Chapter 183

The Lord of Luan City stood still, feeling very awkward.

He, Luo Yuanming, a second-generation city lord and a genius in talisman arts, had lived a life of following rules and had never done or seen anything outrageous. Today, witnessing He Zhizhou murder his master in public was so unorthodox that it was beyond his imagination.

Under everyone’s gaze, Elder Tian Xianzi struggled to get up from the ground, holding onto the handrail.

Protected by sword energy, this great sword cultivator wasn’t injured. However, judging from his pretending to have a strong expression, his heart had already been shattered into pieces, along with the words “the number one beheading maniac in the immortal sect.”.

Luo Yuanming saw Elder Tian Xianzi take a deep breath, causing a gust of wind that made the lights flicker.

“Elder Tian Xianzi.”

He called cautiously, exchanged a glance with his wife, and then said in a deep voice, “Are you okay? I will explain to the people of Luan City, you…don’t be too sad.”

But Tian Xianzi didn’t respond immediately. He squinted his cat-like, sharp eyes, giving Luo Yuanming a creepy look.

“Elder Tian Xianzi?”

Tian Xianzi frowned and shook his head several times. His voice suddenly became louder several times. It was so righteous that the whole corridor could hear it: “I am obviously Zhen Xiao Sword Master. The City Lord must have recognized the wrong person!”

Luo Yuanming: …

Luo Yuanming’s first reaction was that this elder had brain damage and thought he was someone else. But after thinking carefully, he felt something was off.

——Brother! At this time, you are still using the trick of cheating others to maintain your face! What did Zhen Xiao Sword Master do wrong to be treated like this!!

He’s really stupid, really…

He originally thought that Tian Xianzi, as an elder, should be a little more decent, but the Xuanxu Sword Sect was indeed extraordinary.

There were hundreds of people, and as far as the few he had met were concerned, it seemed that none of them thought it was normal for disciples to betray their masters or for junior disciples to betray their senior disciples. Given their reputation, even if there was an inhumane master-killing meeting one day, Luo Yuanming would not find it strange.

“Um… Zhen Xiao Sword Master.”

Seeing Tian Xianzi’s sudden revival and smug look when he heard the name, Luo Yuanming’s eyes twitched again: “Sword Master and his disciples came to Tianxiang Tower together, so I naturally have to do my best to be a good host. Please enjoy yourself today, and I will cover all the expenses.”

Tian Xianzi squatted on the ground, carefully picking up spirit stones: “How can I do this? How can I let the city lord spend money!”

Even with five times as many of these spirit stones, he couldn’t afford a meal here.

Luo Yuanming looked at elder Tian Xianzi’s washed-out clothes with some heartache, but his tone remained gentle: “I previously sought the elder’s help. Consider this meal a token of gratitude.”

…Seek his help?

Ning Ning, who had been following the conversation, became curious. She soon heard Tian Xianzi say, “Speaking of that matter… it’s really difficult. My junior brother Tian Xianzi and I have discussed and investigated the demonic energy in Luan City, but we found nothing.”

This person was so immersed in the role that he still firmly believed that he was the Zhen Xiao Sword Master. After a pause, he added seriously, “I’m afraid it wasn’t a demon that was causing trouble, but someone did it deliberately.”

“You mean there’s someone in the city…”

Luo Yuanming’s expression tightened, and he lowered his voice: “This matter should not be publicized. Let’s discuss it with the other elders after tomorrow’s ceremony. Elder, you have been troubled by this recently, and I truly don’t know how to thank you.”

He sighed and looked at his wife with gentle eyes: “I hope this matter can be resolved soon. The people in the city are restless, and Luan Niang is also scared all day, unable to find peace—I’ll take her to the private room to eat first. Please, you all come too.”

Luan Niang smiled, her eyes full of charm, and she supported Luo Yuanming’s arm: “Zhen Xiao Sword Master, Tianxiang Tower is famous for its fine wines and dishes. Among them, the ‘Jiuzhou Spring Return’ wine is the most famous. Why not give it a try?”

Tian Xianzi knew this couple had deep feelings for each other and was almost fed up with the dog food. After bidding them farewell, he heard Ning Ning’s soft voice: “Master, what happened in Luan City?”

“Is it about the missing girls?”

Zheng Weiqi followed down the stairs: “I heard several girls have disappeared, and the culprit hasn’t been found.”

Tian Xianzi nodded: “It’s a troublesome matter. The person has high cultivation and is good at hiding. We’ve searched the city and visited the families of the missing girls but found nothing useful.”

He noticed several strangers peeking in their direction and frowned: “I swear on my title as Zhen Xiao Sword Master that I will catch the culprit! Even if someone as resourceful and handsome as Tian Xianzi can never be more efficient than me!”

Lin Xun was still caught up in his master’s spinning lies, unable to extricate himself, desperately feeling secondhand embarrassment to the point of blushing and nearly suffocating to death. Hearing this shout, he was startled and whispered to Meng Jue: “Senior Brother Meng, is Master alright?” Unexpectedly, Meng Jue raised his eyelids and glanced at him; his voice and expression were indifferent, without any hypocrisy or pretense: “Who is Senior Brother Meng? Isn’t my name ‘Jiang Wang’?”

Jiang Wang was the name of Zhen Xiao Sword Master’s first disciple.

Lin Xun: …

Lin Xun: “Okay, Senior Brother Jiang.”

