Chapter 103: Searching for Someone! (Two Chapters Combined, 4,000 Words)

"Madam Wang, arrange for my dog to have two of the most beautiful female dogs, preferably of similar age. Make sure they get the best dog food. Also, find two young ladies for my friend to have a heartfelt conversation with."

"Rest assured, young master. Please, come inside."

"Teacher... Teacher..."

"Woof woof~ woof woof~"

As soon as they entered Spring Breeze Pavilion, Qian Xiaopang was half-pushed forward by several girls, while the dog was carried off by a few maids to the backyard.

"Madam Wang, just have those girls talk to my friend genuinely."

"I understand, talk sincerely..."

"No, I mean really talk, just chat."

"Got it, got it, just chat, I understand..."

"......"

Though Jiang Lin wasn’t entirely sure if she truly understood, he hoped she did.

Following Madam Wang upstairs, Jiang Lin surveyed this Spring Breeze Pavilion branch.

The layout was quite similar to the main Spring Breeze Pavilion: the first floor held a stage with various spectators nearby; the second floor had seating for viewing the performances; from the third floor upwards was where dialect learning took place.

In this familiar setting, Jiang Lin even felt a sense of home.

"Young master, are you here to learn dialect tonight?"

"I know a bit about musical instruments. Would the young master be interested?"

"Your jade pendant at your waist is exquisite."

"Young master, my shoulders are so sore..."

Several girls noticed such a handsome young man ascending to the third floor and eagerly tried to follow.

Being this good-looking, not only would they be happy to tutor him, some would even pay out of their own pockets.

"Young master, would you prefer one-on-one tutoring or group sessions?"

Madam Wang stopped and smiled at Jiang Lin, feeling a bit tempted herself.

"Madam Wang, I have a jade pendant here that suits you well. Might you accept it?"

Jiang Lin smiled and pulled a translucent jade pendant from his bosom, placing it in Madam Wang’s palm.

Upon seeing the pendant, a flicker of surprise flashed in her eyes.

"Oh my, young master, you are too kind. Come, come, let’s rest in a room. I will send Fang’er over shortly. You must be new to Donglin City; Fang’er is our top courtesan here at Spring Breeze Pavilion."

With that, Madam Wang led Jiang Lin to a room. Behind them, some girls, watching such a handsome scholar being taken away, stomped their feet in frustration but were powerless.

...

Once inside and the door closed, Jiang Lin casually cast a warding formation to block eavesdropping.

"Young Master Jiang..."

Madam Wang bowed slightly.

"Hello, Aunt Wang."

The jade pendant looked ordinary, a common style found in the market, but its material was different.

Because... this pendant was made of plastic.

Long ago, Jiang Lin had casually mentioned it, and Xiao Hei quickly produced the plastic. Though the craftsmanship was still immature, it was impressive enough. These limited plastic items became exclusive tools for the Sun and Moon Sect’s intelligence network—the Spring Breeze Pavilion.

After all, plastic is unbreakable, lightweight, and perfect for discreet meetings.

"I heard the madam said someone from headquarters will come to guide us soon. I didn’t expect such a handsome young master."

"You flatter me, Aunt Wang." Jiang Lin pulled out some clothing designs he had once given to Aunt Lin. "These outfits aren’t much, but they should help boost Spring Breeze Pavilion’s sales."

Madam Wang took the drawings, her eyes lighting up at the strange yet beautiful styles—figures dressed in peculiar clothes labeled with “JK,” “Deadstock Swimsuit,” “Lolita,” “Bunny Girl,” and so on.

"I’ve long heard the madam say young master’s ideas are eccentric but effective. Seeing you today, it’s truly as said."

She gathered the designs, pulled Jiang Lin to a chair, and poured tea. "What would you like to ask, young master?"

"I heard that in Donglin City, the dead have risen from their graves and a plague runs rampant. Yet, no one seems to talk about it, and the city appears peaceful. Why is that?"

"Of course no one talks about it. It’s because those who died are outsiders—wandering cultivators. The common folk here don’t know, nor are they aware that among the external celestial sects, Donglin City is said to be plagued."

"Hmm? Isn’t Donglin City supposed to be like a zombie apocalypse?"

"Zombie apocalypse?"

"Forget I said that. Please continue, Aunt Wang."

Though she didn’t fully understand Jiang Lin’s words, Madam Wang recalled the madam mentioning that sometimes young master’s thoughts were a bit odd, so she didn’t press further.

Still...

Looking at such a handsome Jiang Lin, she felt a bit sorry.

How could someone so handsome have such inconsistent thoughts?

"Aunt Wang?"

For some reason, Jiang Lin sensed a hint of sympathy and... regret in her eyes.

"Oh, sorry, I was distracted."

Madam Wang sipped tea and resumed.

"Young master may not know, but the so-called plague or resurrection of the dead is only a rumor among cultivators. Commoners have no clue."

"Could you elaborate?"

"About half a year ago, no one knows when, some demons began tormenting Donglin City. The city lord invited nearby cultivators to exorcise them, and the demons were defeated.

But after that, occasional ‘monsters’ appeared, and the city lord would seek help from local sects.

Being a cultivator yourself, young master knows that minor sects and mortal kingdoms coexist for mutual benefit."

"Mm."

Jiang Lin nodded. "Major Daoist sects cooperate with the thriving empire; the empire supplies disciples and funds, and sects provide protection. Donglin City and nearby sects have a similar relationship."

Aunt Wang nodded but looked somewhat sorrowful.

"As you said, young master, but minor sects differ from the prestigious ones.

