"Nan Bei Tong" was the courtyard behind the front shop and residence, Meng Qi sat in the shade of the flying eaves, looking at Wu Cheng's bedroom across from him.

  After leaving a "book letter" in You Tongguang's study, Meng Qi rushed to the "Nanbei Tong" shop at the North Water Gate overnight to monitor Wu Cheng's every move.

  Because the Snow God Temple was destroyed decades ago, the remaining disciples all secretly inherited it and were experienced, so Meng Qi believed that if he sneaked in to capture Wu Cheng like he did with Jin Ancheng, there would be a great possibility of startling the snake from the grass. For example, there might be other people from the Snow God Temple observing his movements near Wu Cheng, and once they discovered something was amiss, they would immediately notify the relevant people and thoroughly cut off contact. It was also possible that Wu Cheng had a fake tooth hidden in his mouth, willing to commit suicide at critical moments to keep secrets...

  All these considerations led Meng Qi to decide to try other methods first, and only consider using force if all else failed.

  So Meng Qi's warning to Wu Cheng in the afternoon, using "dark clouds gathering" and "certain doom", was not entirely unfounded. As the Snow God Palace claimed to be descendants of divine spirits, they would naturally believe in supernatural beings, fate, and other such things more than ordinary people, making them more "superstitious". When faced with this "strange monk"'s "curse", regardless of whether he believed it or not, his heart would likely be filled with unease and anxiety.

  In this state, Wu Cheng is likely to seek psychological comfort, such as worshiping the Snow God or finding the Snow God Temple in Tian Ding City's high-rise "disaster relief" to calm his emotions.

  Of course, Meng Qi was just based on the concept of Xue Shen Gong and the clues of heresy development after so many years of secret inheritance (materials provided by Duan Xiangfei) as a basis, and there is no absolute guarantee. If Wu Cheng has no reaction at all, then another method must be used.

  Dark clouds obscured the moon, only a faint glow spilled down, and all around was pitch black. Meng Qi relied on the six orifices related to the eyes that had already been condensed, barely able to see Wu Cheng's bedroom clearly.

  After a long time, there was a faint creaking sound. Meng Qi focused his eyes and saw that Wu Cheng had pushed open the window, carefully observing the surroundings before nodding slightly towards the front.

  Diagonally in front? Meng Qi's heart moved slightly, and he followed his line of sight to look over, only to see the side house slowly opening its door.

  It turned out that there were still companions from the Snow God Temple, right across the street monitoring Wu Cheng. Nearby, it was unknown how many more people like this were hiding... Meng Qi secretly felt fortunate that he hadn't simply and roughly gone in to capture Wu Cheng.

  Wu Cheng jumped out of the window and landed lightly on the ground, his martial arts skills were quite good. He then flashed into the side house and closed the door.

  Inside the room, there was no candlelight flickering, nor any sound of conversation coming out, as if it were empty and uninhabited.

  Meng Qi was about to go and take a look, when he suddenly remembered Fei Zhengqing's excavation of the tunnel, so he had an epiphany. He didn't jump into the courtyard, but instead looked around in all directions, observing the surrounding courtyards.

  If it's a secret passage, the excavation must be done in fear of being discovered, and the route chosen must be as short as possible, with "not disturbing the people" as the top priority. This outhouse is close to the two courtyards on the west side, and it would not make sense to go through its own courtyard to reach the courtyards on the east and north sides - if that's the case, it would be better to choose an outhouse on the east or north side as the entrance to the secret passage from the start.

  So, Meng Qi believed that the authentic exit was in one of the two courtyards on the west side. Even if Xue Shen Gong was cautious, he would at most move to another courtyard to the west, and he could still investigate one by one.

  He didn't think of directly following the secret entrance from this side, because he suspected that there were still people from the Snow God Palace monitoring this room, and rashly entering would only startle the snake.

  Getting up, Meng Qi took advantage of the dark night and quietly slipped into one of the courtyards on the west side.

  After a moment, Meng Qi judged from the master's condition that this courtyard belonged to an ordinary family, so he sneaked into another one, constantly sticking his ears to the roof tiles to listen for any movement inside.

  From time to time, he heard a deliberately lowered breathing sound, and he gradually gained confidence in his heart.

