I changed the world.

Page 126

The inpatient department of Yongjitang Hospital in Linzhou has three main entrances: the main entrance, the east entrance, and the north entrance. Generally, people enter and exit through the main entrance, while the north entrance is relatively small and is usually used for vehicles leaving the hospital, especially as a passage for ambulances.

In contrast, under normal circumstances, the east gate is closed, with the lock on the gate locked from the inside, and three large flower pots are placed outside the gate, with the cycads in the pots growing lushly and completely blocking the gate.

This is why a large number of reporters with their cameras and microphones have gathered outside the hospital's main entrance, far more than the previous night. At the north gate, a similar number of reporters have also been deployed, effectively blocking all access.

In contrast, the east gate was much quieter, with only a few scattered reporters wandering around hoping for the best. Clearly, everyone assumed that this gate, which was usually closed, would never be used.

However, everyone was wrong. Just then, the east gate was suddenly opened, and several security guards quickly came out, working in pairs to move the large flowerpot blocking the entrance to the side, clearing a passage.

The four or five reporters loitering around the entrance, armed with phones and cameras, immediately sensed something was amiss and rushed forward to inquire. However, the security guards remained silent, not uttering a single word. After moving the flowerpots, the guards then spread their arms, gesturing for those who had gathered to step back. At the same time, a small convoy of vehicles drove out of the hospital.

A completely black sedan led the way, followed by a similarly black mid-sized van with curtains drawn on both sides, and a final black sedan brought up the rear. The three vehicles drove away from the hospital without stopping.

By this time, some reporters had already started sprinting after the convoy, while others hurriedly made phone calls to inform their colleagues waiting outside other doors.

However, it was not yet time for work, and the surrounding roads were in good condition. After leaving the hospital, the convoy of three vehicles began to accelerate slowly. After turning two corners, the three black sedans that were already waiting on the side of the road ahead started up. One of the cars accelerated and overtook the lead car of the convoy to become the leader.

Chapter 206 People from the Investigation Bureau Arrive

Then the first of the two cars followed closely behind the convoy, while the last car lagged far behind at a distance.

This convoy was the one escorting the remains of the former abbot from Yunxiao Temple. The three vehicles that joined at the end were temporary additions from the temple's personnel in Linzhou. After all, Linzhou, as the capital of Jiangdong Province, is less than 200 kilometers away from Yunxiao Mountain in Dinghai, and Yunxiao Mountain has a deep-rooted foundation and influence there.

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Just after the convoy left the inpatient department, the security guards quickly moved the three potted cycads at the east gate back to their original positions. They remained silent, offering no response to the reporters who had rushed over from the other two gates, and closed the east gate again.

About fifteen minutes later, a black sedan stopped on the roadside not far from the north gate of Yongji Hall in Linzhou.

Two men dressed in black uniforms got out of the car. After locking the car, they whispered a few words to each other. One of them squinted and looked up at the inpatient building through the hospital fence. His gaze fell on the window on the 32nd floor. He stared at it for a while, and then glanced around at the various camera equipment set up not far away.

Then, he took out sunglasses from his pocket and put them on, and another man who got out of the car did the same. Afterward, the two walked through the crowd of cameras blocking the hospital entrance, went to the guardhouse next to the gate, and knocked on the glass window.

"Hello, sir, it's not opening time yet." The glass window of the guardhouse opened slightly, and the security guard inside, hunching his shoulders, slowly replied before trying to close the glass, since the temperature was truly freezing in the mornings of this season.

However, his action was stopped by an intervening hand, and then a document was handed in.

"Hello, we are agents from the Special Crime Investigation Bureau of the Imperial Ministry of Justice. We have urgent business to attend to and need to visit your Dean. Please cooperate with us in carrying out our duties."

Upon seeing the silver badge on the left page of the ID, the security guard immediately perked up and instinctively stood up, smiling obsequiously, "So it's you two officers. Please wait a moment while I report it to them. Is that alright?"

"Okay, please do it as soon as possible." The agent nodded.

By this time, some of the surrounding reporters had noticed the two men in black uniforms and sunglasses, and some approached them to try and get information. However, the two men in black clearly had no intention of making a big fuss; they simply waved their hands at the reporters, indicating that they would not give interviews, and then remained as still as statues, refusing to answer any questions.

The security guard at the gatehouse responded quickly. About two minutes later, the guard walked out of the gatehouse, opened the side door, and gestured for two detectives to enter. At this moment, two more security guards came out from behind the door. After the two detectives entered, they quickly blocked the reporters who were trying to follow them in, and then locked the side door again.

