Forced to become a pure and innocent female pharmacist in order to cultivate immortality.

“Eh? Yes, Jianglin City is protected by a powerful formation and has a top expert stationed there. If a cultivator uses their power, they should be able to detect it. But why were these four people killed so silently? In other words, they were killed without their knowledge.” Song Shuwen said.

Upon hearing this, everyone suddenly had some clues at the same time.

"Fireworks Street?" After thinking for a moment, they simultaneously mentioned a place.

That's right, it's a place they frequent. If these people were attacked while they were having fun in a brothel, it would be really hard to defend against.

Don't be fooled by the fact that these cultivators are all pure and detached from worldly desires. In reality, when they first come to these places and come into contact with women from brothels, they are easily overwhelmed and become infatuated with them, letting their guard down. They have all been to those places and know all too well what this means.

"That should be it. There aren't many fun places in Jianglin City, except for the Fireworks Street area," Yunxin said.

But even if they knew, what could they do? Could they possibly search for each and every one of the fireworks shops in the area? Obviously, that would be very difficult.

"Damn it, if only there were a way to find these Blood Demon Cult members hiding in the shadows," someone said.

However, this sentence did remind Ye Liuyun.

Ye Liuyun stroked her chin, deep in thought. As she pondered, her eyes lit up, clearly indicating that she had come up with a solution.

After they finished their conversation, they each went their separate ways.

Back in the room, Ye Liuyun immediately spoke to Lin Aoxue.

“Aoxue, I suddenly have a bold idea that might solve the Blood Demon Sect problem.”

Lin Aoxue was already troubled by this matter, and Ye Liuyun's words certainly relieved her worries.

"Oh? A solution? Tell me about it, and let's see if it works," Lin Aoxue asked curiously.

Ye Liuyun immediately grinned mischievously and voiced his bold idea.

What she meant was that to solve the problem of the Blood Demon Sect's headquarters in Jiangzhou Prefecture, the ordinary people had to be dealt with first. And Ye Liuyun had a kind of pill that could produce a large number of pills that would put people into a deep sleep.

This pill is somewhat similar to the hallucinogenic pill we used in Silent City last time.

Her idea was that as long as there were enough Dream Pills, she could put all the ordinary people in the city into a deep sleep at some point at night.

This pill is one of the least useful pills among those refined by Ye Liuyun.

Why? Because this pill is not very useful to cultivators, so in Ye Liuyun's view it is a rather useless pill.

But now, it seems to come in handy.

He could first refine a large number of Dream-Entering Pills to put all the people in the city to sleep, thus screening out the cultivators in the city. Then he could refine Heavenly Thunder Tempering Pills to precisely attack the cultivators. In this way, the Blood Demon Cult cultivators hidden in various parts of Jianglin City would definitely be exposed.

However, the problem lies in what to do with the imperial cultivators stationed in Jianglin City. There is a powerful cultivator at the Transformation Realm here, and we must find a way to lure him away. Otherwise, with him in the city, everything will be in vain.

After listening to Ye Liuyun's method, Lin Aoxue felt that it was indeed a good idea, but how to deal with this Nascent Soul cultivator and the imperial court's cultivators was the most important thing at present.

They couldn't explicitly tell the sect about this method, so it was a difficult situation.

"Little guy, there is a way, but it will be risky. Let the Blue Rose Sword in your body go outside the city and release its power. That cultivator in the Transformation Realm inside the city is only at the second level of the Nascent Soul Realm. After he senses the power fluctuation of the Blue Rose Sword, he will definitely come out of the city to check. Then you can let the Blue Rose Sword unleash its power and entangle him." Lin Qingyou gave Ye Liuyun a suggestion.

This is probably the only solution at the moment.

After listening, Ye Liuyun immediately inquired about Lan Wei inside his body.

"Lan Wei, given your current condition, how much blood do you need to absorb to fight against the second level of the Nascent Soul realm?" Ye Liuyun asked.

Lan Wei did not hesitate.

"Master, I need to recover at least 30% of my strength," Lanwei Sword replied.

"If I provide all the power of my blood, how long will it take you to recover 30% of your strength?" Ye Liuyun asked again.

