Perhaps because the ritual materials were sufficient and the site had been well chosen, Ming Chengzi had results after just one night.
Upon receiving the news, Chen Chuan immediately came to the altar. It was divided into three concentric tiers, with the very center serving as the place where sacrifices were offered.
Ming Chengzi invited him to the top of the altar and pointed below. "Xuanji, look. Prince Yi's whereabouts have been found."
Chen Chuan looked over. At the center below was a sand table depicting part of the Old Imperial Household's territory, chiefly the region surrounding Tiger Fang Isle. Near its border, a conspicuous depression could be clearly seen.
That depression plainly represented the target they had been searching for.
Ming Chengzi said, "Xuanji, to locate this man under normal circumstances, we would have to search in every direction. Ideally, we would need to examine the entire territory of the old dynasty, which would take far too long. But in my judgment, given Prince Yi's temperament, even if he went into hiding, he would not stray far from the foundation he had built. Thus, I searched only the area within five hundred li of Tiger Fang Isle.
"As expected, the strike hit its mark. He never left that place."
There was a trace of pride in his words. Five hundred li was not the limit of the technique; a thousand-li range would have been preferable, but that would have required three times as long, perhaps around three days before results could be seen.
By choosing five hundred li precisely, the ritual required only one night. Of course, this was not without risk. If they had failed to find him this time, they would have needed to use the Secret Technique again and expand the search area to a thousand