After a long night, the people from the Bloodwave Conclave finally finished their investigation of the inn where the murder had happened.

Li Lang and his crew immediately dove into their bed as soon as they were allowed to go. They discussed what had transpired while they were separated as they lazily lay on their bed.

Their entire party fell silent after Li Lang had finished narrating how he got a new task foisted on him and his newfound worries.

One may have presumed they fell asleep after staying up all night, but they were still too anxious.

“And you didn’t decline right away, Li Lang? What’s the matter with you? This isn’t something we should get involved with!”

“B-boss…Did you j-just want to s-study their techniques?”

“...Come on guys, it’s not for certain there’ll be any follow-up, right? They might just catch the culprit overnight and be done with it all,” Li Lang said to lighten the mood.

“W-we’ve been here for h-how many months? They s-still haven’t caught the c-culprit yet. If they f-find out we had a p-part in hunting them down, then…” Wei Ping shook his head, afraid to continue.

“Maybe we can still find a way to decline to help somehow. We still haven’t given him an answer yet and we’re part of The Orchid Covenant. There should be some room for negotiations,” Long Yi muttered.

“B-Bloodwave Conclave runs this city. They have t-the most say, so if t-this Senior Tai persists on h-having your help and make a f-formal request to the c-covenant, we’ll be hard-pressed to d-decline.”

“I don’t think there was a rule saying we must risk our lives anywhere. We can just claim we’re too busy with our preparations to enter the pocket realm.”

“We’ll be burning some bridges,” Li Lang shook his head. “Let’s wait for Senior Tai to reach out again and discuss it. Maybe we can delay it until it’s almost time to enter the pocket realm. It’s not like anyone can come after us once we’re in there.”

The trio soon used up their brainpower and fell asleep. But they then had to force themselves awake by the time noon came. They were all busy, so they decided to go a day with minimal sleep.

The next morning, as they had suspected, someone from the Bloodwave Conclave had come to see them. However, they were wearing plain clothes instead of their usual black and red robes.

He was a young man who appeared only a year or two older than Li Lang.

“I am Huang Si. Senior Tai sent me to guide you.”

“...Lead the way.”

Li Lang and the gang exited the inn and slowly walked down the main street of Emberglow City. It didn’t take them long to realize they were being led away from the Bloodwave Conclave headquarters rather than to it.

“Umm, are you sure we’re going to the right place?”

The young man didn’t even bother answering them and kept walking.

The trio begrudgingly followed. They soon made it to the edge of the red-light district and entered one of the many restaurants just on the fringe.

The clientele at the place consisted mostly of men suffering from hangovers. It was inside the private room of this restaurant that they met up with Tai Xilun once more.

“Sorry about meeting here when you’re all so young…We need to be discreet, considering it’s not easy knowing who to trust. The information you’ve provided me is not easy to act on, to say the least.”

“About that…” Li Lang quickly interjected at the first opportunity. “We were thinking of only getting involved when it is almost time for us to enter the pocket realm…”

Li Lang’s words had wiped the smile off Tai Xilun’s face. He closed his eyes for a moment in contemplation.

Their guide, Huang Si, worriedly alternated glances between his senior and Li Lang. The tension in the room grew as no one made a sound after Li Lang’s roundtable rejection.

“Name your price. I’m willing to handsomely reward you if you agree to help. Now.”

“...Senior Tai, it is better you find others who are more capable. We are middle-stage Energy Gatherers. There are many who are more capable than us.”

“No, I want you to continue helping me until I catch the culprit. If you can identify the traits based on blood, then you can do it again and confirm if we have the same person from the scene of the crime, right?”

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“That…”

“No need to try to lie to me. I know what you’re thinking, but don’t underestimate me. I am Tai Xilun, the head disciple of the Bloodwave Conclave. With a target to protect, I won’t allow any harm to come to you or your friends here.”

Tai Xilin unleashed an aura of authority and power that made it hard to question his strength. Seeing Li Lang still undecided, the Bloodwave Conclave’s head disciple pressed on with an enticing offer.

“I will reward each of you with a Foundation Pill to assist in your eventual breakthroughs.”

At the new offer, the three kids instantly sucked in their breath.

Foundation Pills were an asset that every organization treasured because they allowed their disciples’ breakthrough process to be much safer. Without it, one could suffer fatal consequences if they failed to ascend to the next realm. That was why every proper sect ensured their top talents had access to this pill before their breakthrough. That way, they would have another chance if they failed.

