As his emotions gradually settled, Jiang Che's thoughts grew clearer.
Jiang Yunwei, Jiang Yunlin...
The generation names of the Jiang of Willow Source ran in this order: Zong, Yun, Wei, Ye.
Jiang Zongcheng belonged to the "Zong" generation, Jiang Yunwei and Jiang Yunlin to the "Yun" generation, and his clan uncle in the real world, Jiang Weichuan, to the "Wei" generation. By seniority, Jiang Yunwei should have belonged to Jiang Weichuan's father's generation.
But Jiang Che had never heard either of those two names.
That was a little strange.
Forty years ago, after the Sky Pillar Sect fell, the Liu Clan fled, while the Jiang had evidently thrown in their lot with the Azure Mystic Sect.
If Jiang Yunwei and Jiang Yunlin had killed Liu Bingyuan and claimed a reward with his head, not only would they have escaped implication for "following the rebels," they could have stepped over their former master's bones to win honors under the new regime.
That made perfect sense.
But did the county gazetteer's line, "Local men presented the head of young master Bingyuan, the orphaned scion of the Liu Clan," refer to those two?
If it did, why were their names absent from the Jiang clan today?
Even if they had died afterward, if they truly had been instrumental in the Jiang's defection to the Azure Mystic Sect, surely there should have been some record, some account of them?
He decided to ask around once he left the consciousness space.
After making a mental note of it, Jiang Che thought of Liu Bingyuan again and could not help cursing him inwardly.
The fellow was young, but he certainly put on airs. Jiang Che did not care for that face of his.
Jiang Zongcheng had bought him a way out with his life, and all he had to say about it was "That's all he was good for" and "a loyal dog."
Someone died for him, and that was supposed to be a blessing earned over three lifetimes?
Clearly, Jiang Yunwei did not think so, which was why he had fucking turned on him.
And then there was Huo Shen. Even if Liu Bingyuan had suspected him, that attitude of "cripple both your hands and I'll believe you" made it clear he did not treat people as human beings.
Not to mention that he had intended to search the soul and seize the thoughts of Jiang Che, a "mere mortal."
He deserved to die.
Fuck, there wasn't a single likable person in this instance.
Jiang Che put his thoughts aside and drifted toward the floor tile again.
Azure light flowed across the tile, flickering.
He reached out to touch it, and several images flashed before his eyes like a revolving lantern, all scenes he had experienced in this instance.
The characters for "None" and "D" flashed past before it finally stopped on "C."
[Grade C] [Reward: one wisp of primordial origin first spirit]
A mass of gray qi condensed within the space, drifting in midair like a clump of loosely teased cotton fluff.
What the heck was this? What was it for?
He should be able to take it into the real world, right?
So raising his grade really did earn him completion rewards!
Jiang Che had already formed some guesses about how to improve his grade, and now some of them had been confirmed.
He believed survival time was probably a major factor.
Beyond that, perhaps changing the course of events in history, making things unfold differently from how they originally had in those bygone days?
Were there any other possibilities?
He recalled his earlier conjecture: Liu Bingyuan was the central figure in this fragment of time. If he tried to keep Liu Bingyuan alive the next time he entered, would his grade rise further?
At that thought, Jiang Che could not help rolling his eyes.
Save him?
Don't want to.
Leave that for later.
The instant he left the consciousness space, Jiang Che was still in the county office's archives in the real world, holding the county gazetteer.
But there was something new inside his belly.
He could feel that cotton-fluff-like mass of qi resting safely within his body, wandering through it. Wherever it passed, his flesh, tendons, and bones felt as though they were soaking in warm water, indescribably comfortable.
But that was all.
Jiang Che realized that this was very likely a strand of spiritual qi!
Spiritual qi he could use to cultivate!
And it was not the ordinary kind drifting between heaven and earth, but something special called spirit essence.
[Primordial origin first spirit]-the name alone sounded extraordinary.
Qi refinement was just that: refining the corresponding qi according to a particular cultivation method. Only then could one succeed.
Though the wisp Jiang Che had obtained was very faint, it was still tremendously beneficial!
Even though he had no cultivation method, no means of refining the [primordial origin first spirit], and could only let it circulate freely through his body, that alone was enough for him to feel the slight benefits it brought to every part of his body it passed through.
Over time, those benefits would accumulate, passively improving his physique.
And if he had a proper cultivation method, the benefits would be even more pronounced!
As a disciple awaiting admission, he had no cultivation method to speak of. He needed to climb a little higher, or find some usable methods through other channels.
The case before him was indeed a life-or-death crisis, but it could also be an opportunity.
The red sandalwood box had been stolen, clues were pitifully scarce, and everyone in the county was running around like headless flies.
He alone possessed a lead that put him ahead of everyone else.
The thief had very likely used a formation built by the Liu Clan Lineage many years ago.
But knowing that was one thing; telling others was another.
He had no way to explain how he knew.
Even taking ten thousand steps back, suppose he told them and someone believed him-he still did not know how to activate the teleportation formation. Even if they could activate it, according to Liu Bingyuan, opening it cost even a Qi Refinement cultivator his life. Who in Willow Source County could open it? Was he supposed to have Deacon Du sacrifice himself to do it?
He would probably be refined into a pill the moment he opened his mouth...
That route was blocked.
Jiang Che took his thoughts down another path.
If he could not do anything with the formation, what about its destination?
He began carefully recalling every detail from just before his death in the instance.
They should have been inside a cave, with moonlight spilling in at its entrance.
So it must have been in the mountains?
Willow Source County's seat stood on a plain. Looking in all four directions, there was only one mountain to the north, called "North Luan Mountain." It was neither tall nor vast, but its woods were deep and its ravines crisscrossed the slopes. If a concealed cave really lay somewhere within it, searching the entire mountain would not be easy.
He still needed to find a way to obtain more clues.
He would certainly have to enter the instance again, but before that, he intended to visit his clan uncle, Jiang Weichuan, a fellow member of the Jiang.
"Jiang Yunwei and Jiang Yunlin? Why are you asking about those two?"
"I found some leads."
"What leads? How could they have anything to do with people from decades ago?"
"So you know those two?"
"...I do. They belonged to the previous generation of another branch of our Jiang. In fact, theirs used to be the main branch. In the battle that destroyed the Sky Pillar Sect, everyone in their branch died, from Qi Refinement cultivators down to three-year-old children. What exactly did you find? What does it have to do with them?"
"It's too early to say. I need to keep investigating. Trust me, Uncle, I really have found something."
"Let's hope so... Ah, we haven't found so much as a loose thread on our end."
Before you continue