Investigating Strange Events

A spacious courtyard.

A multi-story pavilion stood tall.

The Left Guardian, Guo Linyu, stood in a corner pavilion, holding a handful of fish food and casting it into the river, attracting a large number of vibrant red carp to scramble for it.

Two men, one tall and one short, walked over from a distance. They were Hu Biao and Fan Hu, who had recently volunteered to investigate the mysterious incident with Jiang Dao.

They arrived behind Guo Linyu and cupped their fists in greeting, "Greetings, Left Guardian!"

"Mm, you've arrived."

Guo Linyu scattered the last of the fish food into the lake, gently clapped his hands, turned around, and said calmly, "If this trip to Greenstone Town goes well, I'll find a way to get you both an internal energy cultivation technique."

The eyes of the two men flashed, and they clasped their fists again, "Thank you, Guardian!"

The Left Guardian nodded gently, patted the taller man's shoulder, and whispered, "Your strength is not weak. You have always been my secret confidants. When I become the sect leader in the future, you will both be my right and left hands. I'll have to trouble you both for a while longer."

"Rest assured, Guardian, your subordinates will do their utmost!"

The two men replied in low voices.

"It's better to be safe than sorry. I have a bottle of [Golden Wave Poison Mist] here. When the time comes, you can open it gently. Just inhaling a wisp will be enough to poison Jiang Dao to death. Besides the [Golden Wave Poison Mist], there are also two antidotes. You each take one for emergencies!"

The Left Guardian took out two porcelain bottles from his person.

One was black, and the other was red. He handed them both to the taller man.

The taller man, Hu Biao, put them all into his embrace, and said coldly, "He's just a junior. No matter how powerful he is, he can't be that formidable!"

"There must be no mistakes. Make sure to destroy the evidence."

Guo Linyu said.

The two men nodded solemnly again and left the area.

On the way back, Jiang Dao frowned, constantly pondering Fang Tianba's words.

Did Fang Tianba have such high expectations of him?

Knowing that he had a feud with Guo Linyu, he still agreed to Guo Linyu's suggestion. Wasn't he afraid that Guo Linyu would play dirty?

Wasn't this clearly problematic?

And that Hu Biao clearly harbored hostility towards him!

Could it be that the sect leader also doesn't trust me and wants to see us fight?

He pondered in his mind.

However, no matter what conspiracy was in play, if those two accompanying him dared to show any abnormality, he would strike first and crush them.

He opened his interface and looked at the three cultivation techniques before him.

Wind Thunder Palm (Novice) [Modifiable].

Gale Wind Saber Technique (Novice) [Modifiable].

Golden Bell Body Protection Divine Art (Novice) [Modifiable].

Jiang Dao immediately focused his intent and clicked the button behind them.

Swish!

The three cultivation techniques instantly began to change rapidly.

The text behind them blurred for a moment, then quickly improved.

In the blink of an eye, all three cultivation techniques became completely still.

Wind Thunder Palm (Sixty Years Later) [Unmodifiable].

Gale Wind Saber Technique (Sixty Years Later) [Unmodifiable].

Golden Bell Body Protection Divine Art (Sixty Years Later) [Unmodifiable].

At the same time, the data on the panel began to increase again.

Strength: 4.2

Speed: 3.4

Spirit: 1.4

As I suspected, low-level techniques can be modified to sixty years instantly, while high-level techniques can only be modified to thirty years.

Jiang Dao's eyes flickered.

Countless pieces of information flooded his mind, as if he had practiced each martial art for sixty years. All sorts of skills and profound insights came to him effortlessly, and his body and palms began to change as well.

His skin and fascia became even thicker and harder, and the muscles and blood vessels beneath his skin were also extending.

The joints in his palms alone increased in size by a whole segment.

Jiang Dao tensed his body, and immediately felt an immense power surge through him.

He believed that if he unleashed his full strength, all the muscles in his body would instantly expand, making him taller and larger than before.

Jiang Dao looked at his palm.

His palms were broad, his fingers long and slender, as if honed by years of practice, filled with latent power.

"The Wind Thunder Palm is already complete?"

Jiang Dao murmured to himself.

With sixty years of cultivation in the Wind Thunder Palm, who could withstand its full-force strike?

Swish!

He casually swept his hand, the strong wind shattering with a piercing sound, like rolling thunder, a frightening noise.

Before long, Jiang Dao returned to his Flying Eagle Hall. After giving some instructions to everyone, he began waiting at the entrance. About half an hour later, a group of people galloped from a distance.

There were over ten of them, dressed in fine clothes and riding fine horses, armed with weapons, their eyes cold as they sped through the street.

The two leading them were Hu Biao and Fan Hu. One was tall and thin, like a bamboo pole, dressed in a linen robe. The other was short and stout, around forty years old, wearing a black robe.

