Weird Cultivation, I have a five-organ temple

Chapter 578 Arresting People in the Street
"Mirror of the Wall? Lowly maid?"

Everyone was stunned for a moment, and after realizing what had happened, they all facepalmed.

Using puns will get you fined!
Gongshu Ling's expression was indifferent; he couldn't be bothered to pay any attention to Shang Lu, practically wearing the word "bored" on his face.

"Stop the small talk and get down to business."

Zishu Xunshou called out, forcibly suppressing the smile on his lips, and said seriously, "Since Shanglu's magic treasure is usable, let's take someone and have Lingling find out his background so he can disguise himself and infiltrate the Human Resources Department."

Lingling is the name of the child judged to be a ghost. During this time, I often heard Xu Zhen and Cheng Ren call her that.

"Old Sun, do you have any suitable targets over there?"

Having made his decision, the Rat on patrol turned to look at Steward Sun.

Steward Sun did not disappoint Zishu's inspection team. After a moment's thought, he said, "I suggest arresting a minor official."

He also gave his reasons:
"The people in the Pedestrian Bureau all follow the paths of masters and strategists, specializing in the art of rhetoric, and are somewhat weaker in martial arts and magic. However, the top ones among them are still formidable and difficult to deal with when it comes to using sweet words and honeyed daggers."

In the capital of Chu, watchtowers stand tall, and four-eared, five-eyed beasts are everywhere in the streets and alleys. Any slight movement will be detected!
Therefore, it's better to target the minor officials; their cultivation levels are low, and they can be taken down in an instant! The shorter the time spent, the less likely they are to be exposed! Moreover, the minor officials have insignificant status, are inconspicuous, and are unlikely to attract attention. However…”

Manager Sun paused for a moment, then quickly smiled wryly and said, "Precisely because of their lowly status, it would probably be quite troublesome for them to impersonate the Directorate of Personnel and gather information..."

"Let's try to sneak in first, and if that doesn't work, we'll figure something out!"

The Rat, during his patrol, didn't hesitate and immediately made a decision, adopting Steward Sun's suggestion.

Shang Lu and the others nodded in agreement, all agreeing that it would be better to disguise themselves as minor officials.

It's not easy to take down an official. Even if you do, if you use that identity to infiltrate the Bureau of Personnel, your every move will likely be watched by many eyes.

The Rat on patrol then asked, "Among the minor officials in the Imperial Secretariat, do you know of any suitable candidates?"

"Yes!" Steward Sun nodded firmly.

He had been lying low in the capital of Chu for many years; he wasn't just wasting his time.

He was already very familiar with the situation of the officials in various departments and offices, especially their preferences, which he knew very well.

Since the arrival of the Grand Master of Ceremonies and the Clerk at the Chu Capital and their lodging at the Ceremonies Office, he had secretly thoroughly investigated the situation of the Ceremonies Office.

After the chief pawnbroker and the pawnbroker claimed to be ill and refused to come out, he even tried to bribe the clerks in the Pawnbroker's Office to find out what was going on. Unfortunately, he spent a lot of money but failed to get any useful information.

Fortunately, at this moment, the information he had gathered finally came in handy:
"Five minor officials are the most suitable. They all live alone and have no relatives or friends, which can minimize the risk of exposure."

After saying this, Steward Sun tore down a calligraphy scroll hanging on the wall and pulled out a piece of plain paper as thin as a cicada's wing from a hidden compartment.

The paper was covered with a dense, seemingly chaotic mass of ink dots, as if the ink had seeped through and stained the paper because the writer had pressed too hard while writing.

Steward Sun made a hand gesture with his left hand, chanted an incantation, and then pointed his right hand, forming a sword shape, and suddenly struck the paper.

hum-

The ink dots on the paper suddenly came to life!
They broke free from the paper, suspended in the air, and burst forth with strands of ink as fine as hair, intertwined with each other.

In an instant, a complex and intricate three-dimensional network of ink dots and lines unfolded before everyone's eyes.

Xu Zhen and Cheng Ren were completely baffled.

However, Shang Lu, who studied military strategy, and Gongshu Ling, who was keen on formations, both focused their attention and quickly made a judgment: "This is... a layout map of the watchtowers and streets in the Chu capital?"

