Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, but Thunderbolt Taoist Sect

Chapter 129 Plan Summary

"Snapped."

A long stick is placed on a blackboard that is out of step with the current style of painting. A bunch of things are written and drawn on it, and several small drawings that look like human statues are pasted on it.

Why do I say "suspected"? Because the paintings above are very simple and rough, revealing the artist's pursuit of minimalism; in fact, you can't tell who is who just by looking at the portraits.

"Okay, let's sort it out now."

Liu Qingyuan pulled out a pair of glasses without lenses from somewhere and put them on. He stood on the left side of the blackboard, holding a pointer, while Gu Chen stood on the right side. A small wooden sign was stuck in the hilt of their swords, with the words "Teaching Assistant" written on it.

"First of all, there are the illegal intruders. I never expected them to be so persistent."

A hundred years ago, after various intelligence reports confirmed that the two illegal time travelers who had infiltrated the Three Treasures Sect rebellion had not been caught. This meant that for over a hundred years, the two illegal time travelers had been hiding in the world of Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio. While their colleagues were arrested one after another, the two of them remained hidden and were not discovered. What legendary infiltrators!

I used to think the enemy was going for speed, but it turns out they were actually going for stealth. They were able to hide in this world for a hundred years, forcing the Heavenly Dao to call for outside help. Seriously, you illegal transmigrators have such perseverance, why do you have to be villains who destroy the world? You've been infiltrating for a hundred years for a mission, have you never thought about betraying your unscrupulous superior and killing him to take over?

"To be able to hide for so long without being discovered, regardless of their strength, they must have some special methods, such as that ability related to shadows."

As she spoke, Liu Qingyuan pointed to one of the paintings. In terms of elusiveness and difficulty, the "shadow man" that Shuangxiu encountered was the most fitting. It was still unclear whether this person had a physical body or not. Anyway, they could always see him but couldn't hit him. Even if you shone a light on him, you could only see his shadow projected onto the plane. Attacks were ineffective. He was purely a mechanical monster.

Liu Qingyuan was a little envious of this incredible ability, but only slightly. According to Juan Shoutian and Yuan Wuxiang's descriptions, the only humanoid form this guy had was the projected black shadow. He didn't even have a face; he was neither human nor ghost, and his disguises were much more pleasing to the eye.

"There's another one related to smoke. This guy seems to have said himself that he has connections with the Three Treasures Cult."

Back then, Jian Feidao and Ren Pingsheng learned from the captured leader of the Sanbao Sect that the illegal transmigrator who returned to search for their bodies claimed to be related to the Sanbao Sect. If he was one of the two transmigrators who infiltrated back then, and he used the leader's experimental technology to return and retrieve the research results, it would make sense.

Those cults classified as White Lotus sects are basically disposable, constantly changing their ideologies and terms, with little legitimate lineage. The Three Treasures Sect was not just involved in murder and arson; they also rebelled, researched the evil art of corpse refining, and became involved with illegal time travelers. Not only was the imperial court concerned about the remnants, but everyone, human or not, was watching them.

Given such special treatment, it's impossible for the sect to have survived for over a hundred years. At most, it would leave behind a legend about hidden treasures. The claim that the Three Treasures Sect provided clues for surrender is probably unfounded.

More likely, it's possible that the people from the Three Jewels Sect came because of Asura King's fame, and the illegal transmigrators, seeing that they were "acquaintances," remembered that they could still use the people they had wronged, and went back to find them.

But there's still one thing that doesn't make sense. Back in the Three Treasures Sect, the two time travelers were the leader's favored disciples, confidants, and capable subordinates, and could be instigated by him to pursue immortality. How could someone he saw every day before not recognize him now? It's true that over a hundred years have passed, but the leader's own experiences over the past century are blank; he's lived in a daze. He can remember his past rebellion and being betrayed and abandoned by his disciples, so there's no reason he wouldn't recognize his former disciples.

Moreover, those two non-human forms, one smoke and one shadow, couldn't have blended into the Three Treasures Sect, which was mostly composed of mortals at the time. If they really were them, their current inhuman and ghostly appearance would have been altered, and their ability to create a grotesque face might have been acquired during their subsequent century of infiltration.

Regardless, these two are the most capable in terms of concealment, and are the most likely to achieve the feat of remaining hidden in the shadows for over a hundred years without being discovered.

If that's the case, the fact that Shou Wanjie was able to lead illegal transmigrators to the south and mingle with the White Lotus Sect so quickly, without much opposition, suggests that someone among them might have done it before, just not as openly as him.