=====

Ning Ning, who had been given the nicknames “Detective Ning” and “Ning Qingtian” by He Zhizhou, was also very curious about the case of the missing girls in Luan City. Even when seated, she didn’t forget to ask Tian Xianzi for details.

“The missing ones are all girls around sixteen or seventeen.”

Tian Xianzi had experienced social death and needed something else to divert his attention. Seeing that she was so interested, he naturally told her everything he knew: “It’s strange. They come from ordinary backgrounds and have no spiritual energy. The most likely explanation is that demon cultivators use them for sacrifices. However, there’s no demonic energy in Luan City, and if it were someone else… taking so many girls doesn’t seem very useful.”

This was a case of indiscriminate crime, with the culprit appearing in both city and rural areas and the missing girls coming from different backgrounds. Without a pattern, it was difficult to find any clues, making it truly frustrating.

“Do you remember the Phoenix bird statue at the top of the city lord’s mansion?”

Meng Jue said gently: “It’s used to find clues about the culprit—but so far, it hasn’t been very effective.”

Ning Ning nodded in realization.

The Phoenix bird statue was cast with a spell to record the city’s images. When He Zhizhou and Ye Zongheng were trying to extort money from each other, they suffered from this thing and were ruthlessly exposed in public.

Someone had mentioned that the Phoenix bird statue was related to the string of disappearances.

“The strangest thing is, the city lord invited a Taoist priest to summon souls, but after reciting the birth dates of the girls, not a single soul appeared.”

Tian Xianzi sat on a wooden chair, leaning back with his arms folded. He looked like a young man in his twenties, and with his handsome face and unrestrained temperament, it was hard to tell that he was a great sword cultivator who was feared by the demon.

He raised his hand and made a “two” gesture: “There are two possibilities. One is that they are not dead yet, and the other is that even their souls no longer exist.”

Both possibilities were terrifying upon reflection, and with limited clues, they couldn’t discuss much.

“We rarely get to celebrate. How about we talk about something else?”

Zheng Weiqi leaned on her hand, smiling: “Did you know that besides symbolizing auspiciousness and peace, the phoenix bird also represents unwavering love?”

Lin Xun was stunned when he heard this, unsure of what he was thinking. The dragon horns on his head turned a light pink.

“I seem to have heard of legends about this before.”

Ning Ning replied: “Legend has it that although the phoenix is the embodiment of peace and auspiciousness, it has lived a lonely life and has searched all over the world just to find a soulmate to accompany it.”

“Exactly!”

Zheng Weiqi clapped her hands and smiled; her eyes sparkled with curiosity: “My fellow junior brothers and sister are not young anymore; have you met anyone you like?”

Tian Xianzi perked up, looking at Ningning and Pei Ji sneakily.

Ning Ning picked up the teacup in front of her with an expressionless face, trying to hide her strange expression at the moment.

When the teacup touched her lips, she thought angrily, This is not right! She is innocent and has nothing to fear. Would there be something wrong with her expression right now? Absolutely not!!

As soon as this thought flashed through her mind, Zheng Weiqi’s unexpected laughter came to her ears: “Hey, Junior Brother and Junior Sister, why are you two drinking from your teacups at the same time? Isn’t the tea not here yet?”

Ning Ning: …

Ning Ning turned her head to look at Pei Ji beside her. They were indeed in the same awkward posture, as if they were cast from the same mold. He noticed her gaze, cast a faint glance at her, and quickly looked away.

She didn’t say anything or move. She lowered her eyes and looked into the cup again. It was pitch-black and empty.

Oh, it’s empty; never mind.

“I’m thirsty. When will the tea and food arrive?”

Ning Ning was very good at adapting to changing circumstances. She tried hard to put on a smile and gently put down the cup.

As it touched the table, Pei Ji’s cup also made a soft thud.

Then Zheng Weiqi couldn’t help but laugh.

Tian Xianzi pursed his lips, which were curled up wildly, looked up, and heard a knock on the door. The door opened to reveal the food.

Tianxiang Tower’s reputation was well-deserved. As the door opened, a tempting aroma wafted in.

Dishes were placed on the table, red-braised pork glistening, tender, and juicy;

Fish soup steaming with milky broth, topped with wolfberries and scallions, promises a rich, fragrant taste.

Tian Xianzi is such a chicken thief. Ever since he fell down the stairs and got the city lord’s promise to treat him to a meal, the depression he felt from falling down in public had mostly dissipated, and he even began to look at He Zhizhou with some favor again.

(T/N: chicken thief (jī zéi). It means stingy, miserly, and not presentable; it also means being particularly calculating, stingy, and having selfish intentions; it also means being cunning, clever, and a little bit vulgar.)

He was a person who didn’t like to care about things. He was immediately attracted by the dazzling array of dishes and said cheerfully, “Everyone, please don’t be polite. I’m going to eat!”

Ning Ning didn’t hesitate, picking a piece of sweet and sour lotus root.

The golden syrup coating the crisp lotus root offered a delightful crunch and a blend of sweet, tangy, and refreshing.

Biting open the outer layer of golden syrup, your teeth can touch the snow-white lotus root slices that are wrapped inside. The syrup is sour and sweet, sticky, and soaked between the pores of lotus roots. When you bite it down, you can hear a crisp sound. The lotus root slices are sweet and crispy, with a slightly sour vinegar and sugar aroma overflowing on your tongue, bringing a hint of coolness and reducing summer boredom by half.

Tasty…