"It must be that witch who did something to me," Qi Guze thought to himself, his eyes turning cold in an instant.

Time seemed to pass in the blink of an eye as night turned into day, but he struggled painfully for a long time before he could suppress the intense heat.

He slowly got up, almost falling back into the water. He had exhausted all his strength that night and was severely weakened.

He shook his head helplessly, steadied himself, got up and changed into a light set of pajamas, then lay down on the bed, closed his eyes and meditated to recover his strength.

As he circulated his cultivation technique, the image of the woman in red involuntarily came to mind.

Who exactly is she? And why does she possess such bizarre abilities?

It was amazing that it could leave such a thing on him silently, causing his aura to become chaotic.

But no matter how much he thought about it, he still couldn't figure it out. So he got up and drew a portrait of the woman in red from memory, and then had someone make a copy to investigate her identity.

A few days later, Yan Qing finally brought back new news.

"Master, we have found the whereabouts of that minor official."

Upon hearing this, Qi Guze simply said, "Let's go!"

The two immediately left the room and headed straight for the local wine shop where the minor official was hiding.

There were far more people in the distillery than in the restaurant last time, but these people were almost all ordinary people from humble backgrounds, and they were all large in stature, making the place very crowded.

When Qi Guze and Yan Qing arrived here, it was as if they had entered another world, a world they should not have been part of before.

After looking around, their eyes were immediately drawn to a figure in a small corner.

Wu Yong, a minor official, was drinking alone. He looked somewhat dazed, completely absorbed in his own world.

"Take him away," Qi Guze ordered.

Yan Qing nodded, and in a flash, he appeared beside the minor official.

With a single reach, he easily subdued Wu Yong, then leaped out of the window with him and quickly arrived at a secluded alley nearby.

Wu Yong struggled to his feet in terror, shouting, "Who...who are you people? Why are you arresting me?"

Qi Guze approached Wu Yong and took out the already dried portrait from his pocket.

The woman in red in the painting is very alluring and charming, and looks captivating.

"Do you recognize the woman in this portrait? What is your relationship with her? What are you two after?" He used his special power to intimidate Wu Yong.

Wu Yong trembled, his trousers were wet, and he collapsed to the ground. The moment he made eye contact with Qi Guze, he felt as if Mount Tai was pressing down on his back.

"This woman is so beautiful, how could I possibly have anything to do with her?" Wu Yong's eyes darted around, his answer seemingly irrelevant.

Upon seeing this, Yan Qing walked straight up to him, broke his hand bones, and then searched his body thoroughly.

Before long, Yan Qing found several valuable treasures on him, which looked like the items that some wealthy people in the capital had recently lost.

“These things are all top-tier treasures! You can’t afford them with your salary, can you?” Yan Qing mocked.

Wu Yong's face paled, but he still stubbornly insisted, "Don't make false accusations! These are all my family's heirlooms! Don't touch them, give them back to me!"

"If you don't tell the truth, we'll have no choice but to hand you over to the authorities." Yan Qing grabbed his collar, glared at him, and threatened him coldly.

Wu Yong's face turned deathly pale, but he still insisted that he knew nothing about it.

"Let's discuss this properly. If you're not going to listen, then there's no need to treat me with any more courtesy." Qi Guze waved his hand gently, signaling Yan Qing that he could make his move.

Yan Qing nodded slightly and then proceeded to punch and kick Wu Yong.

Suddenly, Wu Yong coughed up black blood, followed by a series of convulsions.

After his body stopped convulsing, his eyes rolled back, his head lolled to the side, and he completely stopped breathing.

"I didn't use that much force! How come he's so weak? He couldn't hold on for long?" Yan Qing was both surprised and puzzled.

Qi Guze stared at Wu Yong's corpse and said in a deep voice, "He must have been poisoned."

"He was already under that person's control. Once he encountered a certain situation, the poison in his body would be automatically triggered, killing her instantly."

Upon hearing this, the surrounding air grew noticeably colder, as if it were carrying the scent of some kind of conspiracy.

Qi Guze and Yan Qing exchanged a glance, both feeling deeply worried.

The secrets hidden under the cover of night seem to become even more elusive, with many dangers lurking beneath the surface. A storm is brewing before them, and one step forward may lead to an endless abyss.

Qi Guze and Yan Qing were filled with doubts and became even more wary of the mastermind's schemes and plans.

Back at the mansion, both men still wore solemn expressions.

Just as they were about to discuss the matter further, a royal messenger arrived in haste.

"Sir, that Taoist priest has died suddenly."

Upon hearing this, Qi Guze's heart sank.

Unexpectedly, that lead has also been cut off. Now, the enemy is in the shadows while we are in the open, and the situation is very unfavorable for them.

Qi Guze had the palace servants lead the way to the scene of the Taoist's death.

Yan Qing followed closely behind, and together they spurred their horses on, arriving at their destination in no time.

Under the moonlight, an ancient willow tree stood alone under the bridge.

The Taoist priest's body was hanging on the thickest branch of that willow tree.

His clothes were disheveled, and his face was extremely distorted, making it impossible to recognize his original features. It seemed that he had experienced great suffering before his death.

A gentle breeze rustled through the treetops, creating a chilling atmosphere.

"Your Highness, look at this..." Yan Qing pointed at the Taoist's corpse and suddenly saw many large, fat black worms wriggling on his body. He immediately ran to the riverbank and vomited.

Qi Guze covered his mouth and nose with a handkerchief and approached the Taoist priest to examine him closely.

Apart from the wriggling worms on his body, there was a clear ligature mark on the Taoist's neck. Although the mark was well disguised, the fear and resentment in the Taoist's eyes were evident. This was definitely not a simple suicide!

"The method is clumsy. The other party intends to confuse the situation, but it also seems to be mocking us and trying to provoke us," Qi Guze said with a sneer. "But the fact that they left the body here so openly shows that they are too confident in their situation."

He stepped out of the area within a foot of the body and began searching the surrounding area.

However, the other party handled the situation very cautiously, and apart from a few messy footprints on the nearby puddle, they found nothing else.

Left with no other choice, Qi Guze could only have the palace servants take the old Taoist's body back to the palace and arrange for its proper disposal.

He planned to return to the mansion with Yan Qing and send people to investigate other directions.