Chapter 21: The Faction Opens
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Jiang Rong looked at Dantai Qingrun, who was speaking his mind with ease, and suddenly felt a sense of relief, "I remember when you first took up your post, you were particularly rash, nothing like the clear-headed and patient person you are now."
Dantai Qingrun was startled, then he realized what was being said and replied with some helplessness, "Uncle Rong, you're starting again."
Jiang Rong had actually been prepared to agree to Lu Qingshan's request for cooperation from the beginning.
If Dantai Qingrun could think of it, how could he not have considered it?
The reason he raised so many points was, in fact, to guide Dantai Qingrun to make the decision to cooperate with Lu Qingshan on his own.
——Even though he was older in years, the Tower Master of Yuanshan Tower was Dantai Qingrun, not Jiang Rong.
The only person who could make decisions was Dantai Qingrun.
Jiang Rong did not want, nor would he, upstage the master.
"Should I let that young man in now?"
Dantai Qingrun nodded.
With a flick of Jiang Rong's sleeve, the black mist that filled the room instantly dissipated.
After lifting the soundproofing seal.
"You may come in," said Jiang Rong, opening the door and speaking to Lu Qingshan, who stood outside.
Lu Qingshan followed Jiang Rong back into the room.
"How do you want to cooperate?" Dantai Qingrun raised an eyebrow and got straight to the point, "What do you want?"
Lu Qingshan thought for a moment before asking, "The Blood Corpse True Man, you've caught him, haven't you?"
Jiang Rong's voice was heavy, "Based on the information you provided, we apprehended him quickly, and he is currently imprisoned in the Prison Warden Office of Yuanshan Tower."
"I want the Blood Corpse True Man," Lu Qingshan said in a methodical tone, looking at Dantai Qingrun's cool face.
"We are still interrogating the Blood Corpse True Man. He has yet to say anything. Once he discloses the information he knows, we can hand him over to you," Jiang Rong interjected.
"I want him now," Lu Qingshan's tone was firm, unmoved by Jiang Rong's words.
Dantai Qingrun's eyes shimmered, watching Lu Qingshan, wondering what was on his mind.
Under Dantai Qingrun's gaze, Lu Qingshan remained composed.
Finally, a gleam of insight flashed in Dantai Qingrun's eyes, and he lightly tapped the table with his fingertip, "The Blood Corpse True Man was captured through the information you provided. If you want him, he's yours!"
"However..." Dantai Qingrun's brows furrowed slightly as he spoke indifferently, "I want to know, why are you so eager to have this Demon Cultivator? What are you planning to do with him?"
Lu Qingshan replied nonchalantly, "I merely want his life."
Dantai Qingrun gave Lu Qingshan a meaningful look but did not dwell on the matter of the Blood Corpse True Man any further.
Lu Qingshan pondered and then said, "As I said at the beginning, the information on the Blood Corpse True Man was a gift for our first meeting, given to you. Now that I am asking you for the Blood Corpse True Man again, I naturally wouldn't let you suffer a loss for nothing. I will give you another piece of information as an exchange."
Hearing Lu Qingshan's words, a sparkle of light shone in Dantai Qingrun's eyes.
"Qi Yuan, the Qi Supervisor of Zhenjiang Prefecture, is currently in Yuanshan City as well, isn't he?" Lu Qingshan inquired.
"The Qi Supervisor is a Spirit Cultivator of Heavenly Secret Pavillion, his methods reach the skies, and his movements are always secretive, beyond the knowledge of ordinary people. I'm beginning to believe that you know much more than we have imagined," Jiang Rong said, every word deliberate, as he looked at Lu Qingshan.
Lu Qingshan didn't confirm or deny, "Heavenly Secret Pavillion is one of the seven great Taoist sects, and it has the closest relationship with the Great Xia Imperial Clan. Likewise, as an organization under the Great Xia Imperial Clan, the Mountain Tower maintains regular cooperative exchanges with Heavenly Secret Pavillion. If someone in Yuanshan City would know of the Qi Supervisor's whereabouts, I believe that only you, Dantai Tower Master, would."
Dantai Qingrun did not deny, "Indeed, half a month ago, the Qi Supervisor discovered an ominous Blood Pool near Yuanshan City through the sub-mirror of the Heavenly Secret Mirror. Feeling uneasy about it, he came personally to Yuanshan City to investigate. He also approached us at Yuanshan Tower, asking us to assist him fully in the investigation around Yuanshan City, but so far, nothing has been found.
The Qi Supervisor used the Heavenly Secret Mirror to locate the Blood Pool near Yuanshan City, and with the extensive manpower of Yuanshan Tower, we searched but didn't find a trace. This matter is extremely peculiar.
We are all very concerned that the Netherworld is planning some grand scheme against Yuanshan City."
Looking at Lu Qingshan's calm expression, a trace of complexity crossed Dantai Qingrun's face, "Do you know something?"
