Chapter 127
Xue Mushi had once drawn it for Yu Sui to see. When Yu Sui now saw the true appearance of the Floating Pagoda fragment, she was certain it wasn't that she couldn't appreciate Xue Mushi's artistic skills, but rather that it was Xue Mushi's own problem.
What lay on Gu Qian's table was a circular object about the size of an adult's bracelet. The circular surface was about the width of a thumbnail, slightly larger than a thumbnail, with a small gap, shaped like a jade arc, but much larger than ordinary jade arcs.
Yu Sui looked carefully and also discovered why Xue Mushi had such difficulty drawing the fragment's appearance.
Though shaped like a jade arc, it was all connected by something that was either jade or stone. They had broken into irregular shapes, with some surfaces still covered with bits of green moss, emanating a gentle, glowing green light throughout.
Yu Sui hadn't seen the moment Gu Qian obtained the fragment.
Looking at the fragment's appearance now, she suspected Gu Qian had dug the fragment out piece by piece from somewhere and assembled it.
The Floating Pagoda fragment appeared thin as paper, visually seeming weightless. In that dim green light, the cracked circular surface was carved with indecipherable runes.
That should be the Heavenly Character Text that Gao Tianhao had been looking for.
Yu Sui looked carefully for quite a while. It was indeed writing she had never seen before and couldn't decode.
Gu Qian wasn't seeing the Floating Pagoda fragment for the first time. He sat by the table, looking down in contemplative silence.
Ji Meng and Huo Xiao also didn't seem to be seeing it for the first time.
Ji Meng looked at the fragment on the table and muttered to himself: "After all this busy work, we finally have some results."
But Gu Qian frowned without speaking.
Huo Xiao asked him: "Your expression doesn't look too good. Is there some problem?"
"It went too smoothly, which makes me uneasy instead." Gu Qian said.
Huo Xiao reached out to pat his shoulder: "There were many difficult things before. When things reach an extreme, they reverse. Don't worry too much."
Gu Qian moved his neck. "I hope so."
Ji Meng said solemnly: "You must keep it safe."
"Who else could come in and steal it?" Gu Qian raised an eyebrow looking over.
Ji Meng said: "It's too important, always making one feel anxious. Why don't you keep it on your person? If we leave it in the dormitory when we're all away, I'll definitely keep worrying about it."
Yu Sui glanced at Ji Meng. His sense of precaution was quite high.
Given Ji Meng's timid and cautious nature, he'd probably want to send the Floating Pagoda fragment out of Taiyi Academy right now and transport it to Qingyang Imperial Capital for the Saints and Thirteenth Realm masters there to safeguard.
Gu Qian stared at Ji Meng and said irritably: "You're thinking even more than I am."
Huo Xiao waved his hand and walked outside. "You two should both rest."
After Ji Meng talked with Gu Qian for a while, he left. Only Gu Qian remained in the room, staring at the Floating Pagoda fragment on the table, lost in thought.
A moment later, Gu Qian took out his Wind-Listening Ruler to send a message to Xun Zhiya, telling her to pay attention to her wounds and to tell him if she felt uncomfortable.
Yu Sui didn't watch these things. She was staring at the Floating Pagoda fragment, staying up all night.
……
The next day when Yu Sui came downstairs, she found Mei Liangyu still sitting there. She stared for a while, then called softly: "Senior Brother."
"Mm?" Mei Liangyu turned his head slightly to look at her.
Yu Sui asked: "Were you here all night?"
Mei Liangyu said: "You don't look like you slept either."
Yu Sui lied: "I did sleep."
Mei Liangyu only gave her a faint glance without exposing her.
After a while, Nian Qiuyan also came downstairs, appearing as if nothing had happened, showing no trace of inner struggle or worry.
After the three returned to the academy together, they separated. Yu Sui returned to her own dormitory and collapsed into bed to sleep.
Gu Qian learned about what happened in the Outer City last night and came to find her. Yu Sui groggily got up to open the door. After hearing Gu Qian talk for a while and seeing her tired appearance, Gu Qian didn't stay long and told her to go back to sleep.
Not long after he left, Sheng Hao also came, having also heard about last night's Outer City incident.
