I drew a talisman to save the sun from its bleeding state.

Chapter 40: Two Clues Found

Zhou Zheng went to the back of the storage room and opened all the windows to ventilate it: "There might be clues inside. You'd better pray for good news, otherwise our lead will go cold again."

Xu Fan stammered, "I think so."

Liu Zhen went down first: "There's a ventilation system down there. I'll go down and turn it on first. You guys stay up there for a while before coming down."

Liu Zhen walked down the stairs, and soon the lights came on and the sound of fans spinning could be heard.

After waiting for about five minutes, Zhou Zheng went down first to check it out. After confirming that there were no problems, he signaled the others to come down.

The underground room was well-furnished, with four bookshelves against the wall, a computer, a table and several chairs, and a desk with a portrait on it... but the rather messy scene inside made Zhou Zheng raise an eyebrow slightly.

Liu Zhen was standing in front of the bookshelf, browsing through books, without turning his head: "We're late."

Xu Fan's face showed surprise: "Are you late?"

Liu Zhen turned around, opened the book, and gestured with his lip: "Look, the key parts have all been torn off. I guess this was supposed to record the location of Zhu Yan's seal, but this page and the surrounding pages have all been torn off."

Xu Fan jumped down the stairs, strode to the books, and exclaimed in shock and anger, "Damn it! Why are you tearing this thing apart?!"

Zhou Zheng walked up to Liu Zhen, took the book, and activated the Destiny Deduction. A darkness enveloped his mind. He raised an eyebrow: "I can't see the past of this book. The person who tore out the pages tampered with it."

Xiaoxue asked in surprise, "The person who tore out the pages knew the contents of the book very well? Was this done by someone inside the Xu family?"

Liu Zhen stood before the bookshelf, his gaze sweeping over it with sharp intensity, his divine sense rapidly scanning: "The other books are the same; anything containing crucial information about Zhu Yan has been torn out. However, there's good news for the Xu family boy: all the cultivation techniques hidden in this secret room are now yours alone. This villa currently uses a Yin Wood formation; with a slight modification to the spirit-gathering objects, it will become a large-scale spirit-gathering formation, which will also benefit your cultivation."

Of course, it could also benefit Zhou Zheng. Once Xu Fan dies, this place can be transformed into a suitable place for Zhou Zheng to cultivate.

Xu Fan's face was grim. The fact that the Five Evil Spirits had taken shape and remained here was largely due to the cultivation environment here. He had originally planned to convert the Five Evil Spirits to obtain crucial information so that he could cultivate here in the future.

Now his wish has come true, and he has also obtained the cultivation techniques accumulated by the Xu family.

But now, an ancient demonic beast is waiting to break through the seal and hunt down him and his sister. How can he possibly laugh?

Zhou Zheng remained silent, but instead used his destiny calculations on all the items present, discovering something interesting: "This person came down in batches to destroy things, including this portrait that was being worshipped, which was a replaced fake. However, something very interesting is... he forgot to protect this fake. This might be a clue. Let's put this portrait away and leave the rest for now, so Xu Fan can investigate it later."

Most things, when pushed back, end up in complete darkness, except for this fake's timeline, which is normally viewable.

Liu Zhen stepped forward and looked at the portrait. It depicted a burly, bearded Taoist priest standing on a rock, holding a whisk. "The painting is quite good, but it's a pity it's a fake. There are several details in it that prevent the incense offerings from being made. It must have been really difficult for them to do such a meticulous job."

Liu Zhen admired it for a moment and then put it into his storage ring.

Zhou Zheng turned and gestured for Xiaoxue and the others to go upstairs first: "Let's go up first and see if there are any other clues."

Everyone returned to the lobby on the first floor, and Zhou Zheng stroked his chin in thought.

Xiaoxue asked curiously, "Brother Zhou, why don't we investigate this with my dad? Didn't you say there was a connection behind this?"

Zhou Zheng: "The Xu family's area is the sealed land of the Zhu Yan, and your father's area is more like a sacrificial offering. But there's no rush for your father's side."

