Shin Lu raised his hands and started to form hand seals, as if he was about to cast a spell. The spiritual energy began to gradually circulate between his fingers and then condensed into a shining light ball. He then pushed it down and pressed it into the ground.Seeing this, Fen Lei was, needless to say, astonished. He had witnessed many beyond-belief things since Li Yuan brought him to Plaillon. Yet he still could not get used to some of them and frequently found himself in awe. He had wanted to ask what the light ball was for but had remained silent, not wanting to raise suspicions about himself.Shin Lu walked past him without making a sound, like a phantom. His expression became more and more cold and dark. He began to walk farther and farther away from Fen Lei, leaving the area to find other clues.But since Fen Lei was shameless, he followed him. "Then allow me to go through all of the information we have right now. First, the villagers vanished without trace. Second, a young man was found unconscious around here yesterday. Third, although this young man's soul is missing, he is nonetheless alive. Lastly, there is a faint presence of dark energy in this young man's body."It is possible that the missing villagers are being kept around here. However, because this mountain is big and the forests are dense, we will have difficulty finding them. Hence, we must wait for the perpetrator's next move."The young man is our only clue as of now. And if we are to extract the possibilities as to why he is still alive even though his soul is missing, there will be two possibilities."That was the moment when Shin Lu finally looked at Fen Lei, seemingly interested in hearing his words this time. He did not mind that Fen Lei was speaking constantly, as long as he gave him information about this case. After all, it was still a worthwhile exchange.He had always thought Fen Lei, or Li Yuan rather, was just a flirtatious gay, but he was really different underneath it all. He had not expected that he was capable of this."First, the perpetrator is retaining the victims' souls for a purpose, causing them no harm for the time being. Second, the perpetrator is retaining the victims' souls because they are of no use."Again, these are solely my speculations. But one thing is certain: the perpetrator is obviously using dark arts."Shin Lu's expression darkened even further when he heard the word "dark arts." He seemed to have the same speculations as Fen Lei about the current situation. He loathed the dark arts at all, and this was the reason he had been the one to volunteer himself to take on this case.Although Fen Lei had already summarized the current situation perfectly through observation, Shin Lu knew there were still a few missing pieces of information. He still could not connect the dots.He finally asked what had been on his mind. "What about their bodies?""Good question, Elder Shin. That either broadens or eliminates the other possibilities. If the perpetrator solely wants their souls, why go to such troublesome lengths to take their bodies? The perpetrator could have simply killed them on the spot to obtain their souls. Or there are plenty of convenient ways, right?" Fen Lei was leaning against a tree.Shin Lu pondered over the question. Considering this, the first possibility did not make sense at all but the second one did. What Fen Lei had said was extremely thought-provoking."The bodies must have been used for some purpose," Shin Lu commented."So Elder Shin agrees with my conclusion in that there should be something that the perpetrator wants from the bodies?" Fen Lei said in a carefree voice, as if he was talking about the weather."Elder Shin! Something has happened in the village!" The panicking voice of a young man rang out in the distance. Fen Lei and Shin Lu directed their gazes toward the approaching figure. It was Rin Yuhan.Rin Yuhan's face brightened as he saw Fen Lei, or Li Yuan rather. He bowed respectfully, appearing delighted to meet his idol today. "Gentleman Li, we meet again.""Yo, hehe." Fen Lei waved his hand to the young man, smiling."Speak." Shin Lu's voice was indifferent, deep, and cold. He spoke calmly and solemnly, but his tone made the young man fearful, feeling like he was facing some serious official or a judge."Y-yes!" Rin Yuhan bowed his head. "The villagers who went missing on the first night of the incident have just returned unscathed!"As soon as Shin Lu heard this, his expression turned serious and alert. He looked at Rin Yuhan in silence and asked, "Unscathed?"Rin Yuhan nodded. "I was patrolling the area today when I saw those missing villagers returning. I asked them questions, hoping to get helpful details, but their answers were fruitless. They all seem fine and normal; there is nothing unnatural about them except that they appear to be unaware of how much time has passed."Fen Lei's mind began to spin. If the villagers who had gone missing on the first night of the incident really had returned, why did he feel that it was not a pleasant news? Something was not right.They returned to the village of Kelna to confirm Rin Yuhan's statement, which proved out to be true. Even Yan Shiha had to help them by inspecting each victim's body, but there had been