A Pawn's Passage

Chapter 1421: Making Use of the Situation

In a certain sense, Wanxiang Daoist Palace was like an independent kingdom.

Its territory consisted of the main palace and its various side palaces. Its population consisted of all members of the Daoist Palace. Internally, it formed a complete and highly independent system, encompassing not only personnel authority and resource allocation but even judicial matters. Ordinary outsiders could not interfere in its internal affairs. This was why the Daoist Palace could seal itself off and forbid entry or exit. It had the confidence to do so.

In theory, outsiders found it difficult to intervene in the Daoist Palace’s internal affairs. However, Beichen Hall was known for its assertiveness. When it came to secret societies, that assertiveness would rise to another level. Moreover, Qi Xuansu had come from the Daoist Palace and might even become a Palace Master.

Qi Xuansu had also stated that he would go with Sun Hewu to report the matter to Great Sage Shi.

This way, he avoided giving others grounds for criticism while also forcing Great Sage Shi to take a clear position, since he had maintained an ambiguous stance.

Qi Xuansu was fairly confident that Great Sage Shi would agree, since that female instructor was made to commit suicide.

If she had truly committed suicide, Great Sage Shi would likely not approve of Qi Xuansu making a big move. But since it was murder, Qi Xuansu had leverage. Great Sage Shi could not easily object. After all, Huangfu Ji was watching. He had to care about the Daoist Order’s reputation and public image.

These people must have lost their minds to come up with such a move. It was as if they put a noose around their own necks and handed the other end of the rope to Qi Xuansu. They thought Qi Xuansu would not dare strangle them because he would face moral condemnation and spend the rest of his life tormented by guilt.

But Qi Xuansu was not some naive rookie.

He never played by the rules. Whether he was framed or slandered, he would not get entangled in it, nor would he try to prove his innocence.

If he tried to prove his innocence, he would be led by the nose.

When Wang Jiaohe sent people to arrest Qi Xuansu’s secretary, Qi Xuansu did not argue about guilt or innocence. Instead, he focused on procedure. If the procedure was improper, Chen Jianchou must be released. The same principle applied here.

These people killed a female instructor and spread rumors that she committed suicide because of Qi Xuansu, aiming to force him to prove his innocence and trap him in a moral trial.

Someone who regarded rules as absolute would likely fall into this trap, desperately trying to prove within the predefined framework that they were uninvolved and innocent. At that point, even innocence would become guilt. This was a classic case of naivety.

Only flowerbed Daoists viewed rules as absolute. They would rather be driven to death than fight back.

Thus, the schemes devised by such people rarely escaped their own limitations. They valued these things so highly that they assumed others did too.

Qi Xuansu could identify the killer of the female instructor through normal means, but it would be very difficult.

As Huangfu Ji pointed out, someone skilled did this. The Guizang Lantern could have uncovered the truth, but the problem was that it did not obey Qi Xuansu. The Guizang Lantern usually lay dormant and only occasionally revealed something.

Moreover, Qi Xuansu did not have much time before he returned to the New Continent. He did not have the patience to drag things out and wanted to end this quickly.

With the change in his status, Qi Xuansu’s way of thinking had undergone a significant shift.

It no longer mattered whether it was procedural or substantive justice. It was justice as long as stability was maintained.

Once Qi Xuansu classified it as a case involving a secret society, he could employ special methods for investigation. The fearsome reputation of Beichen Hall was not built on words alone. Once a suspect was identified, evidence became secondary. There were plenty of ways to make someone talk.

The standards for dealing with enemies and one’s own people were different. Secret societies were considered enemies.

At Qi Xuansu’s current level, he was no longer bound by ordinary laws.

As long as Sage Donghua remained in power, there would be no major consequences. At worst, it could be called a misjudgment. Even the Heavenly Preceptor had misjudged when dealing with secret societies. That was how the Zhang family ended up with a descendant of Immortals.

If Sage Donghua were to fall from power, then even if Qi Xuansu were a saint, those with ill intentions could still find fault with him.

Qi Xuansu and Sun Hewu met Great Sage Shi and gave a general report of the situation. As Qi Xuansu had expected, Great Sage Shi did not refuse but only instructed him to be mindful of the impact. He should keep things low-key and avoid causing panic.

Qi Xuansu agreed immediately and then promptly contacted Beichen Hall.

