A Pawn's Passage

After entering Oriental Autumn Villa, Qi Xuansu discovered that Su Li was actually a regular visitor here. Whether it was the manager or the attendants, they were all very enthusiastic upon seeing Su Li.

But upon second thought, it made sense. If she were not a regular, how could Su Li gain access to the inner workings of this pleasure house? After all, the debasement of Daoist nuns was something that could not be exposed to the light of day. Once made public, it would immediately incur the Daoist Order’s wrath. So the people at Oriental Autumn Villa would naturally tread with extreme caution.

From this, it was clear that Su Li had been keeping an eye on Oriental Autumn Villa for quite some time.

Upon arriving at a private room, Su Li instructed the brothel manager. “No need to call the girls yet. We’ll summon you when needed.”

At this moment, Su Li’s original gentle, feminine voice transformed into that of a young man’s.

The manager acknowledged the request and withdrew.

Qi Xuansu casually set up a privacy barrier and asked, “You’re a woman. How do you handle the situation here? You can’t just sit idly because everyone would start suspecting something. Oh...are you homosexual?”

Su Li replied calmly, “I just need to employ a bit of illusion and let the girls amuse themselves.”

Qi Xuansu could not help but laugh. “That’s actually a good idea.”

He asked curiously, “Have you interacted with those nuns?”

“No.” Su Li shook her head. “My identity here is fabricated. I’m an unknown figure to the Oriental Autumn Villa, so they won’t let me near any of the secrets. I only came to know of this matter by chance. To be honest, I’ve never understood how a Daoist could fall so low.”

Qi Xuansu was not surprised. “Water flows downhill, but human ambition always craves higher ground. My annual stipend is 3,600 Taiping coins, the highest among fourth-rank Jijiu Daoist masters. But even so, it means little in the Imperial Capital. Can the lower-ranking Daoists, who receive only a few hundred Taiping coins or even less, really stay true to themselves when facing such a dazzling world with countless temptations?

“But if they come here, those elites in the Imperial Court won’t offer a low price. When Gao Mingyin tried to bribe me, he offered 200,000 Taiping coins. From that, we can infer that Oriental Autumn Villa could easily offer several thousand Taiping coins per year. Not everyone has the chance to reach out and be greedy, but for those low-ranked female Daoists with no hope of promotion, it’s not a hard choice. If they give up dignity, ideals, and morals, they can skip 10 years of hardship and immediately live in luxury with servants waiting on them. This place is also well hidden, so it’s unlikely they’ll be discovered. Once dressed properly, they’re still Daoist nuns who observe the precepts.”

Su Li fell silent.

Qi Xuansu added, “The lives of low-ranking Daoists are tough. Without assignments or various subsidies, the base stipend is barely enough to make ends meet. That’s why there are so many wandering Daoists and wild Daoists. I myself was one for a few years, living no differently from ordinary Jianghu vagabonds. So I understand their thinking, though I don’t agree with their actions.”

Su Li’s tone turned slightly cold. “I’d rather die than degrade myself in such a way.”

Qi Xuansu could not help but say, “No wonder people say that the Qingqiu lineage is the most devout and steadfast in their pursuit of the Dao, surpassing all others in the Taiping Sect.”

Su Li lightly pressed her lips together. “Thank you for the praise, Superintendent Qi.”

Qi Xuansu continued, “Of course, we can’t rule out the possibility that some of them were coerced. But coercing a Daoist nun carries immense risk. If the nun reports the truth, the one who forced her would face utter ruin.”

Su Li spoke softly. “It’s simple. If they truly managed to coerce Daoist nuns, then someone within the Daoist Order must be colluding with them, and not someone of low rank. But I still believe the more likely explanation is the nuns’ own moral decline.”

Qi Xuansu had no desire to argue with her. He simply said, “How can we find those nuns? I don’t want to waste too much time here, nor play any games with these people. Oriental Autumn Villa is just our first stop. We still have to cover the East and West Cities. I want to give the Mansion Master a proper answer soon.”

The reason he came in advance was to find evidence before taking action. If he rushed in without proof and failed to catch them, it would only alert the enemy, making it much harder to uncover Oriental Autumn Villa’s flaws later.

Su Li remarked, “There’s a secret passage here leading underground. All guests are blindfolded before entering. If we can find that passage, we’ll find the nuns.”

“Perhaps I can give it a try.” As Qi Xuansu spoke, another version of him that was slightly translucent stepped out from his body. It was none other than his yin spirit.

After reaching the Thunder Realm, a Diviner’s yin spirit could roam in daylight, unaffected by winds or sunlight.

The physical body was tangible, but the yin spirit was intangible. As such, the yin spirit naturally possessed abilities like passing through walls, teleportation, and invisibility. Freed from the constraints of blood and flesh, its divine senses could spread wider, making it far more effective for seeking people or objects.

Heavenly-Being Diviners could split their Thoughts, dividing their consciousness into as many fragments as there were stars in the sky, gathering and dispersing them at will.

If gathered, 365 Thoughts could form a single yin spirit that was unimaginably powerful. Once projected, any spell could be cast without hand seals, incantations, talismans, or even ritual incense. They could be summoned with a mere gesture.

If dispersed, each Thought could become a yin spirit on its own. The 365 Thoughts would yield 365 yin spirits, each acting independently.

If one further mastered a Diviner’s perfected method called the Selfless Metamorphosis, then as long as a single Thought survived, true death could be evaded. Even if that surviving fragment had only a fraction of one’s original power, it could still seize another body and be reborn, albeit with a blank slate. Still, it was better than dying on the spot.

