After walking down from the stone bridge, the two descended several hundred steps along a stone stair passage and emerged into a dim, cavernous underground storeroom.
Despite the faint light, one could still make out mountains of stacked iron chests and otherworld coffins—so immense in number that even spending ten days and ten nights might not suffice to take full inventory.
A withered, aged figure appeared soundlessly behind Li Weiyi. Holding a lamp, he asked in a raspy voice, "Little Twenty-Four, is this this year's newcomer?"
Li Weiyi hastily sidestepped and looked at the person behind him, his heart pounding wildly.
*Not a single sound or breath—is this a man or a ghost?*
The man was decrepit beyond measure, severely hunched, with sparse hair clinging to his scalp. In this dark underground warehouse, he looked no different from a wraith or ghost from the netherworld.
What he held was not a lamp at all, but a cluster of flames grasped directly in his hand.
"He is not Yin Twenty-Six, but Yin Jun personally arranged a special trial for him."
Yin Twenty-Four bowed respectfully to the old man, then said to Li Weiyi, "This is Supreme Elder Forty-Five of the Hidden Gate, responsible for guarding the entrance connecting Jiuli City to the Jiuli Hidden Gate."
In the Hidden Gate, a Hidden One from the previous sexagenary cycle was called an elder.
A supreme elder was a Hidden One from the sexagenary cycle before that.
In other words, the Supreme Elder Forty-Five before him was Yin Forty-Five from two cycles ago—an old fellow well over a hundred years of age. For him to guard such a vital place, his cultivation could easily be imagined.
Li Weiyi promptly cupped his hands in a bow.
Supreme Elder Forty-Five raised the flames in his hand and drew near, squinting as he scrutinized Li Weiyi closely. He chuckled, "Quite interesting indeed. Go change your clothes first!"
Hunched over, he hobbled away with unsteady steps.
The surroundings fell back into dimness.
Yin Twenty-Four tossed a set of purplish-black robes to Li Weiyi, then undid her belt and began to strip down... though, naturally, keeping on her inner garments and only changing the outer layer.
Li Weiyi caught the purplish-black robes and examined them closely. Seeing the silver coffin insignia embroidered onto the cuff, he was visibly moved. "This is the standard martial robe of a Guanhai Pavilion disciple!"
"That's right," Yin Twenty-Four said. "This is the third subterranean vault of Guanhai Pavilion, a forbidden ground only the Pavilion Master can enter. What we're wearing are the standard martial robes for disciples of Guanhai Pavilion's External Affairs Hall."
"We're currently beneath the core Dao Domain of Jiuli City?" Li Weiyi sought confirmation again, finding it somewhat hard to believe.
Yin Twenty-Four said, "Jiuli Insect Valley itself lies deep underground beneath Jiuli City, right under the Dao Domain. Otherwise, why do you think the Hidden Gate's dharma qi is so rich? Why it's so suited for cultivation? Why precious herbs grow so easily there? Of course, ancient formations separate the two layer by layer; no one can bore through."
"The great recluse hides in the city—truly brilliant. I should have thought of it long ago!"
Li Weiyi smiled wryly, then muttered to himself, "Jiuli Insect Valley is completely blanketed by dharma qi, forming a dao domain of its own. That means an extraordinarily large Tianfa Earth Spring must be nearby. And to possess such a massive Tianfa Earth Spring without being discovered, where else could it be besides Jiuli City?"
Once they put on the robes of Guanhai Pavilion's External Affairs Hall disciples, the two used the Disguise Art to alter their facial features and builds.
At the same time, two bundles that had been prepared in advance lay nearby.
Opening them revealed night-travel suits that were low-grade dharma artifacts. Once activated, they provided a degree of defensive protection and stealth, meant to be worn while executing missions.
There was also a vial of powder. According to Yin Twenty-Four, this powder could strip pursuers of their sense of smell for a short period.
"Your Yellow Dragon Sword will expose your identity during the hit. Do you need to carry a different dharma artifact?" Yin Twenty-Four asked.
"Of course I do," Li Weiyi replied.
"With our clearance level, we can only requisition a single low-grade dharma artifact. Moreover, it must be returned once the mission is over. If lost, you have to compensate for it," Yin Twenty-Four said.
"It isn't bestowed for free?"
"Do you really think the Hidden Gate has infinite resources?"
Li Weiyi waved a hand. "Forget it then! In any case, I already have grievances with the Changlin Gang. Taking revenge under my own identity as Li Weiyi won't lead anyone to suspect the Hidden Gate, which makes much more sense. The real issue right now is, just how strong are Xu Changlin and Tang Yan? I know nothing about their strength, or about the strength of the Wuhai Realm."
If every Wuhai Realm cultivator could lift the Five Seas Pillar with pure physical strength, while possessing a higher degree of condensed dharma power and vast dharma qi within their qi seas compared to the Yongquan Realm, then Li Weiyi felt that turning back right now and smashing through the Hidden Gate with Coffin Master's letter would be his best option.
Yin Twenty-Four snorted disdainfully. "Both of them only broke through to the Wuhai Realm from seven springs, and each has only opened their first qi sea. With my strength after breaking into the Wuhai Realm just two months ago, I could take care of them with one hand!"