After Yu Sui opened the door, Sheng Hao examined her condition and asked if she was injured. After Yu Sui answered a few sentences, Sheng Hao told her to continue resting and went to find Blackbeard to ask about the specific situation.
After he left, Yu Sui sat on the bed in a daze for a while, finally frowning and lying back down.
Since nearly dying once at Mechanism Island, Yu Sui still had a trace of uncertainty about her own existence. But whenever she fell into deep sleep, her severely traumatized self-consciousness would sink into quiet slumber and begin to heal.
She attributed this to the drawbacks of cultivating Ghost Way School techniques. Physical injuries could recover quickly, but matters involving spiritual consciousness required very long periods of recuperation.
Yu Sui woke up in the afternoon during you hour. After washing and changing clothes, she had just finished tidying up when she saw a message from Zhongli Que saying she had received the gift Yu Sui sent.
"Sui Sui, how do I use this?" Zhongli Que was quite puzzled over there.
Yu Sui first sent a message telling her how to use it. After Zhongli Que put the Fusang Dewdrop in her ear, Yu Sui sent a voice transmission asking: "Can you hear my voice?"
Zhongli Que's eyes widened with curiosity. She instinctively looked around the room, finally looking down at the Wind-Listening Ruler in her hand, saying quietly: "I can hear you. Others can't hear, right?"
"They can't hear. You can go out and try. Go in front of Second Brother and see if he can notice." Yu Sui said.
Zhongli Que said distressedly: "I don't know why, but Second Brother Su seems somewhat distant toward me lately."
Yu Sui burst out laughing: "How dare he be distant toward you? Are you misunderstanding something?"
Zhongli Que said while getting up and walking outside: "I've gone to the Military School Heavy Platform to find him several times, but never saw him."
As soon as she opened the door, the snow flying squirrel landed in her arms, clinging to her clothing. Zhongli Que reached out to cradle it, rubbing its fluffy little head.
"I've thought for many days but can't figure out what went wrong. If he won't see me, I don't know how to resolve it."
Yu Sui said: "Is Second Brother not at the Military School Heavy Platform, or is he executing a classified mission, so it's inconvenient to meet with you?"
Zhongli Que said dejectedly: "Maybe so. He's never ignored me for this long before."
After thinking, she added: "Three days. He's ignored me for three days."
Yu Sui sighed inwardly. It's only been three days and you can't stand it!
"Then don't go looking for Second Brother. Go try with Guard Li and the others." Yu Sui changed the subject. "Second Brother must be busy with tasks, so it's inconvenient to meet these few days. When he's free later, he'll personally apologize to you."
"It's not serious enough for an apology." Zhongli Que pursed her lips lightly. After reconsidering, my brother is Zhongli Shan, not Su Feng. Su Feng really doesn't need to be as accommodating as a brother would be, and she immediately felt relieved.
The Military School Heavy Platform had many matters. Second Brother Su must be too busy.
Zhongli Que wandered around the General's Manor, chatting with the Thirteenth Realm guards in the manor for a while. Yu Sui's voice came through the Fusang Dewdrop, but Guard Li and the others were completely unaware.
After this circuit, Zhongli Que found it both novel and exciting.
She slipped out of the manor and wandered around outside, chatting with Yu Sui and listening to her voice after a long while.
"Is the imperial capital still investigating Lan poison?" Yu Sui asked, returning to her bedside.
Zhongli Que walked along the street with the General's Manor guards following at a moderate distance behind her.
She said: "They're still investigating. Every night, the imperial capital's four cardinal roads and carriage ways are blocked by Golden Armor Army inspections."
Yu Sui asked: "Haven't they found anything?"
Zhongli Que unconsciously shook her head: "Precisely because they haven't found anything, the imperial capital has been so calm recently."
Yu Sui: "Hasn't Chu Jin come looking for you lately?"
"Her contact with the Zhongli family has decreased. She only occasionally visits Sister A Xu, and even reduced contact with my mother. My mother has complained about this." Zhongli Que sighed. "My mother really likes her."
