Chapter 70
How the demons arrived in the capital remained a mystery to the Illusion Demon; before he could even begin to search the divine essence of the demon, he died. He was murdered.
Few people have ever seen the Phantom Demon, and even fewer can kill it without alerting anyone. It's basically down to the elders and leaders of various sects, but no one dares to voice their thoughts.
However, once the seed of doubt is planted, it is very difficult to uproot it completely.
Xiao Mu arrived at the back mountain where Zhou Xuanzhi was, and recounted everything he had gathered from various places over the past few days. Then he asked, "Do you have any suspicions?"
Everyone suspects it's someone from within the Exorcism Bureau, since the person is being held there. Of course, some also say it's from Cold Maple Valley, given their recent actions have drawn criticism from many.
"The Exorcism Division can be ruled out of suspicion. If I were the mole, I wouldn't have acted on my own turf." Wouldn't that have left more people at the crime scene, interrogating them again and again, and it would have been only a matter of time before they were discovered?
Xiao Mu nodded in agreement, "That's what my master said too. But he was certain of one thing: Li Sheng's trip to the capital wasn't just about letting those insignificant little demons cause trouble. He was very likely meeting with that traitor."
Some of these words weren't unfounded, and Xiao Mu clearly thought so too. After exchanging a glance, the two nodded. Xiao Mu continued, "It's said that they've already identified a general direction of suspicion and are currently investigating."
"Do you know who it is?" Shi Yunzhou had not heard any news about it.
Xiao Mu sighed, "You really overestimate me. How could my master tell me something so important? There are probably no more than three people in the entire Tianyu Mountain who know about it."
"What about your family?" Xiao Mu, you come from a family of cultivators. Even if your master doesn't tell you, your father should.
"The little information I have is all gleaned from my father." Don't overestimate me. Although I work in intelligence, there's some information he genuinely doesn't circulate in the market.
A gentle breeze rippled across the sea, leaving not a single ripple. Gazing at the distant barrier, Zhou Xuanzhi said, "This barrier is only a thin layer, yet it protects countless lives on earth." But many have sacrificed themselves before that barrier, risking their lives to protect this world.
"So many people risked their lives to protect this place, yet only a few were willing to give it up. I wonder what the demons promised that traitor that made him abandon everything." Zhou Xuanzhi looked at the human world his master had risked his life to protect, and the existence of such people in this world was truly disgusting. If he were to find this person, he would make him experience what a living hell truly is!
Seeing Zhou Xuanzhi's agitation, Xiao Mu advised, "You can't act like a human being just because he's not a human being. Master and the others are handling the traitor search; we still have other missions to complete."
"What do you mean?" Zhou Xuanzhi was taken aback and didn't understand.
"You know this is the home of the Chen family of Gusu. In storybooks, the heroines are all born here. Would you like to go and take a look?" Xiao Mu laughed.
Unlike the beauty of the "Three States" cities by the sea, Suzhou has its own unique beauty. Small bridges and flowing water can be seen everywhere, and the grass, trees and flowers by the water are reflected in the water, which also creates a unique landscape.
To avoid attracting attention, Zhou Xuanzhi and Xiao Mu changed their clothes, making them look like two scholars. Suzhou has many academies, beautiful scenery, and even more beautiful women, attracting countless scholars throughout the year. Their attire blended harmoniously into the street.
The academy was not open to women, so Lin Jichen's role at this time was that of their bodyguard. While many families in Suzhou had bodyguards, it was quite rare to see a scholar accompanied by a female bodyguard.
Therefore, Lin Jichen and her two "young masters" received a lot of attention along the way. Zhou Xuanzhi saw nothing wrong with Lin Jichen's appearance, but why was it so?
From the remnants of the demons' memories, everyone saw the city of "Gusu," which originally had cultivator families. They also participated in this Immortal Alliance Conference, and in order not to attract the attention of the demons, each faction secretly sent cultivators to Gusu to investigate.
To avoid being betrayed by the traitor, the disciples sent out this time were kept secret. Even after arriving in Suzhou, the Chen family did not know who had come, and the disciples sent out were not allowed to reveal their identities; everything had to be investigated in secret.
