The alley was very shallow. Not long after walking, we came to the corner.

In the silent alley, the mellow night solidified into a solid black air. The mercury moonlight sprinkled on the ground, reflecting the shadows of the lush weeds.

The lights of the houses around were turned off, and only an inconspicuous old wooden house was lit.

As Ningning walked forward, a breeze blew by. The dark and heavy gauze curtain in front of the wooden house was lifted by the night wind, like a wave of water in the air, with layers of ripples rising and falling, revealing some dim candlelight in the gauze curtain.

That was the "behind the curtain" mentioned in the note.

Pei Ji was always cautious. He held the sword and opened the curtains first. He leaned forward to make sure everything was safe before pulling Ning Ning into the dark tent.

Before she came here, she had imagined many scenes of "behind the curtains". However, she was still a little surprised when she stepped into this place in person.

In terms of decoration, this place is not much different from other houses in the poor neighborhood. It

is cramped, old, narrow and dull. The dim candlelight fills every corner, intertwined with the night that is unwilling to dissipate. All you can see is dust, cracks and crumbling spider webs. It is so poor that you can make a debut in a horror movie.

Rows of shelves were arranged in a mess, making the already narrow space even more crowded. When Ningning looked carefully, she could see talismans and books placed randomly on the shelves, as well as many strange things she had never seen before.

Several crooked paintings were hung on the wall. Ningning looked curiously and was attracted by one of them at first sight.

The painting showed an endless sky, with light and pale sunlight passing through layers of condensed clouds, revealing a soft and gentle goose yellow color like a veil.

Under the painting, there were a few large characters written. She read them out word by word: "Firming Po" - it sounds like Song Xianning's name."

"We dare not offend that lady. What would you two like to order?"

A strange male voice suddenly sounded. Ningning looked up and found a young man sitting on a pile of books among the books scattered on the ground.

Although she knew that this was a store, she knew nothing about the goods in the store. Just as she was thinking about how to answer, she heard Pei Ji beside her say, "Has the city lord's wife been here?"

He was really straightforward and got straight to the point.

The young man's expression changed when he heard the words, but he still kept sitting cross-legged, and his back straightened a little.

He looked only in his twenties, but he already had a lot of white hair and heavy eye bags. His black and white hair matched with the shocking dark circles under his eyes. He sat on the ground like a national treasure.

"The wife of the city lord?"

The man yawned: "Which wife of the city lord are you talking about?"

Ningning was startled: "You mean... both of them have been here?"

The other party stopped talking.

"If you tell the truth, we will reward you."

She thought of her poor wallet, which was on the verge of being emptied every day, and gritted her teeth and continued, "I wonder if you can reveal some information?" "Are you

kidding? Am I the kind of person who would lose my principles for money? The privacy of customers must be completely protected. This is the creed of my shop!"

The young man chuckled, "But if you are willing to give more, it's not impossible--"

Before he finished speaking, he saw a beam of white sword light coming towards him, as cold as ice, just cutting through a few strands of his drooping hair.

The corner of the young man's mouth twitched.

The girl who came into the store late at night was kind and pretty, with a gentle tone and demeanor. She didn't expect the young man next to her to be like a mad dog. He drew his sword and threatened directly. Those who didn't know would think it was a robbery. He was scared enough.

Recently, it was the Ten Dharma Conference. These two young men with swords were obviously disciples of the immortal sect. Although they were all wearing black clothes, their hearts were as white as paper.

His original intention was to be reserved and polite, and slowly raise the price of the information to fool these famous and upright people who were ignorant of the world. He didn't expect to be intimidated by the other party on the spot. The sword energy was cold and fierce, and there was no righteous style at all.

Which sect is this disciple from? Could it be...

The name of a certain sect slowly emerged in his mind, and the young man couldn't help but shudder: "Are you disciples of the Xuanxu Sword Sect?"

Ning Ning saw that this person wanted to deceive others, and did not stop Pei Ji, and nodded with a smile: "Yes! How did you know?"

