Chapter 2240 (Raw 2347): Wu Meng Trapped
Imperial capital Yan City:
Wu Meng, who wore the Death God Mask, followed Xiao Chen’s instructions. After exiting, he shadowed Su Ye around the Misty Rain Pavilion.
As Xiao Chen expected, Su Ye remained in the Misty Rain Pavilion for only seven minutes or so before leaving.
Su Ye wrapped herself in a velvet fur coat and wore a veil. Then, she withdrew her aura and hid her cultivation, appearing very cautious. The Misty Rain Twin Demons, two 3-Vein Sovereign Emperors, followed close behind her while remaining hidden.
“Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!”
Many strands of seemingly weak Soul Energy swept by Wu Meng. He knew that the three were checking for tails.
Even so, the Misty Rain Twin Demons still did not feel assured. They each took out a treasure—a bronze mirror and a black crystal ball—to check again.
Wu Meng, who was hidden behind the three, felt nervous. He did not know if the Death God Mask would still be effective.
Flickering spots of lights appeared in the black crystal ball. After a while, one old man said, “Young Miss, no one is following us.”
The other old man, who controlled the bronze mirror, also put down his treasure and said, “No one is following us.”
Su Ye nodded slightly and set off.
The streets of Yan City at night were as bustling as they were during the day. A woman dressed up like Su Ye was not unusual; she appeared unremarkable amid the crowd.
“Where is she going? To think that she is behaving so cautiously.”
Wu Meng felt suspicious. At the same time, he felt eager to try. He smiled under the mask.
He might gain a great harvest on this trip.
Wearing the Death God Mask, Wu Meng weaved through the crowd while lurking in the shadows. It was like he merged with the darkness.
Perhaps Su Ye purposely took a roundabout route, or perhaps Yan City was really massive, but she walked for four hours.
Su Ye’s group of three finally entered a tightly guarded courtyard. Sovereign Personages stood guard at the entrance.
Teams of more than one hundred Sovereign Personages patrolled the interior. Furthermore, there was even a 3-Vein Sovereign Emperor seated cross-legged overseeing the place from the roof.
There definitely were other Sovereign Emperor experts hidden, maintaining the formations and restrictions.
The entire place was very tightly guarded.
Not even a fly could fly in, not to mention a person. Wu Meng frowned heavily as he stood outside.
He hesitated and did not move. As he watched, black horse carriages occasionally arrived, and people entered.
“I have to think of a way to enter,” Wu Meng said to himself. Clearly, Su Ye was meeting guests inside. She might even be discussing how to deal with Xiao Chen.
If Wu Meng could obtain this information and tell Xiao Chen about it beforehand, Xiao Chen could grasp the initiative, able to advance or retreat easily.
I’ll risk it!
Wu Meng’s figure flashed, his dark figure merging into the dark night. He found an overlooked area, leaped over, and landed silently in the courtyard.
The instant Wu Meng landed, he quickly stuck to the wall.
“Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!”
As Wu Meng breathed, he sensed strands of Soul Energy sweep past him. Fortunately, the Death God Mask continued to be effective. The Sovereign Emperor in the courtyard did not discover him.
“Huh?”
The gray-clad old man seated on the roof frowned heavily. He seemed to have sensed a minute fluctuation.
However, the formations and restrictions did not activate.
Naturally, the gray-robed old man would not go to check. Who knew whether it was a diversion to lure him away?
The gray-clad old man sent a voice projection, Third Brother, bring some men and patrol the yard. Nothing can go wrong tonight.
First Brother, is there a need to? There are no fluctuations in the formations and restrictions. Furthermore, who would be so reckless or ignorant to come here?
Cut the crap, just go when I tell you to.
Alright. I’ll go. “You lot, come with me. Quickly. Check the entire courtyard one more time.”
“Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!”
Footsteps rang out in the yard in the next moment. Guards wearing armor that the Heavenly Alliance made rushed out from all directions.
“What happened?”
Someone opened a window in the courtyard’s main pavilion and looked out.
“Nothing’s wrong. It’s probably just the guards doing a routine inspection. The leaders of the top ten merchant associations are meeting. We have to be more careful. Otherwise, we will become a laughing stock if we get wiped out by someone.”
