There were also reasons behind Li Musheng's words beyond simply pressing his advantage.
Setting aside the fact that he did not entirely trust the man, the blue-robed Daoist was only providing information, while he would still have to go and find the Tianqi Secret Treasury key himself. From his perspective, finding things was considerably more troublesome than rescuing people.
Rescuing someone, after all, was a matter that could be resolved with force, and amounted to little more than a wave of the hand.
Furthermore, Song Xingwei had just covertly sent him a voice transmission, sharing what she knew about the blue-robed Daoist and the Azure Cloud Temple behind him.
The Azure Cloud Temple was no small power in the martial world, and it reportedly had deep ties to the Azure Cloud Sect in Wan Province.
The Elder Sister in question was also no minor figure, and whoever had captured and imprisoned her was surely a faction of considerable standing.
If this deal could be struck, he naturally needed to get the most out of the other side.
At that moment, the blue-robed Daoist, who had been pleased until just now, heard Li Musheng's conditions and went briefly blank.
Then he glanced at Li Musheng and immediately fell into thought.
And he also understood that trying to get the man to act in exchange for nothing more than information about a Tianqi Secret Treasury key was genuinely asking too much.
But the other party had also made it clear he would not lend the Imperial Dragon Divine Sword.
If what he offered was not enough to interest the man, then the whole plan of getting Li Musheng to act would fall through.
And without the sword, this entire visit might end up being a wasted trip.
With those thoughts in mind, the blue-robed Daoist hesitated again and again, but for the sake of rescuing his Elder Sister, he decided to gamble.
"Your Highness, this poor Daoist does indeed have one other thing in his possession, and it is absolutely sufficient to secure Your Highness's involvement."
The blue-robed Daoist said this suddenly, his gaze fixed on Li Musheng.
At those words, Li Musheng raised an eyebrow. Seeing the man look so confident, something stirred inside him, and he said, "What is it? Let us hear it."
But the blue-robed Daoist shook his head, "This matter is of the greatest importance, and this poor Daoist will only hand over this item to Your Highness after seeing Elder Sister safely rescued."
Li Musheng narrowed his eyes, then waved a hand, "So you want something for nothing. Then there is nothing to discuss. You may leave."
With that, Li Musheng looked as though he was about to have someone see the guest out, and gave every appearance of intending to pay the blue-robed Daoist no further attention.
Seeing this, the blue-robed Daoist immediately felt a surge of anxiety, since his Elder Sister was still waiting to be rescued.
If this chance with Li Musheng slipped away, he was not going to find anyone with stronger martial cultivation anytime soon.
"This thing this poor Daoist speaks of is connected to longevity. It is the Azure Cloud Temple's greatest secret, and it is also the reason they seized Elder Sister."
The blue-robed Daoist finally spoke again, his gaze fixed on Li Musheng without blinking.
"Longevity?"
A flicker crossed Li Musheng's expression, and his gaze settled on the Daoist before him once more.
He had already expected the blue-robed Daoist would not leave easily and would eventually make concessions. But hearing the man actually say this word still caught him somewhat off guard.
After all, anything connected to longevity was no small matter. Who in all the martial world did not want to live longer? Even the Martial Saints and Martial Gods were no exception.
At that, the blue-robed Daoist gave Li Musheng a slight nod, "That is correct. The item is called the Longevity Scripture. It can extend a person's life by at least a hundred years. However, this is the Azure Cloud Temple's most closely guarded secret, and only Elder Sister knows it."
"If Your Highness can rescue this poor Daoist's Elder Sister, the Azure Cloud Temple will present this scripture with both hands."
"As for Your Highness being concerned that this poor Daoist may be lying, there is truly no need. Given Your Highness's martial strength, this poor Daoist would not dare deceive you and bring disaster upon the Azure Cloud Temple."
At those words, Li Musheng said nothing, and thought quietly for a moment.
The Longevity Scripture the blue-robed Daoist was describing did genuinely stir some of his interest, though at not yet twenty years of age, he had not yet reached the point of worrying about such things.
But longevity was the kind of thing that awakened in people a desire to find out more, simply by virtue of what it was.
And besides, the Daoist before him clearly had some self-awareness. Li Musheng was not actually afraid of being deceived by him. He was simply reluctant to be put to unnecessary trouble.
After some thought, Li Musheng finally gave a nod, "Since you can produce something like that, going out of my way to rescue your Elder Sister is not out of the question."
"However, my time is limited. If I spend it going to rescue someone, that leaves less time to go looking for the Tianqi Secret Treasury key..."
At that, Li Musheng suddenly stopped, and gave the blue-robed Daoist a meaningful look.
