World's No. 1 Swordsman-Chapter 131: A Heavyweight Bait

"Master, when I was traveling down the mountain before, the few incidents I encountered seemed to all have traces of a certain corrupt sect behind them."

Seizing the opportunity, Wang Sheng told his master about Wei Chiyu stealing the Three Scrolls of the Medicine God. He also connected the strange events at the haunted Li Family residence, the two corrupt cultivators who had tried to snatch Wei Chiyu, and the Blade Slave captured while cooperating with the Special Warfare Unit on the day the Fire Sage died. They were all linked through a common symbol: a Yin-Yang Tai Chi diagram that was subtly different from the Tai Chi often used by Daoist sects.

Qing Yanzi remained silent for a few moments.

—I heard Ah-Ling mention this matter. The Special Investigation Unit has also been investigating the background of that corrupt organization over the past year, but they've only made small progress. That symbol has not appeared for a long time either. Little Sheng, do you think they're the ones stealing Daoist heritage classics? What would they want Daoist texts for, though? Are they selling it for money?

"I was merely recalling these things, Master. Still, you should remind Mistress about them. I have a strong feeling that the Yin-Yang Cult is not to be underestimated."

—Yin-Yang Cult? They're bold enough to call themselves Yin-Yang? That's not a name that can be used casually. Alright, I will remind Ah-Ling. Anyway, you don't have to think too much about this. Focus on cultivating. Do not get complacent just because your realm has advanced a little. Your senior sister's Daoist realm has long since surpassed her cultivation by who knows how much. You should learn from her!

Wang Sheng smiled bitterly. "Yes, Master. I will remain in seclusion and will not come down until I form my Golden Core!"

Qing Yanzi chuckled softly.

—That's not the way either. You have not visited your parents in a long time. As the old saying goes, when one has been still for too long, one naturally seeks movement. Balancing stillness and movement is part of the Dao. Once you break through to the Illusory Core Realm, go and stay with your parents for a while.

—Speaking of, I just remembered your parents mentioning that they wanted to have another child but have been experiencing difficulties. I prepared a few alchemy pills for them; I'll have someone deliver them to you next time. The pills extend lifespan, strengthen the body, and nourish vitality. Men who take it will become as vigorous as dragons and tigers. Women who take it will have their yin nourished and their appearance enhanced.

"Thank you." Wang Sheng then lowered his voice. "Master, did you manage to create the Medicine God Valley's True-Essence Awakening Pill?"

Qing Yanzi's voice also dropped slightly.

—Ahem. Do not just casually mention that. The research institute secretly developed it, and they now call it the Black-Rooster White-Phoenix Pill.

Wang Sheng was rendered speechless. Could the big shots at the research institute stop being so casual when naming alchemy pills?

—I have not had time to study the Three Scrolls of the Medicine God yet. If you have already memorized your copy, remember to burn it. The Medicine God Valley has come looking for it several times already.

After ending the video call, Wang Sheng sat under the eaves and gazed into the distance, calming his mind and reflecting.

He did not know the exact details behind the five stolen Daoist heritage texts; he didn't even know if the case was similar to Wei Chiyu stealing the Three Scrolls of the Medicine God. Judging from the timing, however, it seemed that after lurking for so long, the Yin-Yang Cult was finally ready to make its move.

Wang Sheng tried hard to recall all the information about the Yin-Yang Cult that had circulated online in his previous life.

Back then, the Yin-Yang Cult had extremely huge ambitions. There had even been news of their attempts to infiltrate official institutions.

In ancient times, a major corrupt sect like them would certainly have secretly eroded the imperial court and seized control of the secular dynasty. They would have then exploited the people to rapidly expand, suppressing righteous cultivators and monopolizing all cultivation resources across the land.

Unfortunately for them, the Hua Republic was not like the old feudal dynasties. No matter how patient or hidden the Yin-Yang Cult was, they had chosen the wrong path from the beginning.

What could he do to lessen the chaos that the Yin-Yang Cult could cause?

After thinking it over, Wang Sheng simply typed a summary of everything he knew about the Yin-Yang Cult and sent it to Mou Yue. As a cultivator at the Foundation Establishment Stage, there was little else he could do to make an impact.

Of course, if his master and mistress summoned him, he would definitely draw his sword and step forward, ready to test his Sword Dao against those corrupt cultivators.

The Illusory Core Realm...

