A Pawn's Passage

Sun Zhongnu was originally just a minor figure. Under normal circumstances, even if he defected, it would not have caused such a huge disturbance. Yet he happened to act at a critical juncture—when Qi Xuansu had arrived in the Northern Continent, Audrey had gone missing, and tensions between the Steam Evangelical Sect and the Western Daoist Order were high.

Through a convergence of circumstances and interests, Sun Zhongnu unexpectedly stirred the currents of the entire Northern Continent, making his name known to all. But for Sun Zhongnu, this was not necessarily a good thing, because now, everyone wanted him dead. The greater the destruction he caused and the worse the impact, the more certain his death became. Even someone as powerful as Chen Shuhua ultimately died.

Of course, one could say Chen Shuhua simply was not strong enough. But human power had its limits. Immortality was already the upper bound under normal circumstances.

In truth, Qi Xuansu had split his forces into three. One path was Madam Wu heading to sea to draw Sophia’s attention; the second was his other Liberation Incarnation, anchored to Green Cloud, escorting Audrey by land; and the third was his true body remaining in St. York.

Whether it was the Evangelical Ministry or the Western Daoist Order, everyone believed Qi Xuansu was fleeing St. York. None expected that he was still there.

This was precisely the advantage of the Rogue Cultivator lineage.

Ever since the Six Immortal Lineages appeared, there had been many Rogue Cultivators. After all, those lacking sufficient aptitude were plentiful. Yet for the same reason, Rogue Cultivators above the Zaohua stage were exceedingly rare. Thus, identifying a Corpse Liberation Immortal was feasible, as high-level Rogue Cultivators were as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns. But the same could not be done for Earthly Immortals or Godly Immortals, as there were too many of them.

Zaohua-stage Rogue Cultivators were even rarer than Banished Immortals. Due to their scarcity, few people truly understood the Liberation Method.

Though Banished Immortals also could sever their Three Corpses, they did not rely on external means but on internal cultivation. So unless one reached an extraordinary level and split the Three Corpse Incarnations into independent entities, those incarnations could not exist for long because they had no anchor.

If Qi Xuansu’s incarnation were merely a Three Corpse Incarnation, it could not have lasted this long. It would have dissipated midway, leaving only Audrey behind. That would have created quite a spectacle.

On the other hand, although the upper echelons of the Daoist Order and Madam Wu knew Qi Xuansu’s true background, others did not. At most, they had heard the term “Manmade Banished Immortal.” But they would have had no idea what it truly entailed. After all, in the vast Daoist Order, there were only two such figures, one of them being the protected Li family scion. So how could outsiders possibly know such secrets?

Since most people did not understand what the Manmade Banished Immortal lineage truly was, they naturally assumed it to be simply a Banished Immortal. By the time the information spread to the Western Daoist Order and the Holy Court, it became even more diluted, simply labeling Qi Xuansu a Banished Immortal.

Having risen so quickly in cultivation and rank at his young age, Qi Xuansu was considered the Daoist Order’s Fourth Prodigy. This only further convinced others that he was a Banished Immortal, leaving no room for doubt.

Since they regarded Qi Xuansu as a Banished Immortal, they naturally assumed that the one fleeing with Audrey was Qi Xuansu himself and never realized that his true self remained in St. York.

At present, the Evangelical Ministry was focusing its attention on the Liberation Incarnation. Coupled with the near-complete purge of Beichen Hall’s agents in the Northern Region and the full withdrawal of survivors, their vigilance inevitably slackened. Thus, St. York became a blind spot right under their noses.

Ever since Sun Zhongnu’s betrayal, Qi Xuansu had considered eliminating the traitor. Given his cultivation, it was not a difficult task. The real challenge was protecting Strauni’s identity from exposure and locating Sun Zhongnu’s hiding place.

Strauni had no dealings with the Evangelical Ministry and could not track their movements. Although Qi Xuansu’s cultivation made finding someone easy, he had never even seen Sun Zhongnu’s portrait, leaving him with no starting point.

However, Strauni introduced him to a possible lead—the Morgan Brotherhood of St. York.

The St. York City Council was divided into two major factions—the Tory and the Whig factions. The Whig faction currently held the majority, with Chairman Sophia as their leader. The Tory faction was the minority party, led by Leopold, who remained a strong contender for the position of Chairman as he was only a few votes short.

The balance between majority and minority parties was roughly even, differing only by a handful of votes. For any legislation requiring a two-thirds majority, the minority party still held decisive influence. In essence, power rotated between them.

Sophia was the behind-the-scenes boss of the Reckton Detective Agency, able to mobilize plainclothes detectives. Correspondingly, Leopold had a comparable force at his disposal called the Morgan Brotherhood.

