The Seven Mysteries Gate entered the section of the river the Stone Axe Gang controlled. Alongside them was a small force consisting of Azure Wind Gang’s leadership, ready to expand their territory with Lu Qingshan’s express permission.

  “Do not capture more territory than I’ve allotted. The river must remain split up,” he said. “The chaos has to be maintained for now, or your rise will begin to attract more suspicions.”

  It was fortunate for the Stone Axe Gang to have secured a piece of the river by chance. It certainly made his sect’s entrance much easier into the area mentioned by the Furious Whale Gang's leader. Lu Qingshan surveyed the area.

  The roaring river was mostly silent at the moment. But even in the night, many merchant boats would cross, facilitating swift transpiration of city goods. The key to maintaining control was to not be too heavy-handed with one’s territory. Tolls, protection fees, and bribes needed to be carefully managed.

  Meng Zhang had taught the Stone Axe Gang well. Dissatisfaction with the gang was not as high as other parts of the river. Two of the Wang brothers were stationed here in a small red building. Meng Zhang had already told them to not interfere. The Stone Axe Gang did not need to be in the next battle and worsen their reputation.

  Lu Qingshan waited for the rest of his sect to arrive. Beside him, Wu Ruoling spotted a large boat with red lanterns floating through the river. A pleasure boat — one of the boats belonging to the Southern Rat Gang. “Do we attack?” she asked.

  “No. We’re searching for forces with real power to intervene. They’ll be a lot more inconspicuous.” His Bloodseeker Flies were skimming above the water in small clusters. Though Lu Qingshan had the power to overturn the city, he’d rather not get himself into an ambush with unknown enemies if he could help it.

  Most notably, the noble quarters, royal army, and the Southern Rat Gang he had not yet interacted with were all vying for control over the river. He would have to deal with them while heading to the location the Furious Whale Gang leader provided.

  “It’s time.” From the buildings behind them, Meng Zhang and Jin Teng worked together to drag a medium-sized boat onto the waters. Soon the rest of the Seven Mysteries Gate elders arrived as well. All of them entered the boat while Qin Ye muttered an incantation. A silent breeze pushed them through the water.

  “The Furious Whale Gang leader wasn’t too detailed with the exact location. Probably too difficult to tell, anyway.” Lu Qingshan frowned. Combing this entire section would take weeks or months depending on how hidden that underwater crevice was.

  “Li Fanghua, do you have anything that could help?”

  She shook her head. “There are no auxiliary spells for searching underwater. I do have a spell to help someone breathe in the water for some time, but don’t expect it to last long.”

  “That’s a shame.” Other than manual search, he had the idea of using the spirit earthworm to seek out things in the soil. But if it couldn’t survive a trip underwater and back, it would be an awful idea.

  They drifted across the river for a while. In the dead of night, reaching the described location was simple. But it sat in the middle of many territories controlled by other forces. The Stone Axe Gang had a claim, but so did three major forces. They’d have to defend themselves from patrols while Lu Qingshan searched the water.

  While the Wave Motions Fist was effective, a single technique could not allow him to roam the river unrestrictedly. At the limit of the technique, he only gained the ability to leverage water currents to his advantage. This was still a huge improvement to his agility though.

  Lu Qingshan suspected there were indeed martial arts out there which could grant such flexibility underwater. They'd be like a flood dragon, flitting in and out of the ocean with impunity. But he hadn’t seen anything similar. Acquiring that type of technique likely necessitated the use of Mystic Jade Essence.

  They settled in the center of the river and lit up some lamps. On the boat was enough food to last them all for two months. Some rare secret medicines looted from the sects enabled them to continue their martial arts practice, though heavily restricted by the water.

  After confirming there were no other ships around, Lu Qingshan descended for his first dive. He would be quite busy the following weeks. Though there was one silver lining — the slow-growing Turtle Breath Inner Force picked up its speed of proficiency gain while underwater. It also allowed him to hold his breath for longer durations. Combined with the Giant Whale Breathing Method and a little luck, he had a good chance to find the ruins.

  But tonight wouldn’t be that day. Lu Qingshan found that he could consistently hold his breath for a very long time. Enough to explore multiple sections of the river floor in a single dive, only resurfacing four times for air before daybreak. But it wasn’t enough.

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  “Start circling the area,” he ordered Meng Zhang and Liu Yingting to drive the boat around. He began working out a plan to move as quickly as possible. Judging from how long he could remain underwater, it was unnecessary for the boat to linger here. He just needed it around for food and emergency help if someone attacked him while he was resurfacing.

  For the next three days, Qin Ye caught fish. The other elders learned how to best navigate this section of the river. Then they returned to shore and parked the boat nearby. Lu Qingshan kept a cluster of flies with each of the elders, reminding them that the signal to come help was when they trembled incessantly.

