Chapter 301: Traces

in and can only survive by clinging to its relatives, the only thing we would be sending out would be our daughters. Because the three nations would rather trample on our dignity and stab us in the pl...The Emperor was displeased and summoned the magistrate of Jingzhao Prefecture, demanding that he solve the case within a set time limit. He also ordered the citizens of the capital to refrain from discussing matters of sorcery any further. How could these ignorant people know that perhaps during an exorcism by a Daoist priest, they were not actually being protected but suffering backlash

If Lian'yi knew the emperor's true thoughts, she would definitely think his way of thinking was problematic.

The magistrate of Jingzhao Prefecture didn't want to disobey the emperor, but he was very clever. He spoke earnestly and said:

"Your Majesty, rest assured, this old minister will definitely investigate this matter thoroughly until we get to the bottom of it. However, suppressing rumors about this demon cultivator is not easy. After all, it's better to prevent people's words than to block a river. The more you try to stop them from talking, the more likely the rumors are to spread."

In my humble opinion, if we want to stop the rumors, it would be best to have a skilled immortal go to the scene and investigate. They can give a statement to dispel the rumors, and if there are indeed malevolent spirits, the immortal could also eliminate them, preventing any negative impact on Your Majesty's grand pursuit of immortality.

The old emperor thought about it and agreed. How could he allow evil spirits to grow stronger under his nose He then assigned a task to his alchemy group, instructing them to investigate Li Mansion, the scene of the murder.

These Taoists usually practice meditation, brag, refine alchemy, and exorcise evil spirits. They weren't really that capable of removing evil curses. However, since the Emperor had spoken, in order to achieve future success and prosperity, they finally sent a representative to accompany the magistrate of Jingzhao Prefecture to visit Li's residence.

The Taoist who was pushed out was the least noticeable among them. His alchemy skills were mediocre at best, he couldn't flatter anyone, but he was quite eager to eat. In their eyes, he was just someone who got by.

But they couldn't expose him either, after all, they were colleagues. In the end, this Master Wuyou ended up with a menial job, filling in wherever there was a shortage of manpower. So naturally, this task of assisting the magistrate of the Jingzhao Prefecture in putting down rumors fell to him.

Wuyou was meditating with his eyes closed when a young Taoist boy came to report. He opened his eyes, smoothed out his gray robes, strapped on his peachwood sword, held his whisk in hand, and, looking every bit the part, led his little Taoist boy out of the palace gates.

Upon seeing the officers at the Li Mansion, Daochang Wuyou was invited inside. In just a few days, the entire Li Mansion had become eerily quiet and lifeless. The closer he got to Fang Hua Yuan, the more serious Wuyou's expression became. He initially thought it would be a mere formality, but things seemed to be far different from what he expected.

Until Wu Yu saw the blood-red patterns etched onto the noodles in Fang Hua Yuan, resembling a bloody outline of an intricate design, he immediately leaped forward, ascending the nearby artificial hill. From his vantage point above, he gazed down with a furrowed brow.

The nearby clerk was still a little surprised. He didn't expect this unassuming Taoist priest to be so skilled. The coroner had struggled quite a bit to climb the artificial hill earlier in order to sketch the scene.

After Wuyou finished reading, he jumped down from the artificial mountain with a light and graceful landing. He directly asked the guard beside him:

"I want to see the corpse!"

He has already been sent back to the magistrate's office.

The clerk replied directly.

Wuyou nodded without saying much, and led the young Taoist away from Li Mansion. He needed to see the body to confirm his suspicions.

"Master, is there something wrong"

The little Daoist boy was only five or six years old, short of legs and stature. At this time, he could only keep up with Wuyou's pace by running and dragging himself along, while still remembering to ask in a low voice.

“You need to see the body first to be sure. Don’t go in for now, just wait for me outside.”

Wuyou didn't get impatient and replied to her little apprentice.

Yes, Master!

