Welcome to Ability Store-Chapter 118 - 117: The Hidden Past

As the date of the martial arts competition drew closer, Chen Xuan could also feel the change in the atmosphere of Chang’an City.

The number of people walking on the right side of the long street was increasing, almost matching those on the left, where ordinary citizens walked. These people were all dressed in fine clothes, speaking official language with a distinct local accent, and the jade plaques hung in the most conspicuous places on their waists, reminding the surrounding crowd of their status as orthodox cultivators.

It’s not just cultivators coming to Chang’an; the number of ordinary people was also increasing significantly, something that could be glimpsed from the number of carriages traveling on Vermilion Bird Avenue. From morning till night, countless vehicles entered the city through the South City Gate, gradually dispersing to various parts of the city along this north-south main road, much like nutrients merging into the body of a giant.

This is easy to understand, as cultivators are not solitary; they have families and friends, who often accompany them to Chang’an. Cheering them on from close quarters aside, visiting the largest international metropolis of the Eastern continent is a pastime in itself.

Where there are people, business follows naturally. How could merchants, smelling the scent of opportunity, miss out on the chance to make a fortune? Thus, trade associations from various places were also drawn in.

In fact, even the Immortal Alliance viewed the martial arts competition as a festival.

For instance, flags were hung in districts related to cultivators, and some entertainment zones on the outskirts were even opened to ordinary people, giving the latter a glimpse of the daily indulgences of cultivators.

Their thought process was simple: the Immortal Alliance’s finances mainly come from city taxes. Now, with large crowds pouring in, both entrance fees and taxes on various goods transactions would be much higher than usual, undoubtedly connected to the public nature of the martial arts competition. The significantly increased revenue would further prompt the Immortal Alliance to enhance the entertainment aspects of the competition.

At this rate, it was bound to become a new sort of Spring Festival.

Chen Xuan certainly wouldn’t miss this excellent opportunity for promotion; he specifically commissioned many advertising boards, planning to line them up from the city gate to the manor once the competition began. This way, cultivators from various places would definitely come to the Only I am Venerable Sect upon hearing the news. And when they returned home, they would naturally spread the word to various places.

In fact, over the past few days, some scattered foreign cultivators had already come to the manor, seeking information about the western demon fiends from their peers.

Eight days before the opening of the sect competition, Chen Xuan finally received a reply from the Historian.

"Sect Leader Chen, I found it. There indeed was a renegade cultivator fitting the description five years ago!" Hongli exclaimed the moment he jumped off his horse, "He has not been captured yet!"

Could there really be such a person?

Chen Xuan felt a chill in his heart, "What is this person’s name?"

"Zhang Lingqu, a cultivator from the Qingge Sect." Hongli handed over a piece of paper, clearly copied from a record, "The age and height all match up!"

Taking it, he found that this person indeed aligned well with Jiu’s description, and the timing fit too. Zhang Lingqu was the name bestowed upon him when he joined the sect, and his original name was also recorded: Ji An.

Ji An... Ji Yanshu, is this a special kind of "An" with the character for "Sun" on top?

"Since the sect name is given by the sect, most cultivators who leave without a farewell abandon it and revert to their original surname." Hongli explained, "So when I had my subordinates search through records from five or six years ago, I specifically instructed them to pay attention to the original names, and sure enough, we found something!"

Chen Xuan had also heard of this. For instance, the Immortal Alliance Governor Xu Yuanqing didn’t truly carry the Xu surname; rather, the Sect Leader at Ascension Platform had the Xu surname. When bestowing the sect name, it was customary for disciples to adopt this surname. It was a form of non-bloodline heritage, representing that all disciples within the sect were members of this great family.

And if his daughter could sense qi, she would most likely follow her father into the Ascension Platform, so continuing to use the Xu surname wasn’t an issue. If she joined a sect other than the Only I am Venerable Sect, such as somewhere outside the Ascension Platform, it would be normal for her not to be called Xuanling in the future.

At first, when Chen Xuan heard Jiu mention this, he found it somewhat hard to accept. Even if names didn’t change, Jiu should’ve been called Chen Jiu instead, and his sister, Chen Hua. It all felt odd to him, so he simply replaced the sect name with student numbers.

