Stranger Danger-Chapter 1338: Finding A Needle In The Sea

A moment later, someone asked with a trembling voice, “Are you... telling the truth, senior?”

“Every word I speak is the truth,” Ye Qing declared. “I have no need to lie to you, nor are you deserving of my lies.”

Yang Bo was the first one to react. He dropped to one knee and cried loudly, “I will die for you, senior!”

“I will die for you, senior!”

“I will die for you, senior.”

Yang Bo set the example, and everyone else followed it. They all dropped to one knee and swore their fealty to Ye Qing just like him.

“Thank you for your service.” Ye Qing gestured for the crowd to stand. “If you find my friends for me, I will definitely keep my promise and take you all away from here.”

“But of course, I must warn you not to disappoint me, work half-heartedly, or try to trick me. Otherwise, I’m sure you understand the consequences.”

“We won’t dare!”

Although Ye Qing’s voice was gentle and warm, it landed in everyone’s ears like a thunderclap, annihilating their courage and draining the blood from their faces.

“Very good.” Ye Qing nodded in satisfaction before looking at Taoist Tiger. “What about you, Reverend?”

“I will obey your command,” Taoist Tiger replied with a salute. Ye Qing wasn’t just speaking to the crowd, he was also speaking to him. However, he didn’t feel as optimistic as them.

Ye Qing’s request was a small matter, but that did not mean it wasn’t a difficult task. This was doubly true in the living purgatory that was Void Stomach City.

For starters, Void Stomach City was full of dangers. One misstep, and one would die and plunge into the depths of eternal purgatory.

Not only that, Void Stomach City was far, far bigger than what people knew of an average city. They called it a city, but its borders seemed boundless and never-ending. Taoist Tiger had lived in Void Stomach City for several years at this point, but he never found out how big Void Stomach City really was.

Moreover, newcomers did not always appear at the same place. They were scattered randomly. Therefore, trying to find a specific group in Void Stomach City was akin to finding a needle in the sea.

“However, Void Stomach City is endlessly big. It won’t be easy for us to find your friends with just these numbers.”

“I am aware. That is why I’ve entrusted this task to you. I don’t care what method you use. All I ask is that you find my friends,” Ye Qing said smilingly.

Taoist Tiger fell silent for a moment before asking, “What if they’re already dead?”

“I am certain that they are still alive,” Ye Qing answered.

Taoist Tiger said frankly, “Perhaps they’re alive now, but that may change in the future. Every day, people are dying in Void Stomach City.”

“I know. That’s why they must be found as soon as possible.”

Ye Qing’s smile was gentle, but his words were spine-chilling. “If they die, I will bury the entire Void Stomach City with them. Do you understand?”

“I do.”

Yes, Taoist Tiger understood all too well. Ye Qing was threatening them—outright threatening them—to find his friends as soon as possible no matter the method or cost. Otherwise, he didn’t know if the young man truly possessed the power to destroy Void Stomach City, but he would definitely die. freeweɓnøvel~com

“Do you understand?” Ye Qing then looked at the crowd and repeated his question.

“We understand!” They all answered.

“Good. You may begin your search now. Old Zhang, please.” Ye Qing looked at Papersmith.

“As you command, young master.” Papersmith waved his sleeve, and countless paper dolls flew out into the open and landed in everyone’s palm. “This is a spirit-communicating paper doll. The characteristics of the people you’re looking for are in there. Once you find them, you can use the paper doll to contact me.”

“Remember, you are to message me as soon as you find any clue and obey whatever order I give you. Do not act recklessly no matter what.”

As he spoke, Papersmith stopped hiding his aura. It surged forward like rivers and bore down on everyone like mountains, suffocating them.

“Do you understand?”

“We will obey your orders, senior.”

......

Taoist Tiger was watching Papersmith with a grave expression. Before the old man revealed his power, he thought that he was just one of Ye Qing’s servants. He thought that he wasn’t deserving of attention.

But now, he realized that he was only half-right.

Yes, Papersmith was Ye Qing’s servant. However, he was also a Sage.

In other words, a Sage was serving under a Half-Sage. How could this not terrify him and stun him?

His relief was overwhelmingly greater than his other emotions though. He was relieved that he hadn’t foolishly tried to push the young man’s buttons.

At the same time, he snuffed out the last embers of conspiracy in his head. Now, he was truly devoted to the task of finding Ye Qing’s friends.

“I have a suggestion, young master. May I share it with you?”

Taoist Tiger changed his appellation for young master. Instead of warrior, he willingly debased himself and addressed Ye Qing as young master.

Grinning from ear to ear, Ye Qing seemed very satisfied with Taoist Tiger’s change in attitude and appellation. “Tell me.”

Taoist Tiger began after a small bow. “As I mentioned earlier, Void Stomach City is far too big for the likes of us. Whatever we do, it seems incredibly unlikely that we will be able to locate your friends in a short time, and the longer we delay, the worse your friends’ situations will become.”

Ye Qing nodded encouragingly. “Agreed. Do you have an idea that may remedy this?”

“One, we should spread the word that you can rescue everyone from Void Stomach City and draw as many people as possible into the search.”

Taoist Tiger explained, “Two, we should employ the aid of the strongest warriors of Void Stomach City. Void Stomach City is full of dangers, and only those warriors are truly strong enough to conduct the search without dying. Their manpower and resources will be greatly appreciated as well.”

“I have some friends that can persuade them to help you and be of use to you. However...”

“Feel free to speak frankly,” Ye Qing prodded.

Taoist Tiger said worriedly, “Some of them are powerful enough that they won’t listen to me. They may even plot against you and work against your plan!”

“Indeed. Who are these people?” Ye Qing asked.

“There is the Old Buddha at the Buddha Forest, the Mountain Water Old Man at Mountain Water Art City, the Adjoined Blue Grandmother of Purple Cloud Mountain, the River Guardian of Fish Bone Temple, the Skinsmith of Skinner Villa and more...”

“That is a lot of people...”

Ye Qing’s smile grew even brighter. “Let’s do it this way. Give me their locations, and I’ll handle them all myself.”

“As you command, young master.”

Taoist Tiger produced a jade slip from his sleeves and handed it to Ye Qing. “This is the partial map I drew of Void Stomach City. Their locations are all marked on it. You should know them at first glance.”

“Very good.” Ye Qing accepted the jade slip and poked his demonic thought into it. The three-dimensional image of Void Stomach City immediately appeared inside his head. It had directions, geography, location names, and more useful information.

The map encompassed a huge area. Clearly, Taoist Tiger had explored many places and tried many ways to leave Void Stomach City.

Of course, as vast as the map was, it was far from the limit of Void Stomach City. It might just even be a very, very small portion of it.

Still, this map was very valuable. As Taoist Tiger said, Void Stomach City was as vast as it was dangerous. Trying to search a small group in this place—one that was scattered no less—was practically as hard as finding a needle in the sea.

But no matter how hard the task was, he must find his friends no matter what.

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