Nine Chapters of Strange Cases

Chapter 226 Because of the Face

Upon hearing Zhou Zhao's words, Liu Huang immediately became nervous.

"Ah Zhao, let's go back to the inn now, take a bath and change your clothes. You can put on the amulet."

As he spoke, he squatted down, intending to swat off the dog paw prints on Zhou Zhao's shoes.

Zhou Zhao jumped back slightly to avoid Liu Huang's hand. She reached out and gently flicked his straw hat before pulling him up.

"Weren't we just worried about not being able to find the murderer? Now it's all good, we just need to wait for them to come to us."

As Zhou Zhao spoke, he handed the small wooden box containing the Gu worms to Liu Huang, "If I explode into red mist and disappear from the spot, don't panic, and don't look around. Just ↑..."

As Zhou Zhao spoke, he pointed his finger to the sky.

Liu Huang understood instantly. He nodded solemnly and hid the small wooden box in his sleeve pocket.

Zhou Zhao didn't explain. He lightly touched the ground and went straight up to the roof beam. The fog on the roof was thinner. Zhou Zhao didn't say anything and went straight towards the big locust tree. Liu Huang followed behind with the box on his back. The two of them returned to the front of the multi-treasure pavilion in almost an instant.

"It's so good that you're back! Zhou Zhao, Chen Jiyuan is missing! I saw the blood mist explode with my own eyes, and then Chen Jiyuan disappeared. We're afraid we fell for a diversionary tactic while you were chasing the dog."

As soon as the two landed, Tao Shangshan rushed over anxiously.

He was no longer half-dead; his lifeless, dead-fish eyes now shone brightly, like a resurrected eagle.

Zhou Zhao and Liu Huang exchanged a glance, both with serious expressions.

"Fortunately, he didn't end up like Li Youzhi... I suspect he's still alive, otherwise the murderer wouldn't have gone to such lengths to kidnap him. I called the people from the inn and the Duobao Pavilion to search the neighborhood house by house, but we couldn't find him."

"We've searched underground; there are no secret passages here. Therefore, the kidnappers must possess extraordinary lightness skills—either incredibly fast, far beyond our reach, or they flew and used their lightness skills to get here. Our most urgent task is to rescue Chen Jiyuan."

Tao Shangshan said, his heart filled with anxiety.

That child was not yet twenty years old and had only been in the Court of Justice for a short time. Although he was not very capable, he had a very good temperament, and few elders did not like him.

Zhou Zhao pondered for a moment, "My lord, please don't be anxious. Let's go to the inn and talk things over. It's precisely at times like these that we need to stay calm."

As Zhou Zhao spoke, she grabbed Tao Shangshan and flew directly up to the second floor of the Banyan Tree Inn, to her room.

Tao Shangshan couldn't help but cry out "Ah!" and closed his eyes in terror, "Zhou Zhao! I'm afraid of heights!"

Zhou Zhao's hand trembled, and she almost dropped Tao Shangshan to the ground. She quickly shoved him through the window and then jumped in herself.

Tao Shangshan kept his eyes tightly closed. His eyelids were short, but his pupils were large. Even with his eyes closed, you could still see the whites of his eyes, making it look as if his eyes were open.

"You can open your eyes now, we've landed. Did you develop this skill of sleeping with your eyes open while listening to those long-winded speeches from the Right Court officials during the Court of Justice meetings?"

Tao Shangshan opened his eyes with difficulty, and his face turned red as he listened to Zhou Zhao's words.

He acted as if nothing had happened and didn't respond to Zhou Zhao's comment.

Having lived in the Left Courtyard for many years, he had gained rich combat experience in dealing with the two "bullies," Min Cangzhi and Li Youdao. He knew that people like Zhou Zhao were just show-offs; the more you responded, the more energetic they became! Once you got involved with them, you would never again have the chance to lie on the grass and leisurely watch the blue sky and white clouds.

"What did you find? How do we rescue Chen Jiyuan? I inquired beforehand and found out that Jingyi and his group haven't returned yet. I've already told the innkeeper that if they come back, we should tell them that Chen Jiyuan is missing."

The competition is no longer the most important thing; rescuing Chen Jiyuan is the most important thing.

Zhou Zhao nodded. She had originally wanted to tease Tao Shangshan to ease his tension, but now it seemed that although he was anxious, he handled the situation calmly and thoughtfully.

Indeed, none of those who can serve as court historians are simple.

Even if the Left Courtyard has three earth dragons, they are still the three most powerful earth dragons in the entire Great Qi.

"Lord Tao, after you entered the city, has Chen Jiyuan ever been rubbed by a dog?"

Tao Shangshan was taken aback. He was experienced in investigating cases and immediately understood Zhou Zhao's meaning: there was something wrong with the dog.

"I did, when we first entered the city. Chen Jiyuan was a child at heart, always skipping around as he walked. The fog was particularly thick, and he wasn't watching where he was going. He almost stepped on a dog's paw, squealing and yelling, and was even scolded by He Tingshi."

Zhou Zhao nodded, confirming his suspicions.

However, neither Chen Jiyuan nor the other missing people had any Gu worms, so they did not notice any changes before and after being rubbed by the dog.

"If I'm not mistaken, all the missing people had been rubbed by dogs, and their bodies were covered in a powder that attracts Gu worms. Several of them disappeared even when people were around, so why did the Gu worms explode precisely where they were?"

It must be because there's a trigger, like a moth drawn to a candle flame. The person who was rubbed by the dog has powder on their body that has the opposite effect of the talisman.

The Gu worms, upon seeing these people, swarmed towards them like moths to a light.

As Zhou Zhao spoke, his mind raced, "Those insects are very small. When they are scattered, they are invisible, but when they gather together, they become a blood mist."

Tao Shangshan pondered for a moment, "Why create a blood mist? The mist is so thick, wouldn't it be better to just capture people directly?"

Zhou Zhao looked out the window. The thick fog was like flowing clouds, and the pavilions and towers that could be vaguely seen looked like a peaceful and serene mirage.

"Firstly, as you said, the fog is thick. The murderer needs to get very close to pinpoint the location of their chosen person. At this time, the trigger and the Gu worm can help them accurately capture the person; secondly, it's a terrifying illusion."

I think you've already seen through the killer's trick. What happens when someone sees a living person turn into a bloody mist? Most people would scream in terror and wouldn't be able to think calmly at all.

Let alone ordinary people, even Tao Shangshan, a seasoned veteran of the Court of Judicial Review, panicked the moment Chen Jiyuan disappeared.

"The blood mist is so terrifying that your eyes will involuntarily focus on it until it disappears, and only then will you come back to your senses and start searching around it. And what's the result? Just like you just now, nothing."

As Zhou Zhao spoke, his thoughts became increasingly clear.

"The locations of the disappearances are all different. Unless the entire city of the maze is an underground labyrinth like Tianying City, it is impossible to go underground. So it can only be flying. When the blood mist attracted people's attention, the murderer immediately took people to the roof. By the time the people around reacted, he had already kidnapped them and disappeared into the thick fog."

Tao Shangshan nodded, agreeing with Zhou Zhao's view, "Then why were you and Chen Jiyuan chosen, while His Highness the Prince of Chu and I were not?"

Zhou Zhao blinked, meeting Tao Shangshan's deadpan gaze. "I guess it's because of his face."