Chapter 1680: Chapter 827: Xia Yan Dynasty, Investigation_2
They wasted no time and headed straight to the center of the Imperial City to find the officials of the dynasty to understand the situation.
In the council chamber of the Imperial City, Luo Chen and Qing Shuang met the chancellor of Xia Yan Dynasty, an elderly yet vigorous man.
“Honorable Immortal Masters, your arrival is truly timely.” The chancellor said respectfully, “The recent massacre incidents have plunged the entire dynasty into panic.”
Qing Shuang nodded and asked, “Chancellor, could you elaborate on the details of the massacre incidents?”
The chancellor sighed and began to narrate, “These massacre incidents happened very suddenly, without any warning. The victims were all ordinary people, and there were no traces of the killers at the scene. The most perplexing thing is that these incidents seemed to occur at night, and after each event, there would be one survivor. But these survivors all appeared to be brainwashed, knowing nothing about the incidents.”
Luo Chen furrowed his brow, pondering for a moment before saying, “It seems these massacre incidents are not ordinary criminal cases but are organized and premeditated operations. We need to inspect the scene personally.”
The chancellor nodded in agreement and arranged for an official to accompany Luo Chen and Qing Shuang to the most recent massacre site.
As night fell, Luo Chen and Qing Shuang, led by the official, arrived at a remote village.
There was no vitality as in days past here, only cold wind whistling through the empty streets.
They entered a broken-down house, where the interior was in disarray, and dried bloodstains remained on the ground.
Luo Chen squatted down, carefully examining the traces on the ground, while Qing Shuang closed her eyes, trying to sense the spiritual energy fluctuations around.
“There seems to be the aura of some kind of dark art here.” Qing Shuang opened her eyes, her expression grave as she spoke.
Luo Chen nodded, he stood up and looked around, then said, “We need to find the survivor, perhaps he can provide some clues.”
With the official leading, they found the survivor, a young farmer.
The farmer’s eyes were filled with fear and confusion, evidently still not recovered from that night’s terrifying event.
Luo Chen and Qing Shuang patiently inquired about the farmer’s situation that night, the farmer haltingly described the terrifying scene of that night.
He mentioned some strange dark shadows and a suffocating chill.
“Dark shadows?” Qing Shuang frowned and asked, “Can you describe them in more detail?”
The farmer shook his head, seemingly terrified of the memory from that night, unwilling to say more.
Luo Chen and Qing Shuang exchanged a glance; they knew these dark shadows were likely members of the Blood Ghost Sect.
They decided to stay overnight in the village, hoping to capture more clues.
Deep into the night, Luo Chen and Qing Shuang lit a bonfire in an abandoned house, preparing to take turns on watch.
Qing Shuang sat by the fire, holding a jade slip, studying something.
“Luo Chen, look at this.” Qing Shuang handed the jade slip to Luo Chen, which contained a section about the Blood Ghost Sect’s secret techniques.
Luo Chen took the jade slip, and after carefully reading it, his face became increasingly grave: “The secret technique detailed here can manipulate a person’s will, even control their actions. If the Blood Ghost Sect really used this technique, then these massacre incidents may be carried out by them controlling mortals.”
Qing Shuang nodded, a hint of concern flashing in her eyes: “We must quickly find the traces of the Blood Ghost Sect and stop their conspiracy.”
Just then, Luo Chen suddenly felt a strange wave of spiritual energy.
He immediately stood up and signaled Qing Shuang to stay alert.
“Someone’s coming.” Luo Chen said in a low voice.
They quickly extinguished the bonfire, hiding in the darkness.
Soon, several shadows silently appeared in the village.
Luo Chen and Qing Shuang held their breath, observing the actions of these shadows, only to see them searching around, seemingly looking for something.
“They should be members of the Blood Ghost Sect.” Luo Chen whispered.
Qing Shuang nodded, drawing out a talisman paper from her waist, injecting true qi, instantly transforming the talisman paper into a golden light, flying toward one of the shadows.
The golden light exploded in the air, illuminating the surroundings.
