Translator: Cinder Translations
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"Yan Yiwen?" The elderly man thought for a mont and then asked.
"Senior, are you referring to the personal disciple of Tai He, the Nascent Soul ancestor of Nine Palaces Sect?"
Song Wen nodded.
The elderly man turned his head to glance at the street outside the shop, then waved his hand, forming a soundproof barrier.
"As for Yan Yiwen, I don’t know much about her. Since she successfully reached the Golden Core stage 80 years ago, she has rarely shown herself in public. Even many of the Foundation Establishnt disciples within Nine Palaces Sect have never seen her."
"Do you know if she’s still alive?" Song Wen asked.
The elderly man spoke with so uncertainty, "She should still be alive. A year ago, she made an appearance inside Nine Palaces Sect."
"A year ago, what was her cultivation level at the ti?" Song Wen continued to ask.
The elderly man shook his head, "I don’t know. My information cos from a Foundation Establishnt friend within Nine Palaces Sect who has never seen Yan Yiwen in person. Even if she had seen her, she might not have been able to discern her cultivation."
Song Wen pondered for a mont before asking again.
"What do you know about Tai He?"
The elderly man’s pupils slightly contracted, seemingly in disbelief that Song Wen would dare inquire about the Nascent Soul ancestor’s information.
"As for Ancestor Tai He, I only know so publicly known facts," the elderly man replied.
"Please elaborate," Song Wen urged.
"Ancestor Tai He is 660 years old. He advanced to the mid-Nascent Soul stage 130 years ago and beca famous throughout the cultivation world for his expertise in drawing ’Minor Teleportation Talismans’..."
The elderly man went on in great detail, but most of what he said had little value.
"What is his current cultivation level?" Song Wen asked.
This was the question that mattered most to him.
If Tai He was still at the mid-Nascent Soul stage, Song Wen felt confident he could easily escape if he ever had to face him.
However, if Tai He had advanced to the late-Nascent Soul stage, with a spiritual sense range of 300 miles, it would be nearly identical to Song Wen’s maximum range for his Blood Escape technique. In that case, his chances of escaping would be greatly reduced.
The elderly man spoke in an uncertain tone, "He should still be at the mid-Nascent Soul stage. There has been no news of him advancing to the late-Nascent Soul stage."
Upon hearing this, Song Wen silently thought.
Years ago, he had soul-searched three peak Foundation Establishnt cultivators from Nine Palaces Sect and learned that Tai He had taken Yan Yiwen as his disciple in order to harvest her Primordial Yin and break through to the late-Nascent Soul stage.
However, due to Yan Yiwen’s low cultivation level at the ti, her Primordial Yin was insufficiently powerful, so Tai He had not yet made a move.
Song Wen speculated that in order for Tai He to use Yan Yiwen’s Primordial Yin to break through the bottleneck and advance to the late-Nascent Soul stage, Yan Yiwen would need to have reached the late Golden Core stage at the very least.
In the 80 years since, if Tai He had invested enough cultivation resources, it was possible that Yan Yiwen’s talent could have allowed her to reach the late Golden Core stage.
And the fact that she had appeared a year ago ant that Tai He had not yet taken her Primordial Yin.
However, this did not necessarily an that her Primordial Yin was insufficient. It could also be that Tai He’s cultivation had not yet reached the bottleneck of the mid-Nascent Soul stage.
After all, Tai He had only advanced to the mid-Nascent Soul stage 130 years ago.
Song Wen took out a high-grade spiritual stone and placed it on the counter.
The elderly man’s eyes lit up, and he was about to reach for it when his hand suddenly froze in mid-air.
"Senior, the information I provided should not be worth a high-grade spiritual stone," the elderly man said with a touch of self-awareness.
Song Wen responded, "I have a task for you."
"Please tell , Senior. If it’s within my abilities, I will do my best to complete it; if not, I hope you can forgive ," the elderly man said, fully aware that spiritual stones were not easily obtained and thus did not make any promises hastily.
Song Wen said, "Have your Nine Palaces Sect friend investigate Tai He’s recent movents."
The old man withdrew his hand, which had been hovering in the air, and apologized sincerely.
"Apologies, Senior. Forgive for declining, not because I am unwilling, but because my friend in Nine Palaces Sect cannot possibly accomplish such a task."
Song Wen glanced at the old man, showing no intention of making things difficult for him. He reached out to pick up the spirit stone on the counter, intending to put it away, when the old man quickly spoke.
"Senior, wait. I have another piece of information that might be worth a high-grade spirit stone."
"Oh? Let hear it," Song Wen replied, his interest piqued.
"About seventy years ago, Yan Yiwen, who had been absent from the public eye, briefly reappeared. She went on a spree of capturing corpse cultivators, killing many Foundation Establishnt corpse cultivators. She even captured a rogue Golden Core corpse cultivator alive. Later, she inadvertently captured a Foundation Establishnt cultivator from the Corpse Demon Sect, which provoked the sect’s Golden Core-level experts to confront Nine Palaces Sect. In the end, it was Tai He who personally stepped in to resolve the matter," the old man explained.
"Do you know why she was capturing corpse cultivators?" Song Wen asked.
The old man shook his head. "I do not know."
Hearing this, Song Wen quietly pondered.
Yan Yiwen’s actions against the corpse cultivators happened around seventy years ago, shortly after she ford her Golden Core.
She had remained in seclusion ever since forming her Golden Core.
The clues were sparse, and Song Wen could not piece together the connection between these events.
He casually tossed a spirit stone onto the counter.
The old man was montarily stunned upon seeing the solitary spirit stone.
It was not the high-grade spirit stone from earlier but a mid-grade one.
At so point, Song Wen had swapped it out.
"The information you provided is only worth this much," Song Wen remarked, then turned and headed toward the door.
As he exited the shop, the broker from earlier approached him.
"Senior, did you get the information you were looking for?" the broker asked, smiling ingratiatingly.
"Take to the ’Secret Records Pavilion’ of Nine Palaces Sect," Song Wen said coolly.
The broker’s expression turned awkward.
Having dealt with many cultivators over the years, he had developed a keen ability to read people.
With most custors, flattering words and observing subtle cues often earned him a few extra spirit stones.
However, individuals like Song Wen, who displayed no visible emotions, were the most challenging to gauge.
A single misstep could provoke their anger, potentially leading to fatal consequences.
Although fights were strictly prohibited in Anzhou City, killing low-level cultivators like brokers typically resulted in nothing more than a minor spirit stone fine.
"Please follow , Senior," the broker said cautiously.
After receiving Song Wen’s nod of approval, the broker led the way.
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The Secret Records Pavilion was a place where all kinds of information were traded and purchased.
Cultivators ca here daily in large numbers for various reasons: seeking clues about rare spiritual herbs or techniques, buying information about enemies, or using the pavilion’s extensive network to locate people.
Upon reaching the pavilion, Song Wen handed the broker ten spirit stones to dismiss him.
He then entered the pavilion alone.
The Secret Records Pavilion was vast, divided into sections that categorized and priced different types of information.
Song Wen stepped into the "Person Tracking" area of the First-Class Section, the most expensive part of the tracking information zone.
(End of the Chapter)
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