Chapter 145: Pre-Qin Yin-Yang School

By lunchtime, the thirty-some suspects identified in the morning had all been interrogated. The temporary base that the Special Warfare Unit had set up now held twenty-four corrupt cultivators whose cultivation had been crippled. However, compared to the big fish that they had caught, the twenty-four prisoners weren't even worth calling small fry.

Although the number of Illusory Core Realm experts in the cultivation world had increased significantly in the last three years, they were still regarded as top-tier experts, each holding a high position within their respective corrupt cultivator organizations. Hence, the fake Shi An instantly drew the full attention of the Special Investigation Unit.

Soon, the investigators found a yin-yang koi symbol on the sole of his foot, confirming that he belonged to the Yin-Yang Cult. However, his profile was nowhere to be found in the official records of known corrupt cultivators.

He looked like a refined middle-aged man. One couldn't help but wonder how he ended up getting involved with the Yin-Yang Cult.

The initial interrogation was open for over a dozen Daoist masters who had rushed over to observe, but when the man remained silent despite repeated questioning, the Special Investigation Unit quickly asked the Daoist masters to leave. The Illusory Core Realm corrupt cultivator was then taken into a military truck.

Wang Sheng stood by silently, personally observing the Special Warfare Unit's methods for interrogating corrupt cultivators.

Several medical electrodes[1] were placed on the corrupt cultivator's head, and a certain injection was administered into his arm. His eyes quickly became unfocused and dazed.

"Increase the dose. Triple it," Mou Yue instructed.

"Got it."

Wang Sheng didn't say a word. With his arms folded, he simply stood in the corner, watching the Special Warfare Unit members perform a series of procedures on the corrupt cultivator. Soon, the man drifted into a hazy sleep.

Mou Yue, who was beside him, asked softly, "What's your name?"

"My... name is... Wan Linqian..."

"Wan Linqian. Very good. Which organization are you with?"

"Yin and yang give birth to all creation... this body awaits the return of the divine..."

The two young operators controlling the instruments gave each other a thumbs-up, indicating that the subject had entered a responsive state.

Wang Sheng raised an eyebrow and glanced at the discarded disposable syringes in the corner. For a moment, he felt as though Mou Yue exuded a hint of the mistress's aura...

Although the authorities had previously captured several members of the Yin-Yang Cult, they had all been low-tier corrupt cultivators since the Yin-Yang Cult had always operated with extreme caution. Wan Linqian, on the other hand, turned out to be an Illusory Core Realm cultivator and was one of the cult's thirty-six Primal Immortals, who were considered mid-tier leaders. Someone like him, who had contact with the cult's upper ranks, was of exceptional value to the Special Investigation Unit.

With the interrogation progressing smoothly, the amount of intel they had on the Yin-Yang Cult rapidly increased. According to their captive, the Yin-Yang Cult showed great interest in the celestial tablet. After the tournament's rewards were officially announced, they put a detailed plan into action. However, Wan Linqian only knew that other cult members were involved in the operation; he had no idea who they were or what their specific plans were.

Two days ago, on their way to Mount Sanqing, Wan Linqian and three other corrupt cultivators intercepted a group of over ten monks from Shi An's temple. Quietly and without leaving a trace, they replaced the real Shi An with Wan Linqian, whose physique most closely resembled his.

Wan Linqian's mission was to lie low and await further instructions. The other three corrupt cultivators only helped Wan Linqian disguise himself and dispose of the real Shi An's corpse; they did not come to Mount Sanqing.

That was all the information available regarding the Yin-Yang Cult's operation. Although limited, it was enough to confirm that they had taken the bait.

Wan Linqian's next confession was the real bombshell.

To deal with the Yin-Yang Cult, one had to first understand its internal structure. According to him, the real name of the Yin-Yang Cult was Yin-Yang All-Creation Sect. It was led by two sect masters, one representing yin and the other yang.

A sect with two sect masters was certainly rare.

