I Can Devour Spirits

Duan Rong raised his hand, True Qi surged, turning the approaching green wild fruit into a cloud of green mist.

The baboon froze momentarily, a flash of fear crossing its face, its dark eyes darting around before it grabbed a branch and swung away.

Watching the baboon disappear into the dense forest, Duan Rong shook his head with a wry smile. ”That creature!?”

That day, Duan Rong had just returned from Xia Honghua’s place, planning to enter the cave for a sip of water to moisten his throat. As he approached the entrance of his cave, he noticed a figure sitting cross-legged with closed eyes, seemingly cultivating.

Duan Rong’s eyes twitched, recognizing the person as Yang Yi from the Judgement and Rectification Department.

It was Yang Yi who had come to question him during the last investigation into Shang Xiangyu’s two furnace explosions.

Since Yang Yi was here, it seemed Old Qin had already reported Pan Yong’s matter to the sect.

Duan Rong walked closer to the cave and greeted, ”Steward Yang!”

Hearing this, Yang Yi exhaled deeply and smiled, ”Duan, my young friend, it’s somewhat rude for me to be blocking your entrance while cultivating.”

Duan Rong replied, ”Not at all, Steward Yang, if you’re here, it’s for something important. Come, let’s talk inside.”

Yang Yi’s eyes shifted as he followed Duan Rong into the cave.

Duan Rong lit the candle, poured a cup of clear water for Yang Yi, and offered him a plate of wild fruit, saying, ”Picked from the mountains. Give them a taste, Steward Yang.”

Yang Yi smiled and picked the topmost fruit.

Before Yang Yi could speak, Duan Rong asked directly, ”No news about Senior Brother Pan Yong yet?”

Yang Yi paused for a moment and said, ”Not yet. Did he say anything to you when he left?”

Yang Yi’s gaze at Duan Rong was as sharp as a knife.

Keeping his expression neutral, Duan Rong repeated what he had told Old Qin.

In fact, before coming, Yang Yi had already conducted a preliminary investigation. He initially thought Pan Yong might be delayed by something outside.

But after he investigated the Medicine Pavilion’s exchange records, he discovered Pan Yong had used Shang Xiangyu’s Star Disc to exchange for six rare herbs, and he used his own Star Disc to exchange for six bottles of Yang Pill.

This was strange!

Shang Xiangyu wasn’t even on the mountain, yet Pan Yong dared to use Shang Xiangyu’s Star Disc to exchange for six rare herbs at the Medicine Pavilion.

Moreover, all six herbs were related to the Fetal Concealment Scripture!

What was he planning to do with these herbs?

Yang Yi had already sent a memorandum to the Divine Cloud Prefecture and the government office in Pan Yong’s hometown, asking them to assist in investigating Pan Yong’s whereabouts.

This time, he came to see if Duan Rong had any other clues.

Yang Yi asked Duan Rong a few more questions, and Duan Rong answered them all with ease.

Whether it was Duan Rong’s demeanor or his recount of events, Yang Yi saw no subtle flaws.

While they were chatting, two slender youths suddenly walked in. They glanced at Duan Rong, then cupped their fists toward Yang Yi, saying, ”Head Yang, we checked both Pan Yong’s cave and Shang Xiangyu’s place and found no issues.”

Duan Rong’s face twitched; it seemed Yang Yi had already started the search here.

Yang Yi placed the fruit he was holding onto the stone table, stood up, smiled, and said, ”Duan, my young friend, I need to take people to Shang Xiangyu’s alchemy site to see if there are any overlooked clues. Would you like to join us?”

Duan Rong smiled and said, ”You go ahead. I’m not familiar with investigation work.”

”Then, my young friend, I shall take my leave!”

”Steward Yang, take care!”

Duan Rong stood up, cupped his fists, and watched as Yang Yi, along with the two slender youths, left the cave.

After they departed, Duan Rong’s expression turned cold. With a flick of his hand, he knocked the fruit Yang Yi had placed at the edge of the stone table to the ground, then kicked it to the cave entrance.

Yang Yi led seven or eight people into the cave within the vine-covered stone wall in the dense forest.

He had already been here for the investigation of the previous furnace explosions.

He knew the cave here was like a web, crisscrossing, making it difficult to investigate.

But Yang Yi still ordered his men to hold torches and search through the maze-like cave.

They actually searched for an entire night, eventually reaching the Black Blood Vines deep within the cave.

At the entrance to the Black Blood Vine’s cave, there was a solid black iron door with a copper lock on it.

Yang Yi didn’t ask Duan Rong for the key; he simply drew his sword and cut through the copper lock, leading the group inside with torches.

They naturally saw the Black Blood Vines, which had been starving for quite some time. If Yang Yi hadn’t suddenly reacted and stopped his people, two of them almost stepped into the area of black rock.

Once stepped in, the starving Black Blood Vines would surely attack them.

Yang Yi stood on the edge of the black rock area, staring in fear at the two Black Blood Vines.

”Shang Xiangyu raised two Black Blood Vines here? Could it be that the deep part of this cave is close to the space-distorted underworld?”

Yang Yi suddenly noticed something like a fist-sized spring a short distance from the two Black Blood Vines on the ground.

”What is that?”

Yang Yi suddenly understood that the spring must connect to the space-distorted underworld, drawing air from there into this cave.

This allowed the two Black Blood Vines to grow!

The group searched the cave for an entire night, finding nothing besides the two Black Blood Vines.

The two Black Blood Vines were clearly raised by Shang Xiangyu and were likely unrelated to Pan Yong’s disappearance.

The group exited the cave but did not leave; instead, they continued to search through the dense forest.

Until dusk, they stood before the graves of Chen Hu and Yin Cong.

Yang Yi looked at the simple tombstones and suddenly commanded coldly, ”Dig up the graves!”

Yang Yi’s subordinates immediately opened the two graves, pulling out the bodies of Chen Hu and Yin Cong.

The damp, chilly air of Changling Mountain had long since caused Chen Hu and Yin Cong’s bodies to rot beyond recognition. Yang Yi covered his nose with a handkerchief, leaned in for a closer look, and then sternly said, ”Dig deeper into their graves.”

”Yes, sir!”

His subordinates dug down another foot or so into the graves.

Seeing the turned soil was already quite compact, Yang Yi said, ”Stop digging. Bury those rotten corpses back in.”

They then reburied the bodies of Chen Hu and Yin Cong into the graves.

Yang Yi stood there, the air heavy with the stench of decay, his handkerchief never leaving his nose. As he watched the dense forest darken with the approaching night, the doubts weighing on his mind grew even gloomier.

First, there were the bizarre two furnace explosions, then Shang Xiangyu abruptly resigned from the sect, claiming obstacles in cultivation and requesting to travel in search of breakthroughs.

Then, Pan Yong suddenly using Shang Xiangyu’s Star Disc at the Medicine Pavilion to exchange for rare herbs, using the excuse of going to Divine Cloud Prefecture for business, asking Old Qin for a ten-day leave, and subsequently disappearing!

Each and every incident seemed to carry a sinister air!

”Shang Xiangyu, Pan Yong, what are you planning? Are you collaborating, or acting independently?”

”I’ve long suspected something here. I’ve not spent five years in the Judgement Sect’s Ministry of Rites for nothing! Even from afar, I can smell a fox’s scent, no matter how faint.”

”I refuse to believe I can’t uncover your dirty dealings?”