Chapter 1418: Central Plains Pursuit

The Central Plains, Great Yan Dynasty. Golden Spider Valley was one of the Great Yan Dynasty's top market towns, strategically located and frequented by numerous merchants and travelers.

In a secluded small courtyard with green tiles, a middle-aged man in a golden Taoist robe was conversing with a handsome and elegant young man in a black shirt.

The middle-aged man was tall, fair-faced, and beardless, appearing harmless.

The middle-aged man's name was Zheng Tianbao, known as True Monarch Golden Gourd. He was the grand-disciple of Shangguan Wei, the Sect Master of Nine Nether Sect, and an eighth-level Core Formation cultivator.

The young man in black was named Li Shi, known as True Monarch Hundred Illusions, also an eighth-level Core Formation cultivator.

They had participated in the attack on Azure Lotus Mountain Villa years ago. After the successful attack, due to concerns about the Seven Great Immortal Sects of the Eastern Desolation, they were ordered to come to the Central Plains cultivation world, live under false identities, and gather intelligence for the Nine Nether Sect.

They had been in the Central Plains cultivation world for over two hundred years. The Central Plains cultivation world valued propriety; cultivators were forbidden from casually harming mortals, and killing for treasures was strictly prohibited. The Nine Nether Sect had three branch offices in the Central Plains cultivation world, each overseen by two Nascent Soul cultivators, with one of these branches located in the Great Yan Dynasty.

"Senior Brother Li, have you heard? We're not allowed to return to the Northern Border cultivation world. We can't go to the South Sea, nor the Eastern Desolation, nor back to the Northern Border. Are we to remain in the Central Plains cultivation world for the rest of our lives?"

Zheng Tianbao complained with some dissatisfaction. He came from a cultivation family and had not returned for many years. He wished to visit his relatives in the Northern Border. More importantly, he had been stuck at a bottleneck for years and wanted to travel, but without Shangguan Wei's orders, he could not leave the Central Plains cultivation world.

Shangguan Wei governed her subordinates with extreme strictness. He dared not disobey her orders, as the consequences of doing so were severe.

Li Shi shook his head and said, "I don't know. None of us can disobey the Sect Master's orders. Why? Do you want to return to the Northern Border?"

"Alas, if we hadn't taken on that mission back then, we wouldn't have had to stay in the Central Plains cultivation world all this time. Perhaps we would have already advanced to the ninth level of Core Formation."

Zheng Tianbao sighed, a look of regret in his eyes.

"Watch your words. This matter must not be spoken of. If it reaches the ears of the Wang family cultivators, we'll be in trouble. The Wang family is not what it once was."

Li Shi's expression became tense. Years ago, they had followed their sect elders to the Eastern Desolation and destroyed the Azure Lotus Wang family. Unexpectedly, the Wang family was not completely wiped out; instead, they flourished in the South Sea. Now, they had three Nascent Soul cultivators, and the Azure Lotus Immortal Couple and Azure Lotus Sword Venerable were renowned throughout the South Sea, their fame even reaching the Central Plains cultivation world.

Over a hundred years ago, Wang Qingshan traveled to the Great Yan Dynasty, extensively sparring with its young talents. He won more often than he lost, making him famous throughout the Central Plains cultivation world. The stronger the Wang family's power and the more Nascent Soul cultivators they acquired, the more fearful Zheng Tianbao and other Nine Nether Sect disciples who had participated in the destruction of the Azure Lotus Wang family became.

Initially, they did not take the Wang family seriously. Even Zheng Tianbao's own Zheng family surpassed the Wang family in strength. They couldn't understand what stroke of luck the Wang family had to gain three additional Nascent Soul cultivators within two hundred years. With the support of two major cultivation sects, Taiyi Immortal Sect and Myriad Sword Sect, even the Nine Nether Sect had to be wary.

"What's there to be afraid of? This is the Great Yan Dynasty. The Wang family's reach isn't that long yet."

Though Zheng Tianbao said this, his voice had significantly quieted. He suddenly remembered something and continued, "By the way, recently there have been many cultivators from the Myriad Immortals Bureau in the market town. Do you know why?"

