The Quest for Immortality

The station was searched thoroughly.

A small pill furnace for refining poisonous pills was discovered, along with some poisonous herbs and concealed weapons laced with poison.

Additionally, there were several evil artifacts, a few white bones, the origin of which was unknown, but they seemed to be resentful spirits who had died at the hands of these bandit cultivators. Their flesh had been scraped clean and used for alchemy. .

This group of bandit cultivators was quite complex in composition.

Some were bandits who killed and robbed people, some were pill masters who had betrayed their sects, and others were cultivators who had taken up the evil path halfway through their journey.

They were wanted by the Taoist Court and fled everywhere until they were gathered here by Water Yama.

But they knew little about Water Yama’s affairs, and had been subjected to unknown means of silence, preventing them from speaking.

They could only speculate, but simply asking them yielded no results.

Mo Hua and the others had no choice but to investigate on their own.

Another round of searching revealed that, aside from the station itself, the most suspicious area was near the stable outside, where there was a carriage.

Near the carriage, Gu An found some petals.

These petals were scattered on the ground, pressed by carriage tracks, mixed with dirt, looking filthy.

But Mo Hua recognized them at a glance:

”These are flowers from the Hundred Flower Valley, but I don’t know their names.”

The flowers from the Hundred Flower Valley were vibrant clusters of varied species, which Mo Hua couldn’t clearly identify, but he could vaguely remember their forms.

Gu Changhuai nodded slightly, then expressed some surprise and asked Mo Hua:

”How do you know they’re flowers from the Hundred Flower Valley... have you been inside?”

”Um...”

Mo Hua instinctively nodded, but halfway through nodding, he suddenly realized that the fact he had infiltrated the Hundred Flower Valley disguised in the Taoist robe, posing as a young sister, absolutely could not be known by anyone!

”No! I haven’t been there! A senior sister in the Hundred Flower Valley planted some flowers, and I just happened to see them!”

Mo Hua felt a bit guilty.

”Oh.” Gu Changhuai replied indifferently.

He didn’t suspect anything.

Because entry by male cultivators to the Hundred Flower Valley was strictly forbidden, Mo Hua, no matter how skilled, couldn’t possibly sneak in.

Gu Changhuai pondered.

The flowers of the Hundred Flower Valley.

Hua Ruyu’s carriage.

This seemed to suggest that Hua Ruyu’s carriage had indeed stopped at this station.

This was somewhat peculiar...

Gu Changhuai said: ”Bring someone over to question.”

”Yes.” Gu An accepted the order, returned to the station, and picked a seemingly cowardly and talkative bandit cultivator, bringing him before Gu Changhuai.

”Let me ask you,” Gu Changhuai said calmly, ”is there often a carriage stopping here?”

The bandit cultivator looked flustered and didn’t respond.

Gu Changhuai’s expression was cold: ”Speak honestly, or I have ways to make you wish you were dead.”

As a Golden Core cultivator and a Taoist Court Canon, having captured or killed countless sin cultivators, his presence carried an imposing authority.

The bandit cultivator showed a terrified expression and stammered: ”Yes... there is a carriage...”

Gu Changhuai asked: ”What kind of carriage?”

”A luxurious, pink carriage with floral patterns on it,” the bandit cultivator described.

”Who was riding the carriage?”

”I, don’t know...”

Gu Changhuai frowned, ”How could you not know?”

The bandit cultivator said: ”Every ten days or half a month, that floral carriage would come by, but Big Brother... ”

”Which Big Brother? Water Yama?” Gu Changhuai asked.

”Yes, all brothers in the Dao refer to Big Brother by that title,” the bandit cultivator said, pale-faced, ”Big Brother instructed us that once that carriage came, everyone should hide in the station and not go outnothing should be seen or heard, or else...”

The bandit cultivator swallowed, ”Otherwise, if one sees something they shouldn’t, their soul will be taken and they will certainly die.”

The soul would be taken, and they would certainly die?

Gu Changhuai frowned.

Gu An and Gu Quan were stunned, showing puzzled expressions.

Only Mo Hua seemed to be pondering.

Afterward, Gu Changhuai asked a few more questions but got nothing further and instructed Gu An to take the bandit cultivator back to the station and keep him locked up.

Gu Changhuai pondered for a moment and summarized:

”Firstly, the evidence is not conclusive, so many things cannot be determined, but we can make assumptions first...”

”Assuming that woman’s carriage did indeed stop here, it suggests that inside the station or nearby, there must be something crucial she had to do.” .

”And in this stable, there is another carriage...”

Gu Quan nodded and said, ”I have just examined the carriage tracks with my brother and found some subtle traces. It can be deduced that someone drove to this place, got off the floral carriage, switched to the station’s carriage, and went somewhere else.”

Everyone’s gaze then turned to the single carriage in the station.

This carriage looked ordinary from the outside, without decorations, inconspicuous, like the cheap carriages seen everywhere on city streets.

But on closer inspection, the materials used for the carriage were quite exceptional.

Though not ostentatious, it was unusually sturdy.

Moreover, the carriage was enclosed.

The door was locked as well.

One could not discern from outside what the situation inside was.

After pacing around the carriage several times without finding anything, Gu Changhuai stretched out his hand, concentrating spiritual power, intending to forcefully break through the carriage’s locked door.

But the moment his palm touched the carriage, a flash of light appeared on the door.

The carriage trembled, almost self-destructing.

Fortunately, Gu Changhuai had some experience. At the sight of the light, he withdrew his hand, preventing the carriage from self-destructing.

”It’s a self-destruction formation...” Gu Changhuai murmured.

Gu An and Gu Quan’s expressions were grave, and then, without prior agreement, they both looked at Mo Hua.