Chapter 41 Was Ji Yuanbai's master, Immortal Venerable Huaiwei, someone to be trifled with?! ...

All eyes were drawn to Yin Lisheng by the shout of the young man surnamed Ji.

Yin Lisheng, who was having a mental conversation with Duan Yuan, looked up blankly.

When he looked up, the young man surnamed Ji saw his face clearly and breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Yu Jiangheng stepped in front of Yin Lisheng and looked up at the young man surnamed Ji.

"I am Yu Jiangheng of the Qingyuan Sect. And you are?"

"The Ji family of Zhongzhou, Ji Hanyu."

Ji Hanyu glanced at Yin Lisheng behind Yu Jiangheng and curled her lip in disdain.

"Upon closer inspection, there's only a slight resemblance. It's your good fortune to have such a resemblance. My uncle is the head of the Ji family and the number one cultivator in the Central Continent."

Yu Jiangheng frowned unhappily. Ji Hanyu's words were far too impolite. But before he could retort, Yin Simiao jumped out first.

"So what if he's the number one cultivator in Central Continent? Your great-uncle is the only disciple of Immortal Venerable Huaiwei. Immortal Venerable Huaiwei is the number one cultivator on the continent. Even the head of the Ji family is two generations below the Immortal Venerable. It's your uncle's good fortune that he resembles your great-uncle to some extent."

"That's right, that's right." Qiu Nan and Yan Shuangwan also stood in front of Yin Lisheng.

Qiu Nan looked Ji Hanyu up and down and said sarcastically, "The one who's impressive is your uncle, not you. What are you so smug about? I've never heard of Ji Hanyu before. Shuang Wan, have you ever heard of her?"

Yan Shuangwan added, "Never heard of him, probably some nobody."

"you--"

Just as Ji Hanyu was about to step forward to argue, the woman in black behind him cleared her throat and gave him a warning look, and Ji Hanyu immediately fell silent.

Yu Jiangheng stepped in to smooth things over, saying, "I presume you're here to investigate the temple fair tragedy as well? Instead of wasting time on such meaningless matters, why not listen to Lord Yuan tell us the details of the case?"

Yuan Tianlu wiped away imaginary sweat and nervously walked to the middle of the group. "Right, right, let's deal with the case first."

Yu Jiangheng didn't want to waste time on irrelevant matters, so he led Yin Lisheng and the others to find a place to sit down first.

Ji Hanyu and her group also sat down opposite them.

Yuan Tianlu cleared his throat and began to recount the events with a solemn expression.

"Half a month ago, it was the annual temple fair in our Yuzhou City. Every year, the people of the city come out to celebrate, and I also hosted a banquet to celebrate with a group of officials in the mansion."

"Who knew that halfway through the drinking session, a constable suddenly reported that a mummified corpse had appeared at the Linjiang Tower in the north of the city. According to the person who reported the incident, the man was drinking fine when she went out, but when she returned, he had turned into a mummified corpse, in less than half an incense stick's time."

A flicker of fear crossed Yuan Tianlu's eyes as he continued, "I immediately suspected that demons were causing trouble, so I led my men to the scene of the crime. But as soon as we arrived at Linjiang Tower, a bunch of people came to report that mummies had also appeared in other parts of the city, all with the same manner of death. Their bodies were shriveled like dead wood, and all their blood had been drained. Overnight, the number of mummies reached a staggering 178!"

“Such a major case must not be the work of ordinary demons. I am just a lowly early Golden Core cultivator, how could I possibly handle it? That’s why I asked the Ji family for help.”

Yuan Tianlu glanced at Ji Hanyu cautiously and said thoughtfully, "Perhaps something went wrong in the middle, and my message was delivered a little late. Young Master Ji received it late, but the people can't wait, so I had to send another letter of appeal to Qingyuan Sect."

Ji Hanyu snorted coldly, "Now that I'm here, it's naturally none of your business. Fellow Daoist Yu, please leave."

Yu Jiangheng calmly took a sip of tea: "Since Qingyuan Sect has already accepted the mission, there is no reason for them to give up halfway. I see that Fellow Daoist Ji has no intention of cooperating. In that case, let's each investigate our own cases."

Ji Hanyu pointed at Yu Jiangheng angrily and said, "Do you just have to meddle in other people's business?!"

Yu Jiangheng slammed his teacup on the table and looked coldly at Ji Hanyu: "We have already given you face by making concessions time and time again because of the Ji family. If Fellow Daoist Ji continues to pester us and be aggressive, then don't blame our Qingyuan Sect for being impolite."

