Broken Linglong (20)
"Disappeared?"
They were all shocked. In just one night, the person who had been lying sick in bed yesterday had disappeared.
"Did she go back to her ancestral homeland again?"
"I'm afraid so." Qi Shuojun said anxiously, "I only received the news this morning and haven't had time to send anyone to investigate yet."
Ye Yingying frowned, her gaze serious: "Given her current physical condition, if she really enters the ancestral land, I'm afraid the odds will be against her."
"We can't just leave her like this!" Qi Shuojun exclaimed, "Besides, the wedding ceremony is in three days. What will we do if the bride goes missing?"
"Don't panic." Yun Yanqiu's voice was as calm as ever. "Let Wu Yue do the calculation first. Zhao Yuxiao, go and call her."
"Okay!" Zhao Yuxiao immediately went upstairs to find Wu Yue and persuaded her to come down.
Wu Yue strode up to the group, crossed her arms, and declared loudly, "My divination doesn't come cheap."
"I'll take as many as you want, please help me calculate first, miss." Qi Shuojun said, taking out a small piece of glittering gold from her body. "This piece can be used as a deposit. If the person is found, I'll send you a whole box, no problem."
Wu Yue was stunned by his overly generous offer and waved her hand to refuse, saying, "Alright, alright, I'll calculate it for you, but I won't take the money. You'll have to pay with something else."
Qi Shuojun was slightly taken aback: "Does the young lady want it?"
"Hmm..." Wu Yue touched her chin and carefully examined this rich young master. Although she couldn't accept money, this guy looked like a fool with too much money, so she was sure she could get a lot of good stuff from him.
"We'll talk about what you want later, you calculate first," Yun Yanqiu said decisively.
Upon hearing this, Wu Yue stuck out her tongue at him and glared at him fiercely before obediently taking out a long, thin green grass, which was as long as half her arm and as wide as a finger.
She twirled the grass between her fingers and commanded, "Give me something she used, preferably something close to her skin."
But these people had nothing of Qin Zhiqing's, so the group had to hurry to the villa where Qin Zhiqing lived and have Zhique take out an undergarment from Qin Zhiqing's wardrobe.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Wu Yue wrapped the green grass tightly with the garment. Then, she picked up the garment, which had been folded into a neat square, closed her eyes, and muttered incantations as she folded the garment in half.
She continued reciting the divination incantation, and spiritual energy seeped into the grass little by little through her clothes. When she finished reciting the incantation, she opened her clothes, picked up the green grass inside, and examined it.
The grass was split in half by the crease, with several asymmetrical black horizontal lines scattered above and below, as if it had been scorched.
Wu Yue interpreted the divination's meaning, and then said to the crowd beside her, "She is still alive, in a high place in the west, but there may be ominous signs in the coming days."
To the west, at a high place, isn't the ancestral home of the Qi family located in a mountain to the west?
"Miss is still alive, that's wonderful..." Zhi Que was so excited she almost cried. If something had really happened to Qin Zhiqing, she, the maid who had fallen asleep last night, would definitely have been punished by the master and beaten to death.
Qi Shuojun turned around to go outside to look for someone, but Ye Yingying blocked her way.
Ye Yingying advised, "Young Master Qi, we'll handle this. Let's not alarm anyone else. The fewer people who know about this, the better."
"Can you bring them back today?" Qi Shuojun looked at Ye Yingying with a mixture of nervousness and hope in her eyes.
Ye Yingying neither nodded nor shook her head, but stared firmly at Qi Shuojun and said, "At least we need to see her in person before making a conclusion. Mr. Qi, if I may be frank, what else is Miss Qin hiding from you? It's hard to say how this matter will turn out."
Qi Shuojun's pupils suddenly dilated, his gaze froze, as if he had thought of something.
After a while, he came to his senses and bowed to Ye Yingying and the others: "No matter what, I would appreciate it if you could help me find her."
Ye Yingying nodded emphatically and turned to call out to Yun Yanqiu, "Senior Yun, shall we..."
"Okay, let's go."
“Senior Yun, then I…” Zhao Yuxiao, who was standing to the side, cast a questioning glance at him.
Yun Yanqiu glanced at him and said calmly, "You and Wu Yue stay here and keep that maid under control."
"Huh?" Zhao Yuxiao was stunned.
Zhique panicked upon hearing this and shook her head frantically to defend herself: "This servant wouldn't speak nonsense! This servant knows nothing!"
"Don't be nervous. Tell me everything you know and don't know," Wu Yue said, having somehow gotten behind Zhi Que and quietly placed a hand on her shoulder. She whispered teasingly in her ear, "I have a lot of things I want to talk to you about."
Zhi Que stiffly turned her head, her eyes filled with terror as she looked at Wu Yue. The woman's actions just now clearly indicated she was a member of the Wu clan. Being targeted by the Wu clan was no good sign; Zhi Que was so frightened that her whole body went cold, trembling slightly, and she couldn't utter a word.
She wanted to call for help, but the group of people in the room all seemed to be in cahoots. She felt like she had been kidnapped by bandits and was on the verge of tears.
What to do? She misses her mistress so much...
"In that case, let's set off." Ye Yingying opened the door and walked outside. "See you at Lingyun Inn tonight."
She led Yun Yanqiu all the way towards the Qi family's ancestral land, explaining to him as she ran what she had learned over the past few days.
"In other words, Qin Zhiqing also wants to find the Azure Nether True Fire, and that final layer of true fire is currently inside the ancestral altar," Yun Yanqiu concluded after listening.
"Yes, and the ancestral altar is surrounded by traps, and the Azure Gold Hou guarding it has suddenly gone berserk. I haven't figured out a way to get in yet."
