A Pawn's Passage

Chapter 1449: Taking Action

Two confessions, the account book, various image and voice recordings, as well as the hundreds of thousands of Taiping coins that had been sitting in the Taiping Bank accounts for many years all served as material evidence.

There were still slight shortcomings if one wanted to turn this into an absolutely airtight case. But it was more than sufficient to make Li Tianlan cooperate with the investigation.

Qi Xuansu no longer wished to wait. He ordered Zhang Qingyue to continue interrogating Gu Ying in hopes of breaking through her defenses.

At the same time, he arranged for Liu Hu to remain on Putuo Island, the stronghold of the Cihang lineage. That way, her security would be guaranteed.

Under the current circumstances, Li Tianlan was not so capable as to attack Putuo Island. What they needed to guard against now was Li Tianlan fleeing, not him lashing out desperately in a cornered frenzy.

Qi Xuansu did not take a flying ship. Instead, he secretly returned to the Tianxin Daoist Palace alone to meet Zhang Jucheng.

This secret discussion involved only the two of them because the more people were involved, the easier it would be for information to leak.

Their main focus was on when to make their move.

There was no doubt that they would take action because they had already expended enormous effort, even setting aside the affairs of the Western Daoist Order and the blockade of Fenglin to focus entirely on this case.

At the very beginning, Qi Xuansu and Zhang Jucheng had intended to use the blockade of Fenglin and Gu Ying’s framing of Li Ping as an excuse to pin down Li Tianlan. However, they had not expected Li Tianlan to be so calculating and experienced. He retreated whenever necessary in those cases so they could not hold anything over him. In the end, they still had to circle around and achieve a breakthrough through the loose ends left behind by the first major Jiangnan case. This was also a hidden move that Madam Qi had reserved against Li Tianlan many years ago, and it was finally coming into use now.

The conditions to act were finally mature. If they struck immediately, it would amount to a sudden attack, catching the enemy entirely by surprise. If they did not act immediately, then they would need a meticulous plan, just as Great Sage Jiang had done when surrounding and killing Chen Shuhua, ensuring that nothing could possibly go wrong.

Zhang Jucheng held the confession in his hands, reading it over again and again.

Having spent so many years within the Daoist Order, Zhang Jucheng had a rough idea about what Li Tianlan had been doing all these years. But he had to appear shocked because only then could he justifiably declare that enough was enough, and that the Daoist Mansion could not tolerate such behavior.

Then Zhang Jucheng said, “According to the statements in this confession, Li Tianlan illegally profited 200,000 Taiping coins every year. Over 10 years, that amounts to 2 million Taiping coins. This is by no means a small sum. I truly did not expect that such a veteran of the Daoist Order would commit such acts. In what way is he any different from those Confucian officials?”

Qi Xuansu said, “This is only the smuggling business. In a place as large as the Jiangnan Daoist Mansion, there are many other ways to make money. Could similar situations also exist elsewhere? In my opinion, the amount Li Tianlan embezzled is definitely far more than merely 2 million Taiping coins.”

Zhang Jucheng nodded in agreement. “You’re right. The nature of this matter is extremely serious. What is your opinion?”

Qi Xuansu did not hide his thoughts. “Delays invite complications. Back at the Imperial Capital Daoist Mansion, a mere moment of hesitation allowed Qian Xiangyun to escape. Therefore, I think that we should immediately take action against Li Tianlan in order to prevent even greater losses.”

Zhang Jucheng only pondered for a brief moment before nodding in agreement. “First, we’ll place Li Tianlan under control, and then we’ll report the matter to the Golden Tower Council.”

Qi Xuansu said, “I will personally handle the arrest.”

Zhang Jucheng replied, “You must be careful.”

Qi Xuansu nodded. “I’ll leave stabilizing the overall situation within the Daoist Mansion to you, Uncle Zhang.”

