The Death of the "Accountant"

He Jianyun?

Ding Songyan looked at the face that had been peeled off and nailed to the wall, and identified the person's identity from features such as birthmarks.

This is He Jianyun, a member of the Ghost-Wyrm Path and Employer of the Secluded Perfume Shop, whom they are searching for!

Wasn't he supposed to be in Huaiyuan Street to confirm clues about the Traitor? How did he end up looking like this? No, he's just a ghost! Could it be...? Ding Songyan suddenly had a guess:

The so-called clues were released by the Traitor himself. If a powerful figure comes, he will avoid them. If only He Jianyun comes to Huaiyuan Street to confirm the clues, he will assassinate the other party and retaliate once or twice, trying to provoke the Ghost-Wyrm Path and make them search even more frantically. This will make it easier for Heaven-Bearing Prefecture and the Martial Prohibition Bureau to notice the anomaly, thus inducing a conflict between good and evil.

That Traitor from the Ghost-Wyrm Path is ruthless and has great courage... Other Outer Dao Traitor only think about hiding and rarely consider fighting back. Very few dare to use official power to cut off their pursuers... Ding Songyan praised him in his heart.

"He Jianyun was killed?" Xie Fengchao also saw the peeled-off face and couldn't hide his shock.

The Ghost-Wyrm Path Realm, a group known for their assassinations, has been assassinated?

There were absolutely no warning signs beforehand!

Jiang Lanting and Bai Qilin exchanged bewildered glances, equally surprised by this turn of events.

They believed the most likely scenario was that He Jianyun received the warning and fled Huaiyuan Street in time, disappearing into the crowd without a trace. Their hope of finding the Employer this Secluded Perfume Shop and uncovering a portion of the Ghost-Wyrm Path's power in Flame Capital was actually quite slim.

Several Heaven-Bearing Prefecture Constable Prefecture approached, dispersed the onlookers, and skillfully began searching for any traces.

Ding Songyan looked at it for a while, then said to Xie Fengchao and the others:

"My Xiaoming Sect possesses the Secret Art ' Northern Dipper Guides the Way.' I'll try to see if I can help the Government Office find He Jianyun's body."

The Traitor from the Ghost-Wyrm Path must not have mastered the Secret Art or weapon to annihilate the Divine Soul, so discovering He Jianyun's corpse means that he can Spirit Walking Through the Netherworld.

"I can also evolve similar Secret Art." Jiang Lanting had already suppressed his eagerness.

He had initially felt bewilderment, anger, and panic at the assassination attempt, but these feelings have now completely vanished.

Xie Five's praise of Jiang Lanting's free and easy temperament was well-deserved... Ding Songyan's evaluation of Jiang Lanting was raised several points.

Bai Qilin touched the protrusion between his Brow Center and said in a deep voice:

"The Heavenly Fool Sect also has methods for tracing clues and finding traces."

Seeing this, Xie Fengchao walked towards the Heaven-Bearing Prefecture who was examining the face, stopped two zhang away, and bowed respectfully, saying:

"Xie Fengchao of the Xie has met with Constable Hong. Some of my companions have Secret Art for tracking, I wonder if they can be of any help?"

The Heaven-Bearing Prefecture was Zhen Family Disciple the Hong family, Xie Fengchao had known before.

Hong, the head constable, whose bare skin was covered with obvious animal hair, turned to the side, glanced at the four men, and said with a clear smile:

"Fifth Young Master Xie, is this perhaps the ' Young Master Mingxi ' in person?"

The constable stared intently at Jiang Lanting.

Although he wasn't interested in men, if he didn't take his clothes off, who could mistake "Young Master Mingxi" for a man?

Jiang Lanting rolled her eyes subtly, took a few steps forward, and began exchanging pleasantries with Constable Hong.

The dispersed crowd slowly gathered again, this time mainly to see "Young Master Mingxi".

The busy Constable would occasionally steal glances at Jiang Lanting.

"Xie Five, Constable Hong calls Jiang Lanting ' Young Master Mingxi,' but he doesn't use your nickname when he calls you, tsk tsk..." Ding Songyan casually teased Xie Fengchao, "By the way, what's your nickname?"

"Didn't you see the recent ' Orchid Honor Roll '?" Xie Fengchao glanced at Ding Er.