"Exactly."

The Rat nodded and pointed to the floating ink dots and lines, explaining in detail: "The ink dots are watchtowers, and the ink lines are streets... You see, each watchtower guards the intersection of roads, making it easy for the Four-Eared, Five-Eyed Beast to monitor the situation in all directions. They are layered and overlapping, forming a defensive perimeter, leaving almost no blind spots."

As he spoke, layers of light ink-colored halos spread out from each ink dot, rapidly expanding and covering the entire layout in an instant—leaving only a few blank areas.

These blank spaces represent the locations of the Chu capital's royal palace, military camps, and several confidential government offices.

Although they are not under the surveillance of the Four-Eared Five-Eyed Beast, their internal security is even more stringent than that of the Four-Eared Five-Eyed Beast.

"hiss--"

Lu Yang, Xu Zhen, and Cheng Ren couldn't help but gasp.

Previously, while walking through the streets and alleys of Chu, one would see watchtowers and four-eared, five-eyed beasts every so often.

However, it is far less intuitive and accurate to look at the changes on the layout diagram.

"There's not a single blind spot... Doesn't that mean we'll be detected as soon as we make a move?" Lu Yang frowned.

"Therefore, the action must be quick, and the person must be captured in an instant."

Manager Sun also looked serious and said in a deep voice, "It would be best to put the Four-Eared Five-Eyed Beasts into a moment of blindness before taking action! And we must not let them become alert."

Lu Yang remembered the various strange treasures in Gongshu Ling's weapon-refining workshop and hurriedly turned his head to ask, "Senior Sister, among the witch artifacts you have refined, are there any that can be used?"

Gongshu Ling pondered for a moment: "There is a wisp of 'Mirage Dream Essence,' which is a byproduct I obtained when refining other magical artifacts. It can blur a person's consciousness and weaken and dull their perception of their surroundings. As long as it is used for a short enough time, it will not be noticed. The only problem is that it will cause the user to also fall into a state of blurred consciousness and weakened perception, thus causing them to sink into this state along with the target."

"This is no big deal. We'll have one person use the Mirage Dream Essence and the other person handle the termination..."

As the Rat was on his hunting expedition, he suddenly remembered something and hurriedly asked, "Could someone else stop this?"

"can."

"That's no problem!"

Just as the two were talking, Xu Zhen opened his hands.

Suddenly, an unusual bulge appeared beneath the skin of his palm, wriggling and lifting his skin high, making it almost transparent.

"puff".

The skin and flesh tore open, and a strange worm, resembling a fern and covered in dark red blood foam, crawled out from Xu Zhen's palm.

Its slender body twisted slightly, and a crack appeared on its head, from which several fleshy tentacles emerged, emitting a faint, sweet, and fishy smell.

"This is the Gu worm I raised. After being swallowed, it can make the host drowsy and sleepy... I just need to think of a way to distract the wizard on the watchtower so that it can be swallowed by the Four-Eared Five-Eyed Beast smoothly."

Lu Yang slapped his thigh: "Isn't that simple? When the time comes, use your fern and your senior sister's Mirage Dream Essence together. With both methods combined, the wizard and the four-eared five-eyed beast on the watchtower will be dazed and dozing off."

"That's a good idea, let's do it this way."

The Rat on patrol immediately made the decision, not forgetting to tease Lü Yang: "Not bad, it's rare for you to be so quick-witted."

Lu Yang was initially smug, but then he realized something was amiss.

What does it mean to have a rare moment of sharp thinking? His mind has always been sharp; he's just a bit impatient, and sometimes his mind reacts a little slower than his body.

In the end, however, he only dared to grumble in his heart and dared not utter a sound.

Zishu Xunshou turned to Steward Sun: "Old Sun, choose the most suitable target, mark the route he took home after leaving the Pedestrian Office, and see where to make your move in the safest way!"

"two."

Suddenly, the pokeweed spoke up.

Seeing everyone looking at him, he explained, "Besides the ever-changing face mask, I have another treasure."

He took out a novelist's storybook, borrowed Sun Wukong's transformation powers from it, and softly shouted "Transform!"