There are two lines of communication now: Project 427 and Xu Fan. Project 427 is a defense project, with its core components all conducted within the military region and under its tight protection. Dude, if you can obtain classified information and get what he wants under the military region's tight protection—that's real skill, you should take it.

But judging from the current situation, it is obvious that the enemy does not have the ability, otherwise they would not have thought of targeting Xiaoxue—they were not even trying to assassinate Xiaozhengjun.

Moreover, the year-end review is approaching, and the special investigation team will come to inspect and investigate. The level of strictness will increase dramatically, and any unstable factors will be strictly eliminated—this is equivalent to a severe crackdown. Not to mention that after Xiaoxue's incident, Project 427 will only be more stringent in eliminating unstable factors.

If the enemy still succeeds under such extremely strict conditions, Zhou Zheng can only give them a thumbs up and praise them for being awesome.

So, it's actually Xu Fan who can break through easily. As one of the few remaining heirs of the Xu family, he is the only... um?

Zhou Zheng looked at Xu Fan.

Xu Fan blinked.

Zhou Zheng asked curiously, "Are you the only one left in the Xu family?"

Xu Fan: "Well, if you're talking about people who are still alive, breathing, and able to walk, it's probably just my sister and me left. Everyone else is having a pretty tough time."

Zhou Zheng: "Does your sister know about this?"

Xu Fan shook his head: "I asked her, and she doesn't know anything either. But she's different from me. She was born to my father's first wife, and I was born to his youngest wife... or rather, his youngest mistress. My sister's health isn't good either. All the good karma I've accumulated in the past two years has been used to extend her lifespan and health."

Xu Fan suddenly froze, his expression changing drastically: "My sister's poor health—was someone trying to harm her?"

Zhou Zheng: "Possibly."

Xu Fan hurriedly turned and ran, shouting, "My home is over there, Brother Zhou, hurry! I'll drive!"

Zhou Zheng quickly caught up: "Not bad, it seems we have two leads now."

Xiaoxue and Tang Ying hurriedly followed.

Liu Zhen shrugged and had no choice but to follow.

Xu Fan rushed to the gate of the abandoned villa, asked Tang Ying for the key, hurriedly sat in the driver's seat, and waited for everyone to get on quickly before stepping on the gas and heading straight home.

Xu Fan's face was anxious and filled with anger: "These guys deserve to die! Why didn't they come at me!"

Liu Zhen sat in the passenger seat, arms crossed, leaning back in his seat: "You hold an official position in the underworld, so if someone curses you, wouldn't they be courting death? I bet your sister has nothing, she's just an ordinary person. If she had some cultivation, she could withstand it a bit more."

Cursing and killing members of the underworld's official ranks—how audacious! You could chop off several heads.

Zhou Zheng: "Hmm? So, the enemy only dares to harm Xiaoxue because Xiaozhengjun holds an official position?"

Liu Zhen nodded: "It's the same idea. Directly confronting someone with an official position is tantamount to directly challenging the official system, which is different from confronting an ordinary person. However, confronting the family members of officials is also very bad."

Xu Fan: "Damn it, the old man is so sexist. If only he had shown some favor to my sister back then, she wouldn't have to suffer like this. She's living such a miserable life now."

Liu Zhen chuckled: "If we really did it your way, we'd be doomed. You don't actually think this is free, do you? The seal on Zhu Yan was created a thousand years ago. Guess what those who received favors from the Xu family used it for? You, a grown man, didn't just stand up for yourself; you threw your women in there? Do you think that's something a human being should do?"

Xu Fan remained silent, his face grim, understanding Liu Zhen's meaning. He had received favors from the Xu family, yet he was now bound here for life, unable to leave. Those who had received even more favors from the Xu family in the past were likely in an even worse situation, unable to leave for life, bound to the Xu family and forced to suffer.

Liu Zhen shook his head, sighing at the naivety of children who thought this was a life of luxury. In situations like this, it's the living who need courage and perseverance; those near death or already dead are the ones seeking comfort.