A Pawn's Passage

Several Daoist priests were sitting there. Upon seeing Tang Yongde, they stood up one after another and greeted him.

Tang Yongde introduced his companions. “This is Deputy Hall Master Zhang and Deacon Qi from Tiangang Hall. They happen to be in the city, so I invited them to help solve this case. Please listen to their orders.”

When the group of Daoist priests heard that Zhang Yuelu was a Deputy Hall Master, they saluted her respectfully, with a look of awe on their faces.

Zhang Yuelu waved her hand, indicating that there was no need for courtesy. She asked directly, “Where is the body?”

A Daoist priestreplied, “In the guest room at the back.”

Tang Yongde motioned for him to lead the way. They left the main hall, passed through a corridor, and came to a guest room with two armored Spirit Guards in front of the door.

Superintendent Tang Yongde ordered the Spirit Guards to open the door and then turned to Zhang Yuelu and Qi Xuansu. “I’ll leave it to you, Deputy Hall Master Zhang and Deacon Qi.”

This room was different from ordinary rooms. The first thing that caught their eye was the various red and pink gauze hanging from the beams, covering the huge bed, which could accommodate four or five people. That was where the victim, Mason, died.

Zhang Yuelu was not used to the strong and pungent scent of perfume in the room, so she covered her nose. Considering that the merchant died in the saddle, she simply stood at the door and did not rush over to see the body. That was because she was not a professional coroner. In any case, she was still relatively conservative and a virgin.

Qi Xuansu also smelled the strong and strange fragrance that affected him. He immediately used his qi to settle his nerves and commented, “It seems like there’s an aphrodisiac added to the incense in this room.”

He walked to the bedside, lifted the gauze, and looked toward the bed.

Lying on the bed was a naked male corpse that looked about forty years old. His lower body was a mess, and there was a look of pleasure on his face.

Qi Xuansu was used to seeing dead people, so he did not feel squeamish. He inspected the corpse briefly and found no external injuries. The corpse’s skin, bones, and meridians were intact. There were no signs of poisoning or shattered internal organs.

If he was not poisoned by an untraceable substance, then this man most likely had a sudden death.

However, Tang Yongde mentioned that the dead merchant, who was as strong as a Baodan-stage cultivator, had not been with a woman for a long time. The merchant was in his prime and a fit traveler, not a frail scholar who spent all day in his study. So how could he have a sudden death? It was hard to believe, akin to a great master’s cultivation level being downgraded due to a slight misalignment during cultivation.

Qi Xuansu told Zhang Yuelu about his findings and added, “It would be great if we had a Diviner in the Dream Entering Realm. That way, they could recall the earth’s qi to find out what happened.”

Zhang Yuelu said from a distance, “If it’s the Nightmare Bringer Method, then the person who performs the spell does not have to be here. If so, the Earth Qi Recalling Technique won’t work either.”

The Nightmare Bringer Method was infamous. Throughout all dynasties, the major witchcraft cases in the palaces implicating thousands of people were not actually related to the Wu witchcraft. Instead, it referred to the Daoist Nightmare Bringer Method.

This method used one’s hair, nails, and birth dates to bring harm to the person silently. That way, the person would die without leaving any trace. Throughout history, concubines vying for favor and princes fighting for the throne resorted to such tactics.

It was not limited to the palace. Commoners were also afraid to fall victim to this curse. Most people would not dare offend builders, since most builders would know some Feng Shui and the Nightmare Bringer Method.

Builders with evil intentions would hide wooden dolls with nails driven into the doll’s belly in the foundation or the beams of the house. Families who moved into the house with children would find their children sickly, some children even dying inexplicably.

Among the Five Immortals Lineage, Diviners from the Ghostly Immortal lineage were proficient in this Nightmare Bringer Method.

There was once a Diviner who took the life of a Heavenly Being using this Nightmare Bringer Method. He had set up an altar, made a doll out of straw, and written his enemy’s name and birth date on the body of the doll. He placed a lamp on the doll’s head and another at its feet, then traced his enemy’s footsteps with a divination compass, wrote talismans, and burned the talismans to seal the spell.

The Diviner would worship the altar three times a day until noon on the 21st day. During this process, the victim of the curse had almost no ability to resist because his spirit would have been greatly damaged. The victim would not even know that he had been targeted.

Twenty-one days later, the enemy’s soul and spirit would leave the body. At this time, the Diviner stabbed the doll with a magic sword, causing blood to spurt out of the doll and the enemy. The disadvantage of this method was that it took too long. This method also required one to know the birth date and real name of their enemies. If the enemy noticed that he was cursed before the 21 days, then the Diviner would not be able to keep up the spell.

This was when the Illusory Body Technique of the Banished Immortals would be useful. The Rogue Cultivator’s Cicada Molting Technique could only evade physical injury and ordinary spells. It could not avoid strong curses like the Nightmare Bringer Method.