In an instant, his appearance, figure, temperament, and even the impatience between his brows became exactly the same as Lü Yang's, lifelike.

"Tsk, you really don't know how to show off your treasures..." Lu Yang said sourly, full of envy.

The Rat, however, was quite pleased. He circled the "Lü Yang" that Shang Lu had transformed into, clapped his hands, and laughed, "Good! With the right form, it should be able to fool Jiao Tu's Mirror Wall without any problem. When the time comes, the two of us can infiltrate the Bureau of Assassins together. Not only will we have mutual support, but we can also better gather information." He paused, stroked his chin, and pondered, "However, capturing him will have to be done on both sides simultaneously. Gongshu Ling's Mirage Dream Essence can be used directly, but we need to find a way to get Xu Zhen's Fern into the mouth of the Four-Eared Five-Eyed Beast..."

He touched his sparse hair and sighed, "Looks like I'll have to grit my teeth and pluck one more."

“No need to pull out the hair, I have a way,” Shang Lu suddenly said.

The rat, on its hunt, immediately stopped and asked excitedly, "Really?!"

……

Ping An Fang.

Feng Ping, a clerk from the Public Security Bureau, hurried over to this place after the court session ended.

In Ping'anfang, there is a small restaurant run by a widow, which is Feng Ping's daily destination.

Aside from the food pleasing to his taste, it was the widow who caught Feng Ping's eye. In Feng Ping's view, the widow was not only knowledgeable and skilled in various ways, but also knew how to care for others.

Unfortunately, even though she was a widow, she looked down on him, a nobody who worked as a errand boy in the pedestrian police station.

But Feng Ping still came here to eat every day.

Since he's all alone at home, with no food or cooking to do, he figured he might as well kill time here. Maybe after a while, the widow will be moved by his sincerity and grant his wish?

After dinner, Feng Ping lingered for quite a while longer, shamelessly, before finally leaving with great reluctance.

If we don't leave soon, it will get dark, and the terrible night fog will descend.

He wanted to use the night fog as an excuse to stay, but the widow wouldn't allow it. He also wanted to maintain his composure in front of others, so he had no choice but to leave dejectedly.

I hadn't walked far from the restaurant when I saw several people pushing a cart used for delivering leather goods, coming from the alley ahead.

The leather goods on the cart emitted a pungent, fishy smell. Feng Ping raised his hand to cover his nose, muttered "bad luck," and quickened his pace, wanting to get past the leather cart as soon as possible.

The people pushing the cart were Shang Lu, Xu Zhen, and Cheng Ren.

Lü Yang did not follow them. Instead, he was taken to another side by the Rat Patrol, where he was put in charge of activating the Mirage Dream Essence.

Upon seeing Feng Ping appear, Xu Zhen let out a soft snort.

Even if someone heard this sound, they would just assume that he was tired from pushing the cart and was panting to regain his strength.

Only Shang Lu and Cheng Ren understood that he was scolding Feng Ping for coming out too late.

Based on the information provided by Steward Sun, they calculated the approximate time when Feng Ping would appear here.

Unexpectedly, this fellow lingered at the widow's place for a while today, almost causing a blunder.

Fortunately, they were quick-witted. They pretended to be lazy and rested, and waited for a while on another street until Cheng Ren's listening ear heard Feng Ping say goodbye to the widow before pushing the cart over.

Soon, Feng Ping, who was covering his nose with his sleeve, walked to the side of the cart and was about to pass by.

Xu Zhen raised his head slightly and quickly glanced at the watchtower to his left.

The four-eared, five-eyed beast upstairs was routinely scanning its surroundings for any sounds, while simultaneously keeping a close eye on Feng Ping with one eye—it seemed that not only were the foreign envoys in the liaison office under house arrest, but the officials entering and leaving the liaison office were also being monitored.

In fact, the higher one's official rank and status, the more closely they are watched.

Xu Zhen couldn't help but feel fortunate that they had chosen a minor official; if they had actually targeted a high-ranking official, it would have been easy to alert the enemy.

At this moment, the wizard standing next to the four-eared, five-eyed beast showed no unusual behavior...

Has the pokeweed actually made a move?!

