I am Zhao Zhijing, a poor Taoist priest, and I have disciples all over the world.

With Zhang Wuji's arrival, Song Qingshu decided to travel to Dadu. However, the affairs of the Huashan Sect and the people in the surrounding area had just begun to improve, and they still needed capable people to oversee and manage them.

Therefore, Song Qingshu took Xiao Zhao and Song Yan, who often gathered information in the martial arts world, with him to Dadu.

In this way, the Huashan Sect, Wudang Sect, and Ming Cult would each send three people. However, after careful discussion, the Ming Cult would secretly arrange another batch of reinforcements in case of emergency.

"Xu Zhuo, Zhang Yao, when I am not at Mount Hua, you two remember to guard the gate. If there is any disturbance, you can stop what you are doing to prevent any unforeseen circumstances."

"Elder He, you are a senior member of the Huashan Sect. No one in the sect knows the situation in this area better than you. Please give them some pointers."

For three months, He Songyan, who was serving as a substitute for Song Qingshu, worked diligently and meticulously on all the matters he was entrusted with. He has now redeemed himself and has been promoted back to Elder Lvde.

After making all the arrangements, Song Qingshu and his group officially set off for Dadu. The further north they went, the closer they got to the power center of the Mongol court. The number of refugees and disaster victims seemed to decrease, but life for the Han people was still extremely difficult.

That afternoon, a group of nine riders finally arrived at Dadu, the capital of the Yuan Dynasty. For a century, the Mongol army had traversed the world, reaching as far east as the Far East where the Russian Empire was located, as far west as the middle reaches of the Danube River in the Kingdom of France, as far south as the Indus River basin of the Khwarazmian Empire, and as far north as the extremely cold Xianbei region.

The Mongol Empire was vast, spanning thousands of miles. No other great power in history had such a vast territory. As a result, envoys and tribute bearers from various small countries and tribes came in an endless stream. Most of them had blond hair and blue eyes, and were quite different from the Han people.

Seeing that the city gates were heavily guarded, the group split into three groups and entered the city separately. After arriving at the West City, where the four major sects were imprisoned at Wan'an Temple, they found inns to stay overnight, so as not to attract attention and be secretly watched by someone.

"Sect Leader, Wan'an Temple is located at the westernmost part of the city. It used to be a temple where everyone could go to burn incense and worship Buddha, but in the past six months, many monks from the Western Regions have moved in."

"It is said that when they see ordinary people, they can curse or kill them at will. It is commonplace for them to abduct women in broad daylight. So now almost no one dares to go near there."

Song Yan, with his extensive experience, quickly gathered information about Wan'an Temple. Wei Yixiao and Zhang Songxi were even more adept at it. After the three parties met and confirmed their findings, the information was largely accurate.

"Senior Brother Song, what do you think we should do?"

Although Zhang Wuji was the leader of the Ming Cult, Song Qingshu was still the one who led the group in rescuing the four major sects.

After all, he came from the Wudang Sect, had done a favor for the Ming Cult at Bright Peak, and is now the leader of the Huashan Sect. His character, martial arts, and strategies are all enough to win people's respect, making him undoubtedly the most suitable candidate.

"Zhao Min did not mobilize the imperial army, but instead had the Western Region monks guard it. She must have known all along that Wan'an Temple could not be hidden."

Although Song Qingshu had a general idea of ​​what was going on, he couldn't possibly know all the details about Wan'an Temple. Therefore, it was imperative for him to sneak into Wan'an Temple tonight.

“Junior Brother Wuji, Bat King Wei, let’s go to Wan’an Temple together to investigate the situation after nightfall, and then we can make a plan.”

Among the nine, Song Qingshu and Zhang Wuji are the most skilled in martial arts, while Wei Yixiao is the best in lightness skill. The others, such as Yang Xiao and Yu Lianzhou, are about the same level.

However, this time it's only for intelligence gathering, so there's no need for everyone to go together, lest we alert the enemy.

Yang Xiao said, "Sect Leader Song, Sect Leader, and Bat King Wei, the three of you together are invincible, but I really can't think of a second person as cunning as Miss Zhao."

"Therefore, I urge the three of you to be careful. If you encounter any unexpected events, do not fight back. Safety is of utmost importance." Zhang Songxi also said, "There are at least several hundred masters from the four major sects who are being held captive in Wan'an Temple. If it weren't for Qing Shu, I'm afraid our Wudang Sect and Huashan Sect would not have escaped this calamity either."

"To be able to manipulate the six major sects at will, the number of experts and the strength of their methods are self-evident. Be careful in everything."

Faced with everyone's instructions, Song Qingshu and Zhang Wuji agreed to them one by one. Afterwards, they rested and recuperated, and agreed to set off together at the second watch of the night.

The time came quickly, and the once bustling streets were now only occasionally visited by patrolling soldiers responsible for night defense.

Using their lightness skills, Song Qingshu and his companions searched westwards, choosing secluded spots. Before long, by the moonlight, they spotted the spire of a pagoda in the distance.

Upon closer inspection, from the higher ground and under the cover of trees, one could see countless temple buildings, covering a vast area and boasting a grand scale that rivaled even the Shaolin Temple. No wonder it could accommodate so many people.

"Senior brother, look, there are dozens of guards on each floor of that tower. The defenses are so tight that people from the four major sects must be among them."

The pagoda located behind the main hall of Wan'an Temple is thirteen stories high. Not only is the only entrance heavily guarded, but there are also constant patrols on each platform.

Song Qingshu came tonight for two reasons: first, to find out the situation in the temple; and more importantly, to lure out Fan Yao, the Right Envoy of Light who had disguised himself as the Bitter Monk and infiltrated the Prince of Ruyang's mansion. Therefore, he wouldn't take the current security measures too seriously, even if they were watertight.

On the contrary, the thought of possibly meeting Zhao Min next stirred up a slightly strange feeling in his heart. He didn't know how to enjoy the sentiments represented by the osmanthus wine and jade mooncakes.

After observing carefully for a while, it was confirmed that the situation on the surface was already difficult to handle, and given Zhao Min's meticulous mind, she would definitely be preparing a backup plan in secret.

Furthermore, once a conflict breaks out, the large contingent of troops responsible for defending the city will arrive and immediately form an encirclement. At that time, apart from a few top experts, everyone else will be unable to escape.

The three had agreed beforehand not to act rashly, so they prepared to leave quietly. Suddenly, a fire appeared on the tower, and they descended from about the fifth or sixth floor to the bottom.

"It's Miss Zhou from the Emei Sect!"

Several Western Region monks, each armed, were seen escorting a frail woman forward. Zhang Wuji cried out in alarm, fearing for her safety.

Song Qingshu slowly waved his hand, and the three of them used the ancient trees in the temple to hide their figures and slowly approached from the side until the group of Tibetan monks and Zhou Zhiruo entered the back gate of Wan'an Temple before they stopped.

The pagoda was heavily guarded, while Wan'an Temple was unguarded. After confirming that there was no disturbance, the three of them sneaked in one after another. They immediately saw a brightly lit hall inside and heard the sounds of fighting coming from it.

"Master, Sect Leader Song, I'll stay here and keep watch."

Wei Yixiao kept watch to prevent being discovered or attacked from the shadows. Song Qingshu and Zhang Wuji exchanged a glance, then leaped onto the corridor connecting the main hall and peered inside through the window.

"Miss Zhou, if you don't want to end up like He Taichong of the Kunlun Sect and Tang Wenliang of the Kongtong Sect, I advise you to surrender as soon as possible." (End of Chapter)