Rise to God with Life Skill Professions-Chapter 422 - 413: Probing and Predicament

Not only Qin An, but Liu Yi’s gaze became incredibly sharp, with her whole body glowing with dazzling True Essence.

The two had just arrived here, unfamiliar with the place, where any unusual movements could be dangerous.

Now it was already late at night, supposedly a quiet time, yet suddenly there was a knock on the door, particularly abrupt in this quiet setting.

Even a ghost wouldn’t believe it if you said there was nothing unusual.

Qin An’s gaze fixed on the door, and the knocking suddenly stopped.

Then, a faint voice quietly rang out.

"Have the two of you not gone to sleep yet?"

The voice was clear but carried a sense of frailty, a very pleasant woman’s voice.

Qin An raised his eyebrows slightly, signaling Liu Yi to open the door.

Liu Yi nodded, said no more, walked to the door, and opened it.

The moment it opened, Liu Yi was fully prepared.

If the person outside showed any unusual movement, she would attack.

But Liu Yi didn’t expect that standing outside was a frail woman.

The woman wore simple clothing, her figure frail, resembling a wooden pole.

Her long hair was yellow and dry like straw, and her complexion was dull and lifeless.

The bags under her eyes were deep, making her look very haggard.

When the door suddenly opened, the haggard woman obviously got startled, retreating a few steps. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

But upon seeing Liu Yi and Qin An, she gritted her teeth and approached.

Liu Yi frowned slightly: "Who are you, and what do you want?"

The haggard woman glanced inside the room, softly asked: "May I come in to speak?"

Liu Yi frowned more deeply, her gaze turning to Qin An.

After Qin An nodded slightly, Liu Yi stepped aside, leaving a space wide enough for one person.

The woman took a deep breath and cautiously stepped into the room.

As soon as she entered, Liu Yi shut the door with a snap.

The sound of the door closing made the woman shiver slightly.

The haggard woman’s face showed a tinge of panic.

"Sit."

Qin An pointed to the chair opposite him, speaking calmly.

The woman shivered again, not daring to meet Qin An’s gaze.

She felt that though the man before her was mild-mannered, he was like a deep ocean, a gust of wind away from unleashing towering waves.

The woman obediently sat across from Qin An.

At this moment, a pair of hands rested on her shoulders.

Turning back, the woman saw Liu Yi pressing her hands on her shoulders, with a faintly smiling expression on her face.

The woman grew more fearful.

Qin An shook his head: "Your name and identity, your purpose here, don’t be afraid. If you speak in detail, we won’t trouble you."

The woman nodded like a pecking bird: "My name is Zhao Lan, I am a resident of Quanxin County. I came here to see you two, to urge you to leave quickly. This place is dangerous, don’t get trapped in the mire."

"Oh?"

Qin An rubbed his chin: "Tell me in detail, where is the danger."

The woman’s identity was still in question, but Qin An was more intrigued by the danger she mentioned.

He also wanted to know what secrets were here.

Zhao Lan timidly said: "Heart demons, heart demons grow stronger through our obsessions. In three days, there will be an obsession convention. By then, no one will escape the mire, all will become like pupae, deeply entangled by roots."

Liu Yi bent slightly: "You know a lot, so what exactly is the obsession convention you mentioned?"

Zhao Lan quickly lifted her head: "It’s a brainwashing ceremony, turning people into followers of heart demons, willingly offering their obsessions. Every so often, he holds the ceremony, everyone in the county must attend, and once attended, they’ll never get out."

As she spoke, Zhao Lan’s eyes filled with increasing fear, as if recalling something extremely distressing, her face showed a hint of pain and conflict.

Qin An suddenly asked: "Why are you telling us? If everyone is controlled by heart demons, how are you so normal?"

This sudden arrival of a woman, urging them to leave and revealing such important information about the obsession convention, if there were no other issues, Qin An wouldn’t believe it.

The current issue is why this woman appears so normal.

Zhao Lan laughed bitterly: "I’ve told many who came to Quanxin County, but none believed me. Their obsessions are deep, they absolutely won’t believe me. As for why I’ve survived till today."

"It’s because these people want me to serve as a negative example, warning those who seek obsession, unwilling to offer their devotion, what their fate is."

"As for why I’m clear-headed, it’s because my obsession has disappeared."

With these words, the room fell into silence.

Liu Yi’s lips curled with a slight smile, but to Zhao Lan, that smile felt like being pricked by needles.

"What is your obsession?" Liu Yi asked.

Zhao Lan came to her senses, looking down at her feet, sorrowfully said: "It’s my child. My child suffered from an extremely difficult-to-treat illness. I devoted myself to the heart demon, but my child still died. At the moment of my child’s death, all my obsessions vanished like smoke, gone forever."

Qin An tapped his fingertips on the table, remaining silent.

Liu Yi nodded: "If that’s true, there’s indeed a chance to escape obsession."

Obsession is akin to attachment, attached to the thing one desires most.

What Zhao Lan desired most was for her child to live, that deep-rooted attachment led her to devote herself to heart demons.

But when her child died, all attachment dissipated, all devotion vanished as well.

Qin An nodded: "Naturally, I understand."

