Secret Schemes!

Li Guanqi pondered for a moment before speaking. "Add one more for me. Tu Yongsi must also be monitored." "Also... I don't want any casualties among the Dark Pavilion Guards. There's no need to eavesdrop on specific conversations." "You only need to report who each of them meets and how long they stay." Ge San clearly hadn't expected Li Guanqi to say this, but he gave a silent nod of acknowledgment before melting away into the shadows. Li Guanqi stroked his chin. When he got the chance, he could ask Gu Yong for a concealment technique like that. Thinking of this, he suddenly slapped his thigh... A sly, mischievous grin touched the corners of his mouth as he cleared his throat. "I have one. Want to learn it?" Before he could speak, the sword spirit's voice chimed in his mind. Li Guanqi chuckled and nodded. "Teach me. Things look a bit tricky this time. When necessary, I'll have to eavesdrop in person." The sword spirit's beautiful eyes curved into crescents. Whenever Li Guanqi was angling for an advantage, even his tone grew noticeably sweeter. Immediately afterward, obscure chants composed of radiant spiritual light manifested in Li Guanqi's mind. *Great Void Shadow Breath Concealment Divine Art!* After roughly scanning the chant, Li Guanqi became completely engrossed in it. From the outside, he seemed to sit frozen in his chair, staring blankly out the door. Meanwhile, Song Yunshu was casually wandering about the backyard, completely unaware of Li Guanqi's strange state. Gradually, specks of rosy light appeared around Li Guanqi, flitting about him like fireflies. His figure slowly began to twist and blur. Even though the surrounding space was clearly warping, it strangely gave off not the slightest spatial ripple. At that moment, Li Guanqi felt as if his consciousness had sunk into a pitch-black swamp of the void. The primal energy inside him flowed slowly like a stream, opening up numerous minute meridians. As his comprehension of the technique deepened, Li Guanqi's body suddenly vanished from the chair!! Within the pitch-black void, his physical form vanished once more!!! Yet before disappearing, he left behind a phantom image identical to his own aura where he had sat. The void interlayer!! Suspended between illusion and reality, Li Guanqi moved freely between the void and its fold. He didn't know what lay behind the interlayer, but he knew that even if he broke through to the Body Integration Realm, he probably wouldn't be able to tear through the spatial barrier beyond it! The moment he entered the interlayer, he sharply sensed a faint, concealed aura within a hundred li. *Hum!* A dark silhouette abruptly appeared about a zhang in front of him, dropping to one knee as he said in a low, respectful voice: "Ge Er greets the Pavilion Master!" Li Guanqi's heart gave a slight jolt. He hadn't expected the other party's technique to also hide within the void interlayer! However, the man's technique seemed unable to enter completely like his own, concealing only most of his body. Even so, it was already extraordinarily formidable. Had Li Guanqi not gained initial mastery over this breath concealment divine art, he likely wouldn't have noticed Ge Er hiding in the courtyard at all. Meanwhile, Ge Er was even more shaken! Not long ago, Li Guanqi clearly hadn't been able to detect Ge San's presence. Yet barely the time it took for an incense stick to burn had passed, and he was already maneuvering skillfully between the void and the interlayer!! Li Guanqi nodded. It seemed the surveillance missions were being handled by the others. Narrowing his eyes, Li Guanqi pondered for a long while... "Ge Er, I order you to learn the technique I am about to impart, and find time to teach it to the others!" Li Guanqi then imparted the divine art he had just mastered to Ge Er. Ge Er could never have imagined that Li Guanqi would generously hand over such a priceless divine art without hesitation. What was more, it was complete and unreserved, without even splitting it into separate volumes! *Is he... not afraid that we won't obey him?!* As if reading his thoughts, Li Guanqi gave a light chuckle. "If you doubt a man, do not employ him; if you employ a man, do not doubt him." "You are risking your lives to work for me. What does a mere technique matter?" Ge Er kept his head bowed and said nothing more, quietly engraving everything in his heart. "Rest assured, Pavilion Master. The Four Tower Masters will not detect us!" "Also... Ge Qi is responsible for monitoring the senior figures of the four towers. He will report to you tonight at the hour of the Ox." Li Guanqi nodded, stepped out of the void, and returned to the study. Turning his head, he saw Song Yunshu sitting quietly to one side, looking at him. The woman did not pry, however. Li Guanqi gave a faint smile and unhurriedly poured himself a cup of wine. His eyes flickered as he looked out the doorway. *** *Bang!* Jiang Yi slammed his zisha teapot onto the table! The teapot shattered, spilling pale-green spiritual tea all over the floor. Jiang Han wore an intensely solemn expression, sitting in a lower seat without uttering a word. In the center of the hall, a disheveled young man with a feeble aura knelt on the floor, letting the tea splash over him. His shoulders trembled, but he didn't dare look up at the old man. "Ambitionless trash! All you know is indulgence and luxury every single day!" "When someone murders you out of the blue one day, you won't even know how you died!" Jiang Zi'ang's face turned pale. He had no idea why his grandfather was throwing such a massive fit. He had lived this way for years, and he had never seen his grandfather so enraged before... Seeing the old man's temper flaring and looking about to strike, Jiang Han hastily stood up and said, "Father, Zi'ang... you know how he is. Why don't you let him go back and rest?" Hearing this, Jiang Zi'ang brightened up and made to get up and leave. Jiang Yi, however, defied his usual demeanor and barked chillingly, "Kneel down!!" *Boom!* A terrifying pressure violently erupted! Jiang Han's expression changed as the old man's furious scolding rang in his ears. "Shut your mouth! It's all because you spoiled him!" "Look at Li Guanqi! He's even younger than him, but look where he stands today!" "Now look at this one! Useless! Both of you are useless trash!!" Jiang Han frowned slightly and said dismissively, "Father, aren't you overthinking this?" "That Li Guanqi is nothing more than a reckless brute of a cultivator. Regardless of how arrogantly he threw his weight around today, the Purple Tower remains firmly in our Jiang family's hands!" "What good is an empty title of Pavilion Master?" "The way I see it... it won't be long before he leaves." Jiang Yi slumped into his chair and sighed, his sharp gaze sweeping over the two of them. "Useless... Both of you are mud that can never stick to a wall..." "You're hundreds of years old, yet with all your experience and cunning, you could say something so foolish?" Jiang Han opened his mouth to say more, but an immense force swept him straight out of the hall. Seeing that Jiang Yi had effectively dismissed them, Jiang Zi'ang hitched up his robes and prepared to scurry away. Seated in his chair, Jiang Yi had a trace of worry flashing in his eyes. Judging solely by Li Guanqi's performance today, none of his shrewdness, intellect, or tactics could be underestimated! The old man rubbed the space between his eyebrows, then rose and headed into the study. Wearing a grim expression, Jiang Yi walked over to the desk, pulled a ring from his finger, and inserted it into the mouth of a toad ornament on the desk. Immediately, a faint fluorescence spread, and a special miniature formation instantly took shape!! "Speak. What do you think of him?"