Chapter 385: Runs Really Fast

"Heh."

After a while, Lu Xiuqi shook his head and said, "Actually, it seems like there's no need for the two mages to do anything. I was just feeling too stifled and wanted to find someone to vent to."

"If the Empress is immortal, then so be it. Thinking about it carefully, it's not that big of a deal."

After finishing his venting, Lu Xiuqi felt much better.

From a realistic perspective, even if the Empress is immortal, what's the big deal?

Right now she's a Puppet Ruler; taking a step back, even if she weren't a Puppet Ruler.

An immortal Empress secretly controlling power — isn't it still a case of people living their lives as they should? She's not trying to make a big splash.

For ordinary commoners, an immortal Empress is just like the first photo of a black hole from half a year ago.

There was a buzz at the time, but afterward those who worked went to work, those who studied went to study.

Oh, right, it might affect the students, because it might show up on exams.

"Your friend, isn't he 404'd?" Ao Yulie reminded.

The relaxed smile that had just appeared on Lu Xiuqi's face instantly froze: "How about... the two mages just send me abroad?" Choosing to follow his own heart, going with his heart is the basic move.

"No rush, we'll go take a look." Tang Luo said, putting away the materials on the table, "Do you mind giving these to us?"

"Don't mind." Lu Xiuqi shook his head.

These materials were the original files his friend gave him, a hot potato; being able to just toss it out and return to a peaceful life was also a good thing.

If the matter were resolved just like that —

It wouldn't have been in vain that Lu Xiuqi, on a momentary impulse at the start, doggedly pursued Tang Luo and the other.

"Then let's leave it at that." Tang Luo said, "We'll handle this matter. Leave a phone number, and you just go back and wait for news."

This tone made Lu Xiuqi almost think the person before him was from the relevant authorities.

Leaving his number, the three walked out of the private room together.

They hadn't taken two steps when several men walking with an imposing air came from the opposite direction, wearing plain clothes, an aura of iron and blood that couldn't be concealed at all.

Lu Xiuqi's breathing instantly became rapid. Damn! They've come knocking already?!

No, it should be said, they've finally come knocking?

He'd had those things for half a month already.

Even though that 404'd friend made many arrangements, as long as there was the slightest trace, they'd find him sooner or later.

Now, they've come knocking!

"Heh!" Lu Xiuqi let out a short, rough chuckle. For this day, he had long been prepared.

Only to see his expression turn stern, slightly ferocious; he instantly turned around and ran for it.

There's a back door in the rear; he had observed it long ago.

"Runs really fast." Ao Yulie turned his head to look at Lu Xiuqi's figure vanishing around the corridor corner in an instant. Truly worthy of being a journalist.

Tang Luo didn't look back. The few people opposite glanced strangely at Lu Xiuqi sprinting away, then walked into the room next door.

These people indeed didn't look like ordinary folks, but they weren't here for Lu Xiuqi.

Tang Luo and Ao Yulie didn't bother with Lu Xiuqi. They went to the front desk to settle the bill, left the cafe, and returned to the Cursed House.

Taking out the materials Lu Xiuqi had held, they began examining them carefully.

According to the materials, Yi the Fourth faked his death at seventy-six, and in the fifth year after the true Fifth ascended the throne, he successfully usurped the magpie's nest and assumed the other's identity.

That day, a major news event did indeed occur.

It was that Yi the Fifth fell gravely ill; although he pulled through afterward, he also convalesced for over a year.

The Yi the Fifth who reappeared before the public afterward had visibly aged considerably.

At that time, no one thought "How can there be an eighty-five-year-old Crown Prince?", nor did they imagine there could be a seventy-year-old Imperial Grandson.

After that illness, Her Majesty the Empress embarked on the path of health and longevity.

The various analyses in the materials were undoubtedly very sound, yet they were ultimately only analyses.

The only thing that could barely count as "evidence" was the photos of the Fifth and the Fifth — the two did indeed look very alike.

But an aunt and niece resembling each other isn't anything strange.

Street stall literature.

Standard street stall literature, the kind you laugh off after reading.

Even if it's true, it's the kind you laugh off.

But landing in Tang Luo and the other's hands, the situation was different.

"Check if there's any trace of that immortal Empress's whereabouts here." Tang Luo said to Ao Yulie.

Although the Empress's grand birthday was coming up in a while, not many people knew exactly where the Empress was.

Tang Luo and these others, outsiders who had arrived in this mission world less than half a month ago, would know even less.

The last time the Empress appeared in the public eye was ten years ago.

The materials speculated that that immortal Empress was currently plotting her next identity.

Because the current first in line to the throne is male, the immortal Empress couldn't possibly impersonate him to continue living.

So, that seventy-year-old Imperial Grandson should reasonably die of old age within these few years.

Then the throne would be inherited by the second in line, who is female, and moreover bears some resemblance to the current Fifth in her youth.

After growing older, the resemblance would be even greater.

She could completely pull it off again, replacing and succeeding her.

The materials had no info on the immortal Empress's whereabouts, but they listed quite a few places the Empress had lived before, like sanatoriums and such.