He often browsed various books in the Confidential Library, having some understanding of so-called heart demons.

Right now, what the woman said was all correct, and Qin An didn’t feel a hint of madness from her.

Zhao Lan placed her frail, skinny hand on the table, urging, "You two should leave quickly. If you don’t, once the Obsession Ceremony begins, you’ll have no chance of leaving."

Liu Yi wanted to speak, but at that moment, Qin An interrupted her.

"We came here to offer our own obsessions. If you ask us to leave now, it wouldn’t be fitting for us. Besides, what you said about believing in inner demons..."

"We’ve already dedicated our obsessions, so we’re not concerned about these things."

Liu Yi’s eyes slightly widened, baffled by Qin An’s peculiar behavior.

However, she cooperated and didn’t undermine him at this time.

Zhao Lan was stunned, with a hint of struggle in her eyes, then she could only sigh, got up and walked towards the outside of the room.

Throughout this process, Zhao Lan remained silent until she stepped outside the door, when she suddenly turned around, revealing a crazed smile.

"Very well, you two have passed the test. Three days later will be the Obsession Ceremony. You won’t need to waste too much time learning other things; you can directly become the master’s right hand."

After saying this, Zhao Lan, with a crazed smile, turned around and walked into the darkness.

Liu Yi, realizing the situation, went to the door to close it and sat across from Qin An.

"How did you know she was fake?" Liu Yi asked.

The series of strange actions by Qin An earlier were now explained.

It turned out that Qin An had already discovered that woman was there to trick them.

Yet Liu Yi couldn’t understand it at all.

She didn’t see it; how could Qin An immediately realize?

Qin An shook his head slightly, saying, "I didn’t initially realize it, but when she revealed her negative role, flaws naturally appeared."

"Where was the flaw?" Liu Yi asked, puzzled.

Qin An said calmly, "Playing the opposite could only be about persuading everyone here to believe in inner demons, letting them gain more obsessions. But there are too many people here; we don’t need an opposing figure like her, which is dangerous to stay here, so she absolutely isn’t what she claims."

Liu Yi showed a realization: "I see."

With Qin An’s explanation, she also understood what he meant.

Qin An rotated the teacup with his fingertips, changed the topic, and asked, "Do you have any clues on what we should do next?"

This time they came here mainly because Liu Yi knew more about inner demons.

So Qin An asked without hesitation.

From the current situation, this county is deeper than they imagined.

Someone came to test them right after they arrived, acting convincingly real; had they been careless, they might have revealed everything by now.

Solve it early, return early, and quickly master the medic and dancer skills.

Liu Yi took out a round pearl from her chest, saying, "This object can sense the heaviest Evil Qi. Following it will undoubtedly find the location, but considering today, it’s unwise to move easily."

They just arrived tonight, and there was already a test; moving now to find the heaviest Evil Qi site would be dangerous.

Qin An shook his head, saying, "No, we will go to the heaviest Evil Qi site now."

Liu Yi was surprised: "Why now?"

Qin An calmly said, "The safest moment is when it’s the most dangerous. They’ve just tested us and wouldn’t try again. That supposed Obsession Ceremony is happening in a few days. By then, we might be controlled by inner demons."

"They should trust us now; at least tonight, no obstacles will occur."

Liu Yi carefully contemplated the words and understood Qin An’s intention.

It’s indeed like Qin An said; the Obsession Ceremony will begin in three days. Today’s small test was only about ensuring they had no problems.

No new tests are expected to occur.

If they wait until tomorrow to seek the place of Evil Qi, it might result in unnecessary changes.

"Alright, let’s go now."

After some simple preparations, they quietly exited.

...

Outside was a dark street, with only faint moonlight illuminating the little county hidden in the woods, making it bright.

No one was walking on the street; only a few houses had oil lamps lit.

Qin An and Liu Yi were already Unity Realm masters, their body techniques not lacking.

Especially when Qin An performed the Seven Stars Dragon Roar Shadow Step, landing silently, not afraid of being discovered.

Liu Yi held the pearl, infused a trace of True Essence, and the pearl flickered and trembled, guiding them in a certain direction.

The county seemed to be engulfed in a dead silence.

Even in Ding County where Qin An had been, in such a filthy environment, it was never this quiet.

However, this quietness saved Qin An and Liu Yi a lot of trouble.

Following the street forward, passing several alleys, Qin An and Liu Yi stopped.

Ahead was a huge plaza, the ground paved with neat bluestone slabs.

On the plaza made of bluestone, there was a tall platform.

A statue with blurred features was worshipped on the platform, with some tables underneath for sacrificial fruits.

Beneath the platform were neatly arranged mats, numbering in the hundreds.

At this moment, the direction pointed by the pearl was right at this platform.

However, the two didn’t move forward, because many Jianghu people were guarding securely around the platform.

Jianghu people, three to a group, patrolled back and forth, keeping the plaza tightly guarded.

Qin An turned around and asked, "Can we use the talisman paper now?"

Liu Yi shook her head: "We must reach the platform, and after burning the talisman paper, it requires a stick of incense’s time to activate."

Qin An frowned at these words: "That’s not easy to handle."