Great Li Martial God

The three great demonic sects of Great Xuan were capable of standing against the seven major sects of the martial world, and naturally their access to information was far from limited.

A talent of Li Musheng's caliber, who had risen so suddenly and shaken the entire martial world, was someone whose name had long since spread across all five kingdoms. The Blood River Patriarch and the assembled demonic experts could not possibly be unaware of him.

On the contrary, those of the demonic path tended to pay close attention to someone of that strength.

After all, the rumors about him in the martial world were too extraordinary to ignore. Someone not yet twenty years old who had, on his own, wiped out a top-tier martial sect was simply beyond imagining even for powerful figures like themselves.

"The Great Li imperial capital is thousands of li from Taixuan City. How would that person have suddenly come all the way here?"

The assembled demonic experts looked at one another in bafflement, and clearly had some doubts about what the elderly woman in white was saying.

The elderly woman in white did not bother explaining, and only said with a meaningful air, "This old one is already seventy or eighty percent certain of his identity. This old one has already given the warning. Believe it or not, that is entirely up to you."

At those words, the Blood River Patriarch's brow furrowed, while the Ten Thousand Malice Demonic Sect Master fell into pensive silence.

"If it truly is that person, then we absolutely cannot confront him head-on. He is someone who has subdued the Assassination Saint of the Hidden Kill Pavilion. There are few in this entire martial world who could best him."

"The most important thing right now is still to find the last Demonic Core. If we truly encounter this person, we can only avoid a direct confrontation for the time being. As long as the three cult masters obtain the Demonic Patriarch's legacy, suppressing that Eighth Prince of Great Li will be well within our reach afterward."

One of the demonic experts spoke up, and the rest voiced their agreement in turn.

The elderly woman in white's clouded eyes swept slowly over the assembled demonic figures in the underground space, and deep within them, entirely imperceptible to those around her, a faint glimmer of contempt surfaced.

She then coughed softly a few times, "Everyone, please be patient. Before coming here, this old one had the cult's senior elders perform another divination. It has been roughly confirmed that the last Demonic Core is likely to be found within thirteen wards of Taixuan City."

"As long as our three sects work together and search those areas in secret, we should have results before long."

At those words, the many demonic experts present, including the two cult masters, all showed a change of expression.

Taixuan City was simply enormous. Searching the entire imperial capital would have taken an unknowable amount of time. Now that the Sun and Moon Demonic Cult had narrowed it down to thirteen wards, the efficiency of the search had improved dramatically.

"Demonic Empress, rest assured. Old man and old ghost will oversee this matter personally and recover the missing Demonic Core. In the meantime, focus entirely on recovering from your injuries and wait for our good news."

The Blood River Patriarch spoke with conviction, and exchanged a look with the Ten Thousand Malice Demonic Sect Master.

The two of them obtained the locations of the thirteen wards from the elderly woman in white, then without delay began immediately organizing their demonic experts to fan out and search for the Demonic Core.

The elderly woman in white watched all of this in silence, her gaze drifting toward the direction of the Great Xuan imperial palace, something unreadable in her eyes, "Kuang, this old one never broke a promise to you. The throne of Great Xuan has been left for you to sit. As for how long you can sit on it, that depends entirely on whether you have what it takes."

...

The Grand Manager of the Treasure Assembly Trading House, from the moment he left the Great Xuan imperial palace, went directly back to the trading house's branch in Taixuan City.

The first thing he did upon returning was quietly and discreetly look for someone to help him rid himself of the strange poison inside his body and the Intestinal Fiend Worm implanted in his head.

He understood well enough himself that the chances of this were nearly nonexistent, but even so, he intended to try.

"Although that dog emperor has already given me orders not to leave Taixuan City, his attention is unlikely to be on me right now. I must use this opportunity to find a way to save myself."

The Grand Manager of the Treasure Assembly Trading House soaked in a medicinal tub brewed from countless rare ingredients, using it to suppress the poison in his body.

At this moment, the first person he could think of who might help him was naturally Li Musheng.

But he did not dare approach him. Li Musheng was almost certainly the person the Great Xuan emperor was most closely watching at this moment. One wrong move, and the Great Xuan emperor might take his life before he even had a chance to ask Li Musheng for help.

And yet when he tried to think of anyone else to turn to, he could not come up with a second option.