A quarter of an hour later, Master Wuyou stood before the Jingzhao Mansion. After greeting the magistrate, he went straight to where the corpse was being kept by the coroner.

The coroner was also a little stumped at this point. Having examined so many corpses over the years, he had never seen anything like it. There was only a skeleton left, nothing else. And yet, the bones were remarkably well-preserved.

He could only think of ghosts and spirits when he saw people transformed like this overnight. So, hastily writing "no fatal wounds found," he put these dozen or so corpses alone in a room, for he was terrified himself.

After Wuyou Daochang arrived, the coroner was very cooperative. He immediately took people to the morgue, muttering as he went:

Master Daoist, these people died tragically. I hope Master Daoist can help appease their resentment so that they don't disturb the peace in the future.

Worry-free didn't say much, he lifted the white cloth, after seeing these bones, he had a number in his heart. He just glanced at the number of corpses, then turned to the coroner and asked:

"Is that all"

"Well, it's all here, including the nun's body. The magistrate told me to keep it separate, saying this case was difficult to solve, so I didn't mix it with the other bodies."

Are there any pictures from the scene

"Yes, I'll find one for you right away."

The coroner immediately turned around and left the place where the body was kept, to look for the sketch of the crime scene.

Wuyou only then pinched a seal, as if trying to summon something from these corpses. Unfortunately, a light breeze blew past, and nothing happened.

"Master Dao, this is the on-site drawing, please take a look."

The coroner presented a slightly yellowed notebook, which happened to be open to the page showing the crime scene diagram of the Li Mansion case.

After reading it, Wuyu pointed directly at the center of the strange pattern and asked:

"There are no bodies here"

"No."

Is there a missing person in Li's household

"Yes, they said it was the day after tomorrow that they were going to hold their niece's coming-of-age ceremony. They had brought the niece into the house the day before, but unfortunately, after the incident, she disappeared!"

"Tell me more."

"Master Dao, please don't blame me. I'm only responsible for the autopsy. These matters are within the purview of the yamen officials. You'll need to ask them for specifics."

Worry-free nodded, knowing she had asked the wrong person, and went straight to find the magistrate.

The prefect was a little puzzled. Didn't they agree to find a Daoist priest to go through the motions, appease the rumors Why did Wuyu Daoist seem more enthusiastic than them

The magistrate still summoned the clerks and answered all of Wuyu's questions. Finally, he looked at the Taoist priest who was lost in thought and asked:

"Master Wuyou, do you think this Miss is in trouble Are all these things she has done"

"There are two possibilities, she is the victim, or she is the perpetrator. And from beginning to end, all those in Beijing who have heard about this Miss [redacted], none have ever seen her with their own eyes, they must have seen many of the maidservants and women around her instead."

The clerk inquired and found that Li Guanjia (the steward) and Li Pozi (the matron) had seen the young lady when she first arrived in Beijing. However, Li Pozi was sold off by her masters because of her incompetence. As for where she was sold to, it remains unknown at present.

Another steward, Li (whose surname was not mentioned), also said that he had seen Miss Wu Lianyi. But when we asked him to describe her appearance and build, he simply couldn't say anything specific.

A simple disguise would have done the trick, and Manager Li may not have even recognized her true face.

Wuyou said calmly and finished, then got up to say goodbye. He was also a little uncertain now, he needed to inform his master uncle.

Three days later, a fairy with white hair and youthful appearance arrived in the capital city. She was respectfully invited into the palace by Wuyou and after meeting the emperor, this Daoist Master Ziyun stayed within the palace, being bestowed the title of Protector Fairy by the emperor. For a time, she became immensely popular.

While Wuyou left the capital city with his apprentice Fengyu, following in Lianyi's direction.t hand wrapped in bandages, he exclaimed in surprise:"John Lee, my friend, have you done anything dangerous"John's dark circles were very obvious, and he looked tired and listless as he said:"It's har...