Chapter 5070 — Somewhat Tricky
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 2
"All right, I'll get on it right away!" Qiu Lingshan hung up and immediately assembled the entire Mystery Bureau to begin a targeted search for the primordial-spirit cultivator. Everyone knew the odds were vanishingly small, but in their present straits, treating a dead horse as a live one was all they could do.
Once the arrangements were made, Qiu Lingshan did not stay on at the Mystery Bureau to hold the fort. Instead she went straight to the villa in the Xue Shang residential compound—she had to report these matters to Wu Chengtian and the others in person.
At her message, Wu Chengtian and the rest were badly startled; one and all dropped what they were doing without hesitation. By the time Qiu Lingshan pushed open the villa's front door, travel-worn and dusty, every last one of them had assembled.
What Qiu Lingshan did not know was that after she stepped through the villa's gate, two figures emerged from the greenery not far behind her—none other than Xue Jianming and Fei Yangnian.
With their strength, shadowing someone in the mortal world was child's play. Even a master like Qiu Lingshan, at the great perfection of the Heaven Grade, was no exception; it was simply impossible for her to notice.
"Interesting. This place actually holds so many masters at the great perfection of the Heaven Grade. It seems there is more to this Qiu Lingshan than meets the eye—no wonder she hesitated to refuse my invitation." Xue Jianming stroked his chin with keen interest.
The great perfection of the Heaven Grade was the very peak of a mortal-world cultivator's power, and here a whole crowd of them had gathered in one house—in the mortal world, they were all but invincible.
"Senior Brother Xue, shall we go in?" Fei Yangnian asked.
"Go in? And do what—seize them on the spot? We're here to recruit disciples, not to kidnap people. Use your head!" Xue Jianming shot him a glance and said mildly, "A few of those inside look to have quite decent aptitude. Make a note of them for now; next time we'll simply name them and demand they come with us."
"Quite right, quite right. Senior Brother Xue is brilliant as ever. With you personally taking charge, the disciples recruited this time will surely be far superior to those of other sects—the sect master is certain to record a great merit for you, Senior Brother Xue." Fei Yangnian hastened to flatter him.
A trace of smugness crept onto Xue Jianming's face. What he was doing was not merely for the sake of merit; more importantly, once these disciples were brought back, they would naturally belong to his own faction. For an ambitious man like him, the benefits went without saying.
"Enough. Time we got down to business. The Mystery Bureau alone won't be able to find that primordial-spirit cultivator—we'll need to put the Tai Gu Alliance's people to work as well." Xue Jianming promptly led Fei Yangnian away, silent and unseen.
Inside the villa, Qiu Lingshan and the others remained wholly unaware of any of this. After hearing her account in full, the whole group fell into silence, their hearts uneasy.
"So all these people are Way cultivators. That could prove somewhat tricky," Wu Chengtian said with a frown.
"Indeed. A Tai Gu Alliance appearing out of nowhere, and a different breed entirely from Yunjie Island—these people are simply not on our level. With the strength we have, I'm afraid we can't contend with them," Yu Bing said gravely.
Everyone nodded in agreement. They were all masters at the great perfection of the Heaven Grade, and many of them had until now felt rather like invincible loners at the top. But the situation was now utterly different: to say nothing of the Tai Gu Alliance as a whole, Xue Jianming alone was more than they could handle.