Li Guanqi was shocked. An organization as vast as the Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion answered to nothing but a single jade pendant, and that pendant had been on Song Yunshu the entire time.

Song Yunshu touched the bloodstain on her neck, still trembling from her brush with death.

Li Guanqi scanned the surroundings, a cold chuckle escaping him. “It seems we’ve been under observation this whole time.”

The assassin from earlier was only at the mid Illusory Refinement Realm, yet the killing power he’d displayed rivaled a late-stage master. Worse, the way the man had concealed his presence was staggering. He had come right up to them, and Li Guanqi hadn’t sensed a thing.

Something had blocked Li Guanqi’s divine consciousness from detecting the assassin.

Li Guanqi tucked the jade pendant safely into his origin space and sneered. “Quite the welcoming show of force...”

Tu Yongsi moved cautiously to Song Yunshu’s side, his voice cold. “Looks like some fools couldn’t resist making a move.”

Li Guanqi clasped his hands behind his back and chuckled. “Then let’s see whose skills are sharper.”

A glint of intelligence flashed in Tu Yongsi’s eyes. He nodded, stepped forward, and formed hand seals. A golden heavenly intelligence jade pendant floated into the air.

Buzz!

Waves of spatial energy radiated outward. The empty sky twisted and warped, and a spatial rift about a zhang wide tore open in front of the trio.

Li Guanqi turned to the uneasy Song Yunshu. “Don’t be afraid. Stay behind me.”

Tu Yongsi glanced at Li Guanqi. “Step inside.”

Li Guanqi took the lead, a subtle aura of authority radiating from him.

Swish!

The light screen sealed shut behind them. A towering white spire soared into the clouds ahead, easily over a hundred zhang high. Thousands of cultivators moved to and fro around it in robes of varying colors, carrying stacks of jade slips as they wove through the air. Even Tu Yongsi received nothing more than a polite nod.

Around the central white tower stood four others in red, yellow, blue, and purple. Their hues were muted rather than garish, lending them an understated majesty. Though only fifty zhang tall, each was imposing in its own right.

Most disciples shuttled between the white and purple towers, and Li Guanqi deduced that the purple one handled intelligence gathering.

Tu Yongsi pointed toward the red tower, which radiated a palpable aura of killing intent. The yellow tower served as the pavilion’s profit center, collecting fees for intelligence work and funding industries across the Six Territories.

Li Guanqi’s gaze settled on the final tower, the blue one. Song Yunshu stepped to his side to explain. “That’s where the Lantern Keepers are.”

He nodded. The Lantern Keepers managed every chess piece in the Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion, the true hub of its operations.

Looking up at the colossal white tower, he turned to the old man with a smile. “So... with the pavilion owner’s jade pendant, I’m the head of the Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion, right?”

Tu Yongsi didn’t know exactly what Li Guanqi intended, but he nodded. “That’s right. You are the Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion’s owner now.”

A playful smile curved Li Guanqi’s lips. “Oh... good. That works.”

Song Yunshu stared as Li Guanqi produced the jade pendant that symbolized the position of the pavilion master.

Buzz!

The purple-gold jade pendant radiated an immense, crushing pressure.

Boom!

Every cultivator in the air froze. After the briefest hesitation, a thunderous chorus erupted across the sky.

“Greetings, Pavilion Master!”

“Greetings, Pavilion Master!”

Even Song Yunshu and Tu Yongsi bowed deeply behind him, joining the chorus.

Li Guanqi infused his words with cultivation energy, sending them reverberating across the entire Heavenly Intelligence Realm.

“All Hall Masters and above are hereby ordered to assemble within one incense’s time!”

His command echoed throughout the vast Heavenly Intelligence Realm, which stretched for nearly five hundred li. Scattered voices answered from the crowd. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Li Guanqi chuckled. “Everyone else, carry on with your tasks.”

The cultivators resumed their tasks. Tu Yongsi’s pupils contracted. He looked at Li Guanqi and whispered through their connection. “Isn’t this a bit... too sudden?!”

Song Yunshu bit her lip but said nothing. If her grandfather trusted Li Guanqi, so did she. She believed Li Guanqi wasn’t the type to act recklessly.

Li Guanqi smiled. “They’ve already made their show of force, so why rush? If we’re toying with them, let’s keep it unpredictable.”

He paused, his grin widening. “Heh... let’s see whether they’re humans or ghosts first.”

He stepped forward and appeared on top of the white tower. Song Yunshu looked up at him, silhouetted against the sky. The sheer authority he projected made her confidence swell. She was certain he could manage the Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion.

Below, the cultivators quickened their pace under his watchful gaze, as though spurred by his presence alone.

Yet Li Guanqi leaned down toward Song Yunshu with a sheepish whisper. “Uh... where’s the council hall again?”

Song Yunshu frowned, unsure whether Li Guanqi was clever or foolish. “The council hall is on the ninety-seventh floor. Why did you go up there?”

Li Guanqi waved it off. “I was moving too fast... halfway up, I realized I didn’t know where it was. And to avoid losing face, I just kept going.”

Song Yunshu scowled but led him to the council hall. To her surprise, someone was already seated inside.

A pale young man in a muted yellow robe sat waiting in the enormous hall. Dark circles shadowed his eyes, giving him a sickly appearance. Even so, his features were clearly delicate and handsome.

Seeing Li Guanqi and the others arrive, he rose calmly, clasped his hands, and smiled. “I’m Ji Yuchuan, master of the Blue Tower. Greetings, Pavilion Master.”

He looked at the elder behind Li Guanqi and smiled. “Old Tu, long time no see.”

Tu Yongsi spared him a glance and said nothing.

A sharp glint flashed in Li Guanqi’s eyes. Only Ji Yuchuan had shown up. That alone was worth pondering.

Li Guanqi turned to the young man with a smile. “Ji Yuchuan... A solitary island set against a flowing river.[1] What a beautiful name.”

1. 屿 (yǔ) means “islet” or “small island,” while 川 (chuān) means “river” or “flowing water.” ☜