Chapter 50
Translator: T_Fan
At dawn the next day.
The Inner Medicine Court of the Anling royal palace.
Clack.
A thick key turned, and the iron door sealing the underground stone chamber swung open.
An old man carrying a torch stepped inside.
The damp air, heavy with the scent of medicine, made the flame flicker for a moment.
He looked toward the center of the stone chamber and stopped.
The pedestals where ten jade tubes should have been resting were empty.
“…….”
***
The King of Anling’s chambers.
“…When was it discovered?”
“At dawn today.”
The old man answered in a low voice.
His name was Yan Mo.
His name appeared nowhere in the official records of the Anling royal house, but he had handled its darker affairs since the reign of the previous King of Anling as chief of the Shadow Guard.
Yan Mo was also a grandmaster of the martial path who had reached the Profound Realm.
“The hair I hung in the crack of the door and the wax seal on the lock were both untouched. There were no signs that any other tool had been inserted. None of the walls were broken or gouged either. With my abilities, I cannot determine how they were taken.”
Thin veins stood out on the back of the King of Anling’s hand.
At that moment, something in his lower abdomen slowly writhed.
The King of Anling closed his eyes and steadied his breathing.
A moment later, the veins on the back of his hand subsided again.
‘Who could have done this?’
The King of Anling’s expression hardened.
If someone had taken only the ten jade tubes without leaving a single trace, using means that even Yan Mo could not fathom, then the thief could not possibly have been an ordinary martial artist.
‘Could it have been the cultivators of the Immortal Veneration Court?’
‘But if they had noticed, I wouldn’t still be sitting on the throne. They would have stormed in here already.’
‘Could they be watching me until I confess? No. They couldn’t possibly be that merciful….’
The King of Anling could be certain of nothing.
“For now, don’t let anything show. There’s no need to announce that we’ve lost something.”
The King of Anling looked at Yan Mo.
“Don’t arrest or torture anyone. Investigate quietly. And contact the Black Sun Office yourself.”
…
A few days later.
An abandoned shrine south of the royal capital.
Yan Mo stood behind a collapsed idol and stared into the darkness.
A moment later, a shadow on the shrine floor stretched long.
Ssssh.
A man in a black robe stepped out of the shadow.
There was not a single memorable feature on the man’s face. He looked so ordinary that if one glanced away for a moment, even the face one had just seen would begin to blur in memory.
But Yan Mo knew that the man was a terrifyingly powerful expert.
The man was a Tier 2 gu warrior responsible for the Black Sun Office’s dealings with the Anling royal house.
“Why did you contact me so suddenly?”
“The goods disappeared.”
“What goods are you talking about?”
“Ten jade tubes.”
“…….”
Yan Mo continued.
“A few days ago, all of them vanished from the underground secret chamber where we were keeping them.”
The man did not answer for some time.
“I definitely handed the goods over. I even watched you carry the jade tubes back to the royal palace.”
“Wasn’t it your people who took them back?”
The man gave a derisive snort.
“Why would we? Are you saying we sent a gu warrior into the Anling royal palace just to retrieve goods we’d already handed over?”
“Your people were the only ones who knew we had the jade tubes.”
“Don’t be stupid….”
Something stirred beneath the man’s robe.
Yan Mo’s hand also moved to the hilt of the sword at his waist.
As their auras collided, the old altar between them trembled faintly.
“You’re not trying to get another batch by pretending you lost them, are you? Life-Bound Gu aren’t insects you can pick up by the roadside. You can’t accept them and then claim they’re gone. If word of this gets out, your side will have problems too.”
“They truly were stolen. If your people didn’t take them, then help us catch the thief.”
“…….”
***
Twenty days later.
A flying boat emerged from between the clouds.
Hummmm–
The flying boat descended onto the stone platform behind the Immortal Veneration Court, and four Danxiao Sect disciples, including Zhang Jingyi, stepped down from the deck.
“Senior Brother Zhang.”
“Junior Brother Li. Has anything happened?”
“No. Did you leave the Crimson Firmament Immortal Ferry at the main sect?”
“That’s right. We won’t have any use for it for another six years, until the next Immortal Ascension Selection, so it’ll be used in other regions for a while. I also delivered all the children safely to the main sect.”
“Thank you for your hard work.”
“You’ve worked hard here while I was gone. Bring me any ledgers I need to take over.”
…
A few days later.
Lee Hyun received permission to leave the Immortal Veneration Court for five days and reached Tunnel No. 3 after two days of travel.
Squeak! Squeak squeak!