He wanted to cry but had no tears.

Nonsense.

Except for the Xuanxu Sword Sect, no other sect can hang the heads of disciples on a boat and fly. It can be called the pinnacle of magic and fantasy. You can't help but admit it.

This terrifying sect has long been a turmoil in the city, and has become the material for ghost stories to scare children. Today is really a blessing accumulated in three lifetimes, allowing him to meet these two people. It really lives up to its reputation.

In terms of cruelty, the Xuanxu Sword Sect is invincible in the world.

Pei Ji never had a good temper towards strangers, especially since the shopkeeper had obvious ulterior motives. He held the sword with an expressionless face and repeated Ning Ning's previous words: "Have both city lords' wives been here?"

"Let's talk it over! They have all been here, they have all been here!"

The young man hurriedly replied: "What do you want to know?"

The girl was still smiling, and when she saw her companion draw his sword, she didn't even want to stop him: "What's so special about this shop? What did they do here?"

He finally saw it.

The hearts of these two people rolled in the same coal pile.

"Most of the goods here are spells and talismans."

Seeing Ning Ning showing a disappointed look, the young man hurriedly said: "These spells are very different from those of the famous and upright sects! In my shop, the word 'evil' is the most important."

Evil.

Ning Ning frowned slightly: "Evil spells?"

"That's right!"

The young man stood up from the pile of books with difficulty, and his tone was unconsciously excited: "The mental methods of the righteous way mostly focus on the mutual generation of the five elements and the law of following the rules. What about mine, hey - jump out of the five elements, and use whatever is useful." There are many spells and sects in the world of cultivation.

The Xuanxu Sword Dao that Ning Ning has come into contact with is just a drop in the ocean. And among all the ways of cultivation she knows, talismans can be said to be the most bizarre and changeable.

The idea comes before the pen is written, and the strokes are carefully considered. Even if the position is wrong, it may be completely different from the original intention. The effects of the different materials used for drawing talismans, such as ink, cinnabar and blood, will also be very different.

"I see that both of you are sword practitioners, so you may not know much about spells."

The young man was very polite and grinned at Ningning: "Evil spells are mostly related to curses, prohibitions and souls. They can take people's lives thousands of miles away, and can also refine others into puppets that can be controlled. There is nothing you can't think of."

Ningning replied seriously: "It is quite evil."

"There are even more bizarre things!"

The man became interested: "I heard that in the old days, the demons had a life-swapping technique that could use the luck of others to offset their own sins. Once successful, it would be like hiding the truth from the world, and even the law of nature couldn't do anything to you. Not only that -"

He was talking halfway when he noticed Pei Ji's impatient gaze, and knew that he had gone off topic. He coughed awkwardly and said, "Let's get back to the point. Mrs. Song came to see me. Is she... Want to ask about soul exchange."

Ningning's heart tightened as he continued, "At that time, she and the city lord were not on good terms, and she came to me with a pale face. But soul exchange is a taboo against fate, although it has been recorded in ancient books... But I am just a small shop owner after all, how can I know the specific method, I can only tell her that I can't help."

Ningning responded thoughtfully: "Besides this, did she ask anything else?"

"She seemed to be hesitant to speak, but she never asked the question in the end. A few days after she left here, she suddenly fell seriously ill."

The young man rolled his eyes, leaned forward a little, and lowered his voice: "This is not the most bizarre thing - not long after Song Xianning died, when Luan Niang had not yet married the city lord, she actually came into my shop one day and asked if there was any muscle and bone remodeling and nourishment. "

He paused, as if his mouth was dry from talking, and he picked up the teacup beside him and gulped it down: "Don't you think it's strange? My shop has always been discreet and rarely leaks news. Most of the people who come here are dignitaries, and ordinary people rarely know the details. However, Luan Niang grew up in Nuan Yu Pavilion since she was a child and rarely goes out. Where did she get the news?"

