Everyone rushed toward the source of the voice.
As he ran, Ren Qing pondered silently, to ambush cultivators in the tunnels undetected would definitely require technique assistance.
This suddenly reminded him of Tu Di. Logically, earth escape type techniques were indeed very hard to detect.
Moreover, Ren Qing had always felt something off about Tu Di.
When they reached the clearing outside, they saw snakes swarming the area, transporting corpses elsewhere.
Ren Qing's Double-Pupiled eyes shifted, immediately spotting some slight movement among the dense pile of opossum corpses.
The living opossum had already taken human form, with only patches of gray fur remaining on its back, its gaze utterly vacant.
Had Ren Qing not already experienced countless dangers, he would have been terrified.
The thousands of identical opossum corpses, their death expressions eerily uniform, sent chills down one's spine.
Jiang Feng glanced at Ren Qing in surprise, the latter had reacted even faster than him.
What technique granted such vision?
Jiang Feng bent to examine the rat-man, finding it completely mindless, its vitality draining rapidly.
"Huang Ziwang, stimulate its Muddy Pellet Palace with toxin. See if we can restore its consciousness."
Ren Qing seized the rat-man's body under the pretense of restraining it, secretly activating the Information Stream.
[???]
[Age: 4 hours]
[Lifespan: 163 breaths]
The rat-man's lifespan dwindled visibly, nearing exhaustion.
"Hold it steady."
Huang Ziwang extended his index finger, the nail turning emerald green as it pierced the rat-man's forehead, penetrating the skull.
The rat-man thrashed wildly.
Had Ren Qing not advanced to the Ghost Envoy Realm, gaining significant physical enhancement, he might not have restrained it.
Huang Ziwang said gravely: "It has no soul."
Jiang Feng explained: "Only when a Rat Mother's original body dies does its clone develop a soul."
Ren Qing thought privately, whether this soul connected to the original remained questionable.
Jiang Feng stared at the rat-man, his tone chilling: "Who are you?"
The rat-man's eyes gained faint awareness as it muttered: "Who am I? Who am I? Who am I..."
Blood gushed from its nose and mouth, its entire body trembling violently, wrinkles spreading across its skin at visible speed.
Lifespan: 85 breaths remaining.
Jiang Feng shouted: "Huang Ziwang!"
Huang Ziwang narrowed his eyes, his fingertip darkening as toxin flooded the rat-man's skull, contorting its face.
With the rat-man's lifespan nearly exhausted and no clues obtained, Ren Qing asked urgently: "Are you a Restraint Officer?"
"Restraint Officer... Restraint Officer..."
The rat-man's eyes showed dawning realization, its muttering growing louder as if recalling memories.
Jiang Feng and Huang Ziwang exchanged glances, while involving Restraint Officers meant trouble, the rewards would increase accordingly.
"Ren Qing, continue."
Ren Qing hesitated briefly.
Since Tu Di might be connected, there was no need for secrecy, especially having already informed Song Zongwu.
He probed: "Restraint Officer... Tu Di?"
The rat-man's eyes bulged, whites flooding with blood vessels.
"Tu Di... Tu Di..."
As it chanted, blood streamed from its facial orifices, its skull swelling until cracks split the bone.
"I am not Tu Di..."
Its voice grew guttural, carrying a tinge of madness.
"Then I am..."
Before it could finish, its lifespan expired. The rat-man exploded into pulp, leaving no intact remains at all.
As it died, the other corpses rapidly decayed, soon reduced to piles of bone ash.
Jiang Feng asked uneasily: "Does this truly involve a Restraint Officer?"
Huang Ziwang also doubted: "Tu Di wouldn't recklessly consume Supernatural Remnants, the risks are too great."
His knowledge of Tu Di was limited to their Disaster-Dispelling Forbidden Zone encounter, less familiar than his rapport with Ren Qing.
Connecting these unrelated events seemed far-fetched.
Though Jiang Feng didn't know Tu Di, a suspect was better than nothing.
Ren Qing recounted everything truthfully, omitting only his soul-separation ability, claiming he'd overheard it at night.
"Days ago at the Secret Pavilion, I saw Tu Di acting strangely, even his memory seemed affected."
Jiang Feng nodded: "With Tu Di's techniques, ambushing Half-Corpse Realm cultivators underground would be easy."
Huang Ziwang grimaced: "The priority is locating Tu Di and discerning his motives."
"I'll report to the Restraint Officers' Hall. Since tracking isn't our specialty, other Restraint Officers may take over the Rotten Mud Gang case."
Ren Qing rubbed his nose, the Restraint Officers' Hall truly had clear divisions of labor. By comparison, constables faced greater risks for meager rewards.
"As precaution, Ying Jun, deploy your technique."
"Senior Jiang, it'll only last about three hours."
Ying Jun looked pained, while her hair-serpents were retrievable, this would waste hundreds of strands.
Once serpents infested the tunnels, Jiang Feng said: "We're done here. Let's leave."
They exited via Ren Qing's entry tunnel, other branches now sealed.
Under the blazing sun, Ren Qing felt worlds apart, it was hard to imagine Rotten Mud Gang members living perpetually in those cramped, lightless depths.
"I'll return to the Restraint Officers' Hall first."
Jiang Feng drew a door with his Bone Key and stepped through.
Ying Jun also departed.
Baffled, Ren Qing asked Huang Ziwang: "Old Huang, is the mission just... over?"
"For now. The Restraint Officers' Hall has clear protocols. Whether we continue depends on Nether Crow notifications."
Huang Ziwang sipped his liquor, seemingly unworried about potential fallout, instead pleased by the impending compensation.
Ren Qing pressed: "What exactly is the mission reward?"
Huang Ziwang looked amused: "It seems Elder Song didn't explain. How typical of him."
"The Restraint Officers' Hall has special Blood Crystal Ore, it's useless despite it's extreme hardness, so Restraint Officers use it as currency."
He shook a pigeon-egg-sized red gemstone.
To Ren Qing, the Blood Crystal resembled a frozen blood droplet, reeking of iron, it was likely congealed from Ksitigarbha's blood.
"The Ghost Market opens in a few days. Join me if you're interested."
Ren Qing's interest was piqued, perhaps he could find materials for weapon forging.
Yet he'd never heard of "Heaven-Earth Spirit Materials." What exactly was sold at the Ghost Market?
When he asked, Huang Ziwang only chuckled cryptically, avoiding any form of direct answer.