Chapter 1037: A Painstaking Investigation
Zu An was dumbfounded. He had only planned to pull some Ki Fruits to raise Daji’s cultivation. He had never expected to actually pull a skill!
He quickly read the description the keyboard gave him.
Kawaii Waifu Voice Changer: In a certain time and place, there was a man who really liked to pretend to be a girl and play together with other men. That way, he could receive the most consideration from them, and he got better and better at it as time went on. This voice changer is the result of his hard work, allowing him to become a kawaii waifu. He relied on this sweet voice to capture the hearts of many men. Unfortunately, he was unable to keep this up forever. One time, he accidentally exposed himself. The men who discovered the truth were incredibly furious, and no one knows his pitiful ending. However, this magical artifact was still passed down.
Usage effects: When the item is used, you can change your voice into any target’s voice. Not even those closest to you will be able to tell the difference. But whenever you want to use this skill, you must make an offering.
Note: The so-called offering is that the user must first use this item to pretend to be a kawaii waifu, and furthermore successfully fool a male target.
Zu An was flabbergasted. What the flying f*ck?
Almost every skill he pulled was sketchy in some way. However, he hadn’t expected this skill to be so horrible.
He had actually been somewhat happy when he first saw the effects. After all, even though ‘Face of a Thousand Identities’ could change his appearance with ki, some parts of that secret manual were missing. Currently, he could only achieve seventy to eighty percent similarity. Someone close to the real target would easily see through his disguise. With this voice changer, together with Face of a Thousand Identities, he could successfully impersonate anyone without giving himself away.
But when he saw the usage condition, his expression immediately darkened.
Didn’t the offering condition mean he had to pretend to be a girl each time first? If he just had to crossdress or something, then whatever, he’d change into a girl’s outfit when no one was watching. But this freaking scam needed him to actually fool a male target first! Didn’t that mean he had to pretend to be a girl in front of another guy? That would be complete social suicide if he were exposed! What kind of dignity would he even have left?!
He was already extremely embarrassed before he even gave it a try.
“Ah Zu, are you ready?” Sang Hong knocked on the door. He was clearly a bit worried that Zu An hadn’t replied for so long.
“Please wait for a bit longer.” Zu An could only suppress his thoughts when he thought about how dire the current situation was. He stored the Kawaii Waifu Voice Changer away into the Brilliant Glass Bead for the time being to examine later.
“Come here.” He gestured toward Daji, who obediently came over. Her expression looked like a smile, yet if one looked at her closely, it wouldn’t seem as if she were smiling anymore.
“Even you’re laughing at me.” Zu An was a bit dejected. “Open your mouth!”
Daji blinked. She leaned her head back slightly and obediently parted her red lips. Zu An threw in the Ki Fruits one after another. Fortunately, they immediately melted when they entered Daji’s mouth. Otherwise, she’d choke to death from eating so many of them.
During the process, Zu An’s finger couldn't help but touch her tongue sometimes. He was surprised to discover that the other party didn’t reject him for the first time.
“She was actually a freaking foodie,” Zu An muttered with a strange expression. When this kind of exceptional beauty opened her mouth and waited for food, it really was hard for others to resist the urge to feed her something…
He quickly concentrated and fed all the Ki Fruits to her. Then, he got up and stopped looking at her, saying, “Digest those fruits. I need you to earn your keep soon.”
Daji nodded slightly, as if understanding what he meant. She ate all of the Ki Fruits, and her aura began to steadily climb.
Sixth step, seventh step, eighth step, ninth step…
In the end, her cultivation stopped at the ninth step of the sixth rank.
800 Ki Fruits were needed to reach the peak of the sixth rank. She had already eaten 740 fruits, making her extremely close to that level.
Looks like I need to hurry and find her breakthrough materials, Zu An told himself.
When Daji’s cultivation stabilized, Zu An signaled the people outside to let Pei You in.
“Brother Zu, you have to trust me. If even you don’t believe me, then I… I…” Pei You immediately complained to Zu An as soon as he saw him. However, halfway through his wailing, he suddenly noticed Daji. There was actually a woman so ridiculously beautiful in this world?
Even the legendary Yu Yanluo can only be this beautiful and not more so, right?
“Wow, Brother Zu, you actually had someone like this all to yourself…” Pei You couldn't help but say with a sigh.
Zu An rolled his eyes. This fool was about to lose his life, yet he was still thinking about such things. He didn’t feel like wasting any words on Pei You and immediately had Daji use Fox Charm to control him.
