< Chapter 77: Unexpected Immortal Talent >
For a whole day and night, numerous Golden Core cultivators searched continuously, but they still hadn’t unearthed the shadow demon cultivator.
Faced with this reality, the four major powers of Huoshi Immortal City felt a deep sense of disgrace.
The lockdown of the city remained in place, but the pervasive whispers and undercurrents of tension could not be contained.
Zhu Xuanji asked Fei Si for some fragments of mechanisms.
These fragments all came from the out-of-control and riotous mechanical monkeys that had attacked Yuan Er.
Since the shadow demon cultivator hadn’t shown up, these fragments became the only clues.
Zhu Xuanji fiddled with these fragments.
He had also obtained the design blueprints of the Exclusive Monkey, which he memorized after a few glances.
After spending the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, he managed to piece together three mechanical monkeys from the fragments.
The mechanical Exclusive Monkeys were all in a state of disrepair, barely able to stand before him.
Zhu Xuanji took out control strings, infused them with mana, and manipulated the mechanical Exclusive Monkeys.
If Fei Si had seen this, he would have been astonished: Zhu Xuanji had this skill as well.
Zhu Xuanji indeed had his own expertise in mechanical techniques, which was one of the reasons he had been selected to investigate this case.
After a moment, Zhu Xuanji put away all the control strings and sighed, having discovered nothing of value.
“Let’s review it again.”
Zhu Xuanji closed his eyes and reflected on the investigation process: starting with the mechanical monkeys, then the thousand-pound Fire Essence, and finally the shadow demon cultivator.
“Using the self-destruct of the mechanical monkeys was obviously to guard against the Trace Back Art.”
“The thousand-pound Fire Essence left no traces in the market. If one of the four major powers did it, it would be easy to achieve.”
“The disappearance of the shadow demon cultivator most likely points to an insider secretly letting him go!”
All clues pointed to one of the three major families in Huoshi Immortal City, suggesting they might be the masterminds behind the bombing of the Immortal Palace and the disguise of the shadow demon cultivator.
“But if the shadow demon cultivator had already escaped beforehand, why cause the explosion of the mechanical monkeys during the Huoshi Festival and frame the Monkey Head Gang?”
“Wouldn’t that be redundant?”
Zhu Xuanji delved deeper into his thoughts.
“Perhaps the other party wanted to use this to disguise themselves, creating the illusion that the shadow demon cultivator was present.”
“Additionally, the other party might have wanted to eliminate the old ape because it was too prominent. Disposing of it publicly would undermine the City Lord’s authority.”
“Lastly, it seems the other party intended to confuse me and slow down my investigation.”
Bang!
Zhu Xuanji clenched his fist and slammed it onto the jade table.
He felt the enemy’s provocation. These fragments of mechanical monkeys seemed to mock his incompetence, as if saying: Come on, investigate. I left clues for you!
But Zhu Xuanji had learned from his previous encounters with the mechanical monkeys. He knew that if the enemy had done this, it was impossible to find anything meaningful, and it would only waste his precious time and energy.
“If the mechanical monkeys were the enemy’s provocation, then was the old ape truly at fault?” This thought made Zhu Xuanji return midway on the day of the Huoshi Festival, not hesitating to use top-grade potions to verify whether the old ape’s mind had been influenced.
Zhu Xuanji’s verification results were negative.
After long contemplation, he slowly opened his eyes and thought, “The most suspicious thing remains that explosion!”
The night was deep.
Zhu Xuanji concealed his figure and returned to the Monkey Head Gang’s base, using a spell to make Yuan Er sleep as if dead.
Then, he carefully took out a drop of top-grade potion and administered it to Yuan Er, but saw no effect.
Zhu Xuanji sighed in frustration, “What was I thinking? The likelihood of Yuan Er’s mind being affected is too small!”
“Hmph, this scoundrel wasted a drop of my top-grade potion.”
