Chapter 76: Heretical Ways: Wanting to Live or Die

"No, no, the eyebrows need to be lower!"

"The eyes. Yes, the eyes are just like that, and don't forget the silkworm-like eyebrows!"

"The nose. The nose is about the same as mine, just a bit higher!"

At dusk, inside a teahouse in the north of the city.

A middle-aged painter held a Charcoal Pen, listening to a couple of peddlers describing the man as they spoke over each other, and drew a lifelike portrait according to their words.

Off to the side, Lu Yuan stood quietly watching with Chai Jiu, Hu Feng, and other members of the Qinglong Gang he had borrowed for the occasion.

A moment later.

Following some smudging, erasing, and revising, the portrait was fully formed, and the peddler couple clapped their hands simultaneously:

"Yes, yes, that's just about it!"

The painter let out a long breath of relief, quickly stood up, and handed the finished portrait to Lu Yuan:

"Young Master Lu, it's finished. Take a look."

Lu Yuan took the portrait and saw it depicted a middle-aged man wearing a Daoist Bun, with refined features that looked quite like a man of transcendent, immortal bearing.

He could not help but look at the peddler couple beside him:

"Are you certain that the fortune teller looked like this?"

The peddler couple nodded repeatedly:

"Certain, certain, that fortune teller looked exactly like this drawing!"

"Don't you worry, sir, there's absolutely no mistake. That fortune teller stayed in our busy market for many days a while back; he probably had hundreds of people going to him for free fortune-telling every day. We both joined in the fun back then and saw his appearance clearly; we won't remember it wrong."

"If you don't believe us, you can take this portrait and ask around this street; others will surely recognize him too!"

Seeing the two were so certain, Lu Yuan nodded slightly: "Good, thank you for your trouble."

Saying this, he gave the peddler couple a few Silver Yuan as a reward for their hard work and watched them leave in high spirits.

After they had left.

Chai Jiu and Hu Feng were still looking at the portrait suspiciously, asking:

"Brother Yuan, is this fortune teller the one behind Wang Zhu's disappearance?"

"Even human traffickers have to be picky when selling people. Among the missing, there are men, women, old, and young. What is he after?"

Lu Yuan narrowed his eyes:

"Based on the current situation, the missing persons cases that have cropped up in the last two or three months are all inseparable from this person. As for what he is after, it is indeed a mystery; I fear we will only know once we find him."

After learning that multiple missing persons had the experience of coming into contact with the fortune teller, he had Chai Jiu and the others find out where the fortune teller often appeared, and brought a painter to find witnesses who had seen him to sketch the portrait.

Now that they had locked onto a prime suspect, the next step was to find a way to track him down.

Hu Feng could not help but ask:

"Brother Yuan, what do we do next? Should we keep waiting for this fortune teller to appear, or report it to the authorities? I suggest it's best to report it to the authorities. If the yamen doesn't care, report it to the Jingwu Division. After all, the other city districts aren't our territory, and in such a vast sea of people, I fear it will be very difficult to find this person with just a few brothers."

"Report it to the authorities..."

Lu Yuan pondered slightly, rolled up the portrait, and then took out a large handful of about twenty or thirty Silver Yuan:

"It's already late today. I'll go back and report to my master and the others first. You two brothers have also worked hard running around these past two days. Take this money to treat all the brothers to some drinks and leisure; don't decline."

This handful of Silver Yuan was by no means a small amount. Chai Jiu and Hu Feng, who originally had a few complaints in their hearts after running around for the past two days, beamed with joy, though they kept refusing:

"No, absolutely not, Brother Yuan. You are the Hall Master's junior brother; how could we subordinates accept your money for helping out?"

"No, no, Brother Yuan, please take it back quickly!"

If you want a horse to run, you must feed it grass. Lu Yuan naturally did not take them seriously; after forcefully stuffing the money into their hands, he waved his hand and said:

"That's enough, take it if I give it to you. I have other matters to attend to, so I won't be drinking with everyone."

Saying this, he carried the portrait and left in a hurry.

Not long after, he returned to Boxiyuan.

Entering the back garden, he saw Lian Shen and her husband Wang Gensheng sitting in the corner of the courtyard, looking dejected and covered in dust, clearly having spent the entire day searching outside.

Seeing Lu Yuan return, the two exhausted people immediately had their eyes light up, and they rushed up impatiently:

"Brother Yuan, how did it go?"

"It's been another day. Is there any news about Zhuzi?"

Looking at this couple, their faces full of the vicissitudes of life, Lu Yuan shook his head regretfully:

"I've just found a small lead, but I fear it will take some time to determine whether Zhuzi is alive or dead. Once there is a result, I will notify you immediately."

The slight hope in their eyes turned into disappointment. Lian Shen and her husband looked at each other in silence, their faces bloodless and tinged with sorrow as they said:

"Then we will trouble you, Brother Yuan. We will wait for your news."