The shadows panicked and fled in all directions.
Luo Chen and Qing Shuang quickly pursued, knowing this was a rare opportunity to track down clues about the Blood Ghost Sect.
The two were like night-leaping leopards, darting through the dark village, closely following the trace of the shadows.
“They’re heading north!” Qing Shuang whispered, her eyes glinting with firm determination.
Luo Chen nodded, and the two immediately changed direction, speeding towards the northern woodland.
The woodland was dense with trees, appearing more mysterious in the night.
They cautiously navigated through the forest, afraid of alerting any enemies possibly lurking in the dark.
“Watch your steps!” Luo Chen suddenly warned, he noticed some unusual marks on the ground.
Qing Shuang looked down, only to see strange symbols scattered on the ground, emitting a faint red glow, seemingly pointing to something.
“These are marks of the Blood Ghost Sect!” Qing Shuang recognized these symbols, having seen similar patterns in the Alliance’s records.
Luo Chen and Qing Shuang became more cautious, knowing the appearance of Blood Ghost Sect marks indicated they were close to the enemy’s hideout.
They followed the guidance of the marks, venturing deeper into the woodland.
After a period of tracking, they arrived in front of a concealed cave.
The entrance to the cave was obscured by vines and weeds, difficult to find unless closely observed.
“This is the place.” Luo Chen said in a low voice, drawing out his longsword, the sword’s tip glinting with a cold sheen.
Qing Shuang also readied for battle, taking out a talisman paper from her pocket, chanting incantations, the talisman paper transformed into a stream of light, flying into the cave.
Inside the cave came a burst of commotion, followed by an angry shout: “Who is it?!”
Luo Chen and Qing Shuang exchanged a glance, knowing they had alerted the enemies within the cave.
The two no longer hesitated, charging into the cave one after the other.
Inside the cave, several Blood Ghost Sect members were sitting around a stone platform, on which some strange magic artifacts and blood-colored crystal stones were placed.
Seeing Luo Chen and Qing Shuang intrude, they immediately stood up, adopting fighting stances.
“You cultivators dare intrude on our territory!” One of the Blood Ghost Sect members shouted angrily.
Luo Chen sneered: “You heretical demons have committed countless evil deeds; today is your end!”
The battle was imminent; Luo Chen and Qing Shuang engaged in fierce combat against the Blood Ghost Sect members.
Sword Qi swept through the cave, blood-colored energy collided with true qi, emitting deafening sounds.
Luo Chen wielded his longsword, intertwining golden light with blood-colored energy, his posture nimble, each strike aimed at the enemy’s vital spots.
Qing Shuang was like a blue lightning, flitting between enemies; her swordsmanship was agile and lethal.
After intense combat, the Blood Ghost Sect members fell one after another.
In the end, only one seemingly leading Blood Ghost Sect member remained, standing before the stone platform, his eyes wild with madness.
“You think you can stop us with this? The Blood Ghost Sect’s plans are unstoppable!” The leader member laughed madly.
Luo Chen and Qing Shuang remained silent, knowing there’s no point in arguing with such a crazed enemy.
The two simultaneously launched a lethal attack, Sword Light and blood-colored energy converging in the air, ultimately defeating the leading Blood Ghost Sect member thoroughly.
After the battle, Luo Chen and Qing Shuang inspected the magic artifacts and crystal stones on the stone platform, finding these items were all related to the Blood Ghost Sect’s secret techniques, clearly tools to control human will.
“I didn’t expect the Blood Ghost Sect to choose to begin massacring mortals to increase their power; such means are truly evil!” Luo Chen said.
Qing Shuang nodded gently, a hint of determination flashing in her eyes: “We must report these discoveries to the Alliance quickly and also warn other dynasties to prevent the Blood Ghost Sect’s conspiracy from continuing to spread.”
Luo Chen sheathed his longsword, looking around to ensure nothing was missed, then turned to Qing Shuang: “Let’s return to the Alliance Headquarters first; the matter here has come to an end. Let’s hope we can timely halt the next move of the Blood Ghost Sect.”