Gazing at the sleeping Yuan Er, Zhu Xuanji felt disgruntled.
As he turned to leave, he flicked his sleeve, causing a gust of wind to slap Yuan Er’s cheek with a sharp sound.
Zhu Xuanji quietly distanced himself from the Monkey Head Gang’s base. Under the star-filled sky, he made his way to the peak of Mount Huoshi to meet the City Lord.
“City Lord Meng Kui, I need to review all records and thoroughly investigate everyone who has entered and exited the Lava Immortal Palace over the years!”
* * *
Ning Zhuo returned home, rested briefly, and patiently waited until deep into the night. He then donned the Cang Tie Han Armor and once again disguised himself as the young puppet master.
Using a teleportation technique, he arrived at the dungeon and met Han Ming.
Upon opening the cell door, he saw Han Ming squatting on the ground, scratching her ears and cheeks, a very undignified posture.
Startled, Han Ming quickly stood up and waved her hands at Ning Zhuo, a look of fear on her face.
“M-Master, please don’t give me any more monkey souls. My soul needs to digest and purify!”
“Now, my soul has become deformed, taking on many characteristics of a monkey.”
“My behavior has also unconsciously changed!”
Ning Zhuo nodded. He understood the importance of not exhausting resources recklessly and said gently,
“You’ve worked hard recently. From now on, you only need to absorb this ape’s soul. I’ll give you a break so you can rest for a while.”
Ning Zhuo had been frantically purchasing wild monkeys, all of which he handed over to Han Ming for her to absorb.
As a result, Ning Zhuo’s soul foundation had increased to over eighty times what it was when he first met Han Ming.
Han Ming’s condition had deteriorated rapidly, and Ning Zhuo had noticed this.
With a thud, Yuan Dasheng’s corpse was taken out from the storage bag and thrown to the ground.
Han Ming was startled, her hair standing on end. From the first glance, she could tell this old ape was extraordinary!
“Devour its soul, and then you can have a break,” Ning Zhuo said.
When handling the corpse, Ning Zhuo had deliberately worn down Yuan Dasheng’s soul and imprisoned it within the body.
Since Yuan Dasheng hadn’t practiced any soul-related cultivation techniques, he could only be manipulated by Ning Zhuo.
However, this approach still carried risks.
The best option for Ning Zhuo was to let Han Ming absorb the soul first, and then he would absorb it from her, maximizing the use of this spoils of war.
“Thank you, Master, for your consideration!” Han Ming swallowed nervously and began to perform the Soul-Devouring Art.
In the next moment, Yuan Dasheng’s corpse flashed with a golden light.
With a spurt, Han Ming suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, her eyes rolled back, and she fainted on the spot.
Ning Zhuo was stunned. He quickly controlled several small puppets to administer aid while vigilantly inspecting Yuan Dasheng’s corpse.
Han Ming soon regained consciousness, still shaken, and exclaimed, “Righteous Golden Bones!”
“This… this is supreme talent!!”
Ning Zhuo raised his eyebrows, surprised, “Supreme talent? This old ape had immortal potential? Are you sure?”
Han Ming nodded, staring at the old ape’s corpse with unwavering certainty. “Absolutely! I have thoroughly studied the sect’s texts and can confirm that these are the characteristics of Righteous Golden Bones. The bearer is often innately loyal and unyielding, with unbreakable resolve.”
“Their entire skeletal structure is as hard as diamonds, making their physical body equally strong and resilient. A soul attached to these bones becomes steadfast and immovable, not easily swayed by external forces.”
“In my current state, I can’t absorb its soul. Even at my peak, I might not be able to succeed.”
At this moment, Han Ming also recognized the old ape’s identity and sighed, “I never would have thought, the old ape from the Monkey Head Gang, Yuan Yi’s monkey pet, had immortal potential!”
Han Ming paused, then suddenly looked up sharply at Ning Zhuo, her eyes sparkling with intensity.