Lei Chunlan... dead?
Si Mubai froze in his movements, the jade-green tea in his cup even splashing out a bit.
His gaze turned intently to his capable assistant. "Lei Chunlan... wasn't she staying inside Golden Splendor Pavilion? How could she die?"
"Moreover, didn't the family send a guard with Complete Meridian Opening to protect her? Even if she faced danger, couldn't he even hold the enemy off for a moment?"
Si Mubai's expression darkened.
Lei Chunlan was the representative of the Spirit Infant Sect who came to discuss matters with him. But now, Lei Chunlan... was actually dead!
She died right after they had finished their discussion...
In the pavilion, the atmosphere turned cold and silent in an instant, somewhat murderous. The wild currents of air and the drifting snowflakes turned incredibly sharp.
Xu Beihu had been thinking of taking his leave, but now he didn't want to leave. His eyes flickered uncertainly, and his mind was also somewhat shocked and suspicious.
Even a bizarre thought began to take root in his head.
Li Che had just met with Lei Chunlan...
And Lei Chunlan was killed right after turning her head?
A coincidence?! How could there be such a coincidence?!
Si Mubai stood up and set his cup down, "Old Guo, lead the way, let's go take a look."
The Blood Exchange Warrior, Guo Zhan, responded by clasping his fists, turning around, and leading the way.
...
...
Before the incident, Li Che left the Golden Splendor Pavilion and wandered around the thoroughfares of the Inner City for a few rounds to make sure no one was following before returning to the alley where he had left his clothes.
He stripped off the black clothing, withdrew his vital energy, and returned to his original form before changing into his own clothes.
Crushing the wood carving mask into powder, Li Che took a long breath out.
The death of Lei Chunlan gave him a sense of relief as if a heavy stone had been lifted from his heart, but of course, that feeling of relief was soon submerged. Li Che raised his hand, and with a thought, streams of air that resembled little snakes began to swirl rapidly in his jade-white hand.
"Divinity..."
"The Divinity of the Spirit Infant Master?"
"The siphoned Divinity, hidden within the Thousand Analyzing Hands... just what use could it have?"
In the urgent situation, Li Che did not spend time researching.
After leaving the alley, he found a store to buy a box of osmanthus cakes and then went to a restaurant to pack up the pre-ordered fine wine and dishes before locating the old charioteer who had stopped his horse carriage at the roadside and was smoking a dry pipe.
"Old man, I've got the stuff, please take me back to the wood carving shop..." Li Che said with a smile, casually handing over a small jar of yellow wine he had packed from the restaurant.
Seeing this, the charioteer hurriedly tried to refuse in alarm, but failing to do so, he had no choice but to accept it with a big smile and then swiftly drove the carriage.
Accompanied by the sound of horse hoofs on the cobblestone streets, shattering the bitter chill of the drifting snow.
Moving slowly towards the Outer City.
...
...
In the small courtyard.
The white snow was dyed red with blood, the guard's body slashed in two, presenting an extremely desolate sight under the falling snow.
The rich scent of blood enveloped the air, extremely pungent.
The sound of crunching snow arose as Si Mubai and Xu Beihu stepped onto the thick snow and entered the courtyard.
Si Mubai, draped in a crane robe, looked at the gruesome sight of the guard's death, his handsome face full of gloom: "Crushed and killed, without the strength to fight back..."
"The killer is extremely strong. The guard with Complete Meridian Opening was no match at all and couldn't even send a distress signal. The culprit is surely not just newly into Bone Tempering, but possibly at Bone Tempering Completion."
Si Mubai's eyes were incredibly sharp, and he immediately judged how powerful the enemy facing the guard had been.
"The wound looks like it was caused by a sharp instrument, but it doesn't seem like it was cut by a sword or any such weapon..."
The Blood Exchange Warrior, Guo Zhan, who had extensive experience, knelt down to examine the corpse and said in a deep voice.
Xu Beihu, wrapped in a fox fur cloak, looked at the guard's body and how incredibly smooth and clean the wounds were, his mind stirring slightly...
These wounds... seemed somewhat familiar.
He couldn't help thinking of the way the Wood Carver, Sun Changbiao, in his family's Outer City's wood carving shop had died...
Could it be... that the murderer was the same person?
Si Mubai stepped past the guard's body and entered the house, where the heat from the burning coal mingled in the room, making the bloody smell even more intense and nauseating.
And Lei Chunlan's body, nailed to the wooden floor, was in an exceedingly tragic state.
A wanted notice, a tragically disfigured corpse.
Like a Yin God from Hell, walking the human world, detaining and judging souls!
Xu Beihu squinted his eyes, but a subtle look of realization flashed across his rough face, affirming...