At the sight, the blue-robed Daoist's eyelid gave a sharp twitch, and he then asked, "Does Your Highness mean... that you would like this poor Daoist to go and retrieve that Tianqi Secret Treasury key?"
"You guessed correctly," Li Musheng said, clapping his hands lightly, "You go and get the Tianqi Secret Treasury key, and I go and rescue your Elder Sister. Then we exchange, your person for my item. That is fair to everyone, and neither side has to worry about the other going back on their word."
At those words, the blue-robed Daoist's expression went through a series of rapid changes.
One Tianqi Secret Treasury key and one Longevity Scripture, in exchange for the Eighth Prince's help on one occasion.
Was that fair? It was an enormous loss.
A Longevity Scripture alone would be enough to pay for a Martial God's intervention.
But Martial Gods were elusive, and even if the blue-robed Daoist managed to find one, he had no confidence the man would genuinely honor such an agreement.
And moreover, time was running out.
"Agreed. This poor Daoist will go and find that Tianqi Secret Treasury key for Your Highness. But Your Highness must guarantee Elder Sister's safety and bring her out unharmed."
The blue-robed Daoist gritted his teeth and agreed. At those words, Li Musheng's mouth curved slightly, "Do not worry. As long as your Elder Sister is still alive when I arrive, I will certainly be able to get her out."
...
Before long, the blue-robed Daoist walked out of the Tianjin Guards headquarters, staring straight ahead with a tight expression, glanced back once, and then called to his disciple and left.
The two of them, master and disciple, returned to the tavern, where the middle-aged man from the Hidden Intelligence Bureau was still waiting.
"Elder Brother, how did it go?" the middle-aged man stood as they came in, studying the blue-robed Daoist's unreadable face.
The blue-robed Daoist sat down, grabbed the nearest wine jar, and took a long swig. Then he wiped the corner of his mouth and said, "That Eighth Prince has agreed to personally go to the Great Xuan imperial palace to rescue Elder Sister."
At those words, a flash of surprise crossed the middle-aged man's face, "He actually agreed to act? How... how did Elder Brother persuade him?"
The blue-robed Daoist shot the middle-aged man a look, then took another swig, and said sourly, "How do you think I persuaded him? Naturally I paid an enormous price."
The middle-aged man's expression went still as he stared at the blue-robed Daoist, and then seemed to think of something, and asked in startled disbelief, "Elder Brother, you did not actually offer the Longevity Scripture..."
But before he could finish, the blue-robed Daoist raised a hand to cut him off, "Not another word about that."
As he said this, he finished off the wine jar in his hand in a single go. After a moment, he let out a sigh, "If it were not for Elder Sister, this poor Daoist would not have been maneuvered into such a position."
With that, the blue-robed Daoist stood, looked at the middle-aged man, and said, "Though that Eighth Prince has agreed to act, and moreover has the Imperial Dragon Divine Sword in his hands, rescuing Elder Sister should present no great difficulty."
"Even so, for safety's sake, I still need you to go along and keep watch, to prevent anything unexpected from going wrong."
At those words, the middle-aged man gave a nod, "Even though Great Li is going through turbulent times right now and I am not really in a position to leave, for Elder Sister's sake I will make the trip to the Great Xuan imperial palace myself regardless."
As he said this, a flash of cold killing intent appeared in the middle-aged man's eyes, "Beyond rescuing Elder Sister, I will also make the Great Xuan imperial palace pay a price."
The blue-robed Daoist looked at the middle-aged man for a long moment, then gave a slow nod, "Then I will leave that in your hands. We will meet again once Elder Sister has been rescued."
With that, the blue-robed Daoist stayed no longer, and with the Daoist novice in tow made ready to leave in a hurry.
Seeing this, the middle-aged man immediately furrowed his brow, "Is Elder Brother not coming along to rescue Elder Sister?"
At those words, the blue-robed Daoist's figure paused, and he let out a sigh, "That is not possible. This poor Daoist still has to go and find the Tianqi Secret Treasury key for that Eighth Prince. There is no time to lose. I have to set out now."
With that, the blue-robed Daoist ignored the middle-aged man any further and left the tavern with the Daoist novice.
The middle-aged man watched his Elder Brother's departing figure disappear, and struggled to quite understand what conversation his Elder Brother must have had with the Eighth Prince.
How had it come about that his Elder Brother was now the one going to find the Tianqi Secret Treasury key?
...
The next day.
A carriage pulled away from the Tianjin Guards headquarters. Li Musheng, with Cang Yinyue and Shen Anran, rode in the carriage driven by Cao Gaoshan and made their way out of Shangyang City, heading toward Great Xuan.
Li Musheng's departure was known only to Li Yuanling and a handful of people at the Tianjin Guards headquarters. He had told none of his relatives, neither the Great Li imperial palace nor the Huo family.
