Chapter 2994 — Seeking Refuge with the Mysterious Pill Sect

"Chen Xi's father? Zhao Guangyin?" Wei Zhao instantly connected the two figures in his mind. Could it be that Zhao Guangyin, after leaving the Hidden Zhao family, had abducted Chen Xi in order to use her as a bargaining chip against him, to force him to spare the Hidden Zhao family?

No matter how he turned it over, that was the only possibility he could conceive. Yet Zhao Guangyin had already succeeded, and still had not called him to lay out his terms—what sense did that make? Did Zhao Guangyin not understand that time was money?

Every additional moment he spent in the Hidden Zhao residence was another sliver of danger for the Hidden Zhao family. By now their core disciples and forces were all dead, and still there was no move from Zhao Guangyin. It did not fit with common sense. Could it be that he had some other use for Chen Xi?

But at this point, no amount of speculation could do anything but make Wei Zhao fret in vain. Zhao Guangyin and Elder Mian were both cultivators, and Earth-rank ones at that; evading pursuit and going to ground would be simplicity itself for them. Even if Wei Zhao enlisted Qiu Lingshan's help in the search, it would likely come to nothing.

At that thought, Wei Zhao first offered reassurance: "Ziyu, don't panic. The one who took Chen Xi really is her father. I'll handle this matter—just look after your own safety!"

"Mm, I understand. Then you must get Ziyu back as quickly as you can, Brother Wei Zhao. If anything happens to her, what will we do?" Ying Ziyu urged.

"Don't worry, Ziyu. I'm anxious too," Wei Zhao nodded in reply.

After hanging up, Wei Zhao told the others that Zhao Guangyin had abducted Chen Xi. Everyone was baffled; none could fathom why Zhao Guangyin would take Chen Xi. If he meant to threaten Wei Zhao, would it not have been better to seize Ying Ziyu as well?

Puzzling as it was, Wei Zhao immediately dialed Chief Zhu's number. Chen Xi's safety had always been Chief Zhu's responsibility—but when the call connected, no one answered for a long, long while.

Wei Zhao frowned. It seemed Chief Zhu had run into trouble too; whether he was in danger, there was no way to tell for the moment. "Has anyone seen Zhu the Second?"

"No!" Han Tianba knew Zhu the Second, but he had not seen him among the people earlier. He had not thought anything of it at the time; only now, looking back, did he realize something was wrong.

Wei Zhao nodded, his expression grave. As things stood, either Zhu the Second and Chief Zhu were still with Chen Xi, or both of them had been exposed.

And from the look of it, exposure was the likelier explanation—otherwise Chief Zhu could not possibly keep letting the phone ring unanswered.

"Mr. Lin, Elder Pi and I will both mobilize our families' resources to search for Zhao Guangyin's whereabouts. As for Old Master Zhuang, you had best contact him as well—after all, the hidden families all have some influence," Han Tianba said hastily, seeing Wei Zhao's frown.

"That's all we can do." Wei Zhao nodded, then dialed Ge Xian's number. Ge Xian was the cultivator world's know-it-all; if anyone had channels to dig up news of Zhao Guangyin, it would be him. Of course, that depended on Zhao Guangyin still showing himself in cultivator circles—if he had gone into hiding, no one could do a thing.

"Chief?" Ge Xian picked up. "Chief, I was just about to call you! Word is your meridians and dantian have been completely destroyed—that rumor's already circulating among the ancient-tier circles. What on earth happened? When you called me before, you never mentioned any of this!"

"It's nothing. I'm fine, don't worry," Wei Zhao said. "I'm calling because I need you to look into two people for me. One is Zhao Guangyin, the young head of the Hidden Zhao family. The other is Chen Xi, Zhao Guangyin's illegitimate daughter!"

"Oh? Very well, Chief, I've noted it down. If they show themselves in cultivator circles, I should be able to pick up word of them," Ge Xian said with a nod. He did not ask why, only: "When I find these two, should I take measures to seize them first, or—"

"If possible, it's best to sound out what they're up to and tail their movements. Catching them would of course be good, but I fear you're no match for Zhao Guangyin—your strength is about even," Wei Zhao said.

"That works too. If I'm on my own, I'll just scout their movements first, and only make my move once I have enough hands," Ge Xian said.

"Good. I'll leave this to you!" Wei Zhao said.

For now, all they could do was wait for further news, and this cast a pall over Wei Zhao's previously decent mood. Seeing his grim expression, the others naturally did not dare bring up any celebration, and Zhao Qitan felt all the more guilty—all of this had been stirred up by his former family, the Hidden Zhao family.

……………………

On a battered, crumbling national highway, an unremarkable old-model Mitsubishi Pajero SUV tore along at breakneck speed! The car was plain and antiquated, but its speed was extraordinary—which is to say, its driver was an outstanding racer!

And he was, astonishingly, a one-armed man! That's right—this one-armed man was none other than Zhao Qibing. His driving skill was truly formidable; even missing an arm, it did not hamper his technique in the slightest.

Three people sat in the car: Zhao Guangyin, Elder Mian, and the unconscious Chen Xi!

"Qibing, will this really work? This is the Hidden Zhao family's last chance at revival!" Zhao Guangyin said with some worry.

"Dad, rest easy. I've already made contact with Elder Kang Zhaoming of the Mysterious Pill Sect. He said that when their young sect master, Tian Canbian, used to cultivate, he would find young girls to serve as cauldrons, draining their yin essence dry and refining it into true qi for his own strength. He once had a maidservant named Tian Die—he drained her to death!" Zhao Qibing said with certainty. "Chen Xi has a first-rate cauldron physique. When Tian Canbian is pleased, he'll surely grant us father and son great benefits. By then, even entering the Mysterious Pill Sect as a disciple will be no problem. One of us in the Mysterious Pill Sect, one in the Night Palace—when we rebuild the Hidden Zhao family, we'll see if that Wei Zhao still dares provoke us!"

"Mm... that's the only way, then!" Zhao Guangyin nodded and sighed. "Your grandfather's side is likely finished by now..."

"Finished is finished. Blame that stubborn old fool for his muddled head—insisting on provoking Wei Zhao himself, never knowing how to borrow others' strength. If he had been willing to give Chen Xi away early on to bribe the Mysterious Pill Sect, Wei Zhao would have been dead long ago!" Zhao Qibing said with disdain. (To be continued.)