Chapter 327

Chapter 327: Settling Old Scores With Them
“Senior Sister Yu, the scene has been destroyed and the clues are gone. What should I do?”

Ji Han Zhou’s voice was low, and worry showed between his brows.

He was not upset because he could not complete the task the sect gave him. He was upset for the disciples of Black Tortoise Hall who had died so miserably.

“Cheer up. There is still a chance.”

Yu Zhao gave him a faint glance.

Ji Han Zhou’s talent in Sword Dao was clear to everyone. His only flaw was that he had been through too few storms and his heart was not stable enough.

If Senior Sister Liu Zheng of the Heavenly Sword Sect were standing here, she would never say something so discouraged.

“Sometimes you don’t have to search for clues by yourself. You need to learn how to borrow strength.”

After throwing down this sentence, Yu Zhao walked toward the east.

Ji Han Zhou half understood and half did not, but he followed obediently.

After half a day, a lively city came into view.

After they entered the city, they waited until night fell. Then Yu Zhao led Ji Han Zhou straight to the place marked by a faint yellow secret sign.

As he walked through the passage of Shadow Pavilion, Ji Han Zhou’s eyes shone brightly. In his heart he was annoyed that he had not thought of buying information from Shadow Pavilion.

But it was not really his fault for not thinking of this.

The sect trained its elite disciples in a well-rounded way, so most sect disciples were used to doing things themselves. They did not like outsiders interfering, and they never thought of simply using Spirit Stones to solve problems.

Yu Zhao, on the other hand, had gone through a long time on the run and understood the rules for surviving in the Cultivation World much better.

Once they entered the inner area of Shadow Pavilion, Yu Zhao directly said that she wanted to see the Daoist Wen.

Soon, a maidservant led the two of them into a private room.

Click.

A wooden board in the wall slid open a crack. A Wooden Plaque floated out from within. On the front, a large character for “Ask” was carved.

Yu Zhao nodded to Ji Han Zhou. Ji Han Zhou understood, stepped forward, wrote his question on the back of the Wooden Plaque, and pushed it back through the crack.

After three breaths, the Wooden Plaque was pushed back out, unchanged. Beside it there was a tray with ten Mid-grade Spirit Stones on it.

Ji Han Zhou was stunned for a moment, then his face darkened.

The news of Black Tortoise Hall’s destruction had become a huge sensation. As the largest intelligence organization, Shadow Pavilion could not possibly have no clues at all.

Yet Shadow Pavilion had refused this deal and, according to their rules, gave compensation instead.

Ji Han Zhou did not care about ten Mid-grade Spirit Stones at all. What he wanted was information about the people who killed Black Tortoise Hall.

He grabbed the Wooden Plaque and wanted to throw it to the ground.

Yu Zhao hooked her finger, snatched the Wooden Plaque from his hand, wiped away the words he had written with her Spirit Power, wrote a new question on it, and sent it into the crack again.

Thud!

Ji Han Zhou’s ears twitched.

It sounded like something heavy had fallen to the ground.

Then, hurried footsteps came from outside the quiet room.

The door opened again.

The beautiful maid’s smile was a bit stiff as she said: “Honored guests, please follow me.”

Ji Han Zhou instinctively looked at Yu Zhao.

Yu Zhao smiled slightly and said: “Lead the way.”

“Yes.”

On the way, Ji Han Zhou still could not hold back his curiosity. Using Voice Transmission, he asked: “Senior Sister Yu, what did you write on the Wooden Plaque?”

Yu Zhao’s lips curved up a little as she answered: “Nothing much. I just brought up an old debt with them.”

She had never forgotten that Shadow Pavilion had once taken someone’s commission and posted a Bounty Notice to hunt her down.

She had only been too busy with many other things and had not had time to cause trouble for Shadow Pavilion.

This time was a perfect chance to make use of the situation.

It was also a good time to see what kind of attitude the people of Shadow Pavilion really had.

They passed through a long, narrow passage and walked through several forks. The maidservant finally stopped at the door of a room.

“Daoist Wen invites you in.”

