The fat man initially tried hard to find a way out, but after wandering for a long time, he realized the scenery around him was all the same. When he understood he was going in circles, he finally couldn't control himself.
"Brother Ye, I think we're lost."
With things having come to this, the fat man couldn't hide it any longer. They were supposed to be going to the funeral parlor to find Thomson's body, but now they couldn't even find the way to the funeral parlor; they were completely clueless.
"I've found it. It seems there's a force preventing us from finding Thomson's body. I'll use my true qi to investigate and see if I can break through this barrier."
After Ye Tiancheng finished speaking, a wisp of true qi floated from his fingertip, but it quickly dissipated, unable to dispel the terrifying force before them.
They tried to walk a bit but still couldn't get out. This made Ye Tiancheng feel troubled. In such a situation, even true qi couldn't dispel it, indicating it wasn't the dark energy causing trouble. What could it be? It was quite perplexing.
"It's not dark energy, so what exactly is going on..."
The fat man also realized this and muttered anxiously. He had grown accustomed to relying on Ye Tiancheng, but now even Ye Tiancheng was at a loss. It was confusing what they should do to clarify everything and see through the fog.
Ye Tiancheng and the fat man tried searching again. Outside, the sky was dyed red with the setting sun, and dusk was approaching.
Suddenly, a thick fog rolled in. It was unusual for fog to appear under these weather conditions, which was quite strange and baffling.
If they remained lost here, it would soon be dark, making it even harder to get out. Were they destined to be trapped here forever?
"Let me try. My old master taught me something, and I just remembered it. This seems to be called a ghost wall, and it can be broken with talismans. However, the intensity of ghost walls varies. This one is quite deep and requires writing several talismans, and the diagrams on the talismans are also very complex."
The little fox said a lot, which Ye Tiancheng and the fat man, being laymen, didn't quite understand. They could only guess randomly.
"It sounds quite complicated. Little fox, then hurry up and act. Even Brother Ye's true qi couldn't break this ghost wall. Now, it's all up to you."
The little fox wasn't just talking nonsense. She casually wrote some talismans, but this time, her brows were tightly furrowed. Amidst the casualness, there was a hint of seriousness, definitely not just fooling around.
She wrote about a dozen talismans and stuck them on the surrounding trees. Then, the little fox clasped her hands together, chanted a few incantations, and suddenly pointed in one direction.
"Brother Fatty, you can just walk in that direction."
Ye Tiancheng chose to trust the little fox. Walking in that direction, they soon emerged from the fog. They reached the funeral parlor affiliated with the psychiatric hospital just as it got dark. Everything was incredibly coincidental, catching them completely off guard. Outside the funeral parlor, there were even reporters trying to rush in.
This was truly remarkable. These reporters were like zombies, but it was understandable. After all, they relied on the latest news for their livelihood. Moreover, the fat man had only spent a little extra money to get the information. If the fat man could get it, others had a chance too; it was impossible for them to get exclusive, real news. Therefore, encountering these reporters was within reason.
As the few of them were observing from the side, not daring to approach rashly, they wondered if these reporters, all carrying cameras and microphones, had any real offensive power with their loud shouts. It would be bad if they got caught up in the conflict.
While they were watching, they suddenly saw those reporters walking over, cursing. It seemed the security guards from earlier had driven them away.
"These watchdogs are so annoying. Earning a few thousand yuan a month, they act like they're all-powerful. They're just a bunch of detestable watchdogs. What difference would it make if they let us in? If they turn a blind eye, they won't lose a single piece of meat!"
"Isn't that the truth? These scumbags are born to be security guards. They can't do anything else in their lives, forever stuck doing this lowly work."
These two reporters were completely demeaning those security guards. The reason they couldn't get in was because the guards were diligently performing their duties and refused to let them in even for money. That's why these scumbags were so enraged.
Furthermore, it was much easier for Ye Tiancheng. He directly used his true qi to pause time, freezing everyone. Ye Tiancheng then brought the fat man and the little fox into the funeral parlor. When everything returned to normal, the security guards were still on high alert, and the reporters who had been driven away were still cursing but refusing to leave, milling around to see if they could find an opportunity, to see what was so miraculous about Thomson's body.
If these reporters could capture a photo, even a blurry image, it would be of great help to their careers, possibly propelling them to great heights.
