A Pawn's Passage

Qi Xuansu asked, “A serial murder case, here on Purple Immortal Mountain?”

“Yes.” Eighth Tianyang nodded and explained, “There have been 12 murders in a row, and only one victim has survived by chance. But it looks like the murderer has no intention of stopping yet. They plan to continue this killing spree right under our noses, like a blatant provocation. That’s why I have no choice but to order the lockdown of Shimen County so that we can investigate anyone entering or exiting.”

Qi Xuansu asked, “Why are you so sure that these 12 murders are connected?”

Eighth Tianyang pursed his lips. “That’s because the deceased all have one thing in common. They’re all related to Purple Immortal Mountain, or more specifically, Ecstasy Paradise.”

Qi Xuansu could not hold back his curiosity. “Since this involves Ecstasy Paradise, shouldn’t the Daoist Order handle this case? Tiangang Hall, Beichen Hall, and even the local Daoist mansion could intervene. There are so many Diviners among them, so won’t it be easy to use Earth Qi Recalling or divination techniques to solve the case? Why did this case fall into your hands?”

Eighth Tianyang smiled bitterly. “The deceased are only related to Ecstasy Paradise, but they are not registered Daoist priests. The Daoist Order won’t care as long as the victims aren’t Daoist priests or Spirit Guards, so they pushed the case to the Green Phoenix Guard.

“As you know, the Green Phoenix Guard today isn’t as powerful as we were back then. We don’t have a presence in court, and our main focus is on local affairs. Our headquarters, the Imperial Guard’s Office, ordered my division to take on this case and gave us a short time frame to solve it. So I’m under great pressure to crack this case.”

Qi Xuansu looked pensive. “I see. If the victims aren’t Daoist priests from Purple Immortal Mountain, are they—”

Eighth Tianyang interjected, “Yes, they are workers in Ecstasy Paradise.”

“That’s a euphemistic way to put it.” Qi Xuansu glanced at Liu Hu, who looked confused. “I thought that the Daoist Order had rules in place regarding this.”

Eighth Tianyang sighed. “Yes, that’s one bad thing about this rule. Before the Holy Xuan revived the Daoist Order, Purple Immortal Mountain was regarded as private property. But after the Holy Xuan set these rules, Purple Immortal Mountain could no longer restrain these workers’ freedom, and as such, they stopped caring about these workers’ livelihoods as well.

“Purple Immortal Mountain regards these workers as their business suppliers, not subordinates. The workers are well compensated, but they are expected to take care of themselves. Purple Immortal Mountain will not care about anything else. Since Purple Immortal Mountain refuses to notify Tiangang Hall or Beichen Hall, we can’t possibly bypass them to do so.”

Qi Xuansu did not know how to evaluate this situation. Both the Daoist Order and the Imperial Court had their own shortcomings, which were too complicated to be addressed.

“Most of the workers in Purple Immortal Mountain will most likely have some savings. Are they being killed for money?” Qi Xuansu initially wanted to see Eighth Tianyang so that the latter could let them off. But now it seemed that he had to help Eighth Tianyang solve this urgent case first.

“No.” Eighth Tianyang shook his head and explained, “We have investigated and found that none of the victims’ properties have been taken. There are a few scoundrels who profited from the deaths, but they have no connection with the murderer.”

Qi Xuansu pondered for a moment. “Didn’t you mention a survivor? Where are they?”

Eighth Tianyang replied, “She is an escort who only provides entertainment with her artistic talent, which is singing. Several lyricists compose songs specifically for her. Listening to one of her songs will easily cost dozens of Taiping coins per person. Because of this, Purple Immortal Mountain valued her and arranged for guards to protect her, lest the murderer would make another attempt.”

Qi Xuansu asked, “Can I meet her?”

Eighth Tianyang sighed again. “That will be difficult. The Daoist priest in charge of Purple Immortal Mountain has a bad attitude, but everyone else is easy to talk to as long as money is offered.”

Qi Xuansu was not surprised. After all, the Daoist Order was massive, with a wide spectrum of people, from conservatives like Zhang Yuelu to chauvinists like Li Tianzhen.

Conservative Daoist priests would not be assigned to Purple Immortal Mountain. However, the Purple Immortal Mountain’s attitude regarding the murders was indeed suspicious.

Eighth Tianyang added, “This escort was hurt in the attempted murder. She is still unconscious now.”

“I’d like to see her.” Qi Xuansu looked pensive.

Eighth Tianyang considered it for a while before nodding. “Alright.”

He turned to Liu Hu, hesitant to speak.

Qi Xuansu noticed Eighth Tianyang’s gaze, so he said, “She can follow us. My niece is already at the Kunlun stage. She may not be able to help, but she won’t be a hindrance to us.”

Eighth Tianyang nodded and no longer had any objections.

The three of them left the Green Phoenix Guard’s stronghold and headed for Purple Immortal Mountain, which was about 5 kilometers outside Shimen County.

