Chapter 366: Chapter 365: Lu Qifei, Etching Skill

Outside the car.

A father and two sisters from the Jiang family, along with four older brothers, were all attentively watching as Li Jing and Jiang Yini stepped out of the car one after the other.

The two sisters.

They watched the two getting out of the car with a flicker of different emotions in their eyes, their gaze focused intently on Li Jing.

They were very well aware of the nature of their own younger sister.

They are sisters after all!

Despite their age gap, their relationship has always been excellent.

Jiang Yini has two notable characteristics.

Firstly.

She’s not into romance and does not enjoy relationships with men.

Her main focus is to escape from the fate that awaits all children of influential families.

Secondly.

Since she came of age, she has never let go of any opportunity to take a dig at her own father, even at a substantial price.

Getting close to Li Jing gives her a chance to tease her father.

The sisters knew well about Li Jing’s background.

Without discussing other aspects.

Jiang Yini has been away from home for many years, without ever returning.

Even on the anniversary of her birth mother’s death, she quietly returned home and avoided the Jiang family.

About half a year ago, she returned to her "hometown" for the first time in years, not for anyone else, but for Li Jing.

As early as that time, the Jiang family had started paying attention to a certain individual.

Initially, they didn’t treat the matter seriously.

After all, Jiang Yini didn’t have a deep relationship with Li Jing.

The hierarchy was only superficial, Jiang Yini had been trying to bring Li Jing in to strengthen the power of the Jianghai City Management Bureau.

So, earlier at home, when the sisters saw Jiang Yini clinging to Li Jing, they assumed it was merely a ploy to tease their father, and didn’t think much of it.

However, after witnessing the scene in the car a moment ago, they can’t help but take it seriously.

Jiang Yini is a person who loves to laugh.

But for so many years.

They have never seen their own younger sister being amused by a man, and laughing so happily.

This clearly doesn’t add up, does it?

Staring intently at Li Jing, the two sisters discuss him secretly in their minds.

This lad, he’s actually quite good.

The only downside is that he’s already married.

In every other aspect.

Whether in terms of wisdom, strategy, courage, or personal strength, he can be considered impeccable!

Wouldn’t he be a good match for their younger sister?

Leaving the two sisters aside.

The four brothers of Jiang Yini are looking a bit serious at the moment.

When they first saw their younger sister getting close to someone at home, they were just a bit annoyed.

Now looking back, their emotions have become quite complex.

Indeed.

Ignoring the fact that Li Jing has a family, he really is a good match.

But the four brothers simply can’t accept it.

Not that they think Li Jing and Jiang Yini are mismatched.

The key is, their beloved little sister has always been the apple of their eyes.

Over the past thirty years!

The brothers have always cherished the youngest sister in their family. They even handle her with care, like she’s a delicate porcelain.

Right now, ...

Setting the four brothers aside.

At the moment, undoubtedly, the person who was most affected was their old father Jiang Liao.

He could see.

Jiang Yini doesn’t have anything going on with Li Jing, at least for now.

But seeing the heartfelt laughter of his own daughter in the car just before, how could he as a father be at ease?

This situation is clearly not right!

What to do?

Should he keep Jiang Yini away from Li Jing?

Or should he talk privately to Li Jing and ask him to keep some distance from his beloved daughter?

None of these options seem appropriate!

Jiang Liao has experienced how meddling in Jiang Yini’s life can turn out over the years.

The price of being separated from his most cherished daughter for over a decade has already made him realize the costs.

To a certain extent.

Jiang Liao at this point has resigned himself to his fate.

As long as Jiang Yini is doing well, no matter what may come, it’s all good.

At this moment, Jiang Liao felt somewhat torn apart.

While Li Jing is admittedly not a bad choice, he is, after all, a married man.

The Seven Great Families don’t mind such details.

But he, as a father, does!

His precious daughter, even if she has to settle for less, should at least be the first to marry and then the principal wife, shouldn’t she?

On the opposite side of the parking space.

Upon getting out of the car and seeing the whole Jiang family standing there, Li Jing appeared calm on the surface, but he felt slightly anxious deep inside.

There was no other way.

Looking over at them now.

Aside from the two sisters, the eyes of the father and the four brothers could not be said to be friendly.

Seeing her family in such a state after coming out of the car, Jiang Yini was somewhat caught between laughter and tears. She uncharacteristically chose not to take the opportunity to tease her father, and kept her composure as she walked beside Li Jing without seeking to link arms with him.

She did like to tease her father.

But she knew when to alter her actions based on the situation.