However, Ye Tiancheng, relying on his true qi, had already gone far ahead of them, directly entering the morgue. Thomson's body was covered only by a white cloth.
When the white cloth was lifted, a very strong odor assailed them. It was a putrid smell, and for someone like Ye Tiancheng who practiced cultivation, he immediately sensed a dense dark energy.
That dark energy was overwhelming, as if it wanted to devour them. The feeling was not good, a bone-chilling cold that left them momentarily unable to react.
"It seems it really is related to dark energy. Who did this poor painter offend? Which big shot would directly cause someone's death?"
In fact, everyone felt that the recent events were too bizarre. If they were to connect them, the fat man had something to say.
"Brother Ye, I seriously suspect it might be related to the red-clothed woman who disappeared that day. Although that red-clothed woman hasn't appeared, we can all feel her presence. This time, the painter was killed by dark energy. I believe it must be related to that red-clothed woman."
For the past few days, Ye Tiancheng's mind had been filled with searching for the Fuxi Qin, so he naturally felt that divine artifacts were the most important. He had almost forgotten that the great demon full of dark energy back then, the woman in red, was also a very formidable figure who had disappeared into thin air along with her dark energy. Ye Tiancheng should have realized long ago that this person would be a significant threat, someone who would definitely cause trouble.
"If you say so, it's probably the case. But that red-clothed woman disappeared without a trace, and now she's suddenly here causing trouble. It's truly baffling. What does this woman want? What kind of heaven-defying abilities does she have to hide so well?"
They seemed to have found a clue about the red-clothed woman, but it wasn't very specific. Everything was strange, making it feel as though the mystery was about to be solved, but then a black mist appeared, leaving them in a state of confusion. It was very frustrating.
"This red-clothed woman has probably changed her form. I think I read something in a book before. Great demons like her can change their forms at any time, making them unpredictable and impossible to figure out."
When the fat man had nothing to do, he would curiously lean over and flip through books that Lin Xue was reading. So, he remembered something that seemed very strange back then, something that shouldn't have happened, but in reality, it might have truly happened.
For example, what other disguises could a red-clothed woman adopt? Her final form would definitely be something that others couldn't guess.
"But the world is so vast, where can we find her? She has already killed someone, and we don't even know when she did it. This feels quite mystical, like the enemy is in the dark and we are in the light. It's a bit confusing."
Ye Tiancheng was also at a loss, everything was a mess. Then he suddenly had an idea. Perhaps they could check who Thomson had interacted with when he suddenly died at the art exhibition. However, such matters should be handled by the police and were not of great concern to them.
"How can we get the surveillance footage? That probably won't be easy, right? I think it's quite tricky."
Ye Tiancheng was good at fighting, but when it came to investigating strange things, he had no clue and was quite bewildered. He probably wouldn't achieve any practical results.
"It's alright, we'll take it slow. Relationships need to be cultivated."
In fact, what the fat man meant was that he wanted to spend money. Only when spending money did he feel confident. Otherwise, the fat man was just an ordinary person without extraordinary abilities. How could he cultivate so many relationships?
However, when it came to spending money, the fat man never felt he was at a disadvantage. After all, Ye Tiancheng earned a lot of money, so it wasn't a big problem for him.
Since they had confirmed that dark energy was the issue, there was no need to stay at the funeral parlor any longer. All subsequent matters should be handled by the police. They planned to go to the art exhibition to see if they could find any traces of dark energy there, and at the same time, the fat man would check the surveillance footage to see if he could find any clues.
All of this required time to process, so for everyone, time was of the essence. The three of them split up to act.
Late at night, the art exhibition center had already been sealed off, but they quietly slipped in. There were many areas cordoned off by the police, but that didn't stop them. They continued their investigation inside.
Not long after, Ye Tiancheng and the fat man found nothing, but instead discovered that the little fox was missing.
"Little fox, where are you?"
The fat man anxiously searched for her. The little fox didn't have much combat skill and could only write talismans, which were sometimes ineffective. After all, she was still a child. What if she encountered danger? Thinking about it made him extremely anxious.
As the fat man searched anxiously, Ye Tiancheng also sensed something was wrong and quickly went to look for her. After searching for a long time, he still couldn't find her. Now Ye Tiancheng also started to worry. A living person had just disappeared like that, and after searching all around, he couldn't find her.