Two years ago, there had already been quite a few experts at the Illusory Core Realm on both the righteous and corrupt sides. Having just broken through to the late stage of the Seed Formation Realm, Wang Sheng estimated that unless he came across some major opportunity, it would take at least two more years to fully complete the Foundation Establishment Stage and reach the Illusory Core Realm.

In today's cultivation world, a clear power gap had appeared between the Daoist elders, Daoist masters, and the younger generation who had started cultivating after the resurgence of primal qi. Still, most of the Daoist elders and masters only ever reached the Illusory Core Realm.

Mu Wanxuan aside, who seemed to live within the Dao itself, Wang Sheng had already caught up to the Daoist masters' realms with the help of abundant alchemy pill support. Among the younger generation, he firmly ranked in the top ten.

Of course, that was only in terms of realms.

He was a sword cultivator, possessed a perfected sword intent, had the Reversed Seven-Star Sword Formation and the Sword-Controlling Art, and had been nurturing an celestial-grade flying sword for a long time. If he were to return to the shores of the Yellow Sea two years ago, he would single-handedly slay the Earth Sand God in just two strikes.

"Yin and Yang, Dual Polarity," Wang Sheng muttered softly. A shard of a sword tip emerged from his chest. The celestial-grade flying sword slowly slid out, gliding around him like a swimming fish.

Pushing away all distracting thoughts, Wang Sheng entered meditation once more.

Daoist heritage texts being stolen had put all the Daoist sects on alert. Every mountain had started arranging Daoist masters and disciples to guard the repositories of texts on rotating night shifts.

In the two months that followed, no similar incidents occurred, which made Wang Sheng even more convinced that it had been the work of the Yin-Yang Cult. The culprits stirred up attention, then immediately vanished, perfectly matching the Yin-Yang Cult's previous patterns.

However, Wang Sheng's attention was soon drawn away by a major event that was about to happen in the cultivation world: the First Grand Tournament of the Immortal Dao.

***

One afternoon, while cultivating, Wang Sheng received a call from Mou Yue. She asked if he had time to attend a video meeting to discuss matters regarding the first Grand Tournament of the Immortal Dao, also known as the Immortal Dao Conference.[1]

After Wang Sheng agreed, a video invitation was quickly sent over. Once he pressed "Accept," a meeting room popped up on the screen of his phone.

At the front of the meeting room, his senior sister rose from beside their master and moved closer to the monitor that showed Wang Sheng. When she laughed softly at the camera, Wang Sheng quickly made a funny face, and she responded with a fierce expression.

While teasing his senior sister, Wang Sheng couldn't help but be puzzled. With his senior sister and master already present, why did they still have to specifically call him in for the meeting?

Mou Yue immediately acknowledged his presence.

—Daoist Master Wang has connected.

Chi Ling, who was presiding over the meeting, smiled and nodded at Wang Sheng. Then, her expression turned serious again.

—Everyone is here. Mou Yue, begin.

—Yes, ma'am.

In little leather shoes, Mou Yue walked up to the large screen. Over the past two years, her figure had matured a lot...

Ahem. Back to business.

Mou Yue pressed a button on the remote control in her hand, and three large words appeared on the screen: Yin-Yang Cult.

—Following Daoist Master Wang's advice, we began to pay attention to this organization two and a half years ago. However, we lacked an adequate intelligence network back then because our unit had just been newly established. Hence, we failed to gather much information and could only continue to pursue them in secret.

—Over the past year, our intelligence personnel have successfully infiltrated most of the known corrupt cultivator organizations. By outlining their peripheries little by little, we finally traced the meridian of the hidden major corrupt Daoist sect, the Yin-Yang Cult.

The screen flashed, and a densely packed grid of names and basic information appeared.

—According to our investigations, the Yin-Yang Cult has secretly recruited a large number of experts. These are the ones we know of. More than four hundred corrupt cultivators are at the Spirit Convergence Realm or higher, and by our estimates, this is only the tip of the iceberg of the Yin-Yang Cult's true strength.

—This organization harbors great ambitions. According to our findings, although they are currently lying low and conserving their strength, they have shown a keen interest in the texts of various Daoist heritages. Over the years, they have been using whatever means necessary to collect cultivation techniques from different Daoist heritages.

—In fact, during the new-recruit evaluations for the Special Warfare Unit, we uncovered over a hundred young individuals with anomalies. Hired by others, they attempted to infiltrate the Special Warfare Unit to gather the cultivation techniques it used. Based on our analysis, this matter is also most likely related to the Yin-Yang Cult.

