☆ Chapter 6 Mission Gone Wrong (Bug Fix)

Having learned his lesson, Shen Qingqiu became even more cautious, keeping a straight face the whole way, and finally made it to Shuanghu City without incident.

Although the city wasn't large, it was quite prosperous. After entering the city, they stayed at the residence of Master Chen, the richest man in the city and the one who had sent people to the Cangqiong Mountain Sect for help. Master Chen's two beloved concubines had both been brutally murdered by the Skinners, and he had been eagerly anticipating Shen Qingqiu's arrival.

He touched the jade-like hand of his beautiful third concubine, sighed deeply, and shed tears as he addressed the group.

"Immortal, you must do us justice! I dare not let Die'er leave my side for even a moment, for fear that she might be killed by that damned demon if she is not careful."

The strong sense of NPC-like character made Shen Qingqiu's face twitch.

He absolutely disliked seeing a sixty-year-old man and a teenage girl being all lovey-dovey in front of him!

Fortunately, Shen Qingqiu was a highly skilled person. After a brief greeting, he aloofly went into his room, leaving Mingfan and Master Chen to exchange pleasantries. Highly skilled people have privileges; their aloofness leaves others speechless. The more aloof they are, the more admiring gazes surround them.

Ning Yingying knocked on the door and came in, sweetly pleading, "Master, Yin'er wants to go to the market for a stroll. Would you like to come and join me?"

Shen Qingqiu had his back to her, striking a pose of a perfect intellectual with a book in hand and a glance back, and said calmly, "If Yin'er wants to go out for a stroll, she can ask her fellow disciples to accompany her. Before dealing with that skinner, I still have things to do."

Doesn't Shen Qingqiu already know who she'll choose to accompany her?

Shen Qingqiu was miserable beyond words. Didn't he want to go out and have fun? Before, he was cooped up in the bamboo hut on Qingjing Peak, putting on airs of a refined and cultured master every day. Now, after finally going down the mountain, he was being kept in his room by the system under the pretext that "the initial setting 'Shen Qingqiu' prefers quiet and doesn't like going to crowded places." He didn't even want to pretend to meditate anymore. He lay on the bed pretending to be dead for a while, then began to seriously think about how to deal with the Skinner.

Based on the patterns observed from the previous nine crimes, the skinner always targeted young and beautiful women. Therefore, in Shuanghu City, any household with daughters, wives, or concubines would keep their doors tightly shut at night. Even so, this did not stop the skinner from coming and going freely.

After sunset, Mingfan came into the room to report what he had discovered.

Finally, someone came to talk to him. Shen Qingqiu's lonely heart, which had been closed for half a day, finally felt at peace: "You went to the coroner's?"

Mingfan replied, "Yes. I have questioned the coroner in detail and examined the body carefully." He stopped speaking here and solemnly presented the items in his hands.

Shen Qingqiu did not take it. He looked closely and saw that it was two stacks of yellow talisman paper written in cinnabar, the paper surface of which had turned into a rotten black.

He nodded and said, "Did you use these talismans to test the demonic energy of the corpse?"

Mingfan said, "Master's eyes are discerning. I used these talismans in two places. One was the soil next to the grave of the woman who had already been buried, and the other was the body that the coroner had not yet buried."

Even the soil beside the grave was tainted with demonic energy, confirming that the skinner was undoubtedly a demon. Finally, I know what I'm dealing with.

Shen Qingqiu snorted coldly: "How dare they harm the lives of the people in the area within a hundred miles of the Cangqiong Mountain Sect? These villains from the Demon Realm have come to our door on their own, so they can't blame my disciples for acting on behalf of Heaven."

Believe him, he really didn't want to say those cheesy, perfunctory lines. But not saying them would be out of character!

Mingfan looked at him with eyes full of admiration: "Master is wise! If Master takes action, he will surely be able to defeat that demon in one blow and rid the people of this scourge!"

"..." It seems that this master and disciple used to work in a "you dominate and I worship" mode, and their cooperation was quite pleasant.

To be honest, Shen Qingqiu was quite satisfied. From Shen Qingqiu's perspective, Ming Fan was a really good disciple. Although he was a rich young master and used to being spoiled, he didn't dare to show any of that arrogance in front of his master. Instead, he was obedient and respectful.

Men, after all, rarely mind being revered. His abilities are top-notch; he handles everything from travel arrangements to food and lodging. If it weren't for his unforeseen circumstances causing his IQ to plummet and transform him into a ruthless school bully when he meets the protagonist, he'd be a promising young man!

Moreover, Shen Qingqiu always felt a sense of sympathy for this cannon fodder disciple who was ultimately thrown into an insect pit by Luo Binghe and devoured by thousands of ants...

"This trip down the mountain is for training. I will not help unless absolutely necessary. Mingfan, as the eldest disciple, you must make careful arrangements and lest that demon harm your fellow disciples."

"Yes! This disciple has already set up the formation; as long as that demon..."

Before Mingfan could finish speaking, someone barged in and interrupted him.

Luo Binghe cried out, his face pale, "Master!"

