CHAPTER 59: CHAPTER 56: THE CURTAIN IS ABOUT TO RISE, BUT THE PROTAGONIST HAS FLED

"You are only sixteen years old and have already reached the Postnatal Eighth Layer. You can be said to possess exceptional heavenly talent, and you are well-versed in many mysterious techniques. If it were not for the fact that you come from the True Martial Dao Sect and that what you have learned does not match your abilities, I would have really thought you were the last successor of Xuanfa.

However, the strangeness of your skills is not important. Rather, we at the Six Gates welcome those who are skilled in mysterious arts as special talents. I have come here today specifically because of your unique skills. So, come, join the Six Gates."

"You only have..."

"Alright, I will join." Qing Yu immediately agreed.

"Uh..." Lu Qifeng was choked up, unable to speak.

He had intended to say, you only have this one path to choose, otherwise, buddy, I will hehehe you. But before he could even utter his threat, the other party had readily agreed. Not following the usual script, eh, little brother? I even overheard you telling Li Xin earlier that you didn’t want to join the Six Gates. What’s going on now?

"Weren’t you saying that you didn’t want to join the Six Gates?" Lu Qifeng asked curiously.

"Not join? When did I say that..." Qing Yu suddenly remembered that he had indeed discussed this with Li Xin. Undoubtedly, there was an unseen third person present then, Lu Qifeng, who had used the Wind Listening Technique.

"Qing Yu is already dead," Qing Yu said meaningfully.

"Yes, Qing Yu is already dead," Lu Qifeng said with a laugh, realizing he had overlooked that point. In the eyes of the world, the disciple of Xuanfa, Qing Yu, had died in Yang City. As long as the Six Gates kept silent, how would the True Martial Dao Sect know that Qing Yu was still alive and serving the Six Gates?

"However, this means your identity must remain hidden. Well then, join the undercover operatives of the Six Gates, starting from the rank of a bronze medal because being an undercover agent carries more risk than being a public one," Lu Qifeng clapped his hands decisively.

"Within three days, take this token to the Yunlai Inn in Mingyang City of Ling Province, and someone will give you the information about your first mission."

"The army has already begun entering Yang City, and I need to oversee the related matters," Lu Qifeng tossed a golden token to Qing Yu, "You are a smart man; I reckon you won’t attempt to run away."

Having said that, Lu Qifeng transformed into the wind and disappeared from sight.

If it weren’t for the overwhelming importance of this mission and the current lack of suitable personnel, Lu Qifeng of his stature would not have personally come to recruit Qing Yu. Now that the recruitment was successful, he naturally went to arrange for the Six Gates to liaise with the army in Yang City.

Qing Yu tossed the gold medal in his hand; the word ’Captor’ was embossed on the front with ’Chasing Wind’ engraved on the back, all in golden yellow. Weighing it, Qing Yu decided it must be real gold; Lu Qifeng wouldn’t reduce himself to using a gold-plated token just for show.

"I always feel like I’ve been set up," Qing Yu mused.

Lu Qifeng laid out the arrangement for Qing Yu without any hesitation; Qing Yu always felt he had been plotting this for a while.

"Ah well, since I’m here, I might as well settle here. His fist is bigger; what he says goes."

Unable to beat them, one must join them. As for running away, Qing Yu never considered it; the Six Gates were not easily fooled, and many masters from the Innate and even Divine Origin Realm had ended up in the great prisons of the Six Gates. He, a minor figure in the Postnatal Realm, didn’t have the audacity to consider it.

Had he really not wanted to join, Qing Yu would have had a way to escape from Lu Qifeng’s grasp earlier.

Aside from the stand-in, Qing Yu had brainwashed another person; he was the Fourth Elder of the Iron Saber Association, who currently followed Luo Yan. At the moment, he was holding the Great Soul-searching Needle Qing Yu had won from the draw during their last raid on the Li Family Treasury, while stationed in Yang City. If, within six hours, Qing Yu did not send a message, he would use the Great Soul-searching Needle to kill Luo Yan.