"As we said before, life and death are fated. Whether he is dead or alive, we just want to have some certainty in our hearts."

In this day and age, the average life expectancy of ordinary people does not exceed forty years; death is the most normal thing in the world.

With no news for five consecutive days, it could basically be concluded that he had met with misfortune; they had actually already prepared for the worst.

Lu Yuan was speechless and could only nod, then watched as the two supported each other and hobbled away.

At this moment, Li Junxian, Xu Dahu, and Xu Erhu happened to walk out of the small courtyard and immediately asked:

"A Yuan, how was today?"

Lu Yuan stepped in front of the three and said solemnly:

"Master, the situation is not right. Zhuzi's disappearance is not an accident, but has other hidden circumstances."

Li Junxian's gaze immediately narrowed:

"What hidden circumstances?"

Lu Yuan said in a deep voice:

"According to my investigation, Lian Shen said that the day before Wang Zhu disappeared, he met a fortune teller in the north of the city who was telling fortunes for free, and he joined in the fun at the time. And in the process of searching for people these past two days, the helpers I borrowed accidentally found out that it wasn't just Wang Zhu; the number of missing persons cases reported in other city districts has also surged significantly during this period."

"Furthermore, I personally went to those families to inquire about the situation, and only then did I learn that many of the missing persons had their fortunes told for free by that fortune-teller before they disappeared."

"There is such a thing?"

It was not just Li Junxian.

Even Xu Dahu and Xu Erhu's expressions changed upon hearing this:

"Could it be that all these people were kidnapped by that fortune-teller?"

"Why would a fortune-teller kidnap so many people? Could he be a human trafficker?"

Lu Yuan shook his head and handed over the portrait:

"This is the image of the fortune-teller I had an artist draw after making inquiries. I cannot determine this person's motive now, only that the disappearance of so many people in the city is inextricably linked to him."

Li Junxian took it and unfolded it, and the two, Xu Dahu and Xu Erhu, also leaned in to look closely.

Naturally, they did not recognize the person in the portrait, but Li Junxian's expression was uncertain, and he suddenly asked in a deep voice:

"A Yuan, when that fortune-teller told the fortunes of Wang Zhu and these missing people, did he read their palmistry and bone structure, or did he calculate their Birth Date and Time?"

Lu Yuan recalled for a moment and frowned: "He calculated their Birth Date and Time. Why does Master ask this?"

"Then it is clear."

Li Junxian suddenly closed the portrait in his hand and said coldly:

"This so-called fortune-teller is likely a practitioner of Daoist Arts with a heritage of Evil Methods. He secretly abducts those whose Birth Date and Time meet his requirements, merely to practice Evil Methods or refine a Dharma Artifact."

Evil Methods, Dharma Artifacts?

Having absolutely no concept of this, Xu Erhu was stunned:

"Using people to refine Evil Methods or Dharma Artifacts, how is that done?"

Li Junxian said:

"Ever since the Jin Dynasty destroyed the mountains and temples, the sects have been wiped out and the Jianghu no longer exists. But in the previous dynasty, when sect power was at its peak, there was always a distinction between righteous and evil in the vast Jianghu."

The so-called righteous and evil are mostly distinguished by their methods of cultivation. The path of Martial Arts is one thing, but especially in the path of Daoist Arts, which refines the heart and soul, there have always existed many evil paths that seek quick success and use people as sacrifices, even developing cruel methods such as Blood Sacrifice, gouging out eyes, hearts, or livers.

These methods can cause the heart and spirit of the sacrificed person to fluctuate violently, magnifying hatred, pain, and despair, which, when combined with Daoist Arts, can refine Evil Artifacts with special abilities. For example, when your Master and I were guarding Tianyun Prefecture and encountered the Jin Dynasty army and countless experts, there was a Daoist who wielded a strange Bell, and its fierce power was formidable.

That Bell contained strange and eerie power; just by being within two or three zhang of a person, the sound of ghosts crying and wolves howling would emerge when shaken. Ordinary soldiers would have their souls scattered and die on the spot if they got too close. Even if you were a warrior who had fought a hundred battles, or a Martial Arts expert who could take on a hundred, being enveloped by the sound of this Bell would leave you terrified and bleeding from the seven orifices, with no power to resist.

This belongs to an extremely powerful type of evil Dharma Artifact. Your Master was almost killed by this Bell back then; it was only because the Eastern King came to our aid and used a Cannon to blast and break the Bell that your Master and I didn't end up as a pile of yellow soil long ago.

However, such methods were never righteous, and since Daoist Arts themselves have declined to the point of near extinction, it has been rare to see such evil arts and methods among the common people in the Jin Dynasty. I never expected one to pop up today."

After listening, Lu Yuan could not help but knit his brows, his gaze turning cold.