Ning Ning nodded: "This "Muscle and bone remodeling"——"

These words obviously hit the point. The young man suddenly grinned and leaned over to lower his voice: "Isn't it the art of soul refining! Nourishing one's own body with the soul power of others can not only maintain a youthful appearance, but also greatly benefit the improvement of cultivation."

He said and laughed sinisterly a few times: "Don't you think it is very similar to the missing cases in recent days? ?”

Pei Ji glanced at him coldly: "You think the missing case is related to Luan Niang."

He used a very firm tone of statement, and the young man did not refute after hearing it, and shrugged in response: "You should be investigating this matter, right? This is just my personal opinion, believe it or not."

Ning Ning thought of the safety of the eldest senior sister and did not waste words with him: "Do you think... Luan Niang is very likely the late Song Xianning?"

"Otherwise, why did she ask about the soul-swapping technique? How did Luan Niang find this place?"

The young man looked outside the door, and after making sure that there was no one there, he continued, "And I heard that Luan Niang's personality is very different from before. Isn't she a completely different person?"

Perhaps because no one had ever discussed this with him before, the young man became more and more excited as he spoke, "If you ask me, the story should be like this: Song Xianning loved the city lord but couldn't get him, and she happened to be ill and wouldn't live long, so she decided to go all out and used the soul-swapping technique in a fit of rage, attaching herself to Luan Niang. "

He took another sip of water: "Luan Niang has the look that the city lord likes, but she has not practiced the magic, and her face will eventually age. So Song Xianning used the soul refining method to try to keep her appearance forever and improve her cultivation, so that the city lord will become more and more obsessed with her."

This reasoning is reasonable and well-founded. However,

the gloom in Ningning's eyes never disappeared, and she asked him in a deep voice: "Shopkeeper, have you heard of "Ziwei Magic Records"? "

"Mrs. Song bought a copy, and Ziwei Zhenren is a great master of evil magic. "

The young man smiled: "As for that book, it happens to talk about the soul-changing technique, but it is only discussed superficially and does not have much effect. "

At this point in the conversation, many things seemed to become clear, and there was no more topic to continue the conversation.

Ningning thought of Zheng Weiqi whose whereabouts were unknown, frowned and said in a deep voice: "Then how should the soul refining technique be performed?"

"It's very simple, it's nothing more than living people, spells, and formations."

The young man glanced at her, as if he remembered something, and showed a slightly mysterious expression again: "Soul refining is very interesting. The more living souls are sacrificed at the same time, the greater the reward you can get. The same number of souls, the effect of refining one after another is far inferior to sacrificing them at the same time - perhaps the missing girls are not dead yet, and the murderer behind the scenes is waiting for a grand sacrifice with the right time, place and people. "

This reminded Ning Ning of the Goose City in the pagoda.

The evil cultivators back then also gathered the souls of all the people in the city together, waiting to be refined together. If it is true as the store owner said, the girls who mysteriously disappeared are still alive...

As long as they find out the truth as soon as possible, maybe they can save everyone including Zheng Weiqi.

"Have you two listened to enough?"

The young man timidly looked at Pei Ji's expression, raised his right hand and pointed to the shelf beside him: "Since I have been talking for so long, do you want to buy something?"

=====

The disciples of Xuanxu Sword Sect are not demons after all. Ningning thanked the shop owner in a friendly manner, and then selected some gadgets that might be useful before leaving the shop with Pei Ji.

Because of the vague hand-holding before, the atmosphere between the two has always been very subtle.

I didn't think so when I heard the shop owner talking before, but now it was so quiet that I could even hear my own footsteps and breathing. The night and the dim light blended together, which made it even more ambiguous.

Ningning walked towards the inn with her head lowered, trying to sort out her chaotic thoughts.

Why did Song Xianning ask about the soul exchange? Luan Niang's temperament changed drastically , is it really related to her? And, did she really take the initiative to hold Pei Ji's hand before?

