Chapter 40: Witch Gu Master

 Chapter 40: Witch Gu Master 

"What's the matter?" Zhang Yuanqing speculated in his heart.

"There has been a battle between Spirit Realm practitioners in Fenghui District, one dead and one injured. They need you to come and ask the spirits," Li Dongze's voice was noisy on the other end, as if someone was arguing.

Sure enough, Zhang Yuanqing knew it was about asking the spirits. Commander Zheng wouldn't seek his help for assistance, and in other matters, he couldn't be of much use, after all, he was just a child.

"What about the Night Wanderer of Fenghui District?" The Taiyi Sect had arranged a Night Wanderer in every major district of Songhai, and in Kangyang District, it was Yuan Ting.

Naturally, there would be one in Fenghui District as well.

"The deceased was a witch gu master, and the spirits of witch gu masters are notorious for being evil and fierce. But this particular witch gu master is a bit different... the risk of devouring spirits is quite high. The Night Wanderer of Taiyi Sect is not willing to take the risk, so there was a dispute with our colleagues from Fenghui District," Li Dongze's voice sounded deep.

As he spoke, the noise on the other end of the phone grew more intense.

Witch gu master's spirits? Zhang Yuanqing was delighted. He had been reading a lot of professional materials these days, and if classified according to mental strength, Night Wanderers and Illusionists were tied for first place, followed by witch gu masters.

This could earn him a lot of experience.

However, Zhang Yuanqing frowned and said, "Taiyi Sect is also an official organization, and this falls within their scope of responsibility. Shouldn't someone take charge?"

Even if there's a risk, if they enjoy official benefits and treatment, they should do their job instead of idling around.

"Taiyi Sect is different from the Five Elements Alliance. Night Wanderers are scarce, and the elders' council is in the capital. The captains of Night Wanderers in each major district are on the same level," Li Dongze's tone sounded helpless.

Of course, they could complain, but the report had to go to the capital, and there was no one in Songhai to handle it at the moment.

They would definitely complain later, but right now, they needed to take action.

Because of the ferocity of witch gu masters' spirits, Night Wanderers from other districts wouldn't take risks for an incident in someone else's jurisdiction.

At this moment, the importance of their own Night Wanderer from the Five Elements Alliance became prominent.

"I'll come over right away," Zhang Yuanqing said.

At this point, he faintly heard someone speaking from the loudspeaker, "Li Dongze, what you're doing is inappropriate. Although I really need to ask the spirits, he's only Level 1..."

The voice suddenly stopped, and Li Dongze hung up the phone.

Zhang Yuanqing hung up the phone, and Lao Sishi rotated his office chair, turning back with a smile, "From the sound of it, it seems to be Li Yuanfang from the Second Team... The Second Team in Fenghui District hasn't achieved anything for a long time, their performance has always been at the bottom, so the Night Wanderer in that district acts so arrogantly."

Li Yuanfang? What a name! Zhang Yuanqing couldn't help but mock inwardly.

Guanyue added, "The captain of the Second Team in Fenghui District is also one of our White Tiger soldiers."

Lao Sishi threw a flirtatious look at Zhang Yuanqing. She was hinting that I should build good relationships with the middle-level members of the White Tiger soldiers and show some favor...

Zhang Yuanqing's expression became complicated as he said, "Guanyue, you're being so nice to me. Are you falling in love with me, wanting an older bull to eat tender grass?"

Puff! Wang Tai, sitting at the nearby table, was drinking water and suddenly sprayed it out. He looked at his two colleagues with a somewhat frightened expression, wondering when they had gotten together; he had completely missed it.

"Old bull?" Guanyue raised her eyebrows, and the veins on her smooth forehead throbbed. Biting her lush lips, she said, "Yuanshi, I think we still have time for a fight before Commander Zheng's car comes back."

"I was wrong!" Zhang Yuanqing knew when to yield.

...

A black business car drove into the Fenghui District Security Bureau, and through the car window, Zhang Yuanqing saw Li Dongze standing in front of the office building, leaning on his cane, waiting early. After getting off the car, the two nodded to each other and entered the office building together.

A few minutes later, they arrived at the morgue.

Outside the morgue, in the spacious and bright corridor, there were seven or eight Spirit Realm practitioners gathered. Zhang Yuanqing casually scanned them and guessed their professions based on their appearance and aura.

Muscular and aggressive, probably a Fire Element practitioner... What profession stands a bird on the shoulder? Oh, right, the Hundred Flowers Club's Wood Element practitioners love animals... The one with a dull expression must be an Earth Element practitioner...

These Spirit Realm practitioners all looked somewhat resentful.

Finally, Zhang Yuanqing looked at the middle-aged man who came forward to greet them. He was about forty years old, with sunken eyes, a sharp nose, and thin lips, giving a sense of sharpness and seriousness.

"Let me introduce, this is the captain of the Second Team in Fenghui District, a Level 3 Scout, and his Spirit Realm ID is Dang Tang Li Yuanfang," Li Dongze introduced with a smile at the mention of the ID.

"Li Dongze, you seem to be introducing my Spirit Realm ID to others every day," the middle-aged man sighed and looked at Zhang Yuanqing. A serious face revealed a smile. "A few years ago, I was obsessed with TV dramas set in the Tang Dynasty, so I took this name. You must be the new Night Wanderer recruited by our White Tiger soldiers. You're so young and talented."

"I wonder if there's someone named Di Renjie; you two must be quite awkward together, no, quite comical..." Zhang Yuanqing suppressed his laughter and eagerly shook hands with him, saying, "Hello, Captain."

This made Li Yuanfang smile even more, "It's still better to have our own Night Wanderer."