Yu Sui actually knew Chu Jin's movements. Old Yan's side had been watching. Chu Jin spent all day at the medical clinic seeing patients, seeming to make no other moves.
There was no movement from Lady Su's side either, as if she didn't care about anything.
Counting the time, Lady Su should have also received that letter from Gu Qian.
Yu Sui lay on the bed, rolling her dark eyes.
Chu Jin wanted to hide her identity and act, while Lady Su wanted to pretend she knew nothing.
In the evening, Yu Sui didn't go out, just stayed in the dormitory chatting with Zhongli Que, occasionally checking the time. When knocking came from outside, Yu Sui knew who it was and slowly got up to open the door.
Standing at the door was Wei Ren.
Yu Sui looked at him: "If I remember correctly, I should have said to contact me through Wind-Listening Ruler if there's anything, and try not to meet with me in person."
This wasn't the first time Zhongli Que heard Yu Sui speak to people in this tone, so she couldn't help but listen quietly.
Wei Ren nodded: "Alright then."
He turned to leave.
Yu Sui pinched the bridge of her nose, released her grip on the door, and asked: "What's the matter?"
Only then could Wei Ren enter the room to tell her about tonight's operation. Yu Sui informed him about bribing the instructors, telling him to confidently go climb the building.
"Xue Mushi got me Instant Shadow Talismans from the Taoist School, so I won't be easily discovered." Wei Ren said. "I want to know if there are any formations in their room I need to avoid."
Yu Sui said: "There aren't any."
Wei Ren asked again: "The fragment's location?"
Yu Sui answered: "I'll tell you after you enter the room."
Wei Ren was startled: "You can see?"
Yu Sui stood at the door, only quietly looking at Wei Ren without answering.
Under her silent gaze, Wei Ren sensed something, raised an eyebrow slightly, silently suppressed all speculation, and only said "I understand" before leaving.
When he reached the door, Yu Sui suddenly asked: "Do you touch Lan poison?"
"Lan poison?" Wei Ren was stunned for a moment. "This stuff can temporarily enhance power for Nine Schools Arts practitioners, but it's addictive. You become useless when you quit. I don't want to touch it."
Yu Sui looked sideways at him: "What about your master's side?"
After Wei Ren thought carefully, he answered: "Now that you mention it, I remember last year Ji Shuyan had me go to Qingyang's Nanjiang to kill a poison-selling Lan corpse. Before that person died, he cursed me with a lot of dirty words. The general meaning was about profit sharing, saying Ji Shuyan was too greedy and didn't give him enough benefits."
He couldn't remember the specifics and shrugged: "Probably there was cooperation to clear the way and protect these Lan corpses."
This was the only time Wei Ren could recall, and only because Ji Shuyan wanted to fully accept him and cultivate him as one of his own people would he let Wei Ren contact such matters.
Yu Sui walked toward the table, her back to Wei Ren, asking softly: "Your organization isn't called Xuan Kui, is it?"
"It's not. Our organization is called Agricultural School Traitors." Wei Ren's first half sentence was said carelessly, his gaze following her movement. "I've heard of Xuan Kui. It's barely a Lan corpse organization, but not only deals in Lan corpses."
"Xuan Kui's members are spread throughout the Six Kingdoms and have existed for a long time. All Six Kingdoms have special Lan Control Departments for searching and imprisoning Lan poison. Every year the Lan Control Departments arrest Xuan Kui members, but they can never catch them all."
Wei Ren asked her: "Why are you suddenly asking about Lan poison?"
Yu Sui didn't hide it from him: "Because new enemies are Lan corpses from Xuan Kui."
Wei Ren asked: "Who?"
Yu Sui sat down by the table, supporting her head with one hand as she looked at him: "Guess."
Wei Ren said: "Mei Liangyu?"
Yu Sui: "..."
Wei Ren said: "He might not traffic Lan poison, but he could definitely manufacture it."
Yu Sui said calmly: "Senior Brother should thank you for praising his abilities."
Wei Ren said suspiciously: "You won't tell him, will you?"
"Hurry up and leave." Yu Sui said. "The instructors are coming."
Only then did Wei Ren leave.
