Chapter 228: Qian Jianjun’s Whereabouts

Chapter 228: Chapter 228: Qian Jianjun’s Whereabouts

At this point, the Seeking Technique was already quite practical.

However, it still required an item imbued with a certain amount of the target’s aura to locate them.

Jiang Xu was now facing this very predicament. They had no way of finding items that their targets had once touched.

But now that Jiang Xu had raised the Seeking Technique to the Perfect Level, it no longer required any items to find a target.

All he had to do was go to a place the target had been. As long as they had spent enough time there, and it hadn’t been too long ago, he could locate them.

It also gained a new ability: the power to locate multiple people at once, rather than being strictly limited to a single person.

Aside from these changes, the Seeking Technique had also gained a few other practical, minor abilities. However, they weren’t particularly relevant to Jiang Xu’s current situation, so he didn’t bother to examine them closely.

Jiang Xu dismantled the Array and called over Zong Ziqi, who had been waiting impatiently.

"Let’s go. We’re heading back to the spot where you were ambushed."

...

Arriving at a spot over ten kilometers from the Gongsun Clan’s small city, Jiang Xu gazed toward it from afar.

As far as Jiang Xu could see, there was no Demonic Qi coming from the Gongsun Clan’s territory. It seemed that in the past month or so, the Demon Cultivators who had invaded the city had all retreated.

Jiang Xu recalled the battle he had witnessed between Young Master Qing and Qian Jianjun before he left, and a flicker of curiosity sparked within him.

’I wonder how their fight ended. I always felt that Young Master Qing was much stronger than Qian Jianjun, anyway. It’d be for the best if Qian Jianjun died by his hand. It would save me the trouble of doing it myself.’

A thought occurred to Jiang Xu.

’Now that I’ve raised the Seeking Technique to the Perfect Level, why not see where Qian Jianjun is? I can also confirm whether he’s really dead.’

After scanning the area with his Spiritual Eye Technique and Divine Sense to ensure no one was around, Jiang Xu went to the exact spot where Qian Jianjun and his support team had first landed.

Jiang Xu recalled the exact spot where Qian Jianjun had stood. He walked over, took a deep breath, and submerged his consciousness into his Qi Sea. At his mental touch, the newly formed Seed of Seeking began to tremble slightly.

He closed his eyes and mobilized the Magical Power within him, channeling it into the Seed of Seeking as quietly as a stream flowing into the heart of a lake.

As the Magical Power flowed in, the starlit arrow inside the Seed of Seeking seemed to activate. It began to spin at an unprecedented speed, its light growing dazzlingly brilliant.

Jiang Xu silently recited Qian Jianjun’s name in his mind as his Divine Sense extended outward like silken threads, following the trajectory of the Seeking Technique’s power.

In an instant, the range of his perception expanded countlessfold, sweeping over every inch of the surrounding space like a radar.

At that moment, everything around him became preternaturally clear. Jiang Xu could perceive the sound of wind brushing past blades of grass, the faint pulse of life deep within the soil, and... the Qi mechanisms of the countless creatures that were, or once had been, in the area.

This "Qi mechanism" was similar to an aura but more abstract. The concept was more complex and profound; it wasn’t merely a physiological reaction but also contained the intrinsic qualities of an individual’s life and their relationship with the external environment.

It was the intangible force or information that a living being emanated—a manifestation of combined energies like Life Force, Spiritual Power, and Magical Power. It contained multi-dimensional information, including a creature’s state of being, Cultivation Realm, emotional fluctuations, and even potential dangers or opportunities.

However, the Qi mechanism Jiang Xu could sense through his Seeking Technique didn’t grant him access to all these aspects; it was more of a stripped-down version.

When Jiang Xu cast the Seeking Technique, he could perceive the Qi mechanisms of all the creatures around him, clearly discerning their different states and locations.

He could clearly perceive a rabbit that had been lingering in this spot just three minutes earlier. Startled by his arrival, it had bolted. It fled one kilometer away, running at fifty-three kilometers per hour in a direction thirty degrees east of north, and was still hiding in its burrow.

He could also sense a colony of ants that had relocated fifteen days prior due to a rainstorm; a lizard was now lying in wait near their new nest...

And more...

A countless torrent of information assailed Jiang Xu’s Sea of Consciousness. Fortunately, his Sea of Consciousness Shield activated just in time to block the flood for a crucial moment. This gave him the chance to retract his extended Divine Sense, narrowly avoiding catastrophic spiritual damage.

A few moments later, as he calmed down, Jiang Xu was gripped by a lingering fear.

’That was my first time using the Perfect Level Seeking Technique. The feeling of being able to control almost everything was intoxicating. For a moment, I couldn’t resist the temptation and just released my Divine Sense, taking in all the Qi mechanisms of this place.’

’Who would have thought that these Qi mechanisms were themselves composed of infinite information?’

’Even with my Spiritual Power at the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage, I couldn’t possibly withstand the impact of such an information overload.’

’That much data would have been enough to create tidal waves in my Sea of Consciousness, inflicting immense spiritual damage. The time it would have taken to heal naturally would have been measured in years, at a minimum.’

’At that point, forget about seeking revenge—even protecting myself would have become a struggle.’

’So careless! Danger lurks everywhere in life. Even something that seems ordinary can hold immense hidden perils.’

Jiang Xu panted heavily, his back soaked with sweat.

’There’s nothing wrong with the Seeking Technique. The problem is that my Spiritual Power is too weak to perceive so many Qi mechanisms at once. The proper way to cast it is to first use the technique to filter the Qi mechanisms, and *then* search.’

Jiang Xu cast the Seeking Technique again. This time, an arrow formed of starlight appeared before him. He mentally pictured Qian Jianjun’s appearance and every other detail, transmitting the image to the Seed of Seeking.

The next moment, the starlit arrow began sifting through the countless complex Qi mechanisms in the area, precisely locking onto any clue related to Qian Jianjun. It even pierced the barriers of time and space, searching for any trace of his existence.

Finally, at a certain moment, the starlit arrow flared brightly, like a meteor streaking across the sky. All other Qi mechanisms vanished, leaving only a single, remaining Qi Mechanism Thread.

Jiang Xu was overjoyed.

He knew he had found Qian Jianjun’s Qi mechanism. Without hesitation, Jiang Xu reached out with his Divine Sense and touched the Qi Mechanism Thread.

The instant his Divine Sense made contact, Jiang Xu shuddered. He immediately felt the presence of another person.

Without a doubt, it was Qian Jianjun.

The Qi mechanism connection stretched to the horizon. As Jiang Xu followed it with his senses, he realized Qian Jianjun was an incredible distance away. A quick, rough calculation placed him over a thousand kilometers away.