But for cultivators in this world, receiving a sect name was a significant moment, akin to a man donning the cap during his coming-of-age ceremony in the past, marking a person’s official transition from a Qi Sensing Man to a true cultivator. Its status was equal to the name given by one’s parents, sometimes even holding more weight.

"What is this Qingge Sect?" Chen Xuan frowned.

"A small sect in Chang’an City, with a little over twenty cultivators, led by Sect Leader Zhang Qingge, and founded less than fifteen years ago." Hongli replied in one breath, clearly having investigated in advance.

This was the advantage of having connections within the Government Office, Chen Xuan thought. If he had to investigate himself, it would probably take ten days to half a month just to get a clear idea of the other party’s background.

He glanced at the end of the copied document, which even recorded the reason for Ji An’s defection.

——Dissatisfied with senior discipline, he stole five thousand jade coins and a refined steel treasure sword from the sect before fleeing.

Could Jiu’s master really have left in anger due to a dispute among disciples?

Was it because his movements were exposed this time that he was intercepted by Qingge Sect cultivators?

Even if so, many doubts remained.

The biggest suspicion was why he never strayed too far from Chang’an. Five years was enough time for him to flee to the ends of the earth.

"Where is this Qingge Sect located? I wish to visit them." Chen Xuan put away the transcript and said.

Finding out the answer shouldn’t be too difficult; visiting them would reveal much.

"Regarding that, the Governor has instructed me to ask you to go to the Moon Gazing Tower for a conversation." The Historian, as if predicting his thoughts, said, "If you go alone, you might not gather much before being turned away, but with the Immortal Alliance’s permission, the situation would be entirely different."

...

An hour later, Chen Xuan followed the Historian into the Governor’s top-floor study.

"Sect Leader Chen, I am already aware of Ji An’s situation." Xu Yuanqing said straightforwardly, "It’s the sect’s rightful duty to capture renegade disciples; even the Immortal Alliance has no authority to interfere. However, this does not permit them to wantonly slaughter mountain folk. This matter should be led by me, forming a multi-faction investigative team to verify the truth at Qingge Sect, but..."

At this point, he let out a wry smile, "As you know, the martial arts competition is imminent, and I cannot spare the time to handle this matter. If postponed till after the competition, your disciples will undoubtedly be uneasy. Therefore, I’ve decided to authorize you to lead this investigation!"

"You want me to represent the Immortal Alliance?" Chen Xuan asked in surprise, "Isn’t that against the rules?"

"No, not you representing the Immortal Alliance; rather, a multi-faction investigative team should inherently include cultivators from over three sects. As per usual customs, matters concerning the sects in Chang’an City necessitate participation from Celestial Derivation Tower and Ascension Platform." Xu Yuanqing patiently explained, "I will contact Celestial Derivation Tower myself, and Ascension Platform could be represented by Hongli, although he isn’t a cultivator, he still belongs to Ascension Platform."

The Historian nodded with a smile to him.

Realization dawned on Chen Xuan that officials in charge of specific affairs in Chang’an City would also change with the replacement of the Governor.

"As for the third party sect, that naturally would be the Only I am Venerable Sect." Xu Yuanqing concluded, "As long as three sects are involved in the investigation, it would be completely legitimate. No matter how many excuses Qingge Sect has, they cannot impede the investigation, or risk antagonizing other sects in the Immortal Alliance. In past encounters like this, the leaders were typically from Ascension Platform or Celestial Derivation Tower, yet you being a sect leader, hold a higher position than a typical disciple, making you a suitable leader."

Though Xu Yuanqing made it sound simple, Chen Xuan knew that Xu Yuanqing was taking on a responsibility. The fact that he was willing to hand over the leadership to him was clearly based on the trust they had built over previous interactions.

"Thank you, Governor." He cupped his hands in gratitude.

"No matter, you’re now part of the Immortal Alliance; I should help wherever I can." Xu Yuanqing stroked his beard with a smile, "It won’t be possible to form the investigation team today, take a rest back at the manor. Once Celestial Derivation Tower dispatches their cultivators, I will inform you at once."