Chapter 421 - 256: Questioning

Chapter 421: Chapter 256: Questioning

"Oh?"

"What exactly happened?"

Su Xing noticed the man’s nervous expression and softened his tone slightly as he spoke. In truth, the natives within this Cyan Cloud Sect Secret Realm still spoke Chinese, but with a strange, hard-to-understand accent that was difficult to decipher.

However, Su Xing’s current realm had not only strengthened his body but also significantly enhanced his mental functions. As a result, he quickly understood the man’s dialect and began to mimic it in his own speech.

"Oh?"

Liu De was taken aback for a moment. But given the Immortal Master’s status, he didn’t dare make small talk with Su Xing. He thought for a moment, then recalled:

"That day, Elder Lou came to our Tianming Village, saying he needed to collect some purple bamboo to forge into a magical artifact. Out of respect for the Immortal Master, I accompanied him to the Purple Bamboo Forest to have a look, so that Elder Lou could take his time and pick a few good stalks."

"Did Elder Lou come here often?" Su Xing asked.

"Of course. Although Elder Lou is an Elder of the Cyan Cloud Sect’s Qi Sect, he seemed to have a particular fondness for this purple bamboo. He came to our Tianming Village often to select it. Our village has to hand over resources to the Cyan Cloud Sect every month, and it was almost always Elder Lou who delivered them for us."

Liu De didn’t seem to have any ulterior motives, simply answering Su Xing’s questions. After listening to the man’s words, Su Xing nodded.

"I see. Continue."

"What happened next... Immortal Master, I’m truly not trying to deceive you. It’s just that what happened next was too horrifying."

Liu De said nervously, "The oldest purple bamboo stalks, the ones with the most Spiritual Qi and the best quality, are mostly located deep inside the forest. The bamboo on the outskirts is of much lower quality."

"But as soon as we reached the deeper part of the Purple Bamboo Forest, we could hear a flock of crows cawing. Then, these crows—I don’t know where they came from—started flying back and forth right over Elder Lou’s and my heads. You can’t imagine how terrifying it was."

"The villagers all say that crows are birds of ill omen. Could it be that what happened to Elder Lou had something to do with those crows?"

"You didn’t see Elder Lou die?" Su Xing asked, a bit puzzled. ’The crows were obviously Tong Yinyin’s doing.’ What confused Su Xing was the man’s phrasing; it gave him the impression that he hadn’t actually seen Elder Lou die.

"No... strictly speaking, I did see it. But I have no idea how Elder Lou died. Could it be he was possessed by an evil spirit?"

"Pah, pah, pah..."

"How could an Immortal Master be possessed?!"

Liu De muttered to himself in fear, his face growing pale. He remained this way until Su Xing’s voice snapped him out of it. Su Xing glanced at him and said:

"Tell me exactly what you saw. In detail."

"Alright."

Liu De said with some hesitation, "This humble one has never encountered anything like this before. At the time, I was thinking I must be the one possessed, to have Elder Lou witness such an evil thing with me. So I was about to ask him if we should leave the Purple Bamboo Forest early."

"Who would have thought! I just barely touched him, and Elder Lou fell straight to the ground, stiff as a board!"

As he spoke, Liu De’s face turned even paler. He was just an ordinary person, completely without the Extraordinary Realm. His understanding of the world was even more limited than that of a common person in the mortal realm. It was completely normal for him to be this frightened. However, his composure was surprisingly robust; he recovered quickly and continued in a serious tone:

"The moment Elder Lou hit the ground, I was so scared I nearly jumped out of my skin. Then I saw them... in the deepest part of the Purple Bamboo Forest, where the crows were thickest, two people were standing there."

Liu De continued, his voice still trembling with fear, "But I only noticed that when I thought back on it later. At the time, all I saw were two people standing among that flock of crows, and I immediately ran for my life. I didn’t get a good look at all."

"..."

Su Xing listened in silence for a moment. He had a pretty good idea of what had happened now. ’The two people must have been Tong Yinyin and Li Ye.’

As for the mysterious and unpredictable killing method, it had to be Tong Yinyin’s work. Su Xing had encountered her for the first time in the Secret Realm near Cang City’s Beilong Street, and her killing techniques were just as inscrutable back then.

’It was probably a needle. Li Ye seems to have returned the Shadow Needle to Tong Yinyin. It must be a very important weapon for her.’

"Excuse me, brother. Can you tell me the exact location in the Purple Bamboo Forest where Elder Lou died?" Su Xing asked.

"Well... let me think." Liu De pondered for a moment before speaking. "There’s a stream that runs through the Purple Bamboo Forest. To make it easier for the villagers to harvest the purple bamboo, we built two bridges over the stream."

"Immortal Master, you just need to find the northern bridge in the forest. From there, walk west for a short distance, and you’ll see a wide, open clearing. That should be the place where Elder Lou died."

It had to be said, although Liu De was uneducated, he spoke clearly and his directions were precise. Su Xing cupped his fist and said:

"Thank you for the information. Brother Liu De, if you’re not busy today, perhaps you could wait for me here in the village for a little while. I’m going to the Purple Bamboo Forest to investigate, and I may have more questions for you later."

Su Xing spoke very politely, which Liu De found rather unfamiliar. People like him, simple country folk, spent their entire lives in this small mountain village. They knew nothing of the outside world. The few Immortal Masters who did visit were always arrogant and overbearing; it was rare to meet someone like Su Xing.