Chapter 183: Caught

Elder Qing Ye had been staking out the Biluo City market for five full days.

Every day, she changed into gray cloth clothes, tied her hair up casually, and smeared waxy yellow powder on her face, making her look like a low-level Loose Cultivator running around for a few Spirit Stones. No one spared her a second glance.

On the evening of the sixth day, the woman in the gray cloak finally appeared again.

This time, she didn't buy any Spiritual Plants, but stood in front of a Medicinal Pill stall, picked up a bottle of Qi Gathering Pills, and asked for the price. The stall owner was an old man at the Golden Core stage, his face crinkled with smiles. The woman paid the Spirit Stones, tucked the Medicinal Pill into her bosom, and turned to leave.

Elder Qing Ye didn't get too close this time; she kept a distance of several dozen zhang, using her Divine Sense to firmly lock onto the other's aura.

The woman walked out of the market, crossed two streets, and turned into a narrow alley. Just as Elder Qing Ye followed her in, a sweet fragrance suddenly rushed towards her. Her heart tightened, and she immediately held her breath while simultaneously unleashing a palm strike. The palm wind dispersed the sweet fragrance, but the alley was already empty, with only a gray cloak left on the ground.

Elder Qing Ye picked up the cloak; it still held a faint trace of body heat. She looked up at the eaves, where the gap was only wide enough for one person to pass through. The other party hadn't escaped through the sky, but had tunneled underground.

She didn't chase into the secret passage and instead turned back to Biluo Palace.

In the main hall, after Su Yun finished listening to Elder Qing Ye's report, he took the cloak in his hands to examine it. The material was ordinary, the coarse linen common in the city, but the inner lining was sewn with a small piece of dark cyan silk, embroidered with a vertical pupil, inside which a tiny black flame was hidden.

Fairy Biluo saw that eye, and her expression changed instantly.

"Master, this is the mark of the Shadow Pavilion. This subordinate has seen it once before; the people assassinated by the Shadow Pavilion have this mark branded on their chests."

Su Yun asked: "What was the background of that person?"

"A Loose Cultivator at the Mahayana Initial Stage who opened a Magical Artifact shop in Biluo City. He offended the Shadow Pavilion and was found dead in his own shop the next day, with this very mark on his chest."

Su Yun threw the cloak back onto the table and said indifferently: "It seems we found the right person."

Fairy Biluo asked: "What should we do next?"

Su Yun leaned back in his chair, his tone calm: "Wait. She ran away today, but she will come again tomorrow. She hasn't obtained what she wants yet, so she won't give up easily. The next time she appears, tell Elder Qing Ye not to follow too closely. After she buys her items and leaves, go straight into the secret passage."

Elder Qing Ye accepted the order and left.

Three more days passed, and the woman appeared for the third time. She wandered around the market but left without buying anything. Elder Qing Ye only watched from afar and didn't follow. That night, she took two female Disciples at the Lianxu Peak Stage and snuck into the secret passage.

The secret passage was narrow and damp. After walking for about the time it takes to burn an incense stick, a stone door appeared ahead. Elder Qing Ye pushed open the stone door to find a rocky wasteland outside. Moonlight spilled onto the gravel, casting a cold, white light. The surrounding area was filled with desolate mountains, and there was no sign of human life.

She searched the vicinity but found no traces, so she had to return to Biluo Palace.

After hearing this, Su Yun was not disappointed, only saying: "She will come again. Next time, don't enter the secret passage; just guard the exit. As soon as she comes out, take her down immediately."

Elder Qing Ye asked: "What if she never comes out?"

Su Yun smiled: "Then seal the exit and let her suffocate inside."

Five more days passed, and the woman appeared for the fourth time. This time, she bought ten stalks of Star Spiritual Plants and five bottles of Soul Transformation Stage Pill in one go, paying with a large bag of Spirit Stones.

As soon as she walked out of the market, Elder Qing Ye had already detoured to the exit of the secret passage, hiding behind a giant rock in the rocky wasteland.

In less than half an incense stick of time, the stone door creaked open. Just as the woman poked her head out, Elder Qing Ye unleashed her full power.

