A soft 'shit' sounded out as the man lost his consciousness.
The blue and white figures walked closer to the man. They wore masks and the figure in blue used her leg to kick the man to confirm he really lost consciousness.
" No No No Ms. Liu , it's rude to kick strangers." Yang Changtian reprimanded Liu Ying.
Liu Ying just stared right at Yang Changtian before nudging Song Lian with her leg again, a clear sign of defiance.
This left Yang Changtian speechless . " Ms. Liu …" he sighed exasperated.
" Okay okay , I won't do it again." Liu Ying replied, pouting.
A laugh broke out , and the both of them turned to see Li Cheng walking over.
" Brother Yang , leave Ms. Liu alone . She just wanted to see if this guy's faking it." Li Cheng crouched down near the unconscious Song Lian and poked him . " But I must say I'm quite impressed with this person's endurance. The others collapsed almost immediately after coming into contact with the sedative, but he was awake for a while."
Liu Ying nodded , " He has good endurance. I should probably disperse the sedative and replace it with the faux miasma." She turned to Yang Changtian , " They will wake up in an hour or two. So it would be ideal to move them back to a more sheltered area. "
Yang Changtian nodded and called over two disciples who were waiting on the sidelines. " Take them back to the hut over at the western edge. Inform us when they wake up."
" Yes, Senior Brother ! "
Yang Changtian turned back just to see that Liu Ying had already disappeared.
Liu Ying walked over to the edge of the village where a fire was burning and spitting smoke out nonstop. She had instructed Da Xiong and Zhang Anying to control and disperse the smoke evenly.
" Da Xiong , put the fire out now. And don't remove your mask till I inform you " Liu Ying instructed them.
" Yes, senior." Da Xiong replied immediately, putting the fire out.
Liu Ying then quickly hurried over to the river , where Jin Wei and Zhou Zilong were waiting for her instructions. " Start when the smoke gets visibly thinner. Don't remove your mask till I inform you" Jin Wei and Zhou Zilong nodded back in acknowledgment.
Jin Wei and Zhou Zilong walked upstream and soon reached a small area filled with large boulders. This seemingly normal area was holding a crucial secret. Observing the surrounding , when he felt the smoke get thinner , Jin Wei ordered the disciples stationed there to remove the boulders. The disciples used long wooden sticks to nudge the boulders . The huge rocks rolled off with a pop and boiling hot water began to spray around accompanied by smoke rising. The secret the boulders were hiding was a system of geysers . A wooden pipe system redirected the boiling water into the river. When the boiling hot water meets with the ice cold water of the river , the water vapor from the hot water condenses rapidly , creating a thick fog like mist. The sheer amount of water being mixed ensures that the fog covers the whole village. In addition to that the fog is almost identical to corpse miasma , so unless you're paying very close attention , you won't be able to distinguish between the two.
Immediately , the sedative smoke was replaced by the faux miasma.
Liu Ying walked back to meet up with Yang Changtian and Li Cheng.
" The fog is replacing the smoke fast , but just to be safe , let's keep our masks on for half an hour more." Liu Ying stated calmly.
Li Cheng and Yang Changtian just nodded at them.
After half an hour , Liu Ying signaled them to wait , before she removed her mask. Taking a deep breath she waited for a while ,seeing that nothing happened to her, the others also removed their masks.
" Tell the others that they can remove their masks now." Yang Changtian instructed a disciple waiting nearby. He then turned back to Liu Ying and Li Cheng. " I asked them to take the people to the old hut over at the west end. Should we go there ? "
Li Cheng looked at Liu Ying , Liu Ying just nodded her head.
"Okay then , let's go." Li Cheng replied .
The three of them reached the western hut , two disciples were guarding the entrance of the hut.
Yang Changtian entered first followed by Liu Ying and then Li Cheng .
Liu Ying observed them for a while before speaking , " Did you find any medicine on them ? " she asked a disciple .
" Ms. Liu we checked all their belongings but we didn't find any medicine.But we did find some whistles and these round things on them."
The disciple approached and handed Liu Ying 3 small whistles and gave 6 small white bone-like discs to Li Cheng.
Liu Ying observed the whistles .
Liu Ying pointed at Song Lian , " Did he have one too ? "
" Yes Ms.Liu , we found it in his bag. The other two had their whistles clenched in their hands."
" Hmmm…" Liu Ying hummed.
" What's wrong Ms.Liu ? " Li Cheng asked.
" We heard 3 whistles in total , and he didn't blow his whistle , " Liu Ying started pointing at Song Lian , " Those 2 had the whistles in their hands , so we can be sure that they used the whistle , the third whistle also was fainter , so assuming that all of their whistles were working fine , we can infer that the third whistle came from a distance. Therefore it is highly likely that they left some people on their mountain to keep an eye out to notify them in the case of danger. Therefore I was right , there are more people , likely a whole community hiding somewhere in that mountain. "
Li Cheng was scrutinizing the small discs. " What are these ? " he wondered out loud.
