Dual Cultivation God Returns

Chapter 743: First move



"You have arrived quite late", Yu Zhen spoke with a bit of a strain in his voice.

Zhao Xieren inwardly chuckled, seeing how the treatment toward him changed after that incident at the plateau. No doubt the Elder of the Three Pillars Sect who was present that day reported to Yu Zhen of what happened there.

"Hahaha, I just didn't think it was an easy decision, so I gave you ample time to prepare", the old man then spoke feigning ignorance.

An older man from the Three Pillars Sect's side, standing beside Yi Pong behind Yu Zhen, slightly frowned, though not as an expression of displeasure, more so showing a thinking face.

A moment later Zhao Xieren could feel a sound transmission sent quite discreetly from that older man toward the one sitting in front of him.

If he didn't have techniques of detection given by Wu Long, he would have likely missed this secret communication.

'Hmm, so that one is likely a Grand Elder or someone similar...', Zhao Xieren thought as the cultivation that was hidden from him before could now be at least estimated from the sound transmission the older man used.

Meanwhile, Yu Zhen asked absolutely naturally, without giving any signs he had received instructions, "You are alone today? I seem to remember you had companions last time"

"Oh, you mean Madam Tianyan*? Hahaha, we had some differences, so we regrettably had to part ways", Zhao Xieren chuckled, very believably selling the image of someone who was desperately trying to hide bitterness by slipping a bit of his disgruntlement almost subconsciously, but not going into details.

"And the young man?", Yi Pong who was most wary of the other companion that Zhao Xieren brought before, carefully asked, masking his tone with mindless curiosity.

"Ah... that one? How should I know, he was with her...", Zhao Xieren shrugged and expressed complete disregard, as one would in his cultivation toward someone in Core Reformation Realm, "Rather than that, have you made up your minds?"

"Even if you say that... you gave us too few details to make such a big decision...", Yu Zhen spoke carefully choosing his words to not turn the old man away, but not show any overly eager stance.

"Well, that's disappointing...", Zhao Xieren caressed his long white beard with a grin, "...where would you find someone so gullible to show all of their cards before even knowing whether you will be an ally? I've disclosed as much as I'm willing to, if you want to know further details, you must take my hand first"

The three people in front of him had complicated looks appear deep in their eyes. This was it, the leap of faith, a gamble.

Without saying a single word mentioning the incident at the plateau, rather avoiding that topic, Zhao Xieren exerted pressure on them with it, since he already showed part of his worth, shrouded in secret as it may be, but one that could not be ignored.

And keeping information about a plan as serious as his proposal entailed, involving things that could shake up the whole continent, was extremely reasonable.

So him drawing the line here was sending a clear message: "You are either in with all risks that plan entails, or out with none of those risks and at the same time none of the rewards" "Haa~", after a drawn out silence, Zhao Xieren made a heavy sigh, seemingly ready to leave. "Can you give us a day more? One more day to discuss it among the Grand Elders?", the older man that stood in the back finally spoke up directly.

"And you are?", Zhao Xieren raised his eyebrow.

"Grand Elder Ro of the Three Pillars Sect, my apologies for the late introduction", Grand Elder Ro spoke with a slightly flustered expression since he knew how this way of participating in this meeting must have looked to Zhao Xieren.

"Hoho, this Old Man is not so shallow minded to get offended by such things", Zhao Xieren chuckled, with a look of a wizened elder, who he no doubt was, as even Grand Elder Ro was quite a bit younger than him.

"I will wait a week, but this time you'll have to send your reply to me", Zhao Xieren smiled while standing up.

"How can we get in contact with you?", Yu Zhen also stood up with him.

"I hear there's a very popular spot lately, if you send a messenger there, I or someone who works with me will approach them first", Zhao Xieren's eyes flashed with an amused light as he turned to leave the room.

"The Vanished Hills?", Wu Long raised his eyebrow at the end of the report written in a rather dry language, and dated five days prior.

"It is the name given to 'that' plateau and its surroundings, Young Master", Butler Bang smiled, as the area took on this name because Wu Long erased the entire hill area around the

plateau.

"Oh... I see", Wu Long nodded, "What about Madam Liang's side?"

He then received a report from the Thousand Eyes Palace from the butler's hands, running his eyes through the scroll.

"Good, it seems the initial gambit has worked out", he nodded with satisfaction, placing the scroll on the desk in front of him.

