Chapter 478: Future Direction

Chapter 477: The Future Direction

"I felt... Mr. Mai seemed unhappy at that time."

Wan Song, having spoken non-stop to this point, sounded a bit tired. After a short rest, he continued: "We usually operate in the countryside to avoid drawing attention, but that was the first time we entered a large city. Mr. Mai summoned a Snail Toad in a large mansion, hid these four people inside it, and then had it burrow away with them."

"He specifically used the Snail Toad to take people away from Baishajue?"

Wan Song nodded.

"What was the situation in the city at that time?"

"I don't know. I left as soon as I picked them up; I didn't stay or pay attention. But when I was in the mansion, I heard many footsteps on the street outside." He paused. "Later, I rode the Snail Toad and dropped them off about seventy *li* west of Baishajue, then returned."

He Lingchuan had been leading the questioning, with General Antelope listening intently. At this point, he finally couldn't help but interject: "You surely remember the location of that mansion, don't you?"

"Of course I remember. It's in the northwest corner of Baishajue. There are two streams there, and the soil underground is wet. The Snail Toad specifically avoided the streams." Wan Song recalled, "The small courtyard in the mansion where I brought the Snail Toad to the surface was called 'Orchid Bank'."

"The Snail Toad really liked eating the soil in that courtyard, but Mr. Mai told it never to go there again."

He Lingchuan asked him, "How do you summon the Snail Toad?"

Snail Toads usually burrow underground, leaving no trace. These people must have had a fixed way of contacting it.

Wan Song glanced at him. "After today's battle, it won't respond to my summons. Don't even dream about it."

"That's my business," He Lingchuan said flatly. "Just tell me."

Wan Song took a breath. "Take a Snail Toad egg, then crush it forcefully. As long as it's not far away, it will sense it."

"Crush it? Really?"

"Really."

He Lingchuan said doubtfully, "Why does that sound more like making an enemy than summoning it?"

He crossed his legs and said seriously to Wan Song, "Don't tell half-truths, or your son might end up being only half there."

Wan Song's dull expression faded, revealing a hint of helplessness: "If I or Mr. Mai summoned it, it would come and obey orders; but if a stranger did that, it would be making an enemy. It would lurk nearby, waiting for an opportunity to attack."

"How far is 'not far,' as you put it?"

"Within thirty or forty *li*, I'd say."

He Lingchuan reached out to him. "The eggs? Give them to me."

"In the pendant," Wan Song replied, too weak to even lift his hand. He could only let He Lingchuan take his necklace.

He Lingchuan indeed found a small jar of damp soil inside, with seven or eight white, spherical objects buried within. Each was about the size of a ping-pong ball, feeling soft, smooth, and springy to the touch.

"Where might the Snail Toad go after escaping?"

"To find it... its master, of course. None of us are its master; only Mr. Mai..."

"Describe Mr. Mai."

"Mr. Mai is quite tall, similar in build to you. He usually doesn't talk much and doesn't seek us out unless necessary. He always wears a blood-jade archer's ring wherever he goes..."

Wan Song was already at his last gasp, yet he had struggled to speak for so long. His physical and mental exhaustion could no longer be hidden. He then mumbled a few more words, but no one could make them out.

He Lingchuan pressed, "A blood-jade archer's ring?"

"Is it the same archer's ring that was hidden with the pulp pearls in the jar in the painting?"

"Yes, yes..."

Then, Wan Song's breathing grew fainter and fainter, until it ceased entirely.

General Antelope said bitterly, "A villain of such heinous crimes, to die so peacefully!"

Wan Song's remains would be handled by the bailiffs; He Lingchuan stood up and walked out.

Outside the door, General Antelope was still wide-eyed, saying: "Such a person shouldn't have descendants! If you hadn't already sworn an oath, I really wanted to... I really wanted to..." It forcefully pawed at its hoof.

He Lingchuan chuckled, "He has no descendants to begin with, so you can calm down."

"Huh?" General Antelope's anger instantly deflated. "But earlier, wasn't it... Wait, was that woman's pregnancy fake?"

Jiao Yu scoffed at the old ram, "You're just realizing that now?"

He Lingchuan walked towards the back of the hall. Qing Gu was still unconscious there, and the knife slit on her clothes was also visible.

He reached in and, to everyone's surprise, peeled off Qing Gu's belly!

Even General Antelope, who had killed countless beings, was startled by this sight. But he quickly realized that the 'human skin' he had peeled off immediately changed color, and scaly, dark patterns appeared on its surface.

This piece of skin was actually quite large; judging by its size, it couldn't possibly have been Qing Gu's human skin. "Is this python skin or snake skin?"

He Lingchuan shrugged, then took a cloth and wiped the bloodstains off the skin. This object was, of course, Lord Boshan's disguise skin, capable of blending into the environment. When tied to Qing Gu's upper body, it naturally transformed to resemble Qing Gu's body.

Lord Boshan, while alive, was also a powerful demon with accomplished cultivation. How could an ordinary dagger possibly pierce its skin?

So, Qing Gu was not injured at all.

As for the blood that flowed out, He Lingchuan had first hidden a small blood pouch inside Qing Gu's navel. When he made his move, he first pricked the blood pouch, naturally creating a vivid visual effect.

In fact, after He Lingchuan had made the 'stab,' he had someone push Qing Gu out. However, Wan Song was in unbearable pain, and his mind wasn't as clear as usual, so he didn't notice this flaw.

General Antelope saw the blood pouch and, after thinking it over, understood what had happened. He couldn't help but grumble, "What's the big deal about a real stab? Why go to all this trouble?"

