The mirror remained unconvinced. "Fine, fine, fine, where was I wrong?" To think it was being lectured by a seventeen- or eighteen-year-old brat!
"Did you completely overlook the most formidable power in Lingxu City?"
"Ah?" the mirror asked, puzzled. "Which one?"
"The celestial gods."
"...Ah!" The mirror felt a flush of embarrassment.
He Lingchuan said calmly, "Bai Ziqi was already away on official duty and was ordered to take charge of this case as well. Looking at how rushed the appointment was and how quickly he arrived, it's obvious the Demon Emperor issued the decree directly without consulting the various factions. Otherwise, the squabbling wouldn't have been settled in ten days or half a month. If there truly was political maneuvering among the factions, the celestial gods undoubtedly won this round."
"Because the elixir of immortality is involved?"
"Mm. Xiang Yan mentioned that the elixir of immortality is a forbidden taboo to the celestial gods, and they've unleashed thunderous wrath over it in the past." He Lingchuan shrugged. "Doing so once more wouldn't be surprising at all."
"We must understand the celestial gods' stance; it's very advantageous to us," he continued. "The celestial gods also want to get to the bottom of the illicit brewing of the elixir of immortality, which aligns perfectly with our goals! As for the rest, turning a blind eye to minor details might just save us a lot of trouble."
"Now that Wu Kai has confessed, Cen Boqing has no way to wash himself clean," the mirror asked. "What other trouble could we have?"
"Why wouldn't there be?" He Lingchuan sighed, though he did not elaborate further. "Still, you were right about one thing. With Emissary Bai taking over the case, the pressure from Lingxu City will mostly fall on his shoulders. Heh, and he can bear it. That is tremendously good news for us."
At that thought, he breathed much easier.
***
When He Lingchuan returned to the inn, Bai Ziqi was interrogating Wu Kai again.
Because he had cooperated with the interrogation earlier, Wu Kai had been fed a full meal, given two medicinal pills, and provided with a change of clothes. His physical condition had improved markedly.
When Bai Ziqi entered the cellar, Wu Kai was gulping down broth from a large basin of chicken soup.
It was an old hen stewed with crucian carp for a couple of hours; the broth was milky white, the meat fall-off-the-bone tender, and infused with a rich peppery aroma.
Wu Kai had been on the run for days and tortured for two; he desperately needed nourishment.
He had thrown caution to the wind anyway. Since he would die sooner or later, he might as well eat and drink well while he still could.
Bai Ziqi asked, "What means does Cen Boqing have to slip out of the estate undetected?"
He Lingchuan asked bluntly, "Last time, how did you rescue Cheng Yu right from under my nose?"
Wu Kai set down the soup bowl and wiped his mouth. "The Cen estate has a treasure called the Ficus Grotto-Heaven, barely the size of a palm, purchased from Songyang Mansion. It was fixed with the Mustard Seed art. Activated by profound crystals, it can conceal living beings inside the grotto-heaven for up to an hour. But the same person cannot enter twice within four hours, or their body will collapse from being unable to withstand the compression of the Mustard Seed art."
"The Mustard Seed art!" The moment He Lingchuan heard the words "Songyang Mansion," he knew things were bad.
Back when He Chunhua was marching his troops to take up his post in Xiazhou, they had run into Li Qingge. She had produced a miniature courtyard model, which turned into a real mansion when tossed onto the ground, sheltering people from wind and rain so they could eat, sleep, and play cards.
She had made it clear that such supernatural arts had limits on the volume and weight they could contain, which was why they couldn't be used for army logistics on the march.
However, taking in one or two people was no trouble at all.
The mustard seed space she used for herself was naturally top-tier, complete with evergreen trees and far fewer restrictions on living people entering and exiting, whereas Cen Boqing's Ficus Grotto-Heaven was evidently a stripped-down version.
He Lingchuan said in annoyance, "Why didn't you mention this earlier?"
