Wuxia: Starting Off With 60 Years of Inner Strength

”A Celestial Thunder Pearl!”

Almost no one hesitated for even a fraction of a second.

The three words ”Celestial Thunder Pearl” slipped out instantly.

But once the words were out, everyone looked at each other in dismay.

Cheng Tianyang took a deep breath.

”So, you’re saying that this corpse, dressed in the uniform of my Celestial Yang Escort Agency, is a member of Thunderbolt Hall?

”And that the massive explosion just now was caused by one of Thunderbolt Hall’s Celestial Thunder Pearls?”

”It’s just a guess. Thunderbolt Hall hasn’t shown itself, so we can’t make any wild claims just yet.”

Tang Huayi’s brow furrowed slightly.

Dao Wuming’s words confirmed her suspicion: the people from Thunderbolt Hall had never been far away, simply remaining out of sight.

Recalling Jiang Ran’s speculations about them back in Death Town, she feared today’s events were inextricably linked to them.

Unfortunately, Jiang Ran wasn’t here now. Although she had her own theories, she felt they were incomplete, just out of reach.

Dao Wuming mused for a moment.

”If that’s truly the case, then tonight’s events are likely far more complicated than we thought.

”We can only investigate one thing at a time… First, let’s find that old man and question him. We must secure the interior before dealing with external threats. If Thunderbolt Hall is indeed behind this, their reluctance to enter now suggests they have their own concerns.

”And there’s another crucial point: who killed this man?”

Tang Huayi nodded.

What Dao Wuming said made sense.

’Even if it’s just as I suspected—that Thunderbolt Hall released the sky lantern that looked like a Feng Wu, and that the corpse in the Celestial Yang Escort Agency uniform is one of their own men… then how did the man die? The two events happening simultaneously could be explained as an attempt to cause chaos and fish in troubled waters. But it makes no sense for them to kill one of their own. Unless… the killer is here, inside this post-house.’

’It seems there’s no peace to be found, inside or outside this post-house.’

”Speaking of which, where did Young Hero Jiang go?”

Cheng Tianyang looked around. ”Why is he gone?”

”And where’s Ruan Yuqing?”

Gu Shengyan also spoke softly, but her eyes held a hint of amusement.

After all, a single man and a single woman disappearing together late at night was certainly something worth gossiping about.

Tang Huayi shot her a glance and shook her head slightly.

”Jiang Ran is like a divine dragon—he shows his head but never his tail. Who knows if he discovered something or has other plans.

”But his martial arts are unparalleled. Even if he ran into trouble, it’s not for us to worry about.”

”That’s true.”

Cheng Tianyang nodded in firm agreement.

”Young Hero Jiang’s skills are truly formidable. Even someone like Shi Pingzhang was helpless against him.”

”Still, we can’t afford to be careless.”

Though Dao Wuming usually enjoyed reading gazetteers, he became extremely cautious at critical moments.

Hearing this, the others all nodded.

The group immediately began to search the post-house together, not splitting up.

But after searching back and forth several times, they still found no trace of the old man.

It was as if he had vanished from the post-house entirely...

...

...

While Tang Huayi, Dao Wuming, Cheng Tianyang, and the others were searching the post-house, Jiang Ran and Ruan Yuqing discovered something strange about their own location.

”There are blood channels beneath the corpse on the floor. At first, I thought they were just decorative patterns, but a closer look shows they connect to the outside.

”Killing people to collect their blood... could it be for cultivating some kind of Demon Skill?”

Ruan Yuqing spoke softly, turning to look at Jiang Ran.

”Young Hero Jiang, what do you think?”

Jiang Ran nodded gently. His finger pressed against a spot on the wall, and with a light push, a CLICK was heard.

A hidden door immediately appeared in what had seemed to be a solid wall.

Ruan Yuqing’s eyes lit up.

”How did you find it?”

Jiang Ran smiled.

”Just luck.”

’Explaining his Exquisite Heavenly Craftsmanship Hand was difficult, but it was second to none when it came to finding mechanisms like this.’

Ruan Yuqing nodded slightly and didn’t press the matter.

When the two of them emerged from the room, they found that the outside area indeed had the same patterns.

However, the extending blood channels only ran along the two sides of the building’s floor.

They followed the corridor forward, but the channels eventually disappeared into a hole.

Jiang Ran and Ruan Yuqing exchanged a look, each seeing the surprise in the other’s eyes.

They had thought the blood channels would lead them directly to an answer.

They never expected them to disappear so abruptly.

The two of them circled the hole and examined their surroundings, discovering that several passageways connected at this point.

After a moment of contemplation, Jiang Ran said:

”This must be the core of the area beneath the post-house.

”Perhaps every room with a canopied bed has a trap like this, leading to a secret chamber.

”The blood of those who die in the traps flows through the channels to this spot.

”It all pools in this hole and seeps underground...

”The crucial point, then, is what lies beneath the ground here.

”But if I’m not mistaken, there must be other entrances to the area below.”

’Without an entrance, no one could get to whatever is underground, rendering this entire setup meaningless. Whatever the ultimate goal of the person who arranged all this, since they put in the effort, they must be expecting some kind of return. But if they can’t even reach the place where they’d reap their reward, wouldn’t it all be for nothing, like trying to carry water in a bamboo basket?’

Ruan Yuqing nodded slightly.

”Should we look for it, then?”

Jiang Ran didn’t refuse. ’Since we’re already here, we have to search, whether that means going up or down. Even if we don’t get to the bottom of it, we still have to find a way to escape with our lives.’

The entrance wasn’t as hard to find as they had imagined.