Although confused, Xu Zhen did not hesitate and immediately released the fern.

The Gu worm emerged from his palm, transforming into a streak of blood, and pounced on the Four-Eared Five-Eyed Beast at incredible speed.

Xu Zhen was unaware that at the same moment he released the fern, two invisible hands, as if reaching out from the void, precisely covered the watchtower—one covering the wizard's eyes, and the other blocking the eyes of the four-eared, five-eyed beast looking at Feng Ping.

They could still see their surroundings, but unfortunately, they missed the ferns.

The fern instantly flew to the front of the four-eared, five-eyed beast.

At this moment, Third Sister removed her hand from covering the Four-Eared, Five-Eyed Beast and instead lightly covered the ears of the wizard next to her.

The four-eared, five-eyed beast immediately spotted the fern that had appeared on the watchtower.

But it did not warn, because the sweet, fishy smell emanating from the fern was an irresistible temptation for it.

It suddenly opened its mouth, and a tongue full of barbs shot out, precisely curling up the fern and swallowing it whole.

The next moment, the four-eared, five-eyed beast's alert gaze instantly lost focus, becoming unfocused, and its expression also became blank.

Almost at the same instant, the pokeweed moved.

He lowered his head, raised his hand, and instantly donned the hideous mask of the Earth God Nuo, then activated the "Soul Locking" supernatural power.

Feng Ping, who had just brushed against the cart, froze instantly.

He was just a minor official, his cultivation was all in his mouth, and he was far inferior to Shang Lu. How could he possibly withstand "Soul Locking"?
Xu Zhen reached out and dragged Feng Ping onto the cart.

At the same time, Shang Lu took out a shadow puppet and placed it in front of Feng Ping's nose.

This is a remnant of the spirit given by the Rat during its hunt.

Feng Ping was only "soul-locked," but his breath remained. As he exhaled a breath of hot air onto the shadow puppet, the puppet rapidly expanded and instantly transformed into a lifelike "Feng Ping."

Breathing, heartbeat, pulse... everything is present.

The only flaw is that it doesn't move.

But Shang Lu had a way. The moment the shadow puppet swelled up, he took out a paper figure and a concealment talisman and slapped them onto the back of the shadow puppet.

Cheng Ren, who was listening intently to the sounds around them, and Xu Zhen quickly stripped Feng Ping of his clothes and dressed the shadow puppet in them.

Shang Lu pointed at the shadow puppet, and the paper figure was immediately activated, controlling the shadow puppet to walk towards Feng Ping's house according to the pre-planned route.

The reason they didn't choose to break into Feng Ping's house to arrest him was because everyone in the neighborhood knew each other. Strangers like them would be easily spotted if they lingered for even a moment, so it was easier to act halfway through.

The location where the operation was carried out was chosen by Steward Sun after careful consideration. There were relatively few pedestrians, and Cheng Ren's keen hearing was on alert, so he could respond immediately to any disturbance.

Therefore, everything went smoothly.

After the shadow puppet impersonating Feng Ping left, the real Feng Ping was stuffed into the leather goods on the cart by Shang Lu and the others, and completely hidden away using a concealment talisman.

Looking up at the tower, Third Sister saw that they had succeeded and quietly withdrew her hands from covering the wizard's eyes and ears.

The fern, swallowed by the four-eared, five-eyed beast, also stopped releasing its voodoo poison and went into a deep sleep.

The four-eared, five-eyed beast immediately regained consciousness.

It was completely oblivious to its momentary daze.

Even mythical beasts can be lazy; taking a nap is perfectly normal.

It continued to scan its surroundings and saw that "Feng Ping" was hurrying home as usual. The three men carrying the leather goods pushed the cart further and further away from him.

Everything was normal, with no abnormalities.

The four-eared, five-eyed beast let out a triumphant low growl.

(My back hurts when the air conditioner is on, but I get dizzy when it's not. I went to the bathroom just now, and although my mind was perfectly clear, I felt like I had a blackout and peed in the trash can. After realizing what happened, I quickly stopped and moved to another spot. It was just awful... I'm not going to say anything more. I'll go change the bag in the trash can, or I'll get a beating.)
(End of this chapter)