Just as the Grand Manager of the Treasure Assembly Trading House was feeling completely at a loss, a servant from the trading house's branch came to the door of his room.

"Grand Manager, there is a young girl outside who says she is an old acquaintance of yours. She is asking specifically to see you."

At those words, the Grand Manager frowned and was about to send the person away. But on second thought, he asked one more question, "Did she give her name?"

The servant outside thought briefly, then replied, "The young girl did not say who she is. She only mentioned a place called 'Bai Jia'ao'..."

At those words, the Grand Manager of the Treasure Assembly Trading House shot upright out of the medicinal tub, a look of delighted surprise breaking across his face. He said urgently, "Quickly, go bring her to the main hall. I will be there at once."

The servant outside acknowledged and departed.

Before long, the Grand Manager hurried into his clothes and went to the main hall at once.

There, seated in the main hall, was a bright-eyed young girl in a green dress.

The young girl had one leg crossed over the other, looking the opulent hall over with great interest while periodically pinching up pieces of pastry and tossing them into her mouth, her soft white cheeks puffed out on both sides.

The Grand Manager of the Treasure Assembly Trading House, upon seeing her, showed not the slightest hint of condescension, and immediately went toward her with a beaming smile.

The young girl was none other than Bai Xiaotang, whom Li Musheng had left behind along the way.

The moment Bai Xiaotang saw the man before her, she knitted her brows slightly and, still eating her pastry, asked, "You... are the Grand Manager here?"

"That is this humble one."

The Grand Manager answered at once, looked Bai Xiaotang over briefly, and his expression shifted faintly. He leaned in and asked quietly, "May I ask what relationship the young lady has with Master Bai?"

At those words, Bai Xiaotang's eyes rolled. She naturally knew who the Grand Manager meant by Master Bai.

"He is my master."

Bai Xiaotang spoke without missing a beat.

The Theft Saint Bai Wuying had no fondness for drink, yet could not hold his liquor at all, and had a poor manner when drunk, tending to ramble on about all sorts of things. Bai Xiaotang had heard more than a few stories about the relationship between him and the Grand Manager of the Treasure Assembly Trading House from the man's own drunken ramblings.

The relationship between the two of them amounted, broadly speaking, to that of a thief and his fence.

Back in the days when the Theft Saint Bai Wuying had been running rampant through the martial world, most of what he stole had been passed to this man here for disposal.

This man had made a great deal of money from it, and had eventually grown it into a massive trading house, becoming the wealthiest in all of Great Xuan.

"So the young lady is Master Bai's beloved disciple. My deepest respects."

The Grand Manager clasped his hands in a bow, and showed not a trace of doubt about Bai Xiaotang's identity, because the history between himself and the Theft Saint was known to very few people.

He had never spoken of it to anyone either.

After all, if word got out about his connection to the Theft Saint, he would have no standing left in the commercial world of Great Xuan.

"May I ask what business brings the young lady to this humble one?"

The Grand Manager spoke up before Bai Xiaotang had even opened her mouth, asking of his own accord.

Visits without reason were never simple social calls. He and the Theft Saint Bai Wuying had had no dealings in many years, and now the man's disciple had come calling out of nowhere. It was certainly not a mere friendly visit.

"You're a sharp one. Not bad for a businessman."

Bai Xiaotang picked up a teacup and took a sip, moistening her throat which had dried out from all the pastry, then put on an air of mature deliberation and looked the Grand Manager over, "I have come to you about one thing."

"I need you to help me find someone in this city."

At those words, the Grand Manager's expression remained even, and he smiled pleasantly, "Young lady, never mind finding one person. Even ten people would be no trouble for this humble one. I will spare no effort."

Inwardly, the Grand Manager was already thrilled. He had been at his wit's end trying to find someone suitable to help him deal with the strange poison and the Intestinal Fiend Worm inside his body. And here was Bai Xiaotang, arriving like a pillow sent to a drowsy man.

In the martial world, things were not just about fighting. There was also the matter of favors and obligations, and favors were among the hardest things to come by.

Even if he had tried to go and beg the Theft Saint directly, the man would probably not give him the time of day. But now things were different.

If he helped the Theft Saint's disciple as a favor to the man himself, then the Theft Saint would owe him one. And if he then went to the Theft Saint for help in return, the man would find it difficult to refuse.