He Lingchuan smiled without explaining. He placed a silver ingot beside Qing Gu, considering it payment for her assistance in the investigation. Then he told the doctor, "Alright, wake her up and then let her go."

General Antelope was used to dominating locally, so why would he care about the life of a commoner? Their positions and backgrounds were different, so some topics didn't need discussing.

By the time they left the medical hall, it was already broad daylight.

He Lingchuan then said to General Antelope, "The murderer of the Wind-Drilling Beast is dead. Is General Antelope satisfied with this outcome?"

General Antelope nodded. "Much obliged!"

"Does the General plan to set off east? The deadline is approaching."

General Antelope was slightly taken aback. He glanced at He Lingchuan, then pondered for a moment before saying, "You brat, just say what's on your mind. Are you saying you don't want to investigate any further?"

His address for He Lingchuan had changed; two days ago, he was still respectfully calling him 'Special Envoy'. This wasn't disrespect, but a sign of growing closeness.

"You two have both heard of the Elixir of Immortality, haven't you?" He Lingchuan had also observed Jiao Yu and General Antelope earlier. Although the two demons' facial expressions weren't as flexible as humans', when Wan Song uttered the words "Elixir of Immortality," the tiger's tail tip twitched, and the old ram shook its head twice.

Both demons fell silent for a moment before nodding. "We know."

General Antelope added, "Some people in the Chiyan Kingdom also consume it."

"The case isn't simple anymore at this point," He Lingchuan asked General Antelope, "Do you still want to pursue it further... no, rather, upwards?"

General Antelope hesitated, a rare occurrence for him, then said: "I should indeed head east, but the mastermind behind the murder of my kin has not yet been apprehended. Baishajue is within Chiyan territory; we must at least capture both Mr. Mai and his superiors!"

He Lingchuan looked at Jiao Yu. The tiger licked its paw. "Within Chiyan territory, we have the authority to make arrests."

This meant they intended to continue the investigation, which was also consistent with the nature of Chiyan Kingdom's future ruler. He Lingchuan sighed. Lord Fushanyue's payment was certainly not easy to earn.

General Antelope sighed heavenward. "That Snail Toad got away after all! Otherwise, finding it would have led us to Mr. Mai."

At that moment, the bailiff Xu Dayou came rushing over, a wide smile on his face: "Special Envoy, Wan Xianneng and Lai Wen have both been placed in the local jail. The county magistrate wishes to ask if you have any further instructions?"

He Lingchuan waved his hand. "It's fine. Both suspects are important witnesses; please have the county send people to escort them to the capital."

Xu Dayou acknowledged and left.

He Lingchuan reassured the old ram, "Perhaps Mr. Mai is also in Baishajue." His desire to find Mr. Mai was no weaker than General Antelope's.

General Antelope said regretfully, "Unfortunately, I must leave and cannot accompany you in pursuing the culprit."

He Lingchuan chuckled, "General, please await good news."

General Antelope turned and, from somewhere, produced a bell, offering it to him: "This is a Wind-Drilling Bell. Put it on your mountain goat. I see it's very fast, but its attack is too weak. This bell can transform it into a Wind-Drilling Beast for twelve breaths, granting it the strength of my tribe and a triple attack. Of course, the bell requires a full day's worth of wind energy to activate, and it can only be used by goat demons."

He Lingchuan hadn't expected such a pleasant surprise. He accepted it graciously and immediately tied it to the mountain goat.

"I can't go to Baishajue, but I have an old friend there. He served as an official in both Chiyan Kingdom and Lingxu City and retired last winter. He is highly respected in Baishajue and has extensive connections, which might be helpful to you." General Antelope paused, then added, "Outwardly, he's a bit greasy—bah, I mean slippery—but he actually has a bit of backbone. You can trust him with important matters, otherwise, why would I have been friends with him for so long?"

He then took out a palm-sized pink gemstone and handed it to He Lingchuan: "This fellow loves unusual stones. I promised to give him a Pinkite stone. Consider this my token of trust and a welcome gift."

He Lingchuan accepted it and noted the details.

"Until we meet again, I'll find you for a drink." With that, General Antelope bade farewell and set off east with his guards.

The past day had been exceptionally long. Even the tiger sighed and asked He Lingchuan, "Where to now?"

He Lingchuan, however, was lost in thought, gazing at General Antelope's retreating back. He didn't reply until the tiger asked again, at which point he withdrew his gaze.

The question he had just asked General Antelope was, in fact, also a question to himself.

The messenger's disappearance case was complicated from the start. Investigating it up to this point, he could vaguely feel the growing resistance ahead.

The strange Snail Toad, the elusive Mai Xuewen, the hidden figure audacious enough to hunt demons in a demon kingdom, and the Chiyan King, who was unusually resolute and demanded a thorough investigation...

Was this only the tip of the iceberg?

It wasn't too late for He Lingchuan to stop now; catching Wan Song could be considered an adequate explanation to Lord Fushanyue.

Even the old ram had left.

But if he withdrew halfway now, he wouldn't see what lay beneath the surface.

What about his promise to brave the currents? If he hesitated and recoiled after just this small step, then one day, when the Beijia Demon Kingdom discovered the secret of the Great Square Flask, would he be able to withstand the baptism of storms?

The blade technique he practiced was Wave Cleave.

It was both a blade technique and a mental cultivation method.

If he lacked the courage to penetrate enemy lines and ride the waves, how could he become stronger with each challenge and soar to greater heights in the future?