The Great Soul-searching Needle was a three-star item, and it could kill even masters of the Divine Origin Realm if they were not vigilant. Of course, masters who had begun cultivating their Primordial Spirit, and whose spirits were keen and bright, could detect the danger in advance if not shielded by another master of the same level, thus evading the attack of the Great Soul-searching Needle. However, Luo Yan was different; as someone in the Innate Realm, facing the Great Soul-searching Needle meant certain death.

Qing Yu considered his plan to be perfected, and if there were any flaws, it was only possible that the legendary Chasing Wind Divine Constable in Yang City had heard of his plan. By then, he could use Luo Yan’s life to coerce Lu Qifeng into letting him go. If Lu Qifeng was not intimidated, he could also let Luo Yan die with him.

However, if he did so, he would inevitably be pursued by the Six Gates and his identity disclosed, rendering all his previous actions in vain. Thus, since Lu Qifeng did not intend to capture Qing Yu but rather wanted Qing Yu to work for the Six Gates, Qing Yu simply agreed to cooperate.

"Maybe I should never have left the mountain..." Suddenly, this thought crossed Qing Yu’s mind.

Had he not left Beicang Mountain and continued staying in the Taoist Temple, he would not have encountered so many issues. Although he wouldn’t have reached his current cultivation level in the Postnatal Eighth Layer, he could have lived a peaceful life. Staying put for ten or eight years, he would at least reach the Innate Realm before seeking an opportunity to descend the mountain.

Yet, Qing Yu quickly dismissed this thought.

What had happened had happened, and regret was useless.

Besides, even if Qing Yu were given another chance, he would resolutely choose to descend from the mountain. The Sword of Damocles hung over his head, brought by the True Martial Dao Sect; he never knew when it might fall. Enduring three years of not daring to even casually visit Qingshui Town below the mountain had nearly driven Qing Yu mad.

Furthermore, the Zhen Shan Army was rebelling and would soon battle the court. Beicang Mountain, situated at the border of Province Qing and Ling, would also be affected by the war, and staying in the Taoist Temple wouldn’t be peaceful. Thus, Qing Yu had no regrets about his initial choice.

In fact, if Qing Yu knew how the stand-in ’Qing Yu’ within Yang City had died, he would regret his choice even less. Over the years, under the continuous efforts of Senior Brother Xuanfa and others, there was a growing tendency within the True Martial Dao Sect to recover Qing Yu. Even without the rumors of the Zhenwu Sword, it was estimated that someone would soon come to take Qing Yu back to the True Martial Dao Sect. However, considering the cause of the stand-in’s death, whether Qing Yu could safely return to the True Martial Dao Sect was questionable.

"The host is cunning and resourceful, adept in the art of the ’Golden Cicada Sheds Its Shell,’ avoiding turmoil; special award of 500 Villain Points," the system suddenly made its presence known.

Since raiding the Li Family Treasury, the system had been silent, not issuing quests, and Qing Yu had almost forgotten it.

"System, you’re online."

"This system has been online all along. During this period, it was merely observing whether the host could escape the catastrophe and whether it needed to find a new host," replied the system’s voice, still so merciless.

"There are things you can’t foresee; I thought you were truly omnipotent."

"This system is a villain legacy system, not a prediction system," the system responded.

"Never mind, now that I’ve escaped the catastrophe, it’s time for you to issue new quests."

"The previous were beginner guide quests. Now that you’ve left the Newbie Village map, no further quests will be issued."

"What the hell, Yang City is clearly a Hell Dungeon, not a Newbie Village map. Wait, if you don’t issue quests, how do I get the six-star super draw?"

The six-star super draw was previously stated by the system to be obtainable only through quests.

"This system is a villain legacy system, not a villain quest system. Regarding the super draw, please reach five stars before we discuss further."