Huh? Isn't this an adventure kingdom building game?!-Chapter 935 - 820: Getting Something for Nothing (Part 2)

Then, Qu Luming looked at a desolate ruin and grinned wryly.

"Who the heck did this? They cleaned it out too well, didn't they?" The Profound Light Instrument spun for a long time but found no clues, which left him with a headache. This was supposed to be the sure cave mansion of an Ascended Immortal!

He had initially thought that placing a high bounty on the blue-scaled demon fish would yield him two or three. As long as the Demon Realm Alliance could break the seal, his position would unquestionably give him the upper hand and reap the biggest benefits.

But unexpectedly, he couldn't find the blue-scaled demon fish, and the seal was already gone!

It felt like a cooked duck flew away just when it was within reach, leaving a fire of frustration simmering in Qu Luming's heart.

What's more, the situation reeked of something uncanny. As reported by his subordinates, the area that was once sealed now only had large stone remnants, barely showing the framework of what was a cave mansion. Moreover, the magnitude of the cave mansion sparked wild imaginations.

In theory, whether this huge seal was broken by itself or unravelled by someone, there should have been a strong spiritual power fluctuation.

Don't mention the alliance's eyes stationed at Golden Chicken River Market—even regular demon cultivators should have sensed the commotion!

So how did it all vanish without a trace?

"Perhaps we need to change our perspective," Qu Luming frowned tightly. "Who could manage to resolve that seal without alerting anyone..."

With a chaotic mind and no leads, another thought surged up—he couldn't let go of Mr. Jiang's opportunity! He couldn't afford to waste any more time.

With this notion, he immediately took out the Communication Stone to relay the situation in detail, letting Du Li worry about it—after all, he cared even more. Moreover, he knew so much more, maybe he could figure out which big shot could do it, wouldn't that solve the case?

With a flash, he left the Golden Chicken Seal and arrived in Netherworld's Fengdu City, where red lanterns swayed on layers of golden and silver towers, adding a touch of the exclusive nether atmosphere.

Patting his overly pale face, Qu Luming swept away his previous frustration, grinning broadly as he headed straight for Hell.

Then, in the quiet room reserved for the Demon Nether Chief Envoy, he found his very agreeable superior, "General Jian, is it convenient to talk?"

The spacious quiet room was decorated in a simple and elegant style. Jian Shichu wasn't wearing official attire; his cyan clothes bore no decorative patterns, and his long black hair was loosely tied with a silk ribbon at the back of his head, showcasing an elegant and ethereal quality.

Upon hearing the familiar greeting, he slightly raised his head, a faint smile appearing on his thin face, and motioned for him to come in, asking with a smile, "Not busy today? How come you have time to visit me?"

Before his promotion to Demon Nether Chief Envoy, Jian Shichu had served for many years as Leopard Tail. Back in the day, Qu Luming was hand-picked and promoted by him, so their relationship was naturally much closer than with others.

Qu Luming entered the room, greeted, and then deliberated his words, "I'm disturbing you today because I heard about the whereabouts of a broken version of the Book of Life and Death from a friend. I dare not make a rash decision, so I came to report to you!"

This was the statement he had thought of on the way.

For Fengdu City, even a broken version of the Book of Life and Death is of vital importance!

As long as the intelligence is used properly, whether it's the array or having the White Snake Demon consult the Book of Life and Death, no additional cost is necessary!

Sure enough, no matter how indifferent Jian Shichu usually appeared, at this moment, his eyes were shining brightly, "Oh? Is the information reliable?"

The higher the position within Fengdu City, the more one understands the current situation.

The Book of Life and Death in the Judge's hands was just a substitute replica; there had always been no news about the other Books of Life and Death lost in the river of time. Now that there is suddenly a clue, it must be reclaimed by Fengdu.

Otherwise, even an incomplete Book of Life and Death could cause great trouble if altered at will!

"My friend is no ordinary cultivator, so he wouldn't lie, and..." Qu Luming leaned forward, lowering his voice, "We had some misunderstandings on our first meeting, haha, so I sought a favor from the Judge to use the Book of Life and Death, and guess what?"

He intentionally paused for emphasis, lowering his voice even further, "That person wasn't listed in the Book of Life and Death!"

"Are you sure?" Jian Shichu was once more taken aback.