Liu Ying gave the whistles back to the disciple and walked over to Li Cheng, picking up one of the small discs , she observed it for a while. " From what I know , these look like smoothed out bone discs , so they likely have a ceremonial or protective purpose. I'm going to guess and say they might be a protection charm of sorts, though I can't say their specific purpose."
Yang Changtian also walked over and picked one up. " Let's ask them when they wake up , I feel that these might be useful to us in the future."
Liu Ying and Li Cheng looked at each other confused but they decided not to ask.
They were interrupted by a groan . They all turned to see Song Lian moving .
" He's about to wake up." Liu Ying informed the others.
" Didn't you say that they would be out for an hour or two at least ? " Yang Changtian questioned.
" That is the case normally." Liu Ying shook her head, she pointed at the groaning Song Lian who was on the verge of waking up, " But as I said , this guy has impressive endurance. And i had to work with limited herbs"
Yang Changtian made a mental note to check this person out later , his endurance would make him an ideal disciple candidate.
Yang Changtian , Liu Ying and Li Cheng fathered around Song Lian as he was about to wake up.
Song Lian slowly began to regain consciousness , he groaned and moved around for a while , before he could crack his eyes open. His eyesight was a blur , when his sight became clear ,he was shocked to see 3 figures looking at him. Song Lian jerked back and tried to get into a fighting stance , but he soon found out that his arms and legs were bound. So instead of him jumping into fight stance , he just looked like a fish out of water , flapping around.
" Stop flapping around , you aren't a fish." The figure in blue said to him.
Song Lian immediately recognized the person in blue. " You ! Weren't you attacked and killed by the Crazy."
Next to her stood a figure clad in a grey robe , he burst into laughter. On her other side was a man wearing a white robe, who was also holding his laugh back.
" Mr. Stranger, I advise you not to bring that up. That was merely a great performance put up by our beloved Ms. Liu to draw you out." The man in grey answered him.
" What ? That can't be , But I clearly saw you being dragged by a clawed hand." Song Lian stuttered out.
Liu Ying sneered at him. Li Cheng burst into laughter again.
" Mr. Stranger, it was all an act. Otherwise she wouldn't be here standing in front of you right ? " Li Cheng managed to blurt out between laughing.
" But you were all exposed to corpse miasma , how are you all still alive ? " Song Lian stuttered out again.
" We have to thank Ms. Liu for that too." The man in white finally spoke up.
Song Lian looked at Liu Ying bewildered. " How ? "
Liu Ying slowly crouched down , " And why exactly should I tell you ? " she asked him , a cold glint flashing across her eyes.
Song Lian felt shivers run down his spine , then something flashed across his mind, " How did you know we existed ? " he questioned.
Yang Changtian and Li Cheng turned to look at Liu Ying. Song Lian followed their gazes. Realization hit him. " I knew it , that day you noticed us. But how ? "
" I noticed the reflection of your spyglass ." Liu Ying answered nonchalantly.
They were interrupted yet again with another groan. The others were waking up .
Yang Changtian turned to look at Liu Ying again with an eyebrow raised.
" It's been an hour , besides it's a miracle that I even managed to make a sedative with the limited herbs we had." Liu Ying defended herself .
Yang Changtian couldnt say anything as she was right, Liu Ying managed to make a strong sedative out of the damaged herbs they found the other day.
One by one , Kong , Ling , Old Jin and the others woke up. They were dazed for a while , but soon they became vigilant . Spotting a blue figure crouching down near their Brother Song and two other figures in white and grey staring at them , they all did the same thing Song Lian tried to do , they all gathered their strength to jump up into a fight stance.
" Stay away from Brother Song ! " Ling yelled while trying to jump up. Unfortunately for them , they too were bound , hands and feet , so they just ended up flopping around like dying fish.
" Looks like we caught a lot of fish today , " the figure in blue sneered at them.
Kong and Ling flopped back into a sitting position and they immediately recognised the figure in blue. " You ! weren't you killed by a Crazy ?! " they asked bewildered.
Liu Ying just sneered at them again , she was gradually turning into a wild cat with all these fish flopping around .
The figure in grey just burst into laughter again , while the figure in white was just shaking his head.
" It was an act, " Song Lian explained.
" Then the miasma , it's impossible you should be dead now because of the exposure." Old Jin retorted.
Liu Ying stood up and walked over to the door of the hut , after she opened it , and thick fog began to file into the hut.