Ding Songyan chuckled softly:

"The ' Orchid Honor Roll ' changes too quickly; how would I know how recent you mean by 'recently'?"

Xie Fengchao was silent for a moment, then said in a low voice:

"Thousand-Leaf Ephemeral Flower"

"Ephemeral flower? Is this a sarcastic remark implying you're only a fleeting bloom?" Ding Songyan asked deliberately.

Xie Fengchao slowly exhaled and said:

"The ephemeral beauty of the night-blooming cereus is fleeting; all who witness it perish."

"This nickname comes from my unique Hidden Weapons, ' The Blossom in an Instant '."

If there weren't so many people around, he would have used the Flame Capital Refined Speech to greet Ding Er.

Bai Qilin, standing nearby, glanced at the two of them and inexplicably felt that they were putting on a comedic act.

At this moment, Chief Constable Hong learned the identity of the deceased from Jiang Lanting, and based on the other party's hint, he once again ordered the Constable to keep the onlookers at a distance.

"Captain Hong, He Jianyun is still the ' Accountant ' of the Ghost-Wyrm Path, responsible for collecting various information in Flame Capital, arranging the hiding places of assassins, and handling the traces after assassinations. They just failed to assassinate me..." Jiang Lanting briefly explained the situation based on the information about the Ghost-Wyrm Path that the Yin-Yang Religion had gathered.

In the Ghost-Wyrm Path, the "Manager" accepts commissions and arranges assassins, while the "Accountant" gathers information and handles the aftermath. They are all responsible to the "Employer". One "Manager" will be assigned multiple "Accountant" to different Prefecture City, and in prosperous places like Flame Capital, there is likely to be more than one "Accountant".

Chief Constable Hong's expression gradually became serious, yet also tinged with excitement and agitation.

If we can find He Jianyun's body and then ask the Martial Prohibition Bureau to send someone to Spirit Walking Through the Netherworld, that would be a great achievement.

With this in mind, he readily agreed to help after Jiang Lanting offered.

Ding Songyan took some blood from He Jianyun's face and stuck it on the tip of his right index finger.

Specks of illusory starlight immediately appeared around him.

These starlight points constantly shifted their positions, never settling on a single point, and seemed to point in many different directions.

"This..." Ding Songyan encountered a similar change when he first encountered "Northern Dipper Guides the Way".

He pondered for a moment, then said to himself:

"Dismembered?"

Every body part is that of He Jianyun, therefore "Northern Dipper Guides the Way" cannot pinpoint He Jianyun's location.

Jiang Lanting and Bai Qilin reached a similar conclusion, but they went a step further and pointed out the approximate locations where the body parts were distributed.

"Thank you, young heroes." Constable Hong bowed with delight. "We will work with the Martial Prohibition Bureau to find He Jianyun's body parts, and the Martial Prohibition Bureau will handle the follow-up. We will keep you informed of the relevant developments in a timely manner."

Jiang Lanting glanced at Ding Songyan, regretting that he hadn't been able to create an opportunity for Second Brother Ding to communicate with He Jianyun.

As a young martial artist who enjoys seeking revenge, he naturally wanted to use his own strength and that of his companions to find and eliminate all the people from the Ghost-Wyrm Path who were gathering information and assisting in assassinations. However, since the Government Office had already taken over, he couldn't forcefully intervene. Moreover, the Ghost-Wyrm Path wasn't without its hidden Martial Grandmaster in Flame Capital, and there might even be more than one. It wouldn't be good to kick a hornet's nest.

Although Ding Songyan it was a pity, he didn't have much of an emotional reaction. The "Accountant" faction and the "Manager" faction in the Ghost-Wyrm Path were separate, so he wouldn't be able to get much useful information from He Jianyun's Yin Soul. He could only use this to severely damage the Ghost-Wyrm Path's information network in Flame Capital.

The latter was handled by the authorities, which was enough for him. Anyway, he planned to change his appearance and "visit" Black Sanlang after he finished dealing with Flame Capital.

In addition, his interest in that Traitor from the Ghost-Wyrm Path had grown even stronger.

After leaving Huaiyuan Street, Xie Fengchao looked around and said in a low voice:

"Should we try to find He Jianyun's Yin Soul before the Martial Prohibition Bureau arrives?"

Jiang Lanting was initially eager to try, then sighed:

"Forget it, there's no need to make things unpleasant with the Martial Prohibition Bureau and Heaven-Bearing Prefecture."

