"Alright, I’ll wait for your news."
Lu Ye nodded. He had a hunch that Qing Yu’s speculation might actually have some merit.
Not long after, Jiang Qingge returned from outside and was quite surprised to see Qing Yu beside Lu Ye.
"Eh, Qing Yu?"
Seeing Qing Yu, whom she hadn’t seen for a long time, Jiang Qingge was momentarily startled. From her perception... Qing Yu’s realm seemed not to be lower than hers!
This was a bit frightening.
Jiang Qingge knew her situation was somewhat special. Could it be... that Qing Yu was the same?
...
Meanwhile, several teams from the Jiang Family started heading out to the various water sources in Cloud Leaf City.
Their task was to collect samples from various water sources and let Lu Ye examine them, to determine if there were any issues.
Within the city, there were at least dozens of major and minor water sources. On the outskirts, an unassuming well might be used by only a dozen households.
Finally, after some time, all the water sources that could be found in the city were collected and sent to the Jiang Family.
As planned, Jiang Lianshan immediately informed Lu Ye.
Before Lu Ye arrived, they had taken a look but couldn’t notice any abnormalities.
To them, all the water samples seemed more or less the same.
Upon Lu Ye’s arrival, he hadn’t even looked closely, yet immediately locked onto one sample.
"Where is this sample from?"
As soon as he stepped into the room, Lu Ye had already sensed that demonic presence.
Although faint, ordinary people and even regular cultivators wouldn’t be able to detect it, but it couldn’t escape his notice.
Immediately, a guard responsible for the matter reported respectfully.
They had marked the water with location labels, making it easy to see.
"Reporting to you, it’s from Mo Village on the western outskirts."
The outskirts...
With the location identified, Lu Ye nodded immediately: "Alright, I understand. Thank you all for your hard work, I’m going to take a look."
A moment later, Lu Ye disappeared in the Jiang Family’s hall.
When he reappeared, he had quietly arrived at the outskirts.
Cloud Leaf City isn’t considered a big city, but its actual area is quite considerable.
The outskirts are much more rundown compared to the city center, with slums in several outer districts.
At this time, Lu Ye watched the low, shabby houses before him, glancing at people sleeping on the roadside who picked up random items for bedding, feeling a frown forming.
Arriving here, he found an abrupt increase in the number of people tainted with demonic aura.
"It’s indeed here."
Avoiding these people, Lu Ye directly entered the village. As he moved forward, he scanned everyone he saw...
"All of them are tainted with this aura. The common thing they all contact... really should be the water."
Those homeless and without a fixed place outside were the same; they might miss meals and eat different foods.
But the well water was free to drink.
Lu Ye intended to visit the well, but as he approached, a young man suddenly glared at him cautiously.
"Who are you? You look unfamiliar, shouldn’t be from our village, right?"
"No, I’m just passing through, feeling thirsty, and looking for a drink." Upon hearing this, Lu Ye flashed a friendly smile.
At these words, the young man’s cautious gaze relaxed a little, saying: "You can drink water, but don’t dirty the well. However, you don’t have a bucket, how will you fetch water?"
"I won’t." Lu Ye smiled slightly and headed towards the round well.
By now, even without any probing methods, Lu Ye had already smelled the demonic aura.
The closer he got to the well, the clearer it became.
A knee-high railing surrounded the well, inside was a deep channel with a manual water-drawing setup, and below, the water surface could be seen rippling slightly.
"Never mind, come to my house, I’ll get you some water." Behind him came footsteps, the cautious young man approached, watching Lu Ye "daydreaming" by the well, and spoke up.
"Forget it, I don’t feel so thirsty now, thanks." Lu Ye laughed. He had already assessed the well’s situation and knew the demonic aura stemmed from here.
Drinking water now was no longer important.
"Follow me, who gets thirsty and doesn’t drink water?" Unexpectedly, the young man insisted Lu Ye follow him: "My house is just ahead, I’m not a bad guy, won’t put drugs in the water, you can rest assured."
Hearing this, Lu Ye chuckled. This young man... had an interesting way of speaking.
After some thought, Lu Ye nodded: "Alright, thank you."
Following the young man, he soon reached a mud-brick house. The young man said: "Wait while I fetch some water."
Watching the young man hurry into the house, Lu Ye glanced around. Nearly everyone in this village, including the young man before him, was contaminated.
Moments later, the young man came out with a chipped tea cup.
"Here."
"Thank you."
The demonic aura in the water couldn’t affect Lu Ye in the slightest. After a slight hesitation, he took the cup and drank.
As expected, once the water entered his body, fine strands of black energy emerged, trying to merge into Lu Ye’s body.
But in just moments...
Lu Ye’s immune to all poisons constitution slightly exerted, completely dissolving the demonic black energy, disappearing entirely.
After drinking, Lu Ye pretended to be surprised: "This water seems sweet and there seems to be something else in it?"
Hearing this, the young man proudly said: "Of course, this well has been used by our village for over a hundred years, comparable to mountain spring water."
Returning the tea cup, Lu Ye transmitted a tiny burst of Source Qi through it.
In an instant, the black energy in the young man’s body was entirely eradicated by Lu Ye’s overpowering Source Qi.
Borrowing the cup, the young man felt inexplicably lighter.
Previously, he had been in a state of lethargy, but now it vanished completely.
Suddenly, the young man showed surprise.
What was going on?!
"Hey, I invited you for tea, and somehow that uncomfortable feeling I had is gone, so miraculous." The young man marveled, feeling he had encountered an oddity.
Smiling slightly, Lu Ye said: "Thank you for the tea, I’m leaving now."