Chapter 691

Chapter 691: First Mission (Part 1)

Upon learning about Yue Buyi’s tragic end, Wang Chen was both shocked by Yu Fei’s methods and deeply apprehensive of the Hehuan Sect.

In his mind, the Hehuan Sect had always been a low-tier immortal sect, unworthy of respect.

This perception originated from the Harmony Sect of the Mountain-Sea Realm, where female cultivators were known to seduce men, amass spirit stones, and cultivate through dubious means, earning the disdain of many righteous cultivators.

Whenever the female cultivators of the Harmony Sect were mentioned, it was either with contempt or suggestive undertones.

Though Wang Chen had never personally encountered a female cultivator from the Harmony Sect, the stories he had heard ingrained a prejudice in him.

Upon arriving in the Haotian Realm, the Harmony Sect had transformed into the Hehuan Sect, but its essence remained unchanged.

Thus, when Wang Chen first met Yu Fei, he held little regard for her. However, as he grew more familiar with her and realized she was far from the typical female cultivator of the Harmony Sect, his opinion of her improved significantly.

Yet, he still instinctively underestimated the Hehuan Sect as a whole.

Now, however, Wang Chen suddenly realized he might have gravely underestimated this despised sect!

Though the Hehuan Sect’s influence had seemingly vanished from Yongle Immortal City, its hidden power was formidable. Wang Chen suspected the sect had infiltrated every level of society, both high and low.

Otherwise, how could Yu Fei so easily track his movements and operate so boldly within the city, even stirring up significant turmoil?

Despite his growing wariness, Wang Chen, a mere Purple Palace cultivator, was powerless against the Hehuan Sect.

He quickly pushed these concerns aside.

Soon after, Wang Chen received a talisman from the Exorcism division.

He had been assigned a mission!

Upon receiving the "mission notification," Wang Chen felt a wave of relief.

He knew the Exorcism division wasn’t particularly busy and didn’t require regular attendance checks.

But after spending over half a month at home without a single task, he had begun to feel uneasy.

Now, at last, he had something to do.

He donned the blue uniform of the Patrol Office, fastened his identity token to his waist, and left his home. Mounting his flying sword, he sped toward the outskirts of the city.

As a member of the Patrol Office, Wang Chen enjoyed certain privileges, such as the ability to use flying artifacts or flying swords for transportation within Yongle Immortal City, which made his work far more convenient.

He traveled swiftly, like the wind and lightning, following the clues to a mine located over three hundred miles southwest of the immortal city.

Yongle Immortal City was home to millions, with cultivators making up the vast majority, truly earning its title as a cultivation city.

With so many cultivators requiring food and resources, the demand for cultivation resources was staggering.

The immortal city itself rested atop a massive dragon tortoise and produced little of its own.

The materials needed to sustain the city’s operations were largely sourced from the surrounding farms and the numerous mines hidden within the nearby mountains.

Wang Chen was headed to one such mine.

Having already read the mission details in the talisman, Wang Chen wasted no time. When the mine’s chief steward hurried over to greet him, Wang Chen cut straight to the point: "Skip the formalities. Take me to the site!"

The chief steward was momentarily taken aback.

Typically, when an issue arose that he couldn’t resolve, he would request assistance from higher authorities.

To put it bluntly, even if they sent a dog from above, it would still outrank him, the chief steward.

Therefore, the chief steward of the mine prepared to follow the usual protocol, ready to warmly welcome Wang Chen with spiritual wine and beautiful attendants.

Unexpectedly, Wang Chen completely deviated from the expected behavior.

Seeing the chief steward in a daze, Wang Chen raised an eyebrow and asked, “Is there a problem?”

When the chief steward snapped back to reality, he quickly waved his hands and replied, “No, no problem at all. Please follow me, esteemed officer.”

However, at that moment, the chief steward was filled with doubt.

Wang Chen was still young, and the Patrol Office had inexplicably sent him alone to investigate the disturbances caused by magical spirits in the mine.

Was it reliable?

Of course, the chief steward maintained a respectful demeanor and personally led Wang Chen deep into the mine.

The scene of the incident was an old, abandoned mine tunnel, where most of the Obsidian Lamps hanging on the walls had become inoperative due to lack of maintenance or energy.

Once inside, the atmosphere felt quite eerie!

Wang Chen immediately “sensed” a trace of dark forces.

He had slain countless Evil Spirits and had developed the ability to identify their presence, making him sensitive to their existence.

At the same time, he also saw three bodies lying in the mine tunnel.

Three miners.

They were either sprawled or lying down, each with a complexion as pale as paper, their wide-open eyes still reflecting the despair and fear from their final moments. Their faces were unnaturally twisted, and most of their hair was gray.

In fact, these were three very young miners, each with less than a year of experience in the mine!

Now they lay lifeless, leaving the chief steward immensely troubled.

Wang Chen squatted down to examine the three bodies closely and asked, “When were they discovered?”

The chief steward replied, “It was this morning.”

The origins of the miners were rather complex, including loose cultivators who had nowhere else to turn, those from the lower class of the immortal city trying to make a living, and unfortunate souls sold into labor due to overwhelming debts.

Since miners often couldn’t bear the hardship and would flee secretly, the mine took great care in monitoring them.

Mines had performance assessments; if the amount of ore extracted decreased, the supervisor had to face the consequences.

Losing one’s position was quite common.

These three miners disappeared right under the watchful eyes of the foreman, and when they were found again, it was the tragic scene that Wang Chen now witnessed.

Understanding the severity of the situation, the chief steward did not dare to move the bodies and immediately reported to his superiors.

He knew he could not hide anything; even if he wanted to cover it up, he needed the strength to do so. If the matter was discovered and reported without action on his part, he wouldn’t just lose the chief steward position, he might be sent to a “difficult place.”

This “place” was typically the most arduous and grueling mines!

The Patrol Office had always taken incidents involving Evil Spirits seriously, and upon receiving the news, they quickly made arrangements.

They dispatched Wang Chen to investigate.

There seemed to be a misunderstanding; the chief steward was puzzled by Wang Chen’s solitary investigation, and Wang Chen himself felt strange about it.

He had assumed that upon arriving at the mine, other officers would be there, and together they would work diligently to find clues and ultimately uncover the true culprit, bringing them to justice.

Instead, it was just Wang Chen!

If the higher-ups didn’t care, they wouldn’t have sent someone over so quickly.

But if they were serious about the situation, why only send one person?

The chief steward mentioned the incident occurred this morning, yet Wang Chen observed that the three bodies appeared as if they had been dead for days without decaying.

He extended his right index finger and gently touched the face of one of the bodies.

A faint, nearly imperceptible glimmer flashed at his fingertip.

There were remnants of dark forces!