It wasn’t just Big Head and the others; readers familiar with *Where the Nightingale Flies* all understood the hidden meaning.

Though not explicitly stated, likely for legal reasons, the editor’s intended message was clear: the article was based on a true story.

The comments section was filled with heated debates on this very topic.

Most people figured it was just an entertaining article from an attention-seeking writer—a ghost story of the supernatural-tales variety.

But this time, the author’s reply to such comments was a single line: "Maintain a healthy dose of awe and vigilance."

For those who simply saw the story as entertainment, it was easy to laugh it off.

But for those who took things more seriously and had a degree of trust in *Where the Nightingale Flies*, while they didn’t immediately believe the malevolent spirit in the story was real, their curiosity was certainly piqued.

Some long-time readers with good connections to the editing department even used private chat groups to ask the staff directly.

For instance: "Where did you find this story? The article said to contact you if we’re in trouble, so does that mean you can get in touch with the exorcism master mentioned within?"

Since this was a private group, Cui Ying and her team weren’t as constrained as they were when writing the article.

They stated frankly that at least eighty percent of the story was a faithful retelling of real events, but that they currently had no way of contacting the exorcism master.

However, if a reader were to truly encounter a similar situation, the editing department could at least contact the previous victim’s family and hopefully try to find the master through them.

After all, even a master has to make a living. According to Old Guo’s account, the master had accepted payment.

Although *Where the Nightingale Flies* had a cutesy name, its content had previously been mostly serious, interspersed with a fair amount of debunking.

For example, whenever a new piece of "pop science" went viral on social media, readers would message Cui Ying and her team.

If it turned out to be false, it wouldn’t be long before *Where the Nightingale Flies* published a thorough and comprehensive refutation.

There was a particular thrill, like catching a thief, on the occasions when Cui Ying’s team managed to track down the original source of the misinformation.

But sticking to the old formula would only lead to stagnation; to grow, one had to innovate.

Judging by the reception of the new section, Cui Ying’s strategy had been a success.

Leaning back in her chair and looking at the site’s backend statistics, legs crossed smugly, Cui Ying felt a surge of accomplishment. ’Buying my own office someday doesn’t seem like such a dream anymore,’ she thought.

By the way, the *Where the Nightingale Flies* editing department merely rented a small office in Shen City. Not counting the various "freelancers" in their journalist network, they had fewer than ten full-time employees.

...

Meanwhile, the "master" everyone was talking about was still looking for a place to "plant the Crystal Banker."

And after finding a spot, he still had to figure out *how* to plant it.

He had to make use of the Mother Crystal Ore he’d worked so hard to obtain. It would be a total waste if he couldn’t use it to "grow" Magic Energy Crystals.

But the actual implementation was a total pain in the ass.

Doudou, that little con artist, knew a lot of odds and ends, but what could you really expect from a Mischievous Elf?

When it came to this sort of knowledge, his know-how was completely half-assed.

The little guy actually told Qin Xiaoxia to just remove the Magic Power sealing the ore and then find a patch of dirt to bury it in.

’Is he trying to cause another tragedy where a mine swallows people whole?’

So, Qin Xiaoxia decisively used Doudou’s Wish ability again.

But this time, it actually failed.

Just as he’d surmised last time, a Wish phrased as a question required an answerer. If no such being existed, or if the current Wish Power was insufficient to reach one who could answer, the Wish would naturally go unanswered.

And with Doudou’s pitiful amount of Magic Power, directly wishing a Magic Energy Crystal Ore into existence was nothing but a pipe dream.

Having lost a Gold Coin for nothing, Qin Xiaoxia took out his frustration on Doudou, teaching him a lesson on the spot.

For the next two days, Doudou sported a large lump on his forehead, covered by two bandages.

It made Gou Junbao, who had dropped by for a visit, laugh until he couldn’t stand.

On the other hand, returning home had come with a pleasant surprise.