The one who spoke was a luxuriously dressed fatty with large ears and a broad grin.
The expression of Su Ye, who sat in the host’s seat, flickered. She turned her head and said, “You two should go check it out as well.”
The Misty Rain Twin Demons immediately left, obeying the order.
“Pavilion Master Su, aren’t you being too careful?” the fatty asked cheerfully, his beady eyes fixed on Su Ye’s voluptuous figure without any fear.
“Keep looking, and I will dig out your dog eyes!”
Su Ye glared at the fatty, and a short sword landed between the fatty’s legs. The sword pierced through his trousers, firmly stabbed into the chair, and vibrated slightly.
The frightened fatty fell off the chair and landed on the floor, inciting laughter. The others did not feel surprised, finding this normal.
This fatty was the Nine Cauldron Merchant Association’s Association Chief, Wei Dexin, an infamous pervert. Every time he saw Su Ye, he would always end up being taught a lesson.
“Whoosh! Whoosh!”
The Misty Rain Twin Demons returned to Su Ye’s side and reported softly, “Everything’s fine.”
“Ahem! Ahem! Ahem!”
An old man in the room coughed and said, “Alright. Enough messing around. Pavilion Master Su, what do you want to announce by calling everyone here?”
A total of eleven people sat on the top floor of the main pavilion. Aside from Su Ye, the others were all Association Chiefs of the various merchant associations.
Wu Meng, who already arrived outside the room and hid there, felt nervous. It was similar to what he expected.
Indeed, Su Ye came to meet these people.
“There’s nothing much. I believe everyone already knows that the new envoy inspector is here. Furthermore, he killed Duke Yun’s son in my Misty Rain Pavilion. Let’s not mention that matter… He asked me to tell everyone to meet him in the Misty Rain Pavilion before sunset.”
Su Ye honestly conveyed Xiao Chen’s message.
“Haha! This is good. The new envoy inspector is here. We should meet him,” Fatty Wei laughed thoughtlessly. He sat back in his chair, not feeling embarrassed over the earlier matter.
“Humph! If you want to meet him, you all go ahead. In any case, this old man will not be going unless he personally comes to receive me. I heard that this envoy inspector is not even one hundred years old, a young child. If he wants this old man to give him face, it will depend on his sincerity,” a skinny old man said coldly, his stance apparently inflexible.
Wu Meng paid attention to this person’s appearance. This person should be a tricky person to deal with.
Su Ye raised her eyebrows at this old man, the Bountiful Treasure Pavilion Merchant Association’s Association Chief, Liu Zhang. His merchant association was also the strongest of the top ten merchant associations. This courtyard, the hidden experts, and the guards all belonged to him.
Liu Zhang also had a vast network in Yan City. The Noble Clan backing him possessed deep accumulations.
“If Old Liu is not going, then I am not going.”
“I’m not going, either. This snot-nosed kid immediately killed someone upon arrival. Clearly, he is trying to put on a display of power to tell us that he is strict and will forcefully hold on to authority. Humph! With just one Mu Zifeng protecting him, how far can he go?”
After the Bountiful Treasure Pavilion’s Liu Zhang expressed his stance, some of the others chimed in, saying that they would not go.
For some reason, Su Ye did not mention that Master Ku Yun’s disciple followed Xiao Chen.
The remaining people did not express any stance. Some of them looked at Su Ye, and the others looked at a middle-aged man who had been silent all this while.
This middle-aged man was the Golden Essence Merchant Association’s Association Chief. He possessed a very secular name, Jin Bao. This person showed a cold and calm expression throughout.
[TL Note: Jin Bao means golden treasure.]
No one could see any emotional fluctuation on Jin Bao’s face. He appeared calm and serious, not like a merchant association’s Association Chief but more like an unfathomable Martial Dao expert instead.
Among the Heavenly Alliance’s subordinate merchant associations in Yan City, the Golden Essence Merchant Association rivaled the Bountiful Treasure Pavilion Merchant Association.
Jin Bao’s opinion could influence the thoughts of the group. Several people waited for him to speak first.
When Su Ye looked at him, Jin Bao said indifferently, “Seeing and not seeing expresses two different attitudes. I need to return and discuss this with some others first before making a decision. If I go and the envoy inspector asks to see the accounts, it will be problematic. If I do not go and offend the envoy inspector, he might cut off our resources.”