The murderer who killed Lei Chunlan...
was also the culprit who killed Sun Changbiao!
The method of killing was the same, the means of execution equally identical, the signature wooden arrow, along with wounds as if cut by fine silk threads... basically confirmed the identity of the killer.
"The criminal, Bull Demon..."
Xu Beihu exhaled.
Just who was it?!
In the Outer City, he could commit a crime inside the heavily guarded wood carving shop...
Yet, within the Inner City, he could also kill within the Golden Splendor Pavilion, jointly operated by even more strictly guarded families!
Outrageous... yet mysterious!
Who indeed was it?
Someone from which family!
"Who is the Bull Demon?"
It seemed as though Si Mubai heard Xu Beihu's murmurs and looked over with cold eyes.
Xu Beihu then recounted the situation briefly.
"Quite the Bull Demon, daring to commit a crime within the Golden Splendor Pavilion... truly reckless, not putting any of us from Flying Thunder in his eyes!"
Si Mubai's fists clenched tightly within his sleeves, coldly and with a full intent to kill, he uttered a sentence.
The divine fluctuations in his eyes seemed to ripple outward, moans of ghostly wails lingered endlessly, stirring without cease.
Xu Beihu glanced at Si Mubai's appearance, and a chill ran slightly through him.
This Si Mubai was probably close to "Divine Foundation," even his Divinity seemed difficult to control.
Along with footsteps, potent vitality wove through the air, with several figures walking in from outside the courtyard, the leader clad in a black and red robe, with a side knife at his waist, eyes sharp and strong.
"Young Master Xu, Young Master Si are both here."
The newcomer greeted them with a fist salute, his voice robust and powerful.
"Turns out it is Hunter Zhang, what an inconvenience to have the esteemed hunter make a trip." Si Mubai's face regained its composure, the anger retracted, and his almost tearful angry cry expression reemerged.
Xu Beihu and Si Mubai were both rather polite to the newcomer.
After all, this person was Zhang Xiangyang, one of the three great Divine Catchers of Fei Lei City's Yamen, dispatched by the Imperial Court office, not to mention his strong martial artist strength, his Divine Cultivation was also formidable.
Divine Catchers were called so because they cultivated Divinity, possessing strength far surpassing that of a regular martial artist.
Zhang Xiangyang's hand rested on the handle of his side knife as he slowly approached, and upon entering the room, he saw Lei Chunlan's body, as well as the wanted notice.
"Ah, so the deceased was a wanted criminal... Tsk, murders committed, and then notices by Zhang Bu, the murderer regards themselves as chivalrous, yet they violate the law with martial force," Zhang Xiangyang said indifferently.
"Let's confirm the murderer first..."
Zhang Xiangyang spoke, and the next moment, he took a step forward.
Boom!!!
His beard and hair were all tense, his eyes seemed to swirl with gray, which was the Divinity he cultivated...
Suddenly, the air was filled with a touch of fear, those were the fears spilled by Lei Chunlan before his death, Zhang Xiangyang captured them all at this moment, reflecting those images in his pupils.
"A tall and burly figure, over nine feet tall, wearing a conical hat, clad in black, with strong qi and blood, wearing... a Bull Demon Mask..."
Zhang Xiangyang's eyes lost their gray sheen, focus returning, he stated flatly, "The notorious criminal wanted in the Outer City, that's what he looks like, described as the Bull Demon."
"To commit a crime in the Outer City is one thing, but to dare to commit offenses in the Inner City, this Bull Demon... must have no small backing."
Zhang Xiangyang sneered. Without connections, who would dare to so brazenly commit crimes in the Inner City?
Those noble families and clans, as well as the Black Yamen of the government, were all not to be trifled with.
"Hunter Zhang's 'Terrifying Trace of Light' Divinity... is becoming increasingly powerful. To take the first place among the three great Divine Catchers of Flying Thunder, it's just a matter of time!"
With a mix of laughing and crying, Si Mubai applauded.
Zhang Xiangyang glanced at Si Mubai, who was struggling to suppress his Divinity, and smiled, "Young Master Si is the one whose Divinity is about to break through, and whose Divine Foundation will soon be established. Congratulations are in order."
After the conversation, Zhang Xiangyang turned to the several officers behind him.
"Let's go back to the Yamen, redraft the wanted notice for the Bull Demon, and raise the bounty on this murderer to three hundred..."
Zhang Xiangyang recalled the oppressive image of the Bull Demon he had seen through Lei Chunlan's fear...
"Never mind, let's make it five hundred taels instead!"
ps: Seek to keep up with the readings, click to the last chapter to see the reading rankings! PK in progress, Old Li thanks you!