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Si Tu Fang saw Mo Hua, full of surprise.

She explained a few sentences to the arguing cultivators, managed to free herself, and then brought Mo Hua and the others to a quiet teahouse by the road. She ordered a few cups of green tea, a few dishes of dried fruits, and pastries.

Mo Hua couldn’t help but ask curiously:

“Elder Sister Si Tu, are you the Dian Si of Nan Yue City?”

Mo Hua was not surprised that Si Tu Fang was a Dian Si.

She was wearing the Dian Si uniform, her cultivation was not weak, and she had a family background. It was normal for her to serve as a Dian Si in the local Dao Ting Si.

What puzzled Mo Hua was why she would be the Dian Si of Nan Yue City.

Nan Yue City was quite far from Tong Xian City. If she was the Dian Si of Nan Yue City, why would she have traveled all the way to Tong Xian City to catch evil cultivators in the first place?

Si Tu Fang sighed: “Family training requires rotating duties everywhere.”

“Oh.” Mo Hua understood.

The Si Tu family’s family style seemed to be quite good. They knew to send disciples to various places to serve and temper their abilities.

Moreover, looking at it, this training was still quite difficult.

Even the idle Zhang Lan, after one change after another, first Heishan Village, then the big demon, he was also so busy his feet didn’t touch the ground.

“What about you?” Si Tu Fang also asked, “Why are you here?”

Then she looked around again, “Did Zhang Lan also come with you?”

Mo Hua shook his head and smiled: “Uncle Zhang didn’t come. I’m traveling with my Master and passing by here. I wanted to visit an elder and just happened to run into you.”

“Master, traveling?”

Si Tu Fang was slightly startled.

She remembered Zhang Lan mentioning that Mo Hua was quite good at drawing arrays and had a mysterious and unfathomable mister.

She looked at Bai Zi Sheng and Bai Zi Xi again.

The two had extraordinary appearances and unusual temperaments. They looked like disciples of a high person at first glance.

Especially Bai Zi Xi, she couldn’t help but look a few more times and said with some amazement:

“This is your little senior sister, she’s really beautiful…”

“Mm!” Mo Hua nodded, silently saying in his heart:

“You haven’t seen her beautiful appearance yet…”

Bai Zi Xi also smiled slightly: “Elder Sister is also very beautiful…”

She looked good, her voice was good to hear, and her words were also good to hear.

Si Tu Fang smiled so much her mouth wouldn’t close.

After a moment, she asked again:

“What about Zhang Lan, is he still in Tong Xian City?”

“He should be back at his family.”

“He built his foundation.”

“Mm.”

Si Tu Fang nodded, and suddenly asked:

“I heard that you killed a big demon in Tong Xian City, is that true?”

Mo Hua quickly nodded: “Yes!”

“The big array was drawn by me, and in the end, I also used the collapse of the big array to solve it and send that pig to heaven!”

Of course, Mo Hua didn’t say these words out loud, only thought them in his heart.

Si Tu Fang clicked her tongue and praised, “Really… extraordinary.”

This kind of deed by a side cultivator, building a big array and suppressing and killing a big demon, is extremely rare even in the history of Dao Ting.

She didn’t ask about more specific things.

This kind of matter concerned the survival of all cultivators in the city, and shouldn’t have much to do with Mo Hua, a little cultivator in his teens.

Asking him might not necessarily yield any information.

Mo Hua drank a mouthful of tea, pursed his lips, and felt it was bitter, a little astringent, and then had some sweet aftertaste.

It was hard to drink, yet also a little good to drink, feeling strange.

He tasted all the dried fruits, then tasted the pastries as well, his eyes slightly brightened.

The taste was not bad.

He tasted a few more mouthfuls, silently guessing the making method of the dried fruits and pastries in his heart, thinking he could try to make them himself.

Dried fruits for Kui Lao to eat, pastries for his little senior sister to eat.