Such an answer was pointless.
This disappointed several people. The Bountiful Treasure Pavilion Merchant Association’s Association Chief, Liu Zhang, snorted coldly with some disdain.
Jin Bao smiled faintly and ignored Liu Zhang.
It vaguely felt like these ten merchant associations had two leaders.
“Pavilion Master Su, what do you think?” some people asked, feeling reluctant as they looked at Su Ye.
“Oh, right. Pavilion Master Su, you have been fulfilling the duties of the envoy inspector. Everyone listens to you. If you voice your opinion, everyone will listen.”
“He killed someone in the Misty Rain Pavilion. Clearly, he looks down on Pavilion Master Su!”
“He is completely ignorant. I think he forgot that the previous three envoy inspectors died.”
“Pavilion Master Su, as long as you give the go-ahead, we will help you regain face.”
Su Ye let out soft, pleasant, tinkling laughter. “The envoy inspector represents the orders of the Heavenly Alliance’s headquarters. This little lady barely fulfills the requirement to take on this duty. Now that the new envoy inspector is here, I definitely have to hand over the position. Everyone thinks too highly of this little lady.”
Wu Meng thought to himself, This Su Ye is quite crafty. Her methods do not seem like that of a little lady.
However, I gained a lot of information this time.
I now have a clear understanding of the attitudes and bottom lines of the various Association Chiefs. Xiao Chen will find this information quite useful.
With this, he can clearly judge who he can draw to his side and who he needs to be wary of.
Only that Fatty Wei seems somewhat unfathomable. He keeps smiling. Who knows what is on his mind?
Su Ye looked up and peered through the window. Without her realizing it, the sky had already turned bright.
Fatigue flashed in her face as she said softly, “I’ve already passed on the message. Whether you go or not is up to you. Before the sun sets, the Misty Rain Pavilion will welcome everyone.”
After speaking through the night, she had already said everything that needed to be said.
These people had already tested each other out. Everyone already knew whether they would be going or not.
Just as everyone said their goodbyes and prepared to leave, a brilliant light flashed in Jin Bao’s eyes. Then, he said suddenly, “Hang on.”
“What’s wrong?”
Jin Bao said seriously, “I have something very important to tell everyone.”
Su Ye found this strange. She wondered what this Jin Bao wanted to say.
Outside the pavilion, Wu Meng, who pressed close to the wall, felt excited. He perked his ears up and listened.
Everyone felt curious, as well. Jin Bai looked at everyone and smiled. “I want to announce…”
“Boom!”
Suddenly, Jin Bao attacked midway through his words, throwing a palm strike.
Might and pressure rivaling a 3-Vein Sovereign Emperor erupted from him, shaking the surroundings. When he launched the palm strike, the wall crumbled, and a figure cried out miserably, knocked into the air.
“Pu ci!”
Wu Meng vomited a mouthful of blood. When he saw the sky, his expression changed drastically.
The clouds had scattered, and morning sunlight shone down.
The sky was already bright. To think that he had not left yet. The effects of the Death God Mask were significantly weaker during the day compared to at night.
Damn it! I got careless. That Jin Bao discovered my existence when the sky turned bright.
Then, he purposely pretended to say something important, resulting in me getting careless and letting him severely injure me.
“Whoosh!”
The formations started up, and the many restrictions activated. The Sovereign Emperor experts in the yard opened their eyes simultaneously, locking their gazes on Wu Meng.
An inescapable net instantly trapped him.
The ten Association Chiefs gathered at the hole in the wall, looking at Wu Meng.
Their expressions changed considerably. Did someone hear everything they said last night?
Jin Bao smiled coldly and said, “Association Chief Liu, it looks like your courtyard is not as tightly guarded as you say it is. If you can’t do it, then I’ll host the next time.”
The Bountiful Treasure Pavilion’s Liu Zhang immediately showed an unsightly expression. He said sullenly, “Capture him. I want him alive! Let’s see who is so bold to come and behave so audaciously in this old man’s territory.”
A cold expression immediately flashed on Su Ye’s face as she entered deep thought.