What if I don't want to ascend to immortality?

Chapter 48 The Experience of Seniors

In the past, when Han Jie dealt with evil spirits, his first consideration was how to kill them quickly and thoroughly, and secondly, to avoid harming innocent people. He had never seriously considered the origins of evil spirits before meeting Meng Qingtong.

Therefore, what he described was similar to the way demons were recorded in the complete text, which was the experience accumulated in battle.

Meng Qingtong would definitely try to report this knowledge for the benefit of the world. Adding entries to the complete encyclopedia was secondary; the key was that if, as Han Jie said, evil was about to erupt, everyone should be prepared.

She racked her brains and came up with an excuse for Han Jie that he had a family history of evil spirits that he had memorized since childhood, and which happened to fit the situation of this case.

After finishing the report, she sent it to Fang Min, explaining the situation and asking for help with polishing and revisions. Only then did she feel relieved. As she walked briskly with Han Jie toward their next destination, she asked, "In the mysterious villages you've encountered before, were there any commonalities among the individuals? For example, what were they all good at, and what were they all afraid of?"

Han Jie's description was too brief, so she had to keep asking questions to fill in the details herself.

Only by knowing herself and her enemy could she prepare herself and devise a way to extract the true name from the demon.

But Han Jie's description gave her a headache.

He hadn't found the so-called main body in the several mysterious villages he had previously destroyed.

He relied on his formidable strength, combining spiritual techniques with the special ability of the Heart Sword Form, to overpower all opponents with sheer force, and finally managed to dig out the innocent people trapped inside before destroying the entire illusion.

At the time, he wondered why the village was so resilient, always reviving several times. Now that he thinks about it, it might be because the root cause hadn't been found, allowing the enemy to struggle until it was completely exhausted before finally dying.

The various maze villages differ considerably in their construction, but they are generally sizable villages with various buildings, livestock, and farmland. At first glance, a particular area may seem very realistic, but once all of them are considered together, it becomes clear that each maze village is composed of several distinct areas pieced together.

It's like taking photos of several real villages, tearing them up, and making a jigsaw puzzle; the resulting whole is distorted and bizarre.

Back then, Han Jie was a gloomy and irritable man who would unleash his Great Hatred and unleash his full power at the slightest provocation. He had no interest in delving into the details of this evil spirit.

His usual method for dealing with the Lost Village involves three steps.

First, use top-tier spiritual techniques that only cause damage to the soul to plow the land repeatedly and find the victims trapped in the maze village.

Secondly, create a protective array to gather the victims together, or cut an opening to send them out first.

Third, with rage in his left hand and deep hatred in his right, he can cut the Lost Village into whatever shape he pleases.

Normally, destroying a lost village requires repeating these three steps at least twice. He didn't know exactly why, but he had good stamina, so the number of times didn't matter to him.

Unfortunately, the Lost Village back then is not the same as the Lost Village they might face now.

“Previously, the area within which the Lost Village could capture victims wouldn’t exceed a radius of five miles. The illusion it constructed was located in the center, and its concealment capabilities were relatively poor. If it were the Lost Village of that time, the spatial traces it left behind wouldn’t dissipate for five or six days. It also wouldn’t be possible to operate within the Second Ring without being discovered by so many spiritualists.” Han Jie’s tone in his divine sense revealed a hint of worry. “That guy has definitely become stronger. Perhaps, I can’t guarantee that I can dig everyone out unharmed.”

Is it a so-called necessary sacrifice?

"possible."

Meng Qingtong smiled and said, "Look up the trolley problem."

He went through it in his mind, "What's wrong? I know."

Meng Qingtong took his hand and said very seriously, "I am a very pragmatic woman. If you encounter a similar trolley problem in the future, leave it to me. I will pull the lever. In my heart, it is acceptable to sacrifice 99 people to save 100 people. After all, I still gain one."

“So, if you can’t rescue everyone whole, or if you have to rescue fewer than necessary, that’s okay. If you need to save a certain part, I’ll chop it off for you. If you can’t save them, I’ll bury them on the spot.” She looked ahead, her gaze as firm as her steps. “Leave all these trivial matters to you and me, your partner. Everyone has their own expertise. You’re a veteran with extensive demon-slaying experience, so just focus on what you do best.”

As they approached their destination, Meng Qingtong hesitated for a moment before letting go of the hand she had just taken the opportunity to hold.

But Han Jie grabbed her hand and pulled her along, heading straight for the members of the Ling'an Bureau who were conducting an external investigation.

Following this direction, they came across a location that seemed most suspicious, and they had no choice but to investigate.

That was Xue Guo's home.

Xue Guo rents this place alone, and it is said that he makes a living by serializing a long novel about spiritualists online.

Although Xue Guo is the fourth missing person in the order of discovery, she lives alone and broke up with her boyfriend half a year ago. She stays at home all day writing. The last outsider she came into contact with was the delivery guy who delivered food to her the day before yesterday.

According to the on-site report, she disappeared while eating instant noodles.

But no one says that instant noodles are today's lunch.

What if she disappeared while we were having dinner last night?

