Chapter 715: Wang Qiupos Deadly Counter-Espionage

Chapter 715: Wang Qiupo's Deadly Counter-Espionage

The value of the items listed on the jade slip far exceeded anything Wang Qiupo had imagined. Some of them were things he had never even heard of before, and he was a spy who had left home as a child.

In that instant, he found himself believing a portion of Xu Bai's words.

After a moment's deliberation, he gestured for Xu Bai to wait and quietly lowered himself back onto the rattan chair behind him. His eyes drifted closed. To all appearances, he had simply fallen into a deep sleep.

From Xu Bai's perspective, Wang Qiupo's life force was dissipating at a staggering rate. Within the span of a single breath, he looked like a man who had died of old age, no different from a corpse.

Eight hundred years without being exposed. Xu Bai watched him for a long moment. He certainly has a few tricks.

The thatched cottage itself seemed to possess some remarkable property as well. The sudden disappearance of Wang Qiupo's life force raised no alarm among those outside. They went on waiting in line, none the wiser.

After the time it takes to finish a cup of tea, a faint breath of wind stirred within the room.

Then, like a withered tree touched by the first warmth of spring, Wang Qiupo's vitality returned. Yet Xu Bai quietly noted that the old man looked to have drawn one step closer to death.

Wang Qiupo coughed lightly, rose from the chair, and came to stand before him.

"I have confirmed it with the Council. Your words hold up. The previous transactions between us have also sufficiently established the reputation of your Heaven-Toppling Society."

Wang Qiupo paused, his aged eyes fixing on Xu Bai. "However, how can you prove that you are truly a member of the Heaven-Toppling Society? And not an agent of the Myriad Immortals Alliance, sent to follow the vine to the root now that they have discovered my identity?

"What were the contents of our first two transactions?"

Faced with the barrage of questions, Xu Bai was not surprised. He answered each one with a faint smile.

"The first was the examination questions for the Alliance's entrance recruitment exam. The second was the true identity of the ancient cultivator the Alliance had been searching for."

With these answers, the tension went out of Wang Qiupo's body all at once. He leaned back, stooped as before.

After a moment, he spoke in a low voice. "The Council has indeed observed traces of the principles of heaven and earth being reversed. However, it has not yet been able to identify the true identity of this Heavenly Venerable.

"The Council agrees to the transaction. However, given that it concerns an Eternal Heavenly Venerable, any formal contract might be dimly perceived by Them. This transaction can only be an oral agreement, resting on the goodwill of both parties."

A flicker passed through Xu Bai's eyes. Then he shook his head with a smile. "That is no matter. There will be no shortage of opportunities for our two organizations to cooperate in the future. I trust you are not a man who breaks his word.

"Since that is the case, I will proceed."

Xu Bai's expression turned serious, his voice dropping low. "The principle this Heavenly Venerable has reversed is none other than the Principle of Life and Death.

"Not long ago, we discovered cultivators within the Lifespan-Devouring White Mist who existed in a state between living and dead, neither truly alive nor truly gone, like living corpses.

"We cross-referenced this with the traces of reversed heavenly principles observed in recent times, and after a period of careful investigation, we confirmed it.

"As for the true identity of this Heavenly Venerable, we currently have no leads. However, there are a few suspicious targets."

With that, Xu Bai raised a finger and wrote two names in the air: Lan Yu. Heavenly Physician.

Wang Qiupo's eyes narrowed. He committed both names to memory without a word.

He was just settling back into his wicker chair when Xu Bai asked the same question as before. "Old sir, do you wish to return to your homeland?

"With the information I have given you as leverage, you could negotiate terms with the Five Elders Council. I imagine they would agree."

A flicker of something kindled in Wang Qiupo's eyes. It died just as quickly.

He shook his head. When he spoke, his voice was flat. "The fate of spies like us is to have both flesh and soul rot away in foreign soil.

"As for my homeland..."

A long pause.

"I have long since forgotten what it looks like."

His voice dropping low, Wang Qiupo settled back into the wicker chair, and his vitality began to fade once more.

"The items on the list will be delivered to you as promised.

"You should go now. This time, I won't wake again."

He spoke these words just before his life force vanished completely.

Xu Bai nodded. "In that case, would you lend me your death?"

Wang Qiupo was stunned at first, then seemed to understand.

Mustering the last vestiges of his strength, he slowly nodded.

Just as his vitality was about to disappear entirely, Xu Bai thrust out his palm.

Wang Qiupo's body was instantly obliterated, not even a bone remaining.

At the same time, Xu Bai bellowed in fury, "So you were an agent of the Five Elders Council! Courting death!"

With Wang Qiupo's death, the restrictions laid upon the thatched cottage dissolved. Xu Bai's voice carried to the outside world.

Combined with the death phenomena in the sky, the gathered cultivators instantly understood what had happened.

This remarkably handsome young man had actually killed Wang Qiupo, the famed figure of Tianliang Province!

A wave of shock rippled through the crowd.

Rage, astonishment, disbelief. A torrent of emotions erupted within them.

"Seize him!"

The cultivators cried out in righteous indignation, surrounding Xu Bai as he walked slowly out of the cottage.

But Xu Bai's expression remained utterly calm. Facing the crowd poised to attack, he countered with a rebuke of his own. "Do you all intend to become accomplices of the Five Elders Council's spy?"

Every cultivator in the vicinity froze at those words.

Though they had vaguely heard something about a scoundrel from the Five Elders Council, none of them had connected it to Wang Qiupo.

After all, this old man's reputation was too illustrious. He was practically a household name across Tianliang Province.

But this young man before them didn't seem like the type to spout nonsense.

"What is the meaning of this?"