Upon hearing this, Yun Yanqiu pondered, "The Azure Golden Hou is inherently ferocious, and even after being tamed, it is easily rekindled by things of the Yin nature."
Ye Yingying suddenly realized: "You mean, the Azure Golden Hou's sudden berserk state was because it got close to the Azure Nether True Fire?"
“It’s not impossible.” Yun Yanqiu nodded slightly. “But if the attack only happened yesterday, we can’t rule out the possibility of interference from other external factors.”
In other words, something unexpected must have happened in the past two days that they are unaware of.
Thinking of this, Ye Yingying's expression unconsciously became serious. What exactly was this unstable factor? And how much would it affect her ability to start a fire?
The two reached the foot of the mountain. Ye Yingying, imitating Qin Zhiqing, found the large tree marked with leaf shapes. With trepidation, she channeled her spiritual energy into it. To her surprise, a series of marks emitted a pale blue light. Unfortunately, it was midday, and the sunlight was bright, so the light in the forest was not as noticeable as at night.
This was Ye Yingying's first time visiting during the day. Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the branches, dappling the ground, and the air was filled with the scent of earth, creating a slightly cool atmosphere. Occasionally, the chirping of insects echoed among the leaves, adding a touch of life to this tranquil mountain forest.
During the day, the Qi family ancestral land did not seem as eerie and dangerous as it was at night. Instead, it was just like an ordinary green mountain, with the sounds of insects and birds everywhere, and one would not feel that there was any hidden danger here.
But with the lingering fear of being nearly eaten by the Azure Golden Hou, Ye Yingying was more cautious than ever before.
They reached the mountaintop, but still couldn't find Qin Zhiqing. Ye Yingying looked around in confusion for a moment, finally glancing at Yunyan Hill.
Yun Yanqiu closed his eyes, his entire body focused on sensing the surrounding spiritual energy. After a while, he opened his eyes and said, "The strongest spiritual energy here is diagonally opposite us. It should be the Azure Golden Hou, but it's not moving. Perhaps it's sleeping."
"What about Qin Zhiqing?" Ye Yingying asked anxiously.
"It's hard to say. There are too many and too mixed spiritual energies in this mountain that are close to the Core Formation stage. They may all be birds and beasts in the mountain," Yun Yanqiu said seriously. "Even if we find that person from here, we won't be able to find them all by the time of the wedding."
The investigation had stalled, and Ye Yingying helplessly looked around, trying to spot Qin Zhiqing. They walked around the area for a while longer, but still didn't see a single person. Then they searched a large area along the marked route, only to find no trace whatsoever.
If Qin Zhiqing had collapsed on the road due to a high fever, they should have seen her long ago; if she had been attacked by the Azure Golden Hou, there should have been signs of a struggle on the ground or tree trunks. But there was nothing there; it was as if Qin Zhiqing had never been there before.
“Something’s not right.” Yun Yanqiu frowned. “There are no other big mountains around here. Either Wu Yue’s divination was wrong, or someone deliberately covered up the traces.”
Wu Yue is one of the top divination masters in the Wu clan. If even she couldn't predict correctly, then there must be a powerful figure at the Nascent Soul stage or above intervening. Therefore, it's more likely that someone is covering up the truth.
"The sun is about to set. Just to be safe, let's go back first." Yun Yanqiu looked at the reddening sky in the distance.
They searched for an entire afternoon without success. With nightfall approaching, to avoid being attacked by the Azure Golden Hou and making a scene, the two decided to return to Lingyun Inn first.
Unable to find Qin Zhiqing, Ye Yingying was somewhat downcast. When she and Yun Yanqiu entered the inn, Qi Shuojun, Zhao Yuxiao, and Wu Yue had already been waiting there for a long time.
Seeing the two return empty-handed, Qi Shuojun's hopeful gaze dimmed, and she asked with difficulty, "Did you not find it?"
"We've searched almost the entire mountain, but we haven't found any trace of Qin Zhiqing," Yun Yanqiu explained. "There are no marks on the ground, so we suspect someone is deliberately covering it up."
Zhao Yuxiao exclaimed in surprise, "Could it be that someone has kidnapped Miss Qin?!"
“That possibility cannot be ruled out,” Yun Yanqiu nodded. “But it’s also possible that Wu Yue’s divination was inaccurate.”
"You dare to question my abilities?" Wu Yue raised an eyebrow arrogantly. "Even if you, Yun Yanqiu, hid in the sea, I could still calculate it. There's no way I could be wrong about a mere young lady with the strength of the Core Formation stage."
"If someone kidnapped Zhiqing, who could it be?" Qi Shuojun frowned and pondered.
"That depends on who she's been associating with," Ye Yingying said solemnly. "Did you get anything out of that maid?"
She looked at Wu Yue, who was sitting casually on a stool, propping her head up with one hand and glancing at her casually: "That little maid was Qin Zhiqing's second maid. She happened to be with Qin Zhiqing when she showed off her skills at the Gathering of Heroes. After the Gathering of Heroes, Qin Zhiqing basically never left the house. She's a proper young lady from a prominent family. Where would she meet anyone?"
"So, who did she meet before the Gathering of Heroes?" Ye Yingying analyzed. "Qin Zhiqing's first maid should know these things. Where is she now, and what's the way to find her?"
After Ye Yingying finished asking her question, everyone fell silent. She looked at Wu Yue in confusion, but Wu Yue only gave her a look, indicating that she should look at Qi Shuojun.
Qi Shuojun spoke with a somber expression: "Her first maid was named Chi He, and she is said to be dead."
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