"A sword that gleams under the moon, wielded by a spirit that knows no mercy, yesterday it was owned by one, today, it is owned by another."
The more Wang GuiYing thought about it, the more clueless he became.
He couldn't help but curse the celestial dragon for having given him such a hint that made him both confused and frustrated.
"Could it be cursed?" Xin questioned, almost sounding as if he was talking to himself.
"Hmm?" Wang GuiYing side-glanced at the man with interest.
"Yesterday it was owned by one but today it is owned by another. Why would the owner keep changing?" Xin continued as he asked, "If you got your hands on such a precious item, you would never give it up to another unless..."
"Unless?"
"Unless you were killed for the sword."
Wang GuiYing gulped as he heard this and his eyes slightly widened in surprise as he thought about it.
"But if you have a sword like that, it is hard for someone to kill you," Xin added as he explained his own theory, "So the problem either lies with the sword itself or the owner."
"If it is cursed then the sword makes the owner go crazy...? Is that what you are saying?" Li Ling asked as he tried to simplify Xin's words.
Xin nodded his head, "It's a possibility."
"Then everything becomes more confusing!" Wang GuiYing whined as he spoke, "How can we find a sword with a hint like that? Especially when the owner keeps changing!"
"There is a way," Li Ling firmly spoke and Xin nodded his head as he agreed with the man.
"Huh?" Wang GuiYing tilted his head in confusion.
"It's actually quite simple," Li Ling spoke with a small smirk, "We ask around for a cursed sword and the celestial flame tells us whether we have found the right sword or not."
"Ah...! The celestial flame!" Wang GuiYing suddenly exclaimed in realization.
"Good morning, sir!" They heard the voice of the kind receptionist who greeted them with a warm smile plastered on her face.
Wang GuiYing's lips curled up into a smile and he happily skipped over toward her, "Good morning!~ You look lovely today as well."
The woman chuckled as she heard the flattering words and asked, "Is there anything I can help you with today?"
"There is," Wang GuiYing's smile widened as he replied, "In fact, I'm actually searching for something today."
"Did you lose any of your belongings?" The woman looked to be a bit worried as she asked.
Wang GuiYing shook his head with a chuckle, "It's not exactly something I've lost, but it is something that an acquaintance of mine had lost."
"In that case, I'll try my best to help. What can I do?"
"You see, I was strolling through the fair just as you've said and I came across a weird rumor," Wang GuiYing spoke, acting a bit serious and yet lying to get an answer from the woman, "It was about a cursed sword. Have you heard about it?"
The woman frowned as she heard this and looked around a bit cautiously before she spoke, almost in a whisper, "Sir, I'm sorry but you shouldn't think about that rumor too much."
Wang GuiYing raised his eyebrows as he asked, "Why? It was quite interesting to hear."
The woman nodded her head with a thin smile but didn't look to be all that happy as she spoke, "I'm extremely sorry for this but I really can't talk about that rumor."
Wang GuiYing couldn't help but frown as he heard that, but he wasn't looking to back down just yet.
He reached out his hand to touch the woman's hand and to reassure her that it was okay to talk but the only hand he got to hold was the one belonging to Xin who had interrupted them.
Wang GuiYing's eyes widened with a bit of surprise as he snapped his head towards the owner of the hand.
"We understand," Xin spoke as he looked towards the receptionist, completely ignoring Wang GuiYing's reaction, "But since you know of it, I'm guessing you could tell us where we could get some information on the topic?"
The receptionist gulped as she heard this and although she was still a bit reluctant, in the end, she did nod her head and give an answer, "If it is about the cursed sword, why don't you go talk to Mr. Liu? He is the one rumored to have made that sword. He should know about it the best."
Xin smiled as he heard this and slightly bowed his head as he thanked the woman.
Wang GuiYing also smiled brightly as he tried to thank the woman but before any words could leave his mouth, he was pulled away by Xin who headed out of the inn.
Li Ling, who followed after the two, couldn't help but feel a little suspicious as he looked at Xin's reaction.
Li Ling's eyes narrowed down on the man and he felt that this Xin was a bit too oddly familiar.
This was interesting...
"Where do we find Mr. Liu?" Wang GuiYing asked as he looked down at his hand that was still being held by Xin.
"I've lived here for a whole year. I know almost everyone here so just trust me on this and follow."
Wang GuiYing gulped as he heard this and quietly nodded his head, letting himself be pulled along without any objections.
This city was rather small but they still had to walk for half an hour in order to reach their destination.
At one point, Wang GuiYing almost thought that Xin had no idea where they were going, but now that they stood in front of a creepy house with a nameplate plastered on the gate, he felt that he doubted this man for no reason.
However, although they had reached the place, Wang GuiYing still didn't look to be excited, on the other hand, he looked to be a little unsure.
"Located in a deserted ally with no humans in sight..." Wang GuiYing muttered as he gulped and looked around, "This looks super shady...!"
Even the building was painted with the darkest black color that Wang GuiYing had ever come across so no matter how he looked at it, he couldn't help but feel as if he was going into the lair of a demon or a wicked wizard.
"It's okay," Xin lightly squeezed the man's hand as he spoke, trying to reassure him.
Wang GuiYing couldn't help but smile at this reaction. He was more than capable of saving himself even if they were currently walking into a trap but it was still quite refreshing to see that Xin was trying to reassure him and make him feel safe.
It was really hard to claim that this man was not Zhou Xinyi...
Xin knocked on the door twice and they waited for a minute or so before a voice came from the inside of the house.
"What are you looking for?"
Xin straightened his back as he spoke, "We are here to get some information about a specific cursed sword."
What greeted them as a response was utter silence and Wang GuiYing almost thought they were going to be rejected today.
However, a minute or two passed and the door suddenly opened.
They could see nobody inside and hence, Wang GuiYing almost felt as if the door had been opened by a ghost.
He felt a chill go down his spine but he still made his way inside the house.
Once all three of them had stepped inside, the door closed behind them with a loud 'thud' which almost gave them a scare.
The room they had entered wasn't brightly lit and had quite a few dark corners, from one of those dark corners, appeared a man who looked to be in his mid-thirties.
"If you are here for the cursed sword then let me warn you that I don't have it and yes, the curse is real." The man spoke and Wang GuiYing guessed this man to be the Mr. Liu that they were looking for.
"We are not here to get the sword," Xin politely spoke as he informed, "We are here to know where it is."
Mr. Liu looked at Xin with a thoughtful expression and waited a minute before he asked, "Do you plan on stealing the sword?"
Xin didn't give a response to that and chose to stay silent.
"You aren't the first bunch that have come here in search of the sword," Mr. Liu sighed as he spoke, "After the rumors began spreading, there have been quite a few who have been interested to know more about this sword."
"But once they started to die, no more people dared to mention the rumor nor did anyone come here in search of it," Mr. Liu continued with a small polite smile, "So I have to ask. Do you fear the curse even when I tell you that it is, in fact, true?"
Wang GuiYing was a bit relieved to hear that there was indeed a cursed sword but whether it was the same sword that they were looking for or not was something that needed to be further checked.