"I've only opened eight springs," Li Weiyi said.
The smug arrogance instantly drained from Yin Twenty-Four. She said coldly, "Don't worry. They're just two useless wrecks hollowed out by wine and women. With me backing you up, just do what you have to do."
Li Weiyi hardly dared entrust his life to Yin Twenty-Four. He quietly pondered which trump cards he could afford to reveal, then carried them on his person.
After all, when he clashed with Yang Shenjing, he had only used the Yellow Dragon Sword.
That hadn't represented his true peak combat capability.
"What's stored inside these iron chests?"
Curious, Li Weiyi was eager to open them and look, but they were sealed with array inscriptions.
"This is not just Guanhai Pavilion's most vital vault, but also the storage warehouse for the Guanhai Chamber of Commerce's rarest goods. Nearly all the grand finale items for their auctions are kept here. In addition, many of the Hidden Gate's resources and treasures are stored here as well," Yin Twenty-Four explained.
Guanhai Pavilion was the sect founded by the Guanhai Chamber of Commerce.
Fourteen years ago, after the Jiuli Clan suffered a crushing defeat, four pieces of Jiuli City's Dao Domain were carved away to establish four major sects:
the Sui Sect, Sanchen Palace, Tianyi Gate, and Guanhai Pavilion.
In Lizhou today, the Jiuli Dao Academy and the Sui Sect stood as the twin titans, with Sanchen Palace close behind. Tianyi Gate and Guanhai Pavilion, having only been established fourteen years ago, lagged far behind in strength and foundation.
Li Weiyi asked, "What exactly is the relationship between Guanhai Pavilion and the Jiuli Hidden Gate?"
Yin Twenty-Four said, "In truth, these four major factions—the Sui Sect, Sanchen Palace, Tianyi Gate, and Guanhai Pavilion—were originally domestic servants and slaves sent out by the Jiuli Clan to sell otherworld coffins.
"The ancestors of the Sui Sect were in charge of water transport, shipping otherworld coffins along the Sui River to the various provinces of the Lingxiao Realm of the Living.
"The ancestors of Sanchen Palace were responsible for transport across the three overland routes—the North Direct Route, West Prefecture Route, and East Forest Route—carrying them toward the Northern, Western, and Eastern territories.
"The ancestors of Tianyi Gate and Guanhai Pavilion were responsible for sales, which evolved into today's Tianyi Chamber of Commerce and Guanhai Chamber of Commerce.
"Backed by the ten-million-strong ancient Jiuli Clan, factions great and small across the entire Lingxiao Realm of the Living naturally had to give them face. Under the banner of the Jiuli Clan, their influence steadily grew. They formed gangs, recruited martial cultivators, trained deathsworn, and expanded aggressively.
"With transport routes established, ambition sprouted, and their business naturally ceased to be confined to otherworld coffins. Salt, iron, ores, textiles, brothels, gambling dens, taverns, human trafficking... Over a millennium of enterprise, they steadily amassed fortunes. Paralyzing and leeching off the Jiuli Clan, borrowing its prestige to intimidate others, saplings grew into towering trees until several clans boasting millions of members emerged.
"Having lost its supreme dharma artifact, the Jiuli Clan failed time and again to elect a leader capable of commanding general respect. Resting complacently on the natural treasure trove of otherworld coffins and dreaming sweet dreams, the nine branches fell into constant internal strife to dredge up more coffins and seize greater wealth and profit. The academy and temple that were supposed to preside over the broader situation turned into ground zero for factional infighting, losing their ability to govern.
"Against this backdrop, the nine branches instead courted and cultivated those domestic servants and slaves, pouring massive resources into them and treating them as enforcers to deploy against other branches, utterly blind to their ravenous ambitions. Profiting from all nine factions, these servants and slaves grew larger step by step—what a grand time they had.
"Fourteen years ago, seeing through the Jiuli Clan's fundamental weakness, these servants and slaves dropped all pretenses. That led to the six months of martial clashes and the Battle of Mount Mang.
"Only then, after suffering humiliating disgrace, were the Jiuli Clan's higher-ups finally battered awake, realizing they were no longer the ancient clan of ten million they once were. Afterward, the nine patriarchs sat down peacefully to negotiate. The nine branches ceased infighting, and every dispute suddenly seemed open to compromise. But how could a decline of several centuries be recouped in just fourteen years?"
Li Weiyi offered a derisive smile. "It's the same everywhere. Without an external threat and with abundant internal resources, factional fighting is inevitable. Only when faced with outside enemies do people unite. But why didn't the Hidden Gate step in? Why did it simply allow former servants and slaves to bully their masters and even carve away pieces of the Dao Domain?"
"If they weren't subjected to some humiliation, how could they know shame and muster the courage to reform? If they knew someone was there to bail them out, they would only have grown more brazen, decadent, and extravagant. Besides..."
Yin Twenty-Four looked at the vault before them and added, "Who said the Hidden Gate didn't act?"
