Chapter 524: I Know Wang Ping

Lou Xiu found it difficult to impose anything on the two, given their casual sightseeing. Being overly concerned would be inappropriate and could raise suspicion, as their acquaintance hadn't reached the level of true friendship. Even his current visit required the pretense of worrying something had happened. Once he confirmed they were fine, he feigned reassurance that they were with the proprietress and departed.

Shi Chun and his companion, having re-entered the Zhu Lang Pavilion, indeed left various parties feeling somewhat helpless. It wasn't that they truly had no way to deal with them, but rather that no one wanted to create a commotion that would attract attention from other factions. Unless absolutely necessary, no one would act recklessly, as none possessed the power to do so. They could only assign people to keep a close watch.

On the grassy slopes, amidst the waves of wind-swept grass, Zhu Xin soared out again, landing before Qiu Ben to salute and report. "Master, someone just made contact again with the two who have secret ties to the rogue Hua Chong. After leaving the city, the new contact headed towards Shen Mountain."

"Shen Mountain?" Qiu Ben exclaimed in surprise. He wondered what Shen Mountain's intention was with this move. The entire Yaoshan City was Shen Mountain's territory, so was such secrecy really necessary?

Zhu Xin continued, "Your disciple has already contacted the personnel stationed at Shen Mountain, instructing them to go to the exit and observe who these people are."

Qiu Ben worried that relying solely on his disciples at Shen Mountain might lead to complications. He said gravely, "You keep a close watch on Shi Chun and his companion here. Report any changes to me immediately. I'll return to the mountain to check."

"Understood," Zhu Xin replied.

Qiu Ben left most of his men to assist here, while he himself quickly took two people and returned to Shen Mountain.

Meanwhile, with the city guard, Lou Xiu had just returned to the inner court. As soon as he relayed the news about Shi Chun and his companion upwards, a knock sounded at the door. He immediately put away his 'parent-child talisman' and called out, "Enter."

Tu Bicheng pushed the door open, quickly closed it behind him, rounded the screen, and hurried to Lou Xiu. After saluting, he leaned in and reported in a low voice. His report was largely identical to what Zhu Xin had reported to Qiu Ben, indicating the same situation.

The people from Extreme Fire Sect were watching Hua Chong. Meanwhile, Lou Xiu's side was observing the observers; what Extreme Fire Sect discovered also fell within Lou Xiu's scope of observation.

"The people on the mountain are watching Extreme Fire Sect?" Lou Xiu muttered to himself in confusion for a moment. Then he asked, "Can you tell which faction they belong to?"

Tu Bicheng shook his head. "I don't know; I've never seen them before."

Lou Xiu waved his hand, dismissing him. He then relayed this information upwards again.

This matter quickly alarmed Jiang You'er on the mountain. Obtaining results wasn't difficult.

Jiang You'er, having grasped the relevant situation, urgently rushed to the Northern District hub. He entered an alchemy room and found Huang Ye, the Northern Mountain Commander, who was busy tinkering with bottles and jars. After saluting, he leaned in and reported, "The person Lou Xiu mentioned has been found; they are not from the mountain."

"Not from the mountain?" Huang Ye turned around in surprise. "It can't be someone from the Extreme Fire Sect itself, can it?"

Jiang You'er quickly explained, "It's a bit incredible to say, but it's someone from Granny Qi."

"Her?" Huang Ye was considerably surprised this time. He immediately put down the jar in his hand. He paced back and forth in the alchemy room, frowning for a long while. After a long time, he still didn't understand. "Why is she watching Shi Chun? Could she also be from a certain lineage?"

Jiang You'er whispered from the side, "It seems her sudden arrival was no coincidence."

Huang Ye walked to the large alchemy furnace and placed his hand on its handle. "Arrange for people to keep a close watch on the Bai clan members on the mountain." "Understood," Jiang You'er replied.

Outside the tranquil guesthouse on the small hill, a person arrived unhurriedly. Clad in bamboo-green robes, with brown hair and a mature, sharply defined, stern face, it was precisely Po Yuan, who had come upon being summoned.

