Chapter 3225: Contacting the Secret Agent

To be honest, it's not easy for the family to contact them, as they are on Witch Charm Island. "I currently work under Elder Wu, which makes things a bit more convenient."

Wang Yonghao said gravely. The Elder Wu he referred to was Wu Zuo, and it was Wu Xin who managed intelligence, wielding significant power. He spent a considerable amount of resources and wealth to arrange his transfer to the Intelligence Hall. As the saying goes, money makes the world go 'round; Wang Yonghao heavily bribed descendants of the Wu family to secure his transfer to the Intelligence Hall, where he began to access some non-critical information, though still unable to reach confidential intelligence.

Cui Yao nodded, saying, "I’ve applied for a mission to inspect the subordinate races below. I'll be collecting cultivation resources and hope to be able to pass on messages."

Cui Yao worked in the General Affairs Hall, allowing her access to islands controlled by the Witch race. Wang Yonghao was responsible for gathering intelligence, Cui Yao for delivering it. Shang Wei and Wu Hao were already dual cultivation partners, so their staying together wouldn't arouse suspicion.

The Witch race had many subordinate races, which regularly paid tribute. During the last racial war, the Witch race suffered heavy losses. To recover quickly, they increased the cultivation resources required as tribute and sent multiple groups of cultivators to collect them. This was a lucrative assignment. Cui Yao spent a considerable sum bribing a deacon to secure this task: inspecting a particular race.

The Witch race had dozens of subordinate races, and there were many tribute collectors. Cui Yao was just one of them. Her main goal was to find an opportunity to leave Witch God Island and establish contact with her family.

"Alright, then be extra careful." Cui Hao nodded, instructing her.

Seven days later, Cui Yao, along with two Void Refinement cultivators and a team of Deity Transformation cultivators, departed from Witch God Island to inspect the Iris race.

***

Azure Glass Sea, Golden Maple Archipelago.

Purple Maple Market City was one of the leading market cities in the Golden Maple Archipelago, controlled by the immortal cultivation family, the Wu family. The Wu family's legacy spanned over 50,000 years. During its peak, it boasted eight Integration Stage cultivators. However, coinciding with a racial war, the Wu family was conscripted to fight, suffering heavy casualties among their Integration Stage cultivators. They later endured several other calamities, severely depleting their strength.

Over 10,000 years ago, the Wu family produced a clanswoman named Wu Tianxue, who possessed an ice spiritual root. She became a key cultivation focus for the Wu family. During the last racial war, she performed exceptionally well, slaying three Integration Stage alien cultivators and securing significant territory, leading to the Wu family's resurgence.

In Purple Maple Market City, the streets teemed with people, and the clamor of carriages and horses filled the air. In a secluded small courtyard with blue tiles, Wang Yongxin was reporting to Wang Chuanming.

"The Five Immortals Alliance has dispatched many personnel to search for Fairy Bingxi and her companions, issuing a bounty. Anyone providing reliable clues will be rewarded with a minimum of 30 million spirit stones and a maximum of 300 million spirit stones." Wang Yongxin reported.

"Has Fairy Bingxi ever offended any major powers or high-level cultivators? Or, has the Five Immortals Alliance offended any major powers or high-level cultivators?" Wang Chuanming pressed.

"The Five Immortals Alliance is a merchant organization and interacts with many factions. If there were any grievances, the Five Immortals Alliance has a history with the Seven Immortals Sect. However, members of the Seven Immortals Sect rarely visit the Golden Maple Archipelago, and at the time of the incident, no high-level cultivators from the Seven Immortals Sect were found in the area." Wang Yongxin reported truthfully.

"Before Fairy Bingxi disappeared, where did she go? What high-level cultivators did she meet? Among her accompanying cultivators, where did *they* go? What high-level cultivators did *they* meet? Who are their enemies?" Wang Chuanming pressed further.

"That’s unclear; we're still investigating!" Wang Yongxin looked troubled. This was not the Profound Spirit Continent, and the Dark Hall's personnel were limited, making it difficult to ascertain the movements of Fairy Bingxi or her accompanying cultivators.

"Go investigate it yourself. I want to know everything about all the high-ranking members of the Five Immortals Alliance: their preferences, divine abilities, cultivation levels, enemies, and friends – I want to know it all. Can you do that?" Wang Chuanming asked in a deep voice.

"Yes!" Wang Yongxin nodded.