If she did anything more at this moment, it might really cause a misunderstanding.

This would have a significant impact on both her and Li Jing.

She was well aware of her family’s indulgence towards her.

Seeing her helpless look as Jiang Yini walked with Li Jing, Jiang Liao and the four brothers’ expressions eased slightly.

Led by Jiang Liao, the seven of them one after another turned to walk towards the cemetery.

Observing this, Li Jing followed along with Jiang Yini while quietly messaging her.

"Your family is somewhat terrifying."

Upon receiving this message, Jiang Yini rolled her eyes without responding.

...

A while later.

Under the guidance of Jiang Liao, everyone arrived at a secluded corner of the cemetery. They stopped in front of an ordinary-looking tombstone, which did not at all resemble anything you’d expect for someone from the wealthy Jiang family to be buried under.

Attached to the tombstone was a portrait resembling Jiang Yini by about sixty percent.

The smile on the portrait was very tranquil.

Just from looking at the portrait, one could tell that this was a well-educated lady.

Upon their arrival.

The younger generation of the Jiang family, including Jiang Yini, busily brought out various ritual offerings from their storage space.

Jiang Liao, on the other hand, stood silently in front of the tombstone.

Before long.

The younger generation of the Jiang family finished their tasks, each lighting an incense stick.

Jiang Yini, the eldest, stepped forward and handed an incense stick to Jiang Liao.

Upon seeing this, Li Jing silently retreated, giving them space.

Jiang Liao’s group had brought many offerings for the memorial service.

However, the entire ritual was not complex.

They merely placed an incense stick in front of the tombstone, then each retreated to the side.

Only Jiang Liao remained standing there, yet to place his lit incense stick into the incense burner in front of the tombstone.

The seven siblings, including Jiang Yini, remained silent, patiently waiting by his side.

...

Time quietly passed minute by minute.

After about a few minutes, Jiang Liao sighed, bent over, and placed the partly burnt incense stick into the incense burner in front of the tombstone.

After lighting the incense, he turned his head to look at Jiang Yini and signaled towards Li Jing with his eyes.

Seeing this, Jiang Yini furrowed her brows, just about to speak.

But over there.

Jiang Liao had already averted his gaze, continuing to stare at the portrait on the tombstone.

Facing this situation, Jiang Yini, with her brows knitted tightly, hesitated before getting an incense stick and going over to Li Jing, who had been standing aside with a resignation.

"Here, offer incense to my mother."

"Okay."

Li Jing nodded, not refusing.

He had noticed the eye contact between Jiang Liao and Jiang Yini earlier.

Although he didn’t know what the former’s intentions were, since he had followed them here and was standing in front of the tombstone, going through the incense lighting was inevitable.

At least, he needed to show respect to the deceased.

After placing the incense stick into the incense burner, Li Jing dipped his head slightly.

Upon lifting his eyes.

He saw the seven siblings of the Jiang family, including Jiang Yini, turning to leave the cemetery, while only Jiang Liao remained standing there.

Caught off-guard by this situation, Li Jing was momentarily stunned, unsure whether he should follow them or stay put.

At this moment, Jiang Liao spoke softly.

"They all have their own business to attend to. Li Jing, please stay here and keep this old man company."

His casual tone carried a trace of fatigue.

Upon hearing this, Li Jing blinked and silently nodded, stepping aside.

...

In the blink of an eye.

Half an hour had passed.

All the incense sticks in the burner, except the one that Li Jing had placed, had almost burned out.

Jiang Liao, who had been standing in silence in front of the tombstone, exhaled deeply upon seeing the incense sticks almost extinguished, then looked up and turned to look at Li Jing.

"According to the information I have, your proficiency in the Sky Eye Technique is extremely high, capable of detecting traces even professional forensics experts would miss?"

?

Li Jing slowly typed a question mark.

What did Jiang Liao mean by this?

Before he could comprehend, Jiang Liao pointed at the tombstone in front of him.

"Within the tomb, I have set up Thousand-Year Profound Ice and a special method to ensure that my beloved’s body remains intact. To keep her appearance from changing over time and to prevent any potential traces within her body from dissipating once it became an empty shell, I transferred approximately one third of her life force into her in the form of Spiritual Qi and sealed it. Right now, she is preserved exactly as she was when she was discovered after her death. Please take a look and see if you can gain anything."

"..."

Li Jing.

To be honest.

From the moment he was asked to accompany them to visit the tomb, he was very puzzled.

Why would Jiang Liao include him?

Now, he understood.

Hesitating, Li Jing glanced at the tomb in front of him and said in a low voice.

