Chapter 122: The Path of Black and White (1)
On this day.
Cold Mountain Market, Yinyun Tower.
Song Yan received a cosmos bag from Sheng Nian.
“Everything is inside.”
Within the cosmos bag were a scroll of notes and a human head.
He nodded, and Song Yan put it away. “Your side of things—surely you don’t need me to prepare those?”
Sheng Nian shook his head. “No need.”
“That man Lü Qin is extremely arrogant, and thinks himself clever. I will naturally make arrangements.”
“Good. After today, in order to ensure we are not detected by watchful eyes, let us not contact each other for the time being.”
Just as he was about to get up and leave, Sheng Nian suddenly called out to him. “When the time comes, will there be others with that Cheng Yu?”
Song Yan was brief. “There will definitely not be Foundation Establishment cultivators.”
Sheng Nian nodded. “Then… can I kill the others?”
Actually, this was the question he most wanted to ask.
If among the cultivators on the same mission as that scoundrel, there were any of Old Song’s friends, it would be unfortunate to accidentally harm them.
“They’re all flies and maggots. Do as you please.”
Any cultivator who could be grouped with Cheng Yu on a patrol mission was a kindred spirit of equally foul character.
In his view, these people were nothing more than parasites of the Chu Kingdom’s cultivation world.
Whether these few people lived or died, Song Yan did not care in the slightest.
“However, the six sects’ patrols are tight right now. Save as much time as you can.”
“I’m worried a Foundation Establishment cultivator might notice.”
Sheng Nian nodded.
“Cheng Yu must be killed. Whether the others accompany him on his journey—that is your choice as a demonic cultivator.”
“…”
After staying a short while longer, Song Yan left Cold Mountain Market and returned to Changping City.
The person that Sheng Nian needed to kill was named Lü Qin.
According to him, this person was his senior brother, at the ninth level of Qi Refining.
Song Yan did not intend to act himself—he still needed to create the safest possible assassination environment for Sheng Nian.
He circulated the Hidden Sword Spirit Concealment Art slightly, making his aura feel ethereal and unstable.
He looked every bit like someone who had just been through a fierce battle.
He walked to the front of Lianheng Tower.
“Disciple Song Yan has an urgent matter to report.”
He casually handed over the scroll of notes.
The guard outside acknowledged the message and relayed it inward. Soon he reappeared and led Song Yan inside.
The elders handling this matter were not veterans like Yu Tian or Shen Yu—they all looked relatively young.
However, they were all elders from other sects, and Song Yan did not know them well, having only seen them from a distance.
One female elder, seeing his grave expression, naturally assumed the young cultivator was overly nervous before the elders.
She raised her hand, her tone gentle. “No need for formalities. Speak directly.”
“Thank you, Elder.”
Song Yan produced a grotesque human head from his cosmos bag.
“Today was my day off. On my way back to the city from Cold Mountain Market, I passed through Wa Village. I remembered that a colleague from the Eastern Abyss Sect was on patrol there today and thought I would stop by to catch up.”
“I did not expect to encounter a seventh-level Qi Refining demonic cultivator on the road, behaving furtively, as if waiting for someone.”
“Perhaps he mistook me for the person he was waiting for. The demonic cultivator revealed himself, and upon realizing his mistake, attacked me, intending to silence me.”
“After a fierce battle, I was fortunate enough to slay him.”
“In his cosmos bag, I found that scroll of notes.”
The notes contained content fabricated by Sheng Nian.
The general meaning was that on the twenty-ninth, Lü Qin, a core disciple of the Demon Seed Sect, would be meeting with Yellow Spring Path cultivators at a location in Cheng Family Village.
The notes were in the hands of the elder in the center.
All three elders had already read them, and their authenticity presumably needed no questioning.
Of course they were authentic—the thing had genuinely been written by a demonic cultivator.
“Should I call you lucky or unlucky—how do you keep running into so many demonic cultivators…”
Song Yan then recalled that when he had turned in the bodies of the five devils of Han Shan, this elder had been present as well. But that alone was not grounds for suspicion.
Because since the enhanced patrols had been implemented, quite a few patrol teams had actually encountered demonic cultivators. Though not many, he was at least not the only one.
“On my days off, I like to run around aimlessly…”
The elder frowned. “In the future, you should stay put and cultivate in the city. Being alone, you can’t guarantee you’ll have such good luck next time.”
“Don’t throw away your life for a few merit points.”
Song Yan was momentarily taken aback—these words actually sounded like concern for his safety.
“Thank you for the elder’s guidance.”
The elder in the center took a deep breath and asked, “What do the two of you think?”
“Lü Qin…”
The female elder’s surname was Fu—the very one Granny Qin had mentioned, Master Yu Zhen’s master.
She pondered for a moment, then said, “The eldest disciple of the Xinsan Hermit? If the information is correct and the intelligence verified, that would count as a big fish.”
“Cheng Family Village borders the Corpse Bone Abyss. The demonic cultivators choosing to meet here suggests they may be harboring thoughts of borrowing the demon cultivators’ influence to muddy the waters.”
The elder in the center nodded. “Indeed.”
“Some of the demonic cultivator movements mentioned in this letter align with what we have gathered. The credibility is extremely high.”
He turned to Song Yan. “When you fought that demonic cultivator, did you notice anything unusual?”
Song Yan shook his head. “The methods he employed were nothing special.”
“A few months ago, I had fought a Demon Seed Sect cultivator. The person I encountered today had Demon Seed Sect demonic arts in his cosmos bag, but he did not use any similar techniques.”
The three elders exchanged glances, and the same possibility arose in their minds simultaneously.
“Before this, he was likely just an independent demonic cultivator in Changping who, by chance, came into contact with the Demon Seed Sect.”
“He wanted to join the Demon Seed Sect’s lineage… and that led to everything that followed.”
Song Yan put on a look of sudden realization.
Now, everything fell into place within the three elders’ deductions and speculations, gradually taking shape and becoming rationalized.
“Very well.”
“We will make separate arrangements for this matter. The merit for slaying the demonic cultivator—you may report to the Merit Archives yourself.”
“In addition, there will be an extra reward for intelligence related to this matter, though it still needs to be discussed with the other elders.”
“You may go now.”
“Yes, Elder.”
Song Yan bowed and took his leave of Lianheng Tower.
He went to the Merit Archives to register his merit, completing everything that could be done.
He raised his head and looked at the dim sun hanging over Changping City, his heart perfectly calm.
He only needed to wait for that day to arrive…
As he pondered, he did not notice a familiar figure passing by.
Shen Huai glanced back slightly, gazing at that retreating silhouette, lost in thought.
But she did not linger either, and proceeded toward the Merit Archives.
Song Yan’s divine sense stirred, as if he had sensed something. He looked around but discovered nothing unusual.
…
“What was that person’s name again?”
The moment Shen Huai walked into the Merit Archives, she heard several disciples discussing something.
A few days ago, she had accompanied Dai Rui on patrol and caught a mid-stage Qi Refining demonic cultivator to slay. Today she had stopped by to register the merit.
“Song Yan, an inner disciple of the Eastern Abyss Sect. Last time he came to register, I handled it too.”
That disciple said, “This person has now earned nearly a hundred merit points just from killing demonic cultivators…”
“Truly impressive.”
Shen Huai furrowed her brow slightly, quietly listening to the disciples’ discussion.
Based on the brief probe during their encounter just now, she had not detected any murderous violence on Song Yan’s person.
“…”