  According to the principle of proximity between the wing room and Wu Cheng's courtyard, Meng Qi didn't have to exert much effort to hear Wu Cheng's voice:

  "Thanks for the comfort, I was indeed confused by the tension of these days and worried about a little monk's casual nonsense."

  A slightly aged voice sounded: "Respecting Heaven and fearing the gods is the foundation of our Snow God Palace, there is no mistake. It's just that we need to distinguish between those who are deceitful and those who are not. Alas, this time the loss was severe, the wind whispers and even the respected ones have gone missing, it's hard to avoid people being frightened."

  Is the respected one missing?

  What the title in the secret inheritance of the Snow God Palace represents, Meng Qi is not clear, but he can hear that the respected one's status is above this cold messenger.

  "The cold is making me... The respected one has not yet dissipated..." Wu Cheng said halfway before suddenly stopping his mouth.

  Then Han made a solemn voice: "The friend on the roof, come down."

  Did he discover me? Meng Qi was startled in his heart, but in order to prevent any tricks, he did not act immediately.

  Han Shuai spoke again: "Friend on the rooftop, since you heard that we came from the Snow God Palace, you shouldn't be unaware of the 'Fantasy Shape Great Method'. I'm not talented, my cultivation is incomplete, but my senses are different from ordinary people."

  Hearing this, Meng Qi knew he had been exposed. But being an artist with great courage, he burst out laughing and flew down from the rooftop, knocking on the door in a big and bold manner.

  There were four people in the room. One was Wu Cheng, one was an old man with a hunched back, and the other two sat on either side of the old man, seemingly his attendants.

  "It turned out to be Mr. Shen Hou." The old man was taken aback after seeing the mischievous monkey mask on Meng Qi's face, seemingly unexpected.

  He wore short jacket, as if he were a busy and hardworking dockworker.

  "'The Phantom Technique' is indeed extraordinary." Meng Qi closed the door as if visiting an old friend, and simultaneously knocked out the two attendants with a cold gaze.

  Han did not resist with his hands, but smiled and said: "The Phantom Shape Technique is indeed wonderful, but it's not as rumored to be close to the gods. I don't know what Mr. Shen Hou came for?"

  Last night, Shen Hou made his move and easily killed Jin Ancheng. He thought to himself that he was no match for him, so he decided to confess an unimportant secret and look for an opportunity to escape.

  "Two purposes, the first is to come and listen to the mysteries of the Phantom Technique." This was Meng Qi's newly thought-out purpose.

  Han said doubtfully, "Could it be that Mr. Shen wants to force me to reveal the Fantastical Shape Shifting Technique? That's looking for the wrong person, as one of your esteemed status cannot obtain the full technique, and this old man only knows a thing or two."

  "The effect of the Phantom Shape Great Technique, shouldn't you be quite clear about it?" Meng Qi asked with a hint of smile and an air of relaxation.

  Han nodded: "Generally, those who have deeply understood the Snow God Palace are not unfamiliar with the 'Fantasy Shape Method'. It specializes in practicing the ancestral aperture of the eyebrows, which is the spiritual skill that opens the secret repository of the human body. Even if the practitioner has not opened the secret repository in the end, they will be stronger than ordinary people spiritually. Without seeing or hearing, they can sense most things within a certain distance."

  This is no secret, but it's not something that everyone can know about, so Shen Hui didn't know, which is normal.

  What's the secret of the ancestral aperture? Where is the spiritual hiding place? Meng Qi became even more interested in the "Fantastical Shape Shifting Technique", and smiled, saying: "So that's how you discovered me just now."

  He paused for a moment and asked cautiously, "If the 'Phantom Shape Great Method' is practiced to its extreme, will it create illusions through powerful mental energy, making it impossible to guard against?"

  "How did you know?" Han asked in shock, how could Shen Hou, who had just known nothing about the Phantom Shape Great Technique, know the terror of the Phantom Shape Great Technique after it was completed?

  "Because I fought with such a figure last night, every knife could only cut through the shadow, and it was hard to force him back. I suspect he is your respected one." Meng Qi deliberately revealed some information, looking at Han Shi to see what judgment he would make.