"Uncle, it’s been many years since Auntie passed away, wouldn’t it be..."

Before he finished, Jiang Liao interjected.

"She would understand."

"..."

Li Jing fell silent, then reluctantly, raised his hand to form the seal.

In his opinion, this seemed rather pointless.

If his Sky Eye could detect any anomalies, the Patrol Headquarters’ Forensics Department should have discovered it long ago.

His Sky Eye Technique was indeed remarkable.

But this did not mean no one could match him.

The entire Longyu was filled with exceptional individuals.

The capital city was even more a place where talent gathered.

Jiang Liao’s status was exceedingly unique.

The sudden death of his wife was evidently very unusual.

The Forensics Department of the Patrol Headquarters would not have overlooked such a case. Key figures must have been involved in the investigation, and they would have dealt with it cautiously.

However, seeing that Jiang Liao insisted, Li Jing had no choice.

Once the seal was formed, the vertical eye on Li Jing’s forehead opened.

Muttering an inner "sorry", he lowered his eyes to look at the tomb in front of him.

The method Jiang Liao had set up was indeed impressive.

Whether his wife’s body inside the tomb was intact, Li Jing could not tell.

Under the gaze of his Sky Eye, all he could perceive were the various forms of power based on Spiritual Qi. He could not see the entire body.

But just as Jiang Liao had mentioned.

The body of his deceased wife, who had died due to the collapse of her foundation and the dissipation of her Spiritual Qi, was now filled with abundant Spiritual Qi.

With just one glance, Li Jing identified a dense accumulation of Spiritual Qi, roughly estimated to be at the initial stage of the Sixth Realm.

This, unavoidably, startled him.

Since Jiang Liao’s wife had passed away years ago,

when he tried to understand the Jiang family before, he merely learned a name.

Jiang Liao’s deceased wife, Lu Qifei.

As for her power, Li Jing had no idea.

But from what he saw now,

Lu Qifei was not only a member of the Sixth Realm while alive, but her cultivation level may have been even higher than Jiang Liao’s.

Jiang Liao had mentioned earlier,

that he infused Lu Qifei with Spiritual Qi equivalent to 30% of his power.

Thirty percent, at the beginning of the Sixth Realm?

Quietly surprised, Li Jing turns to Jiang Liao.

"May I ask, what was Aunt’s cultivation level while she was alive?"

"Half-step into the Seventh Realm."

Jiang Liao replied.

"Hiss."

Li Jing gasped.

Half a step into the Seventh Realm, that was on par with the current cultivation level of Chen Jing and Liu Shi, wasn’t it?

Twenty-six years ago...

This case seemed to be tricky.

If he had formerly learned that Lu Qifei died mysteriously, Li Jing would have suspected fishy circumstances.

But now, he was absolutely certain that there was definitely something suspicious going on.

Death isn’t that easy for someone who’s half a step into the Seventh Realm.

Failures in cultivation practice aside, numerous self-protective measures existed for individuals.

Even if she encountered demonic interference that undermined her foundation, preserving her life would not have been an issue.

If Lu Qifei died mysteriously, she must have been harmed.

To murk a Half-step Seventh Realm being without making a sound, at least a Seventh Realm practitioner would be needed.

Taking into consideration the heavy restriction around the Jiang estate, the range of potential suspects was virtually narrowed down to those who "retired and lived" within the Jiang estate.

These people were not easy to deal with.

Those who had the qualification to live in the Jiang mansion needed, was not power.

But what their status was before their "retirement", and what they had done for Longyu.

Li Jing gazed at Jiang Liao and asked lowly,

"Uncle, do you truly have no clues about Aunt’s death?"

Li Jing was always fearless when dealing with such matters.

If the person was indeed guilty, then even if they were a retired Guardian God, he would still dare to lock them in the Subspace and kill them.

The current issue was,

What he could think of,

Jiang Liao could surely have thought of them back then.

Perhaps, there were one or two suspects.

Considering the unique nature of the Jiang estate, Li Jing had reason to suspect that someone inside the estate was responsible.

But it was hard to investigate this.

The waters were deep inside the Jiang estate.

Most people’s information and personal details are top secret.

If Jiang Liao could provide him with a more defined direction, perhaps he could make a smoother approach.

In response to Li Jing’s question, Jiang Liao silently shook his head.

"Anyone inside the Jiang estate could have done it, including us, the Jiangs."

"..."

Li Jing blundered.

Jiang Liao’s words didn’t really make any difference from not having said anything.

But this time, it was his fault.

Jiang Liao was clearly in love.