This visit to the capital had not been a long one. The Commander Fu Qiwen was still busy with the aftermath of Falling God Peak and had not yet returned to the capital.
The promise Fu Qiwen had made to bring him a mountain of gold, Li Musheng had no idea when it would arrive.
But Li Musheng had lived in Shun'an City for over ten years, and he genuinely did not want to stay in any one place for too long. He wanted to travel through the martial world.
Beyond the matter of the Hidden Kill Pavilion and White Emperor City, he also had the agreement with the blue-robed Daoist, and the rescue of his Elder Sister was something that truly could not be delayed.
And so the day after making his promise to the blue-robed Daoist to set out as soon as possible, Li Musheng departed the Great Li capital quietly.
Fortunately, White Emperor City and the Great Xuan capital were not in entirely opposite directions, and there was no need for an excessive detour. He could go to Great Xuan first and then proceed to White Emperor City, and the whole journey would not take too long.
Whereas if Li Musheng went first to wherever the blue-robed Daoist said the Tianqi Secret Treasury key was located, and then to White Emperor City afterward, the time required would be considerably greater.
So from a route-planning perspective, making a trip to the Great Xuan imperial palace was also the most efficient path.
"This trip will probably take several months before we are back," Cang Yinyue said softly, looking back at the walls of Shangyang City slowly receding into the distance.
Beside her, the big black cat was lying on a soft rug, looking rather miserable.
It had only just managed to collect such a large pile of gifts the day before, and they had not even had time to grow warm, and already today it had to say goodbye to all of them.
It had barely enjoyed any of it, and now faced another stretch of life on the road.
At that, Li Musheng put away the map in his hand, gave the big black cat a sidelong look, and raised an eyebrow, "If you would prefer to stay in Shangyang City, I am not stopping you."
At those words, the big black cat was immediately startled, let out a sharp meow, and quickly stood up and came to Li Musheng's side, nuzzling against his robe in an ingratiating way.
Its green eyes rolled around, and it knew perfectly well that every one of those gifts had come because of Li Musheng's reflected glory.
If it actually stayed in Shangyang City, it would truly be a foolish cat.
At that, Li Musheng gave the big black cat a stroke and said, "White Emperor City may hold a stroke of fortune for you. It would be a genuine shame not to go."
At those words, a stir of excitement crossed the big black cat's expression, and it immediately shook off its despondent air and let out an eager meow.
Good fortune was a rare thing, and that this had been said by Li Musheng himself made it plain to the cat just how important the matter was.
At the same time, Cang Yinyue looked at the Imperial Dragon Divine Sword in her hand and said, "Your Highness, I have brought the sword along on this trip. If Your Highness goes to the Great Xuan imperial palace to rescue someone, it should improve our chances."
At those words, Li Musheng waved a hand, "That sword is of no use to me and I have no need for it. And since it was already given to Miss Cang, it is Miss Cang's. There is no need to ever return it to me."
At that, Shen Anran, sitting nearby, glanced at the Imperial Dragon Divine Sword, then let her gaze pass between Cang Yinyue and Li Musheng, and let out a quiet, wistful sigh in her heart.
It was a pity she had met Li Musheng too late.
Such a weapon, Great Li's national divine artifact, had been given away by Li Musheng without a second thought.
That showed how extraordinarily well Li Musheng must think of this Miss Cang.
But Shen Anran did not despair, nor did she covet the Imperial Dragon Divine Sword in Cang Yinyue's hands.
She believed she still had a chance. One day she would find her way into Li Musheng's heart.
...
Though Li Musheng had made no announcement of his departure, it still could not escape the eyes of the various factions watching the Tianjin Guards headquarters from the shadows.
The moment Li Musheng passed through Shangyang City's gates, news of his departure began spreading to every faction in the city.
Great Li imperial palace.
The Empress was hosting a gathering for several princes and their mothers, and they were dining together in the palace.
The atmosphere in the hall was warm and cheerful, with occasional laughter and easy conversation, as though the matter of the Eighth Prince had already been put entirely from everyone's minds.
At that moment, an elderly eunuch hurried into the hall and came to the Empress's side, murmuring something quietly in her ear.
"Is this true?"
The Empress suddenly stood, her gaze fixed on the eunuch beside her.
The eunuch gave a solemn nod, "It is the most recent report from those below, and has already been confirmed with the people at the Tianjin Guards headquarters. There should be no question."
The nearest First Prince Li Xuan had watched this exchange and immediately furrowed his brow, "Mother, has something happened?"
At those words, the Empress withdrew her gaze from the eunuch, swept her eyes over everyone in the hall, and said, "The Eighth Prince has suddenly left Shangyang City."