang?
"I'll have to drag those sects into the water too. There's no reason the Sun Moon Demon Cult and the Five Mountains Sword Alliance should fight to the death while the other sects watch the show."
"Wang Wu, come here. Go spread some more information through the martial world."
Once he had made the arrangements, Lin Lang stood and left the Thousand-household Office.
He had been in Pingyang Prefecture for several days and still had not listened to the local songs. He ought to give them a try and offer the girls some guidance on their artistic cultivation.
While he was at it, he would discuss the monthly payments with the madam of the Fragrant Pavilion, the largest establishment in the city. Though he was not a Thousand-household, he still had to secure benefits for his brothers at the Thousand-household Office.
Still, since he was currently overseeing the Thousand-household Office, surely he was entitled to collect the Thousand-household's share too?
"Have you heard? Shangguan Jinhong, the leader of the Golden Coin Gang, wants to unite the martial world of Great Ming. He's recruiting experts everywhere."
In the corner of a tavern, a man in blue was sharing the news with a man in gray beside him. Though he kept his voice low, the people at several nearby tables heard him.
"What? Has the Golden Coin Gang gone mad? Northern Shaolin and the Wudang Sect are the Pillars of the Martial World in Great Ming. Since when does the Golden Coin Gang get to call the shots?" The man in gray looked incredulous.
"That's what you don't know. Reverend Zhang is in seclusion now, and the Wudang Sect rarely involves itself in martial-world affairs. As for Northern Shaolin, don't even mention it. They can't even handle the Mount Song Sect."
They did not even have a mountain to themselves, yet they had the nerve to call themselves a Pillar of the Martial World?
"No, if you ask me, the Mount Song Sect is the strongest. It leads the Five Mountains Sword Alliance and has been beating the Sun Moon Demon Cult back step by step. A cousin of mine belongs to the Mount Song Sect. Alliance Leader Zuo doesn't just want to be the Five Mountains Alliance Leader-he wants to lead the entire martial world," the man in gray said loudly.
The two tossed around wild speculation for a while. Noticing that more and more people were listening, they paid for their wine and quickly left.
After passing through several alleys, the man in gray tore the false beard off his face. "Chief Banner Officer Wang, did I play along well enough?"
Wang Wu, the man in blue, shook his head. "You were too loud just now. Remember to keep your voice down next time. Don't worry about those people not hearing you. Their ears work perfectly well."
"And remember to drink a few more bowls of wine next time. Make it seem as though you drank too much and let it slip by accident. Got that?"
These were all instructions Lin Lang had given him: spread the information "inadvertently," while ensuring no one could trace it back to them.
There was no need to speak too loudly during their discussion. They only needed to put a little extra emphasis on certain words.
Northern Shaolin, for instance, or leader of the martial world, or uniting the martial world.
Someone would naturally listen closely and pass the information on.
It was even better if they could not hear everything clearly. Those drunken martial artists would add their own guesses when telling others, and the rumors would grow more outlandish with every retelling.
Having spread the information, Wang Wu rode away as well. He had heard that Lord Lin had been visiting the Fragrant Pavilion to listen to songs quite often lately. If he went there to report his progress, knowing Lord Lin's temperament, he would surely be invited to enjoy a song too.
Northern Shaolin, Mahavira Hall.
Fang Zheng rolled his prayer beads through his fingers as he listened to his disciple's report.
"Understood. You may go."
Zuo Lengchan actually wanted the Mount Song Sect to replace Northern Shaolin as the Pillar of the Martial World in Great Ming?
Hmph!
How many years had Northern Shaolin existed, and how many had the Mount Song Sect? Though Zuo Lengchan was something of a martial prodigy and had brought the Mount Song Sect ever greater prosperity over the years, Northern Shaolin had never taken it seriously.
If Northern Shaolin had not always maintained an image of compassion, the Mount Song Sect would never have had a chance to grow. It would have been driven out long ago.
Northern Shaolin could not act against the Mount Song Sect, but other sects could-such as the Sun Moon Demon Cult, which had long held a deep grudge against the Five Mountains Sword Alliance.
It seemed he would have to find a way to make the Sun Moon Demon Cult and the Mount Song Sect fight a bloody battle to the bitter end.
At the Golden Coin Gang, Shangguan Jinhong listened to Jing Wuming's report and smiled confidently. "I never intended to unite the martial world of Great Ming, but now that I think about it, it sounds rather interesting."
"Take some men and keep recruiting experts to strengthen our Golden Coin Gang."
"Let the Five Mountains Sword Alliance, the Sun Moon Demon Cult, and the others fight first. Once a victor emerges, we'll make our move and reap twice the results for half the effort."
As he polished the Dragon and Phoenix Golden Rings in his hands, Shangguan Jinhong brimmed with fighting spirit.
Back when Bai Xiaosheng compiled the Weapons Ranking, he had placed Shangguan Jinhong only second, simply because he had once lost to Old Man Tianji.
But so many years had passed, and his strength had advanced further. The day he ranked first would be the day he united the martial world.
At the Mount Song Sect, Zuo Lengchan listened to his disciple recount the rumors circulating through the martial world, his face filled with shock and anger.
His plan to merge the Five Mountains Sword Sects, then use their combined strength to destroy the Sun Moon Demon Cult and eventually become leader of the martial world-had people discovered it so soon?
And it had actually been leaked by a disciple of his own Mount Song Sect. He had to find out who it was.
Still, since word had already spread, the other sects of the Five Mountains Sword Sects must know by now. This was a good opportunity to sound out their attitudes.
If they all agreed, things would be easy enough. If they refused, they could not blame him for being ruthless.
He was doing this to eradicate the Sun Moon Demon Cult. Anyone who sought to accomplish great things had to make sacrifices!
As long as those sacrificed were not members of the Mount Song Sect, and not Zuo Lengchan himself, that was fine.
Northern Shaolin must have heard the news as well and might make a move. He had to prepare against it.
"Someone, investigate who has gone down the mountain recently and met outsiders alone. Bring them to me. Kill anyone who resists, without mercy!"
Before you continue