Chapter 340 - 190: The Flayed Puppet (Part 2)
Chapter 340: Chapter 190: The Flayed Puppet (Part 2)
This is just like the Skin Takers.
The creed of the Skin Takers is to flay living creatures and take their skins.
’I’ll capture them alive.’
’But not now...’
This was just one of the locations Lu Luwei had discovered.
I needed to check the other locations first.
I didn’t want to catch one and tip off the rest.
That would just give the others a chance to escape.
"Lu Luwei."
"Yes?"
"Keep an eye on the entire city. Watch for anyone trying to flee. If you see someone leaving, pay close attention to them."
"Specifically, look for scars that resemble seams on their skin, especially on their backs or in similar areas."
"Oh..."
’Pay close attention?’
Lu Luwei’s Perception swept across the entirety of Ailuotis.
In a country this large, people were coming and going at all hours, of course.
Lu Luwei’s Perception scanned over every single person leaving the city walls.
’Good thing I’m a Level 5 Observer.’
’Otherwise, who would have the energy to watch so many people at once?’
’A normal person’s Perception could only focus on one area.’
’A slightly stronger person might be able to watch two or three places simultaneously.’
’To keep a detailed watch on the movements of several thousand people at once...’
’...is truly asking the impossible.’
"If you find anyone like that, I’ll have Brother Chi Cheng intercept and probe them a bit."
With Lu Luwei acting as the Observer link, everyone in the city could communicate instantly.
It was just that doing so required a considerable amount of effort from the Observer.
Back in Kernoya, under normal circumstances, they wouldn’t just use Lu Luwei as a communications relay for no reason.
Chi Cheng’s reply came through in Lu Cang’s mind: "You got it!"
Lu Luwei could certainly attack from a great distance, but it was impossible to determine if someone was a Skin Taker based on a scar alone.
What if they were just an ordinary injured person?
What would happen if Lu Luwei just indiscriminately fired an arrow and killed an innocent person?
After giving his instructions,
Lu Cang left a particle of Source behind.
Then, he seized control of the Restriction.
The person inside the area sealed by this Restriction no longer had the ability to leave.
The very Restriction meant to keep others out had now sealed him within.
At the same time, Lu Cang also modified the Restriction that blocked Perception. Soon, its occupant would be unable to perceive the outside world at all.
"Wait for me here. I’m going to the other locations by myself first."
CRACK—
A white light flashed like lightning.
Lu Cang’s figure vanished.
Leng Qingying stood there, puffing out her right cheek before blowing the air over to her left.
’Wait for you here?’
’Is he saying I’m too slow?’
Having left Leng Qingying behind, Lu Cang became a streak of white light, instantly weaving through the city’s districts.
WHOOSH!
A moment later, the white light suddenly touched down, coalescing into a human figure.
It was another tower.
Beneath this tower was another palace, buried deep underground.
However, there was no Skin Taker inside this one.
But it was still filled with stacks of scrolls made from human skin.
CRACK—
Lu Cang immediately transformed back into white light.
He rushed toward the next location.
He investigated four locations in quick succession.
The towers in the southwest and northeast corners each housed a Skin Taker in the palace below.
’If every Skin Taker has their own palace, then the towers at all four corners should mean there are two more.’
Next, Lu Cang arrived at the Imperial Palace of Ailuotis.
This place also had a ward that Lu Luwei’s Perception couldn’t penetrate.
It was perfectly normal for an Imperial Palace to have such wards.
The Imperial Palace in Kernoya had them too.
And they were extremely powerful.
Lu Cang easily passed through the Restriction that barred outsiders and landed inside the palace grounds.
Through a wall, he saw the King of Ailuotis, the secret passage in the King’s bedchambers, and the hidden room it led to.
It was a room soaked in blood.
A man was imprisoned in a cage inside.
Human skins were hung all over the walls.
Lu Cang didn’t use his Perception to carefully observe the King on the throne.
Because Perception could also be detected.
A detailed scan could easily be noticed by someone powerful, and Lu Cang’s Profession didn’t specialize in Perception.
Even if he had ways to minimize his perceptual fluctuations, a direct probe was still easy to spot.
It was just like how Lu Cang himself could see the perceptual fluctuations of others.
Even if others couldn’t clearly see the fluctuations, they would still sense the intense focus of a gaze directed at them.
That was why Lu Cang’s observation was just a fleeting glance.
Just enough to know someone was there.
He didn’t stare intently, making it harder to be detected.
Lu Cang’s figure flickered once more.
He paired his movement with "Azure Sky Stream—Fourth Form: Forgetfulness Void."
Silently, he arrived in the King’s bedchambers.
He broke through the Restrictions and traps, walked down the secret passage, and entered the hidden chamber.
The man in the cage had his hands shackled to the bars, his body crammed into the tight space.
The man heard the noise.
He snapped his head up...
...only to see a masked man.
"Why are you imprisoned here?" Lu Cang’s voice was deep, disguised as that of a middle-aged man.
"Heh..."
"What are you playing at?"
"Weren’t you the one who threw me in here?"
Lu Cang thought for a moment, then pulled off his mask.
He revealed the face of a middle-aged man.
"I am an investigator from the Life Church. I heard there were clues in Ailuotis regarding the Rose of Shedding Skin, so I came to investigate."
"I discovered this place during my investigation."
Lu Cang presented his Life Church badge, which glowed with a flowing, verdant light.
The verdant light signified that the badge had been taken to the Church within the last three days and infused with Life Force.