The middle-aged man wearing a silver crown was the head of the Wu family in Feiyun City, Wu Wei, a cultivator in the late stage of foundation building.
The family member responsible for guarding the soul lamp had just reported to him that the soul lamp of his sixth son, Wu Tianyi, had suddenly gone out.
The soul lamp is a special magical item that can confirm the life or death of a cultivator.
In the Wu family, only core members have the privilege of lighting the soul lamp. After all, the soul lamp is a rare and expensive artifact.
The extinguishing of the soul lamp signifies death.
Wu Tianyi, his youngest son, was talented and possessed a fifth-grade fire spirit root.
With enough dedication, he had a chance of successfully building a foundation.
Wu Wei usually doted on his youngest son, grooming him as the successor of the Wu family. Upon hearing the news of his son's death, Wu Wei found it impossible to accept this sudden blow.
He turned to the old man beside him with a dark expression and asked, "Second uncle, do you know who Liu Liu went out with today?"
The old man's name was Wu Qian. His seniority in the Wu family was greater than Wu Wei's, but due to his poor cultivation, he had never reached the sixth level of Qi refining, even at nearly seventy years old. He had long since given up on cultivating and was now in charge of family affairs. If any family member needed to leave, they would usually inform him.
Wu Qian quickly replied when the family head inquired, "This morning, the young master took Jia Guard out. He said they were going to Yunmang Mountain for training."
"Yunmang Mountain..." Wu Wei muttered, speechless.
Yunmang Mountain was more than two thousand miles away from Feiyun City. The terrain there was treacherous, with monsters everywhere.
Though most of the monsters were at the first level, Wu Tianyi was only at the fourth level of Qi training, and Jia Huwei, though stronger, was only at the sixth level of Qi training.
If they encountered a powerful monster, the situation could quickly turn fatal.
Moreover, cultivators from nearby cities often traveled to Yunmang Mountain to hunt monsters.
Thus, it was uncertain whether Wu Tianyi had died from a monster attack.
"Second uncle, do you think they encountered a monster or were killed by someone?" Wu Wei asked, his voice heavy with concern.
"Hard to say," Wu Qian responded cautiously, unwilling to draw a hasty conclusion.
To be honest, anything could happen in the world of immortals, and no one could predict the outcome with certainty.
Wu Wei nodded. He understood that Wu Qian couldn't give him a definitive answer; he had merely asked out of habit.
Wu Wei tapped his fingers on the table, deep in thought, his expression dark.
After a moment, he spoke again, "Go and ask Liu Chong to come over."
"Yes," Wu Qian responded quickly, exiting the room.
A short while later, Wu Qian returned, leading an elderly man dressed in green robes with white hair.
The old man's name was Liu Yihe. A mid-stage foundation-building cultivator, he had been recruited by the Wu family as a worshipper. Liu Yihe had served the Wu family for many years, earning their respect through his contributions.
When Wu Wei saw him, he immediately rose and asked, "Liu Gongfeng, Tianyi is dead. Please help me figure out what happened and see if we can find the murderer."
"Okay, let me try," Liu Yihe replied.
Liu Yihe had cultivated Taoist arts for many years, and he possessed a special ability to calculate a person's whereabouts using specific media. This method was common in the world of immortals, though Liu Yihe rarely used it.
If Wu Tianyi hadn't died, and if Wu Wei hadn't personally requested his assistance, Liu Yihe wouldn't have agreed so readily.
Of course, Liu Yihe couldn't simply predict someone's location out of thin air. He needed the right materials to perform the calculation.
He instructed the servant, "Find something belonging to Sixth Master and bring it here."
Soon, a servant presented a piece of Wu Tianyi's clothing.
Liu Yihe took the clothes and retrieved a mirror-like magical item. He murmured an incantation, then spat a mouthful of blood in front of the mirror.
A hazy image began to form in the mirror.
In the reflection, Zhang Yuhe could be seen wielding a long knife, leaping into the air to cleave Wu Tianyi in half.
"So brave," Wu Wei seethed, his anger boiling over.
He had suspected that Wu Tianyi might have been killed by a monster, especially considering that no one within thousands of miles knew of the Wu family's existence in Feiyun City. Who would dare harm a member of his family unless they were desperate criminals?
But seeing the image before him, he couldn't deny the truth.
Wu Wei struggled to suppress his fury and asked Liu Yihe in a low, dangerous voice, "Liu Gongfeng, can you trace the murderer's whereabouts?"
