Chapter 1037 The Return of the Rogue Cultivator

Mr. Yang suddenly ordered everyone to leave. Zhou Yiqiao was stunned for a moment, but then bowed.

"Thank you for your guidance, Senior. I will take my leave now."

"Ah."

Old Yang responded in a calm voice and watched Zhou Yiqiao leave the bamboo house.

After Zhou Yiqiao left, a middle-aged man suddenly appeared next to Mr. Yang.

"What do you think of him now?"

Old Yang suddenly turned around and said to the middle-aged man.

The middle-aged man looked in the direction where Zhou Yiqiao left, pondered for a moment, and then slowly answered.

"He has great potential. He will definitely surpass us in time."

After hearing this, Mr. Yang smiled slightly but did not refute.

"Maybe, that's not what I'm focusing on right now."

"Do you think the Shadow Alliance can eradicate the Tianxuan Sect?"

"This...is not easy."

The middle-aged man hesitated for a moment.

"As you said, the Shadow Alliance is the least favored among the shadow forces supported by Lingxiao Palace. This time, they attacked Tianxuan Sect without much support from Lingxiao Palace."

"In terms of weapon refining heritage, the Tianxuan Sect cannot compare to the Wanfaqi Sect, but the Tianxuan Sect has many disciples. In the eyes of many major forces, its importance is much higher than that of the Wanfaqi Sect."

“Even if the Shadow Alliance really forces the Tianxuan Sect into a dead end, with the relationship that the Tianxuan Sect has with various forces, there will definitely be many forces that will come to its aid. It will be extremely difficult for the Shadow Alliance to eliminate them on its own.”

Old Yang nodded slightly, his eyes deep.

"You're right, but it's not that complicated."

The middle-aged man was stunned for a moment, then he bowed to Mr. Yang with an extremely humble attitude.

"Please give me some advice, senior."

Old Yang poured himself another glass of rice wine and said with a smile.

"Whether the Shadow Alliance will be destroyed or not depends on Zhou Yiqiao!"

......

On the other side, Zhou Yiqiao had returned to the restaurant.

He sat in his room, quickly sorting out the information he had just learned in his mind.

After a while, he opened his eyes and stared ahead.

"We have figured out the origin of the Shadow Alliance. Next, we just need to find out why they are guarding Xishu City, and then we can return to Tianxuan Sect to report."

"However, the Shadow Alliance is on high alert, and it is not easy to find out their details in Xishu City."

Zhou Yiqiao whispered, a trace of worry appearing between his brows.

In fact, the best way to find out the Shadow Alliance's plan is to sneak into the City Lord's Mansion in the center of Xishu City.

But that must be the core of the Shadow Alliance, heavily guarded, and any slight disturbance would attract a large number of monks to attack.

"We will continue to visit the city for a few more days. If there is still no clue, we can only wait for the four wandering cultivators to come back before making a long-term plan."

.......

In the following days, Zhou Yiqiao visited everywhere in Xishu City.

He deliberately avoided the eyes and ears of the Shadow Alliance, went deep into the market, and talked with independent cultivators, hoping to get some useful information from them.

However, to his disappointment, the independent cultivators did not know much about the Shadow Alliance. They only knew that it was a force that suddenly emerged and occupied the City Lord's Mansion, but no one knew its specific intentions.

"It seems that it is unlikely to learn the details of the Shadow Alliance from the city."

Zhou Yiqiao sat in a tavern on the roadside, looking at the bustling streets outside the window, feeling somewhat helpless.

"Fellow Daoist Zhou looks worried and distressed. It looks like he has no clues at all."

At this time, a teasing voice sounded in Zhou Yiqiao's ears.

He turned around and saw a young monk in a green robe sitting next to him, holding a pot of wine in his hand and looking at him with a smile.

"Friend Lin? You're finally back."

When Zhou Yiqiao saw the person coming, he quickly put on a look of surprise on his face.

The person who came was Lin Yifeng, the independent cultivator who was the first to leave the main group that day.

"Haha, don't worry, Brother Zhou. I have brought good news."

Lin Yifeng smiled mysteriously and lowered his voice.

"I got some information outside the city, maybe it will be useful to you."

Zhou Yiqiao became excited upon hearing this and asked quickly.

"Oh? What did Fellow Daoist Lin find?"

Lin Yifeng took a sip of wine and said slowly.

"I met an old hunter outside the city. He told me that recently, monks from the Shadow Alliance have been appearing in an abandoned mine outside the city. Their whereabouts are very strange."

"Abandoned mine?"

Zhou Yiqiao frowned, thought for a moment, and a glimmer of enlightenment appeared in his eyes.

"Could it be that there is a secret of the Shadow Alliance in that mine?"

"I think so."

Lin Yifeng nodded.

"Also, I noticed that the monks from the Shadow Alliance set up extremely strict security outside the mine, as if they were guarding something."

Zhou Yiqiao grasped the key and asked.

"Friend Lin, have you found out the defensive strength of the Shadow Alliance?"

Lin Yifeng nodded slightly and said seriously.

"I deliberately bypassed those guards and just took a general look, but didn't go in-depth."

"But from what I've observed, the security forces outside the mine are quite strong. There are at least dozens of Shadow Alliance monks patrolling the surroundings, and their cultivation bases are not low."

"Dozens of monks?"

Zhou Yiqiao frowned, and a trace of solemnity flashed in his eyes.

He originally wanted to go to the mine alone to find out the truth, but now it seems that he has to wait for the remaining three cultivators to come back, and only by working together can they break through the Shadow Alliance's defense.

"Friend Lin, you did a great job."

Zhou Yiqiao said in a deep voice

"After returning to Tianxuan Sect, I will certainly ask for credit for you in front of the Holy Son."

Hearing this, Lin Yifeng showed a hint of joy on his face and bowed.

"Thank you, Brother Zhou. I am only doing my part."

"However, the matter of this mine is of great importance, and we must proceed with caution."

Zhou Yiqiao continued.

"Fellow Daoist Lin, please go back to the restaurant and rest first. We will discuss countermeasures after the other three fellow Daoists return."

Lin Yifeng nodded in agreement, then stood up and left the tavern.

Zhou Yiqiao sat there, but his heart was surging.

He knew very well that the Shadow Alliance's actions in Xishu City this time were definitely not as simple as they seemed.

And this abandoned mine may be the key to uncovering all of this.

In the following days, Zhou Yiqiao waited in the restaurant for the return of the other three cultivators.

He kept an eye on the movements in the city, afraid of missing any clues.

Finally, on the evening of the third day, the other three cultivators returned to the restaurant one after another.

Zhou Yiqiao, who had been waiting anxiously, quickly gathered the four people and told them in detail about the abandoned mine discovered by Lin Yifeng and the alert situation of the Shadow Alliance.

"Everyone, as long as we can uncover the secret of this abandoned mine, we can find out the details of the Shadow Alliance in Xishu City and return to Tianxuan Sect!"