no peculiarities found.The three spent the evening at the inn offered by the village chief of Kelna. Fortunately, it was for free; otherwise, Fen Lei would have had to spend the night on the street because he was laughably poor and could not afford the accommodation cost at all.The village head had given them separate rooms, with Shin Lu's room being in the middle of Fen Lei's and Rin Yuhan's.Fen Lei was currently inside Rin Yuhan's room. He had requested the young man to teach him how to dispel a barrier, and now they were both immersed in their roles as instructor and student."That is how you dispel a barrier, Gentleman Li. One can either use their nenha directly or channel it into any spiritual object or weapon of their liking to generate more force." Rin Yuhan had just completed tossing nenha blades at the barrier he had created at the door. "I hope my explanations and demonstration were clear."Seeing the barrier collapse and disperse, Fen Lei could not help but clap his hands in admiration of the young man's abilities. "Clear and cool! Wow! That was amazing!"Rin Yuhan felt a little embarrassed by Fen Lei's compliment. He smiled awkwardly. "N-not really. By the way, Gentleman Li, why do you want to learn this kind of basic technique? Do you not know how to perform it?"Fen Lei was caught off guard by the young man's question. It was indeed one of the basic techniques, but He Jin had not taught him how to do it for some unknown reasons. He laughed uncomfortably, scratching his head. "Ah hahaha, because... uhh..."He wandered his gaze, trying to come up with a logical excuse. "Well, believe me or not, I used to skip basic training when I was young, so there are a lot of basic techniques I do not know. Hahaha, I was damn lazy before."In fact, until now that he had been given the chance to live a literally new life, he was still a lazy-ass person.Rin Yuhan listened to his words and nodded in understanding. "I see. Gentleman Li's master must have been a patient teacher. But I would want to remind Gentleman Li that the technique I have just taught him does not apply to some other barriers."Fen Lei nodded. "I am well aware it will depend on how strong and what type the barrier is. But what you taught me will still come in handy, so thank you."Rin Yuhan was delighted. "I have a book about barrier dispelling. I can give it to Gentleman Li if he so wants.""Ah?" Fen Lei could hardly believe it. "Do you have such a good book? Yes please!" he said excitedly, his hands clasped together in front of his chest.Fen Lei soon returned to his own room, the book the young man had lent him in hand. He sat beside the window, looking at the white pages of the book with great interest. The moonlight shone on his face and book, illuminating the pages in his hands. He flipped through the pages, his expression changing as he read the book, as if he were a curious child.The night was still, and the whole village was enveloped in serenity. Fen Lei had planned to stay awake for the entire night, remaining alert and awaiting the perpetrator's possible next strike. It was a good thing he had found something to kill time.Shin Lu's room was lit only by a single oil lamp. The faint light shone on his white robes, white skin, and silver hair. He was seated on the bed, eyes closed but wide awake, and his face had a soft luster of noble air.Fen Lei soon felt bored and closed the book. The content was indeed interesting, and he had picked up a few valuable pieces of information to supplement his insufficient knowledge regarding dispelling barriers, but he was still Fen Lei, the lazy ass who could not stand doing something for a long time unless necessary, so he eventually got bored.He was ready to lie down on the bed when he saw an inconspicuous peephole in the wall. His curiosity about what Shin Lu was doing in the next room began to get the best of him, so he moved his gaze closer to the hole, spotting the perfect angle to spy on Shin Lu.The moonlight and the oil lamp's dim light illuminated Shin Lu's pale and calm figure. His long, silver hair was loose, flowing naturally down his back. Even though the expressionless face was there, the man was still extremely handsome, making him seem surreal.Fen Lei felt a pang pierce his chest the longer he looked at Shin Lu's face. This sensation seemed somehow oddly familiar, yet unfamiliar and incomprehensible.Suddenly, Shin Lu's eyes slowly opened.Those pupils looked like a pair of jade gem stones. His gaze was calm, but held a strange kind of sharpness and majesty. It was as if there was a whirlpool hidden behind his eyes. And those gem-like jade eyes looked directly at Fen Lei through the peephole.Fen Lei's eyes widened, and quickly pulled his face away from the peephole. "Did he just look at me?" he thought to himself, looking startled.After a while, Fen Lei gathered his courage and cautiously looked at Shin Lu through the peephole again, only to find that he was no longer in bed."Huh? Where is he?" Fen Lei whispered.The room was empty.It was then that Fen Lei heard a slight noise behind him, and then a deep and cold voice sounded beside his ear, sending shivers down his spine. The voice was so close that Fen Lei could smell its fragrance."What are you doing?"