This was an organization somewhere between thieves and assassins, operating in the gray areas and handling unsavory business.

The Morgan Brotherhood was a local power in St. York. They would never dare assassinate members of the Evangelical Ministry, but they would certainly sell information and reveal movements, provided the payment was sufficient.

In Qi Xuansu’s view, instead of searching aimlessly everywhere, wasting time and effort with no guarantee of success, it was far better to go directly to the Morgan Brotherhood and simply spend some money.

Although Qi Xuansu had no personal funds, such matters would naturally be covered by official expenses, which he could approve himself.

After all, Sage Qingwei was not only the Beichen Hall Master, but also the Second Omniscient Sage of the Golden Tower Council, capable of commanding vast armies. For such a powerful figure to personally approve such a trivial sum and expend effort on such a minor matter would be making a mountain out of a molehill.

Having made up his mind, Qi Xuansu naturally could not approach the Morgan Brotherhood under his current identity. He decided that it was time for Dutch to openly leave St. York and return to the Old Continent.

Of course, this had some suspicious elements. Dutch had traveled all the way from the Old Continent to the New Continent, only to leave again shortly after, which seemed unreasonable. But unless someone looked too closely, it would not raise much concern. Moreover, times had changed. Travel between the two continents by flying craft made it quite convenient.

Even if the Evangelical Ministry truly sought to investigate thoroughly, the Old Continent was under the jurisdiction of the Holy Court Tribunal. Given the strained relationship between the two, the Evangelical Ministry could neither obtain information nor cooperation from them. After all, if not for the fallout between the Holy Court and the Steam Evangelical Sect over uneven spoils, the Western Daoist Order would never have had the opportunity to establish the Tawantin Empire.

After boarding the ship, Qi Xuansu had no intention of actually going to the Western Continent. Instead, he would shed his disguise like a cicada shedding its shell and return to St. York. This time, he altered his appearance and assumed a new identity—John Meston.

Before arriving, Qi Xuansu had already brought sufficient Gold Crowns and Silver Eagles for contingencies. For Beichen Hall, preparing legitimate, untraceable funds was not difficult since trade between East and West was frequent. The Daoist Order also held substantial reserves of Gold Crowns.

Following Strauni’s information, Qi Xuansu headed to one of the Morgan Brotherhood’s contact points. Although the Brotherhood’s members were spread across St. York and its surrounding areas, locating them was not easy. They were also not interested in ordinary business.

Those who managed to find them usually sought major deals. After all, small matters were far easier to handle directly. Anyone with the time to find the Brotherhood could have already resolved minor matters themselves.

Since the Morgan Brotherhood dealt mostly in high-profile business, their bases were located in the Upper District rather than the grim Lower District. This was clearly for the convenience of their clientele. After all, the powerful patrons who commissioned them would not wish to venture into the Lower District, and certain sensitive tasks required them to handle such affairs in person.

Qi Xuansu passed through the main avenue of the Queen District and turned into a narrow alley. After winding through several turns, he arrived at a small store that appeared ordinary. But in reality, it was one of the Morgan Brotherhood’s contact points.

Through the glass, the shop looked deserted. Only the owner sat behind the counter, propping his chin with one hand and dozing off.

The scene reminded Qi Xuansu of his visit to The Inn back then, which had led to a conflict with the Green Phoenix Guard. In the blink of an eye, times had changed. He had become the Green Phoenix Guard’s counterpart, even part of the upper ranks. Ordinary Green Phoenix Guards were no longer worth his attention, and he now stood on equal footing with their Commander.

Qi Xuansu pushed open the door, and the bell attached to it rang, startling the drowsy shopkeeper awake.

The emblem of the Steam Evangelical Sect was somewhat unique. It consisted of three gears arranged into an inverted triangle rather than a simple geometric one.

Qi Xuansu stepped up to the counter and took out 3 Gold Crowns. Each coin represented a gear, forming an inverted triangle pattern, remarkably similar to the Steam Evangelical Sect’s emblem.

The shopkeeper glanced at Qi Xuansu in surprise. With a swipe of his hand across the counter, the 3 Gold Crowns vanished. “Please follow me.”

Passing through a hidden door and down a concealed passage, Qi Xuansu arrived at an underground hall.

In other words, he was now in the zone between the Central District and the Lower District.

The place was elegantly renovated. Aside from the lack of windows, it was almost indistinguishable from a luxury mansion.

After waiting for a while in the reception room, a slender figure emerged. She wore a white shirt, riding trousers, and long boots. A pistol gleamed at her waist, and a dagger spun rapidly around the ring on her index finger, flashing with cold light.

These thieves had kept up with the times. Where they once would have used small crossbows, they now carried pistols instead.