Yu Zhao stepped forward and the door opened without any wind.

At a glance, she saw a short, stocky man sitting on a specially raised chair, smiling at her.

Yu Zhao returned a polite smile.

After Ji Han Zhou also stepped into the room, the door closed by itself.

The man who was called Daoist Wen changed his expression at once. He jumped down from the chair and bowed again and again to Yu Zhao.

“Fellow Daoist Yu, Fellow Daoist Yu, that Kill Order was a foolish mistake Shadow Pavilion made while muddle-headed. You are generous. Please, for the sake of our sincere apology, calm your anger and do not hold it against us.”

As Daoist Wen spoke, he quietly stuffed a Storage Pouch into Yu Zhao’s hand, his smile full of flattery.

Yu Zhao did not hide anything. She lifted the Storage Pouch and swept her sense inside. At once she was dazzled by all kinds of items.

With the heavy Storage Pouch in her hand, it was hard for her to say that Shadow Pavilion lacked sincerity.

This time, Shadow Pavilion had really paid a heavy price.

But Yu Zhao still had serious business to do and would not give in so easily.

“Daoist Wen, your sincerity is not enough.” She spoke in a meaningful tone.

Daoist Wen’s heart gave a jolt, and he could not help feeling a bit annoyed.

Yu Zhao’s appetite was really too big. Even so many things could not satisfy her.

He cursed in his heart, but his face showed nothing. He kept his smile and said: “Fellow Daoist Yu, if there is still anything you are not satisfied with, please say it. As long as it is within my power, I will solve it for you.”

Since joining Shadow Pavilion, Daoist Wen had never been this humble.

But he was facing Yu Zhao, who was now praised by everyone as the Number One of the Young Generation in the Cultivation World. He could not afford to offend her.

To make it worse, Shadow Pavilion had been misled by Master Qing Yan before and had failed to see Yu Zhao’s potential. They had even boldly posted a Banishment Order and had offended her badly.

Now, the Pavilion Master had given a strict order: they had to repair their relationship with Yu Zhao.

No matter how shameful it felt, he had to endure it.

Yu Zhao said: “If Shadow Pavilion truly feels sorry, why are you being stingy even with one answer?”

She waved her hand.

The question Ji Han Zhou had written earlier floated in the air.

Daoist Wen’s face was full of difficulty as he said: “This…”

Yu Zhao’s gaze landed on his face. She did not speak, but the tension in the room grew thicker and thicker.

Ji Han Zhou silently watched Yu Zhao and Daoist Wen facing off without words. His own heart also grew uneasy.

“Fellow Daoist Yu, to be honest, if it were not for your sake, even if an elder of the Heavenly Sword Sect came in person, Shadow Pavilion would still keep its mouth shut.”

Daoist Wen sighed, and a few fine lines appeared at the corners of his eyes.

Yu Zhao suddenly changed from her earlier strong attitude and became warm and active: “Daoist Wen, please sit. Let’s sit down and talk slowly.”

Daoist Wen sighed again and jumped back onto his chair. He said: “Actually, what Shadow Pavilion knows is limited. But right now we can be sure that the ones who killed the disciples of Black Tortoise Hall were not lone wanderers, but a group with a clear plan and purpose. They strike very decisively, and they also have a strange habit of collecting corpses. The bodies of Black Tortoise Hall’s Palace Masters and elders were taken away by them.”

“Who are they?” Ji Han Zhou asked urgently.

Daoist Wen shook his head and said: “They come and go like ghosts, and all of them wear masks. We cannot confirm their identity.”

There was still one more piece of information he did not say.

Shadow Pavilion had sent out several groups of people to investigate who they were. In the end, not a single one of those people came back.

Because of this, Shadow Pavilion gave up on investigating them and listed them as taboo, not to be spoken of to outsiders.

This was also the reason Ji Han Zhou’s question had been rejected so firmly at the start.

Yu Zhao and Ji Han Zhou looked at each other.

The trail had broken again.

“Oh, there is one more strange thing. Before they came, the two Palace Masters of Black Tortoise Hall suddenly dropped dead for no reason.”