章 200: Chapter 194: A Honorary Corpse Collector!
As official Corpse Collectors of the Nine Swords Sect, it was their duty to investigate the disappearance of any disciples that went out on righteous tasks and find them or eliminate what killed them. Only freaks willingly signed up as Corpse Collectors and everyone knew this. Who would willingly want to go after demons, powerful cultivators, and carry around corpses to bring back to the sect? Only an insane person would! The Corpse Collectors even had their own domineering symbol that anyone who knew of the Nine Swords Sect could recognize. A ghoulish hand rising from a grave making a fist!
They were known as the most dangerous group of cultivators from the sect. No one was willing to get in their sights. As the Corpse Collectors don't stop coming until they've collected the corpse they went looking for. 99% of the time, they usually created more corpses by the end of their missions. Some causalities couldn't be helped as their temperaments weren't normal.
"So, who is this guy we're looking for?" Kai asked as they made it to the prosperous city of Rain Mountain City.
"A 5th stage Core Preparation disciple named Xia Cao." Hazel answered with a disappointed tone.
"Hey! How am I supposed to remember all the details about some dead guy?!"
"You literally only need to know his name and stage... And we don't know if he's dead or not yet. That's what this is for." Hazel shook a talisman in her hand that was slightly glowing a white light only visible to cultivators.
"If he's gone missing for 3 months, then he's definitely dead."
"So, you remember how long he's been gone but not his name or cultivation realm?" She stared at him with confusion visible on her face.
"Stop making it seem like I'm stupid! Not everyone's brain works the same way, alright? Get off my back!" Kai walked ahead of her.
"You don't even know where you're going. I'm the one with the Search Talisman." Hazel waved the talisman in the air.
Kai tried to snatch it out of her hands but he was just slightly slower, missing the talisman entirely. This pissed him off and Hazel knew he was about to explode any second now. So, she dropped the talisman and let him catch it before it could fall. Now with the Search Talisman in his hand, he led them all across the city.
The Search Talisman got brighter and brighter once it came near the soul of who it was searching for. Alive or dead, it didn't matter. There was only one circumstance in which a Search Talisman couldn't find someone's soul. That was when their soul was destroyed or eaten. This was a situation that hasn't occurred for hundreds of years but none of the Corpse Collectors would let their guard down. They were known as insane for a reason.
A Search Talisman only worked when a person allowed it to inspect their soul. Allowing anyone to find them if they get their hands on the Search Talisman that inspected their soul. This was a requirement that every disciple in the Nine Swords Sect had to go through once they were officially accepted. Only Head Elders and the Sect Leader were allowed to give these out. For thousands of years, it was mostly the Corpse Collector's most trusted members that were allowed to use them. Due to special circumstances, Hazel and Kai were given one. Most likely because of Hazel being the Sect Leader's disciple.
Hazel and Kai were gawked at like local attractions by the cultivators in Rain Mountain City. Hazel could see Kai feeling proud over this fact but she hoped that he was able to sense the negativity focused on them as well. Not everyone was happy to see that the Nine Swords Sect disciples have come to their city. She figured that they probably had something to hide that they didn't want their righteous sect sniffing out and investigating. Lucky for them, they only had one task in this city today and that was to find Xia Cao.
"Corpse Collectors..."
"Who would be stupid enough to kill a Nine Swords Sect disciple in our city!?"
"Out of the strongest forces in the city, there's only those three that could even think about doing so."
"Tri-Frog Family, Great Mountain Clan, and Raven's Claw..."
"Which one do you think done it?"
"Probably Raven's Claw. They're known to commit horrible crimes even during the day!"
The Search Talisman brought Hazel and Kai into a high-class brothel. Hazel could only giggle at Kai's reddened face upon seeing all the half-naked women walking around the place. Many rich gentlemen quickly tried to hide their face once they recognized that they walked in. No one would like to be seen by a group like theirs which speaks of righteousness, justice, and all that is good in a place like this.
"You're the owner of this place?" Hazel asked the well-dressed sweaty man with a long and crooked nose.