Xiao Mu said, "Senior sister, you should have more confidence in yourself. There are people in Cold Maple Valley who know you."
Lin Jichen's first reaction was that his strength had been recognized by the people of Hanfeng Valley, but he quickly realized that they weren't referring to his own strength.
Xiao Mu's banter gave Zhou Xuanzhi time to observe others. In Suzhou, young masters from prominent families were usually accompanied by pageboys when they went out, and it was rare to see them accompanied by guards.
“The problem lies in our personnel allocation,” Zhou Xuanzhi stated, revealing his discovery.
Lin Jichen grew up in Tianyu Mountain. His first impression of the young masters and ladies of the world came from the stories circulating in Tianyu Mountain. Even when he went down the mountain to carry out missions, he did not come into contact with the young masters and ladies of wealthy families in their daily lives.
"I think there must be something wrong with my identity, otherwise I would have played the role of one of your servants..." The scenes of her serving Shi Yunzhou were still flashing before her eyes, and she really didn't want to go through that again.
"To be a maid?"
Lin Jichen firmly denied it, saying, "No, what I mean is that I can disguise myself as a page. Isn't our purpose in coming here to learn? It's normal for you to have a page with you."
There was a man on the street accompanied by a female guard with a sword.
The man was handsome, but his gaze would sometimes linger on the young and beautiful women at the stall. His gaze was full of admiration and did not offend Lin Jichen, but this behavior was a little... a little inappropriate.
The two people beside him also turned their attention to the man. He was very handsome, dressed in the blue robes often worn by scholars, and the pendant on the folding fan in his hand was made of fine jade. However, his behavior was not considered dignified among scholars.
"I suddenly feel like you don't need to dress as a man anymore." Xiao Mu observed that the man's actions didn't attract much attention.
"Maybe it's because we're new faces! Aren't you claiming to be young masters from prestigious families in the capital? Show us your noble demeanor." Both of them came from aristocratic families, so there was nothing wrong with what they said.
Zhou Xuanzhi also felt somewhat helpless, "I've been separated from the Zhou family for two hundred years, how could they possibly recognize me?" Using the Zhou family's name is no simple matter.
Xiao Mu looked unwilling when he heard Lin Jichen say that, "You know perfectly well that I was kicked out by my family because they disliked me."
That's a bit unfair. You were indeed kicked out. That's because you were spoiled by your family elders, who used connections to send you to Tianyu Mountain to learn martial arts so you could grow up healthily.
"Do you still remember Gu Qingci?" Lin Jichen stopped looking at Xiao Mu and said to Zhou Xuanzhi, "Have Prince Gu go to the Zhou family and get a few of their visiting cards."
This is indeed one method; they used this method before to produce several visiting cards to help complete their mission.
Several people in Tianyu Mountain knew the inside story of Zhou Xuanzhi and the Zhou family, but Lin Jichen was not among them. However, Xiao Mu, the "information broker," knew a little about the inside story. He stepped forward and said, "Miss Gu also has a disciple from the Exorcism Division by her side, named...Mu...Murong. He seems like a nice guy. Let's ask him if he can help."
To move freely among the aristocratic families of Suzhou, one couldn't rely solely on oneself. Young men from the capital needed visiting cards from those families. But things were different now; these cards were equipped with anti-counterfeiting technology. There were far too many prominent families in Suzhou, no less influential than those in the capital, and fake cards wouldn't fool them. Even if they wanted to forge them, they couldn't.
"That's one way." But this disciple from the Exorcism Division wasn't particularly familiar with them, so why would he help?
“I’ll make the contact!” Zhou Xuanzhi said. Some people in the Exorcism Bureau were indeed on good terms with him.
They rented an elegant and refreshing courtyard in Suzhou, and to match their current "status," they even hired a butler, guards, and maids. They looked like wealthy young masters going out for a stroll.
Lin Jichen disguised himself as a man for convenience, so that he could follow the two of them around without attracting attention.
Murong Jing over there has already agreed to Zhou Xuanzhi's request for a visiting card, which will arrive in a few days. During this time, Zhou Xuanzhi has been having a great time with Xiao Mu and several scholars, and they have even gone to the brothels and pleasure boats that are strictly forbidden to them on Tianyu Mountain countless times.