The moment Lee Hyun entered the cavern, golden fuzzbees flew toward him from every direction.
Bzzzzzz–
Nearly a thousand of them covered his head, shoulders, and both arms in an instant.
“Back.”
When he issued the command through the Spirit-Nurturing Seal, the fuzzbees all took flight at once.
The fellows did not go far, instead circling around Lee Hyun.
The fuzzbees inside the spirit-insect pouch also came out.
The three that had mutated after eating the Meridian-Linking Jade Silkworm flew at the head of the swarm.
Leading the fuzzbees, Lee Hyun headed toward the widest of the passages the fellows used.
He set ten jade tubes down on the ground one by one.
Bzzzzzz–
The sound of the fuzzbees’ wings changed.
Hundreds clung to the transparent jade surfaces at once, swiping their short forelegs at the sleeping Life-Bound Gu inside.
“I’ll give them to you one at a time, so wait.”
Squeak squeak!
Lee Hyun picked up one jade tube and carefully undid its seal.
Psssh.
A cold aura flowed out along with a faint medicinal scent.
The body of the Life-Bound Gu submerged in the transparent preservation liquid twitched faintly.
Lee Hyun poured both the preservation liquid and the larva into a wide stone bowl he had fashioned with the Soil-Softening Art.
Splash.
The larva slowly stretched out its body.
Ssssss.
The Life-Bound Gu tried to draw in heaven-and-earth spiritual qi.
Buzz!
Three streaks of golden light shot toward the stone bowl first.
Pssht! Pssht! Pssht!
Transparent slime sprayed by the three mutated fuzzbees coated the Life-Bound Gu’s head and body.
Startled, the larva twisted violently.
Slap! Splash!
But the slime firmly glued its body to the stone bowl.
Dozens of fuzzbees swarmed over it all at once.
Crunch. Crunch, crunch.
Squeak squeak squeak!
The fuzzbees devoured the Life-Bound Gu.
The feeding swarm grew from a few dozen to more than a hundred in the blink of an eye.
“Don’t fight. Share.”
Before long, not a trace of the first Life-Bound Gu remained.
Fuzzbees with round, swollen bellies flopped onto their backs on the dirt floor.
Squeak….
“That’s why you should’ve eaten in moderation.”
Lee Hyun examined the fuzzbees’ condition, but there did not seem to be anything unusual for the moment.
He opened the seal on the second jade tube.
…
All ten Life-Bound Gu disappeared.
After gorging themselves, the fuzzbees lay sprawled all across the cavern floor with their bellies exposed.
Among them, the three that had mutated after eating the Meridian-Linking Jade Silkworm were unusually hot, and regular pulses of spiritual power surged within their bodies.
Squeak….
One of them staggered through the air toward the cavern wall.
The fellow inspected several cracks in the rock, then began digging at an exposed patch of soil with its forelegs.
Scratch. Scratch.
After making a hole barely large enough for its body, the fuzzbee crawled inside.
The other two also scattered in different directions.
None of the remaining fuzzbees showed any signs of a breakthrough yet.
Before long, highly viscous transparent liquid oozed from the entrances of the three holes. The fuzzbees inside mixed the liquid with soil and sealed their burrows shut.
“Oh… Are they really about to break through this time?”
Lee Hyun examined the tiny burrows.
‘How long will their breakthrough take? I need to head back for now…’
Lee Hyun checked the spirit field and water tank one last time, then left Tunnel No. 3 and headed back to the Immortal Veneration Court.
***
One month later.
Beneath Baiwu Shop in Huiyan Market.
Black Crow, Gray Mountain Goat, Mole, Blue Snake, and White Owl were gathered inside the stone chamber.
Ripple.
The floor undulated like water.
A cultivator wearing a Badger mask slowly emerged.
“Greetings, Society Head.”
“Sit.”
The members took their seats one after another.
As the brief reports were drawing to an end, Blue Snake took a sheet of paper from his robes.
“Society Head. Someone from the Black Sun Office contacted the member responsible for the Qianyang Kingdom region.”
“The Black Sun Office?”
The atmosphere inside the stone chamber grew heavy.
Some twenty years ago, Black Sable, a spy from the Black Sun Office, had ambushed the Badger Society Head in this very stone chamber, only to be cut cleanly in two in an instant. The sight was still vivid in the members’ memories.
Blue Snake continued.
“The one who contacted us appeared to be a Tier 2 gu warrior. He said he worked at the same branch as Black Sable.”
White Owl spoke.
“Did he come seeking revenge?”
“No. On the contrary, he said he wanted to do business with our society.”
