Chapter 86: An Unexpected Key Figure

Shi Qianzhang had called Wang Sheng from an intersection near the hospital. By the time he found the ward, it was already a little past 11:30 PM.

Longhu Mountains' once high-spirited prodigy, who had shone brightly at the Mount Mao exchange meeting, now reeked of alcohol. Though he had the air of a disheartened young man, he grinned the moment he saw Wang Sheng.

"What happened to you, Brother Sheng? Did you break your leg? Is it serious? Does it hurt?"

Wang Sheng calmly replied, "I was practicing a move called Celestial Soaring Strike and ended up breaking my leg. That's not important. What about you? Who's after you?"

Shi Qianzhang sighed deeply. "Probably the Fire Sage's people."

Wang Sheng was momentarily stunned. "You got targeted?"

"I'm not sure either. I feel like someone has been watching me." Shi Qianzhang frowned as he looked at Wang Sheng's cast. "How about I go stir up some trouble and let the police catch me? Brother Sheng, you can't fight in that state..."

Bulldozer silently pulled out a pair of handcuffs.

Shi Qianzhang immediately shrank back and forced a smile. "Just kidding, just kidding. Maybe I'm just paranoid... Actually, I have something on my mind that I don't have anyone to talk to. When I heard you were in the hospital, I came over to find you."

Wang Sheng's mouth twitched.

Shouldn't the disciples of the Longhu Mountains be out hunting the Fire Sage right now? Why is this guy...

He stared at Shi Qianzhang's neck for a moment.

"What is it, Brother Sheng?"

"I'm checking if you've been impersonated by someone else."

Shi Qianzhang rolled his eyes, then breathed out slowly. "I really do have something weighing on me, and I can't make up my mind. Brother Sheng, you know I've always admired you, like how Lord Wei admired Chief Chen, how Duan Yu looked up to Qiao Feng, how Guo Jing respected the Seven Freaks of the South..."

Mou Yue quietly added, "All those people died pretty miserably."

"Get to the point," Wang Sheng firmly instructed. "If it's nothing serious, go help your sect catch traitors."

"

Haaa...

That's exactly what's bothering me."

Shi Qianzhang sighed again, sat down on the edge of the bed, and stared blankly. Then, to everyone's surprise, two tears fell from his eyes. Even Wang Sheng was a little taken aback.

"Why's he crying?" Bulldozer muttered.

"What's wrong? Did you get catfished or ghosted?" Mou Yue asked softly.

"I'm not crying. Who's crying?" Shi Qianzhang wiped his face, then laughed. "Brother Sheng isn't that fairy-like senior sister of his. Anyway, Brother Sheng, I swear I only admire your senior sister, nothing else. You believe me, right?"

He then sighed deeply again, looking dejected.

"If Liu Yunzhi saw this, he'd probably call you 'Shi Daiyu,'" Wang Sheng remarked.

Shi Qianzhang immediately perked up and then looked at Wang Sheng in exasperation.

"Brother Sheng, can't you comfort me properly? The torment I'm feeling right now... Why does no one in this world understand me?"

Mou Yue lightly commented, "Only when you first try to understand others will others understand you, Daoist Master Shi."

Shi Qianzhang turned to Mou Yue. "Who even are you, Sister? Can you not ruin my moment?"

Mou Yue simply smiled and nodded slightly before stepping aside. Though they had met a few times at the investigation unit's headquarters, Shi Qianzhang seemed to have completely forgotten about her.

"What exactly happened?" Wang Sheng pondered for a moment. He then skeptically remarked, "When Guo Qianxing tried to steal the third volume of the Celestial Master Secret Scroll, he injured a disciple. Was that you?"

Shi Qianzhang immediately covered his face and sobbed. "How did you even guess that? I've lost all dignity!"

Seemingly coming to a realization, Mou Yue deliberately repeated, "The Fire Sage tried to steal the book and injured a disciple... Among the third-generation disciples of the Longhu Mountains, only a handful have access to the full Celestial Master Secret Scroll. So you're one of them, Daoist Master Shi!"

"I...

Haaaa!

"

Shi Qianzhang repeatedly sighed deeply and looked at Wang Sheng. After a few moments, he finally confessed what had been tormenting him.

"I haven't told anyone else about this for the past few days, Brother Sheng, but since I see you as my big brother, I feel like I can tell you about it. Besides, you're stuck in bed, so it's not like you can do anything else anyway..."

Wang Sheng was rendered speechless.

Shi Qianzhang hadn't confessed yet, but Wang Sheng was already at a loss for where to start roasting him.

"Qianxing was my best friend. We joined the sect around the same time, but he became a disciple first. When I was still running errands for my great-uncle, Qianxing took care of me in every way. At one point, I even suspected he had feelings for me. I didn't dare sleep with my back facing him."

Mou Yue slapped her forehead.

"After I officially became a disciple, we would sneak out to surf the internet, play games as a duo, sneak into bathhouses without paying, and flirt with our senior and junior sisters. We brought so much joy to the Longhu Mountains!"

Bulldozer didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

Shi Qianzhang sighed deeply again before adding, "I think I know why he changed. The world suddenly became a place where cultivation was possible overnight. I was chosen as a core disciple, while he remained stuck in the outer sect. That must have bothered him.

"I didn't want to lose my closest brother, so I did everything I could to stay by his side. I even secretly passed him a few secret techniques that only core disciples were allowed to learn. But unexpectedly, he only drifted further away from me.