The last thought appeared unexpectedly, and her speculation in her mind stopped instantly. Ning Ning moved the fingertips of her left hand awkwardly, and it seemed that she could still feel the solid touch of the back of the young man's hand, as if she was dreaming.

I can't figure out why she would subconsciously make that kind of action, and the sentence "This is holding hands"...

It's too proactive!

There is still some distance from here to the inn where the Xuanxu Sect is located. In order to avoid the atmosphere becoming more and more awkward, Ning Ning bit the bullet and said to Pei Ji: "Junior brother, what do you think?"

She was nervous and blurted out these words without thinking too much. Unexpectedly, Pei Ji did not answer immediately, but turned his head to look at her silently.

He was very suitable for the night, his dark hair was blown to his forehead by the evening breeze, and a few distant points of light in the distance were like falling stars, hanging in a pair of gloomy and deep black pupils, reflecting some uncertain halos of light, like the shadow of the moon in a deep pool.

Ningning felt stuffy unconsciously in her heart when he looked at her like this.

Pei Ji's tone was cold and hard, and he did not allow any objection, and every word was pronounced very clearly. Although she pretended not to care, she was a little hesitant, and the ending tone was like a cat's drooping tail, gradually getting lower: "Senior Sister used to call me by my name."

Ning Ning choked.

Wow, this person!

After holding hands, he started to push the issue! She was not nervous, and wanted to use this title to make herself look more serious! Why did she say it so bluntly! Childish!

Ning Ning kicked a stone in front of her away, a little unconvinced: "Didn't Junior Brother also call me 'Senior Sister'?"

She emphasized the word "Junior Brother".

Chengying laughed out loud, feeling happy at the misfortune of others: "Hahaha, no way! Pei Xiaoji, are you being coquettish? Ningning actually retorted back at you, hahaha, how shameless!"

Pei Ji turned his head back.

Ningning noticed that he had looked away, so she took the opportunity to raise her eyelashes and glanced at him calmly.

The moonlight softened Pei Ji's angular features. From her angle, she could see his tense jaw. The long black eyelashes, as slender as crow feathers, fell in front of his eyes, making his gaze even darker and unclear.

She couldn't see what Pei Ji was thinking at this moment, she only knew that he frowned.

Then Pei Ji opened his mouth slightly, as if he wanted to say something, and at the same time turned his head, just in time to meet Ningning's clear gaze.

Both of them looked away at the same time.

"I--"

Ning Ning heard him whisper, and it stopped abruptly after just one word, followed by a shallow intake of breath.

Pei Ji's voice seemed to be muffled and gushing out from his chest. Although it was just two short words, he pronounced them particularly stiffly and clumsily. Every sound turned around on the tip of his tongue, as if he was reluctant to touch it.

Fortunately, he finally pronounced it.

Pei Ji said, "Ning Ning."

Ning Ning, she sounded pretty good.

Ning Ning walked on the dim path, and somehow, she suddenly felt that her steps became much lighter, and a grain of dirt in her heart also flew up, and she couldn't catch it no matter what.

"Oh."

She pursed her lips to hide the smile, put her hands behind her back and walked forward, with an urge to jump up, pretending to be serious: "Little Pei Ji, what do you think about this?"

Cheng Ying covered her mouth and laughed while saying: "Pei Xiaoji, she is saying that you are childish."

After a pause, he laughed even harder: "You can't give in! Listen to me, call her 'Ningning baby' or 'Ningning little darling', hehe, she will never dare to tease you again. Men have to be more proactive and stronger!"

If she really called her that, she would not dare to tease him anymore, but he would be as good as dead.

Pei Ji frowned, and his bony right hand held the sword tighter. Although there was a hint of impatient murderous intent in his eyes, the corners of his lips were straightened into a straight line, and the upward arc was quietly suppressed.

So this is how it feels to pronounce her name from his mouth.

The thin overlapping sounds are gentle and light. Just saying that name...

makes him nervous, but he can't help but want to raise the corners of his mouth, so happy that he can't suppress it.

He is really hopeless.