  Over the next two weeks, Lu Qingshan continued his routine. Diving down to the river floor, running around in search of the crevice, and resurfacing for air. When hunger became too unbearable — every two or three days at least — the sect’s river boat would return, which he would then feast from.

  He hadn’t had any luck finding the crevice. “We might have to shift locations,” he muttered to Liu Yingting. The man nodded, beginning to turn the bit in another direction.

  But then something emerged from the distance. Another pleasure boat — there certainly were many in the past few days. Lu Qingshan habitually swept his flies across the boat’s interior.

  He stopped. Disconnected from the connection momentarily and blinked his eyes. He thought he had been seeing things, until he reached out through his flies’ senses again.

  No, he saw correctly the first time. Dressed in light green garments and quietly playing a guqin to a pair of wealthy young masters was a face that vaguely resembled Marquis Zhou. There were a lot of differences, and he could dismiss them all as coincidences, were it not for the fact Lu Qingshan recognized the Marquis’ aura from their battle. It was unmistakeable.

  Then who was the person the gray robes had been chasing? A body double? Lu Qingshan believed the Marquis must’ve had bold plans from telling him about the desire for rebellion. But he never expected something like this.

  Such extensive methods made him think the Marquis knew about the existence of immortal cultivators beforehand. There was that shapeshifting disguise method too — Lu Qingshan didn’t know what kind of martial arts could allow someone to alter their physique so drastically. Bone shrinking, facial reconfiguration, bodily changes — it had to be a mystical technique.

  The Marquis definitely looked like a woman and produced good music too, judging from the happy looks on the young masters’ faces. Their closed eyes and bright smiles meant they enjoyed the experience. It gave the Marquis the air of a cultured and well-practiced lady.

  Even after knowing about the existence of immortal cultivators, the Marquis had still stayed in the city, sacrificing a pawn that Lu Qingshan dared to say was at the Aperture Tempering stage. This person’s secrets were truly deep. He wondered if this would be a good chance to collaborate with them.

  The pleasure boat was coming his way after spotting them drifting on the river. Lu Qingshan’s thoughts flashed, preparing to speak.

  “Hello there!” a bright, bubbly woman greeted them once the boat came to a stop. “We’re the Sweet Wine Boat. Would you like to peruse our services? We have good women, music, and drink — whatever you like,” she said with a wink.

  Lu Qingshan gave her a nod, standing up to follow her onto the boat. He caught the shocked glances of his sect elders the moment he moved.

  Sect master, what? mouthed Li Fanghua. His other elders looked flabbergasted.

  Lu Qingshan scratched his chin. “I’ll tell you later,” he said.

  “Guess we follow,” a deadpan Wu Ruoling said. “Who’ll stay behind?”

  Li Fanghua, Miao Mei, and Meng Zhang declined to enter. The rest stepped onto the boat and followed their sect master inside. Muffled sounds of music immediately struck them along with the scents of sharp wine and constant chatter.

  Lu Qingshan quickly found a dark place to hide from all the people running around. He scanned the place even deeper with his Bloodseeker Flies. Other than the few martial artists guarding the place — clearly from the Southern Rat Gang — the place wasn’t too well-defended. There would likely be an opportunity to speak with Marquis Zhou.

  “A missing person might be here,” he whispered, pointing at a patch of gray clothes and staring at Liu Yingting. Recognition dawned in his eyes; he understood what he was talking about. “I don’t need you all here with me, but I am here for important matters. Try scouting the boat — we might have other things we could do here too.”

  Everybody gave him a nod. While his sect scattered, Lu Qingshan waited until the young masters were finished with their music session. It took the time for two incense sticks to burn until the Marquis stopped.

  There were many people waiting in line outside their room. Lu Qingshan couldn’t afford to do the same. Instead, he approached the front of the line, ignoring the angry cries behind him.

  Eyes widened for a fraction of a heartbeat when the Marquis spotted him. Indeed, Lu Qingshan’s suspicions were correct.

  “Hello, who are you?” a warm melodic voice asked.

  “I have something to discuss with you,” Lu Qingshan said as he stepped inside. Behind him, a sea of blood flickered for a moment. He immediately stepped out afterwards. Marquis Zhou should have understood his intention.

  “Why do I suddenly feel so scared?” someone in the line muttered.

  “Don’t know,” the person standing next to them said. “Let’s go have a drink to relax.”

  “But Lady Zhou…”

  Then one of the pleasure boat’s attendants stepped through the line. “Sorry,” she said. “Lady Zhou needs a rest. She’ll be on break for a while.”

  A few of the people standing in line grumbled, but they all left. Lu Qingshan remained standing against the walls in clear sight of the door. Soon, the Marquis stepped out, motioning at him to follow.