The woman in black sitting next to Ji Hanyu raised her hand to stop Ji Hanyu from making a move, then turned to Yu Jiangheng and said, "Fellow Daoist Yu is right. Since we are not on the same path, let us go our separate ways. May I ask, City Lord Yuan, where is the body now?"

Yuan Tianlu sighed: "There are too many corpses. We can't put them all in the city, and we dare not deal with them easily. We can only temporarily pile them up in the mortuary outside the city, waiting for the immortals to come and inspect them."

Yu Jiangheng nodded, and after thinking for a moment, said, "In that case, let's go to the mortuary first thing tomorrow morning to check the body and see if we can find any clues."

Yuan Tianlu nodded hurriedly: "Yes, yes, I have arranged accommodations for all of you immortals. Please rest well tonight, and I will take you to the mortuary early tomorrow morning."

He then looked at Ji Hanyu and his group. Ji Hanyu snorted and said, "The Ji family has a residence in Yuzhou City, so there's no need for City Lord Yuan to trouble himself."

After saying that, Ji Hanyu left with her people, refusing Yuan Tianlu's offer to see her off.

Yuan Tianlu had no choice but to look at Yu Jiangheng: "Esteemed immortals, please follow me. I will take you to your lodgings."

The group followed Yuan Tianlu out of the main hall and headed to the guest rooms in the backyard of the city lord's mansion.

On the way, Yin Lisheng whispered to Yu Jiangheng, "Senior Brother Yu, this case doesn't seem simple. The manner of the death is so bizarre that it's probably not the work of an ordinary demon."

Yu Jiangheng nodded, his expression solemn: "That's right. Although the demons are cruel, they prefer to kill people directly. The act of draining blood is more like some kind of evil or forbidden magic."

Qiu Nan leaned closer and whispered, "Could it be some cultivator who practices evil arts?"

Yu Jiangheng pondered for a moment, then shook his head: "It's too early to say. We'll make a judgment after examining the body tomorrow."

"good."

On the other side, Ji Hanyu stormed out of the city lord's mansion and immediately confronted the woman in black.

"Chu Yu, why are you stopping me?"

Chu Yu was too lazy to explain to the fool, and only said, "If you still want to solve this case, then listen to me obediently. Also, don't get into any conflicts with the people from the Qingyuan Sect."

After saying that, she left on her own.

Ji Hanyu stopped the woman in pink who was also about to leave.

"Duan Xuan, what does your senior sister mean?"

Duan Xuan rolled her eyes speechlessly, "Let go first and then I'll talk."

Ji Hanyu immediately let go.

Duan Xuan said helplessly, "Your uncle said that you should solve this case by your own ability, but he didn't know that Qingyuan Sect was coming. Even if the people from Qingyuan Sect find out the truth first, he probably won't blame you."

"Besides, is the Qingyuan Sect someone to be trifled with? Do you even know who Yu Jiangheng is? He's the eldest disciple of Song Wenzhuo, the sect leader of the Qingyuan Sect. He's the most famous prodigy of our generation and the only candidate to become the next sect leader of the Qingyuan Sect. Not to mention, this time we also have a disciple of Immortal Venerable Huaiwei. Do you even know who Immortal Venerable Huaiwei is?!"

“I—” Ji Hanyu lowered her head, “I didn’t expect Yu Jiangheng to be so powerful. I naturally know the reputation of Immortal Venerable Huaiwei, but who knows if that so-called disciple is real? What if they just made it up to fool me?”

Duan Xuan was so angry at this fool that she almost laughed: "I don't care what your little schemes are, just don't mess with them. If something really happens to Huaiwei Immortal Venerable's disciple, let alone my senior sister and me, even if my master and your uncle came together, they couldn't protect you."

"Fine," Ji Hanyu agreed with dissatisfaction. "He's just relying on Immortal Venerable Huaiwei as his backer."

Duan Xuan thought to herself, "You're only relying on the Ji family head as your backer. Besides, he didn't provoke you. You're the one who's inexplicably hostile towards him."

Unbeknownst to them, Yin Lisheng's backer and Ji Hanyu's backer were at that moment paying respects to the deceased.

After Yin Lisheng went down the mountain, Fu Yunshu thought that since he had nothing to do anyway, and the seal in the Northern Border was being rotated every ten years, and this year the Ji family and Qingyuan Sect in the Central Continent had sent people to guard it, Fu Yunshu thought he would go and check it out himself.

Fu Yunshu led several elders there, and when they passed by the old residence of the Yin family, he thought he would go and pay his respects.