The two quickly divided their responsibilities. Qi Xuansu, representing the Beichen Hall, would personally lead the arrest of Li Tianlan. Meanwhile, Zhang Jucheng, as the Jiangnan Daoist Mansion Master, would oversee the overall situation, minimizing any possible internal chaos within the Daoist Mansion and preventing hidden societies or other outside forces from exploiting the opportunity, thereby avoiding a repeat of the second major Jiangnan case.

The current Qi Xuansu was no longer the same Qi Xuansu from the second major Jiangnan case. Back then, he had merely been an insignificant figure, unable to play any critical role. But now, even if he were to encounter the divine descent of True Lord Siming, he could still protect himself.

After all, Qi Xuansu possessed far too many external objects and resources.

First among them were two immortal objects—the Seven Feather Five Fires Fan and the Guizang Lantern. Next came the semi-immortal objects—Green Cloud and Pure Bodhi. In addition, he also had a sarira and Shebishi Venom.”

Even if Li Tianlan were a Pseudo-Immortal, he would not have been able to withstand this. However, Li Tianlan was not even a Pseudo-Immortal.

Of course, Qi Xuansu could also have requested Huangfu Ji’s assistance, but he chose not to do so. No matter what, Huangfu Ji was a guest. There was no reason to involve a guest in such matters. Besides, the Daoist Order was not lacking in capable people, and Qi Xuansu had no desire to owe someone a favor for no reason.

Li Tianlan was not at the Tianxin Daoist Palace today but rather at his own estate.

Qi Xuansu left the Tianxin Daoist Palace and headed directly toward Li Tianlan’s residence. He did not mobilize personnel from Beichen Hall, but instead deployed the Daoist Mansion’s Spirit Guards.

As far as the Spirit Guards were concerned, the Mansion Master possessed absolute authority over them. The last time True Lord Siming descended and the Spirit Guards were absent, it had been because the Mansion Master was not present at the time.

However, Qi Xuansu moved ahead first, while the Spirit Guards would come to his aid. If they acted together, it would have been far too slow.

Very quickly, Qi Xuansu arrived above Li Tianlan’s estate.

The night was dark, and rain had begun to fall.

Under normal circumstances, flying above Jinling Prefecture was prohibited. But now, Qi Xuansu had no such concerns as he looked down upon Li Tianlan’s residence below.

In truth, Li Tianlan had already sensed that something was wrong and had made preparations to leave Jiangnan if necessary. Nanyang was certainly not an option. Although it was the headquarters of the Heavenly Court, it was also Qi Xuansu’s turf. If Qi Xuansu mobilized the power of the Poluo Daoist Mansion, Li Tianlan would not be able to hide for more than a few days.

However, Li Tianlan could still flee to Fenglin. That place was chaotic with endless warfare and demons, making it easy to conceal himself. More importantly, the Fenglin Daoist Mansion was completely controlled by the Li family, so it was beyond the reach of Qi Xuansu and Zhang Jucheng.

What Li Tianlan had never expected was that Qi Xuansu would arrive so quickly.

Although someone had already secretly informed Li Tianlan that Qi Xuansu had gone to Putuo Island, he estimated it should have taken several days. So long as Qi Xuansu failed to obtain the crucial evidence, Li Tianlan would remain the Second Deputy of the Jiangnan Daoist Mansion, and no one could touch him. That would give him enough time to transfer part of his assets away.

Unfortunately, Li Tianlan had miscalculated, as he had not anticipated the existence of Liu Hu.

The moment Qi Xuansu appeared above the estate, Li Tianlan immediately sensed him. Without the slightest hesitation, Li Tianlan chose to flee at once.

He did not waste time exchanging words with Qi Xuansu because he knew that if he delayed even a little longer, the Daoist Mansion’s Spirit Guards would have formed their battle formation. If so, escaping would become utterly impossible.

Li Tianlan did not fly away. Instead, he chose the Earth Escape Method, becoming almost impossible to detect with the naked eye and traceable only through divine sense.