The yang sect master was extremely mysterious and had never shown himself, while the yin sect master always donned a black half-mask. He seemed to be a man in his forties or fifties and spoke with a distinct regional accent.

Beneath the two sect masters were nine elders, divided into the "Four Symbols" and the "Five Elements."

The Four Symbols were responsible for external operations and were the strongest within the sect, second only to the two sect masters. Meanwhile, the elders of the Five Elements handled internal affairs within the Yin-Yang All-Creation Sect. They specialized in refining

Gu

poison, brainwashing cultivators, promoting the cult's doctrines, solidifying loyalty, and maintaining sect unity.

Below the nine elders were the Eighteen Yin-Yang Envoys, whom Wan Linqian had only heard of. The envoys answered solely to the sect masters and functioned much like an internal enforcement squad. They were said to be ruthless and fearsome individuals.

Beneath them were the thirty-six Primal Immortals and the seventy-two Corrupt Yin-Yang Gods. Most of the Corrupt Gods were powerful individuals whom the Yin-Yang All-Creation Sect had recruited in recent years. Some were guest elders, while others had formally joined and received the sect's "precepts."

The role of Primal Immortals was similar to that of hall masters or branch leaders. They commanded a small portion of the sect's power. To become one, a cultivator not only needed sufficient cultivation but also unwavering loyalty to the sect. They also had to have a certain degree of personal capability.

That was why even though Wan Linqian's mind was clouded, he would still passionately shout slogans like, "All creations are born of yin and yang, and the Yin-Yang All-Creation Sect commands the principles behind everything in this world!

"The Yin-Yang Sect is the true inheritor of the Immortal Dao! Yin and yang manifest the divine! Unlike heaven and earth, the Great Dao is formless, and the Yin-Yang Sect is its embodiment!

"The Daoist sects are nothing more than thieves of the Dao! The Yin-Yang Sect will soon dominate the entire cultivation world again!"

It all sounded utterly fanatical.

If it were ordinary people being brainwashed, that would be nothing unusual. After all, even good old Newton had been a theologian. However, for cultivators who pursued the Great Dao to be brainwashed... the Yin-Yang All-Creation Sect truly seemed terrifying.

"We've clearly underestimated the Yin-Yang Cult," Mou Yue murmured softly. She ordered the interrogation to continue and then contacted the captain.

Someone came forward and gave Wan Linqian another injection. The corrupt cultivator quickly became responsive once more.

Wang Sheng stepped forward. "Who was responsible for the attempted theft of the Wudang Mountains' texts?"

"Elder Vermilion Bird handled that... I only heard about it. We're searching for the secret yin-yang manuals... that the Daoist sects have stolen."

Having gotten his answer, Wang Sheng stepped back and continued observing. The Special Investigation Unit pressed on with the interrogation, determined to extract every last piece of information they could from him.

Wan Linqian's next confession made even Wang Sheng's Dao Heart fluctuate violently.

Primal Immortals were qualified to access most of the Yin-Yang All-Creation Sect's secrets. Moreover, they were required to learn the sect's history.

According to what Wan Linqian had studied, the Yin-Yang All-Creation Sect was a continuation of the Yin-Yang School from the pre-Qin era. It had once claimed to stand on equal footing with the Daoist sects, with profound research into the Dao of Yin and Yang. At one point, it even ranked among the top three sects in the Immortal Dao.

Around 1800 years ago, the Yin-Yang All-Creation Sect brought chaos to the world, forcing the righteous cultivators of the time to take it down. Their sect was destroyed, and nearly every member of the sect was killed or wounded. Those who managed to survive fled deep into the Eastern Sea—to the ancient land of Yingzhou.

There, they operated in secret for several centuries and regained some momentum. They originally intended to build their strength and return to the Central Plains[2], but the Daoist sects once again suppressed them.

Wang Sheng estimated that the second suppression of the Yin-Yang All-Creation Sect coincided exactly with the time when the major cultivators of the Daoist sects ascended together.