After all, they were his disciple's family members, and they had dedicated themselves to the cultivation world for so many years. It was only right and proper for him to visit them.

However, as soon as Fu Yunshu stepped into the Yin family's old residence, he sensed another powerful aura.

He frowned slightly, his heart filled with vigilance. The Cold Weeping Sword was already in his hand, its blade gleaming with a chilling light.

The Yin family's old residence has been abandoned for many years. The person in the shadows has at least the cultivation level of the Tribulation Transcending stage. What is his purpose?

Just as Fu Yunshu stepped into the Yin family ancestral hall, a sharp sword aura suddenly attacked, heading straight for his face.

Fu Yunshu reacted extremely quickly, wielding the Cold Cry Sword. The sword energy collided with the attack, producing a crisp "clang," and a surge of spiritual energy immediately rose in the air.

"Who dares to trespass on the old residence of the Yin family?" A cold voice came from deep within the ancestral hall.

Fu Yunshu did not answer, but instead swung his sword again, the sword energy like a rainbow, heading straight for the source of the sound.

The opponent clearly did not expect Fu Yunshu to make such a decisive move, and hurriedly swung his sword to defend, and the two sword energies collided again.

Fu Yunshu seized the opportunity to move forward, the Cold Cry Sword in his hand moving like a dragon, its flashing light forcing his opponent to retreat repeatedly.

However, his opponent was clearly no ordinary person either; his swordsmanship was fierce, and every move was deadly. The two exchanged blows in the ancestral hall, their swords flashing and spiritual energy surging.

Just as Fu Yunshu was about to make another move, his opponent suddenly stopped his attack, his voice tinged with surprise: "Hanqi Sword? You are... Immortal Venerable Huaiwei?"

Fu Yunshu also stopped wielding his sword, his gaze turning cold as he looked at the other person: "Who are you?"

The other person slowly emerged from the shadows, revealing a handsome face. He wore a long black robe, with exquisite features and a cold, aloof demeanor.

Fu Yunshu was slightly dazed; this person actually looked seven-tenths like Yin Lisheng!

"I am Ji Yuanbai, the head of the Ji family in Zhongzhou." The man cupped his hands slightly. "I was unaware that an Immortal Venerable had arrived. Please forgive my rudeness."

Fu Yunshu frowned slightly. Was the head of the Ji family named Ji Yuanbai?

Ji Yuanbai noticed his confusion and explained, "He's only been in office for less than ten days."

"I see." Fu Yunshu didn't ask any further questions; he was too lazy to pry into other people's family affairs.

Ji Yuanbai hesitated before speaking: "Just now, when the Immortal Venerable saw my face, he seemed to be stunned for a moment. Has the Immortal Venerable seen me before, or someone who resembles me?"

"The head of the Ji family does indeed resemble someone I know in some ways."

Ji Yuanbai's tone became more urgent: "Where is this person whom the Immortal Venerable knows now, and how old is he?"

Seeing that he seemed a little off, Fu Yunshu concealed it slightly: "It was just a chance encounter, I don't know where he is, and he's just a child who hasn't even reached adulthood yet."

“So it’s just a child,” Ji Yuanbai said dejectedly. “I’ve been presumptuous.”

Fu Yunshu nodded and did not ask any further questions.

Ji Yuanbai then brought up another matter: "Did the Immortal Venerable also come to pay homage to the Yin family?"

Fu Yunshu nodded calmly: "Yes."

Ji Yuanbai: "I had heard that Immortal Venerable Huaiwei was detached from worldly affairs and devoted to the Dao, but I never expected that he would care so much about the Yin family."

Fu Yunshu: "The Yin family never associates with other forces in the cultivation world, but didn't the Ji family head come to pay his respects?"

Ji Yuanbai smiled and said, "The Immortal Venerable is right."

He straightened his clothes. "Then I won't disturb the Immortal Venerable any longer. I'll take my leave first."

Fu Yunshu nodded. After watching Ji Yuanbai leave, he thought for a moment and decided it would be better to ask Song Wenzhuo about this person.

"Wen Zhuo."

As the water mirror rose, Song Wenzhuo's figure appeared within it. Compared to his usual meticulous appearance, Song Wenzhuo's hair ornament was slightly crooked, and his clothes were not as neat as usual.

Fu Yunshu was slightly taken aback: "Did I disturb you?"

“No!” Song Wenzhuo raised his voice a few notches.

“But,” Fu Yunshu pointed behind Song Wenzhuo, “behind you…”