Chapter 297: Clues from Xuan Che

Yu Sheng was quite surprised by Xuan Che's answer, and after confirming it with him again, he found that the other party was serious.

"You're just a tourist from out of town; you wouldn't be involved in this kind of regional disaster investigation operation, right?" Yu Sheng said, frowning.

"Fighting against evil and protecting the common people is the responsibility of us cultivators. Moreover, since the founding of our Qianfeng Lingshan lineage, we have had the ancestral maxim: 'The mighty must save the world,'" Xuan Che said with a proud yet gentle smile on his face. "You need not worry. Although our 'out-of-towners' are not as special as the Borderland, we do have otherworldly realms. Our cultivators have extensive experience exploring otherworldly realms and resolving entities, so we will not drag anyone down."

"Uh, it's not that I'm worried about you dragging us down..." Yu Sheng said instinctively, but since the other party had already said so much, he hesitated slightly before swallowing his extra objections. He simply added a reminder, "Then wait until I drive the house into the otherworldly realm, and we'll go out together. This Fog City is very strange; be careful in your movements."

Xuan Che: "……?"

He felt as if he had heard another very novel combination of words again, but he had heard so many similar combinations today that he simply didn't bother to ask this time.

Yu Sheng ignored the subtle expression on Xuan Che's face. Instead, he stepped forward, gripped the doorknob, and began to settle his mind just like last time, controlling the entire No. 66 Wutong Road to change its position and move toward the coordinates of the "Fog City."

Xuan Che keenly perceived some subtle changes. He seemed to hear a hollow, low boom coming from the depths of the mansion, like a huge, invisible living creature slowly moving its limbs. He also felt that the "atmosphere" of the entire house had undergone an instant transformation; everything around him seemed to come alive. Even the electric lights on the roof, the wallpaper on the walls, and a tissue box on the table not far away... all cast a gaze upon him that held no malice.

But all these sensations lasted only an instant. Before he could truly react, everything had calmed down. Yu Sheng spoke from not far away: "Good, we have arrived."

The door was gently pushed open, revealing a street shrouded in thick fog outside.

Xuan Che looked at the scene outside the door in surprise. The moment the door opened, his spiritual sense finally broke free from that state of isolation and suppression, perceiving the environment outside No. 66 Wutong Road. Afterwards, he understood what Yu Sheng had meant by "driving the house into the otherworldly realm."

He stared at Yu Sheng, with a few words swirling in his mind: A true master!!!

... How did those people from the Special Affairs Bureau manage to accept the art style and setting of this mansion and the "anthropomorphized" beings inside it?

However, the master did not notice the shocking and subtle expression on Xuan Che's face, because at this moment, the master was seriously selecting which Eileen to take out.

"Bring one damage dealer and one controller. Pro and Thread Steel will go with me; the other two stay home to guard the house," Yu Sheng quickly assigned. "If any strange phenomena appear outside the window, notify Hu Li and me immediately."

"You can bring one more!" Eileen (Lotus) stood at the door, looking up, "The more the merrier when fighting!"

"I can't hang any more on me," Yu Sheng said helplessly, turning his head to look at Steel Eileen and Pro Eileen, who were already sitting on his shoulders with righteous confidence. "Unless you get down and walk yourself."

As soon as he finished speaking, a string of small dolls on the ground popped out with a series of pitter-patter sounds: "Safe travels, be careful on the way out, come back early, and if anything happens, I will contact you immediately!"

Yu Sheng: "……"

A moment later, Yu Sheng, carrying two Eileens on his back, led Hu Li and Xuan Che into that thick fog.

He was still holding that ferocious Tetanus Staff in his hand. During the last battle with the Artificial Saintess, this "battle club" had been battered by the opponent's fingertip blades, leaving it covered in scars. Nearly half of the blades and steel bars had been shaved off, but later Hu Li had repaired and strengthened it, and now it had returned to its ferocious appearance.

The two Eileens sat on Yu Sheng's shoulders, not forgetting to remind him along the way: "Don't suddenly put this thing on your shoulder! Don't forget that we are both sitting on you right now!"

Yu Sheng looked impatient: "Got it, got it. You've been nagging me eight hundred times since we left."

Xuan Che's gaze had been falling on that Tetanus Staff from time to time since just now, and he had hesitated to speak several times.

His eyes subtly carried a hint of caution and doubt.

This did not escape Yu Sheng's notice.

"Interested in this mace?" Yu Sheng asked casually. "I've seen you staring at it for a long time."

"Ex... Mr. Yu, please forgive me, but I simply have one question I cannot understand," Xuan Che finally spoke, his tone becoming exceptionally solemn. "Why does this weapon in your hand carry such heavy bloodlust and killing intent? It even... is wrapped in layers of deathly qi?"