Pei You’s expression gradually went blank. Zu An took the chance to ask him about what happened last night. In the end, however, his response was identical to what he had said before.
“Huh?” Zu An exclaimed. Neither side was lying, so what was going on?
He remained silent for a moment, but then suddenly thought of something and asked, “Did you notice anything strange while you were sitting outside the prison yesterday?”
“There was nothing strange. Everything was completely quiet from start to finish. No one came in or left,” Pei You replied.
Zu An frowned, then asked, “How many rotations did you send your ki flow through last night in meditation?”
Pei You replied, “I first sent my ki through eight small rotations, and then I… I went through five great rotations.”
Zu An then asked him how long he usually took for each rotation, and then asked him when each rotation began. Eventually, he finally realized the problem. Pei You’s cultivation and the time didn’t match up. There was a period of time missing.
But Pei You couldn't recall what had happened before, no matter how he tried to rack his brains. He began, “I think I saw a bit of rainbow light, then slept for a bit. But I shouldn’t have fallen asleep…” He clutched his head with an expression of deep pain. He clearly felt some kind of irritation there.
Zu An was worried about injuring Pei You’s soul, so he quickly told Daji to stop her skill. Then, while Pei You was still dizzy, he carried him out.
“Did you find anything out?” Sang Hong asked while pacing around in the main lobby. His eyes were filled with hope when he saw the two people come out, but he was also worried that he might hear some bad news.
“Neither side was lying.” Zu An said.
“How is that possible?!” Sang Hong’s expression changed.
Pei You was moved to tears. Zu An really is a good brother! No one believed me, but he believed me.
Just how many times was I saved by him already?
I definitely have to set up a memorial arch in his name once I return home and burn incense for him every day.
Zu An lowered the weak Pei You off to the side, then explained, “Some expert must have temporarily invaded his body, controlling his body to kill Zuo Su.”
“Huh” Pei You cried out in alarm. Wasn’t he still the killer in that case? But he quickly noticed a more severe problem. That mysterious person invaded his brain? Didn’t that mean that guy had gone inside of him?
I’d be okay with it if it was a beauty, but if it was a freaking man… He had an expression of horror when he realized that. He couldn't help but start retching off to the side.
Zu An and Sang Hong gave him a look. They didn’t know why he was acting like that all of a sudden.
Sang Hong didn’t pay him any attention and said gravely, “There are only some evil cultivators or members of the fiend races who are capable of the kind of mind invasion you are talking about. Furthermore, Pei You is no pushover either. Anyone who could control him without his notice, and then silently kill Zuo Su, might have a cultivation far above mine.”
His brow furrowed deeply as he spoke. This matter really was way too difficult… Just Jian Taiding alone was already outside of their ability to deal with. Now, there was some mysterious expert too? Even someone like him whose mind was tough was starting to waver.
When he heard what Sang Hong said, Zu An recalled that Daji’s skill seemed to be of the same sort. Don’t tell me he’ll mistake me for an evil cultivator too? He quickly commented, “Ahem, since Zuo Su was suspected to have colluded with the fiend races, then it was most likely a fiend race individual who silenced him.”
“There are definitely others involved, or else the fiend races wouldn’t have silenced him so quickly,” Sang Hong swiftly deduced. He mused, “Then is it really Jian Taiding?”
Jian Taiding was the most suitable candidate in Cloudcenter Commandery, with both the strength and backing. But he had great status and authority. His subordinates had a lot of power as well. Their group couldn't investigate him even if they wanted to!
“Finding that mysterious fiend race expert is the top priority. Once he’s found, everything else will become much easier.” Zu An said.
“Indeed.” Sang Hong got up. He continued, “Furthermore, Zuo Su’s death must remain a secret. No one who knows about it is to leave this residence. Everyone must continue to deliver meals and patrol the area to create the illusion that Zuo Su is still alive.”
They had finally quelled the rebellion of the commandery’s soldiers. If those soldiers learned that Zuo Su had died in their temporary official residence, it really would be hard for the Imperial Envoy to escape blame. If those with ulterior motives fanned the flames and the city’s troops charged at them again, the entire Imperial Envoy might be wiped out.
After arranging everything, Sang Hong then brought Zu An to his room to discuss some details. His expression was full of fatigue as he said, “You and I both know that this fiend race expert isn’t someone who would be so easily captured.”
At the moment, the fiend race expert was most likely hiding in Jian Taiding’s Military Affairs Manor. However, security there was strict, and Jian Taiding was a master rank cultivator himself. They couldn't even try to sneak inside and investigate the matter.
“I have a way,” Zu An said seriously.