Master of Strange Dao

"Many thanks, my lord," Grandpa Que hastened to bow deeply with his hands clasped.

"When did you awaken?"

"I, an old man, am surnamed Wang, named Que, originally from a small town, living alone at the village head. I don't know how long after my death, but one day I suddenly awakened and found myself transformed into this form.

Since then, I could hear people's voices, and often, children would whisper to me.

I am aware of Dali's stance towards the Evil Cult and never dared to reveal myself in front of others. Adults never believe the words of children.

I never committed evil, nor did I pay attention to the grown children, so as those children grew up, they also stopped believing in the legend of Grandpa Que, which allowed me to cling to a feeble existence until now.

For how long, I do not know, the outside legends began to change slowly.

I also did not dare to covet the incense fire, for truly coveting it would turn me into a part of the Evil Cult, with no path of return, surely leading to my utter annihilation.

To this very day, I have fallen to this state, merely a step away from dissipating.

This temple can only be converted into a room no bigger than a small stone," he explained.

Yu Ziqing couldn't help but laugh and cry at his pitiful state, yet surviving this long was indeed a skill.

Grandpa Que was probably the last person who would want Stone to get into trouble because now, only Stone's meager offerings could be considered legitimate worship.

If Stone stopped worshiping him, it would not be long before he dissipated into nothing.

"If there's not a single falsehood in what you've said, and not a single thing omitted, I can offer you a way to live, even granting you a fief to serve as your foundation."

"If I find out there is even a fraction of a lie or omission in your story, you will find it difficult even to die."

"I am giving you one last chance now, speak quickly if there is anything you've left out."

Grandpa Que grimaced, pondering for a long while, then shook his head.

"There is nothing more, what I have told you is entirely true, and I have concealed nothing; I can swear to Heaven."

"Then swear."

Without hesitation, Grandpa Que pinched a seal and fiercely swore an oath.

His only chance to survive now was to rely on Yu Ziqing.

In Dali, he definitely wouldn't be able to survive.

Dali would certainly not recognize such a quirky Earth Deity, nor would they grant him a fief.

Now that the opportunity for a fief was here, he naturally grabbed it.

After all, not everyone is qualified or capable to bestow a fief on an Earth Deity.

"Good, let me ask you another thing."

"Please feel free to ask, my lord."

"Is it true that as long as there is a temple of yours outside, you can appear in any of them?"

"Indeed, I can," Grandpa Que answered honestly.

"Apart from you, can anyone else travel between different temples?"

"I wouldn't know about that, I've never had more than one temple or even an idol, but I suppose if someone were powerful enough, it might be possible due to the wishes of children."

"Alright, I will take you all with me first."

Yu Ziqing nodded in satisfaction, his mind clearing.

"Let us out, for if I exert my power, this temple will collapse."

The mist surrounding the room methodically covered everything within, and when the mist cleared again, Lou Huai had already slipped into Yu Ziqing's boots and Yu Ziqing had returned to the normal world.

Yu Ziqing looked at the extinguished incense fire and collected it.

Grandpa Que spoke the truth, and Yu Ziqing could discern it was genuine. He swore he did nothing shady, and Gu Shitou also spoke the truth.

With Lou Huai assisting by his side, at least it was certain that Gu Shitou could not tell a lie.

But it couldn't be ruled out that Gu Shitou had been brainwashed, so these were merely superficial verifications.

Indeed, as soon as Grandpa Que dared to accept Yu Ziqing's incense fire, with his floating state, he could be made to die on the spot.

In this world, no one who received the incense fire Wish Power offered by Yu Ziqing could escape unscathed.

If he truly wasn't greedy for the incense fire, then he would live.

If he coveted the incense fire offered by Yu Ziqing, which was far superior to that offered by an ordinary person, then he would have to die.

This was the ultimate verification method hidden at the end.

If what was objectively observed and heard seemed fine, then Yu Ziqing could tentatively conclude there was no issue.

Yu Ziqing took the damaged bronze square pot and, after thinking it over, decided to pack up Gu Shitou's entire room and take it with him.

He then went to see Gu Shitou's mother.

The woman lying on the bed looked extremely wan and thin. It was apparent she had once been beautiful, but her vitality was dim, her Divine Soul languid, and despite the clear residual Spiritual Medicine within her body, she still could not recover.

The crux of the problem indeed lay in her brooding thoughts; it was truly a mental illness that ordinary Spiritual Medicine could not heal.

Seeing someone had come, the woman struggled to sit up.

"Don't speak. I'm taking you with me. What you need now is to rest well,"

Yu Ziqing gestured, causing her to sink into a deep coma, then he pulled out the backup Sealing Equipment and sealed her immediately.

Completing the full set of tasks, it was necessary to seal her temporarily; otherwise, she might die in a month or two.

After finding everyone, Yu Ziqing finally entered the Seventh Floor ring to contact Song.

"I found your son, and I also took your woman as a favor."

"You found them?! How are they?" Song sighed with relief.

"Your son is fine, just your woman is not doing well; she is troubled by worry, growing thinner day by day, and is near death, so I sealed her up.

Also, I used a Void Escape Scroll, you owe me two,"

"Alright, no problem, it's only right. Who is behind all this?"

Yu Ziqing hesitated for a moment, then said

"We'll talk about the specifics later. The abduction of your son and daughter has nothing to do with the chief director, and they weren't in their hands, they are also looking for your son right now."

"Thank you!" Song stood up and bowed deeply.

"Alright, I'm leaving now, you can handle the next steps yourself."

Yu Ziqing opened his eyes, walked out of the Gu family, and pretended to investigate the vicinity, slowly expanding the area of his search until he eventually entered the territory of Kuihou Country.

Only when he entered this chaotic area did Yu Ziqing quietly leave.

Meanwhile outside, the reactions caused by this affair were just starting.

The encounters between the Shadow Department and Jinyi Wei, and Dong Chang's men slowly starting to show up.

Within the Shadow Department, as Shan Daoyu escorted those three spies back to the Shadow Department, someone was able to use the internal confidential messages to assign fake tasks that others couldn't see the flaws in, and it couldn't be contained any longer.

Yu Ziqing walked along the road, recording down all the clues he had gathered one by one.

He felt, he was about to expose the chief director, and this guy's days were numbered.

But how to exterminate the man in one fell swoop without leaving trouble behind was indeed a big problem.