The Illusory Body Technique of the Banished Immortal was made of flesh and blood, which produced the same aura as the original body. Thus, this clone would be able to withstand curses or spells that used one’s blood or hair on one’s behalf. It was a high attainment method that could, at its highest potential, even deceive the heavens. Thus, this Illusory Body Technique was also known as the Tribulation Substitute Technique.

Therefore, Zhang Yuelu was not afraid of such methods.

As for Qi Xuansu, an orphan from the Wanxiang Daoist Palace, he was unaware of his birth date, which was a crucial component of the Nightmare Bringer Method. Xiantian Beings also did not lose hair, dead skin, or nails. As long as they were careful, they did not need to be afraid of such methods.

Qi Xuansu said, “If it’s the Nightmare Bringer Method, then his soul must be damaged. We still need a Diviner to check it out.”

Zhang Yuelu pondered for a moment before saying, “Superintendent Tang, please have someone dress the body. I will examine the body myself.”

Tang Yongde turned to the two Spirit Guards and signaled them to do as ordered.

Not long after, the Spirit Guards dressed the corpse. Zhang Yuelu came to the bed, with purple energy flowing in her eyes.

There were many subtle differences between a soul dissipating normally after death and a soul being forced out of the body through various means. Although Zhang Yuelu did not have the Diviner’s Seer Eyes, her Immortal Eye of Providence had a similar function.

Zhang Yuelu focused on the corpse’s head, where the soul was located. After about three minutes, she slowly withdrew her gaze. The purple energy in her eyes gradually faded away.

She said, “There are indeed traces of the Nightmare Bringer Technique. Superintendent Tang, well done for not closing the case hastily and noticing the abnormality in time. Nowadays, many people in the Daoist Order prefer turning a blind eye to things so that they can avoid more work. This gives the demons from the secret society an opportunity to take action.”

Tang Yongde was a little embarrassed and modest. “Thank you for the compliment, Deputy Hall Master Zhang. This is my duty.”

Zhang Yuelu sighed softly. “It’s a pity that Superintendent Lingquan is not here. Otherwise, we can rely on his Soul Recalling Technique to find some clues.”

Qi Xuansu reminded. “Well, we didn’t come to Baidi City with the intention to solve a murder case. What we need to know now is what the spellcaster used for this Nightmare Bringer Technique. Is it his birth date, hair, nails, or blood?”

Zhang Yuelu muttered, “It’s almost impossible for the two of us to determine this.”

Qi Xuansu thought about it for a while before he asked, “Why don’t we use another approach? Who was sleeping with this merchant when he died?”

Tang Yongde hurriedly answered, “A courtesan from this villa.”

Zhang Yuelu was puzzled, so Qi Xuansu explained, “Generally, upscale brothels like this will have courtesans and escorts. Courtesans provide entertainment with their artistic talents as well as their bodies, while escorts only provide entertainment with their artistic talents.”

She glanced at Qi Xuansu with a half-smile. “You’re quite familiar with these, huh?”

Qi Xuansu coughed lightly. “I’ve only ever heard of this. I can’t afford such entertainment anyway.”

“Can’t afford it?” Zhang Yuelu’s tone suddenly turned gentle.

Qi Xuansu realized that he had a slip of the tongue and quickly changed his tune. “I can certainly afford it with all the money I have now. I just don’t have such interests. Shall we continue with the investigation?”

Tang Yongde kept his gaze down and did not intervene in their bickering.

Zhang Yuelu no longer dwelled on the matter. “Let’s meet that courtesan.”

Judging by the size of this villa, it was clear that there would be more than one manager, and they would likely have a strong background. The courtesans were the cash cows in this business, so if the courtesans wanted to retire, they would have to pay at least thousands of Taiping coins each.

Without definite evidence, Tang Yongde would not be able to do anything to the courtesans involved in this matter, so he just kept them isolated in a room under temporary house arrest.

Tang Yongde led Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu through a long corridor with tall red lanterns on both sides. In the night, all one could see were red and black. After turning a few corners, they could hear women’s laughter. Tang Yongde approached the door, where there were two Spirit Guards and two female Daoist priests.

Superintendent Tang Yongde signaled the two ladies to open the door. A red light filled the room, which had a large screen blocking the back. The floor was covered with a thick carpet. Although it was winter, the room was as warm as spring.

The tables and chairs were all made of fine mahogany. The porcelain, calligraphy, and paintings were all genuine pieces from famous artists. This resembled the room of a noble young lady.

Qi Xuansu did not know how this room compared to Zhang Yuelu’s, but it was certainly much better than his residence in Haichan Place. He could not help but sigh as he thought, No wonder people laugh at the poor but never at prostitutes.