The human body had 1,296 acupoints, and the soul could be divided into a maximum of 1,296 Thoughts, each corresponding to the acupoints. If one could cultivate both the Manly Immortal and Ghostly Immortal paths until the Shattered Body and Yangshen Realms, respectively, they could reach an unimaginable power. However, to progress on both paths required great fortune and opportunities.

Throughout history, only Wu Yang from Ancient Wuism could achieve this, having passed down Ghostly Immortal spells and body-refining arts of Manly Immortals. That was a testament to the possibility, but those teachings had been lost.

Qi Xuansu’s Diviner lineage was incomplete. He had not split his thoughts, or rather, he only had a single basic Thought and could not divide further. Thus, he only had one yin spirit.

Qi Xuansu removed the Nine Yang Fiery Dome Replica from his waist and tossed it to his yin spirit.

The yin spirit wrapped itself around the substandard treasure and slipped into the wall, vanishing from sight.

Su Li suddenly recalled something and reminded him, “This is a pleasure house after all. Superintendent Qi, if you use your yin spirit to pass through walls looking for clues, won’t you end up seeing many men and women in the act?”

“It’s fine. It’s not night yet.” Qi Xuansu had already anticipated this.

Only then did Su Li rise and step outside, instructing the attendant by the door to summon a few courtesans—a move intended to throw off suspicion.

The attendant responded and left without asking which courtesan to bring, as they were familiar with the guests.

Moments later, the attendant returned, followed by four rather attractive young women.

“Put it on my tab. That will be all. There’s no need to serve us,” Su Li instructed, handing over a small cash note as a tip.

The attendant accepted the tip with a beaming smile and turned to leave.

Su Li turned to glance at the four courtesans, and they instantly fell into a deep illusion, unable to extricate themselves.

Within the illusion, they were entangled with the two guests.

After more than half an hour, the motionless Qi Xuansu finally spoke. “Found it.”

When the yin spirit exited the body, it was like multitasking. The more Thoughts one could divide, the more tasks they could handle. But the tasks could only be simple, low-effort activities, like locating someone, patrolling, surveillance, or escape. They could not undertake delicate work or practice 365 different techniques at once.

Qi Xuansu was not used to such divided focus. Most of his attention was on the yin spirit, making his main body sluggish and his tone a bit dull. “But there’s a formation set up. They’re hiding something in plain sight. The place you mentioned should be just behind that formation.”

Su Li was slightly surprised that he had made such quick progress. She had to admit that every craft had its expert. If a Martial Arts Practitioner were the one searching, they might not find a clue even after a whole day.

But Qi Xuansu’s next sentence made her realize things were not that simple.

“My yin spirit triggered the formation. So it looks like we’ll have to act early. I’ll hold off the people here while you go assist my yin spirit in breaking through the formation. Once you confirm whether there are Daoist nuns, I’ll summon the Spirit Guards.”

Qi Xuansu’s intention was simple. Once the Spirit Guards were deployed, it would be difficult to wrap things up. It would be especially awkward if they had not seized any solid evidence against Oriental Autumn Villa. But if the Spirit Guards did not storm the place, Qi Xuansu and Su Li still had some leeway as long as their identities remained hidden. So, unless he was completely certain, Qi Xuansu would not call in the Spirit Guards.

“Where’s the formation?” Su Li asked.

“At the spot where the flames rise,” Qi Xuansu replied as he pulled out Flying White Shadow.

Almost simultaneously, the yin spirit of Qi Xuansu activated the Nine Yang Fiery Dome, and nine fire dragons roared skyward. That place was a standalone courtyard, looking no different from the other ones where guests kept their favored courtesans.

Su Li did not hesitate for a moment. She flashed out of sight, her agility no less than that of Su Ran back then.

After Su Li departed, Qi Xuansu leaped upward, crashing through the roof tiles and landing on the second-floor rooftop.

Moments later, a figure shot toward Qi Xuansu like an arrow released from a bow. The attacker wrapped both arms and legs around him from behind, suddenly exerting brute strength, intending either to strangle Qi Xuansu to death or, at the very least, to completely incapacitate him.

The attacker was full of confidence. Countless opponents had been caught off guard by this move in the past and had their chests crushed and limbs snapped.

But this time, things did not go as he expected. No matter how much strength he exerted through his limbs, Qi Xuansu did not move in the slightest. It was like a child clinging to an adult’s back—absurdly comical. Qi Xuansu did not even seem to register any contact.

In a flash, the attacker realized that Qi Xuansu had a protective qi shield.

It was the most basic mystical ability, but it all depended on who used it.

The attacker thought, Could this man be a Heavenly Being if he could resist my full strength with just a protective qi shield? But that’s impossible!

His face turned from pale to red, then from red to blue. All his blood qi flooded to his limbs as he used every bit of strength he had. However, Qi Xuansu’s protective qi shield merely shifted slightly in form.

With a mere shake of his arms, Qi Xuansu shattered the attacker’s limbs. All that remained was a limp, bare torso that tumbled down the second-floor rooftop.

The blood mist was completely blocked by the protective qi.

Two more guards of Oriental Autumn Villa leaped onto the rooftop. But before they could react, Qi Xuansu had already severed one of their heads. The other was so terrified that he tried to flee.

However, Qi Xuansu did not let him escape. He struck the guard from a distance, and the man’s torso exploded mid-air. Only his limbs fell to the ground.

No doubt, they were all dead.