As for the chapter updated on the computer in the morning, it was most likely a scheduled release. Given her usual routine, she should still be in bed catching up on sleep at that time.

After reporting these findings to the officers from the investigation department present, Meng Qingtong, accompanied by one of them, entered Xue Guo's room.

Meng Qingtong pretended to check around, diverting the attention of her companions.

Han Jie observed carefully, slowly spreading out his divine sense, meticulously examining every inch.

Unable to detect anything unusual with his divine sense, he could only give Meng Qingtong a wink.

Meng Qingtong understood immediately and made an excuse to take the accompanying person to the kitchen, where she pretended to inspect the instant noodle equipment in detail.

Han Jie summoned his Heart Sword and quickly examined the space inside the room.

Strangely, the crack did not appear here. The room was empty, which was the exact opposite of what one would expect from a spiritual perspective, compared to the perspective of ordinary life. The messy bedroom was actually spotless, without a trace of anything unusual.

This is the direction, and Xue Guo is indeed the most obvious missing person on the route. Could there be other undiscovered victims?
Han Jie hesitated. In the past, the largest number of people trapped in the lost villages he had destroyed was only four. This one not only had a wider coverage area and stronger spatial teleportation, but it had also evolved to the point that it could target spirit masters. Moreover, it had taken away five targets in the first batch.

Could past experiences be misleading?

He temporarily withdrew his divine sense and stopped probing, instead secretly communicating with Meng Qingtong and quickly exchanging information.

Meng Qingtong thought for a moment, "Do you think we could try a different way of thinking?"

How to convert it?

"As you said, even with its ability to cover a vast area, the Lost Village still only selects a few scattered victims to take away. Now, let's assume that the birth and continuation of evil originate from the energy provided by people's hearts. Could these missing victims be the main force providing energy to the evil?"

"What if it is?"

"These five seemingly dissimilar missing persons must have something in common. If we find this commonality, wouldn't it be easier to locate the birthplace of the Lost Village?"

What do the missing persons have in common?

Meng Qingtong walked quickly back to the room, and said so that her companion could hear as well, "Yes, do you still remember the contents of the report? Sang Tianzhen's room contained a half-written love letter, two male idol group photocards fell out of two toilet stalls in the mall, and Tao Yang disappeared after giving you a message. Something was already wrong then. Putting aside Xue Guo for now, aren't the commonalities among these four people obvious?"

"You all...have someone you like?"

“Not entirely.” She looked down and pulled up the contents of the half-written love letter and the card she found in the toilet stall. “At least, I believe that the kind of liking a delinquent who wants to write a love letter to a former female classmate and a lovesick girl who gets all horny looking at these kinds of photos in the toilet are definitely not the same thing. What could trigger that mysterious demonic power must be some other thought based on liking.” The more she thought about it, the clearer her thoughts became, and soon, after obtaining permission from the forensic officer next to her, she began to examine the computer Xue Guo was using to write her novel.

Xue Guo's computer skills were clearly mediocre; everything was just carelessly left on the hard drive, without any hiding or passwords. Chat tools and various websites were also automatically logged in. For Meng Qingtong, a veteran who always started her commissions with intelligence gathering, figuring out her information trail was a piece of cake.

She quickly realized that Xue Guo's ex-boyfriend didn't have any real influence over her. Their last online interaction was about arranging a meeting to discuss breaking up, and they hadn't been in contact since.

From the note-taking software that Xue Guo uses to accumulate writing material, it can be seen that her preference is mostly for more intense and angsty romance novels, but what she publishes online are relatively light and refreshing long works for all ages with a touch of melodrama.

After carefully checking the contents of the computer, Meng Qingtong asked the clerk, "Where is Xue Guo's phone? Has it been found?"

The officer had been yawning for a while, then thought for a moment before replying dismissively, "I haven't seen it. Investigating that kind of thing is usually the police's job; we in Ling'an don't get involved."

Meng Qingtong frowned slightly. "But many apps on a spirit mage's phone require spirit runes to unlock. According to convention, shouldn't the Spirit Security Bureau be the one investigating?"

"Oh, then it's probably just not found at the scene. It's probably gone along with the person."

Meng Qingtong retrieved the information. Of the five missing people, Sang Tianzhen's phone was not with her and was placed on the bedside table, which had already been discovered. Tao Yang and the two Li ethnic minority girls from the mall also lost their phones along with them.

If someone disappears because they have their phone with them, then when Xue Guo got into trouble, he might not have been writing or eating instant noodles, but rather doing something with his phone.

She quickly surveyed Xue Guo's home. Two charging cables were plugged in, one next to the living room sofa and the other next to the computer desk. A power bank sat on a shelf next to the toilet in the bathroom.

The kitchen showed no signs of recent disturbance; there was a thin layer of ash on the gas stove; the leftover instant noodles were a cheap, no-name brand; and the remaining half of a sausage was from a Wangzhongwang brand that was trying to piggyback on the Wangzhongwang brand name.

However, the half-open jar of hot sauce next to the mousepad is from a pretty good brand.

"With this kind of eating habit, his stomach probably isn't very good," Meng Qingtong muttered softly. "I think the fact that he took his phone and left halfway through the meal means he was probably feeling unwell and went to sit on the toilet. Do you want to check the bathroom?"