Huang Lang, Qiu Ben's senior disciple, was already waiting for him at the entrance. This seemingly refined, polite, and gentle disciple first greeted him, then extended a hand, inviting the other to follow him.

Upon reaching the main hall of the principal courtyard, Qiu Ben did not stand on ceremony with Po Yuan. He pointed in a direction and directly asked, "Who are the people living on the two mountain peaks over there? My disciples went to observe the aura there, but were blocked from trespassing. What's going on?"

These were all excuses. In reality, his disciples were tracking the person who had made contact in the city and then went up the mountain, and they encountered obstruction on that very peak.

Po Yuan pondered for a moment, then said, "Indeed, it's not good to trespass there. That's the Bai clan from Fenglin Continent. Clan Head Granny Qi has personally come. The Goddess was raised by her. How could her dwelling place be casually disturbed? Shen Mountain is vast; you won't miss out on observing or gathering qi just because of one mountain peak. There's no need to act unreasonably."

"The Bai clan..." Qiu Ben murmured, deep in thought. He knew a little about this clan. What puzzled him was why the Bai clan was also targeting Shi Chun.

Seeing that there was nothing else, Po Yuan went to find a place in the courtyard to drink tea and await orders. Since the head of Extreme Fire Sect's Martial Hall had returned, it was natural for him to personally accompany him.

While drinking tea, he occasionally glanced towards the courtyard gate. The image of Qiu Ben suddenly changing his plans after hearing news of Wang Ping and his group descending the mountain, right at this gate, had been lingering in his mind. He was also secretly observing Qiu Ben, who occasionally appeared, and noticed that Qiu Ben was deep in thought. He himself was also repeatedly pondering something.

After a long while, he saw Qiu Ben again, standing with his hands behind his back under the eaves, gazing at the sky. He suddenly tilted his head back, draining the tea in his cup in one gulp, and rose to walk towards Qiu Ben.

Some things he couldn't easily do himself, or rather, things he felt somewhat powerless to accomplish on his own, and the resentment simmering within him that he couldn't vent—after repeated hesitation, he finally decided to try using an outsider's help.

As he reached the foot of the steps, Qiu Ben, who was not blind, also saw him. He watched as the other man ascended the steps, and then stood beside him. For a mere mountain patrol to dare stand side-by-side with him made him feel slightly displeased.

Po Yuan didn't wait for Qiu Ben to express his displeasure before asking, "Hall Master Qiu, are you very interested in Wang Ping?"

Qiu Ben was taken aback. He didn't know what this 'little demon' was babbling about, completely failing to understand. So he said indifferently, "Interested in Wang Ping? Who is Wang Ping?"

Po Yuan raised his chin towards the courtyard gate. "Earlier, Hall Master Qiu wanted to go to Beishan to observe the aura, but when you reached the entrance, you suddenly heard people outside discussing that two guests had gone down the mountain. So, Hall Master Qiu suddenly changed your mind, saying you needed to buy something, and then also went down the mountain. I later investigated and confirmed that those two guests who descended the mountain had previously stayed in the Beishan area where you intended to go. Could this be a coincidence?"

Qiu Ben's gaze instantly turned cold. He glared at the other man with a knife-like intensity from the corner of his eye. However, he quickly became puzzled. The other's words were largely correct, but what was this 'Wang Ping' about?

Sensing that the other person seemed to be in a state of partial understanding, he simply asked, "Are you saying one of those two people is named Wang Ping?"

Po Yuan replied, "I only know Wang Ping. I haven't seen the tall one before. I asked the person who cleaned their previous lodging, and they said his name is Gao He."

Qiu Ben understood. Shi Chun had used the alias Wang Ping, and Wu Jinliang had used the alias Gao He. Why did these two aliases sound somewhat familiar?

Before setting out, it was impossible for him not to have learned something about these two. In an instant, he understood why they sounded familiar: at the Heavenly Rain Meteorite Assembly, one was named Wang Sheng, and the other Gao Qiang.