Shen Qingqiu's heart skipped a beat, but he still pretended to be indifferent: "Why are you shouting and making such a fuss? Why are you so panicked?"

Luo Binghe said, "Senior Sister Ning Yingying and I went to the city market during the day. In the evening, I urged her to come back, but she refused. Somehow, she disappeared in the blink of an eye. I searched the whole street but couldn't find her, so I came back to ask Master for help."

To disappear at this critical juncture is no laughing matter. Ming Fan nearly jumped up on the spot: "Luo Binghe! You…"

Shen Qingqiu flicked his sleeve, and the teacup on the desk shattered, serving not only as a deterrent without going out of character, but also timely stopping Ming Fan from courting disaster.

He feigned suppressed anger: "There's no point in saying more now. Luo Binghe, come with me. Mingfan, take a few of your junior brothers and ask Master Chen for help in searching for your junior sister."

Mingfan agreed and hurriedly left. Luo Binghe kept his head down and remained silent.

Shen Qingqiu knew this was definitely not his fault, because Ning Yingying had always been the kind of female character who courted death. In the original work, the troubles caused by her sudden disappearances or messes at crucial moments amounted to at least fifty chapters. Sometimes Shen Qingqiu admired Luo Binghe quite a bit. He dared to take such a troublesome woman into his harem, and she didn't even get killed. Ordinary people couldn't handle that. It just goes to show how incredibly powerful the protagonist's halo truly is.

Luo Binghe thought Shen Qingqiu was going to scold or beat him if he kept him here, so he lowered his head and said, "This is all my fault. If Master wants to punish me, I will have no regrets. I only ask to find Senior Sister Ning Yingying safely."

Shen Qingqiu felt sorry for him and wanted to pat his head, but she held back because of the system and said coldly, "Come here. Take me to the place where you and Yin'er got lost."

Luo Binghe and Ning Yingying got separated near the most bustling part of the market.

Shen Qingqiu stood there, closed his eyes, and sensed a faint, almost imperceptible demonic energy. Following that energy, which seemed as if it might break at any moment, he opened his eyes again and found himself standing in front of a rouge shop.

Shen Qingqiu: "..."

Could the murderer be someone from the rouge shop?

However, after entering the rouge shop, the demonic energy stopped and completely dissipated.

"Could it be that the murderer wasn't hiding in the rouge shop, but only came here recently? Entering the rouge shop... could the murderer be a woman?" Shen Qingqiu muttered to himself.

These quests, created specifically to level him up, have no original storyline to refer to, which really makes his brain cells a little overwhelmed!

Just as Shen Qingqiu was painfully recalling his pitiful experiences of reading detective novels or playing detective games in the past, the system thoughtfully provided a prompt: [Your progress is encountering difficulties. Would you like to spend 100 B-points to activate Easy Mode?]

Shen Qingqiu: "Damn it, why didn't you say there was an easy mode sooner! Open it, open it, open it!"

His gaze lingered on the "yes" option for three seconds, then it turned green and disappeared. Then, a certain aura sent shivers down his spine.

Such intense demonic energy!

It's almost as if they're afraid others won't be able to find their target!

Simple mode, that's for sure!

Shen Qingqiu wasn't ashamed of the easy mode at all, and happily followed the direction of the spreading demonic energy. After five hundred steps, he gradually left the city center and arrived at an abandoned house.

This is it! Look at those pale white paper lanterns, look at that dilapidated gate! It's definitely a haunted house, isn't it!

Shen Qingqiu adjusted his expression and instructed Luo Binghe, who had been silently following him all the way: "Go back to the Chen residence and inform Mingfan to bring all the magical treasures and fellow disciples with him."

Just as Luo Binghe was about to answer, his pupils suddenly contracted. Shen Qingqiu saw him staring straight behind him and knew something was wrong, but it was too late. A gust of cold wind swept in, and the door slammed open.

"Master, Master, wake up!"

Shen Qingqiu then woke up.

Upon waking, he saw Luo Binghe looking anxious, bound hand and foot to the opposite side. He seemed to have been staring intently at the sleeping Shen Qingqiu. Seeing Shen Qingqiu awake, he seemed relieved, his eyes brightening, and he called out "Master" again.

Ning Yingying was tied to him, and she also cried out with a mournful face, "Master."

Shen Qingqiu felt a little dizzy and wondered if the monster's spittle would have any aftereffects.

He was in a bad mood.

This easy mode is really straightforward and brutal! It just delivers him straight to the mini-boss!

Worst of all, the dignified master of Qingjing Peak was actually defeated by a mere mini-boss in front of his disciples! So, the moment he awoke, the system shrilly announced: [OOC, B-level -50.]

I just spent 100 B-points to unlock Easy Mode, and now another 50 B-points have been deducted. How could I not feel bad? Normally, with Shen Qingqiu's original strength, dealing with monsters would be like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut; shamefully, the sledgehammer didn't even kill the nut!

He soon discovered something that made him feel even worse.

He felt something was wrong with his body; it felt cold and had a slight pain. Looking down, he almost blurted out "Holy crap!"

He was stripped naked!