Liu Yihe thought for a moment and then replied, "It's not certain yet. If the murderer left any trace of their presence at the scene, we should be able to track them."
"Hmph," Wu Wei snorted. "Let's chase him down. If we don't extract the murderer's soul and refine it, I won't be able to ease the hatred in my heart."
Wu Wei waved his sleeve, summoning his flying sword as he rushed out of the hall, soaring toward the location where Wu Tianyi had died.
Liu Yihe also unsheathed his flying sword, following closely behind.
…
Meanwhile, Zhang Yuhe was flying swiftly through the air, a smile on his face.
"It takes no effort at all," he mused.
While flying on his sword, he wasn't idle. Instead, he was rummaging through Jia Weibei's storage bag.
Inside the bag, he discovered several jade slips.
Although none of them contained martial arts or magical techniques, the jade slips offered valuable knowledge about the immortality world.
One jade slip contained a detailed map of the surrounding area, highlighting various cities and their respective descriptions.
According to the map, the area was governed by Yunzhong Mansion.
Yunzhong Mansion spanned hundreds of thousands of miles and contained at least hundreds of small cities like Feiyun City.
Most importantly, Yunzhong Fucheng had a teleportation array that allowed travel to Hezhou City. From there, one could teleport to Zhongzhou City, and then journey to Daosheng Sect's mountain gate, located 60,000 miles south of Zhongzhou City.
In Yu Fan's vast sky, traveling on a flying sword alone would take far too long to reach Daosheng Sect. But with the teleportation array, the remaining 60,000 miles could be covered in a few days.
After studying the map, Zhang Yuhe quickly changed his course, heading toward Yunzhong Fucheng.
According to the map, Yunzhong City was only about five thousand miles away.
Not far at all. At full speed, he could likely reach it in less than half a day.
Zhang Yuhe was confident in his speed.
While he flew toward Yunzhong City, Wu Wei and Liu Yihe had already arrived at the place where Wu Tianyi had been killed.
The flying speed of a foundation-building cultivator was far faster than Zhang Yuhe's, and they covered the distance of more than two thousand miles in just half an hour.
Upon finding his son's body, split in half, Wu Wei slowly knelt down, his eyes bloodshot with grief and fury.
He gritted his teeth and turned to Liu Yihe. "Can you find the murderer?"
Liu Yihe didn't respond immediately. He understood Wu Wei's pain, but Zhang Yuhe had been meticulous in covering his tracks, leaving no trace behind.
In such a desolate area, finding the murderer was like searching for a needle in a haystack.
Despite Liu Yihe's calculative skills, without the necessary medium, and with no trace of the murderer's presence, it was nearly impossible to track him.
Liu Yihe flew up, surveying the area before returning, shaking his head. "Master, the murderer has left no trace. There's nothing I can do."
Wu Wei remained silent, his thoughts clouded. Liu Yihe stayed quietly by his side, not interrupting.
The scene was heavy with silence.
Finally, Wu Wei spoke in a deep, controlled voice.
"Fellow Daoist Liu, I know you have other methods to help me find the murderer. I will be deeply grateful."
This time, Liu Yihe hesitated.
He had cultivated Taoism for nearly two hundred years. As an experienced man, he still possessed some tricks up his sleeve.
After all, the murderer had killed someone here, and it seemed unlikely that no trace had been left behind.
Moreover, since the victim was Wu Tianyi, there was a connection between them.
Using Wu Tianyi's clothes, it was entirely possible to deduce the murderer's location.
However, doing so would come at a great cost.
Liu Yihe wasn't eager to take such a risk.
As a mere worshipper of the Wu family, he considered himself little more than hired help. While he could assist in solving minor issues, he wasn't willing to risk his life for something this serious.
After a long pause, Liu Yihe finally spoke.
"The murderer has been running for some time. It won't be easy to catch up, and he may have changed direction." Liu Yihe paused before continuing, "I'm not refusing outright, but it will be costly. If you want to find the murderer, it's better to act quickly."
Liu Yihe knew that empty words would get him nowhere. He was looking for a significant reward before he'd agree to lend his full assistance.
He also emphasized that time was of the essence, as the murderer had already gained some distance.
As for whether his demands would anger Wu Wei, Liu Yihe didn't concern himself with that. His relationship with the Wu family was purely transactional, and he didn't need to fear Wu Wei's displeasure.
With his cultivation in the mid-stage of foundation building, Liu Yihe could go anywhere in the world and wasn't bound to serve the Wu family indefinitely.