During this time, he met some local scions of wealthy families, and the things he did with them were even more expensive. They would attend banquets every three to five days, spending money like water. Every time Lin Jichen took out his silver, his heart felt like it was bleeding.
She had already spent all the silver she had taken when she left Tianyu Mountain. Fortunately, there were still properties under Tianyu Mountain's name nearby. When she took a large sum of silver from there, she could sense that the people opposite her were also quite reluctant to part with it. Having spent so much money, she had indeed obtained some useful information, so it was all worthwhile.
"Gentlemen, you should be careful with your money. Doing business these days isn't easy." The shopkeeper placed a stack of silver notes in Lin Jichen's hand, his face full of heartache.
Lin Jichen felt her face turn bright red, as if it could bleed, and readily agreed, "I understand, I will tell Senior Brother Zhou and Junior Brother Xiao, don't worry, boss." This money was all spent by them on parties and travel, and it really had little to do with her.
Lin Jichen put away the silver notes and asked, "Has there been any result regarding the matter I asked you to inquire about before I came?"
Since they came here to "study," they naturally had to visit the academy. Before they arrived, they had already asked the owner to inquire which academy had the most wealthy students and which academy had young masters from aristocratic families.
"The Cold Mountain Academy outside the city." The innkeeper had already inquired about it beforehand. He handed a thick envelope to Lin Jichen and continued, "This academy was funded by the Chen family. The entire mountain is the academy. The students there are indeed some from cultivation families and wealthy families. If you want to infiltrate the Chen family during this period, you can only do so by first entering the academy."
"Okay, thank you very much, boss."
These past few days, it seems some aristocratic families in Suzhou have been under complete lockdown, with no one allowed in but no one out. Several young men from these families, with whom I usually hang out, have recently become unreachable, as if something has happened at home. But there's been no news from within the city, which is quite strange.
It wasn't like this when they came. Wasn't it supposed to be a place where some demons' memories remained? They came because they were afraid the demons would do something special in this place, but now it seems like something happened to the Chen family.
"Why is that? We've never encountered anything like this in the capital," Xiao Mu said.
It was Zhou Xuanzhi who spoke up, saying, "Could something have happened at home?" When a family scandal occurs, people naturally pay special attention; such things are not uncommon in the capital.
People tend to avoid discussing other people's family matters too much, thinking, "Who knows?"
Zhou Xuanzhi changed the subject and said, "I am very grateful for the many kindnesses you brothers have shown us recently. My accommodations are ready and I will be hosting a banquet soon. I hope you will all do me the honor of joining me."
Everyone agreed that they would definitely be there.
"Brother Zhou, you're being too polite. We would have come knocking on your door even if you hadn't asked."
“I have opened my doors and am waiting for you all.”
Lin Jichen, who was on the outside, yawned as she listened to the commotion inside. She was now filled with regret. Why hadn't she pretended to be their sister back then? Now she was being treated no differently than a maid.
If she disguised herself as their sister, she could enter the inner quarters of these families and perhaps overhear some news. However, she wasn't very good with words, so she could only eavesdrop.
Laughter came from inside; it was unclear what they were discussing so happily. Lin Jichen picked up a few pebbles from the ground and started skipping them across the water. Ripples spread across the lake, and she skipped them with increasing enthusiasm.
"That was a beautiful skipping motion, young lady." A man's voice came from beside her. Lin Jichen turned around and saw a young man. She was completely unaware of his arrival, only sensing his presence at such close range.
This person is a master.
"And who are you?" Lin Jichen took the opportunity to sized up the man, feeling that he looked somewhat familiar. After a while, he realized that it was the same man he had seen on the street that day.
"My name is Chen Xingyan."
Lin Jichen couldn't sense this person's cultivation level, which made her somewhat uneasy. "Young Master Chen, are you here for the banquet? Please come in! They've already started."
Chen Xingyan smiled and walked inside, then suddenly turned back and asked, "I haven't yet asked how to address you, young lady?"
"Lin Jichen".
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