Chapter 1041: Strike First and Seize the Advantage

"Now that things have reached this point, now that we're here, you have to throw away your ingrained fear of Misty Pavilion. Fear and retreat are useless. Will backing down make Misty Pavilion treat us better? The more we shrink back, the easier we are to bully, and the harder life here will become. The more arrogant we act, the more they will have to give way instead, and the more comfortably we'll live. Who told us to have the Sacred Venerables behind us?"

Qin Guan and Ke Dingjie looked at one another. They understood the reasoning, but their hearts still felt weak.

Niu Youdao knew as well that fear ingrained to the bone could hardly be erased with a few words. He glanced at the Goldenwing in its cage. "Go find brushes, ink, paper, and an inkstone. I want to submit a report to a Sacred Venerable!"

The two stared blankly. Ke Dingjie asked suspiciously, "Elder, we only just arrived. We don't know anything yet. What are we supposed to report?"

"I suspect Xuan Yao kept me inside Sacred Realm to use public office for a private vendetta and retaliate against me. I want to petition the Sacred Venerable about it!"

The two were speechless again. Qin Guan broke into a slight sweat. "Elder, we have no evidence. Can we really make an accusation like that?"

"Inside Sacred Realm, we were under restrictions the entire time before. Where were we supposed to find evidence? How the matter should be handled is the Sacred Venerable's concern. We don't need to worry about that. Xuan Yao bears grudges. We can't simply sit here waiting for him. Strike first and seize the advantage. There's nothing wrong with giving him some trouble."

Niu Youdao did not reveal his entire calculation. Giving Xuan Yao trouble was secondary. His main purpose was to use the opportunity to probe the Sacred Venerables' attitude.

Of one thing he was certain: on his first petition, even without evidence, the Sacred Venerable probably would not do anything to him. If filing complaints too easily brought punishment and frightened the inspectors below into silence, that surely was not the outcome the Nine Saints wanted.

Qin Guan and Ke Dingjie exchanged another look. Since their Elder insisted, they had no choice. They went into the rooms and brought back brushes, ink, paper, and an inkstone.

Freshly arrived at Wentian City, Niu Youdao sat upright, dipped his brush in ink, and began writing his first confidential report in the pavilion almost immediately after receiving the Goldenwing used for direct communication.

Watching from the side, Qin Guan and Ke Dingjie felt their teeth ache.

When Niu Youdao finished, he set down the brush, blew the ink dry, folded the report, and took the Goldenwing from its cage. After securing the message to it, he stepped out of the pavilion and released it with both hands.

Afterward, Qin Guan and Ke Dingjie followed his instructions, changed into Misty Pavilion uniforms, and went outside to look around.

Niu Youdao remained alone in the courtyard. He walked through it again, personally checking every corner and every room.

After making a full circuit and confirming there was basically nothing wrong, he had only just returned to the courtyard when he spotted a Misty Pavilion man inside, furtively looking left and right.

Niu Youdao immediately barked, "What are you doing?"

The newcomer spun around. After seeing him, he quickly glanced about once more before hurrying closer and asking in a low voice, "Are you Niu Youdao?"

"I am." Niu Youdao admitted it, then realized the man looked familiar. Wasn't he one of the guards he had seen at the entrance when he arrived? Niu Youdao immediately adopted an arrogant tone. "Who are you?"

The attitude puzzled the newcomer. He had never before seen anyone from the sects speak to Misty Pavilion people this arrogantly. Still, he answered quietly, "Qu Lingkun."

Niu Youdao committed the name to memory. "What do you want?"

Qu Lingkun lowered his voice. "Keep your voice down. You were given a map at Shouque Villa. Those above said that if I told you that, you'd understand."

Niu Youdao immediately knew where the man came from. He should belong to the same hidden network as Chang Qingshan.

A chill stirred inwardly.

He had only just arrived here, yet the hidden party had already contacted him directly.

They had been able to reach him at Shouque Villa whenever they wished. Now they could reach him just as easily in Wentian City, even arranging for someone to stand guard outside his own courtyard and wait for him to arrive. Whoever stood behind this possessed no small amount of power inside Misty Pavilion. Without considerable influence, there was no way to arrange matters with such seamless continuity.

Who exactly was behind it?

Niu Youdao did have one suspect. The secret involved the Tiandu Secret Realm, and the hidden party clearly possessed considerable influence within Misty Pavilion. His thoughts naturally turned to Sha Rulai.

But he had no direct evidence. If he guessed wrong, the consequences could be disastrous.

He asked, "Who sent you?"

Qu Lingkun replied, "Don't ask what you shouldn't. I don't know. Even if I did, I wouldn't tell you. Those above told me to warn you that Misty Pavilion's decision to assign you to the Demon Fox Bureau may be intended to harm you. You should be especially careful. Also, if you need any help, you can contact me at any time. I'll assist as much as I can within my ability. I serve as one of the guards outside your courtyard. There are three shifts a day, but in any case I'm here every day, so contacting me is easy."

Niu Youdao asked, "Were you already stationed here, or were you transferred over temporarily?"

"Temporarily. This courtyard didn't originally have guards. After the Demon Fox Bureau received the decree from above, it temporarily assigned personnel here. I found an opportunity to volunteer for the post."

"I want to meet the person above you."

"I'll report your request. Whether they meet you isn't something I can decide. Anything else? If not, I need to leave. I can't stay here long."

"I want a map of Wentian City and detailed information about its internal layout."

"Fine. No problem. I'll bring it tomorrow." Qu Lingkun turned and left quickly.

Niu Youdao watched him go, both hands resting atop the sword planted before him. He murmured to himself, "What exactly are they trying to do?"