Working in Fengdu City, who hasn't found an excuse to check the Book of Life and Death? It's understandable after all.

But in all his years on the cultivation path, he has never encountered someone, demon, or spirit that couldn't be found in the Book of Life and Death, even with avatars without independent souls directly traced back to their original bodies.

What does it mean for there to be no name in the Book of Life and Death?

The other party has evidently broken free from the Three Realms and is beyond the Five Elements!

Only the legendary ascended immortals are removed from the Book of Life and Death in the Judge's hands, transferred to the Celestial Realm's Book of Life and Death, making them untraceable!

Qu Luming nodded seriously with a solemn face and replied, "Given the gravity of the matter, I dare not speak falsely. Chief Envoy, your mana is more powerful, perhaps you could try personally."

With that, he took out the pre-prepared Memory Stone and played the image of Jiang Yuan.

As long as there's a semblance, even with disguises and changes in appearance, it can be searched in the Book of Life and Death. Jian Shichu memorized the image of the handsome young man at a glance, and then took him to find the Judge.

"Rustle~"

The Book of Life and Death, emanating an ancient and mysterious aura, moved without wind, its pages flipping rapidly, and moments later, the entire Book of Life and Death closed with a "thud" and lay still on the table.

This time, even the Judge found it strange.

After all, a similar occurrence happened not long ago. He cast a curious glance toward Qu Luming, "Didn't you check twice last time and found nothing?"

Jian Shichu tried twice more, with the same result.

The Judge's expression darkened slightly, "Damn, could the Book of Life and Death be malfunctioning? Any person existing in the world should certainly be traceable!"

"What if the person isn't human at all?" Jian Shichu calmed himself, reassuring the Judge with a wave of hand, "Rest assured, the Book of Life and Death has no problem, it's the person we're trying to check that's peculiar."

Leaving the Judge looking bewildered, he returned to his quiet room with Qu Luming, and after a moment of silence, said, "According to what you said, there is no spiritual power fluctuation from him, even if he casts magic, there's no sense of spiritual power. That... seems to only be an Immortal Technique.

No wonder there is a clue about another Book of Life and Death.

Since he is willing to offer it to us, his insight must not be low. Did you ask what is needed in exchange?"

"An array." Qu Luming rejoiced inside, knowing the matter was settled, patiently explaining, "He acquired a small piece of land in the Netherworld. With us apprehending fugitives and disturbing ghost cultivators lately, he probably finds it troublesome, so he needs a set of protective arrays akin to the Eighteen Layers of Hell."

"He can't even manage to get a decent array? Moreover, why acquire land in the Netherworld? What for?" Jian Shichu was puzzled; if it's truly related to the Celestial Realm, why would a mere array need to be exchanged for?

How would Qu Luming know, he stammered, "I heard Mr. Jiang bought land in a remote place like Lotus Peak because he has an elderly in the family fond of hunting.

You know, the place is secluded, full of ghostly creatures in the mountains, very suitable for hunting. I'm thinking, if there are mortal relatives turning into ghosts, wouldn't descending from above require a price—like reincarnation or borrowing a body, making him also need to gradually restore strength?"

Jian Shichu didn't respond.

But he was rather inclined to believe the other party's explanation; upon reaching a certain level of cultivation, one understands a truth—everything has a price.

The greater the desire, the greater the price to pay. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

The Celestial Realm already collapsed, and it's rumored many immortals perished totally because of it. If one escaped to the lower realm to preserve life, the price paid must be enormous!

"I'll go find Celestial Yin Marshal to discuss this transaction." After pondering for a while, Jian Shichu instructed, "Discuss with Mr. Jiang that he must personally come to Fengdu City once. A top-tier array is not that easily obtained, at least we need to first ensure whether the other party is genuine and... what his attitude towards Fengdu is."

Qu Luming bowed in response, feeling a thrilling and risky thrill of walking a tightrope.

This is truly a hand-off-the-wolf situation!

For a fleeting moment, he regretted being so stingy, thinking that spending a bit more premium incense to bribe Celestial Yin Marshal might have helped get a set of arrays; checking the Book of Life and Death with the Judge would have been even simpler.

With all those clever little tricks, what if things go south?

But he couldn't help but admit, saving a sum of top-grade incense by pulling off the wolf-handling trick felt immensely satisfying!