"One time, he left the mountain for a few days. When he returned, he locked himself in his room for half a month. I went to ask him what had happened, but he..." Shi Qianzhang suddenly wailed. "He ambushed and knocked me out cold! He...! Brother Sheng!"

Wang Sheng's heart skipped a beat. His gaze instinctively shifted toward a critical spot on Shi Qianzhang's lower body.

Mou Yue sighed and shook her head, sympathizing with the once-proud Longhu disciple.

Unlike her, Bulldozer was much more interested. His eyes lit up as he eagerly pressed for details. "And then? Tell us every detail! What did he do to you?"

Completely oblivious to Bulldozer's ambiguity, Shi Qianzhang sorrowfully continued, "He took me to the back mountain and locked me inside a cave. He tortured me for five whole days and nights using the Bone-Stripping Talisman and the Tendon-Stretching Talisman, demanding that I recite the third volume of the Celestial Master Secret Scroll.

"I may be foul-mouthed sometimes, but I'm not spineless! My master passed down Daoist arts to me, and my sect gave me a place to cultivate. Hence, to me, the rules of our Daoist heritage are absolute. Even if Qianxing had tortured me to death, I wouldn't have uttered a single word.

"In the end, he gave up. He knelt before me, kowtowed[1] a few times, and then left without looking back. I almost starved to death in that cave.

"I don't know why he was so fixated on the third volume. He never told me. I know he must have had his reasons, but I stand firmly as a disciple of the Longhu Mountains in this matter."

"You did the right thing. There's nothing to feel guilty about," Wang Sheng reassured.

Shi Qianzhang scoffed. "I don't regret that decision."

"Then what are you struggling with?" Wang Sheng spread his hands. "You did nothing wrong. You endured five days and nights of torture without betraying the Daoist heritage's secret. Your sect should be rewarding you."

Shi Qianzhang wiped his face and stared up at the faint patterns on the ceiling. "You're right. After that incident, my position in the sect improved, while Qianxing was branded a traitor and disappeared without a trace. However, not long after we returned from the Mount Mao exchange meeting, I got a call from Qianxing. Naturally, I was shocked.

"I tried to persuade him to come back and confess. I even told him that if our master punished him, I would share the punishment with him, but Qianxing still refused. He said he had something big to do. Afterward, he told me that he was running out of time and asked for my help. He didn't know whether what he was doing was right or wrong, but he felt he had to do it."

"How did he want you to help him?" Mou Yue asked.

Shi Qianzhang hesitated before replying, "If the sect or the Daoist community started tracking him, he wanted me to stay out of it. I... Well, you know me, Brother Sheng. I value loyalty, so I agreed."

Wang Sheng grew serious as he studied Shi Qianzhang. "Are you saying... you can find the Fire Sage?"

"Last year, I developed a tracking talisman. As long as the user remembers the aura of the person they're searching for, the talisman will be able to locate them. Qianxing and I were practically inseparable—I can find him in an instant. The talisman is in my pocket right now. I just don't know whether I should use it or not."

Shi Qianzhang's expression was full of bitterness. He didn't even have the energy to joke anymore.

"What should I do, Brother Sheng? I'll listen to you. If I help my master and the sect capture Qianxing, they will definitely kill him. If I do nothing, he'll cause a catastrophe tonight that will kill who knows how many. I never thought he would stir up something this big... Brother Sheng, please just tell me what to do. No matter what it is, I'll be grateful."

Shi Qianzhang stood up and gave Wang Sheng a formal Daoist bow. His head was lowered, and his face was filled with bleakness.

Wang Sheng glanced at the clock. It was already 11:45 PM.

Mou Yue, who had been frozen in thought, suddenly snapped back to reality. Clutching her phone, she bolted out of the room like the wind.

Shi Qianzhang turned to Wang Sheng. "Who is she? Why is she running?"

"Special Investigation Unit," Wang Sheng said calmly.

Shi Qianzhang froze for a second before leaping to his feet. He swiftly vaulted over the hospital bed and sprinted toward the window. However, before he could escape, a large black-bear-like figure barreled into him, slamming him against the wall and forcibly pinning him down.

"Brother Sheng! Why the hell is the government here?! Damn it, I ran straight into a trap!" Shi Qianzhang yelled in frustration.

His true essence surged and shook off Bulldozer's grip. With a powerful kick, he then sent the burly man flying. Just as he was about to flee, he heard Wang Sheng calmly call out from behind, freezing him in place as if his feet had been nailed to the ground.

"There's no more time. Running away won't solve anything. I know you're torn between your sect and your senior brother, but a true man stands firm in the face of adversity. If he succeeds, he is called brave. If he fails, he is nothing more than a fool. Regardless, if you hesitate any longer, it will be too late to fix anything."

"Brother Sheng... I..." Shi Qianzhang stared at his trembling hands. His divided mind gradually became resolute.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a crumpled yellow talisman. Right after, he bit his finger and dripped three drops of blood onto it. The talisman glowed and transformed into a spiritual bird, which Shi Qianzhang caught with his hands.

"I'll listen to you, Brother Sheng! I'll find Qianxing and stop him before he takes things too far!"

Wang Sheng sighed inwardly. However, just as he was about to speak, his attention warily snapped to the doorway.

A sharp scream rang out from outside. Mou Yue staggered backward into the room.

A thin cut marred her cheek, and the phone in her hand had been sliced clean in half. The cut was unnervingly smooth—far beyond the capability of any ordinary blade.

1. To kneel with one's forehead to the ground in respect, worship, or apology. ☜