The Prefect's Worry, Lying in Wait in a Small Alley

"It can also lurk within shadows."

"It is almost impossible to be touched by any physical matter."

"What miraculous power!"

At the Jade City Government Office, Prefect Fang Yuqing looked at the Chief Constable before him, Fei Yangming, with a grave expression.

"Have you investigated clearly?"

Chief Constable Fei Yangming wore a solemn face.

"My Lord, according to the coroner's investigation."

"This person was likely a cultivator belonging to the Blood Demon Sect."

"The cause of death was a single blade thrust from the center of the brow to the tip of the nose, piercing straight through the brain."

"The location where the body was found was not the primary crime scene. We have already dispatched capable constables and officers to search, but as of now, we have yet to discover the potential primary scene."

"I have carefully examined the envelope found on his person; it appears to be a secret letter that requires the Blood Demon Sect's specific decryption method to reveal its contents."

"This person's identity was likely a sleeper agent planted by the Blood Demon Sect within Jade City."

"Through identity verification, we found this man was the owner of a rice shop."

"Currently, our men are monitoring that shop, but we have not taken formal action yet."

Fang Qingyu's expression turned slightly more serious upon hearing this. "You have done well."

"Send the token and the envelope to the Demon Extermination Hall; such matters should be handled by them."

"We must not interfere in the disputes between ordinary orthodoxies."

"Yes, My Lord!"

Fei Yangming nodded hurriedly.

"You may go!"

Fei Yangming retreated respectfully.

Jade City Prefect Fang Qingyu was a man of about thirty years old.

With a dignified face and a goatee, he exuded an air of official authority as he sat in a grand armchair, tapping his fingers rhythmically against the armrest.

A look of contemplation crossed his face. "The Blood Demon Sect, one of the four great demonic orthodoxies, has long entrenched itself in the Northern Desert and serves as the primary orthodoxy of the Northern Barbarians."

"Could it be that the barbarians of the north are making a move?"

"That secret letter must not be simple."

"Perhaps I should inform my sect. The last time the Academy sent word, they told me to keep a close watch on the Northern Barbarians, as the demonic path seems to be stirring."

Fang Qingyu's eyes were filled with worry; an inexplicable sense of crisis seemed to shroud the future.

Li Qing wandered the streets of Jade City. He had already mastered the Shadow Art, allowing him to enter shadows and become formless.

However, he had discovered a problem: the essence energy within the shadows was completely different from the essence energy produced by the Essence Blood Art and Martial Art he cultivated himself.

The appearance of a second, distinct type of essence energy within his body sparked an idea in his mind.

Could it be that different spells and different cultivation techniques produce different types of essence energy?

If the essence energy becomes too complex, what consequences might arise?

Vaguely, he recalled the tropes from novels where conflicting attributes led to a deviation in cultivation, resulting in madness.

Before I fully understand the situation, it is best not to practice spells or techniques of conflicting attributes.

The Spirit Blood Art and the Martial Art are both based on essence energy derived from the bloodline, so their attributes are compatible and harmonize well.

The next time I seek a new technique or spell, it would be best to prioritize those based on bloodline essence energy.

At this moment, he was strolling through various bookstores.

His first technique had been obtained at the Huayue Study, and he wanted to see if there were any more opportunities to stumble upon a hidden treasure.

He had already visited three bookstores in a row and touched no fewer than a thousand different books, but not a single one had any connection to cultivation.

They were all classics, histories, biographies, or works of fiction.

After wandering around, he suddenly stopped in his tracks, his gaze fixed on a small alleyway.

That was where he had dumped the body the day before yesterday; the corpse was already gone.

He shook his head silently. "The body must have been discovered. Since no one has come knocking these past two days, it seems they haven't found any clues."

"I saw someone pass by here that night; I can come back to take a look tonight."

"If I lie in wait, perhaps I can encounter someone from a mysterious orthodoxy."

"I need to make contact with the true world of cultivation."

"Although this Cthulhu Cultivation World is dangerous, being weak is even more dangerous."

"In a world like this, some things cannot be avoided simply by hiding."

A flash of determination crossed Li Qing's eyes.

In the blink of an eye, night fell. Li Qing cast Shadow Art and arrived at the site where the body had been dumped, moving without a sound.

Stepping out from the shadows, he wore a black robe and began to wait in silence.

In Jade City at night, apart from the watchmen beating their gongs on the main streets and the patrolling constables, there was almost no one about.

Standing in the shadows of the alley, Li Qing was like a phantom, unnoticed by anyone.

He had already been waiting here for two or three hours; it was nearly the third watch of the night.

Wait a little longer. If no one shows up, I'll just go back to sleep.

The Daoist lineage is hidden among the masses; I'll encounter it sooner or later.

Just as he was deep in thought, a black shadow flickered across the rooftop opposite him.

Stimulated, Li Qing quietly activated Shadow Art and followed, hiding within the darkness.

A figure resembling black smoke drifted across the rooftops.

Li Qing followed closely behind, wanting to see where this person was headed.

One after the other, they crossed about four or five streets before the smoke suddenly drifted down from the roof.

Upon landing on the ground, it flashed and entered a side alley.

Li Qing stood at the end of the street, saw the other party enter the pitch-black alley, and hurried over.

Just then, another figure appeared on the opposite street.

That figure was dressed in a black robe, leaving only their eyes exposed, and stepped into the same alley where the black smoke had vanished.

Li Qing halted his steps, pondered for a moment, and arrived at the opposite side of that alley, where there was another lane.

He slipped inside, crouched in the shadows, and quietly observed the opposite side.

When he looked closely at that alley, a trace of surprise appeared in his eyes.

The alley was extremely dark, as if shrouded in ink; there was not a glimmer of light, not even moonlight.

Strange, there is something wrong with that alley.

He remained crouched there for several hours.

Li Qing discovered that quite a few people were coming and going, all of them employing various methods to conceal their true identities.

As he continued to observe, a thought formed in his mind.

That alley must be a gathering place for cultivators, but they seem to only come at night.

Is it for the sake of secrecy?

These people's actions were filled with mystery, and a look of contemplation appeared on Li Qing's face.

In the end, Li Qing chose not to enter and quietly left the area.

In the blink of an eye, it was the afternoon of the next day. He had spent the morning organizing his belongings and getting some well-deserved rest.

Weaving through the vast crowds, he arrived silently at the street where he had kept watch the previous night.

His gaze searched for the alley where the mysterious figures had been coming and going, but something astonishing happened.

How can this be? Was what I saw yesterday just an illusion?