If Qi Xuansu had merely been a Martial Arts Practitioner, Li Tianlan would have had a chance to escape. But Qi Xuansu was a manmade Banished Immortal. With the enhancements of both the Diviner and Shaman lineages, Qi Xuansu’s divine senses remained firmly locked onto Li Tianlan at all times.

Then Qi Xuansu descended from the sky, perfectly calculating the interception point. His foot landed precisely upon Li Tianlan’s escape route.

Upon landing, the entire street’s pavement shattered instantly.

Li Tianlan was forcibly shaken out from beneath the ground by a single stomp from Qi Xuansu.

Moving as swiftly as lightning, Qi Xuansu seized Li Tianlan by the throat.

Objectively speaking, Qi Xuansu had easily killed Dennis of the Evangelical Ministry in the New Continent. Since Li Tianlan was not much stronger than Dennis, the reason he had been able to stir up such storms was not because of his cultivation or strength, but because of the authority he wielded due to the Li family’s immense backing.

Now that Qi Xuansu had stripped away Li Tianlan’s authority and cut him off from his backing, the only thing Li Tianlan could rely upon was his own cultivation.

Looking across the current Jiangnan Daoist Mansion, the only person capable of matching Qi Xuansu was Zhang Jucheng.

But Zhang Jucheng stood firmly on Qi Xuansu’s side.

Li Tianlan used all his strength and narrowly avoided Qi Xuansu’s grab by the slimmest margin. He then immediately threw out a talisman, intending to forcibly teleport Qi Xuansu 1.5 kilometers away.

However, Qi Xuansu’s Martial Arts Practitioner’s physique came into effect, his blood qi resisting the spell. As such, the talisman failed, and Qi Xuansu remained standing in place.

“Li Tianlan, where exactly are you trying to escape to?” Qi Xuansu shouted.

Li Tianlan kept his mouth tightly shut and refused to answer. His hechang’s wide sleeves fluttered violently, and he threw out two more talismans.

One talisman summoned a Yellow Turban Warrior, which was one of the signature techniques of the Taiping Sect. But this particular Yellow Turban Warrior was much larger, at 5 meters tall, and far more solid. Golden light radiated from its body, and it wielded two golden hammers.

The other talisman summoned thunder instead, a technique belonging to their longtime rivals, the Zhang family of the Zhengyi Sect. Heavenly lightning was drawn down and transformed into a thunder dragon that coiled around Qi Xuansu.

Qi Xuansu revealed his Manly Immortal True Form. With his left hand, he blocked the Yellow Turban Warrior’s descending golden hammer. With his right hand, he tore apart the thunder dragon, causing it to split into numerous smaller lightning serpents.

These two talismans were worth over 10,000 Taiping coins, and they were at least capable of delaying Qi Xuansu for a brief moment.

Seizing the opportunity, Li Tianlan fled once more.

Qi Xuansu’s expression showed little emotion. He shattered the Yellow Turban Warrior’s golden hammer, and, without slowing down, smashed the Warrior’s head to pieces as well, leaving only a headless body slowly dissipating into nothingness.

The lightning serpents formed from the shattered thunder dragon wrapped tightly around Qi Xuansu’s body, slithering chaotically. Qi Xuansu simply chose to ignore them, allowing them to rage freely. That was because they could not harm him in the slightest and would eventually dissipate on their own.

Qi Xuansu’s divine sense remained firmly locked onto Li Tianlan as he pursued him once again.

To Li Tianlan, Qi Xuansu was like an enormous mountain constantly closing in upon him—dark, oppressive, and suffocating.

Once upon a time, Qi Xuansu had merely been a minor figure unworthy of his attention.

Back then, Li Tianlan could never have imagined that the future Qi Xuansu would one day reduce him to a stray dog fleeing in panic.

Qi Xuansu’s speed was unquestionably faster. As they neared the city wall, Qi Xuansu caught up to Li Tianlan and struck him squarely in the back with a punch.

Li Tianlan was sent flying sideways, crashing directly into the city wall. The wall shook violently with a thunderous rumble as dust and debris exploded into the air.