Zhongli Que had listened to the entire conversation. After Wei Ren left, she spoke: "Is Chu Jin from Xuan Kui?"
"Most likely." Yu Sui said. "The Lan poison traded in Qingyang Kingdom might also come from Taiyi Academy."
"Taiyi Academy?" Zhongli Que was so surprised she tightened her grip on the snow flying squirrel, startling it into poking its head out. "Aren't there many Saints there?"
Yu Sui said: "If Saints are also helping manufacture Lan poison, no one would discover it."
Zhongli Que: "Heavens!"
"This is my guess." Yu Sui added. "I'm looking for evidence."
"Isn't that very dangerous?" Zhongli Que said worriedly. "You must be careful. If it doesn't work out, just don't get involved. Your safety is most important."
"I know." Yu Sui said softly. "I'm a bit more capable than before."
"Of course!" Zhongli Que said seriously. "In my eyes, you've always been the most capable."
Just being able to crack the Communication Array Number Mountains surpassed 90% of people in the world.
"How could that be?" Yu Sui said in bewilderment. "I think you're the most capable one."
After all, she was someone who could learn Military School sword techniques just by watching with her eyes.
The two young women praised each other repeatedly, finally dissolving into irrepressible laughter.
After nightfall, at xu hour, a Thirteenth Realm instructor used stone-jade voice transmission, his voice echoing across the academy sky and reaching every corner: "Tonight we will conduct dormitory inspections. Upon receiving this message, all disciples must immediately return to your dormitories. You have one quarter-hour to prepare."
The instructor's academy-wide voice transmission also meant academy disciples received messages from the Communication Courtyard. After learning the news, they clutched their Wind-Listening Rulers and wailed, immediately using Wind-Riding Techniques to rush back to the dormitories.
Wei Ren went to Xue Mushi's dormitory, standing by his window looking down. The Ghost Armor Sky Spider was also by the window, spitting silk downward.
"Wait, don't spit now. What if we're discovered?" Wei Ren said ominously.
The Ghost Armor Sky Spider swallowed the spider silk back.
Xue Mushi watched with mixed feelings.
Finally he only looked earnestly at Wei Ren and said: "I wish you success."
Wei Ren said: "If you secure the spider silk properly and don't let it and me fall, that would be very successful."
Xue Mushi nodded.
Wei Ren stared intently downward.
Joking aside, who wanted to climb up over 60 floors?
Wouldn't it be faster for him to go down from above?
After Xue Mushi finished preparing, he came to the corridor. Outside, people were already gradually filling up.
He considered who would be better to fight later.
After all, Yu Sui had said to cause some commotion to attract attention, so others wouldn't focus on his own room.
If Wei Ren had any accidents or made sounds that drew attention, it would be troublesome.
Xue Mushi looked left and right. The instructors hadn't come yet, but the corridor was already very noisy. He glimpsed several people who almost started fighting, hesitating inwardly. It seemed he didn't need to actively cause trouble, this floor would definitely break into fights.
Xing Chun and Mei Liangyu rushed toward the dormitory. At the dormitory entrance, they saw a large number of Thirteenth Realm instructors talking among themselves, seemingly still confirming something.
Mei Liangyu looked twice, not knowing if it was his imagination, but the atmosphere felt somewhat eerily tense.
"How so sudden." Xing Chun muttered.
Mei Liangyu said: "Every dormitory inspection is sudden."
The instructor standing at the Wind-Riding Technique passage entrance reminded them: "This area will be sealed soon. Go wait on your own floors. The Dragon Stairs will also stop operating shortly."
Xing Chun quietly asked Mei Liangyu: "Cang Shu and the other guy will be fine, right?"
Mei Liangyu looked down at his Wind-Listening Ruler: "Shi Yuezhen lives right across from him. What problems could there be? A quarter-hour is enough time for them to clean up."
Xing Chun and Mei Liangyu weren't on the same floor, so they parted ways. Mei Liangyu returned to his own dormitory, glanced at Wei Ren's room, no one there.
If the instructors came and he still wasn't present, he could expect point deductions.
After Mei Liangyu hid everything in his room that should be hidden, he leisurely closed the door and came to the corridor.