What purpose did they have in helping him?

He had been thinking about that question all along.

...

At Wentian City's central offices, Ding Wei had many responsibilities while presiding over Misty Pavilion and rarely sat here personally. Ordinarily, he came only when something required his presence.

For now, Xuan Yao was acting in his stead at this central post.

Inside a pavilion, Xuan Yao had summoned the deacons of the eight bureaus that had received sect inspectors. The purpose was simply to warn all eight again to act carefully and avoid leaving any handle that could be used against them.

At the end of the meeting, Xuan Yao rose from behind the desk. "I've repeated everything that needs to be said. Be careful yourselves. If something happens, what becomes of everyone else can be discussed later. When the Sacred Venerables' fury descends, the first people to suffer will be you."

"Yes!" All eight rose and answered.

"Dismissed. Long Fanhai, you stay."

Everyone else left. Long Fanhai stepped closer. "Does Steward Xuan have further instructions?"

"I told you before that Niu Youdao is no easy man to deal with. Leave him around too long and no one knows what kind of trouble he'll cause. He needs to be disposed of as soon as possible."

Long Fanhai lowered his voice. "Steward, don't worry. I'll make sure nothing can be traced back to us. But acting too hastily may not be appropriate. He only just arrived and is still learning the situation. If an accident happens the moment he gets here, it may be difficult to explain."

"You decide when to move and use your own judgment."

"Yes. I'll arrange it as soon as possible. He dared show Steward Xuan disrespect, so I won't let him have an easy time. Just watch. In the next couple of days, I'll teach him a lesson."

Xuan Yao gave a quiet acknowledgment. "Teaching him a lesson is fine. Just remember not to get yourself covered in filth."

"Understood." Long Fanhai had barely answered when someone appeared at the doorway and called, "Deacon."

Long Fanhai looked back, then said to Xuan Yao, "Steward, that's the man assigned to keep watch on Niu Youdao."

Xuan Yao called, "Come in."

The man hurried inside and saluted them both.

Long Fanhai asked, "Weren't you told to keep a close watch on him? Why did you run here?"

"Deacon, something happened on Niu Youdao's side."

Long Fanhai and Xuan Yao exchanged glances. Long Fanhai asked, "He only just arrived. What could possibly have happened?"

"A Goldenwing was released from Niu Youdao's courtyard."

"A Goldenwing?" Long Fanhai froze and looked at Xuan Yao. For a moment, neither man knew what to say.

They both knew that Niu Youdao and his two men had arrived almost empty-handed. Apart from the weapons issued for personal use, they carried essentially nothing. Where could they have gotten a Goldenwing?

There was only one possibility: the Goldenwing whose destination was one of the Nine Saints, the bird issued to each faction for confidential reporting.

Niu Youdao had begun contacting a Sacred Venerable the moment he arrived?

Xuan Yao's expression gradually darkened. He stared at Long Fanhai and said heavily, "Didn't I warn you to be careful? What exactly did your people do? Why did he send out a confidential report the moment he arrived?"

Long Fanhai hurriedly defended himself. "Steward, we didn't do anything!"

Xuan Yao's anger sharpened. "Nothing? If you did nothing, would he casually contact a Sacred Venerable? I'm warning you now: if something happens at the Demon Fox Bureau, you'll be the first person held responsible!"

Long Fanhai had no idea what was happening. He repeatedly protested, "Steward, we truly didn't do anything. We barely even exchanged a few words with him. What could we possibly have done?"

"Go ask. Go find out!" Xuan Yao waved him away.

"Yes!" Long Fanhai accepted the order and turned to leave.

He had taken only a few steps when Xuan Yao called him back. "Wait. Don't act recklessly on that other matter yet. First find out what's going on."

Long Fanhai understood.

Xuan Yao meant the plan to teach Niu Youdao a lesson.

For now, they were to hold off.

...

Qin Guan and Ke Dingjie returned after scouting the surroundings. When they saw Niu Youdao seated in the pavilion, they hurried over and reported what they had learned.

When they finished, Qin Guan added, "While we were walking around, some people tried to stop us and wouldn't let us wander freely. We did as Elder instructed. Sure enough, once we pushed back, they didn't dare keep making things difficult and gave way."

Seeing how nervous both men still looked, Niu Youdao smiled. "And?"

Ke Dingjie said worriedly, "We've already made the people of the Demon Fox Bureau obviously dissatisfied with us. This disciple is worried they'll retaliate."

"Retaliate?" Niu Youdao chuckled and patted the stack of papers on the stone table. "I'm worried I won't have anything to do. You two don't need to be afraid. Just keep doing exactly what I told you. If something happens, I'll carry it."

The two exchanged glances and sighed inwardly.

Setting that aside for the moment, Qin Guan still looked troubled. "Elder, we did learn something. This Demon Fox Bureau is specifically responsible for hunting Demon Foxes inside Sacred Realm."

Niu Youdao already knew. He gave a quiet acknowledgment. "From the name, I guessed as much. I figured that was what it did."

Seeing that he remained unmoved, Ke Dingjie lowered his voice. "Elder, they're specifically responsible for hunting Demon Foxes. That means the Demon Fox Bureau obviously makes frequent trips into the Desolate Marsh Deadlands. If something happens to a person there, it would be perfectly normal. They wouldn't even need to invent an excuse."

Niu Youdao did not need the reminder.

The instant he learned this place was the Demon Fox Bureau, he had already guessed someone's malicious intent.

It was simply that the arrangement felt almost too convenient.

They wanted to kill him inside the Desolate Marsh Deadlands?

No matter how he thought about it, the whole thing felt a little strange.

[End of Chapter 1041]