A Pawn's Passage

When Su Li arrived at the courtyard where Qi Xuansu’s yin spirit was located, she found the area already scorched into a pitch-black ruin by the raging flames, with several charred corpses lying around. These were clearly victims who had not escaped the devastation of the Nine Yang Fiery Dome in time.

Amidst the ruins lay a stone gate that was not upright like ordinary doors but embedded into the ground. It was tightly shut, with flowing cloud patterns on its surface and a faint Bagua emblem. Even the raging fire dragons could do nothing against it.

Since Qi Xuansu’s Diviner lineage was incomplete, his yin spirit could not be compared to that of a true Heavenly-Being Diviner. It lacked both the means to unravel formations and the power to break through them. His main offensive method was activating the replica of the Nine Yang Fiery Dome.

Su Li immediately understood why Qi Xuansu had summoned her for support. But being quick-witted, she did not try to use brute force to break through the formation. Instead, she began searching right away for the pivotal key that would unlock it.

After all, this was a frequently used passage, meaning the formation must be activated often. The key would not be hidden somewhere inaccessible. Perhaps it was carried by someone.

Su Li’s spiritual sense was powerful. With just one glance, she locked onto her target—a figure who appeared to be the head guard, glaring intently at the yin spirit.

Without hesitation, Su Li darted toward him like a phantom.

Demons had many drawbacks, such as difficulty in taking human form, slow cultivation, and so on, but they also had many unique advantages. By Daoist classification, Su Li would be considered a Rogue Cultivator, a lower-tier Banished Immortal who was a jack-of-all-trades yet master of none. However, her beast form granted her a body as strong as a Martial Arts Practitioner, making her formidable in close combat. Moreover, her fox demon bloodline gave her the art of illusion that rivaled those of a Diviner—something Qi Xuansu had experienced firsthand when fighting Su Ran.

The head guard suddenly felt a sense of danger. At the last possible moment, he barely dodged, but a large chunk of flesh was still ripped from his neck, leaving it a mangled mess. Had he moved a second later, his throat would have been torn open.

Cold sweat drenched him instantly. As he looked up, he caught a fleeting glimpse of a cloaked woman. Her right hand was a furry white claw, clearly not human.

Just then, the yin spirit noticed the situation and activated the Nine Yang Fiery Dome again, conjuring nine fire dragons that surged toward them and forcing the guards to scatter.

Though formidable, the head guard was only at the Guizhen stage, no match for a pincer attack from the two Superintendants. After narrowly dodging three fire dragons, he was grazed by one and was immediately charred from head to toe, yet not quite dead. Then Su Li seized the opportunity to strike, extracting the guard’s heart from behind and ending his life instantly.

Killing the guard was not the goal. Su Li crouched down and searched his body, quickly finding the pivotal formation key. Despite being called a key, it did not resemble one. This key was a jade token, much like the one Yao Pei had used to enter the Tianshui Core Tower in the Wanxiang Daoist Palace.

“Got it!” Su Li raised the formation key and waved it toward Qi Xuansu’s yin spirit.

At the same time, Qi Xuansu’s true body charged over. He attracted many guards, but none of them could truly stop this Heavenly Being’s advance. Their so-called interception was merely forming a distant circle around him, yet not daring to come close.

Since they did not attack Qi Xuansu, he also had no intention of deliberately killing them.

Su Li arrived before the stone gate, raised the jade token, activated the formation, and opened the gate. A stairway leading downward came into view, and she stepped into the passage first.

Qi Xuansu arrived shortly after, merged with his yin spirit, and followed closely behind.

The passage sloped downward at first, then gradually leveled into flat ground. On both sides were rows of opposite-facing rooms. There were no doors, only curtains of Western Region style. Some curtains were lifted, revealing interiors lined with carpets, brocade canopies, and embroidered veils. In each room lay a woman clad in sheer gauze, their assets on full display. Thanks to a temperature-controlling formation, they did not fear the cold.

Su Li and Qi Xuansu did not stop to examine the rooms. Instead, they headed straight for the end of the corridor, where there were two ornate doors.

Qi Xuansu flashed forward and struck the door with his palm.

Since this was not a prison or a classified area, the two ornate doors rustled and crumbled into powder with just one palm strike, revealing the scene behind them.

Eastern styles leaned toward elegance and restraint, but in certain aspects, they lacked the extravagance of Western designs. For example, the Eastern eight-step bed was like a little box with canopies and drapes, too cramped for flair. In contrast, the Western large, round bed looked more lavish.

What lay behind the doors was a classic Western-style bed.

In Western terms, the room was decorated in a Baroque style—complex, extravagant, flamboyant, and dazzlingly ornate. There were brightly colored carpets, glittering crystal chandeliers, full-length mirrors, gilded screens painted with nude women, towering vases, velvet couches, gilded coffee tables, fine porcelain, and thick silk curtains to create the illusion of windows, though there were clearly no windows underground. It functioned only to make the space feel less stifling.

