The middle-aged man with the silver crown was Wu Wei, the Family Head of the Wu Family Family in Feiyun City, a Foundation Establishment Late Stage Cultivator.
Earlier, a Family disciple responsible for guarding the Soul Lamp reported to him that his sixth son, Wu Tianyi's Soul Lamp, had suddenly extinguished.
A Soul Lamp is a special Magical Artifact that can confirm the life or death of a Cultivator.
In their Wu family Family, only core disciples had the chance to light a Soul Lamp, as the Soul Lamp Magical Artifacts were not cheap after all.
The extinguishing of a Soul Lamp meant demise.
Wu Tianyi was his youngest son, and his talent was good, possessing a Fifth-Grade Fire Spiritual Root.
As long as he Cultivated diligently, he had a complete chance to successfully reach Foundation Establishment.
Wu Wei usually doted on this youngest son very much, raising him as the successor of the Wu family Family.
Hearing that his son had died, Wu Wei could not accept this sudden blow at all.
He asked an old man next to him with a gloomy face.
"Second Uncle, do you know who Sixth went out with today?"
The old man's name was Wu Qian; his seniority in the Wu family Family was even higher than Wu Wei's, but due to his less-than-ideal Aptitude, he was nearly seventy years old and only at Qi Refining Sixth Layer Cultivation.
He had long given up on Cultivation and peacefully managed Family affairs; Family disciples generally greeted him if they were going out.
Hearing the Family Head's inquiry, Wu Qian quickly replied.
"In the morning, Young Master went out with Protector Jia, saying he was going to Yunmang Mountain for experience."
"Yunmang Mountain…"
Hearing this, Wu Wei remained silent.
Yunmang Mountain was over two thousand li from Feiyun City, an environment with complex terrain and Yao Beasts everywhere.
Although most were First-Order Yao Beasts, Wu Tianyi was only at Qi Refining Fourth Layer Cultivation, and Protector Jia was stronger, but only at Qi Refining Sixth Layer.
If they encountered a powerful Yao Beast, an accident could indeed happen.
Besides that, Cultivators from nearby cities also often went to Yunmang Mountain to hunt Yao Beasts.
So, it was hard to say how Wu Tianyi had died exactly.
"Second Uncle, do you think they encountered a Yao Beast, or were they killed by someone?"
"Hard to say."
Wu Qian dared not draw conclusions lightly.
To be honest, all kinds of accidents can happen in the Cultivation world; no one dares to guarantee anything.
Wu Wei nodded; he also knew that Wu Qian could not give an answer to such a matter, it was just a casual question.
Wu Wei's face was gloomy, and his fingers gently tapped the table.
After a while, Wu Wei spoke.
"Go invite Liu Gongfeng over."
"Yes."
Wu Qian quickly responded, then walked outside.
After a while, Wu Qian led a white-haired old man in green robes into the main hall.
The old man's name was Liu Yihe, a Foundation Establishment Middle Stage Cultivator, a Gongfeng recruited by the Wu family Family, who had served the Wu family Family for many years and contributed greatly.
Seeing the old man arrive, Wu Wei quickly stood up and asked him.
"Liu Gongfeng, Tianyi is dead. Could you help me deduce if we can find the murderer?"
"Alright, I'll give it a try."
Liu Yihe had Cultivated the Dao for many years and possessed a special ability: through a corresponding medium, he could deduce a person's whereabouts.
This method was very popular in the Cultivation world; Liu Yihe would not use it lightly.
If it weren't for Wu Tianyi's death, and Wu Wei personally asking, he certainly wouldn't have agreed so readily.
Of course, he couldn't just deduce a person's whereabouts out of thin air; he needed a corresponding medium.
Liu Yihe said to the person next to him.
"Go find one of the Sixth Young Master's personal belongings."
Soon, a servant brought an item of clothing that Wu Tianyi had worn.
Liu Yihe took the clothing, then took out a mirror-shaped Magical Artifact.
He chanted incantations and then sprayed a mouthful of vital blood onto the mirror.
A fragmented and intermittent image slowly appeared on the mirror.
In the image, Zhang Yuhe held a long saber, leaped, and split Wu Tianyi in half.
"How dare he!"
Seeing the scene in the mirror, Wu Wei was furious.
Originally, he had thought Wu Tianyi might have been killed by a Yao Beast, after all, within a radius of several thousand li, who didn't know his Wu Family Family of Feiyun City?
Unless they were desperate outlaws, who would dare to attack someone from his Wu Family Family?
However, the image was before him, and he had no choice but to believe it.
Wu Wei tried to suppress the anger in his heart and asked Liu Yihe in a deep voice.
"Liu Gongfeng, can you track the murderer's whereabouts?"
Liu Yihe thought for a moment, then slowly said.
"It's not certain yet. If the murderer left any aura at the scene, it should be possible."