“The Black Sun Office wants to deal with us?”
Mole furrowed his brow.
Blue Snake nodded.
“It seems Black Sable submitted several reports about our society before he disappeared. But after failing to find any clues even after his disappearance, the Black Sun Office appears to have judged our society as an opponent too dangerous to provoke carelessly. They conveyed that they have no intention of becoming hostile toward the Two Heavens Society.”
Lee Hyun spoke.
“What do they want?”
“They asked us to find a thief.”
“A thief?”
Blue Snake unfolded the paper. A simple map of the Anling royal capital was drawn on it, with the royal Inner Medicine Court marked in the center and a date written on one side.
“About two months ago, goods disappeared from an underground secret chamber here. They’ve commissioned us to find whoever stole them.”
White Owl’s gaze shifted subtly.
‘There’s an underground secret chamber in the Anling royal Inner Medicine Court? And why is the Black Sun Office investigating a theft from the Anling royal house?’
“What was stolen?”
“They wouldn’t tell us the contents. They only said there were ten jade tubes, each two chi (about 66 cm) long and as thick as an adult’s forearm.”
Lee Hyun was silent for a moment.
“The man who contacted us seemed to be under pressure from his superiors. He also appeared impressed by the secretive way our society operates. He offered two mid-grade spirit stones in advance if we accept the commission, and another eight if we find a useful clue.”
Black Crow asked cautiously,
“Society Head. What will you do?”
“We’ll accept.”
There was no hesitation in Lee Hyun’s answer.
The members looked at one another.
Blue Snake asked,
“Investigating beneath the Anling royal palace would seem to involve considerable risk. Which member will you assign to it?”
“None of you need concern yourselves with that. I have plenty of other members I can assign to the job.”
Blue Snake’s breath caught. Black Crow and Mole unconsciously straightened their backs as well.
‘He has plenty of other members he can assign work to?’
They had believed themselves to be the core of the Two Heavens Society and the members with the highest cultivation realms. But if the Society Head’s words were true, did that mean there were several other capable members whose very existence had never been revealed?
White Owl thought of the rogue cultivators who came and went from the Anling Immortal Veneration Court and royal palace.
‘Could there even be a member of our society inside the royal house itself?’
…
A few days later.
Lee Hyun once again received five days of leave and visited Tunnel No. 3.
Squeak squeak!
The moment Lee Hyun entered the cavern, the fuzzbees swarmed toward him as though delighted to see him.
“Yes. Good to see you too.”
When he ordered them to scatter through the Spirit-Nurturing Seal, the golden swarm immediately opened a path. Lee Hyun headed toward the passage where he had fed them the Life-Bound Gu.
There were three small holes in the wall, but all three burrows were empty.
Only thin, transparent molts and hardened slime remained on the ground.
“They’re already out.”
Squeak!
An unusually loud cry came from overhead.
Lee Hyun looked up.
Three golden fuzzbees were lined up side by side on the ceiling.
They were the fellows that had mutated after eating the Meridian-Linking Jade Silkworm.
The moment their eyes met Lee Hyun’s, all three spread their wings at once.
Buzz!
Three nearly overlapping streaks of golden light shot downward.
One landed on Lee Hyun’s head, while the other two settled on his shoulders.
Squeak. Squeak squeak.
Lee Hyun lifted one of the fuzzbees from his shoulder onto his palm.
Its size was unchanged, and its round, fluffy body still had alternating bands of gold and black. But the spiritual power fluctuations coming from within it were incomparably steadier and stronger than before.
‘There isn’t much of it, but the quality of that spiritual power is definitely at the Foundation Establishment level!’
All three seemed to have crossed the threshold and become Tier 2 spirit insects.
“Good.”
…
After finishing his inspection of the facilities, Lee Hyun spread a ledger across the floor of the cultivation chamber.
The ledger also contained records of outside rogue cultivators who had come into conflict with members of the Two Heavens Society.
「Guest retainer Wei Qing, who entered the royal capital with the Pinghai Trading Company of Cang Kingdom. Repeatedly clashed with members of our society while roaming underground near the royal capital in search of vein seats. Hostile toward the Two Heavens Society.」
‘The Pinghai Trading Company….’
It was a trading company that dealt in marine spirit materials and medicinal ingredients while traveling between northern Cang Kingdom and Qianyang Kingdom.
‘I’ll just make up something plausible.’
Lee Hyun took out a fresh sheet of paper and slowly moved his brush.