Huang Jiutian was truly a man of the people, a real pro when it came to homemaking.

By the time Qin Xiaoxia and Doudou got back, Jiutian had already cleaned the old Dawn Association house from top to bottom, all by himself.

And you have to understand, as a corporate drone, Jiutian was currently busy as hell.

He had so little time off it was said to be "harder to squeeze out than a maiden’s cleavage," yet he had somehow found enough to clean the entire house until it was practically spotless.

Qin Xiaoxia suspected the guy was even cutting into his sleep to clean at night. It was easy to imagine just how fired up Huang Jiutian was.

By Qin Xiaoxia’s standards, all they needed was some clean bedding and the old house would be perfectly habitable.

The only drawback was its age. There was no running water; everything had to be drawn from a well in the courtyard with a manual pump.

It could get electricity, but the wiring was ancient and difficult to modify, so at best, it could only power a few lights.

He couldn’t help but think.

’If I tell Jiutian right now that I still can’t awaken his Magic Power, is he going to strangle me?’

And it wasn’t just about Huang Jiutian.

’I’ve strung along quite a few people lately. If my cover is blown and I can’t deliver, what kind of fate awaits me?’

Okay, time to put that chilling thought aside. All this meant there was one more thing he had to get done, and fast.

He needed to build a Statue of Comir.

As far as Qin Xiaoxia was concerned, this was Doudou’s most reliable contribution to date, aside from his Wish ability.

Dewina, Basaze, Gulans, Comir, Windsor, and Medland.

In Magson World, and in other worlds that had contact with it, these six names were the personifications of six fundamental rules.

They were:

Dewina, representing light and birth;

Basaze, representing war and courage;

Gulans, representing darkness and death;

Comir, representing truth;

Windsor, representing illusion;

And Medland, representing nature.

Different worlds had their own interpretations of these six.

The beings of Magson World generally understood them to be manifestations of the influence of the Six Great Rules of Order.

In other worlds, some or all of them were worshipped as deities, revered as the Six True Gods of Order.

Of course, some worlds held them in contempt, such as the fragmented worlds lost in the torrents of space. There, time and space were unstable, the laws of reality were a chaotic mess, and the so-called Six Great Rules of Order held little sway.

As for any other worlds, Doudou had no idea if those six names still carried any weight.

Qin Xiaoxia believed that beings powerful enough to be called gods certainly existed in the universe, but when it came to these six names, he was more inclined to accept the mainstream understanding from Magson World.

The purpose of the Statue of Comir, then, was to attempt to communicate with "Truth."

As a personified concept, Comir had no true form, so there was no set blueprint for building a Statue of Comir.

Generally speaking, if a Mischievous Elf were to craft a Statue of Comir, it would likely create a short, childlike sculpture. If a bird could carve one, it would undoubtedly peck it into the shape of a bird.

So, Qin Xiaoxia planned to follow this same logic and create a statue with a human appearance, or perhaps even a sculpture of a group of people.

’Hmm, I should probably make it look holy and grand,’ he thought.

The appearance wasn’t that important, anyway. The key was the core material and the final resonance with the rules of Magic Power—a process Qin Xiaoxia jokingly dubbed the "consecration."

The difficulty of the procedure was neither great nor small; it was right on the cusp of what Qin Xiaoxia was capable of achieving.

The real problem, however, was finding an artisan who could create the sculpture. After all, the materials were rather... unique.

PS: Thank you to book friends Missing Melody and Yue Shan for the 1,000-coin tips, thank you to book friends Yu Chenlei, Wish You a Lifetime of Peace, and Wuye Yu for the 500-coin tips, and thank you to book friends Reading Wanderer, Xiaoyu 941204, Strangers Keep Away, Netherworld Martial Artist, and Dragon Witch for the 100-coin tips~~

The second Chapter will be out tomorrow at noon. Been short on sleep lately, my head feels a little fuzzy...