As he spoke, his expression was somewhat strange, even carrying an aura of "I might die for saying this, but not asking would violate my Dao heart." Yu Sheng was momentarily stunned on the spot. Before he could open his mouth, he heard the Eileen on his shoulder burst out laughing: "Hahaha, you've been mistaken for an evil cultivator~~" Yu Sheng helplessly tugged at the corners of his mouth, shook the battle club in his hand, and explained to Xuan Che: "Don't worry. The bloodlust on it is all mine—I used my own blood to plate it. It has a special effect against some weaker entities. Of course, the price is that this thing's art style is a bit strange. As for the layers of deathly qi you mentioned... that's probably just left over from killing many entities."

"Is that so?" Xuan Che muttered in confusion, but he seemed to have accepted Yu Sheng's explanation.

Seeing this, the Eileen beside him added a few more words: "Hey, don't overthink it. We at the Inn always act with integrity. Even if someone dies, it is certainly a death well-deserved..."

The more Yu Sheng listened, the more he felt something was wrong with that sentence: "Wait a minute, are you implying something there?"

"Oh, you're overthinking it," Eileen said, patting the back of Yu Sheng's head. Immediately, she quickly and stiffly changed the subject. "Actually, do we really need to come here to explore personally? Isn't the Special Affairs Bureau sending many people to investigate inside now? Won't waiting for their news be the same?"

"Not the same," Yu Sheng slowly shook his head. "The fact that this fog can appear directly outside the window of No. 66 Wutong Road is something that concerns me greatly. Add to that the Artificial Saintess who escaped before..."

"Huh? What happened to that Artificial Saintess?"

"She once appeared nearby," Yu Sheng said calmly, his gaze slowly sweeping over the surrounding fog. "And she hasn't left very far away now."

In an instant, both Eileens became alert simultaneously: "C-Type Lock!"

After hearing Yu Sheng's words, Hu Li immediately perked up his ears. While staying alert to his surroundings, he quickly observed the environment: "Benefactor, this place doesn't seem very far from where we were ambushed last time."

!

"So that C-Type Lock has circled around and returned to the edge of the Old District?" Eileen hugged Yu Sheng's head, her small face full of seriousness. "Is there really something hidden here?"

"... It's hard not to suspect that," Yu Sheng frowned. "However, the Deep Dive Squad dispatched by the Special Affairs Bureau has already searched this area. They found nothing."

Xuan Che had been silently listening to the discussion between Yu Sheng and the others. At this moment, he suddenly spoke up: "You mentioned 'Artificial Saintess.' Are you referring to those mechanical puppets created by the Holy Hidden Sect?"

"Yes," Yu Sheng nodded. "Have you also dealt with that thing?"

"I haven't seen it with my own eyes, but my fellow disciples have mentioned it. They say this evil object is extremely difficult to deal with. Its moves are treacherous, its speed is incredibly fast, and it can hide in shadows and teleport in an instant. Ordinary cultivators are no match for her," Xuan Che said with a serious face. "It requires a master to deal with it, or a group to surround and annihilate her."

Yu Sheng was greatly surprised to hear this: "... You guys, who can fly through the sky and dive into the earth after cultivation, all think that an 'Artificial Saintess' like this iron shell is difficult to deal with?"

"Sigh, it's mainly that 'iron shell'," Xuan Che sighed. "As far as I know, the material used for its armor is the same as that used for starship armor. Not only is it tough, but its lining also contains many evil and mysterious techniques. Ordinary spells have almost no effect when striking that outer shell. Mechanical puppets are also immune to spells, illusions, and seals. Just the 'spell-breaking' aspect alone means that for most cultivators, encountering her is equivalent to losing more than half their cultivation. The remaining methods are to rush up and engage in close-quarters slashing... Flesh and blood versus a warship armor plate, isn't that dangerous?"

Speaking to this point, he paused, then added: "Of course, if it is a more powerful cultivator, they wouldn't be afraid. There is always a way to deal with that thing... it might just require some effort."

Yu Sheng listened very seriously, but suddenly remembered a piece of information revealed by the other party during his recent contact with Bai Li Qing—

The Holy Hidden Sect has a relatively fixed area of activity, and has been quite low-key for the last ten-plus years.

He frowned, vaguely recalling that Bai Li Qing had mentioned another matter before: The "Feather-13b" sector belonging to Qianfeng Lingshan is a relatively closed-off star region. Its "security" level might not compare to the Borderland, but it is not far off...

"Did the 'Artificial Saintess' also 'invade' your place?" Yu Sheng frowned, asking instinctively. "When did that happen?"

"Within the last year or two, traces of that so-called 'Hidden Sect' have appeared on several border planets. On two of those occasions, an Artificial Saintess appeared," Xuan Che said with a serious expression. "Although none of them caused major destruction, and the cultivators stationed there managed to drive out those evil forces in time... their appearance was indeed suspicious."

"What were they doing there?" Yu Sheng asked quickly.

"It seems they were smuggling something," Xuan Che thought for a moment, then shook his head. "Unfortunately, those evil forces are always cautious. When the mountain-guarding cultivators arrived, they only found many destroyed warehouses and machines. What exactly they did there remains unclear to this day."

(End of Chapter)