I Cheated While Cultivating

Chapter 100: Collusion

Both of these cloth bundles had bloodstains on them, with a strong smell of blood.

However, the bloodstains were not red but a deep purple, which means the blood was poisonous, and its owner had likely been poisoned.

Zhou Heng’s gaze shifted and, indeed, he saw that the two beautiful women had now begun to foam at the mouth, their bodies convulsing, and their skin appeared to have worms crawling beneath it, continuously undulating.

At the same time, a faint black aura began to emanate from their bodies. This aura was extremely sinister, giving Zhou Heng a sense of deja vu.

This was clearly the same tactic employed by the Plague Emperor Sect martial artist he had encountered in Yuyang County City, who gathered disease aura to launch his attacks.

And now, it was the disease aura that was emanating from these two women!

“A Plague Emperor Sect tactic!”

Zhou Heng immediately remembered the situation of that Plague Emperor Sect martial artist. Even if bisected at the waist, their blood still carried a potent toxicity that could spread disease and even cause an epidemic.

Boom!!

Thus, without a second thought, he struck with two Palm Thunders, dazzling golden thunderbolts exploding from his palms, striking the two women.

Their bodies, still convulsing and heaving as if about to burst open, were instantly turned into charred corpses.

The mutations in their bodies finally ceased.

“Disciples from the Honghua Palace were actually set up by the Plague Emperor Sect?” Zhou Heng furrowed his brows tightly.

This made him feel unexpectedly surprised. Could it be that the Plague Emperor Sect was actually in league with the Honghua Palace?

Or, was it just a coincidence, merely two Honghua Palace Ninth Grade disciples seeking convenience by purchasing poison from the Plague Emperor Sect?

“No, that’s not right,” Zhou Heng suddenly shook his head, musing, “If it was just a simple buyer-seller relationship, why would these two be targeted with such suicide methods?”

The mouths of the two women had been sealed by Zhou Heng, making it almost impossible for them to commit suicide by hiding poison in their mouths, and the release of disease aura upon death did not seem like a simple act of taking poison to commit suicide.

It was more likely that someone had left behind certain methods inside their bodies in advance.

This meant that the Honghua Palace and the Plague Emperor Sect were highly likely to have colluded for some reason, and even if not involving the entire sect, at least a Middle Third Rank martial artist must have been involved.

Otherwise, it would be difficult to achieve such bizarre suicides like those he had just seen with the two women.

Zhou Heng’s frown grew deeper, suddenly feeling that the situation might be more troublesome than he had originally anticipated.

He had thought that all that was needed was to kill two more disciples from the Plague Emperor Sect.

Yet unexpectedly, the Honghua Palace had also become involved.

Out of the four major evil factions within Da Qi, two had now emerged.

What’s going on?

Zhou Heng’s gaze returned to the charred corpses, and he carefully searched them, but found no possessions on their bodies.

There was simply no clue.

“Was it just a fruitless killing?”

Zhou Heng’s brow slightly arched, feeling that things should not be this way.

His mind whirred, thinking, “The Plague Emperor Sect is suspected of collaborating with the Honghua Palace. Previously in the teahouse, I heard some news that the people from Shocking Thunder Manor used to frequent Tongtian Pavilion for pleasure.

“Now that Shocking Thunder Manor is colluding with the Plague Emperor Sect, what role did the Honghua Palace play in this? Could they be the bridge connecting the two?”

With this thought, his eyes lit up.

If this were true, then the people from the Honghua Palace might be the most familiar with both Shocking Thunder Manor and the Plague Emperor Sect. It wouldn’t be surprising if they knew the specific whereabouts of some members from both factions.

“No wonder there was an arrangement for suicide to silence them,” Zhou Heng glanced at the charred corpses of the two women, feeling slightly regretful. If he could have extracted information from their lips, it would have saved a lot of trouble.

“However, although these two are dead, their residences remain. Perhaps in their daily dwellings, there might be some clues to be found.”

Thus, he made an instantaneous decision, grabbed the two charred bodies, and leapt out of the window. With swift movements, he ran across the rooftops and threw their bodies into a wild dog’s den before heading towards Tongtian Pavilion.

Although Zhou Heng did not know for certain if the two women came from Tongtian Pavilion, it was clear that Tongtian Pavilion was the most likely place they would choose as their abode.

It was worth inquiring about.

Zhou Heng never expected that he would actually have a day of visiting a brothel.

No!

He was investigating clues related to the Plague Emperor Sect, not wandering in a brothel.

Inside the Tongtian Pavilion.

The scent of makeup was strong, the lights enchanting.

Many young women in skimpy clothing moved to and fro, vying for attention, their antics leaving many men with hazy eyes, enveloping the place in an ambiguous atmosphere.

Zhou Heng alone remained clear-headed as he walked among them, which made him quite conspicuous.

He was aware of this, but he really didn’t know how to pretend to be a client seeking pleasures.

Zhou Heng still sported his stubbled beard, his face marked by the vicissitudes of life, dressed in plain, coarse linen, looking every bit the very ordinary middle-aged uncle.

If he hadn’t flaunted five hundred-tael silver notes in front of everyone as he entered, the doorkeeper might not have let him in.

However, this also turned him into the darling of the girls inside.

No sooner had Zhou Heng stepped through the door—

than an older procuress with a waist that twisted like willow, followed by a group of young women with eyes lit up like “tigeresses stalking their prey,” approached him.

“Oh dear, what wind has blown you here, sir? Long time no see!” the procuress said with a familiarity that implied otherwise, trying to cozy up to Zhou Heng and take his hand, her eyes fixated on his chest.

The five hundred-tael silver notes were hidden inside.

The procuress was already calculating how to milk this fat sheep, who clearly seemed to be new to the brothel, dry.

Five hundred taels!

That was more than enough to invite the top courtesan for a song and dance.

Even for the courtesans to do some things they usually shouldn’t, it was possible.

Let’s not even mention anything about “selling art without selling the body.”

To sell or not to sell, it all depends on the money being enough.

However, such transactions often ended up diminishing the future value of the courtesan, as it was a one-off deal.

But with a greenhorn like this, a chick of a man, one could minimize the costs to the greatest extent.

It might not even be necessary for the girls to accompany him to bed to rake in the cash!

The procuress’s eyes were filled with eagerness as she smiled and said, “Sir, take a look, I’ve specially brought you a crowd of beautiful young ladies. These are all my precious daughters, feel free to choose any of them!”

Zhou Heng did not look at the girls; instead, his eyes squinted.

Because he could feel the procuress’s gaze.

He almost burst forth with murderous intent.

Dare to covet my money?

She must have a death wish!

Nevertheless, he remembered his purpose for being there and after scanning the girls behind the procuress briefly, he put on a disappointed look and shook his head, sighing, “The ones I’m looking for aren’t here.”

“So, you have someone special in mind?” The procuress fanned herself, her heart leaping with joy.

She had seen many like him before, usually someone who happened to catch a glimpse of a girl in the Tongtian Pavilion and saw her as a Celestial Man, then became determined to find her.

As a rule, as long as they could meet that girl, such men were willing to spend any amount of money.

Big profits ahead!

“The ones I’m looking for are these two…” Zhou Heng began to describe.