Chapter 490: The Thousand-Work Key

I glanced at the long string of various birds linked by iron chains; each of them had a dull, vacant expression.

Turning to Niao Zui, I asked, "Sir, it's obvious that the souls of these birds are gone—only a remnant soul remains; such mass death—aren't you going to investigate?"

Niao Zui stared at me, his eyes full of scrutiny.

In that scrutiny, there also seemed to be something hard to put into words.

After a moment he said, "Xiao Jiu Zhanggui thinks, if I were to conduct a strict investigation, who should be looked into first?"

I was stunned.

I then looked toward the Soul-guiding Lamp hanging under the pawnshop's eaves.

The series of changes the Soul-guiding Lamp underwent during the birds' sacrifice clearly shows that the sacrifice was aimed at the lamp.

After the Soul-guiding Lamp absorbed the birds' essences, it quickly transformed, and my body immediately underwent a change.

In other words, I am the ultimate beneficiary of this mass bird sacrifice!

If Niao Zui wants to thoroughly investigate this, the first thing to look into should be me and the entire pawnshop.

Tonight's event is clearly aimed at me.

The birds' sacrifice, their essences transformed by the Soul-guiding Lamp and poured into my body—if not for Feng Wu, I would likely have collapsed again just now.

Once, there will be a second, a third… countless times.

Feng Wu can grow by absorbing these powers, but she is not an infinite vessel; there will come a time when she cannot hold more.

She merely bought me temporary time before returning to the Feng Clan for Nirvana, but ultimately it only treats the symptom, not the root.

I thought it over and decided: "Sir, since this incident occurred at the pawnshop's door, I have an obligation to cooperate with your investigation; I will now go with you to the Nether Realm for trial."

Once the Nether Realm begins to investigate this matter, as a party I would be detained and interrogated; I just don't believe the other side's reach could be that long.

"Xiao Jiu Zhanggui is joking," said Niao Zui. "The Phoenix Lord is the king of all birds; although I hold the post of Bird Clan Yin Shuai, my authority does not surpass the Phoenix Lord's, and I have no power to arrest the Phoenix Lord."

I argued: "I have not undergone Nirvana, nor returned to the Phoenix Clan, so I am not the Phoenix Lord."

"Without Nirvana, Xiao Jiu Zhanggui may have cultivation, but he is still a mortal fleshly body," said Niao Zui. "Humans also fall outside my jurisdiction; I only manage bird souls."

Niao Zui is very shrewd; he is exerting himself to keep himself completely clean.

Having said that, he turned to leave.

As he moved, the iron chains clinked, and those birds mechanically followed him.

I hurried a step and shouted, "Sir!"

Now, for me, anyone from the Nether Realm could be an informant; I don't want to miss any clue.

I didn't expect Niao Zui to actually stop; he hesitated a bit, then turned and said to me: "Xiao Jiu Zhanggui, instead of trying to get some irrelevant information from me, you'd better go investigate the origins of some special objects…"

He hinted at something but refused to spell it out; the souls of those detained birds vanished at Xijiekou.

The origins of some "special objects"?

I instinctively looked toward the Soul-guiding Lamp.

According to Hui Moqiong, this Soul-guiding Lamp has been hanging under the west side of the pawnshop's eaves for many years; even he doesn't know its origin.

Moreover, the Soul-guiding Lamp had always been dark before; I was the one who rekindled it.

Therefore, this Soul-guiding Lamp must have countless connections with me; it could be considered a special object.

But where should I start investigating?

I only know it is related to the Nether Realm and must also have some connection to the Yin Dang Hang, but I don't know who to ask.

If the Seven Halls Yama hadn't had their memories tampered with, that would be good. In front of the pawnshop lies a pile of bird corpses; the three of them are handling them while cursing, doing this work in the middle of the night—anyone would have complaints.

But I don't have the mind to work with them; I feel somewhat unwell.

Feng Wu needs time to absorb the power transferred from the Soul-guiding Lamp; during this process, my body feels hot and painful.

Although not as bad as before, I am also completely weak.

I lay slumped on the counter of Nan Shu Fang, waiting for this uncomfortable feeling to pass while pondering Niao Zui's words.

After a while, when I felt my body recover a bit, I heard Hui Moqiong outside shout sharply: "Hey, what are you doing!"

I jerked my head up and saw a middle-aged man standing outside the door of Nan Shu Fang.

The man's body was stiff, his complexion ashen; he wore a brand-new burial robe, a talisman stuck on his forehead, and he tiptoed inside.

Obviously, this is a corpse that has only recently died.

I sat upright, looking at the corpse.

Hui Moqiong and the others had already come around from the pawnshop's front door; their three pairs of eyes were fixed on the corpse, fearing he might suddenly attack me.

The corpse walked to the counter, then suddenly lowered its head, its chest rising and falling, looking especially distressed; soon it opened its mouth and spat out something from its throat, which landed with a clang on the counter.

That was a blood-stained bronze key.

The key is a bit longer than an adult's middle finger, has a multi-layered concealed mortise-and-tenon structure, often used in precision locks or mechanisms; it engages the lock via multiple layers of mortise-and-tenon; if one is not versed in this, even holding the key doesn't guarantee opening the lock.

I know such keys exist, but I have never seen one in reality; this is the first time.

But what most attracts me about this bronze key is that both sides of its head are carved with the luan totem.

Upon seeing that pattern, I realized this corpse was sent by the opposing side.

But just now the birds voluntarily sacrificed themselves, which was already a scheme against me; how could the other side then immediately send such a corpse to deliver something so important?

Unless… it's the Luan?!

"Clang!" the corpse spoke, its voice cold and mechanical: "As a dead man, I am the Right Guardian of the Phoenix Clan, the Qian Gong Key—one piece, worth gold, a drop of lamp oil."

I immediately clenched my fists.

Indeed it is the Luan.

I had previously guessed that the Luan should have been the Right Guardian of the Phoenix Clan back then; having spent many years beside the Black Python, he must have held some important things.

Now he has become a discarded pawn, hiding east and west; that is no long-term plan.

And the lamp oil of the Soul-guiding Lamp can directly ferry souls into reincarnation.

Only I can obtain this Lamp Oil, but it will consume a large amount of my Merit and Mana; he can only ask me.

As an equivalent exchange item, the importance of this Thousand-work Key goes without saying.

What is hidden behind it is also certainly very important to me.

Diluan is quite resourceful; he did not come in person to talk with me, but instead controlled a corpse to pawn.

The corpse is a Yin thing; this transaction belongs to the Yin pledge.

The Yin pledge cannot be refused; this is the rule.

Although the rule can be broken, doing so requires a considerable price.

Furthermore, I indeed very much want this Thousand-work Key.

But, do I really have to send Diluan into reincarnation?