The Chief Deputy Hall Master handled external affairs, while the Second Deputy Hall Master was responsible for Jade Capital’s defense. Normally, such matters would be handled by ordinary Deputy Hall Masters. But the Chief Deputy and Second Deputy were theoretically their superiors.

At present, Sage Qingwei was making full use of Qi Xuansu, so there was no deliberate marginalization. The direction set from above ensured that other Deputy Hall Masters did not dare openly oppose him. If Qi Xuansu asked them to investigate the Kunlun Daoist Mansion, they might comply outwardly while reporting to the Hall Master behind the scenes. But since the Wanxiang Daoist Palace did not affect the interests of the Taiping Sect, they certainly would not refuse.

At the same time, Qi Xuansu reported the matter to Sage Qingwei, stating that based on his experience, it was likely a murder case involving a secret society.

Sage Qingwei was not omniscient, so he would not know all the details. Even if he did, it did not mean he would intervene in such minor matters. Thus, he simply replied for Qi Xuansu to go ahead.

Qi Xuansu then contacted the Tiangang Hall Master—his prospective mother-in-law—and requested Spirit Guards to be dispatched to assist in the investigation.

Great Sage Shi had agreed, so Sage Cihang did not refuse. Since it was only assistance in the investigation, she assigned a branch manager.

Qi Xuansu was quick to seek approval from three key figures—Great Sage Shi, Sage Cihang, and Sage Qingwei.

Even with strong backing, Qi Xuansu would not leave such vulnerabilities for others to exploit.

In less than half a day, two flying ships from Tiangang Hall and Beichen Hall arrived at the Wanxiang Daoist Palace.

The branch manager from Tiangang Hall was an acquaintance of Qi Xuansu—Xu Kou.

Xu Kou’s experience was quite legendary. He originally came from the Green Phoenix Guard and, by chance, came to know Sage Qingwei. With just a word from Sage Qingwei, he transferred from the Green Phoenix Guard into the Daoist Order and took a position in the Qizhou Daoist Mansion. However, due to his harsh methods, Sage Qingwei did not continue paying attention to such a minor figure, so he had plenty of ups and downs in his career, making little progress.

Later, he was recommended to Tiangang Hall, where he clashed with Zhang Yuelu under Li Tianzhen’s orders. Eventually, Xu Kou distanced himself from Li Tianzhen and became one of Zhang Yuelu’s subordinates, forming a friendship with Qi Xuansu.

Xu Kou was involved and rendered meritorious service in the Fenglin Campaign and the major Poluo case. As a valued superintendent under Zhang Yuelu, and with some guidance from Lin Yuanmiao, Xu Kou finally advanced to the Heavenly Being level. Zhang Yuelu then promoted him, and after many twists and turns, he returned to Tiangang Hall.

Compared to the Three Prodigies, Xu Kou was no longer young. However, compared to ordinary people, he was in his prime, with a high cultivation level and many achievements. Thus, his promotion to branch manager was quite reasonable.

Xu Kou’s position was just a step above that of a superintendent.

The representative from Beichen Hall was also an acquaintance of Qi Xuansu—Li Zhuyu.

Sage Qingwei seemed to treat Li Zhuyu as the designated liaison with Qi Xuansu. Whenever there were issues on Qi Xuansu’s side, Li Zhuyu would be sent to communicate. This made sense, as Li Zhuyu had prior connections with Qi Xuansu. They had worked together during the Fenglin Campaign, and Li Zhuyu had also contributed during the Poluo case.

Upon seeing Qi Xuansu, both representatives took the initiative to bow. “Chief Deputy Qi.”

Qi Xuansu gestured for them not to be overly formal and went straight to the point. “You already understand the situation, so I won’t repeat it. I have only one requirement—solve this case as quickly as possible. Be mindful of the impact and don’t cause unnecessary panic.”

Li Zhuyu responded, “Sure.”

Xu Kou, who was somewhat acquainted with Li Zhuyu, said, “My role this time is to assist in the investigation, so I will follow Deputy Hall Master Li’s command.”

“Alright, you may go,” Qi Xuansu said.

Qi Xuansu no longer needed to handle everything personally. Knowing the outcome was sufficient.

For Li Zhuyu and Xu Kou, the task was not complicated. They just needed to find the murderer and then follow the trail to uncover the mastermind.

In the end, there were only two possible outcomes for the mastermind—either admit to colluding with a secret society or confess truthfully.

Although Qi Xuansu’s methods might be questionable, the results were more or less the same.