He only had Lu Qifei as his wife for his whole life and had been brooding over her death for twenty-six years...

True,

As the Director of Management Bureau, Jiang Liao indeed strategized wisely.

But when it involved the death of his wife, he was probably out of his mind back when it happened.

Without holding any expectation towards Jiang Liao, Li Jing turned his head to gaze at the tomb once again.

He was a sensible man.

Jiang Liao might have lost his mind back then, but he must have calmed down now.

His determination to disturb the spirit of his deceased wife for him to observe with his Heavenly Eye certainly points to some suspicions. However, since he couldn’t confirm anything, he was concerned that excessive doubts would affect his mood and therefore kept silent about them.

Looking across the whole of Longyu,

Jiang Liao, as the Director of Management Bureau, was definitely out of bounds.

And he understood this point very well.

Gazing at the person-like accumulation of Spiritual Qi in the tomb, Li Jing examined it inch by inch with his half-closed Heavenly Eye.

After examining it thoroughly, he didn’t find anything unusual.

Just as he was about to retract his gaze, within the pure white Spiritual Qi, a trace of a very subtle greyish-brown color appeared in the center of the accumulation, it twisted a little and then quietly faded away, as if it had never existed.

Suddenly seeing this, Li Jing was flustered, he rubbed his Heavenly Eye hard.

Jiang Liao, who was standing beside him, observed his facial changes and movements, a spark of bright aura suddenly burst in his eyes.

"Did you, find something?"

Li Jing turned at the sound, looking unsure.

Jiang Liao’s face darkened a little at the sight of someone who clearly had a discovery but hesitated to share due to certain considerations.

"Speak."

Full of helplessness, Li Jing replied quietly,

"I seemed to have detected a flash of Evil Energy at the brow region of Aunt."

"Evil Energy!?"

Jiang Liao’s face turned cold, his body began to unconsciously emit an intense Sixth Realm Aura.

Seeing this, Li Jing hurriedly said,

"Uncle, calm down."

As he spoke, he hinted at the workers who were scattered around cleaning up the tomb with his eyes.

Getting the hint, Jiang Liao’s Aura subsided, he nodded and looked around before silently suppressing his uncontrollable emotions.

Seeing that Jiang Liao had managed to control himself, Li Jing secretly heaved a sigh of relief.

This day was rather special, as it was just targeted at the Jiang family.

No other visitors were seen at the tomb; however, several employees were spotted cleaning around the area.

They were merely ordinary people existing in the One Realm.

If Jiang Liao were to suddenly lose control of his emotions and erupt here, the Six Realm Aura he would release might inevitably cause some degree of harm to these individuals.

In a serious circumstance, it could lead to death.

The gap between the Sixth and First Realms was not a joke.

"Uncle, please calm down for now. I need to observe once more. The Evil Energy that appeared just now was very subtle, and it faded in a flash; I cannot rule out the possibility that I might have been mistaken."

After whispering these words, Li Jing directed his attention back to the tomb once more.

Jiang Liao, upon hearing his words, remained silent and thoughtful, his head lowered.

Neither of them uttered a word.

The Evil Energy that was detected earlier had yet to reappear.

Li Jing was patient.

He told Jiang Liao that there was a possibility that he could be wrong, but he was a hundred percent certain that he was not.

The key point was this.

The subtlety of this Evil Energy was one thing, but its existence was very unscientific.

Li Jing, whose Heavenly Eye had the inherent ability to self-improve, had already achieved it to the highest level.

Having the Cultivation level of the Seventh Realm as support, he had long surpassed the meticulous level of ordinary Sky Eye Techniques of Great Perfection.

If there were any remnants of Evil Energy within Lu Qifei, he should have been able to see them clearly at a single glance.

Yet the Evil Energy was not something residual, but something fleeting, as if it had completely merged with the Spiritual Qi injected into Lu Qifei’s body.

This, frankly, was a bit beyond Li Jing’s comprehension.

If Evil Energy exists, then it simply exists.

There’s no reason for it to merge with Spiritual Qi, and even less reason for it to disappear in such a weak flash.

The essence of Evil Energy is transformed from Spiritual Qi.

If the power within it is relatively weak, it would not be able to remain within a human body filled with Spiritual Qi.

Even if it wasn’t swallowed by the Spiritual Qi immediately, it would be assimilated into Spiritual Qi in a short amount of time.

After all, they share the same source.

Before they knew it, more than ten minutes had passed.

Li Jing’s gaze remained fixedly on the congregation of Spiritual Qi within the tomb.