It seemed Cen Boqing's previous attempts to break through the cordon were merely feints, keeping up appearances to let Fu Shanyue believe he was still in the estate so his guard would drop. Only when the real crisis struck did the two pull off their secret escape.
This fellow Cen wasn't quite as inept as everyone had assumed.
Wu Kai put on an innocent face. "I didn't know he would use it either."
Bai Ziqi thought further ahead. "Even if he and Cheng Yu hid inside the Ficus Grotto-Heaven, someone still had to carry the magic artifact out of the estate." Otherwise, if the artifact remained inside, the soldiers would have found it sooner or later.
After all, the time limit for holding living beings was only an hour. "Aside from you, who does Cen Boqing trust most in the estate?"
"Old Chen, the coachman," Wu Kai answered without hesitation. "His wife once suffered an acute illness and nearly died. The mistress personally brought in a renowned physician to treat her. Deeply grateful, Old Chen has always served Master Cen and his wife wholeheartedly, and Cen Boqing always had Old Chen drive his carriage whenever he went out."
"Go to the Cen estate, find this man, search him, and interrogate him."
Bai Ziqi turned to give the order, and a guard pivoted on his heel and departed immediately.
He then asked Wu Kai, "Besides the Ficus Grotto-Heaven, what other peculiar magic artifacts does Cen Boqing carry?"
Wu Kai thought for a moment. "On the ring finger of his left hand, he wears a red jade ring that can release two wolf marionettes. They were refined from two tundra wolf kings, with bronze skin, iron bones, boundless strength, and no sense of pain. They were a gift presented by the Tuhun envoy the year before last.
"There is also a rhizome of the exquisite treasure fruit. If buried in soil and watered with fresh water, it grows into a fruit tree within two quarters of an hour. Each fruit can satisfy a person's hunger, and depending on soil fertility, a tree yields anywhere from dozens to two hundred fruits. The fruits can be stored."
Bai Ziqi gave an "Oh?" "He certainly has plenty of personal treasures. That item is most useful during military marches or while on the run."
Wu Kai listed two or three more items before concluding, "That's roughly everything he brought out from Lingxu City."
Listening to this, He Lingchuan couldn't help feeling impressed. Cen Boqing truly lived up to his status as a scion of Lingxu City's aristocracy; any treasure he casually produced was top-tier. And these were merely what he had brought along to Baishaqu; the bulk of his wealth remained in Lingxu City.
Bai Ziqi's expression remained calm. With his vast knowledge and experience, he did not find any of this particularly remarkable. "Nothing else? Think carefully. Are there any illicit secret treasures?"
Wu Kai thought for a long time this time before shaking his head. "That is all I know."
The words had barely left his mouth when a crescent-shaped protective talisman around his neck snapped with a sharp crack.
Sensing something, Wu Kai pulled out the medallion Fu Shanyue had granted him, only to see it glowing with a hazy red light; its origin power had activated on its own at some point.
"Cheng Yu has gone to work," He Lingchuan coughed. "That man is truly relentless, hell-bent on killing you."
"It's Cen Boqing who is hell-bent on silencing his old servant," Bai Ziqi said, looking at the broken talisman. "This man's curse arts are formidable. Even with multiple layers of divine arts and formations shielding you, he still managed to break your talisman."
He Lingchuan feigned curiosity. "Shouldn't they be busy fleeing right now? How does Cheng Yu have the time to perform rituals?"
"That means Cen Boqing is very confident we won't find him." Bai Ziqi drew in a light breath. "They've likely reached a place they consider safe, so Cen Boqing couldn't wait to curse the witness to death—he still doesn't know that I've arrived and already interrogated Wu Kai."
If the special emissary from Lingxu City hadn't arrived and Wu Kai had died in Fu Shanyue's hands, then no matter what he had confessed while alive, the Cen family could simply deny it all—claiming it was a forged confession.