"Y-Yes... Is there anything I can do to help you?" He asked.
"What's your name?"
"Lao Leng. Boss Leng."
"Nice to meet you Lao. Don't be nervous, all I have for you is a few questions. You won't be in any trouble even if you can't answer them, alright? So, it's okay to relax." Hazel could see him about to jump out at the seams.
Lao Leng took a deep breath before taking out his handkerchief and wiping his sweaty forehead, neck, and hands.
"What can I answer for you?" He looked a lot more respectable now.
"Has a man named Xia Cao entered your establishment? A 5th stage Core Preparation stage cultivator with a scar on his left cheek." She questioned.
"Uhm..." It wasn't ringing any bells for him. "Let me go get my girls. One of them should know!" In a few minutes, all the girls in the brothel were standing behind him just as nervous as he was earlier.
He asked them the same question he was just asked by Hazel. Kai was admiring the scene behind him now that the girls were in front of them. Hazel was surprised a handsome boy like him was able to keep his innocence for five years in the sect but then again, the Nine Swords Sect isn't the type to indulge in such matter. As a righteous sect, they needed to keep up appearances inside and outside the sect. No disciples were allowed to harass others, randomly assault others, or steal from each other. They kept their focus on strengthening themselves, their sword skills, and making the world a better place in their eyes.
"Little Snow served a customer like that a few months ago." One of the nearly topless girls called out. She had a pair of white bandages wrapped around her large breasts and a long skirt.
"Ah, I remember that too. He was the customer that was said to have been given special service to by Little Snow." Another girl added, she wore a tiny little skirt with nothing underneath and nothing covering her pale breasts or perky nipples.
"Did you see them leave together?" Lao asked.
"No." They shook their heads.
"Where is this Little Snow?" Hazel asked.
"She was just here when we were talking about the Corpse Collectors being here..."
"Did she leave?" Kai asked.
"All the girls inside the store are right here, so, I suppose so." Lao answered.
"Do any of you know where she lives or might run to in case of danger?" Hazel politely asked.
"I know she has a boyfriend in Raven's Claw!" Someone excitedly shared.
"You can find Raven's Claw at the Fighting Arena. That's where their boss stays, you might be able to get some answers out of him." Lao suggested.
"I see. Let's go then, Kai." Hazel began walking upstairs as the Search talisman began to glow brighter and brighter.
Eventually, the light reached its peak in front of a certain door of the brothel. Hazel took no caution as she walked straight in as a fully nude man was sitting on the bed. His first reaction was anger at being given such an ugly girl to serve him but once he saw the Corpse Collector symbol on her robes, he immediately bowed his head and kept his mouth shut. As a 9th stage Qi Consolidator, it would be too pitiful if he died because he didn't take two seconds to use his eyes.
"This is the room where he died but I think they took away his corpse." Hazel explained to Kai.
"Unless they chopped his body up into little pieces." Kai brought up.
"Then there would be a smell in this room but do you smell anything like a corpse?"
"I guess not." Kai began searching through the room regardless.
"Let's go to Little Snow's home to see if she's there." Hazel said after he found nothing inside the room.
"What? Why? Don't you think she'll be at the Arena with her cultivator boyfriend?" Kai was confused.
"Could be. Why don't we split up and see? You check the Arena, I'll check the house." Hazel suggested.
"Whatever. Just don't die or I'll kill you." He kindly warned her to be careful.
"It'll only be for a short while. I won't take long." Hazel reassured him.
Hazel took one of the workers at the brothel to show her to Little Snow's house while Kai went on his own to the Arena. It was a famous spot for the people inside Rain Mountain City. Cultivators and martial artists going at it with the intent to kill for wealth, resources, and fame! Who wouldn't want to watch such an exciting event unfolding every month?
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CaptainBoyHole
CaptainBoyHole Comment/Review on the story readers and give me ideas on possible xianxia things you want to see! No guarantees that I will add what you want. But it helps to have ideas out there. Please point out any mistakes you notice or anything you're not clear about. I'll try to answer them and fix them to the best of my abilities.
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