Finally, in the fifteenth minute, he once again caught a glimpse of the greyish-brown tinge.

Just like before, this greyish-brown Energy suspected of being Evil Energy vanished in a flash.

Having accurately captured this hue of greyish-brown, Li Jing turned his head.

Before he could utter a word, Jiang Liao squinted his eyes.

"A quarter of an hour. That’s not Evil Energy."

?

Li Jing.

He had just stated he confirmed the presence of Evil Energy within Lu Qifei, and Jiang Liao suddenly contradicted him.

This, quite frankly, left him baffled.

However, given Jiang Liao’s certainty and his deliberate mention of "a quarter of an hour," Li Jing couldn’t help being a little concerned.

"Uncle, do you have any thoughts on this?"

"Miao Region Witchcraft."

Jiang Liao uttered this in a low voice.

"Witchcraft?"

Li Jing was startled, frowning as he asked.

"Uncle, are you certain?"

"Certain. I’m also certain that it’s the vicious Etching Skill from the witchcraft."

Jiang Liao replied, taking a deep sigh before continuing.

"A year before my wife died, the Etching Skill emerged in the capital, and several junior families had lost their heads. Because the Witchcraft was extremely subtle and difficult to detect, the Forensics Department of the Patrol headquarters initially couldn’t obtain any clear leads." 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

"In the end, it was through the connections among the victims that the patrol staff perceived a possible connection with The Seven Great Families, finally tracing it back to a non-blood related family member of the Sima family. He had accidentally inherited some Miao Region heritages and targeted the victims for personal gain. The confirmation that the victims died due to the Etching Skill was made only after he had been executed."

"The characteristics of the Etching Skill are quite distinct. It causes disturbances in the victim’s cultivation foundation at every quarter of an hour by resonating with the victim’s own Spiritual Qi. The more abundant the victim’s Spiritual Qi, and the more solid their foundation is, the greater the impact will be. Under the influence of the Etching Skill’s resonance, while the victim will not notice anything unusual, their foundation will undergo shaking similar to resonance, eventually leading to collapse."

Hearing Jiang Liao relay three pieces of information in succession, Li Jing tried to digest the news, his expression growing peculiar.

The involvement of Miao Region Witchcraft was unexpected.

He wouldn’t doubt Jiang Liao’s conviction.

However, it was mentioned that the case involved The Seven Great Families, and after extensive investigation, the perpetrator was identified as a non-blood-related member of the Sima family who had inadvertently gained some Miao Region heritage.

This...

One year before Lu Qifei’s death, that would be twenty-seven years ago.

And it involved The Seven Great Houses once again...

After a brief silence, Li Jing spoke.

"Uncle, this case you mentioned..."

Before he could finish his sentence, Jiang Liao spoke in a low voice.

"Handled by Chen Jing."

Upon hearing this, Li Jing’s lips twitched, thinking to himself, ’As expected.’

The once seemingly hopeless case was now pointing in many directions.

The suspect could be someone within the Jiang family mansion.

Then there’s the spread of the Miao Region Witchcraft.

And also the previously implicated Sima family, as well as Chen Jing, who was entrusted with the responsibility of handling the case.

Having varied directions, of course, was something Li Jing was happy to see.

However, the complexity of the case was becoming increasingly irksome.

Before trying to investigate who had harmed Lu Qifei in secret, he had a great deal of "work" to do.

While feeling annoyed, Jiang Liao looked at him with a piercing gaze and said,

"The fact that you were able to detect traces of the Etching Skill proves that I indeed made the right judgement about you. I look forward to your performance."

He said this with a gloomy face.

"If you can uncover the truth and find the mastermind behind the murder of my wife within the agreed three weeks, aside from fulfilling our previous agreement, even if you really do end up with Yini, I’ll accept it."

"..."

Li Jing.

They were having a perfectly good conversation, why did he have to bring Jiang Yini into it?

Thinking that he needed to clear the matter up, Li Jing set about explaining with a wry smile.

"Uncle, you must have misunderstood, I..."

Before he could finish his sentence, Jiang Liao interrupted him.

"I know you two aren’t at that stage yet, don’t over-interpret what I said. I’m just proposing a hypothetical situation."

Saying this, he spoke again with a slightly weary tone.

"Now that we have an initial clue, you should have a lot to do. You can leave now to take care of things, and I’ll stay here in silence. I presume you’ll visit Chen Jing soon, so you can explain the situation to him. I won’t meddle any further here. I’ll take care of the case files from the Patrol headquarter and my business records from that year. When everything is ready, I’ll have Yini let you know."

...