Anti-fraud manual for the cultivation world

Li Gu deliberately lowered his voice and said in a deep voice, "All is well, no target has been found yet."

With a release of his hand, the paper crane flew up.

At first, it flew very low, skimming the rooftops for a long stretch, before rising into the sky and heading north.

Knowing it wouldn't be back anytime soon, the two weren't in a hurry. They returned to the yamen and pretended to work on case files, but their eyes kept glancing out the window.

By noon, the paper crane had finally returned.

The two quickly returned to the alley and waited at the spot where they had released the paper cranes.

The paper crane landed back in Zhang Yi's hand, opened its beak, and emitted a strange, vibrating sound, like a myna bird mimicking human speech, sharp and piercing: "Continue the search, kill it on sight."

He only said eight words, and that was it.

Li Gu said in a low voice, "It seems that this bird cannot replicate human voices. It has its own voice. In that case, Senior Sister Zhang can talk to it directly from now on."

Zhang Yi nodded and put away the paper crane: "Remember the time, release it again in three days."

Next, we need to deal with the corpse puppets of the Ouyang brothers.

One is in the upper part of the city, and the other is in the lower part. These two areas are quite large, so finding one will probably be quite a challenge.

Li Gu suddenly thought of something and chuckled softly, "I suddenly know how to find Brother Ouyang."

Zhang Yi chuckled, "Hehe! I thought of that too."

The two exchanged a glance, then said simultaneously, "Let's find the places where the paper cranes take off and land."

After noon, Li Gu and Zhang Yi took off their constable uniforms and changed into ordinary black chivalrous clothes. Li Gu stuck on a thick beard, while Zhang Yi drew on straight eyebrows and created an ugly makeup that was hard to look at. Then, they put on a bamboo hat, and they looked like a pair of ordinary wandering cultivators.

I can no longer go out to work in my constable uniform!

Hong Lin had already warned them that even if they were killing disciples of the Demonic Sect, she could not stand idly by without a reasonable and legal reason.

In such a world, being too upright can be quite a headache.

But Li Gu only complained a little before letting it go. This world needs upright people to manage it. Only in such a world can the weak survive. Without people like Hong Lin, the weak would lose their protective umbrella, and then this world would truly be finished.

To put it more realistically, if Hong Lin were also preoccupied with calculating interests and ignored good and evil and disregarded rules, even if Li Gu and the other three had managed to escape into Jiangzhou, they would have been killed by Hua Qianfang who came to hunt them down. How could they be where they are now?

In short, what the two of them need to do next is not only to hide from the Demonic Sect, but also to keep it a secret from the imperial court.

----

Half an hour later, the two arrived at the lower part of the city.

The prosperity of Jiangzhou is almost entirely concentrated in the lower half of the city. The Chaotianmen Wharf controlled by the Jinzhu Gang, the Chuqimen Wharf controlled by the Thirteen Gangs, the Nanjimen Wharf controlled by the Righteous Alliance, the Liziba Wharf controlled by the Ghost City, and the Daomenkou Wharf controlled by the Black Knife Sect are all located in the lower half of the city.

Incidentally, the Hongya Sect, controlled by the Demonic Sect, has its top entrance in the upper half of the city and its bottom entrance in the lower half, making it a gang that connects the two halves of the city.

Half the city was divided into bizarre power structures by these people from all walks of life. Without a powerful backer, a wandering cultivator could easily offend a gang and meet a gruesome end if he wasn't careful.

Li Gu and Zhang Yi naturally had to stay away from Hongya Gate and walk in other neighborhoods.

Li Gu walked in front, while Zhang Yi lagged behind, several hundred meters away.

This kind of movement is, of course, because while they were searching for the corpse puppet, the corpse puppet was also searching for them.

It's still uncertain who will discover it first!

If the corpse puppet discovers Li Gu first and follows from behind, Zhang Yi, who is lagging far behind, will notice this and can secretly intercept the paper crane from behind.

The two continued walking in this manner, one in front of the other, slowly advancing along the bustling and lively streets.

Li Gu saw a beggar sitting by the roadside. He didn't look like a cultivator; he was probably just an ordinary person. So Li Gu went closer, dropped a copper coin to him, and asked in a low voice, "I have something to ask you."

The beggar was overjoyed and quickly stuffed the copper coin into his pocket.

Li Gu said, "Have you seen a paper crane flying in the sky these past few days? Or have you smelled anything foul, like a rotten stench?"

The beggar shook his head in confusion: "Paper cranes aren't real cranes, how could they fly? As for the smell... everywhere I go smells, even my toes smell a bit rotten."

That's athlete's foot, it's contagious! Li Gu turned and left.

He walked along the street, occasionally turning a corner at random. It seemed like he was turning randomly, but in reality, he was searching every street like a carpet. As he walked, he sniffed the air, hoping to find the stench of the corpse puppet.

Upon seeing a beggar who didn't seem like a cultivator but rather a local mortal, they would approach him, drop a copper coin, and inquire about information.

After inquiring for an hour, they still found nothing, but had spent quite a few copper coins.

Just as the two were getting a little discouraged and were thinking of trying a different approach to the search.

A figure flashed before Li Gu's eyes, and an old beggar stood in front of him. He was wearing a tattered blue linen garment, patched and torn all over. Through the holes, he saw old skin that had been weathered by wind and rain, black and wrinkled, with black grime filling the folds of his skin.

Li Gu was slightly startled. This person's movement technique was incredibly fast. Even with my Foundation Establishment stage dynamic vision, it would be difficult to keep up with his movements. It seemed that this person's cultivation level was above Foundation Establishment.

"You're looking for someone, sir." The old beggar chuckled. "And you specifically chose to ask members of my Righteous Alliance. It seems you're not looking for anything legitimate."

Li Gu was both amused and exasperated: Damn it, who knows if this damned Jiangzhou belongs to the Righteous Alliance? Does this godforsaken place even have any innocent mortals who don't associate with any faction?

Thank goodness it's the Justice League!

It is said that the Righteous Alliance is an alliance formed by disciples of various famous and righteous sects in the Central Plains who fled to Jiangzhou for various reasons because they could not make a living there. They banded together to fight against the major underworld gangs and were generally considered to be a legitimate force.

The righteous path is one where reason prevails.

Li Gu glanced back as he turned to the side. Zhang Yi had already stopped some distance behind him. Zhang Yi wouldn't approach until he figured out what the old beggar was up to.

Li Gu felt slightly relieved, clasped his hands in a fist salute to the old man, and said in a calm and upright tone: "I am a rogue cultivator who has just arrived in Jiangzhou. I am not very familiar with the gangs and forces in Jiangzhou, and I did not know that those beggars were members of your alliance. If I have offended you, please forgive me."

The old beggar chuckled, "No, no, why would I blame you for giving our gang members rewards? It's just that I'm getting old, and my curiosity gets really strong. I want to know the truth about every little thing that happens around me. Otherwise... what if one of my gang members actually gives me the information you want, and you follow that information to find your enemy? After a big fight, if the enemy isn't dead, they'll blame my gang members. Wouldn't that make them innocent targets? If anything happens to them, I'll have to go and seek revenge. That's too much trouble, don't you think?"