The move that Wu Long made was fairly simple.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

The goal was to simultaneously prop up Zhao Xieren so he could move independently and relatively in the open, put on the map the Soaring Feather Trading Company as a small, very new group of merchants who are just starting out, and create a foothold for Liang Yuhan's Thousand Eyes Palace so that it could quickly establish without going through too much scrutiny.

And perhaps most importantly, the three goals had to be achieved at least somewhat independently from each other.

First, Madam Liang accompanied Zhao Xieren to the Three Pillars Sect, and given her talents, left a strong impression at every level of the Sect. Even if they only talked privately, everyone who saw her and Zhao Xieren that day remembered them together.

Next, Zhao Xieren had to debut with a small but formidable force backing him quite publicly, meddling in some kind of trouble, preferably causing quite a lot of stir, which was, though unplanned and way ahead of schedule, achieved during the incident at the plateau.

And as the interest in Zhao Xieren rose, his next visit to the Three Pillars Sect was to be alone, contrasting the first one, subtly or directly if necessary letting on that there was a divide between him and Madam Liang, which instantly turned her newly established information business into a goose that lays golden eggs.

The information she was currently selling about her 'former associate' Zhao Xieren was roughly categorized into three levels of importance, and therefore price ranges:

First, that Zhao Xieren was hired by a starting ambitious Trading Company to be a fixer for them, but was not part of the said group, remaining an independent agent only temporarily taking that job. This level of information also included vague and harmless, but quite abundant information on the Trading Company. In essence it was an advertisement posing as information, raising mystery and expectations around the new business.

Second, that the veiled women he was seen with that day at the plateau were not his subordinates, and not part of the Trading Company, but a completely separate group he had a separate arrangement with. Not much was known about them since Zhao Xieren kept Madam Liang at arm's length, and was especially sensitive when it came to those veiled women. This lack of mutual trust eventually caused the conflict between them.

Third was more in-depth information about Zhao Xieren. In that portfolio, Zhao Xieren's origin was not known, but it was certain that he was quite well connected with secretive organizations that rarely appeared in the open. He had no subordinates, or known long-term partners, but he rarely worked alone, preferring to cut deals and hire people to do the job he was entrusted with. He also had a talent in finding said personnel.

There was also a bonus tier of information about the treasure of the Vanished Hills area, which was that Zhao Xieren did in fact obtain something precious in there, but he is not in possession of it anymore, it having crossed into the hands of a 'man who played with gold coins' due to some agreement.

This information was sold and exchanged for other valuable information in the Silver Wing City for the past four days, as the Thousand Eyes Palace soared in influence. There was no testing the credibility of that information, but it was quite certain that as long

as time passed, it would be easy to check. After all, among the information sold about the Trading Company that 'hired' Zhao Xieren to be their agent, was one that said they were getting ready to start business soon.

"Hahaha, how shameless, to make people pay for fake information you want them to have", Fen Baihu shook her head with amusement as she saw that his plan was working.

"The most effective way of spreading information you want to be public knowledge is to make people want that information so bad they'd pay money for it. It's far more believable that way", Wu Long shrugged his shoulders, "And it's not all fake, parts of it are true, I just removed the part that connected the different parts of the puzzle together, and sprinkled just enough lies to cover up the traces"

"Hah! Not fake?! The whole thing's a sham! Your Valley is posing as several distinct groups, and its members are now 'at odds' with each other, while you spread a nonexistent reputation for that old man...", she said all the while clearly enjoying this scheme of his, while Wu Long raised his hands to the sides and shrugged in an innocent pose at her words.

"Call it simply not telling the whole picture", Wu Long spoke as shamelessly as ever, since

there wasn't even a hint of guilt in his eyes, "As for Old Man Zhao's reputation, it's not like that reputation has to stay fake. That reputation will help him get a real one soon enough, it won't matter whether it was fake before by that time"

Fen Baihu shook her head, giggling, while thinking to herself only half-jokingly that she picked the right side to be on, as she definitely didn't want to be anywhere near the side that

was against this man.

She looked as he hummed a melody Gong Cui often played on her Zither under his nose and started reading the rest of the reports.

*Tianyan - in a loose interpretation could mean "Heavenly Eye", a pseudonym Madam Liang will be using as the leader of the Thousand Eyes Palace.