Lan Wei needed to estimate the pass/fail status.

"Eh? About half a month." Lan Wei gave Ye Liuyun a roughly appropriate timeframe.

In other words, Ye Liuyun and his group will definitely be unable to take action this month and can only wait until next month, on the night of the full moon.

Ye Liuyun felt there was no problem, but they still needed to see if the sect and Yun Sect would take action; the decision was not up to them.

In any case, they can't stay here for long. It would be unwise to waste time fighting the Blood Demon Cult, which is lurking in the shadows.

Ye Liuyun immediately shared his thoughts with Lin Aoxue.

Lin Aoxue was stunned. This meant that if the sect and Yunzong could agree, they had a very good chance of completing this mission.

However, the decision-making power is not in their hands.

"I understand. In other words, we need to find a way to force the sect and the Cloud Sect to take action to wipe out the Blood Demon Sect on the fifteenth of next month. We have to force them to take action," Lin Aoxue said.

Indeed, they need Yunzong to make a move on the 15th of next month for both sides to cooperate; if one side doesn't cooperate, there's no chance.

“That’s right, dragging things out won’t work. As long as the Cloud Sect decides to make a move on the 15th, the success rate can be 90%. I’m confident,” Ye Liuyun said confidently.

Lin Aoxue has a decisive personality and won't dwell on things.

"I have personally witnessed the cruelty of the Blood Demon Sect. They have performed a blood sacrifice on an entire mortal city. If we don't take this opportunity to eliminate them, Jianglin City might become a cautionary tale. Therefore, we can only deceive the sect with lies." Lin Aoxue felt that some things had to be done when faced with them.

They need to solve the problem, not waste time here. Since there's a way, what's wrong with telling a lie?

As for the Yun Sect, they have indeed received news from the Yunxia Sect, but their response is to wait and wait until they are 100% certain before making any decisions.

To put it bluntly, it was an excuse; they didn't want to clash with the imperial court's cultivators.

The Yunxia Sect was also extremely annoyed. They had clearly found the location of the Blood Demon Sect's headquarters, yet the Yunxia Sect still wanted to wait, making their people waste time. Could they afford to wait any longer?

Unfortunately, since Yunzong hasn't given any orders, they can only wait patiently.

Ye Liuyun has started refining Dream-Entering Pills in large quantities these past few days. These pills are only white-grade pills, so they haven't produced any obvious celestial phenomena. There's just a dark cloud hanging over Jianglin City.

"Huh? That's strange, why are there suddenly dark clouds overhead?" The people of the Cloud Mist Sect are the most perceptive.

Over the years, Ye Liuyun has turned them into easily frightened birds; they are extremely sensitive to changes in the political climate.

They saw dark clouds looming overhead and immediately glanced into the distance.

"What? It's another regional dark cloud like this?" The disciples of Yunxia Sect immediately looked dejected.

They're not afraid of rain, but of thunderstorms.

Thunder soon began to rumble in the sky.

"Boom, boom..."

Thunder rumbled incessantly over Jianglin City, but no rain fell; it was just constant thunder.

Chapter 248 The Secret Investigation Division (4000 words)

The residents of Jianglin City also looked at the dark cloud overhead with puzzlement.

"Strange? There are dark clouds and wind, but it's just thundering and not raining." The residents thought it was going to rain, so those who had a place to stay ran back to their homes, and those who didn't found a place to take shelter from the rain.

However, the dark clouds and thunder generated by Ye Liuyun's alchemy will not bring rain; if it does rain, it will be a bad thing.

This thunder is a sign of divine power. Even humans would feel uneasy hearing constant booming and rumbling. The Blood Demon Cult disciples in the city were even more agitated, as thunder was the thing these cultists hated most.

After all, they weren't good people; they had something to hide. The sound of thunder made them uneasy, as if something bad was about to happen.

Lin Aoxue stood at the window, watching the movements in the sky outside.

"Hey! Will anything happen? This is the mortal world, it can't withstand your antics. Are you sure your lightning won't strike?" Lin Aoxue asked with some doubt.

