Volume 1 Chapter 35: Senior Brother, Now an Undercover Agent

Volume 1 Chapter 35: Senior Brother, Now an Undercover Agent      

After changing into a set of halfway decent clothes, Ye Anping quickly rushed over to the therapy hall to start treatment for "Senior Brother Chen" and "Junior Sister Liu."

As expected, when Junior Sister Liu heard that he’d need to touch her feet, she looked more than a little reluctant. Fortunately, Bai Yuelin was right there watching the whole time. After some coaxing and a hesitant first try, she finally relaxed.

As for Senior Brother Chen, Ye Anping had him take off his shirt and began pressing along the meridians of his back. At first, the man screamed in pain like a pig being slaughtered, but once the session ended, he looked visibly refreshed, like his meridians had been unclogged. He even stayed behind to drink tea and chat with Ye Anping for quite a while.

Ye Anping promised them discounted therapy sessions in the future, and in return, they agreed to recommend his therapy hall to more disciples in the Profound Star Sect.

Half an hour later, the three of them left together to return to the sect—something about morning classes, apparently. 

Bai Yuelin said she’d come back later.

After sending them off, Ye Anping reopened the shop.

But realistically, “therapeutic treatment” was still a novel concept in this world.

While there were plenty of curious folks who dropped in to ask questions throughout the morning, not a single one was willing to actually pay. Most thought his rates were too steep.

He had originally planned to run a “first-day free” promotion, but since he was working solo, he didn’t want to risk getting swamped with customers he couldn’t handle. In the end, he simply bet everything on Bai Yuelin, hoping she’d bring more of her fellow disciples over in the future.

At the moment, Ye Anping sat alone in the front hall, doing his books and budgeting for future expenses—like the pills his junior sister would need—when suddenly, a man dressed in black walked in.

“Welcome!” Ye Anping greeted instinctively, assuming it was just another curious passerby. He sighed inwardly but still walked up to the man with a polite smile.

To his surprise, the man asked, “Do you sell Vermilion Birds here?”

Vermilion Bird, one of the Four Divine Beasts.

This world had the same myth: Vermilion Bird, Azure Dragon, White Tiger, and Black Tortoise—guardians of the four cardinal directions.

But the moment Ye Anping heard those words, his brow furrowed, and he froze on the spot.

He remembered that line. It was a code phrase used by the Seven Killers Sect in the game.

The Seven Killers Sect was made up of powerful wandering cultivators. They worked for money, not morality. As long as the price was right, anyone could post a bounty with them. Dirty work, assassination, sabotage—they did it all. Sometimes they even did errands for the elders of the Five Great Immortal Sects.

But here’s the problem:

There was no Seven Killers Sect “branch” in Profound Star Sect’s marketplace.

So… why did this guy walk into his therapy hall of all places?

Ye Anping hesitated.

Should he respond with the counter-phrase?

If Seven Killers Sect was showing up here, it could only mean one thing—

They were planning something big.

Pretending to be one of their storefronts wasn’t exactly safe. If they found out he was faking it… he’d be hunted down for sure.

But Ye Anping also knew a lot about the inner workings of the Seven Killers Sect. If he wanted to play the part, it wouldn’t be hard.

The man, seeing that Ye Anping had been silent for a while, turned toward the door and muttered, “Sorry to bother you.”

Seeing him about to leave, Ye Anping clenched his teeth, made up his mind, and called out with the counterphrase:

“This tiny place couldn’t possibly sell Vermilion Birds. But perhaps, dear customer, you’d consider a Jade Sparrow instead?”

“…”

The man froze mid-step. He turned his head, eyeing Ye Anping up and down. Then he replied, “Jade Sparrows sound awful. Their calls are unbearable.”

“What about a Yellow Sparrow, then? They have pleasant chirps, and are quite a charming little creature.”

“Phew—” The man let out a breath and smiled. “Here I thought there were no ‘shops’ in this marketplace. So it’s just you here?”

“Yes. There are no other ‘shops’ around. I only opened this one yesterday.”

Ye Anping quickly raised both hands in a placating gesture and led the man into the back room, cautiously pouring him a cup of tea.

After a few pleasantries, the man cut to the chase:

“Have you heard? The Grand Elder of the Poison Gu Sect was killed… in that little town next door, Martial Creek Town.”

Hearing this, Ye Anping knew for sure—responding to the codephrase had been the right move.

The Seven Killers Sect was here… for the “Wu You” incident.

He’d been thinking about this for the past month and a half.

After all, members of the Poison Gu Sect carried identity badges—meaning, the moment Wu You died, the sect elders would be alerted. No doubt they'd send people to investigate.

And if it turned out that the one who killed Wu You was the Young Master of the Hundred Lotus Sect… then the Poison Gu Sect would definitely show up at their doorstep. Especially since Wu You had been carrying a piece of the lost cultivation manual, The Mysterious Yin Art.

Ye Anping nodded. “Of course I heard. Rumor is, a golden dragon appeared in the skies above the Martial Creek Town that day.”

“Mhm. I stayed in the Martial Creek Town for a few days, asked around at the local inn about guests who checked out around that time. In the end, I narrowed it down to these people.”

As he spoke, the man pulled out a slip of paper and handed it over.

Ye Anping glanced at it. Seven names, scrawled messily across the page.

He nearly twitched when he saw two of the names—his own and Pei Lengxue’s.

“These were the guests who checked out after the golden dragon appeared. Whoever killed the Poison Gu Sect’s Grand Elder should be among them. Recognize any of these names?”

Ye Anping’s eye twitched as he read his own name and Pei Lengxue’s on the list. Trying to keep a straight face, he replied,

“Ye Anping—I think he’s a young master of the Hundred Lotus Sect. As for this Pei Lengxue, she’s supposed to be his junior sister. Neither of them are particularly talented. Their cultivation is only at the Qi Refining Realm.”

“…And the others?”

“Chen Shengwu—he’s in the Foundation Establishment realm, but already over 400 years old. Definitely not the one.”

The man was quiet for a moment, then asked, “Any of these with exceptional talent?”

“Exceptional talent?”

He nodded.

“According to our sect’s analysis, that golden dragon might’ve been the Immortal Emperor Dragon Soul. If that’s true, then the one who killed the Poison Gu Sect Grand Elder likely possesses the Immortal Emperor bloodline. Someone like that wouldn’t be weak. Based on what you’ve said, we can rule out those three. What about the remaining five?”

“…”

Ye Anping fell silent, then looked at the rest of the names.

As expected—Feng Yudie was on the list.

After some hesitation, he said, “This Feng Yudie… she’s a Heavenly Spiritual Root cultivator. She made quite a splash at the sect entrance trials yesterday.”

The man nodded thoughtfully.

“Got it. I’ll ask around the marketplace later.”

“…May I ask,” Ye Anping leaned in a little, “what are the sect’s instructions?”

“The Poison Gu Sect Grand Elder’s storage bag contained a certain treasure. No one knows what it is exactly. But the bounty specifically states to retrieve the bag. The reward is ten thousand spirit stones. A lot of our people are working on this case.”

“I see… then, what are your plans, Senior?”

The man paused in thought, then asked, “Can you find out the details of Profound Star Sect’s entrance trial? You said Feng Yudie participated, right?”

“Yes,” Ye Anping frowned slightly. “Senior, you’re not planning to make a move during the trial, are you? That’s Profound Star Sect… not some back-alley sect…”

“No need to worry.” The man waved off the concern.

“I know the rules. We won’t drag in ‘shops’ like yours that only gather intel. All you need to do is find out the trial schedule for the next few days. I’ll come back tonight for your report.”

“…Understood.”