"I heard they're apprehending rogue cultivators. It's all because of Zhou Sihong. Junior Brother Liu unfortunately encountered Zhou Sihong and died by his hand. Zhou Sihong's rampage in the Great Yan Dynasty has severely weakened it, and the Great Qin Dynasty is watching covetously. I don't think the Central Plains cultivation world will remain peaceful for much longer."

Li Shi sighed, a hint of worry in his eyes.

In a certain three-story blue pavilion, a middle-aged man as thin as a bamboo pole was reporting something to Wang Tianwen.

"Deputy Commander, after extensive investigation, there are currently no traces of demonic cultivators in the market town. However, there are indeed Nine Nether Sect disciples active here. Heavenly Fire Tower is a gathering place for Nine Nether Sect disciples, and it deals in various metal ores."

Wang Tianwen had used the power of the Myriad Immortals Bureau, under the pretense of investigating demonic cultivators, to secretly investigate the Nine Nether Sect cultivators he had encountered.

He traced the trail all the way to Golden Spider Valley.

Wang Tianwen frowned and asked, "Fang Mo, you didn't alert the Nine Nether Sect disciples, did you?"

The middle-aged man shook his head and replied, "No, we questioned all sects and factions, not just investigating Nine Nether Sect disciples. This is the intelligence we gathered."

He took out a light-green jade slip and handed it to Wang Tianwen.

"Good. The investigation stops here. I will take over personally from now on. You don't need to inquire about it anymore."

Fang Mo acknowledged and turned to leave.

Wang Tianwen immersed his spiritual sense into the jade slip, a thoughtful expression on his face.

He put away the jade slip and walked out.

Half a quarter of an hour later, he appeared at the entrance of a small shop. The signboard read "Azure Moon Hall," and the shop displayed numerous refining materials.

The shopkeeper was a ruddy-faced old man in a green robe. This shop was a stronghold of the Wang family, responsible for relaying intelligence.

Wang Tianwen entered the shop and asked, "Shopkeeper, have the items I requested arrived?"

Utilizing the Myriad Immortals Bureau as a cover, many of the Wang family's strongholds in the Great Yan Dynasty were established with Wang Tianwen's help, so the old man in green naturally recognized Wang Tianwen's identity.

"They have arrived, and our proprietor is also here. Senior, please come to the back courtyard to speak."

The old man in green invited Wang Tianwen to the back courtyard. The courtyard was small, with a green stone table around which Wang Qingling, Ye Haitang, and Wang Qiuming were seated.

Before Ye Haitang left the Northern Border, she had sent someone to inform the family, requesting Wang Qingling and Wang Qiuming to meet her in the Great Yan Dynasty.

After arriving in the Great Yan Dynasty, they followed the intelligence Wang Tianwen had reported to the family and came to Golden Spider Valley.

"Great-Grand Aunt, why are you here?"

Wang Tianwen's face lit up with joy; he hadn't known that Ye Haitang and the other two had come to Golden Spider Valley.

"We found some clues and followed them to the Central Plains cultivation world. Tianwen, you reported some leads to the family. Tell us what you found."

Ye Haitang pressed on, her face full of anticipation.

Wang Tianwen flipped his palm, and with a flash of white light, an egg-sized, milky-white spherical bead appeared in his hand. He cast a spell into it, and a large expanse of white spiritual light emerged from the bead, enveloping all four of them.

The matter was of great importance, and Wang Tianwen dared not be careless.

He recounted the entire incident in detail, then took out a green jade slip and handed it to Ye Haitang.

"True Monarch Golden Gourd and True Monarch Hundred Illusions are highly suspicious. If something happens to them, the Nine Nether Sect might trace it back to our Wang family."

Ye Haitang's willow-like eyebrows furrowed. Over a hundred years ago, Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan had used a crude method, found no clues, and instead alerted the enemy.

The disappearance or death of True Monarch Golden Gourd and True Monarch Hundred Illusions would certainly alert the Nine Nether Sect.

"We can't act against them directly. We can target other Core Formation cultivators of the Nine Nether Sect. This Immortal Maiden Hongchen is a good target; her simultaneous appearance in the dynasty with True Monarch Golden Gourd makes her highly suspicious."