What do you mean by saying that the corpses I sew are all ominous creatures?

After saying that, Li Qing reached into the pocket of his trousers, pulled out something wrapped in red silk cloth, and handed it to me.

"What was found in the inside pocket of his jacket should be the military tally that the tomb raider named Ma Jianguo risked his life to obtain."

I reached out and took the red silk package. Through the fabric, I could feel the cold texture of the metal object inside, and it even carried a trace of the chilling aura unique to objects buried underground for many years.

However, I didn't rush to open it; instead, I casually put it in my pocket.

"Wait here for me, I'll go get the other thing."

I gestured with my chin toward the ruins of the bungalow, then turned and stepped over the broken bricks and flowing sewage, and went back into the house where I had kicked down one of the walls.

The light inside was dimmer than outside, and the room was filled with a strong smell of blood and the strange odor of burning bones.

The altar that I had cleaved in two lay scattered in the center of the room, with several blood-stained skulls rolling to the side, their empty eye sockets looking particularly eerie in the dim light.

In the cracks between the broken altar stones, lay a short stick, about a foot long and entirely black.

This is the "beast-head short stick" that Old Man Huo had stolen, which is also the "drumstick" that Qiu Feng mentioned.

I stepped forward, bent down, and picked up the short stick.

The short stick is quite heavy, made of neither gold nor wood, and its surface is carved with complex and ancient patterns.

The moment I touched the short stick, I could clearly feel a chilling aura trying to penetrate my meridians through my palm.

This must be the evil energy left behind by Qiu Feng's daily and nightly rituals with blood and skulls.

I frowned slightly, and the evil core within my body spun slightly, instantly unleashing a powerful and domineering evil aura into my palm.

The sinister aura that tried to invade was like a mouse seeing a cat; it was instantly crushed and devoured by my malevolent energy and disappeared without a trace.

As I held the short staff with the beast's head, images of Old Man Huo's pitiful appearance before his death and the scene of him entrusting his life savings to me flashed through my mind.

"Old Huo, I've taken care of cleaning up your own household."

I've retrieved this for you too.

I said it silently in my heart.

Holding a short stick, I walked out of the ruins of the bungalow.

At this moment, Li Qing was standing on the outer perimeter, holding several talismans in his hand, and was quickly setting something up in several locations around the pig farm.

"The earth's energy here has been polluted by that bastard's sacrificial ritual with human lives. If it's not dealt with, evil spirits will easily breed here in the future, and it may even affect the health of the living people nearby."

Li Qing explained to me while she was busy working.

"I will set up a simple Heaven and Earth Purification Divine Incantation Formation, and it will take only a few days to completely dispel the evil energy here."

I nodded and didn't disturb him.

After he finished setting up the last talisman, the two of us walked out of the stinking pig farm side by side.

Back at the SUV parked by the roadside, we both tacitly walked to the roadside ditch and carefully washed our hands and faces with the bottled water we had brought with us, trying to wash away the unpleasant smell of pig manure that had stuck to us.

As we opened the car door and got inside, the cool air from the air conditioner blew on our faces, and the faint smell of leather and car air freshener made us both breathe a long sigh of relief.

Li Qing sat in the driver's seat, rolled down the window, lit a cigarette, and took a deep drag.

"Old Chen, today's job has a lot of information to share."

Li Qing exhaled a puff of smoke, turned to look at me, and his eyes showed a hint of seriousness.

"Old Huo said there were only two keys, but Qiu Feng found out there were three."

And then there's the hidden power behind the antique shop—even a ruthless cultivator like Qiu Feng, who dares to kill and rob, wouldn't dare provoke them. This shows just how deep their foundation is.

I sat in the passenger seat and placed the red silk bundle and the beast-head short stick on the center console.

"Old Huo has been guarding Jiangcheng for so many years, and he's been out of touch with the outside world. It's normal that he has some gaps in his intelligence."

I untied the red silk cloth, revealing the bronze animal head plaque inside.

The bronze plaque is about the size of a palm, and the animal head pattern carved on it is exactly the same as the one on the short stick, both with a ferocious appearance.

The moment the bronze plaque and the short stick were placed together, even without casting any spells, I could vaguely sense that an extremely weak magnetic resonance seemed to have been generated between the two items.

They are like two magnets; although they are some distance apart, they still have some kind of invisible attraction to each other.

"Qiu Feng said that the third key is a beast-head seal, and it is located around Jiangcheng."

I looked at the two items on the center console and analyzed them calmly.

"This explains why the forces behind that antique shop would go to such great lengths to establish a presence in Jiangcheng."

They're not only looking for the military tally, but they've likely been eyeing the imperial seal for a long time as well.

Li Qing flicked off his cigarette ash, his brow furrowed.

"Old Zhang's disappearance was most likely the work of these people."

Old Zhang used to rob tombs; perhaps he came across some crucial clues.

"This matter is still uncertain at the moment."

However, Qiu Feng's reaction didn't seem feigned; he genuinely didn't know about Lao Zhang's situation.

I wrapped the red silk cloth again and put away the military tally and the short stick.

"We still need to tell Lu Yan about this, after all, that bastard Qiu Feng has harmed countless people."

"We still need her to send someone over to clean up this mess."

As I spoke, I took my phone out of my pocket.

The screen lit up, and I glanced at the time; it was already past five in the afternoon.

Without hesitation, I found Lu Yan's name in my contacts and pressed the dial button.

The phone was answered quickly after only two rings.

Lu Yan's voice came through the receiver, and in the background, you could hear someone quickly reporting their work and typing on a keyboard.

Clearly, she is currently in a very busy state.

"Chen Yang? How's things going on your end?"

Lu Yan's voice was direct, without a single wasted word.

I leaned back in my seat, looking at the sunset outside the car window, and said, "I've finished my business."

Qiu Feng is dead, and Li Qing has already dealt with the situation at the scene.

However, we also found a large number of dismembered limbs here, suggesting that the victims were all killed by Qiu Feng.

The police can't handle these cases, so we'll have to trouble you to send someone over.

The address is an abandoned pig farm on the outskirts of the city. I'll send you the location in a bit.

Lu Yan remained silent for a while on the other end of the phone.

Two or three seconds later, I heard her mutter "bastard" under her breath.

"Okay, I'll arrange for someone to go there right away."

Lu Yan's voice was tinged with gritted teeth. After taking a deep breath, she continued:

"Besides these, what other discoveries did you make?"