While eating, drinking, and thinking, Mo Hua suddenly remembered something and asked Si Tu Fang:

“Elder Sister Si Tu, what was happening just now when you were arguing with people?”

Si Tu Fang’s originally relaxed mood instantly dissipated completely, and she said helplessly:

“It’s nothing good.”

“Can you tell me about it?”

Mo Hua blinked, his eyes clear and bright.

Bai Zi Sheng and Bai Zi Xi also looked at Si Tu Fang, obviously also a little curious.

Si Tu Fang thought for a moment, sighed: “There’s no harm in telling you…”

“I transferred to this Nan Yue City Dao Ting Si as a Dian Si half a year ago.”

“Here in Nan Yue City, families occupy mines, and most scattered cultivators make a living by mining, which is usually referred to as ‘mine cultivators’.”

“Mine cultivators need to enter mines, dig caves, and mine, which is quite hard and very dangerous.”

“Inside the mines, there is old filthy qi, as well as some evil and strange ghosts, and mountain-piercing class demons.”

“If filthy qi invades the body, the light will be seriously injured, and the heavy will die.”

“The demons in the mountain caves also eat people.”

“Besides, if the mine caves are not dug well, and the arrays are made crudely and drawn carelessly, it can easily cause the mine caves to collapse.”

“Once the mine caves collapse, and the mountain rocks are buried, Qi Refining period cultivators cannot come out alive.”

“So in this Nan Yue City, quite a few cultivators die in the mine caves every year…”

“So those few cultivators just now were arguing with you, Elder Sister, because they had relatives who died in the mine caves?” Mo Hua asked.

Si Tu Fang nodded, “Yes, but it’s not known whether they are alive or dead, just missing.”

Then she sighed again, “Based on past experience, those missing in the mine caves are highly likely to be dead.”

Mo Hua said puzzledly: “Then what does this matter have to do with you?”

Si Tu Fang said helplessly: “Their family members are missing, crying to the Dao Ting Si to report the case. The Dao Ting Si accepted it, but is not very willing to handle it.”

“I saw they were poor and miserable, their relatives were missing, and they were crying all day. I couldn’t bear it, so I actively took over this matter.”

“As a result, I didn’t expect…”

Mo Hua suddenly realized: “You ran into trouble, right…”

Si Tu Fang smiled bitterly, “If the trouble was only on the Dao Ting Si side, then it would be okay. But these victims are also a big trouble.”

“When I took action to help them, they were at first grateful to me with tears. Gradually, they started to complain, blaming the Dao Ting Si for not handling it well, asking why it took so long and they still haven’t found the people.”

“The compensation matter is also a lion’s mouth.”

“The Zhang Si on the other side also dislikes me interfering. I’m caught between two sides, embarrassed left and right, in a terrible state…”

Si Tu Fang’s face showed deep helplessness.

Mo Hua nodded, “Rising rice kindness, fighting rice enmity, that’s how it is.”

“If you don’t help them, they will beg you to help. If you really help them, they will dislike you for not helping enough, and thereby blame you.”

Si Tu Fang looked at Mo Hua in surprise, “Then you say, how should I do it?”

Mo Hua thought for a moment, and said: “If you truly want to help, at the beginning you just have to maintain an official business attitude.”

“Neither biased nor partial, this way they will beg you for help, and naturally have a good attitude towards you.”

“Otherwise, it will be troublesome.”

“If you get close to them and show an appearance of considering their interests, they will subconsciously think that no matter what happens, you will side with them…”

“Thereby they will feel that your kindness is as it should be, and they will even push further, proposing various demands to you, and even deceive you, taking you for a big fool…”

Si Tu Fang said surprisingly: “How do you know these things?”

Mo Hua scratched his head, “Uncle Zhang Lan told me…”

Si Tu Fang was startled, “Why did he tell you these?”

Mo Hua recalled the past, and said clearly: “We drank wine together, well, mainly he drank, I ate meat and conveniently drank a little fruit brew… He drank a lot and talked a lot, so he told me everything.”

