Fishing

Qin Sang darted out from behind the trees. Judging from their Daoist robes, both men were disciples of the Hanhai Sect. Qin Sang had originally assumed they were acting out of greed after noticing he was an outsider, but listening to their earlier conversation, it seemed far from that simple. The two jumped in fright and spun around abruptly. Seeing Qin Sang reveal himself so brazenly, showing no inclination to flee despite realizing he was being followed, and instead acting entirely without fear, they suspected a trap. They warily scanned their surroundings. Finding no trace of anyone else, the taller cultivator's face darkened, and he barked sternly, "Who are you? What are your intentions, sneaking onto Bamen Island?" Qin Sang gave a dry chuckle and reached out into empty air. The space behind the two rippled, and a nearly imperceptible shadow was pinned in place, then flew backward into Qin Sang's palm. At this sight, both turned pale with shock. This was a unique method of communication belonging to their sect, extraordinarily covert, yet the person before them had seen through it with ease. "You tail me with ill intent, yet you have the audacity to turn around and accuse me. I hadn't wanted to cause too much of a stir, but since you've delivered yourselves right to my door, don't blame me..." Qin Sang sneered. Before his words had even faded, their vision blurred, and they discovered to their horror that they could no longer move. Only then did they realize this man possessed terrifying power. Terror plastered their faces; they could not even speak. Then, Qin Sang placed his hand atop one of their heads. The taller cultivator watched in stark terror as his companion died horribly under Qin Sang's soul searching. The gruesome sight completely shattered his mental defenses, and he literally wet himself in fear. "The Sect Master of the Hanhai Sect once sent people to secretly investigate the identities of all cultivators connected to the Master of Spirit Tortoise Island, and not long after that, calamity befell Spirit Tortoise Island..." The information obtained from the soul searching stirred Qin Sang's thoughts. The Sect Master of the Hanhai Sect had acted with extreme secrecy; only a handful of core disciples in the sect knew, while no one on the outside had noticed a thing. Sect Master Wu of the Sanshan Sect didn't even know he had been investigated. After disaster struck Spirit Tortoise Island, the Hanhai Sect ceased its actions and seemingly made no further moves; Sect Master Wu and the others were all still alive and well, yet Qin Sang keenly sensed that something was amiss. Regardless of whose orders the Hanhai Sect Master had been following, he certainly hadn't done such a thing without reason. The fact that Sect Master Wu was unharmed did not mean everyone else was safe. It might also just be that their cultivation was too low to catch anyone's eye. Senior Qingzhu had delivered sermons over a span of more than a hundred years. Among the cultivators who had benefited from his grace, several Core Formation experts had emerged, most of whom traveled abroad. Contact with those individuals had long been severed; even if they died out in the world, no one would know. "The person driving the Hanhai Sect Master is very likely the true culprit behind the scenes. Find the Hanhai Sect Master, and everything will come to light. His cultivation is comparable to Madam Liu's, so capturing and killing him would be effortless. What I fear is that the masterminds haven't left yet. It would be best to lure him out of his mountain gate and intercept him along the way! Even if an unexpected mishap occurs, I can make an early escape." Qin Sang shifted his gaze to the taller cultivator. Although this city was controlled by the Hanhai Sect, several other factions were mixed in as well, and together they were a force not to be underestimated. These two were stewards dispatched by the Hanhai Sect, and he could make good use of them. The Hanhai Sect Master had once ordered them to watch for unfamiliar experts entering and leaving the cultivation market—especially Core Formation experts or anyone closely tied to the Master of Spirit Tortoise Island—and report them to the sect immediately. Because Qin Sang had kept such a low profile, they had misjudged him. An idea formed in Qin Sang's mind. Under the taller cultivator's terrified gaze, he pointed at the other man's corpse and said coldly, "If you don't want to end up like him, follow my orders and send another secret message..." *** The Hanhai Sect. Inside a wooden hall, a disciple was meditating in seclusion. Urgent chirping suddenly echoed from outside the doors. Jolted awake, the disciple rushed out to find a spirit bird raised by the sect clutching a black 'insect' in its claws. The insect was actually a wisp of black mist. Upon touching the disciple's palm, it resolved into a confidential letter. Seeing the signature on the letter, the disciple dared not delay and sprinted toward a cave dwelling in the rear mountain to present it. "Master, an urgent missive from Senior Brother He!" Inside the cave dwelling, a middle-aged cultivator was in quiet cultivation. Disturbed, his expression soured. He beckoned the urgent letter into his hand, and after reading it, flew into a rage. "Hmph! What do those old bastards think they're doing? How dare they feign compliance while meddling where they don't belong! If Island Master Luo hadn't stepped in two years ago to mediate, I would have wiped them out long ago. How could I have let them hop around until now? Do they take Island Master Luo for their life-saving talisman? Looks like it's time to chop off their paws and teach them a lesson!" The middle-aged cultivator crushed the secret letter and stood abruptly. But as his anger subsided, he pondered for a moment and sat back down, speaking to the disciple below: "However, out of respect for Island Master Luo, I cannot simply slaughter them all... Go summon your eldest martial brother from seclusion. Have him lead people into the cultivation market in secret to assist your two senior brothers. Once their schemes are verified, I will personally go and hold them to account." "Yes!" The disciple hurried away. Before long, the mountain gates of the Hanhai Sect opened, and several figures darted out, heading straight for the cultivation market. Once they had left, Qin Sang's figure emerged atop a distant hill. Seeing that he had only hooked a few Foundation Establishment disciples, Qin Sang glanced toward the Hanhai Sect and cursed inwardly that this man was truly timid as a mouse. Fortunately, he had already anticipated that a single letter might not accomplish much and had prepared a second hand. To keep himself entirely clear and avoid drawing the notice of Senior Qingzhu's enemies, Qin Sang was willing to go through some extra trouble. The contents of the secret letter were not entirely fabricated either. Though the Hanhai Sect was strong, it could not completely dominate Bamen Island. The other factions were never going to be entirely obedient, so finding some evidence was easy enough. The two stewards had already gathered a few scraps, but the situation had not been so severe; Qin Sang had merely embellished the facts, making it look as though they were banding together in rebellion. When the Hanhai Sect disciples reached the cultivation market and slipped into the city, they found the taller cultivator. "Junior Brother He, where is Junior Brother Ren? Why are you alone?" The Hanhai Sect Master's eldest disciple was named Wei Yu. He could not see that someone was currently sitting in the corner of the hall. Junior Brother He, however, was acutely aware. Naturally timid as a mouse and now controlled by Qin Sang, he knew full well this was treason against his sect, yet he dared not refuse. "Junior... Junior Brother Ren is keeping watch on the Demon Tiger Mountain people. Only I am here waiting for Master. Eldest Senior Brother, why didn't Master come?" Having rehearsed this countless times, his performance was passable. "Master ordered me to come first and gather evidence of their misdeeds." The eldest martial brother saw no flaw in Junior Brother He's behavior. Upon examining the evidence Qin Sang had meticulously fabricated, he suspected nothing. He ordered the others to remain stationed in the market so as not to alert the enemy, while he personally carried the evidence back to the mountain. Once he departed, Qin Sang captured all the remaining disciples and trailed silently behind him. This series of machinations had cost Qin Sang considerable effort, but fortunately, after searching the soul earlier, he knew the Hanhai Sect and the cultivation market like the back of his hand, leaving no room for the tall cultivator to deceive him.