The most eye-catching piece was a large round bed, likely filled with down feathers because it was so soft that one would sink into it. At the moment, three people lay atop it, engaged in a sordid one-dragon-two-phoenixes scene.

That alone was bad enough, but the two women still wore remnants of their robes, clearly indicating they were Daoist nuns. Their meticulously arranged buns on their heads starkly contrasted with their disheveled clothing and tangled bodies—a deeply ironic sight.

Su Li lowered her eyes and remarked, “Moral corruption.”

The fox demons of the Qingqiu lineage often possessed a strong sense of morality and honor that starkly contrasted with their public image. They were also prone to radical tendencies, advocating for the elimination of all moral corruption through force.

Qi Xuansu showed no reaction to the scene. He ignited the mother talisman he had prepared in advance and said, “To catch a thief, you need the stolen goods; to catch adulterers, you need them together. This time, we’ve caught both the people and the evidence.”

The Spirit Guards would arrive shortly to suppress anyone daring to resist. The Imperial Capital Daoist Mansion would conduct a thorough and detailed investigation.

Perhaps Qi Xuansu’s actions were too quiet, or perhaps the trio on the bed were too engrossed, or maybe they simply trusted this place too much and let their guard down—whatever the reason, the three remained oblivious to Qi Xuansu and Su Li’s arrival, still immersed in their corrupt pleasure.

Qi Xuansu watched the free performance for a while before finally speaking loudly. “It seems the public morality of the Imperial Capital really does need cleansing. I recall a Pope from the Holy Court once said that worldly pleasures and the sin of greed are enemies of noble character. Spiritual corruption always begins with bodily indulgence, and the decay of morality begins with the unshackling of human nature. I suppose there’s some truth to that.”

These words finally pulled the trio out of their indulgent world. The man enjoying the company of two women was the first to come to his senses. Looking toward Qi Xuansu and Su Li, he showed no panic and calmly asked, “Who are you two?”

His composure unconsciously calmed the two Daoist nuns beside him. They did not scream but used one hand to cover their exposed bodies and the other to search for their clothes.

Qi Xuansu pulled over a chair and sat down, speaking at an unhurried pace. “My name is Qi Xuansu, currently serving as a Superintendent in the Imperial Capital Daoist Mansion, acting under the orders of the Mansion Master and the Second Deputy Mansion Master to reform the city’s corrupted ethos.”

Just then, the guards of the brothel finally caught up and arrived, only to hear Qi Xuansu’s self-introduction. Their faces turned pale one after another. Some even dropped their weapons to the ground.

A lone Heavenly Being causing trouble and a Superintendent from the Imperial Capital Daoist Mansion conducting official duties were two entirely different matters.

If it were the former, they could hire someone from The Inn to eliminate him or ask the Tianchen Division to suppress him. It could be done as long as they were willing to pay the price.

But the latter was not so simple because it involved wide-reaching connections and required cautious handling.

Moreover, this particular Superintendent was the renowned Qi Xuansu.

The word around town was that the once-dominant Old Master Gao of North City had died at the hands of Qi Xuansu.

Although Gao Mingyin was actually silenced by his own people, and Qi Xuansu had been falsely accused and suspended, the story that circulated in the capital was quite different.

It was said that Old Master Gao’s son had offended Superintendent Qi, and Old Master Gao had tried to redeem his life with 200,000 Taiping coins, but to no avail. Superintendent Qi publicly had him taken away and imprisoned in Yuhuang Palace’s secret dungeon. A few days later, Old Master Gao mysteriously died. Rumors claimed that Superintendent Qi had ordered a secret execution in the dungeon without trial or judgment. Whatever the truth, the once influential Old Master Gao had died so silently that not even a ripple remained.

Everyone knew that Old Master Gao had powerful backers. After the incident, his backers took action, accusing Superintendent Qi of wanton slaughter to the Daoist authorities, resulting in a brief suspension. But that was all. Protected by the Daoist elites, Superintendent Qi was reinstated just a few days later. It was said his connections reached all the way to the Golden Tower Council. He had a solid background, and that suspension was little more than a symbolic slap on the wrist. Even Old Master Gao’s backers could do nothing about it.

Good deeds remained behind closed doors, while bad ones traveled far and wide.

Qi Xuansu now had a reputation that rivaled that of Li Tianzhen. Regardless of the truth, the stories painted him as someone with unmatched connections, vengeful, and dismissive of even 200,000 Taiping coins. He was a scion of a Daoist noble family who killed without hesitation or restraint.

Misfortune and fortune were intertwined. Though Qi Xuansu’s reputation was indeed tainted, the upside was that it could terrify all manner of crooks and monsters.

The man’s expression grew serious. “So you’re Superintendent Qi. I’ve heard much about you. My apologies for the disrespect.”

Qi Xuansu glanced at him. “It is indeed disrespectful to speak to me without clothes on.”