"Furthermore, we need to know the enemy's specific plans. Qingyangzi and the others have already found out that they intend to cut off the spiritual veins, or rather, sever them."

After a long struggle, the illegal transmigrators realized a problem: no matter how many people they killed or how much turmoil they stirred up, in the end, various powerful beings would cover for them, preventing the scale of destruction from expanding. The gradual encroachment was eventually too much; they were just scratching the surface of the world, and even after hundreds of years, they still wouldn't be able to finish.

Since there is a well-established cultivation system, spiritual energy is a crucial foundation in this world. If they can sever the flow of spiritual veins, the spirits in the mortal world will be unable to cultivate, and the gods in the heavens will also be delayed in receiving information. If they succeed, they can inflict heavy damage on the world and then slip away before the other side can react, thus bringing this mission to an end.

It's unclear what the other illegal transmigrators were thinking, but this is what Yi Yang and his group planned: everything they did before was for the sole purpose of damaging the spiritual veins. Even the formation that destroyed the murals was a small-scale experiment designed to sever the spiritual veins, which was then used on the murals.

The spiritual energy within the murals not only affects the entrances and exits, but also the stability of the world within the paintings. This is remarkably similar to the circulation of spiritual energy in the entire world of Liaozhai. The fact that the array can affect the murals indicates that the principles within them can be applied to reality.

This was the real reason Lan Ying and Yan returned to the capital. Lan Ying and Yi Yang had known about the mural for a long time. They had been living in the Yan family mansion, and their daily work was not just about helping the woman win the heart of the man.

At first, the "fairy" only looked for candidates in the capital, and Lan Ying naturally also targeted these captured scholars. Her cursed insects were very useful intelligence gatherers, and this method was invincible before she met Jian Feidao.

At that time, the intelligence in the capital had been almost fully collected. The scholar group itself was like a gathering place for events in Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio. In order to build connections and for future development, these scholars had contact with each other. A few close friends would talk about interesting things. Even if it only circulated among the scholars, it was enough for Lan Ying to find out.

It was easy for Lan Ying and Yi Yang to gather intelligence and find special people or things through them. It was because of their success in the capital that they encouraged the women of the Yan family to expand their search and arrest people in other places.

The information gathering was almost complete, and it was time to make the move. Originally, this grand plan would have taken a long time, but Liu Qingyuan arrived midway and captured one of their key members as soon as he arrived. The ability to change faces was very convenient, and he was adept at disguising himself. They could hide in the shadows for a long time because of the skin of the Skin-Changing Ghost.

The original plan was proceeding in an orderly manner. They could handle ordinary systems, since regular systems, due to various reasons and regulations, implement a one-to-one system host policy. Although the benefits and cheats are better than unorthodox methods, dealing with one-to-many situations is not easy, especially since they have already formed a fixed team and have a specific plan.

However, Liu Qingyuan's system is all about impersonation. Not only can she play multiple roles, but she also gets puppet show characters, which are characterized by great strength and unique style. This is a big blow to illegal transmigrators.

Moreover, Liu Qingyuan not only fought, but he also tricked his opponents. By directing and acting, he completely deceived the other side's plans and objectives.

"It's true that their abilities are all very special, but they basically don't follow the proper metaphysical path. Finding the specific location of spiritual veins and setting up large-scale formations are very likely to fall to Qingyangzi."

There are two sorcerers, Lan Ying and Yi Yang, but Lan Ying leans more towards Gu magic and control. Her cursed worms are special puppets, and they seem to be able to be used directly on people. Yi Yang always dresses as a sorcerer, and his abilities are described as those of a sorcerer. However, after spending more time with him, Shou Wanjie discovered that he is severely unbalanced. His greatest strengths are using special materials to research formations and attacks targeting the soul. He doesn't have much ability in feng shui or divination. He can deal with ordinary people, but he's not good at finding spiritual veins.

Based on these reasons, Qingyangzi went there. In any case, if the illegal transmigrators wanted to ensure their plan, they needed someone who knew Taoist magic. It was impossible to find a capable local Taoist, and the system they signed with was stingy and couldn't keep up with changing abilities.

"If that's the case, why don't I go with Qingyangzi?"

Across from the blackboard, someone spoke. Dressed in blue and white, with a white jade ornament on his headdress, holding a whisk, and carrying a sword on his back, it was none other than Lord Jingtao.

"I am also skilled in the study of formations and incantations. Wouldn't it be perfect if I went with Qingyangzi?"

Jingtao Jun's expression wasn't good. Wasn't he a Daoist innate master? Wasn't he Qingyangzi's friend? Weren't they both from the Holy Dragon's Mouth? You've brought them both out together, so why did only Qingyangzi go to the other side to infiltrate?