" What are you doing ?! "
" Stop ! "
Song Lian and the others began to panic. They held their breath , but they noticed something weird , Liu Ying and the others were completely fine even after being exposed to the fog.
Old Jin observed the fog for a while and noticed something strange about it , trusting his gut he decided to take a leap and released the breath he was holding before breathing in normally.
To his shock, the so-called corpse miasma had a fresh smell to it unlike the slightly rotten smell you find in corpse miasma.
He turned his head to stare at the group in front of him , his eyes wide. " This isn't corpse miasma , it's just fog."
Song Lian and the others heard this and they immediately released the breaths they were holding.
Old Jin looked at the group in front of him bewildered , " How did you ? "
" Don't bother asking , " Song Lian's voice interrupted his question, " They won't tell you. Now tell us what do you want from us ? " He looked directly into the eyes of the woman.
Liu Ying returned his gaze with an ice cold stare that sent shivers down the groups' backs.
Liu Ying finally broke her gaze to look at Yang Changtian.
Yang Changtian got his cue , he stepped forwards and spoke out. " We come in peace , we were dispatched by the royal court to check up and resolve the situation in Beifeng , but when we arrived we were attacked by some Crazies , and while some of our people were killed , 3 people were injured and they are being treated currently , but we ran out of medicine and one patient is in critical condition. So we don't have any choice but to lure you out early , to see if you have any medicine .In addition to that , we are planning on cleansing the whole village soon , so you , the inhabitants can return to the village without any fear."
Song Lian and his group looked suspicious , after a while Song Lian finally spoke up, " How can we trust you ? You might be the very people who caused this mess in the beginning , what proof do you have that shows that you're really here to help us ? " he questioned.
Yang Changtian sighed before pulling out his token , he showed his token to the group , " I am the chief disciple of the Guanghui sect , Yang Changtian ,I was dispatched here by His Highness the Grand Prince Jinlong." He then pointed to Liu Ying and Li Cheng who also pulled their tokens out. " That is the oldest disciple of the Bihou sect , Li Cheng , he was dispatched with me , while she is one of the founding members of the Imperial Detective Department , the head analyst Liu Ying, she was dispatched directly by His Majesty the King. We were all asked to come here and resolve the situation." He explained.
Song Lian and the others were shocked to learn of the group's identities. They had expected them to be from privileged positions , but they hadn't expected them to be such big shots. For years since he was a child he had heard about the heroic deeds of the people from the two great sects , especially their head disciples, but Yang Changtian faded out of the public's eye when Hei Jingyou disappeared. Yet here he was, here to help them.
Song Lian was also shocked to learn that Liu Ying was a core member of the Imperial Detective Department. While the department was established relatively recently compared to the two great sects , they were just as infamous. They managed to crack baffling cases with ease . Their members were so secretive to the extent that they were rarely seen, but it was even rarer to see a founding member who was considered a vital organ for the Department .But would such high profile people really come here to assist them ? This thought brought their suspicions back.
Song Lian suddenly caught Old Jin's face twisting , he turned around to face Old Jin , " Old Jin , are you okay ? " Song Lian panicked when he saw tears roll down Old Jin's face.
Old Jin shook his head , exerting force he managed to get on his knees and kneel.
" Forgive me for not recognising you sooner Mr. Yang." he croaked out.
Yang Changtian looked at him confused. " Do you know me ? " he asked .
Old Jin nodded vigorously ," Yes Mr. Yang , this humble man has never forgotten Mr. Yang's and Ms. Hei's kindness and benevolence after all these years. 40 years ago , yourself and Ms. Hei were dispatched to raid a child trafficking scheme in the northwestern territory, that night you saved 135 lives , including mine. I was barely a teenager back then when you saved me." Old Jin was bawling at this point, " This old man thought he would never get the chance to see either of you let alone repay you two for saving me, but god has been kind to me and allowed me to meet you again Mr. Yang , forgive me for being so blind."
Yang Changtian was speechless , along with Song Lian and his group.
Song Lian and the others didn't know about Old Jin's past so they were shocked to learn that he was once a trafficked child saved by the chief disciples of the two great sects.
" Old Jin , are you sure that he really is Yang Changtian ? " Song Lian asked him directly.
Old Jin just nodded at him still crying .
Song Lian then turned to Yang Changtian and his group. " While I had my suspicions , Old Jin confirmed that you are in fact Mr. Yang. So we are willing to help you out. "
" Great ! " Yang Changtian replied breaking into a smile
" But , we have some conditions ." Song Lian interrupted.
Yang Changtian's smile flattered and he stared at Song Lian , who returned his gaze.
" Speak your terms ." Yang Changtian finally responded.
Song Lian broke out in a courteous smile.
" Sure….."