The security guard at the gatehouse, after giving a brief instruction to his colleague, gestured for the two detectives to follow him toward the inpatient building...

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"Hello, may I ask if you are Dean Yu?" In a reception room, the two detectives met Yu Hanlin, the dean of Yongji Hall in Linzhou. Both of them had already removed their sunglasses, and the first one asked with a cupped hand.

"It's me. And who are you two?" Yu Hanlin had already received information about the two detectives' visit, and he returned the greeting with a cupped hand.

"Dean Yu, hello. I am Wang Duo, a senior agent from the Special Crime Investigation Bureau of the Imperial Ministry of Justice. This is my identification, and this is my partner, Li Chengxu." The leading agent showed his identification again. Yu Hanlin's gaze lingered briefly on the badge, photo, and serial number on the identification, and he already had a guess in mind. However, he maintained a gentle smile and asked as if he didn't know anything, "So it's Agent Wang and Agent Li. May I ask what brings you here?"

"Here's the thing, according to our monitoring, around 2:00 AM today, a rather unusual phenomenon occurred on the 32nd floor of your hospital's inpatient department. A huge pillar of light shot into the sky, and at the same time, an unusual scene also appeared in the sky. For national security reasons, the purpose of our visit is to get a detailed understanding of this situation from President Yu."

“I see,” Yu Hanlin nodded, gesturing towards the conference table beside him: “This way, please, let’s sit down and talk.”

The three then sat down. Yu Hanlin gathered his thoughts and said, "Do you two know that on the 21st of this month, the Venerable Master Xiao of Yunxiao Temple on Yunxiao Mountain in Dinghai stayed at our temple?"

The two detectives exchanged glances, and Wang Duo nodded, saying, "I've heard a little about it. Apparently, Master Xiao felt unwell after attending a religious ceremony and was hospitalized. Some media outlets have even reported on it." As detectives of the Southeast Branch of the Special Crime Investigation Bureau, and especially as detectives of the newly established "Fourth Division," the two naturally wouldn't overlook the current situation of a famous religious figure in the Southeast region.

"I wonder how Master Xiao's condition is now?" Seeing that Dean Yu had suddenly shifted the topic to a Xuanmen master, Wang Duo became more cautious in his words and carefully probed.

Yu Hanlin's expression was solemn as he slightly cupped his hands and said, "Master Xiao passed away at around 1:20 AM this morning."

"This..." Both agents couldn't help but show surprise upon hearing this. Even though neither of them were followers of the Xuanmen sect, they knew that the death of a Xuanmen master at the True Person level was no small matter. According to usual practice, even the royal family would make a gesture of respect at the funeral.

"Is this absolutely true?" Wang Duo lowered his voice and stared at Yu Hanlin.

"As Abbot Li of Yunxiao Temple previously stated, Yunxiao Temple will officially notify the Imperial Religious Affairs Bureau of this matter this morning. At the same time, some high-ranking officials and important figures in the royal family will also receive the notification. Perhaps it will appear in the media this afternoon or tonight."

Wang Duo nodded upon hearing this, then looked at Yu Hanlin again. He knew that Dean Yu had not mentioned this matter specifically to inform him.

"After Master Xiao passed away, at the request of Yunxiao Temple, the academy set up a temporary mourning hall on the 32nd floor, and then..." Yu Hanlin described in detail what he knew about what happened afterward.

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After listening to Yu Hanlin's account, the two detectives exchanged glances, and in each other's eyes they saw a complex mix of solemnity, doubt, and surprise.

Wang Duo licked his dry lips and hesitated before saying, "This...so, that was the extraordinary phenomenon that occurred when Elder Xiao ascended to immortality?"

To be honest, if someone had said the same thing to him a month ago, he would have thought that person was "out of their mind." As for whether they were "out of their mind" and talking nonsense, or "out of their heart" and thought he was an idiot who would believe such nonsense, then he would have had to resort to some methods...

However, now, after a series of intensive training sessions at the bureau, he felt that... it might not be impossible after all...

Is it really that rare for a Taoist master to ascend to immortality?

You think it's strange?

That's because you haven't seen enough...

"According to what Supervisor Li said at the time, that should be the case," Yu Hanlin nodded.

Wang Duo nodded, then cupped his hands in a gesture of respect and said, "I wonder if it would be convenient for us to pay our respects and offer incense at Master Xiao's memorial altar?"

"The coffin of the old master has already set off to return to Lingxiao Mountain, with Supervisor Li and others accompanying and attending to it."

