Chapter 256: Chapter 255: Becoming an Immortal

"Aren’t we going to that village to investigate the situation?"

A mile or two later, Sun Yuting glanced back down the dirt country road. The old beggar was long out of sight.

She turned to the straight-backed young man on the horse beside her and asked her question.

Although the mark the old beggar had shown on his wrist was slightly different, it was undoubtedly related to the Blood Slaughter Sect. If things went as expected, he would likely be summoned tonight.

She was sure Wu Chen already knew this, but she didn’t understand why he had motioned for them to keep moving instead of going to the village to get to the bottom of things.

"To avoid tipping our hand, of course."

Wu Chen kept his eyes on the road ahead and explained calmly,

"Judging from what happened in Water Town, the Blood Slaughter Sect abducts people in the dead of night to avoid causing a panic."

"We’re in unfamiliar territory, and we don’t know if the Blood Slaughter Sect has lookouts in that village."

"If we barge in and start snooping around, we’ll likely find nothing but more marks and just put the Blood Slaughter Sect on high alert."

"And if they abandon their plan to summon the marked individuals, we’ll have lost a valuable clue for nothing!"

Sun Yuting nodded. "That’s true."

"Still, I thought that once you found a clue, you’d just rely on your strength and carve a bloody path straight to the source!"

she said with a laugh.

"Oh, there’ll be plenty of killing, but now is not the time,"

Wu Chen replied.

Sun Yuting nodded. She understood they were still in the investigation phase.

Using force might seem like a quick way to solve the problem, but the resulting chain reaction would fall upon the common people of Cold Rain City, potentially causing thousands of deaths.

With that, her gaze softened as she looked at the young man’s back.

They rode on in silence for a while longer, eventually arriving at Qinghe Town.

Qinghe Town was larger than Water Town by two or three hundred households, and its population was more concentrated.

As a result, it had everything from inns and taverns to brothels and teahouses, making it much livelier than Water Town.

On the bustling streets, they could even see a few constables in black uniforms patrolling back and forth.

"Let’s find an inn and get some rest first. Then we can walk around town and see if we can find any clues about the Blood Slaughter Sect here."

"Alright."

There were only two inns in Qinghe Town, so there wasn’t much of a choice. The pair picked one at random, had a simple meal to fill their stomachs, and then went for a stroll down the main street.

’In Water Town, they applied the marks by telling the common people they were for blessings, to ward off all evil and protect them from malevolent spirits.’

’Then there was that old beggar, who could barely feed himself, talking about achieving immortality, feasting on the wind and drinking the dew, sipping on immortal nectar.’

’The Blood Slaughter Sect certainly knows how to tailor its pitch.’

Recalling the recent events concerning the marks, Wu Chen shook his head in exasperation. He continued to ponder as they walked:

’This mark is something else... It’s not like the one on Hong Ling’s hand, which was for simple tracking.’

’Now it can control a person’s actions, even plunging their thoughts into chaos.’

’Even Sun Yuting, an expert at the Perfection stage of the Blood Coagulation Realm, couldn’t break free. It seems I wouldn’t be able to dispel it either.’

’Not only can I not remove it from others, but if I were to fall victim to it myself, I’m afraid my strength would be more than halved even if I could break free from the control.’

’I must be wary of that...’

Lost in thought, Wu Chen walked at an uneven pace, occasionally stopping to buy snacks and desserts. He ate and drank at his leisure, sometimes pausing to watch a street performer’s stall.

He looked just like a young master from some wealthy family out for a day of fun.

All the while, he never let his guard down. His eyes constantly scanned the streets of Qinghe Town, searching for any stalls that might be applying the marks.

Unfortunately, perhaps because of the constables on patrol, there were no such stalls to be found in Qinghe Town.

As he walked, however, Wu Chen overheard many people discussing the recent disappearances.

"I heard people have gone missing over in Water Town, too, haven’t they?" a voice from the crowd said. It wasn’t loud, but Wu Chen heard it clearly.

"That’s right, I heard more than forty people vanished!"

someone else chimed in, a flicker of panic on their face. "They say all that was found were forty sets of perfectly good clothes. The people were just... gone!"

"Water Town isn’t exactly small. Forty people isn’t that many..." someone else remarked nonchalantly.

"..."

Wu Chen listened for a while. He could tell that despite their fear, none of them had any intention of leaving Cold Rain City.

’The main reason is that the Blood Slaughter Sect is keeping the numbers just low enough that everyone thinks such a disaster won’t befall them.’

’Secondly, it’s not as if they have deep roots here they can’t bear to leave. It’s more likely that official travel permits or similar restrictions are keeping them from leaving.’

Having come to this realization, Wu Chen continued to wander the streets.

He strolled through the streets of Qinghe Town until dusk, when the sun sank low and vendors began to pack up their stalls.

These were farmers from the surrounding villages. They had a long way to go, so they had to head back early to avoid traveling after dark.

Besides, the recent mysterious disappearances in Cold Rain City had left everyone feeling on edge.

So, one by one, the vendors packed up and left early, and the streets gradually grew quiet.

"Nothing to show for it..."

Having found no new information about the Blood Slaughter Sect, Wu Chen let out a soft sigh and headed back to the inn without further delay.

"..."

Inside his room, Wu Chen sat quietly at the table, his eyes fixed on the view outside the window as it grew darker and darker, until all light was gone.

Aside from the sounds of drinking and conversation from downstairs, the only thing that could be heard outside was the chirping of insects.

After blowing out the lamp in the room, Wu Chen, who had been sitting for a long time, quietly rose to his feet.

’It’s about time to head out...’

He estimated the time it would take to travel back to the beggar’s village. In less than two hours, the Blood Slaughter Sect would likely make its move.

He was about to leap from the window when he glanced at the bed and realized that Sun Yuting wasn’t asleep.

In the dim room, a pair of bright eyes was looking at him with reproach.

"You were actually going to go alone!"

Sun Yuting picked up her saber and walked over, her voice low. She gave the young man’s arm a light punch with her delicate fist.

"I wasn’t trying to take all the credit for myself."

Wu Chen explained gently, "The Blood Slaughter Sect has many tricks up its sleeve. I was worried that if things got dangerous, I wouldn’t be able to protect you."

"Oh, please. The incident with the mark the other day was just a fluke."

Sun Yuting knew he was being sincere, but she patted her chest and said,

"Don’t you worry. This time, I won’t be afraid even if someone from the Blood Palace itself shows up. It’ll be a good chance for you to see what I can really do!"

"..."

Seeing her speak with such confidence, Wu Chen found it hard to object further.

After all, one of them was an Armor Forging Realm expert, a being known as a Grandmaster.

The other was at the Perfection of the Blood Coagulation Realm, a master on the verge of becoming a first-rate expert.

A combination like theirs could hardly be considered weak.

"Alright," Wu Chen nodded.

With no more words, the two of them flashed out the window and vanished into the night.

It only took a moment for them to take a wide, roundabout path back to the village where they had met the beggar earlier that day.

For common folk, oil lamps and candles were a luxury. At this hour, the village was completely dark, its inhabitants long asleep.

But there was one exception.

From a temple just outside the village came the faint glow of candlelight, accompanied by a clamor of voices.

Wu Chen and Sun Yuting exchanged a glance before their figures darted forward, moving like the wind.

They went to a dilapidated side window and peered inside.

Inside the dilapidated temple, illuminated by candlelight, more than thirty beggars were drinking wine and eating meat.

Every one of them was excitedly discussing their impending immortality!

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