Thus, Cen Boqing remained single-mindedly focused on tying up loose ends.
Bai Ziqi glanced at Wu Kai. "Whether this man lives or dies will no longer impede the case's progress."
Fear surfaced on Wu Kai's face. "Cheng Yu can curse even a monarch to death! I'm afraid you won't be able to protect me!"
He Lingchuan laughed inwardly. Cheng Yu's greatest feat, the so-called "cursing a monarch to death," had actually relied on the power of the Hundred Faces Nightmare, hadn't it? Though he wasn't entirely clear on how Hundred Faces had pulled it off, that monster's power was certainly still fresh in his memory.
On his own, Cheng Yu probably couldn't pull off such a feat.
Bai Ziqi, however, took a jade-carved lingzhi from his robes. Its craftsmanship was exquisite, barely the size of a thumb, radiating a warm white halo.
"This is a Mind-Cleansing Talisman blessed by divine grace from Zhaixing Tower. It renders the wearer invulnerable to a hundred evils." The moment it was produced, all three people present immediately felt refreshed in spirit, their breathing noticeably easier. "Warding off Cheng Yu's mere curse arts is child's play."
Wu Kai swallowed hard as he stared at the Mind-Cleansing Talisman.
Though he knew he was doomed once brought back to Lingxu City, life grew precious the moment the countdown began; in the limited time he had left, he wanted to live even more.
Besides, death by curse was far too agonizing. He had already experienced it once and had no wish to endure it again.
"Could... could Your Excellency..."
Bai Ziqi smiled faintly. "Your previous confession still contained evasions and falsehoods. Speak the whole truth, and I will bestow this Mind-Cleansing Talisman upon you."
Wu Kai was taken aback. "I—everything I said was the truth."
"You claim you don't know who in Qingfu Temple is refining the elixir of immortality. That is impossible," Bai Ziqi said indifferently. "The dealings you and Cen Boqing engaged in carry enormous risk, with your heads constantly on the line. How could you continue working with them without even knowing who your superior was?"
Wu Kai stammered, "It has been this way since Old Master Cen's time. He forbade us from prying, saying knowing too much only invites catastrophe."
Bai Ziqi gave a soft chuckle. "And the work you were doing didn't invite catastrophe?"
Wu Kai smiled bitterly. "I truly do not know."
Bai Ziqi studied his expression closely, as if gauging the truth of his words, before saying, "Then tell me, how did you come to recruit a jinx like Mai Xuewen into your fold?"
"Ten years ago, when I went to Mount Yashan on business, I was caught in a flood and was fortunate enough to be saved by Mai Xuewen. He said he was also a homeless, desperate fugitive who had been framed by schemers in the Mang Kingdom. After slaying his enemies with his own hands, he fled to Beijia, doing business both above board and in secret, and was rather down on his luck.
"I traveled with him for more than two months. Seeing that his cultivation was solid and that he was loyal and upright, I invited him to Baishaqu's Zhaotian Township to work for us."
He Lingchuan crossed his arms. "You welcomed a tiger into your home that easily?"
"It wasn't that fast. At first, everything I had him manage in Zhaotian Township was legitimate business, nothing underhanded. After observing him for three years like that, the profits of the businesses he managed jumped significantly. Seeing that he was indeed capable and tight-lipped, my worries gradually faded, so I put him in charge of the pulp bead business in the Chiyan Kingdom. Of the six squads hunting demons for beads, his group always completed missions the fastest and best, without stirring up any trouble. I trusted him more and more, let down my guard, and eventually let him in on certain matters..."
At this point, Wu Kai let out a long sigh. "How could I have known I was inviting a calamity right to our doorstep?"
To He Lingchuan's ears, Wu Kai had already been cautious enough. He had observed a man for more than three years before deciding to let him access the core operations.
Unfortunately, he had crossed paths with an eccentric freak like Mai Xuewen.
Chapter 526