Some even say it increases the chance of a breakthrough, but no one has confirmed that fact. It may be due to increasing the user’s confidence, but it was still undeniable that every sect valued their Foundation Pills.

As much as Li Lang wanted to study it, he likely wouldn’t be able to do so until he stepped into the next major realm of cultivation. That was because Foundation Pills were Earth-grade pills at the very least, which meant he needed to be in the Foundation Establishment stage for Ruby to analyze it.

Still, the value of it was immense even if Li Lang was just to use it on himself.

The trio exchanged a glance before nodding in unison—Or so they thought. Instead, Li Lang pressed for more.

“The Foundation Pills, plus the technique used to remove any traces. You said you know it, right?”

“That…is a technique only usable by those who practice our techniques. It would be useless to you even if I can share it.”

“That’s fine. I just want to study its principles, not practice it.”

Wei Ping and Long Yi both glared daggers at their greedy companion. They both decided then and there that there would be hell to pay if he ruined their opportunity at Foundation Pills. Thankfully, the other party responded positively.

“...Fine. We’ll have to sign a contract that says you won’t spread it, though.”

“No problem,” Li Lang quickly accepted.

“...Is there anything else, or have we reached an agreement?”

“No, we trust you. You’ll protect us until The Great Trial of Water Crest opens, right?”

“Oh, that’s right. You kids managed to secure a spot.” Tai Xilun revealed a cathartic smile, as if a stone had been lifted off his chest upon hearing a positive reply. “Don’t worry, we can go ahead and set my plan into motion right away. No one will be able to harm you under my protection.”

“...I guess,” Li Lang glanced around at his friends hesitantly.

However, due to the lure of Foundation Pills, none of them dared to decline.

For Li Lang, that was just a big cherry on top. He also wanted to investigate this technique that allowed one to cover their traces. It would be a valuable asset to add to his arsenal.

“Good. My plan is to investigate various members of our conclave with your help. You can perform your tests to verify if the blood matches the one from the crime scene, correct?”

“Yes…but it won’t work if it’s from someone with a higher cultivation than me unless the Qi is removed again.”

“That’s fine. I can do that much.”

Li Lang hesitated for a moment about whether he should reveal that he could analyze, not just blood samples. Ruby was one of his core secrets. The more capabilities he revealed, the more others got curious.

At the same time, he wanted to get this matter over with. If he let the culprit get away and his involvement was exposed, he would have to fear retaliation. Holding back now meant he may come to regret it.

“Actually…it doesn’t have to be blood. I should be able to do it if you can get your suspects’ hair, a piece of their fingernails, or even some saliva.”

“Saliva you say?”

“Yes…like from a used handkerchief or from their drinking cups.”

“That…is a lot easier than I had thought. If that is so, we can go ahead with our plan right now.”

“Aren’t we being a little too hasty, Senior?” Huang Si interjected from the side.

“Time is of the essence. There may be more victims if we let this serial killer go free for even one more day. Let us prevent that.” Tai Xilun then turned his gaze to Li Lang and his friends. “You three, I’ll have to trouble you to disguise yourself as our attendants.”

“Umm, Senior, do we really have to come along? You only need Li Lang, right?” Long Yi asked.

“I promised to protect all three of you, and I will do just that. Quickly, we should be able to go through everyone I had in mind within two or three days. That is assuming Li Lang can actually deliver, of course.”

Feeling the intense gaze of a formidable cultivator, Li Lang nodded back with confidence.

Tai Xilun swiftly summoned his Skyrunner, and the group set off. Huang Si took the time to explain to the trio how to act and speak to fit their disguise as attendants. He also handed them a set of clothes to change into.

It wasn’t long before they arrived before the massive entrance merged into the cliff walls. They were familiar with the front entrance to enter the bazaar, but this time, they would be heading in from the side entrance for members of the Bloodwave Conclave.

It was a lot plainer, being a simple hole in the cliff walls. Li Lang didn’t doubt there were several other entrances, and the one they took was specifically for Skyrunners.

Tai Xilun and Huang Si exited from the Skyrunner first. They strode up to the disciples awaiting them at the Sky Bearth they landed in.

“You two, go tell Elder Yun, and Elder Nei I will be coming to greet them shortly.”

“Yes, Senior Tai!”

The two Bloodwave Conclave disciples didn’t dare say no to their powerful senior and quickly went off to carry out his errands.

Seeing them gone, Huang Si called out to their new companions.

“You can come out now.”

With that, three young men awkwardly stepped out of the Skyrunner, wearing the red and black robes that they had once been apprehensive about.