Lu Qingshan nodded and said frankly, "Yes, I not only know the location of the Blood Pool you are searching for.
But, I also know that the real target of the Netherworld's schemes is not Yuanshan City, as you suspect, but rather Qi Yuan, the Qi Supervisor... or more precisely, the sub-mirror of his Heavenly Secret Mirror."
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Dantai Qingrun's face flashed with a trace of shock and bewilderment as he said, "What do you mean by that?"
"The Netherworld is planning to design a plot to seize the Heavenly Secret Mirror's shard from Qi Yuan's possession, and the time should be the fifteenth of July, when Qi Yuan once again uses the Heavenly Secret Mirror to 'Observe Heaven,'" Lu Qingshan stated with certainty.
Why would the Netherworld wait until the fifteenth of July to act, to snatch the Heavenly Secret Mirror's shard from Qi Yuan's hands?
Recalling the features of the Heavenly Secret Mirror's shard, Lu Qingshan understood these critical points.
The Heavenly Secret Mirror's shard must have already been refined by Qi Yuan into his personal Magic Artifact, and most of the time, it resides within Qi Yuan's Dantian.
To want to snatch the Heavenly Secret Mirror's shard, there were only two methods.
One, kill Qi Yuan and then take the mirror.
Two, wait for Qi Yuan to use the Heavenly Secret Mirror's shard actively and then take the opportunity to snatch it.
In the historical records, Qi Yuan only lost the Heavenly Secret Mirror on the fifteenth of July; he was still very much alive.
Clearly, the Netherworld must have chosen the second method.
Since the Heavenly Secret Mirror's shard provides no enhancement to combat, Qi Yuan would not use it unless employing the skill of Observing Heaven under normal circumstances.
When Qi Yuan first discovered the existence of the Blood Pool on the first of July, he utilized Observing Heaven to investigate the Blood Pool.
If he fails to find the Blood Pool in Yuanshan City all the way through, Qi Yuan would inevitably use Observing Heaven again to search for the Blood Pool's location.
The cooldown period for the Observing Heaven skill is fifteen natural days.
The time Qi Yuan could use Observing Heaven again would be the fifteenth of July!
Therefore, it is quite evident that the Netherworld planned to snatch the mirror right when Qi Yuan used Observing Heaven for the second time.
Jiang Rong, standing aside, could hardly believe it, "How could you possibly know this?"
Given their understanding of the Netherworld, such significant plotting would most definitely not be leaked easily.
Yet, not only did Lu Qingshan know the inner workings of the plan, but he could even pinpoint the exact timing of the action as if he were a participant. This filled Jiang Rong with doubts and suspicion as well.
Lu Qingshan laughed lightly, "My only responsibility is to provide the intelligence. As for the source of the intelligence, I'd rather not disclose that.
Whether you believe it or not is entirely up to you."
After a moment of hesitation,
"Where is the location of the Blood Pool?" Dantai Qingrun's cold gaze fixed on Lu Qingshan as he asked sharply.
"Do you have a map of Yuanshan City?" Lu Qingshan inquired.
Dantai Qingrun nodded, and a piece of silk cloth appeared in his hand out of nowhere, on which all the terrain and locations around Yuanshan City were detailedly depicted.
A very detailed map.
Lu Qingshan took the map from Dantai Qingrun's hand, spread it out on the table, and lightly pointed to a particular spot on the map.
"This is the location of the Blood Pool," Lu Qingshan revealed without concealment, directly indicating the Blood Pool's location: "The Blood Pool is concealed by a high-quality Illusion Array, which is why you couldn't find it. The reason Qi Yuan could easily discover the Blood Pool initially was that the Blood Pool was merely bait—a bait intentionally exposed by the Netherworld to lure Qi Yuan to Yuanshan City. The Netherworld's real target was Qi Yuan's Heavenly Secret Mirror's shard."
"I have already provided the information in exchange for the Blood Corpse's intel so...."
After a moment of silence, Jiang Rong finally nodded, "I will have my people take you to where the Blood Corpse is confined."
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"You have officially initiated the alliance with Zhenjiang Tower."
"You have now established a cooperative relationship with Yuanshan Tower (a division of Zhenjiang Tower)."
"Yuanshan Tower organization favorability increased by 50."
"Zhenjiang Tower organization favorability increased by 5."
"Yuanshan Tower: Amiable (50) —— [Initial Cooperation]."
"Zhenjiang Tower: Amiable (5) —— [Yuanshan Tower Collaborator]."
In "Nine Heavens," there are eight levels of faction favorability.
From highest to lowest, they are as follows: Worship (above 2000), Reverence (500 to 2000), Enthusiasm (200 to 499), Amiable (0 to 199), Indifferent (-1 to -199), Aversion (-200 to -499), Loathing (-500 to -2000), Hatred (below -2000).