"That said, it's not certain. Bai Wuying has a somewhat peculiar temperament. Even owing someone a favor, he might still not help me. That's entirely possible."

"But no matter what, helping this young girl gives me a much better chance than I had before."

With that thought settled, the Grand Manager looked at Bai Xiaotang again and asked, "Who is the young lady looking for?"

At those words, Bai Xiaotang did as she had seen Li Musheng do and rubbed her chin with one hand. She naturally would not reveal Li Musheng's true identity to the Grand Manager. After a brief moment of thought, she described the general appearances of Li Musheng and his group to the Grand Manager and asked him to look for people matching those descriptions.

But the Grand Manager's expression shifted in unsettled ways.

He had just realized that the people Bai Xiaotang was looking for were none other than Li Musheng and the others who had broken into the Great Xuan imperial palace the previous night.

Honestly, he had not expected a coincidence quite like this.

"Is there a problem? It is just finding someone. Is it really that difficult?"

Though Bai Xiaotang was carefree by nature, she had noticed the Grand Manager's unusual reaction, and her brows immediately pressed together.

At those words, the Grand Manager collected himself, and his eyes shifted slightly before he waved his hands repeatedly, "Finding people is of course no problem. It is only that Taixuan City is currently under lockdown by the Great Xuan court, which does make things rather more difficult."

But the Grand Manager quickly shifted his tone to one of grave sincerity, "Naturally, no matter how difficult, this humble one will do everything in his power to see it done for the young lady."

Truthfully, he had no wish to have any further entanglement with Li Musheng. But when it came down to it, the task was simply locating someone. As long as he found the person and passed the location to Bai Xiaotang, then stayed out of things entirely, it should not cause him any real trouble.

And more importantly, the Grand Manager had no intention of giving up on seeking the Theft Saint's help.

After all, the Theft Saint had in his day been a true martial world prodigy of the highest caliber. Not only was his movement technique peerless under heaven, but his natural gift for martial arts was beyond compare, and after all these years, his cultivation had in all likelihood reached the Martial Saint level.

The chance to obtain the help of such a supreme expert was something not even a fortune could easily buy.

"You seem like quite a decent person."

Bai Xiaotang, pleased that the Grand Manager was being so cooperative, looked noticeably cheerful.

Seeing this, the Grand Manager seized the opportunity and let a look of dejection cross his face, sighing mournfully, "What good is being decent? I am afraid this humble one does not have much time left."

At those words, Bai Xiaotang's curiosity was immediately piqued, and she asked at once whether something had happened.

The Grand Manager naturally took the opportunity with both hands and fabricated a miserable tale of being poisoned by enemies, recounting his current plight to Bai Xiaotang with tears streaming down his face.

Bai Xiaotang, for all her fondness for petty thievery, was not a bad-hearted girl, and her experience in the ways of the world was no match for a seasoned schemer like the Grand Manager. She had barely heard half of it before the fabricated story had her seething with indignation, filled with sympathy for his pitiful situation.

"I am the most loyal kind of person. You help me find someone, and I will naturally return the favor. I would never leave you to die. I will definitely think of a way to help you."

Bai Xiaotang's pretty face was dead serious, and she even put down the pastries on the table, starting to think over how to save this poor fellow before her.

Seeing this, the Grand Manager was inwardly delighted. With Bai Xiaotang reacting like this, his goal was more than halfway accomplished.

But before he had even finished being pleased with himself, a voice suddenly sounded in his ear, "You crafty old dog, you would even trick a naive young girl like this. Are you even human?"

The Grand Manager's expression changed at once. He snapped his head up and checked his surroundings with an alert expression, demanding sharply, "Who is there?"

"Can't even recognize this old man's voice anymore? You might as well die sooner."

The somewhat drifting voice sounded again in the Grand Manager's ear. This time, his expression shifted rapidly through a sequence of changes.

It had been so sudden at first that he had not recognized the voice. But by now he had already guessed who it was.

"You are... Elder Brother Bai?"

The Grand Manager spoke with great excitement.

Beside him, Bai Xiaotang looked around in puzzlement, clearly not hearing anyone speaking at all.

But in the next moment, when Bai Xiaotang turned her head, she found a middle-aged man with a head full of disheveled white hair sitting in the chair next to hers.

Middle-aged was perhaps generous given the man's actual age, but he carried a large jar of wine in his hand and reeked of alcohol from every direction.

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