Kong Yiyi lived across from him.
She came out with the others now, saw Mei Liangyu standing alone by his door, raised an eyebrow, looked at the people around, and asked puzzledly: "Where's Nian Qiuyan?"
Mei Liangyu followed her gaze and looked around. He didn't see Nian Qiuyan, but did see Zhang Xiangyun and Luo Fu standing in the crowd.
Unluckily, they were all on the same floor.
Usually they could avoid each other, with no one seeing anyone, but tonight the academy instructors were inspecting dormitories, bringing them together after a long time.
Zhang Xiangyun met Mei Liangyu's gaze and returned a provocative smile.
Mei Liangyu indifferently looked away, acting as if he hadn't seen.
His Wind-Listening Ruler buzzed. Mei Liangyu looked down and clicked to check. It was a message from Instructor Zhang Yuxuan saying he was also participating in tonight's dormitory inspection.
Zhang Yuxuan explained tonight's situation. As Mei Liangyu read, his brow gradually furrowed.
Many disciples were looking at their Wind-Listening Rulers.
Luo Fu was also looking, and after he and Zhang Xiangyun saw the message, their expressions changed for a moment.
"Shh, the instructors are here."
Someone said this, and the noisy corridor instantly quieted, looking toward the Thirteenth Realm instructors emerging from the Dragon Stairs.
Usually, dormitory inspection instructors came in groups of nine. Tonight, when disciples saw the tenth person emerge from the Dragon Stairs, they couldn't help but freeze, with some playful expressions immediately restraining themselves.
The last woman to emerge from the Dragon Stairs wore a blue dress with a silver outer silk garment, a black Divine Wood Sign hanging at her waist, her face covered with a blue silk veil, revealing only a pair of cold, indifferent black eyes.
Taiyi Academy Technical Arts School Saint, Changsun Zi.
No one had heard that Saints would also come for dormitory inspections.
The black mass of disciples in the corridor muttered inwardly. As soon as Changsun Zi stepped out of the Dragon Stairs, she saw Nian Qiuyan emerging from the Wind-Riding Technique passage on the side.
Seeing Changsun Zi, Nian Qiuyan also froze.
Kong Yiyi, who saw Nian Qiuyan in the crowd, couldn't help cursing inwardly: this fool, caught red-handed by a Saint.
"You're late." Changsun Zi coldly glanced at Nian Qiuyan, her hoarse voice saying, "How many points deducted for not appearing at the dormitory entrance within the specified time?"
Nian Qiuyan said: "Five points."
Changsun Zi looked away, telling another instructor: "Mark it down for him."
Nian Qiuyan slowly followed behind Changsun Zi, looking up toward the crowd ahead.
Just as people were still surprised by the Technical Arts School Saint's appearance, they suddenly heard the clear sound of locks falling, followed by the steady voice of Agricultural School Saint Ou Rushuang echoing throughout the entire dormitory building:
"We received a message from the Communication Courtyard stating that the Silver River Water stolen from Inverted Moon Cave several months ago is currently hidden in some disciple's room in the dormitory. Therefore, we're activating the Dragon Lock. Please cooperate, all disciples. No one is allowed to enter rooms until the truth is clarified."
"Ah?" Some disciple was so shocked they couldn't help crying out.
Only then did Mei Liangyu raise his head from his Wind-Listening Ruler.
Zhang Yuxuan had already told him that tonight wasn't a simple dormitory inspection, but a search for Silver River Water based on received information.
Zhang Xiangyun and Luo Fu, amid the general shock, calmly put away their Wind-Listening Rulers, their gazes unconsciously drifting toward Nian Qiuyan beside Changsun Zi.
Nian Qiuyan wouldn't be stupid enough to expose information about Silver River Water himself, bringing academy searches upon himself.
Then who was the person who leaked information to the academy?
There were probably quite a few Saints coming tonight.
If Nian Qiuyan really hid Silver River Water in his room, being discovered was only a matter of time.
What would he do?
Yu Sui looked with the crowd toward the opened Dragon Stairs, quietly watching instructors emerge. She also wanted to know how many of tonight's visiting Saints were helping Nian Qiuyan.