Li Weiyi asked, "The leadership of Guanhai Pavilion has long been controlled by the Hidden Gate? Or rather, the Sui Sect, Sanchen Palace, and Tianyi Gate all have Hidden Gate operatives inside?"
"I'm merely a Hidden One who arrived two years before you. How could I know so many secrets?" Yin Twenty-Four had no desire to say more.
Like a ghost, Supreme Elder Forty-Five glided out behind Li Weiyi and rasped, "Anyone leaving the Hidden Gate on a mission must be planted with death spirit fire."
Yin Twenty-Four evidently knew the rules. Closing her eyes, she calmly accepted the flame leaking from Supreme Elder Forty-Five's fingertip as it sank into her glabella.
Remembering the manner of Li Qing's death, Li Weiyi felt horrified and was naturally reluctant.
Yin Twenty-Four said, "The death spirit fire will only erupt if you are captured and a mind master attempts to invade your consciousness. If it really comes to that, do you think the other party would spare your life anyway? Relax. Once the mission ends, the death spirit fire will be removed."
Li Weiyi asked, "Then... if I voluntarily disclose the secrets I know, will the death spirit fire erupt?"
"No," Yin Twenty-Four replied, immediately adding, "but you would be hunted down by the entire Hidden Gate. And everyone who learned the secrets would be eliminated as well. Of course, if you truly are captured and wish to avoid the agony of telekinetic intrusion, you can trigger the death spirit fire yourself. There is no other choice; the Hidden Gate must ensure its own security."
Li Weiyi could find no reason to object, so he nodded.
After the death spirit fire was planted, Li Weiyi and Yin Twenty-Four climbed upward along the stone steps, passing through all three subterranean vaults before finally reaching the surface.
Disguised as External Affairs Hall disciples of Guanhai Pavilion, the two helped carry cargo from the first-floor warehouse and rode along with the chamber of commerce's convoy, leaving the Dao Domain and entering the bustling, carriage-thronged streets of Jiuli City's City Domain.
A clamor of lively noise washed over them.
Along the way, the two quietly slipped off the carriage and blended into the flowing crowds.
The July sun beat down with scorching intensity.
Yet feeling the sunlight once again and seeing the blue sky and white clouds filled Li Weiyi with an indescribable lightness of spirit. "After eating medicinal broth for two months, I truly miss mortal food. Come on, let's grab a good meal first—my treat!"
Yin Twenty-Four was rather surprised, not expecting this fellow to have such a generous and openhanded side. Having gone so long without indulging her palate, she was naturally looking forward to it.
But when Li Weiyi led her to the dining spot, she froze in bewilderment. She scrutinized the shabby roadside noodle stall, trying to discern what was extraordinary about it. Perhaps her eyes were failing her? Maybe there was more than met the eye in that pot, and the stall keeper would conjure up an array of delicacies bursting with color, aroma, and flavor at any moment.
Li Weiyi had already sat down first and shouted, "Boss, two bowls of noodle soup, extra beef! Sit down, don't just stand there like a wooden post."
Yin Twenty-Four's expression turned sour. "If it's just two bowls of noodle soup, you really didn't need to get my hopes up like that."
"How could it just be two bowls of noodle soup?" Li Weiyi said.
"With beef, right? That joke isn't funny," Yin Twenty-Four said.
Li Weiyi took out the three-headed snake bracelet and placed it on the table. "This is the real centerpiece!"
Being someone of broad experience, Yin Twenty-Four immediately recognized that the bracelet was extraordinary. She quickly picked it up and examined its every detail, her eyes growing increasingly fervent.
She whispered, "This is a blood-refined dharma artifact! It likely seals a potent blood soul inside. Judging by the craftsmanship, it doesn't look like a low-grade artifact."
"Sharp eyes. As expected of someone in the Wuhai Realm."
Never one to shy away from dropping a bombshell, Li Weiyi said, "It's a high-grade dharma artifact!"
Even with Yin Twenty-Four's composure, her hands trembled, and the bracelet nearly slipped from her grasp.
A high-grade dharma artifact was a treasure that only top figures in the Wuhai Realm were qualified to possess.
What's more, this high-grade artifact had a blood soul sealed inside...
Li Weiyi seemed completely oblivious to her shock. Glancing toward the pot where the noodles were already boiling, he said in a low voice, "Help me fence it. Doesn't your Hidden Gate control Guanhai Pavilion? Sell it secretly through the Guanhai Chamber of Commerce and buy me some Light Flame Pills. I need to break through my telekinesis as soon as possible and push for Square-Inch Bright Flame. Otherwise, who knows how many years it'll take to temper my golden trace veins? I can't wait that long."
Yin Twenty-Four couldn't bear to hear another word and nearly cursed out loud. "Are you out of your mind? The blood soul inside a high-grade dharma artifact possesses combat power at least at the level of the third stage of the Wuhai Realm! You want to sell it just to buy Light Flame Pills? Fine, sell it to me."
Seeing Li Weiyi stare back at her in astonishment, she instinctively pulled the three-headed snake bracelet closer to herself.
Then Li Weiyi asked a question that struck straight at her soul:
"Can you afford it?"
Chapter 86