Yin Qing quietly told Si Tu Fang his doubts.

Si Tu Fang was slightly startled, then her eyebrows furrowed tightly. She also realized something wasn’t right. Recalling the scene from that time, she slowly said:

“Those few big men were wearing miner’s clothes. Their palms were rough and their skin was dark. I thought they were family members of the missing miners, or at least relatives or friends.”

“Before, they were the ones making a scene, making exorbitant demands for compensation from the Lu family.”

“But now that the matter is settled and the Lu family has given the compensation, they suddenly disappeared. They didn’t even show up for the funeral. This is really strange…”

Si Tu Fang thought for a moment and said: “I’ll go and ask the miners’ family members again.”

Yin Qing shook his head. “They probably won’t dare to say anything.”

Looking at their timid and submissive appearance just now, they must be afraid of retaliation and wouldn’t dare to say more.

Si Tu Fang then said: “Then I’ll find some local miners and ask about their identities.”

“The miners also might not tell the truth,” Yin Qing said.

After all, they didn’t have much goodwill towards the Dao Court Department.

“Then…”

Yin Qing’s eyes flashed. He said: “Leave this matter to me, Sister Si Tu. You can draw portraits of those few big men…”

“Leave it to you?” Si Tu Fang was surprised.

“Mm.” Yin Qing nodded. “I know who to find.”

Si Tu Fang hesitated and said: “This is your first time in Nanyue City, right… How do you know so many cultivators?”

Yin Qing humbly said: “My interpersonal skills are pretty good…”

Si Tu Fang was speechless for a while.

“Okay.”

Si Tu Fang sighed. According to her memory, she drew the appearances of those few big men, but the brushwork was a bit clumsy.

Yin Qing took it and, according to what she said, added a few strokes.

Si Tu Fang’s eyes lit up. “This is it. You draw really well.”

Yin Qing smiled.

As an array master who deals with array patterns every day, drawing some portraits is still quite simple.

Yin Qing collected the portraits, then quietly slipped into the Lu family mine. He concealed himself, sat on a mountain rock, and waited.

In the evening, the overseers changed shifts.

A Lu family cultivator in the middle stage of Qi Refining arrogantly walked out of the mine.

Yin Qing called out: “Lu Ming.”

The Lu family cultivator named Lu Ming was slightly startled when he heard this. He looked around, but saw no one. With a doubtful expression, he muttered:

“Strange, who’s calling this old man’s name…”

He continued walking forward.

After only a few steps, he heard someone calling him again.

It was a young, clear, childlike voice.

Lu Ming was startled. He looked around, but there was still no one.

The arrogant expression on his face gradually faded, replaced by extreme solemnity and tension.

“Encountered a ghost…”

These cultivators guarding the mine all knew that the mine at night was dangerous and strange.

But it was still evening, not yet dark…

Could it be…

Cold sweat gradually seeped from Lu Ming’s back.

He was afraid that something bad was happening and involuntarily ran, but after only a few steps, he stumbled and found himself suddenly frozen.

Blue water-shaped spiritual power chains tied him down, making him unable to move.

This feeling was very familiar. Lu Ming understood immediately.

He turned his head and indeed found a small cultivator leisurely sitting on the large rock opposite him.

The small cultivator even waved a small hand at him.

Lu Ming wanted to cry but had no tears.

He was only in the middle stage of Qi Refining, while this small cultivator was already in the late stage of Qi Refining.

Not only that, this small cultivator knew arrays, and all his spells were very strange.

Lu Ming knew he couldn’t escape. He reluctantly walked towards Yin Qing. When he reached Yin Qing, he forced a smile and said:

“Little… Little Master, how did you come?”

Yin Qing said: “I came to find you.”

Lu Ming’s eyelids jumped. “Find me… for what?”

Yin Qing seemed to smile but not quite. He said:

“Was it you who told your family master about my matter?”

Lu Ming’s face turned pale. “No, I didn’t!”

“Tell the truth.”

Lu Ming didn’t speak.

“If you tell the truth, I won’t make things difficult for you,” Yin Qing said.

Then he smiled a bit sinisterly. “But if you lie, the things inside this mine can have another full meal tonight…”

Lu Ming thought of the appearance of those dead miners and involuntarily shivered. He immediately honestly said:

“I didn’t want to say either, but the family master asked me. I… I didn’t dare not say…”

“What did you say?”

Lu Ming said weakly: “I just said you knew arrays and discovered the mine tunnel, and then found the bodies of the miners inside. I didn’t say anything else…”

“I also didn’t dare to say…”

Because the other matters were related to the Lu family.