"Don't worry, if I say I won't fall behind, I definitely won't fall behind," Ye Liuyun assured him.

She was experienced in this area. The basin beside her contained dozens of blue pills, which were Dream Pills. To cover the entire Jianglin City, it would probably take no less than a thousand Dream Pills.

Ye Liuyun could control when the pills would explode. After they were refined, he would place them in batches in designated areas of Jianglin City in advance, and then activate them on the fifteenth of the following month.

A thousand pills is a conservative estimate. After they are refined, Lin Aoxue will secretly place them away. This way, she can check in advance whether a thousand pills are enough. She certainly can't wait until the day of action to place them away, because if they are not enough, it will be too late.

Let me tell you, in a secluded underground palace in the northern city, an old man sat cross-legged in a palace rich in blood energy, absorbing the blood energy from the blood pool beneath him.

"Senior Lu, my sect leader has come to ask you something. If the Cloud Sect is going to make a move, can you guarantee the safety of our Blood Demon Sect?" A man in red robes stood in front of the gray-robed elder and asked respectfully.

Upon hearing this, the old man slowly opened his eyes. As soon as he opened them, a strange, blood-red light flowed from them, a look that sent chills down one's spine.

This man was Lu Wenyang, the imperial cultivator guarding Jianglin City. This old fellow really did have some connection with the Blood Demon Sect.

To be precise, Lu Wenyang originally had a vested interest in the Blood Demon Sect. Lu Wenyang was only at the first level of the Nascent Soul Realm, and he was older than any of the ancestors of the Cloud Sect. His lifespan was about to run out.

Just as he was about to pass away, the Blood Demon Sect secretly found him and said that if Lu Wenyang was willing to help them establish a secret base in Jianglin City and provide them with protection, they could help him break through to the second level of the Nascent Soul Realm.

At that time, Lu Wenyang was nearing the end of his life and was facing the imminent signs of the Five Signs of Decay of Heaven and Man. He had no choice but to cooperate with the Blood Demon Sect if he did not want to die.

After he agreed to the Blood Demon Sect's conditions, the Blood Demon Sect handed over their secret blood refining technique to Lu Wenyang.

Through this Blood Refining Secret Technique, Lu Wenyang successfully broke through the shackles of his cultivation realm and advanced to the second level of the Primordial Spirit Realm.

In order to win over Lu Wenyang, the Blood Demon Sect secretly captured tens of thousands of cultivators and extracted their blood to support him.

However, breaking through a realm using the Blood Refining Technique requires consuming blood throughout one's life. If one does not consume a certain amount of blood on the night of the full moon each month, one will die from depletion of blood and qi.

Therefore, Lu Wenyang acted as the protector of the Blood Demon Sect.

“Last night, a powerful being’s divine sense tried to enter the North City, but it was blocked by the formation. It must have been that old ghost from the Cloud Sect who came to investigate. But don’t worry, that old ghost from the Cloud Sect doesn’t have much time left. They won’t risk their lives to fight me,” Lu Wenyang said calmly.

The Blood Demon Cult cultivator nodded slightly upon hearing this, but he also had something to say.

“Alright, by the way, Senior Lu, there’s something you know. Our branch sects within Jiangzhou Prefecture have all been wiped out by the Yun Sect. The supply of cultivator blood is getting less and less. On the night of the full moon next month, we’ll probably need to replenish it with some demon beast blood and mortal blood,” the Blood Demon Sect disciple said.

But as soon as he uttered those words, Lu Wenyang glared at the Blood Demon Sect cultivator.

With that one glance, a terrifying pressure surged towards the opponent like a tidal wave. The Blood Demon Sect cultivator was directly knocked away by this force and crashed heavily against the wall of the underground palace.

"Pfft!" The Blood Demon Sect cultivator spat out a mouthful of blood after landing, then stared at Lu Wenyang with a grim expression.

He didn't expect Lu Wenyang to make a move so suddenly. Facing a cultivator at the Transformation Realm, he, a cultivator at the Fourth Extreme Realm, was no match for him.

