"Where did this come from?" Ziyun asked, holding the jade bottle with a hint of disgust. Her brow furrowed in confusion as she looked at Jiang Wen with a puzzled expression.
"It came from the governor of this Su City, and it's called Soul Dissolving Water. Can you see anything unusual about it?" Jiang Wen asked.
"This substance is quite strange, created from human souls. If there's anything unique about it, it's the extremely unique refining method. It can extract the soul essence from human souls and be made consumable," Ziyun explained, shaking the bottle. She pointed to the bottle, and a strand of yellow liquid appeared like silk, then gathered in her hand, forming a water droplet.
She lightly touched the water droplet with her fingertip, and it instantly transformed into smoke, hovering in the air and coalescing into the shape of a half-year-old infant.
"This is the original form of the Soul Dissolving Water," Ziyun said calmly. "To refine it like this, one must grind the three souls, remove the impurities, and retain the essence. Then, it's tempered with a special method to obtain this consumable substance."
Ziyun spoke calmly, but her words sent shivers down one's spine, making it hard to imagine how much pain was involved. Just the act of grinding the three souls was something no humane person could do.
"If the three souls are ground, what will happen?" Jiang Wen asked.
"If the three souls are shattered, the person will naturally become mentally impaired. If a person dies and the three souls dissipate, they won't be able to reincarnate as a human. They can only be beasts for all eternity," Ziyun said, looking at Jiang Wen's slightly indignant expression with an indifferent face. Although she understood the reason for Jiang Wen's anger, as a locust tree spirit, she found it difficult to comprehend the emotions of innocent people who could no longer be human.
After all, in her opinion, wouldn't being a locust tree be a good thing?
"These beasts," Jiang Wen cursed. "The kidnapped children are actually being used for this purpose, truly devoid of conscience."
"This kind of practice, besides the people of the God-Worshipping Sect, shouldn't be done by anyone else," Jiang Wen said.
"But it's strange, although I've been wandering around Su City these past few days, I've rarely seen any cultivators. The Immortal Gate gathering in Su City also has very few people; it seems they're not here," Li Yunshang said, recounting what she had seen and heard these past few days.
"When people can't obtain the Dharma, they become extremely疯狂 (feng kuang - mad, insane). Even this small bottle of Soul Dissolving Water is enough to make people pay everything for it," Jiang Wen thought of his world. If the power to transcend mortality truly became widespread, would people really be able to control it? He felt deeply worried.
"Humans eat妖灵韵 (yao ling yun - demon spirit essence), and demons eat人魂韵 (ren hun yun - human soul essence). That's just how this world is," Ziyun sighed softly. "I once thought that humans and demons could trust each other, but I underestimated the human heart."
Li Yunshang told him that she and Yan Gongli had toured all the brothels in the south of Su City but hadn't found any traces of demons.
"If there really were demons appearing, with Senior Yan's abilities, she would definitely be able to see it. But we've looked through all the major flower houses and brothels, and we haven't found any traces of demons. It's really strange," Li Yunshang said, feeling puzzled.
"After inquiring, they all said that the wandering cultivators attending the gathering have decreased a lot recently. Many people have disappeared for no reason," Jiang Wen said.
"From now on, no one will deceive you again," Jiang Wen said softly.
"I hope so," Ziyun looked deeply at Jiang Wen and then transformed into a breeze, merging into the wooden ring.
"In each of the cities in this Southern Land, there are traces of the God-Worshipping Sect. Which deity is this God-Worshipping Sect worshipping that they can influence so many places? Even the cultivators of the Supreme God Palace are involved, which is truly perplexing," Li Yunshang said, quite puzzled.
"Difficult," Yan Gongli shook her head. "The three souls have already been scattered. Reassembling them is beyond human power. If my master were here, perhaps there would be some way. But alas…"
It only made Jiang Wen feel a sense of guilt for corrupting a young girl.
Having understood what this Soul Dissolving Water was, Jiang Wen put it away. He would definitely not touch this thing. Although others might see it as a heaven-sent treasure, even something that could make many wealthy people in the modern world spend a fortune to pursue, for Jiang Wen, the effects of this thing were not as useful as the spiritual spring water.
"Alright, what you said makes sense. This lady hates this kind of thing the most. It's better to have a face-to-face battle, where the strong are respected," Li Yunshang said, pouting.
"It depends on the effort," Jiang Wen didn't force it. There are rarely perfect solutions in the world, and it's impossible to make up for all regrets.
"You can see it at a glance," Jiang Wen couldn't help but look at Yan Gongli in a new light. Even Ziyun had to examine it carefully, but he didn't expect that this ancestor saw the abnormality at a glance.
"Naturally, it wouldn't be so easy for you to notice," Jiang Wen said, throwing the Soul Dissolving Water in his hand to the two of them. "I went to the banquet with Su Mu and discovered some clues. Take a look at what this is."
"This is…" Yan Gongli took the jade bottle, opened it, and sniffed it. Her expression immediately changed. She said in a low voice, "What a vicious thing. It's actually refined from the souls of children."
After Li Yunshang and Yan Gongli returned, the group gathered in the room. Jiang Wen looked at the two and asked if they had made any discoveries today.
Jiang Wen no longer bothered to think about the truths hidden in the shadows because his intuition told him that these things would eventually have a result.
"So, the governor of Su City is indeed related to this God-Worshipping Sect? After all, the disappearance of children in Taicang City was also related to them," Li Yunshang said. Hearing that the thing in this bottle was refined from the three souls of children, her face was filled with disgust in addition to astonishment. After all, she had personally witnessed what the God-Worshipping Sect had done in Taicang, and it was hard to imagine what kind of torture those children would have to endure.
"Hmph, the divine soul techniques of Boundless Pavilion are unmatched by any immortal sect in the world," Yan Gongli said, quite proudly.
"Is there a way to save them?" Jiang Wen asked with some anticipation.
Hearing this, Jiang Wen was also quite puzzled, so he interjected and asked, "Have you asked the cultivators in those gatherings?"
"Don't think about it if you can't figure it out. The boat will naturally straighten when it reaches the bridge," Jiang Wen advised Li Yunshang. He never liked this kind of conspiracy and scheming. If it could be resolved openly and honestly, that would be the best. It's just that this God-Worshipping Sect is too mysterious, just like the masked man that day, making them both unfathomable.
"They all disappeared after coming out of the gathering?" Jiang Wen asked again.
"They can't directly confront the various immortal sects, so they secretly play these conspiracies. If they really had the strength to confront the people of the world, who would be willing to hide?" Yan Gongli sat at the table, crossed her legs, and ate something. In the days she had been with Jiang Wen, she hadn't learned any good habits, but she had learned a bunch of bad ones.
"No, according to what the cultivators in the market said, some never came back after leaving the gathering, and some disappeared in the Immortal Gate gathering. The Wanbao Tower shopkeeper in the gathering said that the cultivators who had settled nearby disappeared inexplicably. They originally planned to stay in Su City to cultivate, but unexpectedly, after a few days, the people in the rented place were gone. It's just that before these cultivators disappeared, they could vaguely hear the sound of them talking to someone," Li Yunshang explained the situation to Jiang Wen. After pondering for a moment, he decided to go to the Immortal Gate gathering to take a look.
"With such strange things happening, I'm afraid there's something fishy in this Immortal Gate gathering. What if this Snake Woman Chi Yao is hidden deep in the Immortal Gate gathering? After all, there's an old saying that the darkest place is under the lamp. No one would think that a great demon would hide in a place where cultivators gather."
"Why didn't I think of that? Then let's go to this Immortal Gate gathering to investigate," Li Yunshang said, making a decision.