Most likely, the senior figures of the Daoist sects a thousand years ago wanted to eliminate any lingering threats before their ascension and headed to the East to launch a decisive battle. It resulted in the original copy of the Yin-Yang Secret Scroll, the sect's core text, vanishing without a trace. Nevertheless, their tenacious sect managed to survive.

They hid in the East for several more centuries and then returned to the Central Plains during the Ming era to develop once again in secret. However, the severance of primal qi made cultivation impossible, preventing their power from growing.

Later, as the Eastern Lands rose in modern times, the Yin-Yang All-Creation Sect shifted part of its focus there and covertly gained control over many resources. Finally, the primal qi of heaven and earth returned, and the sect made a full comeback.

However, since the Daoist sects had nearly wiped them out twice, they no longer stirred up empty momentum. For the past five or six years, they had been silently accumulating strength, recruiting corrupt cultivators in the Hua Republic, and relying on the 'nourishment' drawn from ancient Yingzhou to rapidly grow into a prehistoric behemoth.

Previously, Wang Sheng had thought that the Yin-Yang Cult—no, the Yin-Yang All-Creation Sect had only been hiding for five or six years and had likely built up considerable power. He never expected that they had endured in silence for over a thousand years.

They carried the legacy of the pre-Qin Yin-Yang School and had been operating nonstop in ancient Yingzhou. Such a monstrous existence was not something a low-level sword cultivator who hadn't even reached the Illusory Core Realm could confront alone. To wipe out the Yin-Yang All-Creation Sect, it would take the combined efforts of the Hua Republic's authorities and the righteous forces of the cultivation world.

Currently, the sect was still in hiding. If they were to begin causing trouble in the future, it was impossible to predict how much disaster they would bring.

Fortunately, the investigation unit had decided to act proactively and lured them out. It was also a stroke of luck that Wan Linqian had shown a small flaw while eating. Having long stopped consuming food, he was simply unaccustomed to eating again, which Wang Sheng happened to notice.

***

Since the preliminaries of the Immortal Dao Conference were still ongoing, Wang Sheng couldn't find the opportunity to tell his master about their findings. It wasn't until the evening that he finally got to talk to his master in a bedroom of the Daoist temple.

It had been quite a long day. Nevertheless, Qing Yanzi took the time to lay down a soundproofing array around them before Wang Sheng slowly recounted the incident.

"Master, the Yin-Yang All-Creation Sect will become a great calamity—"

"Hold on." Qing Yanzi frowned deeply. "You just said they have been searching for a lost sect text. What is it called?"

"The Yin-Yang Secret Scroll... I think that was the name?"

Qing Yanzi's eyelids twitched, and he began to look hesitant. Wang Sheng got a bad feeling from his master's reaction.

His master reached into his robes and pulled out a Crane-Spirit Treasure Pouch. He dumped its contents out, rummaged through them for a bit, and finally fished out a palm-sized iron book.

He lowered his head and started going through it. The pages were thin metal sheets that were densely covered in tiny, clearly legible characters.

As he went through the book, his expression grew increasingly serious. After a few minutes, he threw the iron book aside, and his mouth twitched uncontrollably.

"This is trouble... Little Sheng, go call your senior sister over."

Wang Sheng felt his mouth go dry. In a hushed tone, he asked, "Master, where did you get that?"

"An elder from the Zhongnan Mountains gave it to me on his deathbed." Qing Yanzi sighed. "Don't worry, it's nothing serious. Worst case, I'll just go talk some nonsense to the various Daoist heritages and we'll hit them with their third extermination."

1. The raw here says "rings of science," but in reality, it's talking about medical electrodes, which are used to detect electrical signals from muscles, heart, skin, etc. ☜

2. Commonly refers to the part of the North China Plain that surrounded the lower and middle reaches of the Yellow River, centered on the region between Luoyang(洛阳) and Kaifeng(开封). ☜