"I don't care what methods your Blood Demon Sect uses, you must provide me with enough blood. Don't try to bargain with me. If I don't get enough blood, I will personally wipe out your Blood Demon Sect headquarters from Jianglin City before I pass away. Do you understand?" Lu Wenyang threatened, staring coldly at the man.

The Blood Demon Cult cultivators were helpless.

"Senior Lu, please don't be angry. Rest assured, we guarantee that the blood we provide will be exactly the same as regular blood. It's true that the blood of mortals and demon beasts is not as good as the blood of cultivators, but after being processed by our Blood Demon Sect's secret methods, it will have almost the same effect as cultivator blood," the Blood Demon Sect cultivator quickly explained.

Upon hearing this, Lu Wenyang slightly withdrew his oppressive aura.

"That's good. Don't try to fool me. You can leave now. Don't bother me unless it's absolutely necessary. Also, tell your people to behave themselves during this time. If they do take any action, they must do so discreetly. I can still handle the Yun Sect, but if the people from the Supreme Response Sect come, I won't be able to stop them," Lu Wenyang reminded him.

The Blood Demon Cult cultivator, enduring his injuries, bowed and left the underground palace.

After the gate closed, the Blood Demon Cult cultivator revealed a furious killing intent in his eyes.

"Hmph! Arrogant old fool, do you really think the benefits of our Blood Demon Sect are so easy to obtain? Just wait, when the time comes, you'll be nothing more than a vicious dog raised by us Blood Demons. We'll tell you who to bite, and you'll bite that person. Let you be arrogant for a while." The Blood Demon Sect cultivator sneered inwardly.

Three days later, outside Jianglin City, a small red snake crawled out of the roadside bushes, and then a graceful figure appeared beside the snake.

"Jiang Lincheng? He's here, hehehe." The graceful woman chuckled, and the little red snake at her feet immediately slithered up her slender legs and into her clothes.

When she emerged from the shadows, she saw a wickedly alluring young man appear on the road.

The young man had pale skin and unusually red lips. Although he was male, his figure and appearance were so striking that even men would find it hard to look at him more than once.

---------------------------------

The young man produced a red folding fan and, like a worldly young master, walked toward Jiang Lincheng with a smile.

At the same time, a group of specially dressed officials arrived at the inn where the Zixia Sect was located. As soon as they arrived, the Zixia Sect disciples in the inn immediately became vigilant, because the people who came were all cultivators.

The Dao Palace experts and disciples of the Zixia Sect also came out from their respective rooms immediately and came to the group of officials.

The two sides immediately confronted each other, and the atmosphere suddenly became tense.

"Sir, is there anything I can do to help you?" The innkeeper asked as soon as he saw the group.

The leading official remained silent. These officials were dressed differently from ordinary officials; they were from the Secret Investigation Division, a special agency of the Tang Dynasty. What did the Secret Investigation Division do? They were specifically tasked with handling cases that ordinary people in the secular world could not handle.

Three days ago, the secular government determined that the deaths of the four Zixia Sect disciples were not the work of ordinary people, and thus transferred the case to the Secret Investigation Division.

After a brief investigation, the Secret Investigation Division learned that the four individuals were from a cultivation sect. The Secret Investigation Division was not an agency under the jurisdiction of Jiangzhou Prefecture; it was an independent organization, not subject to the jurisdiction of any secular official agency.

"This is none of your business. Close the door." The leader was Jiang Lincheng's red-clad undercover envoy, a cultivator at the Dao Palace realm.

Upon seeing this, the innkeeper quickly closed the inn's main gate and hung up a sign indicating that it was temporarily closed. The people of Jianglin City were very familiar with the clothing of these people.

Whenever a case arises within the territory of Jiangzhou Prefecture that the government cannot handle, a group of mysterious officials will appear and take over the investigation.

After the gate closed, the red-robed undercover envoy turned his gaze to the Daoist cultivator from the Purple Cloud Sect.

"Friends, may I ask which sect or school you belong to?" The undercover envoy asked the disciples of the Zixia Sect directly after the ordinary people had left.

The cultivator from the Zixia Sect Dao Palace knew the other party's background, so he spoke calmly.

"We come from Ziyun Mountain."