In the past, Purple Immortal Mountain tried to be hidden. But now it was doing business openly, so the entrance to the mountain was very conspicuous. The mountain path was nicely paved, and it had a grand archway with a large sign that read, “Ecstasy Paradise,” written in large, gold font.

At first glance, the entrance looked like a cave, but the roads, walls, and domes inside had been carefully polished. There were various murals and inlaid luminous pearls, with red lanterns hanging above. At a glance, it looked like a fire dragon with no end in sight. There were eight such entrances to welcome guests.

A gatekeeper recognized Eighth Tianyang and let him in without questions.

They walked through a long passage, entering the interior of Purple Immortal Mountain to the famous Ecstasy Paradise.

Qi Xuansu had heard about this place in the past, but this was his first time visiting Ecstasy Paradise. Even after hearing the stories of this place and knowing what to expect, Qi Xuansu was still shocked by the sight before him.

Since Ecstasy Paradise was located inside the Purple Immortal Mountain, there were countless hanging lanterns and candles lit at all hours of the day. Qi Xuansu scanned the surroundings and saw many pavilions stacked on top of each other, connected with corridors. They were all brightly lit with red lanterns. It was no wonder this place was also known as the Everbright City.

The dome above was pitch black and somehow enchanted to look like the starry night sky.

Countless pavilions built on the north side of the mountain faced the south. From afar, they looked like a heavenly palace.

Eighth Tianyang introduced. “That is the famous Jade Tower. The highest point was originally the residence of the Purple Immortal King. After the Daoist Order took over this place, there was no longer a Purple Immortal King. But Daoist priests dared not use it privately, so it was not occupied. But it is open for rental, which costs 2,000 Taiping coins a night.”

Qi Xuansu could guess what the other pavilions were for without Eighth Tianyang’s explanation. Since Liu Hu was nearby, the two men tacitly avoided talking about it in depth.

This was the first time Liu Hu saw such a scene. Her mouth gaped open, and she was rendered speechless.

Below Jade Tower was a small city with various pavilions lined up, resembling a chessboard. At this time, the three of them were standing on a street. All they could see was a field of deep red light that exuded an ambiguous, lustful aura.

They were still some distance away from the Jade Tower.

Eighth Tianyang continued, “The escort is not in Jade Tower because she cannot receive guests. She’s somewhere nearby. Come with me.”

Under Eighth Tianyang’s guidance, the trio came to a two-story building with white lanterns, which looked out of place in a sea of red lanterns.

The moment Eighth Tianyang pushed the door open and walked in, a strong scent of medicine wafted into their nostrils.

Qi Xuansu immediately understood where they were—a medical hall.

This was not Eighth Tianyang’s first time here, so he was familiar with the place. The staff at the medical hall also recognized him.

After a while, a white-haired old man came out and saluted him respectfully. “Senior Major.”

At the same time, the old man turned his attention to Qi Xuansu and Liu Hu. In fact, he found it odd for a teenage girl to be in this place.

Eighth Tianyang explained, “These are my colleagues. They happen to be passing by here. That’s why they are not in uniform.”

The Green Phoenix Guards and the Black Robes were loyal to the Emperor, so it was not wrong to call each other colleagues.

The old man did not say much.

Female Green Phoenix Guards were rare, but not unheard of. After all, women had a natural advantage in gathering intelligence and assassinating people discreetly, just like how men had an advantage in frontal combat.

“Is Miss Qing Yin awake?” Eighth Tianyang asked casually.

The old man shook his head.

Eighth Tianyang took out a small bag of money and said, “Please take us to see Miss Qing Yin.”

The old man took the money bag and silently led the way.

Miss Qing Yin was placed in a separate room on the second floor, with a special guard at the door. The guard had obviously been bribed, so he did not stop them.

There was a large bed in the room. Lying on it was an unconscious woman wearing only a white middle garment, with gauze wrapped around her head.

Qi Xuansu walked to the side and looked at the injury carefully without saying anything.

The old man explained, “Fortunately, Miss Qing Yin was only implicated by the aftermath of the fight. Unfortunately, Miss Qing Yin was hit on the back of her head and suffered from intracranial bleeding.”

Qi Xuansu sighed softly. “In that case, it will be difficult for Miss Qing Yin to survive this.”

The old man nodded. “Of course, ordinary medicine won’t be enough to save her. Huasheng Hall can save her, but Miss Qing Yin does not have cultivation, so many methods cannot be used. This is the extent of their help. Only the heavens will know when Miss Qing Yin will wake up. Besides, I don’t know how much patience the superintendent has left. If he kicks Qing Yin out, I’m afraid she won’t be able to survive for a few days.”

Qi Xuansu knew how powerful Huasheng Hall was, as he was once the recipient of their aid. He was only alive today thanks to them.

He asked, “Since she was implicated, it means that the guard at the time had a head-on confrontation with the murderer. Where is that guard now?”

“Dead.” Eighth Tianyang answered, “His body is also in Ecstasy Paradise. Do you want to see it?”

“Sure.” Qi Xuansu nodded.