"Okay." Han Jie nodded, respecting his partner's opinion, and went into the restroom, closing the door behind him.

Unexpectedly, Meng Qingtong actually guessed correctly.

The traces of the spatial rift are indeed here.

Moreover, there is only one direction.

This is enough to show that the Lost Village was born here.

I wonder if the surrounding environment affected the creation of the Lost Village. If it did, the space it created probably didn't smell very good.

He remembered the direction the cracks pointed and returned to Meng Qingtong's side. "It's confirmed, it's in the toilet. She was the first, Tao Yang was the second. But... judging from the marks, the Mi Village was significantly strengthened on Tao Yang's side, while the location where it was born seemed weaker."

Meng Qingtong stared at the document on the computer, reading it quickly, and thought to herself, "So it seems the seed was cultivated by Xue Guo, but Tao Yang is the trigger. Tsk, what emotional common ground could these two possibly have? Tao Yang pursued me, and Xue Guo broke up with her boyfriend more than half a year ago. Tao Yang is quite handsome, and Xue Guo... well, maybe she'd be alright if she lost some weight."

Han Jie had already used his divine sense to scan everything on Xue Guo's computer, and even followed her online activity to find all her other pen names and works from his sea of ​​consciousness.

He was surprised by how convenient this thing was, and he even considered whether he should periodically find a fiber optic cable to hold and update the version.

But he was too embarrassed to say what he had discovered directly, so he could only offer a subtle suggestion: "Qingtong, think about your previous experiences. You should adjust your approach and think... a little darker."

"Ok?"

Han Jie hesitated for a moment, then sent her Xue Guo's other online pseudonym.

When Meng Qingtong searched on her phone, she discovered that some of these sites even infiltrated the deep network, and her expression immediately became quite interesting.

After she finished reading the themes and general descriptions of those works, her eyes looked strange when she looked at the normal works on Xue Guo's computer.

"So this person is actually a schizophrenic psychopath?"

Han Jie thought for a moment and replied, "It's also possible that she vented most of the darkness in her heart through her writing. Do you think this darkness could become the source of evil?"

"Probably... If that's the case, then I can understand why the Lost Village has become so powerful in modern times. Everyone has a little bit of abnormal fantasy about the opposite sex... Of course, most people wouldn't be that perverted." She quickly added, as if afraid of being misunderstood.

"Hey, wait... don't talk to me yet." Meng Qingtong's expression suddenly changed.

She stood up quickly, her eyes darting around as if trying to pinpoint the location of something in the air.

Then, she strode towards the restroom and peered inside from the doorway.

After waiting a while and seeing her breathe a sigh of relief, Han Jie asked, "What's wrong?"

"So, if I know the type of the demon's origin, I can sense some of its information," Meng Qingtong said with great surprise. "I'm becoming more and more convinced of your guess, and the information I can sense is becoming clearer and clearer. Should I try to break the seal? Maybe I can find its location."

"Wait a minute." Han Jie shook his head. "If we can understand the origin of the demons more clearly, you might be able to sense them more fully. I don't think we need to use the Ten Thousand Demon Summoning Tool directly."

Meng Qingtong smiled and said, "You're not worried that I might have some dark thoughts that would get caught by the Mi Village, are you? Don't worry, don't worry, now that I have you to watch all day, even if I have any fantasies, they'll be healthy, I promise they won't be dark, they'll be bright."

Just as they were about to leave the bathroom and head back to the bedroom, Xue Guo's door opened again.

A young man of medium build, with a strong physique, square face, and broad shoulders walked in, fiddling with a small magical artifact that seemed to have detection capabilities.

Han Jie glanced at him and knew that this person was actually over sixty years old. Maintaining such an appearance showed that his spiritual power was not bad.

Meng Qingtong, feeling a little guilty, hid behind Han Jie, seemingly not wanting him to see her.

The man looked over, his face immediately darkening. "What are you doing here, girl?!"

Meng Qingtong forced a smile, "I also accepted a commission. Hello Uncle Bai, I didn't see Aunt Huang when I came?"

Upon hearing the name "Aunt Huang," the man surnamed Bai's expression darkened further. He snorted, didn't reply, and walked straight into Xue Guo's bedroom.

"Who is it?" Han Jie asked in confusion, especially curious about the source of this hostility.

He disliked killing, simply because he believed most people were innocent.

He has never shown mercy to those who are not innocent.

Guessing his thoughts, Meng Qingtong quickly explained, "He's Aunt Huang's business competitor; both of them run firms. It originally had nothing to do with me, but last time... Uncle Bai made a bet with Aunt Huang, and Aunt Huang's Xisheng Pavilion won, so he has to listen to Aunt Huang and do something."

Her speech slowed down, and she finally said somewhat sheepishly, "I was young back then, so I suggested that he change the firm's name to 'Daydreaming'..."

Upon hearing this, Han Jie quickly made a search.

Bai E, head of the Daydreaming Spiritual Arts Agency.

Tsk, this guy has pretty good sportsmanship when it comes to gambling...

(End of this chapter)