Chapter 102

“Old Man Li? Old Man Li?”

Hearing the calls at his side.

Li Rui finally snapped out of it, meeting Zhang Yang’s concerned gaze: “Ah, I was distracted. It’s getting late—let’s head back to the city.”

Zhang Yang agreed: “Makes sense.”

Zhang Yang swiftly directed several Disciples of the Heaven and Earth Alliance to carry the corpse of the Nine-Angled Silver Lizard.

This thing was a merit.

Half an hour later, before darkness fully fell, the group returned to the Qinghe Branch.

Disciples of the Heaven and Earth Alliance streaming in and out gathered around.

Most had never seen what a demonic beast looked like, and chatter erupted.

“What a huge lizard—I’ve never seen one this big in my life.”

“That mouth must be delicious.”

“One shouldn’t, at least not.”

“Can you even eat it?”

The demonic beast incident even reached the Branch Master, Dao Xiong.

Dao Xiong stared at the massive lizard corpse and laughed heartily: “Deputy Branch Master Li, Deputy Branch Master Zhang—this is a great deed for the people. I’ll report it to the authorities; at the very least, we’ll get an ‘Honorable Citizen’ plaque.”

“Just part of our duty.”

Neither Li Rui nor Zhang Yang took Dao Xiong’s words seriously.

Encounter with the Nine-Angled Silver Lizard.

The entire process was tense but uneventful, and afterward, they wouldn’t have to join the search—overall, it was a good deal.

They had submitted their report.

Li Rui went straight back to his residence.

As soon as he stepped through the door, the scent of food filled the air—Yang Yong and Wang Zhao had already prepared the meal.

Wang Zhao set out bowls and chopsticks.

“Sit down and eat.”

Li Rui sat as usual, chewed slowly, finished his meal, then returned to his room.

Although he was curious about the Nine Mystical Spirit Xiao Map, he wasn’t in a hurry.

Even if Mount Tai collapsed before him, his expression wouldn’t change.

Only with such a mindset could one accomplish anything—don’t let one event throw you off balance; maintaining composure is cultivation.

Inside the room.

Li Rui poured himself a cup of cold tea.

Only then did he examine the newly acquired Nine Mystical Spirit Xiao Map.

It was as if sleep had brought a pillow—effortlessly obtained.

He had been worrying about the Qi-Divergence Map, and now the Qi-Divergence Map had simply walked right in.

A luminous image of the human meridians appeared in his mind.

Some of the meridians were marked in red.

These red meridians were the pathways Li Rui needed to guide qi through; beside them, lines of tiny script.

“From Huiyin to Weilu, then Jiaji and Yuphen, ascending to the heavens.”

“In the Niwan Palace, spirit and qi swirl; then guide the spiritual spring back down.”

“Circulating endlessly, the Heavenly Cycle turns; the Immortal Palace and Divine Realm lie hidden within the belly.”

“The Immortal Palace and Divine Realm lie hidden within the belly.”

Li Rui pondered carefully, his pupils contracting sharply.

“This is a Qi-Divergence Map for gathering qi into the Divine Xiao of the Immortal Realm!”

He took a deep breath.

He stood, opened a hidden compartment in the cabinet, and retrieved the small wooden box containing the Spirit Guide.

“Swallow the Spirit Guide, follow the map to guide qi, complete thirty-six minor Heavenly Circuits, and only then can you open the dantian to contain new qi.”

This was the method Li Rui had read in ancient texts for using the Spirit Guide.

And it only worked if taken during the first qi-guiding session.

Now he had the Spirit Guide—and the Qi-Divergence Map.

If not now, when?

To avoid complications, Li Rui unhesitatingly followed the ancient text’s instructions, swallowing the Spirit Guide whole, chewing slowly.

The Spirit Guide tasted surprisingly pleasant, filling his mouth and nose with an exotic fragrance.

After swallowing the Spirit Guide.

About the time of one incense stick’s burn, Li Rui felt a sudden heat in his abdomen.

“Here it comes!”

He unhesitatingly guided his Xuanqing Qi along the meridians indicated in the map.

The Xuanqing Qi passed sequentially through Huiyin, Weilu, Jiaji, Yuphen, and other acupoints, circling the body once—a minor Heavenly Circuit. Repeating this thirty-six times formed thirty-six minor circuits.

A night of arduous cultivation.

When Li Rui opened his eyes, a streak of crimson dawn painted the window.

Unaware, he had practiced all night.

Perhaps due to the Spirit Guide, he felt no fatigue whatsoever.

He sensed his dantian again.

There, a small cluster of true qi floated, coiled tightly within the dantian.

Li Rui could clearly feel it.

His dantian had doubled in size—perfectly sized to hold two clusters of true qi.

All he needed now was the Dragon-shaped Qi-Divergence Map, and he could cultivate a second cluster.

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Step by step, everything was moving in the right direction.

He pushed open the door.

The morning light fell gently on his face, not blinding at all.

Refreshed and invigorated!

He stepped outside.

Li Rui wandered through the branch, and just then, he met Ge Hong about to leave.

“Brother Ge, what’s the hurry?”

Ge Hong’s hurried steps clearly signaled urgency.

Seeing Li Rui, Ge Hong halted.

“It’s the Ghost Ming Cult.”

“Has the Ghost Ming Cult risen from the dead again?”

“No,” Ge Hong shook his head. “The county constables discovered a hidden passage while searching the Ghost Ming Cult’s cave; down it, they found at least twenty to thirty captives surrounded by piles of skeletal remains.”

“These demons are using human lives to feed their beasts!”

Ge Hong spoke through gritted teeth.

“No wonder I’ve noticed Qinghe’s security deteriorating—so many reports of beggar children disappearing or kids going missing from households. It’s almost certainly the work of the Ghost Ming Cult.”

The Ghost Ming Cult had previously deployed a powerful ghost beast.

To raise such a terrifying ghost beast, human blood was inevitably required.

The Ghost Ming Cult was cunning.

They hadn’t massacred openly in Qinghe City, but targeted beggar children and innocent youths—likely also mountain villagers from nearby hamlets.

Qinghe had a large population.

Yet these people were too lowly.

Even if reported to the authorities, the constables wouldn’t care.

Hence, no one had noticed for so long.

If anyone claimed the former Blood Tiger Gang’s Incense Master was unaware, no one would believe it.

But now the people were gone; pursuing accountability was beyond reach.

Ge Hong: “The authorities fear the scandal growing too large—they want the Heaven and Earth Alliance to help. Dao Branch Master sent me to investigate. I’m off now.”

Saying this,

he led several disciples out in a rush, striding toward the branch’s exit.

“Human lives are as worthless as grass.”

They say in chaotic times, human life is worth less than a dog’s—but even in the flourishing Great Yu Dynasty, sordid deeds never cease.

Ordinary people struggle just to survive.

And then there are calamities like the Ghost Ming Cult.

The authorities will almost certainly keep this quiet—offer survivors hush money, send them back whence they came, and treat the dead as if they never existed.

Otherwise, over the years, how many people has the Ghost Ming Cult killed in Qinghe?

In ancient times, missing persons were never even recorded in official documents, because it was too common.

They had previously been listed as missing.

Their families had already accepted them as missing.

After all, for the poorest common folk, an individual going missing was normal—like venturing into the mountains to hunt and falling prey to a beast, one could only accept their fate.

But now they claim these people were abducted and murdered.

This might stir public resentment, and even with a mix of mercy and force, they’d have to spend a large sum of silver all at once.

Those upright magistrates would never do something so clearly unprofitable.

(End of Chapter)