Lin Ling carelessly tossed the letter to Xiu Jiming and pointed at the files, whispering, “I want to study these.”
Then, she jerked her chin toward the door, signaling for Xiu Jiming to get lost.
Seeing her adorable expression, Xiu Jiming couldn’t help but laugh.
“Alright. If you need anything, find me. I’ll be drinking in the main hall.”
Just as Xiu Jiming turned to leave, Lin Ling pulled on his sleeve and pointed at the dust-covered desk, her big, beautiful eyes blinking.
The meaning was obvious: it’s so dirty, why haven’t you found something to clean it with for me?
Xiu Jiming thought for a moment and gave a casual wave of his hand.
Suddenly, a wild wind howled through the entire archive room, yet it didn’t affect Lin Ling at all.
In just a few moments, the room was completely transformed, looking brand new without a speck of dust in sight.
However, due to its special structure, the room remained quite dim even as noon approached.
Lin Ling stood there, dumbfounded.
Seeing her cheeks flushed pink, Xiu Jiming couldn’t resist reaching out to pinch her face.
Lin Ling was still dazed and didn’t react to the pinch; she just stared wide-eyed at the scene.
“So… so amazing.”
[Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit! Mom, I want to learn this!]
Xiu Jiming chuckled softly and turned to leave.
Looking back, Lin Ling saw a ball of light still sitting on the desk.
She walked over and poked it. Suddenly, it glowed brightly, illuminating the entire room.
“How should I put it… it’s actually quite convenient.”
[Another kind of electric light, holy shit. So high-class, I’ve never seen anything like this.]
Lin Ling was a bit speechless, though she was grateful for what Xiu Jiming had done.
Turning around, she noticed the sloppy drunk was gone again.
“Sigh, let’s see.”
Lin Ling walked to the bookshelves and scanned them.
While the collection wasn’t massive, there were still some useful things.
For example, simple demon-subduing arts and heart-calming incantations were recorded there, along with the Xunzhu Division’s own cultivation records.
However, they were all rather incomplete.
Forget about comparing them to the heritage of the Jade Fox Clan; they were likely only on the same level as the small sects outside.
There were countless Daoist sects in the world, and many were willing to join the Xunzhu Division to support the mortal imperial court in suppressing demons and devils.
The Xunzhu Division was divided into various ranks and classes, and even the basic officials were split into two factions.
The Xuantian Faction and the Zhuyou Faction had different functions and were in competition with each other.
The Xuantian Faction advocated for sweeping out demon rebels and taking the initiative to purge heretical paths, while the Zhuyou Faction focused more on ensuring the safety of the country’s citizens.
Lin Ling closed the book and silently memorized these details.
She glanced back at the shelf and continued her search.
Her memory was excellent.
Since she was a child, she had a photographic memory when it came to reciting the classics of Confucianism and Daoism.
In this life, if she had taken the imperial examinations, she might have secured a decent position in the Great Yu Dynasty.
Unfortunately, there had been too many complications.
Since things had come to this, she had to do everything in her power to cultivate toward immortality and rid herself of these messy curses.
Soon, she spotted some familiar words in the records.
Yuzhou, Demon.
Driven by curiosity, Lin Ling picked up the scroll.
The moment she held it, the characters on the scroll were suddenly swept over by a wave of pitch-black energy.
In less than a few moments, the entire scroll became a blank book.
Seeing this, Lin Ling’s pupils shrank.
She set the scroll down.
“Is someone trying to hide something? They even need to get rid of records in a small border town like this?”
Xiu Jiming had told her there wouldn’t be any information she needed here, so the scroll she picked up might have just been some minor record.
Even so, it had been erased.
This showed how deep the background of the Jade Fox Clan massacre in Yuzhou really was.
Lin Ling felt a bit discouraged.
She still knew too little about this world and was completely ignorant regarding these immortal techniques.
Otherwise, she might have been able to identify what kind of spell that was.
“How am I supposed to investigate like this?”
Lin Ling felt a bit troubled.
While Lin Ling was studying hard, three heads were pressed against the doorframe.
They watched the white-haired fox girl inside hunched over the desk, focused on reading through the various materials, all of them deep in thought.
Bai Yunjun reached out and pinched Zhao Yuyu’s butt.
Just as Zhao Yuyu was about to cry out in pain, Gu Xiao covered her mouth.
“Shh, don’t disturb her.”
Zhao Yuyu could only glare at Bai Yunjun.
Bai Yunjun giggled and whispered, “Look at Boss Lin. She’s only fourteen and she’s so serious. What about you? You play cards with us every day and even cheat!”
“Bullshit! When did I cheat? If you can’t beat me, just say so,” Zhao Yuyu whispered back fiercely.
“Alright, alright. Let’s go out and get something to eat. It’s almost noon,” Gu Xiao interrupted their bickering with a smile. “Let’s bring some for the little fox. Don’t let her go hungry.”
—
As the sky grew dark, Lin Ling unconsciously let out a yawn.
She stretched her limbs and then noticed some fried spring rolls and buns sitting by her desk along with a note.
Lin Ling was startled.
She stood up and searched around but couldn’t find anyone.
She knew she had been so absorbed that she hadn’t even noticed someone coming to her side.
The note read: ‘Boss Lin, don’t go hungry. These are the snacks and lunch we prepared for you. Remember to eat, and then take a break~’
Lin Ling smiled slightly and shook her head.
Suddenly, she felt a strong urge to use the bathroom.
She quickly searched the Xunzhu Division and finally found the latrine near the side hall, rushing inside.
To be honest, she was still very unaccustomed to this.
Walking out of the bathroom feeling a bit awkward, Lin Ling’s face was slightly red.
She coughed twice and ran to the copper mirror to wash her hands.
Immediately, she saw that the fur on her fox ears had been ruffled into a mess at some point, looking like weeds.
Lin Ling: “…”
[You guys are really rude!!!]
Returning to the archive room, she ate the food they had sent.
Lin Ling yawned and continued looking through the ‘Demon-Subduing Record’ she had pulled from a corner earlier.
Lighting up the light orb, Lin Ling continued her path of cramming knowledge.
Meanwhile, on the other side, the lights were still burning.
The three girls sat together, staring at each other.
“Why are you looking at me? Are we playing or not?”
Bai Yunjun rolled her eyes.
“Of course we’re—”
Just as Zhao Yuyu was about to speak, a lazy voice drifted into their ears.
“Effective today, Protector Lin Ling is hereby ordered to lead Talisman Acolyte Bai Yunjun and Time Acolytes Zhao Yuyu and Gu Xiao to the western suburbs to investigate reports of strange lights from the villagers. Investigate the cause thoroughly and report back truthfully. Do not fail.”
“Understood!”
The three quickly knelt on one knee and lowered their heads, though Xiu Jiming was nowhere to be seen.
Bai Yunjun sighed.
“Why so formal all of a sudden? I’m not used to it.”
“Sigh, let’s get some rest. We have work to do tomorrow,” Gu Xiao sighed.
At the same time, Lin Ling, who was reading in the archive, also heard Xiu Jiming’s voice transmission.
She was stunned for several seconds before realizing it was a technique like “Secret Voice Transmission.”
She clumsily replied in her heart: “…………Understood.”
[For real? I just got here and I’m already being sent on a mission?]