The cultivators exchanged bewildered glances, frozen in place by Xu Bai's single statement.

"Report this to City Lord Xiang immediately!" someone finally said after a long moment.

"Before the City Lord arrives, you cannot leave!" They blocked Xu Bai's path.

"No matter. It would be best to summon the Martial Hall and the Garrison Command as well. Investigate, and you'll see that I speak the truth." Xu Bai offered no resistance, speaking with complete composure.

Seeing this, the crowd only grew more uneasy.

"If what this man says is true, and Wang Qiupo really was a spy for the Five Elders Council..."

"The sky is about to fall."

Thinking of the countless cultivators he had referred over the years, they swallowed hard, a chill creeping into their hearts.

They didn't have to wait long. An orange streak of light shot down from the heavens.

It was the City Lord of Tianliang, Xiang Rongxin.

Sweeping his gaze across the area, he locked eyes with Xu Bai.

Without a single word, he descended from above and conjured a massive palm.

He meant to kill Xu Bai right then and there.

"This is an attempt to silence him!"

The gathered cultivators felt a chill at the sight, but none dared to intervene.

Just as they expected the handsome young cultivator to die a miserable death, he calmly produced a folding fan. With a sharp snap, it unfurled.

Before the massive palm could strike him, an invisible barrier appeared and neutralized the blow.

"Hm?"

A flicker of surprise crossed Xiang Rongxin's face.

Meeting Xu Bai's almost mocking gaze, a cruel light flashed in his eyes. He prepared to summon his full power, vowing to destroy the insolent youth then and there.

But a lazy voice drifted down from the horizon.

"City Lord Xiang, hold!

"I heard someone reported that a spy from the Five Elders Council was executed here. Is that true?"

Before the words had faded, a cultivator in black robes materialized.

Xiang Rongxin's expression turned ice-cold in an instant.

The newcomer was none other than Nangong Shirong, the Commander of the Tianliang Province Garrison Command.

With him here, there was no way to keep this matter under wraps any longer.

This is troublesome.

Glancing at the lingering signs of Wang Qiupo's death phenomena still swirling above, Xiang Rongxin sighed inwardly.

Wang Qiupo, Wang Qiupo... you've left me quite the headache.

From the moment he received his subordinate's report, Xiang Rongxin had made his decision. Regardless of whether "Wang Qiupo was a spy for the Five Elders Council" was true, he had to make it false.

Otherwise, looking at the smile on Nangong Shirong's face, Xiang Rongxin could already see the storm of bloodshed about to sweep through Tianling Province, and perhaps even the entire Myriad Immortals Alliance.

"Young friend, come with me," Nangong Shirong said, his tone kind.

"I was just about to suggest the same." Xu Bai cupped his hands, showing no fear.

What followed proceeded with remarkable speed.

Xu Bai insisted that, based on a few scraps of evidence, he had suspected Wang Qiupo might be a spy.

Acting on his duty to purge evil from the Myriad Immortals Alliance, he had gone to the man's residence to test him.

To his surprise, the wretch had brazenly admitted his true identity and even tried to attack Xu Bai.

Forced to defend himself, Xu Bai had killed him.

It was a simple story.

Nangong Shirong didn't seem inclined to probe the truth of Xu Bai's words. He simply ordered his men to begin investigating Wang Qiupo.

Even a man who wasn't a spy wouldn’t be able to withstand the Garrison Command's exhaustive scrutiny.

Every step leaves a trace.

And Wang Qiupo was, after all, a genuine agent of the Five Elders Council.

Before long, Nangong Shirong held a pile of irrefutable "evidence" in his hands.

"Hahaha! Young friend, you have rendered a great service to the Myriad Immortals Alliance!" Nangong Shirong clapped Xu Bai heavily on the shoulder, his face beaming with satisfaction.

"Until this dust settles, you will stay here. Do not leave. Some people might seek revenge out of spite. Rest assured, once everything is clarified, you will not be denied the rewards you are due!"

Xu Bai's expression turned solemn. "Cleansing the Myriad Immortals Alliance of treachery is the duty of our generation."

Seeing Xu Bai's high level of awareness, Nangong Shirong was very pleased.

He patted Xu Bai's shoulder once more in encouragement, then departed in haste.

The final verdict on this matter came even faster than Xu Bai had anticipated, because the Five Elders Council had also begun to exert their influence.

In response to the Myriad Immortals Alliance's accusations and condemnations, the Five Elders Council declared that the matter was utterly false. Wang Qiupo had no connection whatsoever to the Five Elders Council.

The Five Elders Council had always adhered to the principle of peaceful coexistence between the two sides and would never actively disrupt their relationship.

They hoped the Myriad Immortals Alliance would cease their self-directed performances and unreasonable clamoring.

***

The more they denied it, the deeper the suspicion festered.

All signs suggested this might be a last-ditch scheme of betrayal by the dying spy Wang Qiupo, a tactic to sow discord. But still, it was better to kill a thousand innocents than to let one enemy slip through the net.

Within just ten-odd days, every cultivator who had risen through the ranks thanks to Wang Qiupo's referral was isolated and placed under investigation. Some, who had been exploring the White Mist, were even forcibly summoned back.

The outcome was plain to see.

A small portion, those truly found to be problematic, were apprehended directly.

The majority, though not proven guilty, were nevertheless stripped of favor going forward. They were reassigned to insipid, menial positions where they would spend the remainder of their lives, barring unforeseen circumstances.

Just as the entire Alliance was convulsing in turmoil, a cultivator from the Garrison Command, one who had seized the chance to fill a vacant post after several cultivators had been removed from their original positions, stepped before Li Fan.

"These are the agreed-upon supplies.

"The Council is quite pleased with this transaction.

"We look forward to our next cooperation."