"Alright, I'll be there!" Xiao shouted, so Zhao could hear him. He then looked around and found the room completely destroyed, with blood everywhere. Trying to cover up the situation, he gathered all the broken pieces into one corner and then reached for the door to leave.
Surprisingly, he didn't need to use any magic to open the door. As soon as his hand touched the doorknob, the door automatically swung open.
Xiao began heading to the entrance where Zhao was waiting.
When Zhao saw Xiao, he said, "Come, I'll show you where the head of the village lives."
Zhao led the way outside, using the same route he had entered through. Once they were outside, Xiao looked around and noticed people moving about as if they had been there all along.
Xiao turned to Zhao and asked, "Why weren't there people outside before, but now they are?"
"Well, that's because people only seem to disappear during the night, and the murderer isn't active during the day," Zhao said, looking puzzled, as if even he didn't fully understand.
"Oh." Xiao then began walking toward the large house in the center of the village.
As they approached, Xiao asked, "Did you hear anything from my room last night?"
"Oh, I was in my own room, and each room has a silent formation installed, so nobody can hear what happens inside," Zhao answered with a mysterious smile.
When they arrived at the front door, Zhao knocked and called out, "Let us in, old man!"
"Just a minute!" came a voice from inside the house.
A minute later, the door opened, revealing an old man with white hair all over his head, looking about 60 or 70 years old. He glanced at Zhao with a frightened expression, but as soon as he looked at Xiao, the fear disappeared.
"What do you want?" the old man asked Zhao.
"I'm here to find this guy a place to stay until he can leave," Zhao said, gesturing toward Xiao.
"Come inside, and we can discuss the details," the old man replied, leading them to a dining room with a table and 3 chairs.
Once they sat down, the old man spoke, "Let's introduce ourselves. My name is Zhu Liu, and I already know Zhao's name. What's yours, youngster?" Zhu asked in a monotone voice, as if hiding something.
"My name is Xiao, and I have a few questions about the village, if you don't mind," Xiao said flatly.
"Go ahead and ask. I may not be able to answer everything, though," Zhu replied, glancing briefly at Zhao.
"First off, did anyone by the name of Meilin pass through this village?"
For a moment, fear flickered across Zhu's face before he quickly masked it. "Yes, she came by, but she left in a hurry, as if she didn't want to stay long. Quite rude, if you ask me," Zhu said with a frown.
'He's definitely suspicious,' Xiao thought, but he kept his expression neutral.
"When can I leave?" Xiao asked, eager to go and mentally preparing to escape if necessary.
Zhu replied, "We can prepare a carriage for you after my eldest son's 22nd anniversary in two days. We need some help with the preparations. If you assist us, the carriage ride will be free."
Xiao frowned. "What about the killer on the loose?"
"Have you been to the Infinite Hallway?" Zhu asked, a touch of amusement in his voice.
'Oh, that place I was in,' Xiao thought. "Yeah, what about it?"
"Well, if you checked the strength of the walls, you'd know that even a Foundation Establishment cultivator would struggle to get inside."
'That's why the walls were so strong,' Xiao realized. He had broken everything in the room except for the walls.
"There's a reason the murderer hasn't killed all of us yet," Zhu continued. "One of the main reasons is the Infinite Hallway, though the other reasons are kept secret for good reason," Zhu said with a slight smile.
"Oh, so I'll be staying in the Infinite Hallway?" Xiao asked, now understanding.
"Bingo. You'll stay there during the night, and during the day, you'll help us prepare for my eldest son's anniversary. Here, take this," Zhu said, pulling out a card and handing it to Xiao. "You can use this instead of Zhao's method since you don't have qi. Let me sync it with your fingerprint."
Zhu placed the card on Xiao's hand, and it lit up the moment it touched his skin.
"Just go to the entrance you used last time and use the card there. Make sure you go to the door with the corresponding card number. Now, let me get my second son, who will help you with the event preparations. He's a bit shy, so don't expect much conversation," Zhu said, before leaving for a few minutes.
The room fell into an awkward silence, with neither Zhao nor Xiao speaking, until Zhu returned with a young man about 18 years old, wearing a frown.
"This is Zhu Yan, my second son. He'll help you with the preparations. Just call him Yan, so we don't get our names mixed up," Zhu said, without introducing Xiao, implying they had already discussed something while he was fetching Yan.
"You two should leave now. Zhao and I need to talk," Zhu said impatiently, waving them away.
"Follow me, Xiao," Yan said quietly as he hurried out of the room, walking quickly as if eager to leave.
"Wait for me!" Xiao called, trying to catch up to Yan's fast pace, which even surprised him.
Once Xiao caught up, he attempted to start a conversation. "Hey, are you a cultivator?" But he quickly realized Yan was ignoring him, so he fell silent. A few minutes passed as Yan increased his speed again, moving slightly faster this time, forcing Xiao to jog to keep up.
Yan kept going until they arrived at a secluded spot, hidden from view. He set up a formation that darkened the surroundings.
Yan then turned to Xiao, mouthed something, and tried to speak, but his voice was silent. As Xiao tried to make sense of what was happening, the formation suddenly broke and dissipated.
For about ten seconds, Yan froze in place like a robot. Then, just as mechanically, he began walking in another direction.
The words Yan had mouthed were "Leave Quickly," but whether Xiao understood the message or not remains to be seen.