"Setting off so soon?" Wang Duo was slightly taken aback, but considering that Dinghai Lingxiao Mountain was only about an hour's drive away, he was relieved. After all, this was a private matter of Yunxiao Temple, and others had no right to interfere.

Even if it were to confirm the true cause of Xiao Zhenren's death, it wouldn't be the Special Crime Investigation Bureau's place to get involved; this has always been within the jurisdiction of the Religious Affairs Bureau.

"This matter is the intention of Yunxiao Temple. It is being carried out in accordance with the sect's rituals, and it is not appropriate for us to interfere..." Yu Hanlin said with a smile.

Nodding in understanding, Wang Duo thought for a moment and then said, "In that case, would it be convenient to go to the mourning hall to pay our respects now?"

Wang Duo spoke very politely because, even though they were of special status, entering the memorial hall of a true person, especially one supposedly the place where they "ascended to immortality," was a sensitive matter that required the cooperation of the academy. Otherwise, if a disturbance were to erupt, it would be difficult to control the situation. Religious matters always require utmost caution.

Moreover, at this moment, the higher-ups' attitude towards Xuanmen is bound to be more ambiguous than before. If the two of them mess things up, they might be thrown out as bargaining chips to appease the situation.

Yu Hanlin hesitated for a moment, then nodded and stood up: "It should be alright, please follow me this way..."

"In that case, we'll have to trouble Dean Yu." Wang Duo and Li Chengxu quickly got up and followed.

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"Because it involves the sacred site of the old master, five Taoist priests (a respectful term for Taoist priests in this world) from Yunxiao Temple are staying at the mourning hall. I'll greet two of them later..."

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"Gentlemen, after you enter, Master Zhou will guide you through the ritual. However, please do not linger after the ceremony, and do not touch any items in the mourning hall..." In the elevator lobby on the 32nd floor, Dean Yu patiently instructed them. Beside them was a middle-aged Taoist priest dressed in a Taoist robe, who was Zhou Jingyuan, the disciple who had previously served as the attendant of the old master.

After the two nodded in agreement, Zhou Jingyuan stepped forward and explained the Xuanmen rituals to them. Then, he led them toward the mourning hall.

P.S.: I saw some readers asking about the update progress in the comments. It seems they used the audiobook service and didn't see the previous P.S. here. I'll clarify again that this book will be updated every Wednesday and Sunday, and once a day on other days. This is the fastest Black Moon can do. Besides updating, writing this book also takes up a lot of time for research, writing outlines, setting up, and other tasks. In addition, I'm not a full-time writer and have to take care of work and housework, so it's really impossible to speed things up. Please understand.

Chapter 207 Lost Navigation

At this moment, a Taoist priest stood guard at the entrance of the mourning hall, while inside, faint incense smoke wafted out, accompanied by the low chanting of sutras.

After straightening their clothes, the two detectives, led by Zhou Jingyuan, solemnly entered through the main gate. Upon entering the mourning hall, Wang Duo quickly glanced at the scene inside.

This was a square room of about 60 square meters, but the interior had been completely transformed into a religious site. An altar, yellow paper offerings, banners, lamps, talismans, and other ritual implements were all set up, and incense was burning in a burner on one side. Two Taoist priests sat cross-legged on one side of the mourning hall, chanting scriptures with their eyes closed.

Wang Duo didn't look too closely and performed the rituals meticulously according to the etiquette he had learned. Fortunately, Zhou Jingyuan, who had led them in earlier, did not urge them to leave immediately after they bowed. Instead, he described the scene back then, such as the location where the old master's body was laid to rest and the arrangement of the mourning hall.

However, the mourning hall was not a place for conversation, so after a brief introduction, the three of them respectfully withdrew from the mourning hall.

Seeing that Zhou Jingyuan seemed to be a good talker, Wang Duo deliberately struck up a conversation with him. During the conversation, he learned that the Taoist priest in front of him was actually a disciple who served the old master, and immediately became even more polite in his words. Zhou Jingyuan, in turn, described the whole situation of the old master's ascension that night from beginning to end.

While Wang Duo and Zhou Jingyuan were talking, Li Chengxu wasn't idle either. He found the caregivers and medical staff on this floor and began to find out what had happened. These people were on the night shift, and most of them hadn't finished their shift yet. The name of the "Special Crime Investigation Bureau" had enough intimidation for these ordinary people, so most of them honestly told the story of what had happened.

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After leaving the 32nd floor, the two detectives visited Yu Hanlin again. With his approval, they went to the monitoring room to retrieve the hospital's surveillance footage archived since Xiao Zhenren took over.

Afterwards, the two left the hospital with heavy hearts.

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