A cold palm force at the Mahayana Initial Stage struck directly at the woman's back. The woman reacted extremely quickly, her figure flashing sharply to barely avoid the vital point, but she was still struck on the shoulder by the palm wind. She let out a muffled groan and stumbled a few steps. Elder Qing Ye pressed forward with another palm strike. The woman raised her hand to meet it head-on. The two palms collided with a boom; the woman retreated several steps, while Elder Qing Ye stood firm as a rock.

A Lianxu Peak Stage cultivator is no match for a Mahayana Initial Stage cultivator. As the woman turned to flee, Elder Qing Ye's third palm strike hit the back of her head. Everything went black before her eyes, and she collapsed softly.

Elder Qing Ye tied her up and brought her back to Biluo Palace.

In the main hall, Su Yun sat in his chair, looking at the woman who was tied up tightly in front of him. She was about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, with delicate features and a cold, sharp look in her eyes. After waking up and realizing she couldn't move, she struggled a few times without success, then lifted her head and stared fixedly at Su Yun, her eyes filled with only anger, without a hint of fear.

Su Yun spoke: "What is your name?"

The woman pursed her lips tightly and said nothing.

"Who sent you?"

She remained silent.

Su Yun didn't press her, only saying indifferently: "Take her down first and keep her properly confined. Send her food and water every day, and don't give her a hard time."

Fairy Biluo escorted her away.

For the next few days, the woman refused to speak. On the fifth day, Su Yun went to the prison himself.

The woman was sitting in the corner, hugging her knees, her face pale. Seeing Su Yun enter, a flicker of emotion flashed in her eyes.

Su Yun sat down opposite her, his tone calm: "What is your name?"

After a long silence, she finally spoke, her voice hoarse: "…Shadow Butterfly."

Su Yun asked: "Why do you work for the Shadow Pavilion?"

Shadow Butterfly hung her head: "I had no choice. They used my family as leverage. If I didn't obey, my family would die."

"Where is your family?"

"I don't know… I have been controlled for five years; I don't even know if my parents are still alive."

Su Yun was silent for a moment, then said slowly: "If I help you find your family, would you be willing to help me?"

Shadow Butterfly lifted her head abruptly, a glimmer of hope lighting up in her eyes: "You… can you really find them?"

Su Yun nodded: "I will try."

He had Fairy Biluo investigate Shadow Butterfly's background. Three days later, news arrived—Shadow Butterfly was originally a Disciple of a small Sect in the Northern Wilderness. Five years ago, that Sect was wiped out, and everyone's whereabouts were unknown, including her parents.

Su Yun told her the results. After hearing them, tears welled up in Shadow Butterfly's eyes instantly.

After crying, she wiped away her tears, looked at Su Yun, and said in a low, hoarse, yet firm voice: "What do you want me to do?"

Su Yun was straightforward: "Tell me where the Shadow Pavilion's stronghold is."

Shadow Butterfly shook her head: "I don't know. Every time I perform a mission, I am taken out blindfolded, and in the end, I only know that I will appear outside Biluo City. The people I meet never talk much; I haven't even seen their faces."

Su Yun asked again: "Who else do you know in the Shadow Pavilion?"

Shadow Butterfly thought for a moment: "I only know a few codenames. People in the Pavilion don't use their real names; they only use codenames. The Pavilion Master is called Shadow Master, and no one has ever seen his true face. Below, there are seven Protectors, codenamed Shadow One to Shadow Seven. I am Shadow Seven, the very last one. Shadow One through Shadow Six are all at the Mahayana Stage, and it is said that Shadow One is already at the Peak Mahayana Stage."

"Shadow One through Shadow Six, are they male or female?"

"Shadow Two is female, Shadow Four is also female, and the others are all male."

Su Yun nodded slightly.

He stood up and said to Fairy Biluo: "Release her and arrange a place for her to stay."

Shadow Butterfly was stunned: "You… you aren't locking me up anymore?"

Su Yun smiled faintly: "You are a guest, not a prisoner."

Shadow Butterfly lowered her head and said softly: "Thank you."

After Shadow Butterfly was taken away, Su Yun stood at the entrance of the prison, looking at the light at the end of the corridor, his mouth slowly curling up.

Shadow Pavilion, Shadow One through Shadow Six, plus two female Protectors, and that mysterious Pavilion Master.

The waters of the Immortal Realm were deeper than he had imagined.

However, he didn't mind. The deeper the water, the bigger the fish.