「The force beyond the Nanming Sea began infiltrating agents under the guise of trading companies and guest retainers approximately three hundred years ago, around the time it began its invasion of Lan Kingdom, in order to incite conflict among local powers.
After completing its war of conquest against Lan Kingdom approximately one hundred and fifteen years ago, this force has recently infiltrated cultivators into Cang Kingdom, Qianyang Kingdom, and Kun Kingdom in an effort to sow discord among the three nations.
Investigate Wei Qing, guest retainer of the Pinghai Trading Company.」
Lee Hyun folded and sealed the paper. He only needed to send the report to Blue Snake.
***
Two months later.
An unnamed stone mountain in southwestern Anling Kingdom.
Lee Hyun and Blue Snake stood side by side inside a natural underground cavern.
The only path leading into the cavern was a narrow tunnel from an abandoned mine. The tunnel bent several times, and stone doors Lee Hyun had newly created blocked the way at various points.
Blue Snake asked,
“Are you truly going to meet him?”
“Yes.”
Lee Hyun looked at the cavern’s stone walls.
Lee Hyun had chosen the location himself. With solid rock enclosing the cavern on every side and the approach restricted to a single route, neither a Foundation Establishment cultivator nor a Tier 2 gu warrior could threaten him here.
“He’s coming.”
A moment later, footsteps sounded from the passage.
Grrrk–
The stone door blocking the cavern entrance opened, and the man in the black robe stepped inside.
The moment he entered the cavern, the man’s gaze went first to Lee Hyun in the Badger mask.
“I greet the Society Head of the Two Heavens Society.”
“So I finally meet a gu warrior of the Black Sun Office.”
The black-robed man took three items from his storage pouch.
A pouch containing eight mid-grade spirit stones. A repeatedly folded map of the royal capital. And a shell the size of a palm.
Tap.
The three objects were placed on the stone table.
“The intelligence your society provided was accurate.”
‘Huh? It was?’
The man unfolded the map.
It depicted the wells and underground water veins of the Anling royal capital.
Small marks in red ink had been left west of the royal palace and around the Inner Medicine Court.
“We found seven names he’d previously used and three identity tokens in his storage pouch. This shell is a magic tool he used to communicate with overseas forces.”
“Did you recover the goods?”
“Not yet. Wei Qing still refuses to admit anything. We haven’t been able to confirm any connection between him and this particular theft, but the fact that Wei Qing was a spy who infiltrated Anling Kingdom is enough.”
Blue Snake looked at Society Head Badger in astonishment.
‘Did the Society Head know Wei Qing’s true identity from the very beginning…?’
His shoulders unconsciously squared.
The man’s gaze swept over the Badger mask and then the purple robe.
“I’ve heard rumors that Xuan Kingdom, the Tier 4 cultivation nation northwest of Kun Kingdom, has recently been watching movements in the south. Your society is probably an intelligence organization secretly controlled by one of Xuan Kingdom’s great sects. After working in this trade long enough, we can infer that much.”
‘?’
“We do the same sort of work, so there’s no reason to cross blades unnecessarily. The Black Sun Office would like to maintain friendly dealings with the Two Heavens Society in the future.”
The man put the map and shell back into his storage pouch.
“I’ll be going now.”
Grrrk–
The man’s figure disappeared beyond the winding passage.
Blue Snake, who remained in the cavern, spoke cautiously.
“Society Head.”
“Speak.”
“Is our society truly one of Xuan Kingdom’s….”
“You only need to know what is necessary.”
Blue Snake hurriedly lowered his head.
“I overstepped.”
There was a deeper reverence in his voice than before.
A short while later, Blue Snake left the cavern. Lee Hyun also pocketed the pouch containing eight mid-grade spirit stones and departed.
***
Twenty-four years later.
Lee Hyun had extended his term and remained in Anling Kingdom, and by now he was in his thirtieth year as a resident cultivator.
During that time, at least outwardly, no notable incidents had occurred between Qianyang Kingdom and Anling Kingdom.
That day, Lee Hyun was lying in his quarters at the Immortal Veneration Court, reading a letter that had arrived from the main sect.
「Outer craft disciple Li Dongsan is to report to the main sect to receive a Foundation Establishment Pill.」
‘Finally…!’
*****
TL Note: Bonus chapter for the review posted on NovelUpdates by ‘Odorico’. I’ll post the other three chapters around the usual release time once I’m done with them.
https://www.novelupdates.com/series/hiding-tunnels-in-xianxia/
P.S. I’ll only be able to offer extra chapters for reviews until around Chapter 55 or 56, since we’re very close to catching up with the latest raw chapters.
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