"This matter will take quite a while. I need to return to the Yin and Yang Abbey as soon as possible to discuss with the elders how to deal with the Ghost-Wyrm Path's second assassination attempt."

Yin and Yang Abbey exist in every prefecture and state, serving as gathering places for Yin-Yang Religion members and believers. The one in Flame Capital is grand in scale, comparable to the Main Altar, and has a Great Grandmaster residing there year-round.

"We haven't found the ' Surveillance Watchers,' so we need to be careful. However, He Jianyun's incident will definitely affect the Ghost-Wyrm Path's information gathering, so another assassination attempt shouldn't be so quick," Bai Qilin nodded and said.

"No matter what, Lanting, you must not let your guard down," Xie Fengchao earnestly advised.

Jiang Lanting was lost in thought for a few moments, then her gaze suddenly shifted, and she smiled sweetly:

I understand.

What... what kind of surprise could they possibly have for the Ghost-Wyrm Path? Ding Songyan gleaned a certain possibility from Jiang Lanting's tone and expression.

It's important to know that this person's Master was Great Grandmaster had been famous for over a hundred years.

Jiang Lanting suppressed his smile and Ding Songyan:

"Second Brother Ding, there's something I'd like to ask you."

"Please speak, Young Master Jiang," Ding Songyan, slightly puzzled.

"I will pass by Xiumei Mountain on my way back to Yin and Yang Abbey. I would like to ask you, Ding Second Brother Ding, to accompany me. If the body of that Ghost-Wyrm Path assassin has not yet been taken away by the authorities, I would appreciate it if you could help me Spirit Walking Through the Netherworld to inquire about the contents of the ' Dark Passage Book ' and the ' Seven Sand-Spitting Methods.' I will reward you handsomely afterward. We will settle the matter separately for your previous assistance," Jiang Lanting said frankly.

The characteristics of "the Great Thousand Myriad Forms Art" are known to all and need no concealment.

"Isn't that a coincidence?" Ding Songyan nodded and said.

"My Spirit Walking Through the Netherworld will harm the Yin Soul. The assassin from the Ghost-Wyrm Path can only answer a limited number of questions, so Young Master Jiang, please think carefully about what you want to ask beforehand."

Jiang Lanting was slightly puzzled, but didn't ask any further questions, only smiling gently:

"Why are you still calling me Young Master Jiang? That sounds so distant. Just call me Lanting like Fengchao and Qilin do, and I'll call you Songyan."

I'm afraid people will misunderstand... "Ding Songyan with a smile.

"Lan Ting, you can be like Xie Five; he calls me Ding Er directly."

"Ding Er... Haha, that's an interesting nickname." Jiang Lanting laughed out loud, "I'm the fourth in the Lineage, you can also call me Jiang Lanting."

See, the way you address me has changed, hasn't it? You still have Lineage... Ding Songyan muttered to himself as he and Jiang Lanting hurried towards Xiumei Mountain. Xie Fengchao and Bai Qilin, having nothing else to do, followed the two of them.

Upon arriving at Xiumei Mountain, the body of the Ghost-Wyrm Path assassin had already been taken to the Martial Prohibition Bureau. Jiang Lanting sighed softly, drawing many pitying glances.

He then bid farewell to Xie Fengchao and the others, and led his servants to the Yin and Yang Abbey on the Golden Pool Lake.

As Ding Songyan, Bai Qilin, and Xie Fengchao descended the mountain, he glanced at the former and, without concealing his curiosity, asked:

"Brother Bai, does the ' Heavenly Fool Scripture ' contain Secret Art that can conceal your aura, strength, and unusual appearance?"

"Yes." Bai Qilin replied succinctly.

This is no secret; all the Great Sects know it.

"Can the Heavenly Fool Scripture conceal one's thoughts to counter the Buddhist Tradition Mind Reading?" Ding Songyan asked further.

"Okay." Bai Qilin nodded.

Seeing Xie Fengchao looking at him with a puzzled expression, Ding Songyan pretended not to notice and asked thoughtfully:

"Is it possible to hide certain thoughts and memories, pretending they don't exist, and only recall them under specific circumstances?"

Bai Qilin paused for a moment and then said:

"Can."

P. S.: Requesting double Monthly Tickets at the beginning of the month!