"Although the Li family has vanished, one person survived because they went to study at the Spirit Sect. I believe the figure behind the Sun family you mentioned is their descendant." Qu Shui carefully voiced his thoughts.
"I understand." Ye Lanshan somewhat regretted agreeing to Mu Ziming's involvement in this matter. She already had enough enemies and didn't want to provoke another Spirit Sect.
"But that person betrayed the Spirit Sect twenty years ago, gathered some remnants of the former dynasty to seek revenge, and ultimately retreated to Fengxi Mountain after being outmatched in兵力. There's been no news of him since. His connection to the Spirit Sect is merely a past chapter; the sect won't help him out of any obligation." Qu Shui was quite certain about this.
"Mm. I brought you here because I have something important to tell you." Ye Lanshan trusted what she had seen, so she decided to retrieve the eavesdropping talisman from the palace tomorrow night. But for now, she couldn't neglect the tasks at hand just because of Mu Ziming's sudden visit.
"Does the master have other matters for me to handle?" Qu Shui hadn't expected Ye Lanshan to have additional tasks for him.
"Nothing major. I just want you to set up a few mist formations in the backyard of this brothel." This backyard was her ideal place for training情报 personnel. Now, her agents weren't just Qing Dai, Chun Hua, Xia Ri, Qiu Yue, Dong Xue, Hong Lian, Cui Zhu, Huang Ju, and You Lan—she was also training others they deemed promising.
Most importantly, all intelligence was recorded in the backyard, so to avoid unnecessary trouble, it was best to set up some protective formations there.
"Yes." Qu Shui went to the backyard, surveyed the terrain, then looked at Ye Lanshan with some hesitation. "Does the master have any mystic stones?"
"Yes, how many do you need?" The formations Ye Lanshan had learned all relied on her own mystic power, and none of the Ye family's formation manuals mentioned using external objects to complete them, so she didn't know he needed three each of the five types: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.
Qu Shui said, "Three each of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth."
"Are you setting up this formation using the power of mystic stones?" Ye Lanshan was quite intrigued by this method. So besides people, mystic stones could also be used to lay formations.
"Yes." Qu Shui had endured a lot of hardship back then to master setting up formations using only external objects.
Before the brothel opened, Ye Lanshan might not have been able to produce these mystic stones, but since its establishment, all kinds of mystic stones and valuable trinkets had been piling up.
The brothel had become a thriving enterprise. It was time to build an inn. An inn was the best place for gathering information, even if most of it was gossip with low accuracy—it could still help filter out real news we didn't know.
"Master, we've been training hard lately. When will you teach us some protective spells?" Xia Ri had just stepped out for some fresh air when she saw Ye Lanshan standing in the backyard, with an indistinct figure beside him doing strange things.
"Close your eyes and let me check your recent cultivation progress." Ye Lanshan placed her hand on Xia Ri's pulse, sending a stream of mystic energy into her body to probe. Though her meridians were still narrow, they were brimming with spiritual energy. All that was needed was to open her Governing and Conception Vessels, and she would immediately advance to the second level of Qi Refining.
"Not bad. Once I help you open your Governing and Conception Vessels, I'll teach you some minor spells." Ye Lanshan smiled with satisfaction.
As expected, the moment she helped open those vessels, Xia Ri instantly advanced to the second level of Qi Refining.
"This is a talisman. The one in my hand is a binding talisman. If you learn it, with your current skill, you can immobilize anyone below the Grand Mystic Master level for at least fifteen minutes." Ye Lanshan produced the simplest binding talisman.
"Really?" Xia Ri's eyes lit up, as if she was thrilled to finally have some means of self-preservation.
"Of course. In the coming days, I'll teach you not only how to make binding talismans but also some sword techniques and how to channel spiritual energy." Ye Lanshan took a wooden sword from her space—a casual creation from her past life that now came in handy.
"Thank you, Master. Xia Ri will go through fire and water for you, even if it means death." Overjoyed, Xia Ri knelt down to express her heartfelt gratitude.
Meanwhile, Qu Shui had finished setting up a simple mist formation. Though it wasn't advanced and had some flaws, ordinary people couldn't break through it.
"The mystic stones are a bit scarce, so this is the best formation I can make. But it's still powerful enough to keep most people out." Qu Shui wiped the sweat from his brow and reported to Ye Lanshan.
"Ah, a ghost!" Xia Ri's sudden scream made Ye Lanshan's ears ring.
"Stop. He's not a ghost. He's one of my people, just like you. Don't be afraid." Ye Lanshan finally couldn't take her screaming anymore.
"Master, he's terrifying. His face has no intact skin, and his voice is hoarse like he's been burned. He looks like a villain through and through. Is he really your subordinate?" Xia Ri's voice still trembled as she looked at his scarred face and listened to his raspy voice.
"Don't worry, he's not a bad person." Ye Lanshan signaled Qu Shui with her eyes to go elsewhere.
It took a while for Xia Ri to calm down. Though she had spent plenty of time in the brothel, her experience was still lacking, which was why Qu Shui's appearance had frightened her.
"Today, the first lesson I'll teach you is this: no matter how shocked or scared you are, never show it on your face. Even if you're anxious, your expression must convey that everything is going according to plan—like you have the upper hand. Only then can you easily unsettle your enemy."
"Yes, Xia Ri understands." Xia Ri knew her reaction earlier had been poor. She silently prayed that the master wouldn't think less of her because of it.
After sending Qu Shui away, Ye Lanshan sighed. "Sigh, it seems I need to teach you some sword techniques first. Let me demonstrate once. Watch carefully." She handed the wooden sword to Xia Ri and took out a dagger from her space.
"Yes." Xia Ri took the wooden sword and focused intently on Ye Lanshan's swordsmanship.
Unconsciously, she became mesmerized. The celestial sword technique had an ethereal, graceful quality, and combined with the cold moonlight and his white robes, he seemed even more like a transcendent immortal.