"Someone is willing to offer a top-grade spirit stone to gather helpers..."
Surprise flickered across Qin Sang's face as he read the contents of the voice transmission talisman.
Looking at the timestamp, it had been left three months ago, back when he was still rescuing Su Nü alongside Immortal Aunt Yue and the others.
The talisman did not state what the sender needed helpers for, only mentioning that if Qin Sang was interested, he should come to the shop to discuss the details.
After all this time, the other party had probably already assembled all the people they needed.
Qin Sang felt a pang of regret over missing the opportunity.
Fingering the jade talisman, he pondered for a moment and decided to check out the shop anyway. Such an opportunity was rare; perhaps the other party had not set out yet.
None of the other voice transmission talismans contained urgent matters. Qin Sang sealed his cave dwelling and darted toward the cultivation market. Taking off his cloak, he moved about Tianxing City in his true identity.
The shop doors were open.
Seeing Qin Sang push the door open and enter, the shopkeeper looked somewhat surprised and hastily rose to welcome him. "Fellow Daoist Qin, where have you been? Why hasn't there been any word from you for so long?"
"I entered secluded death-seclusion. Upon exiting, I found the voice transmission talisman you left and hurried over," Qin Sang said as he took a seat.
He had decided to keep his two identities separate to avoid any connection between them, so he concealed his trip to the Demon Sea.
As the matters he encountered accumulated, Qin Sang increasingly felt that the Hall of Seven Kills held countless secrets, entangling far too many factions and affairs in great complexity.
Naturally, he wished to avoid being drawn into it, but worldly events did not bend to human will; one could only prepare for a rainy day. If one identity became compromised, he could still walk about with a clean identity and blend into the outside world.
The shopkeeper was taken aback, then suddenly came to a realization. "I nearly forgot—Fellow Daoist Qin is referring to that matter."
"Is that fellow Daoist who was recruiting helpers still around? As you know, Fellow Daoist, I am in urgent need of a top-grade spirit stone. An opportunity like this is hard to come by," Qin Sang leaned forward and asked.
"That's hard to say," the shopkeeper replied, shaking his head and taking a sip of tea. "Fellow Daoist Qin, I sent that voice transmission talisman several months ago. At the time, they came to me asking for an introduction to a trustworthy fellow Daoist of exceptional cultivation, and I thought of you. But with no news from your end, I had no choice but to tell them the truth, and we haven't been in touch since. It was truly unfortunate that you happened to be in death-seclusion."
Seeing Qin Sang look somewhat disappointed, the shopkeeper thought for a moment and said, "Fellow Daoist Qin, how about this? I can't let you make a wasted trip. Let me try to contact them. Head back to your cave dwelling for now and await my word. These days, with the demon unrest in the Demon Sea, traffic is one-way—you can enter, but cannot leave. This has made the situation in the Inner Sea extremely tense as well. Many cultivators have fled Tianxing Island for fear of being conscripted. An expert like you isn't easy to find. As I recall, their standards were quite high, so perhaps they haven't gathered enough people yet."
"Then many thanks, Fellow Daoist!"
Qin Sang rose, cupped his hands in gratitude, and after exchanging a few pleasantries, headed toward the auction house.
After seeing Qin Sang off, the shopkeeper tapped his fingers on the table, pondered for a moment, closed the shop doors, and hurried away.
Before long, the shopkeeper arrived at a courtyard on the outskirts of Tianxing City and knocked on the gate.
"Come in."
A deep, resonant voice came from inside the courtyard.
The shopkeeper pushed open the gate and entered, finding a black-robed man—the very person who had sold Qin Sang the top-grade spirit stone in the past. Bowing respectfully, he asked, "Senior Brother, is there any news from Eldest Senior Brother?"
"Not yet."
The black-robed man shook his head slightly. "It should be soon, though. The Demon Sea is of tremendous consequence, and none of the human factions can stay out of it. Their experts have all been dispatched to the Demon Sea to defend the islands, which gives us an opening. With Eldest Senior Brother's abilities, gathering intelligence will be as easy as turning over his hand. It's just a pity that Master is also trapped in the Demon Sea and unable to extricate himself. Otherwise, we could have launched a direct assault instead of going through all this trouble."
"Is Master certain he cannot make it?"
The shopkeeper's expression shifted in alarm. "After planning for so long, are all those rogue cultivators we bought off useless now?"
The black-robed man sighed. "Man proposes, but Heaven disposes. Although Master foresaw the demons' movements and knew the situation in the Demon Sea would become tense, he never expected such a massive uprising. The demons have practically gone mad. And that Grand Shaman, a mere woman occupying a high post without doing her duty, possesses empty cultivation; she actually let the demons attack Tianwu Island and nearly seize the teleportation formation, trapping Master there as well. Without Master here, the few of us cannot forcefully attack their sect. Even if we obtained the treasure, we wouldn't be able to keep those rogue cultivators under control. Still, our preparations weren't entirely in vain. An opportunity like this comes once in a century. Eldest Senior Brother sent word that Master ordered us to find the whereabouts of that supreme treasure at all costs—whether by stealing or seizing it, we must obtain it. Eldest Senior Brother is strategizing everything, and no one besides us knows the truth about this treasure, so our chances remain high. Moreover, Master will extricate himself from Tianwu Island as soon as possible. When the time comes, we will inevitably need manpower, so for now, keep them on retainer..."
The shopkeeper breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good. As long as we can share Master's burdens, our painstaking efforts won't have been in vain."
The black-robed man glanced at him. "Rest assured, Master will not mistreat those with merit. I have kept an eye on everything you've done, Junior Brother, and have reported it faithfully to Master. He knows what you've done. By the way, what brought you to my door today?"
"There is one thing. Do you remember the man who bought your top-grade spirit stone, Senior Brother? It turns out he had been in death-seclusion all this time. Seeing the voice transmission talisman, he came looking for me immediately. It's certain that he has no ties to the major factions, but I didn't know if you still have a use for him, Senior Brother..." the shopkeeper said in a low voice.
"Oh, that man!"
The black-robed man recalled Qin Sang. "I remember his cultivation was at the mid Core Formation stage."
"Indeed," the shopkeeper nodded. "Although he was in death-seclusion, I saw that his cultivation hasn't increased much, so he was likely practicing some sort of Daoist art. For a rogue cultivator to reach this realm, his strength won't be lacking."
The black-robed man grunted in assent, then mused, "Under the original plan, whether we included him or not wouldn't have mattered much. But with Master unable to come in person, the few of us alone may struggle to suppress those old eccentrics in the late Core Formation stage. Once they take their benefits, they might turn around and sell us out. Fortunately, we've always kept our guard up against them and never revealed our true objective; otherwise, this would be very difficult to wrap up. Someone like this Qin fellow would actually be easier to control. However, how we act and how many people we need will still depend on Eldest Senior Brother's news..."
"What does Senior Brother mean?"
"Bring him in first. It's just a top-grade spirit stone—compared to the supreme treasure Master is pursuing, what does it matter!" The black-robed man struck the table.
A look of delight crossed the shopkeeper's face. "I've already stabilized the man and told him to wait in his cave dwelling for word. Come by my place in a few days, Senior Brother, and I'll summon him over."
The black-robed man nodded.
...
Meanwhile, Qin Sang was walking toward the auction house. Seeing the cultivation market so desolate, he also began considering whether it might be best to temporarily leave Tianxing Island and lay low for a while.
Chapter 856