The aura of these two was distinctly different from the others around them.

"Hall Master Jiang, are we ready to depart?"

The tall and thin Hu Biao asked, his voice hoarse, staring at Jiang Dao.

He didn't even dismount, his gaze indifferent as he looked down at Jiang Dao.

Jiang Dao sized up the man and replied, "Let's go!"

He signaled for his men to bring the horses, then mounted his own. The group galloped out of the city in a grand procession.

There was no conversation along the way. Since they departed in the afternoon, by the time they arrived at Greenstone Town after a hurried journey, it was already close to dusk.

The sun was setting in the west, casting a dim light that made most of Greenstone Town appear gloomy and desolate.

The town was sparsely populated, eerily silent and bleak.

Occasionally, a gust of wind would blow, scattering piles of paper money, and a faint smell of decay hung in the air.

Many doorways were firmly shut.

Jiang Dao's gaze deepened.

A profoundly familiar feeling instantly struck his heart.

How similar was the current town to Hengzhou City in the past?

"Where is the branch here?"

Jiang Dao asked casually.

The people behind him remained silent.

The tall and short figures, Hu Biao and Fan Hu, their expressions calm, paid no attention to Jiang Dao, their gazes slowly sweeping in all directions.

Jiang Dao frowned and said, "What? Are you all deaf?"

The short and stout man, Fan Hu, chuckled, "What's the hurry? It's right up ahead!"

He urged his horse forward, heading deeper into the town.

The others followed suit.

Jiang Dao observed them, his expression unreadable, a faint killing intent flickering in his eyes. He urged his horse forward, following closely behind.

It wasn't long.

After passing through two streets, the group finally saw a relatively large courtyard wall ahead. It had white plastered walls and stretched for dozens of meters, with a lacquered red gate in the center.

Four men in black stood at the entrance. However, these men all had white cloth wrapped around their waists.

Several white banners were also planted in front of the gate.

"Whoa!"

The group reined in their horses. Hu Biao said hoarsely, "Where is your manager? Have him come out!"

Upon seeing the people from headquarters, the men at the gate immediately changed their expressions and quickly ran into the courtyard.

Before long, a middle-aged man in manager's attire, followed by a group of people, rushed out, his face flustered. He quickly cupped his fists and said, "This humble one is Lü An. I greet Hall Master Hu and Hall Master Fan. Please forgive my poor reception!"

"Get up. This is Hall Master Jiang!"

Hu Biao nodded and introduced Jiang Dao.

Lü An's expression changed again, and he hurriedly bowed once more, saying, "This humble one greets Hall Master Jiang!"

"Tell me how those people disappeared and where they disappeared,"

Jiang Dao dismounted and asked.

After he dismounted, Hu Biao and Fan Hu remained seated on their horses, unmoved.

Jiang Dao frowned and looked back, "Aren't you getting down?"

Hu Biao, still high on his horse, remained silent.

Fan Hu forced a smile and said, "Hall Master Jiang, we are merely assisting you with the investigation. You have no right to restrain us."

Jiang Dao gave the two a deep look and said no more.

"Reporting to Hall Master Jiang, the situation is strange. It can likely be traced back a month ago..."

Lü An's face was pale, and he shivered, saying in horror, "About a month ago, the two deacons guarding this place inexplicably became infatuated with Buddhism. At first, they were normal, just setting up Buddha statues in their rooms and chanting scriptures, bowing, and kowtowing every morning and evening.

But as time went by, the two deacons became increasingly abnormal. Not only did they chant scriptures morning and evening, but they often stayed up all night. The sound of chanting could be heard from their rooms all night long. The crucial point was that this sound was demonic and strange, lacking the peace and compassion of Buddhist scriptures. It sounded more like evil spirits chanting..."

His body trembled, his eyes filled with dread, and he said, "I often had to get up at night, and I heard this sound more than once. Every time I heard it, I felt a chill run down my spine, as if something strange was staring at me from behind...

But that wasn't all. Gradually, the two deacons became more and more excessive. They made other gang members follow them in believing in Buddhism, staying up all night every day to chant scriptures together in their rooms... The scene was extremely bizarre...

And the situation continued until three days ago.

Three nights ago, I had to get up at night again. That night, I clearly heard waves of strange Buddhist chanting. But when I came out of the outhouse, the chanting sounds had all disappeared!"

"I originally thought that the two deacons and many brothers were tired from chanting and wanted to rest for a bit. But to my surprise, the next day, their room doors were still tightly shut and locked from the inside. It was only then that I realized something had happened.

After I had someone break down the door, we discovered that all the deacons and key members who had been chanting in the room had completely vanished!"