Several of them; that Empress was very likely in one of them.

As for the place everyone knows, called the "Violet Realm Palace," which is actually a famous tourist attraction serving as the imperial palace plus part of the government offices — it can be confirmed the Empress is not there.

Stowing the Cursed House, Ao Yulie transformed into a dragon and carried Tang Luo soaring into the sky.

Acting in the dead of night posed absolutely no psychological burden for them — even if it meant going to find trouble with a suspected Undying.

The clothes on Tang Luo were already the Glazed Pure Garment, faint light shimmering, keeping the cold wind shut out.

"Is there hope? Master." Ao Yulie suddenly spoke up, a bit out of the blue.

"Originally there wasn't even a one-in-ten chance; now it looks like five-in-ten." Tang Luo said, "At the port, a flash of inspiration crossed my mind."

"... Good." Ao Yulie let out a laugh, genuine delight audible in it.

What the two spoke of was the Glazed Pure Garment on Tang Luo — or rather, Sha Wujing.

Back then he turned into the Glazed Pure Garment, retaining a sliver of true spirit, not utterly annihilated.

There is a certain possibility he can revive in another way.

Tang Luo and Ao Yulie did not delve deeper into this topic.

Silent all the way, they soon arrived at a sanatorium.

Tang Luo touched down, entering a state of imperceptible, unsmellable, unseeable — like a gale he "swept through" this luxurious sanatorium.

No chance of finding traces of that Undying Empress; without delay, the two rushed toward the next location.

No clever ideas — just a flash of inspiration after discovering clues.

Tang Luo's way of solving problems: push straight through to find them; it has always been this crude, stupid method.

At most pretend a little, go fishing or something.

Three locations in a row, Tang Luo and Ao Yulie came up empty — no trace of the Empress found.

"If this place doesn't have her either, then we go find Lu Xiuqi, Master?" Ao Yulie said.

"Mm."

They were already about to reach the final place.

Speaking of it, the last location is also rather special.

This sanatorium is called Shuiyuan Palace, built twenty years ago.

At that time, to celebrate the Empress's hundredth birthday, celebrities from all walks of life generously donated funds to build it.

It also sparked widespread debate; some thought it was turning back the wheel of history, while others felt that whatever else, it was the Empress's hundredth birthday and should have some face.

The opposition called it a waste of people's labor and money.

Supporters said tycoons funded it, not your money.

The opposition flew into a rage: Tycoons, capital's money — don't you have a clue in your hearts where it comes from? Layer upon layer of cost-shifting, in the end isn't it still the sheep's wool from the sheep? Expect the shepherd to take a loss?

Both sides argued themselves hoarse.

But it didn't affect Shuiyuan Palace's construction; in half a year it was already completed, and a year later officially opened for residence.

Even as a gift for the Empress's hundredth birthday, it couldn't possibly be arranged for the Empress alone.

As long as you have money and status, you can still move in to recuperate; all services are top-tier, and also the most expensive.

In under three years, it directly broke even.

Leaving the people who had quarreled into a mess dumbfounded: Making money — you guys sure know how to make money.

【93】 At first, the Empress would go stay at Shuiyuan Palace for a period each year, but after a hundred and ten years old, she never showed her face again.

At first, the Empress would go to the Water Source Palace to stay for a period each year, but after turning one hundred and ten, she never showed her face again.

At least not in the public eye.

Because of its rather special connection, Shuiyuan Palace still draws relatively high attention.

If the Empress took residence, there would likely be related reports.

So by normal judgment, this special place actually has the smallest probability of the Empress being there.

However, Tang Luo and company coming here last had nothing to do with that — purely because Shuiyuan Palace is the farthest, so it was placed last.

"Should've come here first, there's something to this place." Arriving above Shuiyuan Palace, Ao Yulie spoke up.

As a sanatorium, naturally it must be placed in a land of clear mountains and beautiful waters; Shuiyuan Palace is exactly that.

Built beside a great lake, standard lake-view rooms, scenery picturesque and pleasant — if turned into a hotel, a room per night would cost tens of thousands.

But right now, for some unknown reason, most of Shuiyuan Palace is submerged in the lake water.

The great lake's water spread past the embankment, "swallowing" two-thirds of Shuiyuan Palace's area.

At the deepest, water reached past the calves to the knees; at the shallowest, mere puddles only wetting shoe soles.

Interestingly, the entire Shuiyuan Palace still maintains normal operation.

People can still be seen walking past, turning a blind eye to the overflowing lake water.

Tang Luo landed, water splashing up and falling down.

Time was already midnight; most areas of Shuiyuan Palace had already gone dark, only a few places still lit.

As a sanatorium, it should be extremely quiet at this hour.

Yet the PA system was playing music — though light music, the volume was not low.

For sensitive people, playing music in the dead of night has no sleep-aid effect whatsoever; rather it is a form of torture.

"Woo—"

The Howling Celestial Dog on Tang Luo's shoulder let out a howl.

Not a meow, but a shrill threatening cry, like an infant's wailing.

The sound overrode the softly playing music.

The music cut off abruptly, the surroundings falling silent — a silence that felt oppressive.