He had not expected that the practice of Daoist Arts had such extensions, capable of refining so-called Dharma Artifacts just like the evil cultivators and demonic cultivators in novels.

And if it were truly as Li Junxian said, whether it was Wang Zhu or the others who had gone missing over these past two or three months, they had likely already met with misfortune!

"How outrageous."

Xu Dahu also said in shock:

"Using living people for Blood Sacrifice, such conduct is simply insane; how is it any different from a beast? Since A Yuan already has a portrait of this person, shouldn't we report it to the Jingwu Division immediately?"

"Do not be in a hurry."

Li Junxian's expression was grave:

"Such evil characters do not necessarily use their true faces. Furthermore, the Jingwu Division has the duty of monitoring public sentiment; they may not be unaware of this matter. If we rashly report it with the portrait, we might invite disaster upon ourselves. It is better to remain still and figure out the situation first."

This was a prudent move, and Xu Erhu nodded in deep agreement:

"Master is right."

Li Junxian looked at Lu Yuan and instructed:

"A Yuan, do not continue the investigation, so as not to alert the other party and invite retaliation. After all, anyone capable of using such methods to refine an Evil Artifact is at least a Fifth Realm high-level mage. If such a cruel person were to retaliate, let alone you all, the entire Boxiyuan would be plunged into chaos."

Dealing with such evil outsiders is ultimately the duty of the Jingwu Division. I will entrust someone to inquire about it first, and once confirmed, I will find a way to hand this portrait over to them. In the meantime, remember not to disclose the news to anyone, understand?"

Compared to a Fifth Realm Martial Artist, a Fifth Realm high-level mage, while lacking strong Martial Arts, possesses strange Illusion Techniques that can cloud the human heart, plus the ability to use Divine Sense to control hidden weapons for assassination. Their danger is no less, and they are equally formidable existences.

Seeing that Li Junxian was serious, Xu Dahu and Xu Erhu felt a slight chill and solemnly agreed:

"Yes, Master!"

Lu Yuan, however, had deep eyes and seemed to have other thoughts, but he only said calmly: "This disciple understands."

That night.

At the second watch.

Li Zhenguang, a Duyuan of the Jingwu Division, walked out of a restaurant reeking of alcohol with unsteady steps, supported by Yu Xianting and another Colonel.

Under the respectful send-off of the waiter and the manager, the red-faced and half-drunk Li Zhenguang was cursing:

"Damn it, where do those pieces of trash get the nerve to laugh at me?"

"They even said I didn't dare to take the head down because I was afraid of Qingyike... That is Qingyike, the Qingyike who slaughters Fifth Realm Martial Artists like pigs. Are they not afraid themselves!?"

"Don't talk about me, what about Lord Suo? Didn't he play deaf and dumb and let that head hang for three days?"

These words were clearly filled with resentment beyond just unwillingness and anger. Yu Xianting tried to persuade him helplessly:

"My lord, keep your voice down. If it reaches Lord Suo's ears, it will be troublesome."

"Troublesome?"

The dissolute Li Zhenguang sobered up slightly and laughed mockingly:

"Afraid of what? Being in the Jingwu Division now is a high-risk profession. If I offend Qingyike one day, I might just get my head cut off. If Suo Helie really fires me, I should thank him instead, hahaha!"

Faced with such a completely broken attitude, Yu Xianting and the other man were speechless.

During the great turmoil some time ago, the heads of the Vice Prefect Zhang Taiming and Jin Taihong, though covered in black cloth, were hung on the gate beam at Caishikou for three full days before being taken down.

Since then, the prestige and reputation of Qingyike reached its peak in Fengyang Prefecture, while the Jingwu Division plummeted, losing all its former glory.

Now, when they, the officers, walk the streets, they no longer receive awe and fear, but mocking and playful gazes.

Regarding this situation, unless they can solve the problem of Qingyike one day, there is nothing they can do.

"Alright, leave me be."

The cold wind blew, and Li Zhenguang, feeling refreshed after venting, shook his arms to cast the two men off, swaying as he said:

"You two go back on your own, there's no need to worry about me; it's only a little over a mile from home, and I could use the time to sober up."

The two Colonels, Yu Xianting, still wanted to escort him, but after being scolded by the other party, they had no choice but to give up.

Just like that, on the pitch-black street, Li Zhenguang walked alone, swaying, toward his own manor.

Although half-drunk and half-sober, given his cultivation and the robes he wore, no petty thief dared to approach him, and he strolled leisurely across a main street, his own house suddenly coming into view ahead.

Yet, it was at this very moment.

"Li Zhenguang."

From the darkness ahead of him, a faint voice of inquiry suddenly drifted over:

"Do you wish to die, or do you wish to live?"

Hearing this light, airy voice.

Li Zhenguang, who had already sobered up quite a bit under the blowing cold wind, felt his body suddenly stiffen, and the hairs on his back stood straight up!

(End of chapter)