With a special mission in hand, Qin Tan became a free agent of Li Mingshu and began investigating Wu Xiang's past in Wangcheng.

As the head of the Abyss Church in Wangcheng, Wuxiang had previously kept a very tight hideout.

But as long as a person is alive, there will always be traces of their activities.

After casting a wide net through various channels, Qin Tan tracked down Wu Xiang's trail.

The other party had visited a manor.

The manor was special; it was a pre-disaster building located on one side of the old town.

Although it was old and worn, it had been left there without being dealt with because it had an owner.

The manor's unique scenery attracted some photography enthusiasts.

One of the photos captured the face of the faceless one.

The other person stood by the window of the manor, looking down at the people outside with a cold gaze as if they regarded mortals as ants.

After making sure there were no other clues about Wuxiang in the rest of the place, Qin Tan took the photo and headed to the manor.

Given the other party's cautious nature, they wouldn't leave such obvious evidence.

Unless the other party deliberately showed up.

This shows that the manor was indeed very special.

Perhaps it was a trap, but Qin Tan had no choice but to go.

The manor was surrounded by open space. It was close to the city wall, from where one could see the towering wall in the distance and the Allied troops patrolling on it.

Qin Tan withdrew her gaze and stepped into the manor.

This place has been neglected for a long time and is overgrown with weeds.

Some ornamental trees have grown into large groves through natural growth.

There were many mosquitoes inside when I went in.

Parting the grass, you can still see the remains of some small animals.

Mice were the most numerous.

The princess, with cat-like steps, slapped away a mouse that approached her.

The sharp claws ended the rat's life.

Qin Tan withdrew her gaze and pushed open the gate of the manor.

The door was unlocked, and with a creak, the old door swung open, revealing everything inside.

Empty.

There was no furniture at all; the house was bare, and the entire manor exuded a chilly atmosphere even in broad daylight.

Qin Tan went to the second floor, the room where Wu Xiang had appeared.

She discovered that the second floor was also empty.

There weren't even curtains; at a glance, there were no secrets.

Is it a ruse like the Empty City Stratagem?

She thought about it carefully, looking at every place.

The entire fifth floor was checked, but nothing was found.

When she returned to the first floor, she noticed something strange about the footprints she had left on the ground.

The ground was covered with a thick layer of dust.

And beneath this dust, there seems to be something.

Qin Tan found some tree branches outside and swept away the dust in the room.

The floating dust made people cough.

However, as the dust was cleared away, Qin Tan discovered that this floor was engraved with many strange lines.

Not just the ground.

After Qin Tan removed the peeling paint from the wall, he discovered that the same lines had been engraved on the wall and then covered up with white paint.

It took quite a while to clean the first floor.

When Qin Tan stood on the upper floor, he could take in all those lines.

The lines may appear messy, but they are actually quite orderly.

Those elements form a pattern.

Qin Tan photographed it and uploaded it to the forum for comparison.

Various materials are preserved on the forum.

Before she could even finish reading it, someone contacted her.

It's Wei Xiao.

"There isn't an exact match to the photo you posted on the forum, but there are similar ones."

I'll send it to you.

After several notification sounds from the backstage, Qin Tan saw some clear photos.

Indeed, it is similar to this place.

And they are all different.

According to the information, these overall patterns represent sacrifice.

Such places are often where the Church of the Abyss has held evil sacrifices.

Several of the photos caught Qin Tan's attention.

"Based on experience, all sacrificial sites contain human remains and some strange things."

Wei Xiao's opinion was sent over.

Qin Tan agreed.

Her place was too clean; the difference was so great that it seemed as if everything here was just for decoration.

Could it be that Wuxiang was trying to intimidate them and deliberately cause panic?

Perhaps the other party is targeting Li Mingshu's people to investigate and then manipulate them.

Considering this possibility, Qin Tan decided to investigate the other clues further.

Just as she approached the door, the wind howled outside.

The door was blown open by the strong wind.

The wind was extremely biting.

Qin Tan put her arm in front of her and took a few steps back.

I heard squeaking sounds, like a swarm of mice approaching.

Upon closer inspection, a dark mass of rats could be seen at the entrance.

The rats seemed not to see Qin Tan at all, and frantically ran into the house.

A large swarm of rats blocked Qin Tan's way out, forcing her to retreat as the rats continued to enter.

Fortunately, the rats did not harm her.

"Meow!"

The princess was disgusted by the mice and jumped into Qin Tan's arms.

Qin Tan stood on the railing, watching the movements of the rats below.

The rats moved with great discipline, as if someone were directing them from the shadows.

The rat swarm split into several small groups, each gathering in a different location.

Those places seem to be specific.

After the chaos caused by the rats subsided, Qin Tan tried to leave through the gap.

In an instant, the faint smell of blood caught her attention.

She looked over.

They discovered that the rats in the very center were fighting each other.

Rats are not large, but when hundreds of rats fight each other, the amount of blood that flows out is also very large.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!