Chapter 1014: Tearing Away All Pretenses

Meng Jiangchu listened to Li Guanqi’s analysis, a hint of surprise in his eyes. “How can you be sure there are three different people behind all this?”

Li Guanqi said nothing. With a wave of his hand, more than a thousand sprawling Go boards appeared around them, crowding the surrounding thousand zhang.

Li Guanqi’s expression turned grave as he said quietly, “Because… all three of them play differently. If the person behind Cang Lu had been pulling the strings, they would have stopped at nothing to make Gu Yong kill me! As long as I died, they would have achieved their objective. The person behind Lu Wuhen was much more cautious, but whatever they wanted, it definitely wasn’t the Heavenly Intelligence Map in my possession! As for the person behind Gu Yong… this was the first time they made a move.”

Even Meng Jiangchu was deeply shaken by his explanation. After everything that had happened, he too had begun to realize just how much influence Li Guanqi’s enemies wielded.

Their influence surpassed even that of territory lords like Meng Jiangchu. Whether it was Cang Lu or Li Shenzhi, the methods they had used against Li Guanqi were beyond even Meng Jiangchu’s understanding.

Li Guanqi himself had only a vague, inexplicable feeling about it all. But even so, he did not dare let his guard down.

Li Guanqi took a deep breath. “It’s fine. Since they don’t intend to attack me directly, I’ll leave things as they are for now.”

Meng Jiangchu frowned. “Still, you’re saying that the Gu Yong we know is no longer himself?”

Li Guanqi shook his head and replied gravely, “I can’t be sure of that either… He’s different from Cang Lu and Li Shenzhi, but I can tell that Gu Yong isn’t the man he used to be. At the very least, the way he sees certain things has changed completely. He’s no fool. He must know something about my identity, not to mention many other secrets. Yet even knowing all that, he still took the risk of seizing the Heavenly Intelligence Map. The more you think about what might be behind this… the more terrifying it becomes.”

Meng Jiangchu nodded solemnly. “What are you planning to do next?”

Li Guanqi pondered for a moment before replying softly, “I’m not entirely sure either… I might head back and take a look.”

Meng Jiangchu nodded and looked at Li Guanqi. “Do you want me to forge you another sword?”

Li Guanqi held up the withered branch and smiled. “There’s no need for that. This will be enough for my training.”

Meng Jiangchu smiled. “Going into seclusion from time to time is necessary. It lets you settle your mind and immerse yourself in cultivation. There’s nothing wrong with slowing down for a while.”

After Meng Jiangchu left, Li Guanqi remained alone in the void for a long time, lost in thought. He recalled his first meeting with Gu Yong and everything they had been through since then. Even now, it was hard to believe their relationship had deteriorated into open hostility.

By personally visiting Gu Yong at the Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion, Li Guanqi had already made it clear that he was willing to compromise. From the outset, he had never intended the Guanyun Pavilion to become powerful enough to rival the Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion, an organization with thousands of years of roots across the Six Territories.

But in their earlier conversation, Gu Yong had pressed him at every turn. Li Guanqi respected his elders, but if he kept giving ground, the other side would only push further.

Li Guanqi’s gaze shifted, and he vanished into a pitch-black void interlayer. He took out a blank jade slip and poured his violent divine consciousness into it. Moments later, a purple point of light appeared within.

A cold smile crept across his lips. “Since you wanted the Heavenly Intelligence Map so badly, you’d better look after it properly.”

With that, Li Guanqi clasped his hands behind his back and vanished from where he stood.

The point of light marked the Heavenly Intelligence Realm’s current location. It was only an approximate position, but that was enough to narrow down the area. If Gu Yong truly became a threat, Li Guanqi would not hesitate to gather enough forces to destroy him. For now, however, he wouldn’t act rashly. He still didn’t know enough about the person behind Gu Yong.

Li Guanqi was only able to track the Heavenly Intelligence Realm because of Shen Feng, the Tower Lord of the Purple Tower. Earlier, he had gone to the trouble of subduing Shen Feng specifically to plant a trace within him as a safeguard.

As for the Heavenly Intelligence Map? It was sealed with the power of Spirit Pardon. Unless Gu Yong managed to find a spirit even stronger than Sword Spirit and make it unravel the threads of Spirit Pardon, opening the map would be impossible.

***

Just as Li Guanqi had expected, Gu Yong attempted to open the Heavenly Intelligence Map the moment he finished moving the Heavenly Intelligence Realm, only to discover countless red threads sealing it shut. Forcing it open was impossible, as any such attempt would inevitably destroy the map.

“Damn it! He actually left a failsafe like this! And this sealing power… There’s something wrong with it.”

Gu Yong’s mind reeled. Despite his Mahayana Realm cultivation, he had no idea how to deal with the threads that Li Guanqi had placed.

His eyes flickered. In the end, he could only sigh and put away the Heavenly Intelligence Map.

Song Yunshu flashed to his side, her beautiful eyes swollen and red from crying. She stubbornly stood in front of him and stared straight into his eyes, her voice trembling. “Why?”

Gu Yong looked at his beloved granddaughter, his voice as calm as ever. “What do you mean, why?”

Her voice rose in anger. “Why did you have to let things between you and him come to this?!”

Gu Yong slowly turned around and gazed at the Heavenly Intelligence Tower, which had been split cleanly in two. An indescribable mix of emotions entered his voice as he replied, “You wouldn’t understand.”

He paused briefly. “And you don’t need to.”

His figure slowly dissolved into the air as his cold voice rang out in every direction. “From this moment on, attack Guanyun Pavilion on every front!”

The four tower lords bowed in acknowledgment, visibly shaken.

As Li Guanqi traveled through the void, he abruptly stopped. He took out his Guanyun jade pendant and saw it flashing violently.

Xi Yunhuai’s grim, urgent voice came through the pendant.

—Pavilion Master, almost every clan and faction with a heavenly intelligence jade pendant has received a list identifying our undercover agents! We lost contact with nearly all of our agents inside those clans and factions at the same time.

Li Guanqi’s expression darkened, and he murmured, “They moved that quickly?”

His thoughts raced. After a moment, he said solemnly, “Have the intelligence division reach out to every faction. First, if they demand compensation, pay it to secure our agents’ lives. Second, pull out all our undercover agents and negotiate formal partnerships for intelligence sharing. We’ll pay them in spirit stones for their information, but on one condition: they must deal exclusively with us!”