“He said that before, he handled matters with a good heart, and still made people inside and out dissatisfied and so on…”

Si Tu Fang listened, her expression quite surprised.

She was quite familiar with Zhang Lan. Zhang Lan was outwardly lazy, but actually perceptive, and his temperament was also somewhat proud. He didn’t have many friends, and was also somewhat estranged from his family. Yet, she didn’t expect his friendship with Mo Hua, this child, to be so good, actually talking about everything…

Si Tu Fang thought for a moment, and nodded. Mo Hua was right. She was just soft-hearted, and as a result took over a mess. Now there is no progress, instead, she’s fallen into a quagmire, suffering people’s complaints every day. Thinking of this, Si Tu Fang sighed deeply again.

“Elder Sister Si Tu, how did these mine cultivators go missing?”

Si Tu Fang shook her head, “We still haven’t investigated it. There are no clues on the mine caves side. The family members of these mine cultivators are also confused and haggling, only wanting to make trouble, wanting an explanation, and also wanting more compensation spirit stones. When asked about the specific case, they are just vague, saying how hard they are…”

Mo Hua’s gaze slightly condensed, “There’s probably something wrong here.”

Si Tu Fang nodded, “I also feel something is wrong, but I haven’t found any clues for a while. Now I’m still being troubled by the family members of these mine cultivators every day. I’m a bit flustered and exhausted, and I don’t know what to do…”

Mo Hua secretly said: “Or, you can lock them up?”

Si Tu Fang was startled, “Lock them up where?”

“Dao prison…”

Si Tu Fang was silent. Even Bai Zi Sheng and Bai Zi Xi also looked at Mo Hua with the same gaze as if looking at a bad person, silently.

“This might not be appropriate…” Si Tu Fang said tactfully.

“Just scare them a little…”

Mo Hua said, “They are relying on your good heart, so they are pushing their luck. If this continues, you won’t find the people, you won’t solve the case, and you will definitely be in a difficult situation.”

“This is not good for anyone…”

“Moreover, they are definitely hiding something.”

“Lock them up for a few days, and they will calm down, know fear, and know propriety. When you ask them things again, they will also tell you honestly.”

Mo Hua paused for a moment, then recalled what Zhang Lan said, nodded and said: “For people who understand reason, you can be kind. For people who don’t understand reason, you need to properly establish a little prestige, otherwise you will be bullied. Only being a good person cannot solve the problem.”

Si Tu Fang pondered for a long time, then said helplessly: “I’ll try.”

Si Tu Fang chatted for a few more sentences, saying that she had trouble and they could find her, and so on. Then she paid the bill and left.

After Si Tu Fang left, Mo Hua drank a mouthful of tea and suddenly found Bai Zi Sheng looking at him with bright eyes.

Mo Hua was startled, “What’s wrong?”

Bai Zi Sheng said: “Dao Ting Si is handling the case, let’s go too.”

Mo Hua pouted, “Go do what?”

Bai Zi Sheng hesitated a little. It was not good to say that he wanted to follow along to have fun. He thought for a moment, and then said: “Aren’t you curious? Why did the mine cultivators go missing, are they alive or dead?”

“If they are alive, where are they trapped, and can they be rescued?”

“If they are dead, how did they die? Were they killed by other cultivators, and why were they killed…”

Bai Zi Sheng rattled on. Mo Hua, who was not too curious at first, couldn’t help but become a little curious after listening…

Mo Hua frowned slightly again. Moreover, he vaguely felt that there was something fishy about this matter, and it seemed to involve complex karma. Why he felt this way, he couldn’t say clearly. But ever since he learned divine sense derivation and calculation, this kind of premonition would occasionally appear in his heart. It seemed that divine sense derivation and calculation could perceive some of the karma of things.

“Is it possible that Master taught me derivation and calculation all the way just to let me pre-sense karma, seek good and avoid bad?”

Mo Hua said with some doubt in his heart.

Thank you jesy3990 for the reward.

(End of this chapter)