"Hmph, we'll pursue him. If we don't extract the murderer's soul and refine his spirit, my hatred will not be appeased."
Wu Wei waved his robe sleeve, controlled his Flying Sword, rushed out of the main hall, and swiftly flew towards the place where Wu Tianyi died.
Liu Yihe also took out his Flying Sword and followed closely behind.
…
At this moment, Zhang Yuhe was flying rapidly with a smile on his face.
"I never thought it would come so easily."
While flying on his sword, he wasn't idle; he was simultaneously flying and examining Protector Jia's Storage Pouch.
In Protector Jia's Storage Pouch, he found several Jade Slips.
Although there were no Cultivation Techniques or Magical Divine Abilities, the Jade Slips introduced a lot of basic Cultivation knowledge.
Among them, one Jade Slip was a map of the surrounding area, detailing the distribution of nearby cities and providing corresponding explanations.
According to the description on the Jade Slip, this area was all under the jurisdiction of Yunzhong Prefecture.
Yunzhong Prefecture had a vast territory, covering tens of thousands of li in radius, and there were at least several hundred small cities like Feiyun City.
Most importantly, Yunzhong Prefecture City had a Teleportation Array, which could be used to teleport to Hezho City.
Then, from Hezho City, one could teleport to Central State City, and from there, reach the Dao Saint Sect's mountain gate.
Because the Dao Saint Sect was located sixty thousand li south of Central State City.
Yu Fan Heaven was boundless; if he relied on his own Flying Sword, he might fly until he died and still not reach the Dao Saint Sect.
But with a Teleportation Array, it was different. Once he reached Central State City, the remaining sixty thousand li was no problem at all; it would only take a few days.
Zhang Yuhe quickly changed direction and flew towards Yunzhong Prefecture City.
By comparing it with the map on the Jade Slip, Cloud Central City was only about five thousand li from his current location.
Not too far.
If he flew at full speed, he estimated he could arrive in less than half a day.
Being able to fly was fast.
While Zhang Yuhe was rapidly flying towards Cloud Central City, Wu Wei and Liu Yihe had already arrived at the location of Wu Tianyi's death.
The flying speed of Foundation Establishment Cultivators was much faster than Zhang Yuhe's; the distance of over two thousand li was covered in half an hour.
Seeing his son's body split in half, Wu Wei slowly knelt down, his eyes terrifyingly red.
He gritted his teeth and asked Liu Yihe.
"Can you find the murderer?"
Liu Yihe did not answer immediately; he understood Wu Wei's feelings at this moment.
However, Zhang Yuhe's killing action was swift and decisive, leaving no aura at the scene.
In this desolate wilderness, trying to find the murderer was like searching for a needle in a haystack.
Even if he knew some minor deduction methods, without a corresponding medium, and with the murderer leaving no aura, it would be very difficult to find the person.
Liu Yihe flew up, rapidly scouted the surroundings, and after a long while, returned to his original spot, shaking his head at Wu Wei.
"Family Head, the murderer left no aura. I am powerless."
Hearing this, Wu Wei remained silent, lost in thought.
Liu Yihe stood quietly beside him, not interrupting.
The scene fell into a dead silence.
Suddenly, Wu Wei spoke in a deep voice.
"Fellow Daoist Liu, I know you still have methods. Help me find the murderer, and I will surely reward you handsomely."
Now it was Liu Yihe's turn to remain silent.
He had Cultivated the Dao for nearly two hundred years; as the saying goes, old people become shrewd, and he naturally still had hidden methods.
After all, the murderer killed someone here; it was impossible that no clues were left at all.
Most importantly, the murderer killed Wu Tianyi, and there would inevitably be some connection between the two.
Through Wu Tianyi's clothing, it was entirely possible to deduce the murderer's whereabouts.
However, doing so would come at a great cost.
Liu Yihe was unwilling.
He was merely a Gongfeng of the Wu family Family, essentially an employee, so it was impossible for him to truly risk his life.
Normally, helping the Wu family Family solve some minor problems was fine.
But making him use his ultimate methods was naturally not that easy.
After a long moment of silence, Liu Yihe spoke.
"The murderer has been gone for some time, so finding him won't be easy, and the murderer might also change direction."
Liu Yihe did not directly refuse; to put it plainly, he wanted to bargain.
Empty words were useless; trying to dismiss him with just a promise of a handsome reward was not that simple. He needed to see real benefits.
Moreover, Liu Yihe specifically pointed out that the murderer had been gone for a while, implying that if they wanted to make an offer, they should do it quickly.
Otherwise, it might truly be impossible to catch up.
As for whether this would offend Wu Wei, Liu Yihe didn't care at all.
His relationship with the Wu family Family was at most a cooperative one, and he didn't need to be concerned about Wu Wei's mood.
With his Foundation Establishment Middle Stage Cultivation, he could go anywhere in the world and did not necessarily have to stay with the Wu family Family.
…