For many small sects, having even one Observation Sea Realm cultivator is considered excellent. If they had a Dragon Gate Realm cultivator, they would have already joined a major sect, not to mention those at Golden Core or Nascent Soul levels.

Since then, whenever demons appeared, cultivators from nearby minor sects came to exorcise them, always returning victorious. But gradually, Spring Breeze Pavilion noticed something strange."

"Please, go on!" Jiang Lin poured himself a full cup of tea and grabbed some melon seeds from the fruit platter. "I’m eager to hear more."

Aunt Wang continued, "Young master knows that although Donglin City may be the only establishment of its kind, Spring Breeze Pavilion is quite famous!"

Jiang Lin smiled proudly. "Of course. That’s the brand effect I proposed to Aunt Lin. We plan to open Spring Breeze Pavilions all over Wutong Province, then across the nine continents, even throughout the demon realm! The beast-eared girls in the demon realm have always been my... cough cough... excuse me, I digress. Please continue, Aunt Wang."

"Because we are famous, some cultivators like to come here to learn dialects. They study once upon arrival, solidify their skills before leaving, and sometimes sneak down the mountain for extra lessons.

But in recent months, after exorcising demons, these sect cultivators rush straight back to their sects without further tutoring. Moreover, those regulars no longer sneak down for lessons!"

Hearing this, Jiang Lin furrowed his brows and rubbed his chin, understanding Aunt Wang’s implication.

"You mean their behavior is abnormal; those exorcists might have already died, and those returning to their sects aren’t the original cultivators?"

"Yes. Those groups who come to exorcise demons, batch after batch, have actually all died. Those returning are imposters. I suspect most cultivators in nearby minor sects are dead as well."

Jiang Lin fell into deep thought.

To reach this level, only shape-shifting, disguise, or soul transfer techniques could explain it.

Shape-shifting is a form of illusion often mastered by cultivators at mid-Stage Five levels. But it has limitations.

At mid-Stage Five, cultivators naturally develop insight eyes that perceive spiritual energy flow, revealing illusions.

Each cultivator’s spiritual energy signature is unique, like no two leaves are the same.

Even advanced Yin-Yang cultivators can only confuse their spiritual energy, not perfectly mimic others.

Hence, spiritual energy acts as an ID card.

For example, if someone loses their ticket to watch a beast-eared girl dance troupe on Demon Continent, how do they prove identity?

Simple: just release a strand of spiritual energy.

Special tools match the stored spiritual signature to grant access.

To verify identity, just have the person cast a simple Fireball Spell. Those familiar can tell if the energy matches.

Of course, Jiang Lin considered if they might avoid using spiritual energy to avoid detection, but that’s impossible.

Only Nascent Soul cultivators can identify others by spiritual energy without spellcasting. But shape-shifting requires using one’s own spiritual energy, which inevitably surrounds them.

Unless one is a celestial fox spirit at the Immortal Realm, whose illusions mixed with seduction techniques can fool cultivators below Jade Core Realm, even males at Jade Core might not detect it.

Therefore, shape-shifting is unlikely. Even minor sects have sect leaders at mid-Stage Five or higher; otherwise, their sects are mere playthings.

They would definitely have spiritual energy detectors at home, which aren’t expensive. Jiang Lin remembered buying some during a Sun and Moon Sect sale for a hundred low-grade spirit stones each, with bonuses.

Could it be disguise technique then?

Disguise differs from shape-shifting: the former is wearing a mask, the latter creating illusions with spiritual energy.

Shape-shifting is like covering your ears while stealing a bell: if the opponent is mid-Stage Five, the spiritual energy surrounding you exposes the trick, even fools would know.

Sometimes Jiang Lin wondered who invented such a useless technique.

He usually used disguise, as it only requires a mask.

But the mask’s quality matters—it must fool cultivators at various levels; he remembered Xiao Hei and the sect’s Yin-Yang cultivator—Grand Emperor Tai Er—created a mask that Nascent Soul cultivators couldn’t detect.

The system’s shop had masks that fooled up to Jade Core cultivators.

Even against a Nascent Soul cultivator like his senior sister, he could close his spiritual aperture and wear the system mask (though she still recognized him in the end).

But even disguise is unlikely here, since cultivators use spiritual energy constantly like drinking water. Even wearing a mask, using energy reveals identity. Not using it would be suspicious.

It’s like when Lin Pingzhi practiced the Evil-Expelling Sword Technique but never applauded for love, leaving Yue Lingshan puzzled.

Given this, the last possibility remains...

"Could it be soul transfer technique?!"

Jiang Lin blurted, cold sweat forming on his forehead.

"To be honest, young master, I think soul transfer is very likely."

Aunt Wang lowered her voice.

Soul transfer is a famous secret technique of Yin-Yang cultivators, ranked among the three great soul techniques alongside soul control and soul curse techniques.

Soul transfer is the most difficult and requires at least Nascent Soul Realm.

Jiang Lin wasn’t too worried about that; if it were the case, he’d just return to the inn and cling tightly to his senior sister for protection.

But Nascent Soul Yin-Yang cultivators are truly vile.

If pure warriors are straightforward, Yin-Yang cultivators can drive you to the brink of life and death.

Jiang Lin recalled once accidentally unwrapping the bandages on Tai Er, the Grand Emperor, which caused him a month of diarrhea, forcing him to lean on walls daily.

But why Yin-Yang cultivators?

They are difficult to cultivate; many go mad, some thinking they are little birds.

A Dragon Gate Realm Yin-Yang cultivator is a treasure—how would one appear in the Lonely Demon Sect?

And what is their goal?

Suddenly, Jiang Lin recalled a clue from the system: “Her people.”

“Blood Name Formation! They want to find someone!”

They’re after someone!