  "Impossible! How could you possibly defeat the master of the Phantom Shape Great Technique?" Han Ming was clearly skeptical of Meng Qi's abilities, but he quickly composed himself from his shock and thoughtfully said: "The respected one who had full authority to handle matters in Tian Ding City and its province has been missing for many days without any contact, and is likely already dead. The person that Mr. Shen Hou faced should not be the respected one, and even if it were, the respected one's mastery of the Phantom Shape Great Technique would not have reached such a terrifying level."

  "Will the Palace Master condescend to visit?" Meng Qi also believed that a master's phantom technique couldn't be so formidable, otherwise Snow God Palace would have secretly passed it down long ago.

  Han made a visible effort to stifle his laughter and shook his head, pausing for a moment before saying, "It's not necessarily the Phantom Technique."

  "Hmm?" Meng Qi expressed his puzzlement with a nasal tone.

  Han said solemnly, "The Phantom Technique is a divine art that opens the spiritual secret repository of the human body, but it's not the only one. If there are other techniques to cultivate the ancestral aperture of the eyebrows and open the spiritual secret repository, then whether or not you have the Phantom Technique, you can still interfere with your opponent's senses during combat, causing them to make judgmental errors and create illusions."

  "Opened the spiritual treasure house……” Meng Qi muttered to himself, then changed the subject, “I came this time for another purpose, wanting to ask about the Snow God Palace treasure, and now I have another question, which is why your respected one disappeared, when did he disappear?”

  He didn't ask Duan Mingcheng directly, but instead inquired indirectly.

  Han Ze smiled wryly again: "These two things are one, I'm not afraid to tell Mr. Shen Huan, when our Snow God Palace split up in the past, the four great protectors each took away a treasure map, and only by combining the four maps can we find the treasure. However, people's hearts are unpredictable, and in the end, there was only one protector willing to continue the legacy of the Snow God Palace, so we only have one treasure map."

  "Three more, one fell into unknown hands, one was in the hands of 'Living God of Wealth', and one was obtained by Duan Mingcheng, son of Mr. Xian Yin, who also coveted the treasure and had a lot of contact with us. Just as everyone was about to join forces, the respected one who went to negotiate with him disappeared together."

  The whereabouts of this are unclear in my hands... Meng Qi thought silently, and his heart was slightly turbulent. It seems that Duan Mingcheng did go to see the mysterious person at that time, but he was not kidnapped by the mysterious person, but rather disappeared together with the mysterious person...

  Of course, the descriptions of the Snow God's Palace may not be true.

  Regarding the disappearance of the respected one, Han Mou mobilized a large number of people to search, but before any news came back, he encountered Fei Zhengqing's pursuit and had to go underground. From then on, it became difficult to gather information, with no leads at all.

  Meng Qi woke up Han's followers and asked them again, with consistent results.

  Since there was no more information, Meng Qi smiled faintly and said: "It's late at night, please forgive me for disturbing you. I'll leave now. By the way, can you quietly write a copy of the Phantom Shape Technique for me? The one that only you know."

  He hadn't planned to study the Shape-shifting Great Method, after all, the cold envoy might have tampered with the text, he just wanted to take a look at the cultivation path of the ancestral orifice between his eyebrows and ponder its principles.

  Han let out a long sigh, took out paper and pen, and silently wrote the previous part. Anyway, this was not the core chapter of the Phantom Shape Great Technique.

  After obtaining the first chapter of Fantastical Methods, Meng Qi quickly exited the pavilion and observed from outside for a while. He found that no one came to look for Hansha, and Hansha did not leave either.

  He changed direction again and headed towards Jinshui Bridge.

  Just as Meng Qi was about to leave Beicheng, he suddenly felt a wave of doubt. Han Shu was afraid of death, but he didn't need to cooperate so much. Many questions didn't even require him to ask, and he would talk endlessly, such as when he suspected it wasn't the Huan Xing Da Fa.

  Meng Qi's heart sank, and he walked back along the road, returning once again to the courtyard.

  The room was eerily silent, and Meng Qi felt that something was off. He poked open the window paper and peeked inside.

  A person collapsed on the floor, his back leaning against a beam, his face filled with reverence, his expression frozen, and he had already stopped breathing!

  PS: Thanks everyone, unexpectedly rushed into the top three, continue to ask for clicks and recommendations~