Volume 3, Chapter 216 – The Scent of Fox

“Fellow Daoist, over here!” The Third Realm rat demon waved his hand at the group again.

The white-haired old man’s gaze swept briefly over everyone. Finding nothing unusual, he led the group directly toward the Third Realm rat demon.

At the same time, the innkeeper had originally intended to speak with Qin Qingfen, but seeing this situation, he had to attend to these guests first. “What would you honored guests like to drink?”

“No need,” the veiled woman said. “We’ve prepared our own provisions.”

“Very well, honored guest. If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to ask. If you’re staying at the inn, we still have several excellent rooms available.” The innkeeper spoke enthusiastically.

“Thank you for your kindness,” the old man beside her said. “We’re only meeting this fellow Daoist. We won’t be staying.”

The innkeeper awkwardly withdrew.

The veiled woman looked at the Third Realm rat demon before her and said, “Fellow Daoist, there are many eyes here. I believe we should find another place to talk. We have many matters we wish to ask you about.”

The Third Realm rat demon laughed heartily. “Naturally. The intelligence you all wanted, I’ve already investigated thoroughly for you. The person you all want to find. Of course, I’ve also discovered his whereabouts…”

Hearing this, the woman’s bright black eyes clearly showed a trace of joy. “Then this humble woman thanks you in advance, Fellow Daoist!”

“Ah! Not at all!” The Third Realm rat demon waved his hand, saying, “You’re too kind, Fellow Daoist! Having received your kindness, these are all matters within my duty!”

“I’ve already reserved a superior room for you all. Please, Fellow Daoists, allow me to show you the way.”

“Of course.” The woman nodded.

The Third Realm rat demon stood up, about to lead everyone upstairs.

However, just at this moment…

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From a table not far from the group, noisy sounds came through.

Qin Qingfen looked at Lu Zhuxin before her, who was whining and refusing to leave, and couldn’t help saying, “As the Chi family’s young lady, how can you be like this… dawdling and lazy!”

“Today’s schedule is already tight. Do you want everyone to accommodate just you?”

“What kind of behavior is this!”

Lu Zhuxin lowered her head. “I’m sorry… Nanny Qin, I’ve delayed everyone’s schedule.”

The old man’s ears twitched slightly, hearing Qin Qingfen and Lu Zhuxin’s argument completely.

“Chi family?” He inquired to the Third Realm rat demon. “Is it the Chi family I’m thinking of?”

“Of course!” the Third Realm rat demon said. “The Chi family of Beihe Commandery, masters of the Lingbao Commerce Association, one of the wealthiest families in all the land.”

“Within Beihe Commandery’s capital city, almost half the businesses belong to the Chi family.”

“In this place, who doesn’t know the Chi family’s name? Who hasn’t heard of them!”

The rat demon’s gaze swept over the distant Lu Zhuxin, his eyes inscrutable.

Even if they were merely maids and servants of the Chi family, the materials and quality of the clothes they wore were luxury goods that ordinary people couldn’t even dream of.

But it didn’t matter. Once he finished this job, Master Rat would also be able to live a life of fine food and drink.

The woman beside the old man asked in confusion, “Grandfather? What’s wrong?”

The old man said in a low voice, “Our tribe had some past grievances with the Chi family. I’m a bit surprised to see a Chi family young lady here.”

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The Third Realm rat demon smiled. “This commandery capital is filled everywhere with Chi family businesses. Even the inn we’re in is actually Chi family property.”

“The Chi family’s wealth is beyond imagination. I’ve heard that in the Chi family ancestral home, the floors are paved with gold, the trees are carved from jade, wine flows in the streams instead of water, and even the chamber pots for relieving oneself are crafted with gold inlaid with jade…”

“In Beihe Commandery, the Chi family is a behemoth. Even the commandery magistrate must show courtesy to the Chi family head.”

The veiled young woman listened in stunned amazement. Coming from the impoverished icy plains, she found it difficult to imagine such scenery.

The young woman couldn’t help sighing, “This Chi family sounds even wealthier than the fox clan in the Demon Realm!”

Hearing this, the Third Realm rat demon immediately said in a low voice, “Miss, careful what you say!”

“In the human nations, discussing fox demons is taboo!”

“This also isn’t the place to discuss such topics!”

“Let’s change locations first and talk in detail.”

The young woman also realized her slip of the tongue. She gently covered her mouth and fell silent.

Fortunately, the surrounding diners hadn’t noticed what the young woman said. The noisy main hall completely drowned out her voice.

“Of course, there’s no need to be so nervous,” the Third Realm rat demon said. “Let’s go upstairs first. It’s quiet up there, and we won’t have to worry about our conversation being leaked.”

“Wait a moment,” the old man suddenly spoke.

“What’s wrong?” The Third Realm rat demon looked at the old man, suddenly becoming a bit nervous. “Is there another problem, Fellow Daoist?”

Could it be the Demon Suppression Bureau people had been discovered?

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That couldn’t be. Weren’t the Demon Suppression Bureau officers disguised quite well?

The surrounding diners were all doing their own things. Not a single person was paying attention to their group of four.

Everything seemed very normal, with no sign of anything unusual.

The woman’s eyes showed confusion, but the old man’s words never came without reason.

“Grandfather, what’s wrong?” the young woman asked.

The old man didn’t speak aloud, but directly transmitted his voice to the woman. “Shuangshuang, the scent.”

Scent?

Hearing this, the woman was surprised. She imperceptibly sniffed lightly.

In the air, a special smell indeed permeated. A smell that shouldn’t appear here.

If their tribe didn’t possess decent talent in their sense of smell, she might not have been able to detect this scent at all.

A fox’s scent.

There was a fox demon’s presence in this inn.

Moreover, this fox demon was using its own method to warn them.

The fox clan of the Demon Realm were born with pheromones.

Using scent to convey certain information was also a common method of the fox clan.

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Danger.

Thinking of this, the group of four showed nothing on their faces, but alarm bells were already ringing loudly in their hearts.

The woman continued to inquire to the Third Realm rat demon without batting an eye. “I’d like to hear more about the Chi family. Keep telling me…”

“About the Chi family?” The Third Realm rat demon’s eyes showed confusion. “I can, but can we go upstairs first? Once we’re in the room upstairs, we can chat slowly.”

Go to the room upstairs?

After discovering this inn might have problems, they no longer had the courage to follow this rat demon to a room.

Who knew what kind of traps might be waiting for them.

“It’s fine. I’m just curious. Tell me first,” the woman laughed lightly. “I want to hear about those Chi family young ladies, how do such noble young ladies from prestigious families normally live?”

Had she come to him to gossip about the Chi family? The Third Realm rat demon grumbled internally.

While the woman inquired to the rat demon, the others naturally weren’t idle either.

They wouldn’t sit and wait for death. Instead, they carefully observed the inn’s interior, watching the diners drink and chat enthusiastically.

The more they looked, the more alarmed they became.

On the second floor, Wei Qingyu set down her teacup.

“Prepare to move. They’ve discovered it.”