These matters were leaked by him.

If the family master knew that he had leaked the news, especially about the mine tunnel, he would definitely not be spared.

Yin Qing nodded.

The matter of him knowing arrays and discovering the mine tunnel couldn’t be hidden anyway. It was no big deal if the Lu family master knew.

As long as they didn’t know that he was interested in the mine tunnel, it was fine.

“Okay, then let’s talk about the main matter.”

Yin Qing took out the portraits of the few big men that Si Tu Fang had drawn and asked:

“Do you recognize these people?”

Lu Ming looked at all the portraits once, shook his head, and said:

“I don’t recognize any of them.”

Yin Qing’s gaze condensed slightly.

He picked out three from the portraits and said to Lu Ming:

“You lied. You recognize these three portraits.”

Lu Ming’s mouth opened wide. “This… this…”

How did he see that?

Could this small cultivator read minds?

Yin Qing indeed couldn’t read minds.

It was just that when Lu Ming looked at these three portraits, although his expression was as usual, his spiritual sense had subtle fluctuations.

This subtle fluctuation of spiritual sense could not escape Yin Qing’s perception.

Expression can deceive people, but spiritual sense cannot.

So Lu Ming definitely recognized these three people.

In Yin Qing’s clear voice, there was a hint of coldness. He warned:

“Although I am young, I have a bad temper.”

“You deceived me once, and I will remember it. If you deceive me again…”

Yin Qing smiled brightly. “I will make sure you never have the opportunity to deceive people again!”

Yin Qing’s smile was innocent yet carried a hint of evil.

He was like both an immortal child beside an immortal and a little ghost who hooks souls from the underworld…

Lu Ming shivered again, his heart bitter:

What exactly was the identity of this little ancestor?

Yin Qing’s small hand patted the three portraits. “Speak, who are these three people?”

Lu Ming sighed and said dejectedly: “They are miners…”

“Miners?”

“They are said to be… miners, but they are actually not miners…”

Lu Ming explained: “They are actually city ruffians. Usually, they either act as helpers for some young masters from families and bully people with power; or they extort some small merchants and oppress people from the countryside; or they rob roads outside the city and make some spirit stones to spend…”

“If they have spirit stones, they will spend them lavishly, gambling and visiting brothels.”

“If they really have no spirit stones, they will only go to the mine and dig for one or two days…”

“So they are both miners and cannot be said to be miners…”

Yin Qing frowned. “Do they also help the miners who met with disaster demand spirit stones?”

Lu Ming was a little surprised. “How did you know?”

Seeing that Yin Qing didn’t pay attention to him, Lu Ming could only explain himself:

“If a miner meets with disaster, they will notify the miner’s family members, and then volunteer to demand spirit stones on their behalf.”

“They will take the lion’s share of the spirit stones they demand, and only a small amount will reach the hands of the miners’ family members.”

“No one manages them?” Yin Qing asked.

“It’s useless,” Lu Ming said. “There are relatively many of them, and they do things without regard for consequences. Once they stick to you, they are like scabbed dogs that can’t be shaken off…”

“The cultivators above are too lazy to manage them, and the bottom layer miners are all angry but dare not speak.”

Yin Qing thought for a moment, then asked again:

“How do you recognize them?”

Lu Ming didn’t dare to say too much.

Yin Qing said: “Tell the truth, I won’t blame you.”

Lu Ming then stammered: “I received spirit stones from them and gave them some convenience here at the mine…”

Yin Qing’s gaze condensed slightly. “What convenience?”

Lu Ming quickly said: “It’s nothing, it’s just that they can come and go as they please, and if there are any matters, I just turn a blind eye…”

Yin Qing’s eyebrows furrowed, and his heart was a little doubtful.

These ruffians themselves don’t dig the mine many times, so why bother with such bribery?

What exactly are they doing that requires the mine overseer to “turn a blind eye”…

Yin Qing had a vague speculation in his heart, and his gaze also became cold and somber.

Although the scattered cultivators in Immortal City were poor, there was mutual help at the bottom level.

But here in Nanyue City, some scattered cultivators, who are clearly at the bottom and weak, arbitrarily trample on those who are weaker.

“What are the names of these three cultivators?” Yin Qing said coldly.

Lu Ming said: “This tall one is called Wang Hu, this one with half of his hair burned off is called Tang Beard…”

“The leader is this person with a scar on his face, called Wang Lai. Everyone privately calls him ‘Wang Lai Pi’…”

(End of this chapter)