Ten minutes later, Qin Yuanhao and the tall, thin man left the brothel with blank expressions, completely lacking the excitement they had before entering.
Lu Yang scratched his head, surprised they were out so quickly.
At the entrance, the madam handed each of them a note. They opened it, glanced at the contents, and then destroyed it.
"Brother Qin, the leader has something for me, so I need to head to the branch. I'll go on ahead," the tall, thin man said.
"Okay, the leader has some tasks for me too. Let's part ways here, and don’t forget to help me spread the word about my visit to the brothel," Qin Yuanhao replied.
"Sure thing."
The two separated in front of the brothel. Lu Yang felt a sudden urge and decided to follow the tall, thin man.
The tall, thin man was at the same level of skill as Qin Yuanhao and didn’t notice Lu Yang hiding underground.
As they walked, the streets and houses around them became less crowded, and soon they found themselves in a desolate area, surrounded by wild mountains and no one in sight.
The tall, thin man seemed very familiar with the terrain, strolling along the winding mountain path. After about fifteen minutes, he stopped in front of a stone wall.
This place was at the border of Yanjiang County and another county. Technically, it belonged to Yanjiang County, but due to historical reasons, both sides had claims over it.
Because both sides had reasons to claim it, neither took responsibility for it.
After all, there was nothing of value here, so there was no need to fight over it.
He knocked on the wall in a specific pattern—three long knocks followed by two short ones—while muttering something. The wall then transformed, becoming as fluid as water.
The tall, thin man stepped through the wall and vanished.
Lu Yang heard him reciting, "Immortal of immortality, dead yet reborn, parting clouds to see the sun, lasting in this world."
"Is this a cave heaven?" Lu Yang's eyes widened in surprise.
A cave heaven is a special space created by powerful cultivators skilled in space magic. The higher the cultivation level, the more complete the space they can create.
Generally, cultivators at the Transformation Stage can create their own spaces. Some prefer to use cave heavens as homes for solitary living, while others use them as burial sites.
Throughout history, many cultivators have reached the Transformation Stage, not to mention the higher levels of Void Refinement, Integration, and Tribulation Crossing.
When a cultivator passes away, their cave heaven remains, leading to many ancient ruins scattered across the Central Continent. Most cultivators did not reveal the locations or methods to access their cave heavens before they died, leaving people to rely on luck to find these hidden places.
No one knows how many cave heavens remain undiscovered today.
The senior sister said that with great changes coming, more and more cave heavens are being found, allowing many people to seize opportunities and soar to new heights.
The cave heaven in front of him likely belonged to a previous cultivator, discovered and claimed by the Demon Sect.
Lu Yang didn’t rashly follow; instead, he chose to stay hidden underground and wait for the tall, thin man to come out.
He felt uneasy about the situation. After all, this was the Yanjiang stronghold, a base for the Demon Sect, and there were likely many skilled fighters inside. Hiding underground didn’t provide enough security.
Thinking of this, Lu Yang moved to a spot where he could see the entrance of the stronghold from a distance. He shrank his body down to a small size using the tribal concealment technique provided by the Barbarian Clan.
About an hour later, a masked man emerged from the stone wall, followed closely by the tall, thin man.
It seemed the masked man held a higher status than the tall, thin man.
"Hmm?" The masked man sensed something was off and scanned the area with his spiritual awareness, even checking underground.
"Come out! I know you're there. Don’t think you can hide well. If you come out now, I might spare your life!" the masked man said casually.
"Still not coming out? Don’t think I’m a soft-hearted person. I’ll count to three, and if you’re not out by then, don’t blame me for not giving you a chance!"
"Three!"
"Two!"
"One!"
"Die!"
The leader gathered a force in his palm and struck in a direction, creating a loud boom.
"Leader, what’s wrong?" the tall, thin man asked respectfully.
The leader shook his head. "I just feel like someone is watching me. I tried to test it, but there was no reaction. Maybe it’s just my imagination."
Lu Yang broke out in a cold sweat. He had just thought about jumping out of the ground to confront the leader, hoping to seize a slim chance of survival.
Fortunately, his willpower was strong enough to suppress that impulse. He believed the Barbarian Clan's concealment technique would keep him hidden.
Lu Yang sensed that the leader’s spiritual awareness had scanned over him, but he felt the leader only regarded him as a rock and didn’t pay much attention.
If the leader had truly discovered him, he wouldn’t be counting down; he would have attacked directly.
"Thank goodness the Barbarian Clan's concealment technique is so effective. As long as I don’t move, I won’t be found," Lu Yang thought. "This leader should be at the Golden Core stage."
"How is the preparation for the selection in ten days going?"
"Everything is ready. We’re just waiting for our fellow cultivators to come here in ten days to go through the selection and join us."
"That’s great! I hope we can recruit a few more talented individuals from the Demon Path. If we do, the headquarters will pay more attention to the Yanjiang stronghold."
The two continued talking as they walked, quickly disappearing from Lu Yang's line of sight. He remained perfectly still, afraid of revealing himself.
"The Golden Core stage is indeed impressive."
Lu Yang waited for another half an hour, worried that the leader might return if he became too suspicious.
After half an hour, the leader did not appear.
"They're gone."
Lu Yang burrowed away.
This time, he had gained a lot—not only did he learn the location of the Yanjiang stronghold, but he also confirmed that the selection would take place right here.
…
"Let’s talk, Ghost See Trouble. What’s going on with your hair? I heard you kill someone and pull out a hair?" Captain Wei asked, leaning back casually, while the thieves sat across from him, trembling in fear.
"N-no, that’s not true! It’s just that being the boss is tough, and my team causes trouble everywhere. The stress made me lose some hair," the thief leader stammered.
"And you, Reckless Second, I heard you got into a fight with a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. You blinded him in both eyes, and he blinded you in one?"
"My eyes are fine! I wear an eye patch for style. In this line of work, you need to have some stories to tell," Reckless Second replied.
"And you, Grasshopper, I heard you tried to steal from the royal palace. You’re looking at a lifetime in prison, or worse, execution!"
Thief Three protested, "It’s a misunderstanding, sir! I was just trying to pay off a debt, and the creditor broke my leg to cancel it!"
Captain Wei yawned, expecting serious crimes, but this was all he got?
"Alright, I’ll confess! I’ve stolen from sixteen places…"
Captain Wei waved his hand. "Let’s hold off on that for now. First, tell me why you all came to Yanjiang County in a group?"
"This…" The thief leader hesitated, weighing the pros and cons of speaking up.
Captain Wei pointed to the torture chamber behind him. "Do you see those tools? If you don’t talk, we’ll use them to help you speak."
The tools were stained with dark blood, looking particularly gruesome. The thieves gulped nervously, eager to spill their secrets.
"I’ll say…"
Just as the thieves began to speak, they abruptly stopped.
If someone were to look behind them, they would see fine needles poised at their necks, coated with deadly poison!
"Assassins!"
Captain Wei, being an experienced officer, immediately reacted and rushed outside to find the assassins.
But outside, there was no sign of anyone.
Inside the interrogation room, shadows seemed to move as if alive, letting out a low chuckle before disappearing without a trace.
(End of Chapter)