A middle-aged man from the investigation unit raised his hand.

—What do they want cultivation techniques for? Will mastering a lot of techniques make them invincible?

Qing Yanzi shook his head and smiled.

—Cultivation techniques typically revolve around Daoist heritage texts. Borrowing core techniques from other Daoist heritages provides no real benefit to one's own cultivation.

After their short discussion, Mou Yue took control again, steering the meeting's rhythm.

—That's why we investigated some of the cultivation technique texts that the Yin-Yang Cult had acquired. Everyone, please take a look.

The screen flashed again, and more than a dozen photos of cultivation manuals appeared.

Yin-Yang Arises From The Dao, Primal Qi Reunified, Heaven and Earth Codex, Chaos of the Five Elements, Dual-Polarity Stellar Mantra, Qing Zhuo Mantra...

Mou Yue lowered her voice.

—They all seem to revolve around two key concepts: yin and yang, and purity and turbidity. Our preliminary guess is that the Yin-Yang Cult is trying to gather strengths from various sects, or perhaps their own inherited texts have significant flaws. Of course, these are just speculations.

Mou Yue, whose long hair now fell past her shoulders, spoke so fluently that Wang Sheng couldn't help but feel much more at ease.

The authorities had already investigated the Yin-Yang Cult so thoroughly that there was no need for him to worry about anything. He could simply focus on cultivating peacefully at Wudang Mountains and continue being a little salted fish[2] at the Seed Formation Realm.

Mou Yue paused for a bit as she glanced at Wang Sheng, the corners of her mouth curling into a confident smile.

—Apart from uniting righteous cultivators, our goal for the Grand Tournament of the Immortal Dao is also to set up some arrangements and see if we can fish out the crocodile that is the Yin-Yang Cult. After all, we now suspect that the core members of the Yin-Yang Cult are hiding within the Daoist heritages of the righteous path! Moreover, suppressing corrupt cultivators with the strength of the righteous path has always been our established policy.

A Special Warfare Unit officer lowered his tone.

—What about the bait?

—Well...

Mou Yue pressed the remote again. A picture of a stone tablet appeared on the big screen.

Wang Sheng's Dao Heart stirred. Could it be...

—This is one of the six stone tablets brought back from the moon. One of the rewards for reaching the top eight in the Grand Tournament of the Immortal Dao is the chance to comprehend this stone tablet. I believe this will be a huge temptation for cultivators.

—We know that the six stone tablets are of great significance. Admittedly, this method carries some risks, but we have all agreed that they are manageable. Of course, we will not allow anyone to touch the stone tablet physically.

—Despite countless efforts, the research institute still hasn't deciphered the secrets of the tablets. Taking advantage of this opportunity, we also hope to borrow the strength of the cultivation world to achieve a breakthrough in our research.

It really was them!

Wang Sheng immediately enlarged the video screen, but the image of the stone tablet had been deliberately blurred, making it impossible to see clearly.

Soon, Wang Sheng also realized why he had been called to this meeting.

After Mou Yue's presentation, Chi Ling took over.

—We need cultivators to come forward and officially organize the Grand Tournament of the Immortal Dao on behalf of the authorities. Daoist masters Qing Yanzi, Bu Yu, and Fei Yu are the best candidates. Mou Yue, remember to send related materials to Daoist Master Fei Yu after the meeting.

—Yes, Captain.

Wang Sheng immediately sat up straight, already guessing that among those materials, there would very likely be high-definition photos of the stone tablet.

Receiving special treatment so openly was a bold move. He approved.

1. The event is referred to as both the First Grand Tournament of the Immortal Dao and the First Immortal Dao Conference because it serves a dual purpose: it’s not only a large-scale competition among cultivators, but also a formal gathering where key figures in the cultivation world convene to discuss matters of the Immortal Dao. The author has been referring to this event as the Immortal Dao Conference as well, but for consistency's sake, we will be going with the Grand Tournament of the Immortal Dao throughout the chapter. ☜

2. "Little salted fish" is a Chinese slang term with a self-deprecating but humorous tone. It implies that someone isn’t striving to be successful or powerful, but is intentionally taking it easy, staying low-profile, and living without ambition. The phrase reflects a kind of laid-back, content-with-being-average attitude. ☜ ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com

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