"In terms of color scheme, Shou Wanjie looks more like he's with Qingyangzi, but you don't match at all."

"Can you say that again?"

Who doesn't get along with whom? Qingyangzi Duwei couldn't stand hearing this.

"Hey, calm down."

Liu Qingyuan threw the pointer aside and reached out to press down Jingtao Jun's hand, which was poised to strike.

“If both of you go, it will arouse suspicion, and intelligence will not be able to be transmitted as quickly.”

To avoid being exposed, Liu Qingyuan, the undercover agent in the enemy's camp, was kept on the sidelines with very little information exchange, for fear of being detected by the enemy's system.

But this can't go on forever. They're all on the same side, and the lack of information between them increases the probability of accidents. For example, after being left to their own devices, Shou Wanjie led his enemies to a successful cult, while Liu Qingyuan, the original owner, was completely unaware of it.

The intelligence was so timely and complete this time because it was transmitted through Qingyangzi and Jingtaojun. You don't need to know how it was transmitted, as long as it was communicated with Qingyangzi, Jingtaojun has plenty of power and means.

On the enemy's side, Shou Wanjie's origins were already unclear, and getting Qingyangzi to go was only achieved through a series of coercion and inducements. Adding one more person was already difficult enough, and if Qingyangzi and Jingtaojun went together, it would seem very deliberate. Moreover, the enemy had been misled into having some stereotypes, thinking that all villains had to have a style like Shou Wanjie. Although Qingyangzi wasn't, at least his color scheme could be misleading, and he also had experience.

As for Jingtao Jun, his appearance is too upright, and the color scheme is blue and white, which makes it easy for enemies to associate him with something else. So Qingyangzi is enough.

"If you're not satisfied, you can do this: stay in touch with Qingyangzi and say you're Qingyangzi's spy left in the righteous sects. What does the Deputy Dao Master think?"

"...Do you really have to play with this nesting doll?"

Qingyangzi plays a good guy undercover agent who joins the villains, and he then plays a good guy undercover agent who joins the villains, planting himself in the good guys' ranks as a villain. As clones, they sometimes can't understand the strange actions of the original.

Looking at the enemy side, they've all been completely fooled. If it weren't for the fact that those people are all incredibly skilled and cunning, and Liu Qingyuan was afraid of an unexpected mishap at the end, he would have already stormed into the enemy's lair. There would be no need to deploy so many aliases.

"Alright, let's continue."

Seeing that Jingtao had calmed down, Liu Qingyuan picked up the pointer again and continued his "lecture," which was like organizing clues in a murder mystery game. It was unclear what the "students" were thinking, but he certainly had his fill of the ritual.

"If the task of exploring the spiritual veins falls to Qingyangzi and Shou Wanjie, then we're in a safe position."

Liu Qingyuan not only has the Taoist identity given to him by the system, but also local connections in the world of Liaozhai, including people from heaven and earth, demons and immortals. Now that he knows the enemy's specific purpose, it will be easy for him to make moves inside.

"The situation at Xian Shou's place is almost resolved. The Daoist friends from Laoshan will help deal with those strongholds where spirits are imprisoned. Having them come over should clear up some misunderstandings."

The White Lotus Sect's rampant killing of spirits, though instigated by illegal transmigrators, is seen by the spirits as victims as humans provoking them. If this is not dealt with, it will eventually escalate into a conflict between humans and demons, a conflict so intense that the instigator can easily escape.

Some powerful demons have already destroyed the White Lotus Sect's strongholds to support their juniors. The Taoist priests of Laoshan are renowned, and only if they step forward to explain will the other side be willing to listen.

The reason why illegal transmigrators hunted and killed a large number of monsters was to use them for the formation that cut off the spiritual veins. They dissected the corpses of the dead to refine the materials, and they kept the living ones to extract their spiritual energy to use as a power source.

There is also a special type among them, which are those with special bloodlines, whether they are hybrids or descendants of divine beasts. Being special means that they have a unique kind of luck, which enemies can take advantage of to interfere with the circulation of spiritual energy and the judgment of the Heavenly Dao.

"When Xiao Cui comes back, let her stay at Ying Ning's house first."

The next focus is on... cough, no, it's about outsmarting the illegal transmigrators. Liu Qingyuan wasn't sure if she could play the role well during this time, so to be on the safe side, she decided to keep Xiao Cui, the native, away to avoid scaring her.

Moreover, Yingning... isn't she a special case of a human-fox hybrid? In any case, it's always good to protect her.