So this time, they didn't even change their surnames for their aliases. 'Sheng' in one name became 'Ping,' and 'Qiang' in the other became 'He.' This implied they were trying to be much more low-key, but this method of being low-key was quite crude. Was their way of changing names a bit too lazy, as if they were uneducated and couldn't think of any other names?

What he was more curious about now was how Po Yuan knew Shi Chun. He immediately asked, "How do you know Wang Ping?" He didn't know if the other person knew Shi Chun's real identity, but he wasn't going to reveal it anyway.

Po Yuan said, "Something happened in Dazhi City earlier. Wang Ping originally worked as an odd-jobber in a library called 'Chaoyue Hall'..." "No..." As soon as the other person began speaking, Qiu Ben couldn't help but interrupt, "You mean he worked as an odd-jobber in a library?"

He was clearly somewhat incredulous. In terms of reputation, Shi Chun in the cultivation world might not be less renowned than him. With his current wealth, was it really necessary for him to work as an odd-jobber? He had heard from those in his sect who attended the grand assembly that the benefits he reaped just from their Extreme Fire Sect were immense. It seemed nine out of the ten major factions in the artifact-refining world had been thoroughly exploited by him.

Po Yuan observed his reaction and nodded slightly, saying, "It seems I wasn't mistaken; this Wang Ping indeed has another identity. His work as an odd-jobber at 'Chaoyue Hall' in Dazhi City isn't a secret; you can find out with a little inquiry. However, he has now left Chaoyue Hall and has been recruited as a shop assistant by 'Bai's Rice Shop.' You can also send someone to Dazhi City to verify this."

"Bai's Rice Shop..." Qiu Ben grasped the key point in his words. He repeated the name to reinforce his memory.

Po Yuan confirmed, "Exactly, Bai's Rice Shop. Does it sound a bit familiar? The guests you just inquired about on that mountain peak, the Bai clan—Bai's Rice Shop is an industry of the Bai clan."

Qiu Ben was instantly filled with doubt and surprise. He didn't understand. If Shi Chun and the Bai clan were working together, why were the Bai clan members secretly watching Shi Chun and his companion? To supervise them?

Po Yuan, observing his reaction, confirmed his own conjecture: they were indeed after Wang Ping and his group. He then added, "Several groups of guests arrived on the mountain almost simultaneously. I don't know if Granny Qi's arrival and Wang Ping's arrival are related."

Qiu Ben then asked, "Why are you telling me all this? Why do you want to tell me this?"

Po Yuan replied, "Given Extreme Fire Sect's influence, it shouldn't be difficult to find out what I encountered in Dazhi City before. Also, I generally know what Wang Ping and Granny Qi are trying to do on the mountain."

Qiu Ben's spirits immediately lifted. He hadn't expected to learn the secret he sought from this mountain patrol. He immediately asked, "What are they trying to do?"

Po Yuan replied, "Do you admit you're here for Wang Ping and his group?"

Qiu Ben replied, "Since you can say all this, you must have your own purpose. You say what you want, I'll listen to what I need. We each get what we want. There's no need to probe each other's motives, don't you agree?"

Po Yuan thought for a moment, then said, "Huang Yingying, a mouse demon. They are probably here for him. To deal with them, you just need to keep an eye on this mouse demon. Oh, Lou Xiu, the newly appointed Imperial Steward of Yaoshan City, was also just transferred from Dazhi City. He and Wang Ping are likely working together. Lou Xiu has significant influence and connections on the mountain. With their help, it might not be so easy for you to deal with Wang Ping."

Hearing this, Qiu Ben's eyebrow twitched slightly. Having risen from the lower ranks of his sect, he vaguely understood some of the other party's intentions. There might be internal conflicts within Shen Mountain, and the other party wanted to leverage external power.

He immediately asked about the matter he was most concerned with at the moment, "Where is that mouse demon?"

"Once Hall Master Qiu understands what happened in Dazhi City previously, you will naturally know." Po Yuan left him with those words and walked down the steps. He wouldn't reveal a single word about specific affairs on the mountain.