Feeling emotional, he continued, "As Li Dongze has promised you, I still need to remind you that the spiritual power of a witch gu master is extremely strong and chaotic, and that deceased person was a Level 3 witch gu master."

"His lingering spirit is very dangerous. Are you confident?"

Several team members immediately looked at Zhang Yuanqing with hopeful eyes.

Zhang Yuanqing nodded, "No problem, I'm confident."

The Spirit Realm practitioners in Fenghui District showed joy on their faces, and Li Yuanfang's expression relaxed, and he looked at Zhang Yuanqing with a sense of approval.

"Thank you." He nodded.

Li Dongze immediately led Zhang Yuanqing into the morgue, closing the door to keep the colleagues from Fenghui District, who were eager to come in and watch, outside.

Li Dongze walked to a steel corpse cart, lifted the white cloth covering the body, and Zhang Yuanqing was shocked when he saw the body underneath. He showed a look of astonishment.

The body had dark green short hair, rough and tough dark-brown skin, thick keratin covering the joints like armor, and nails in dark color that were sharp and poisonous. The skin on his face was also dark brown, with scattered and dim pupils, vertical like a snake's, and amber-colored eyeballs.

Li Dongze, using his single hand to support the cane, explained, "High-level witch gu masters have two main methods. One is raising gu, using gu worms to kill people invisibly. The other is assimilating with the gu, gaining an ability based on the gu worm's characteristics to enhance their close combat capabilities. These abilities can include self-healing, vitality, strength, speed, toxicity..."

Zhang Yuanqing sighed, "Sounds powerful, truly deserving of being an evil profession."

It's worth noting that among the local Spirit Realm professions, witch gu masters, illusionists, and bewitching demons are all top-tier professions, on par with Night Wanderers. Therefore, there are only three evil professions, and their numbers cannot compare to the official Spirit Realm practitioners.

Li Dongze continued, "He was killed while assimilating with the gu, so his body has remained in this state. Heh, he died quite ungracefully. Because of the fusion with the gu, his lingering spirit is filled with resentment and beastly nature, causing severe spiritual contamination. That's why the Night Wanderers of Taiyi Sect don't want to get involved."

Zhang Yuanqing nodded. He had the Fumo Pestle to protect him, so he wasn't afraid of spiritual contamination.

Li Dongze went on, "The one who fought against him was also a witch gu master. Our people arrived and killed one of them, while the other was injured and fled. We suspect that this person may be a member of the Spirit Power Society or a subordinate of Black Wuchang. Hurry up and see if you can find any clues. I imagine the colleagues from the Second Team outside are already eager."

Zhang Yuanqing nodded, opened his item list, took out the Fumo Pestle, and handed it to Li Dongze. Then, he walked to the humanoid corpse and awakened the remaining spiritual power dormant in this body.

A phantom figure slowly floated out, with a vacant expression but exuding fierceness and gloom.

Even more ferocious than Ou Xiangrong's spirit, it seemed to both want to devour him and not to... Zhang Yuanqing sighed silently as a sticky dark light surged in his eyes. He opened his mouth and sucked the spirit into his abdomen.

His forehead throbbed with pain, and countless fragmented memories flashed in his mind.

These memories were shattered and chaotic, but Zhang Yuanqing half-saw, half-guessed some of the deceased's life experiences.

Before becoming a Spirit Realm practitioner, this witch gu master was a vagrant, daring and cruel. He specialized in collecting debts for some high-interest financial companies, overseeing nightclubs, participating in illegal activities, and forcing women from out of town into prostitution, among other things.

He did all sorts of wicked deeds, yet his life seemed to be comfortable and well-off.

By chance, he caught the attention of the Spirit Realm, received a role card from the heavens, and became a Spirit Realm practitioner.

He gave himself the name "Outlaw Madman" and after becoming a Spirit Realm practitioner, he became fond of doing charity work. When he accumulated enough morality points, he began to kill ordinary people and rape innocent women to vent his evil thoughts.

These fragmented and chaotic memories were painful for Zhang Yuanqing, and his values were strongly impacted. The contempt for everything fostered a sense of ruthlessness within him.

At this moment, he read the desired and crucial memory.

In a luxuriously decorated tea room, a man with half of his face covered by a silver mask sat at the glass round table, savoring the tea in a ceramic cup.

He looked towards the "Zhang Yuanqing" on the opposite side of the table and said, "The Grim Judge with Elusive Eyes is dead, and the position of the East District President of the Spirit Power Society rightfully belongs to the master. The two vice presidents have been vying for this position for so many years, but finally, the dust has settled."

"How did the Grim Judge with Elusive Eyes die?" Zhang Yuanqing heard the voice of his host.

"That's not something you should know," the man with the silver mask said sharply.

"Apologies, Lord Executor," Zhang Yuanqing responded.

The man with the mask softened his gaze and poured him a cup of tea, saying, "Black Wuchang has hidden away with the Holy Grail and the registry. The Holy Grail is a rule-based item for witch gu masters, and its importance goes without saying. The registry contains the enslaved servants that the Grim Judge with Elusive Eyes has gathered over the years."

"Controlling the registry means controlling many Spirit Realm practitioners, and both items are very important. Madman, our chance to achieve merit has come. By helping the master find Black Wuchang, integrating the strength of the East District branch, we can contend with the Five Elements Alliance Songhai branch."

"Then, Lord Executor, what should I do?" Fawai Kuangtu's breathing became slightly hurried, and his tone carried excitement.

"I have a list of Black Wuchang's subordinates. You can use the list to search for them. Perhaps you can find Black Wuchang's hiding place. Of course, the people on the list have already gone into hiding. They are known as 'Unbridled,' 'Unjust Heavens,' 'The Lord Kills Without Blinking,' and 'The Alluring Young Widow.' Their corresponding real identities are..."