"Good then. I'll be away for a while. I hope that when I return, you will have clarified everything. If you can't handle it, tell me early, and I can assign someone else." Wang Chuanming's tone was stern.

Wang Yongxin repeatedly affirmed, agreeing to the task. Wang Chuanming gave a few more instructions before leaving the market city. He intended to contact Cui Yao and Wang Yonghao, hoping they could provide some clues.

***

Five Immortals Island, headquarters of the Five Immortals Alliance.

In the southwest corner of the island, within a vast estate, a golden-robed old man with a flushed face, round features, and small eyes sat in a stone pavilion. A burly young man in a red shirt was reporting to him.

"Elder Song, according to our information, Elder Xu interacted with five Integration Stage cultivators before her disappearance. They claimed that Elder Xu did not conduct any significant transactions with them. This information is currently being verified." The red-shirted young man said slowly.

"That’s all?" The golden-robed elder frowned. Revered Golden Sun, a mid-Integration Stage cultivator, was the head of the Five Immortals Alliance.

"Oh, right. On the way to the Golden Maple Archipelago, Elder Xu rescued a Void Refinement cultivator who claimed to be a descendant of the Seven Star Saber Emperor." The red-shirted young man remembered something and added.

The Seven Star Saber Emperor and the Nine Yang Saber Saint were both Integration Stage cultivators of the same era. Both possessed vast divine abilities and were rogue cultivators. Later, the Nine Yang Saber Saint offended the Nine Dragons Palace and left the Azure Glass Sea, and the Seven Star Saber Emperor also disappeared.

"Where is this person now?" Revered Golden Sun pressed.

"He was with Elder Xu and also disappeared. Oh, and after Elder Xu rescued him, she took him away for some time, but it's unclear where they went. After a while, Elder Xu returned alone, saying that the person had left on his own. Elder Xu then led her team out of the market city, and that's when her soul lamp extinguished." The red-shirted young man reported.

"The Seven Star Saber Emperor! Send more people to investigate. You must find this person. Ideally, find out where Fairy Xu and this person went. There will be a substantial reward for anyone who provides clues." Revered Golden Sun commanded.

The red-shirted young man acknowledged, bowed, and withdrew.

***

In a boundless expanse of azure sea, sea breezes blew in gusts, and a flock of blue-green seagulls flew overhead.

On a deserted island spanning a hundred li, a colossal, entirely blue sea clam surfaced. Its shell opened, revealing a blue-robed man with large hands and feet, emitting a strong demonic aura. This person was indeed Wang Chuanming. He had consumed a Demon Mimicry Pill, altering his appearance, so even if he encountered foreign races, he wouldn't be mistaken for a human.

Wang Chuanming flew onto the island, putting away the blue clam shell. He landed in a dense, verdant forest. Looking around, he saw nothing but colossal green trees, each over a hundred zhang tall, appearing unremarkable. Wang Chuanming quickly approached a large green tree with three prominent 'X' marks carved into its trunk. He released a golden-bodied frog. The golden frog had a small bump on its head and appeared quite ordinary.

This was a male Golden Sun Frog. Unlike other spirit insects, no matter how many eggs Golden Sun Frogs lay, only one pair—one male and one female—will hatch. Within a certain range, they can sense each other's location; the higher their rank, the greater their sensory range. Furthermore, they possess concealment techniques, making them difficult for high-level cultivators to detect with their divine sense. Most importantly, they are gentle and not highly aggressive.

The Golden Sun Frog hopped and bounded towards the depths of the dense forest, and Wang Chuanming quickly followed. Less than a quarter of an hour later, the Golden Sun Frog appeared inside an underground cave, bumping against a rugged stone wall. Wang Chuanming blasted open the stone wall, revealing a cave hundreds of zhang wide. A Golden Sun Frog of similar size jumped out, and the two frogs hopped together.

Wang Chuanming ignored them and flew into the cave. On the ground, he found a piece of green beast hide covered in encrypted text, making its contents incomprehensible to outsiders. This was the intelligence left for Wang Chuanming by Cui Yao and her companions. If they used items like spirit-sensing beads for contact, a high-level cultivator using divine sense or a treasure to scan the island might discover the beads. For caution, they used the Golden Sun Frog for communication. As long as the cultivator's divine sense wasn't exceptionally strong, they wouldn't detect this fifth-tier Golden Sun Frog.

Wang Chuanming put away the green beast hide, took out a blue one, and placed it on the ground. He then guided the female frog back into the cave, sealed the entrance, retrieved the male frog, and departed.