Chapter 13: The Making of the Golden Fragrant Ring (Lower Part) _1

The regular Sunday special meeting time remains unchanged. Everyone is welcome to attend.

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By the time the first golden fragrant ring came out of the frying pan, Nian Bing had already lost all sense of reality, completely immersed in Ming Yuan's skillful cooking. At this moment, he held up a pair of chopsticks and snapped up a golden fragrant ring. He took a bite, nodded in approval, and murmured to himself: "The fragrant, the crisp, the crunchy; it disintegrates on touch. Such excellent craftsmanship!"

Ming Yuan was about to make a fuss when he saw Nian Bing, as an onlooker, taking an early taste of the golden fragrant ring. However, Nian Bing continued, "Molded by delicate hands into jade circles, fried in oil till a delicate yellow; in your dreams of spring, it knows no weight. It adorns the arms of a fair lady like gold. Indeed, this is a top-class golden fragrant ring."

Xue Jing sulked, "Nian Bing, what are you doing? Who let you eat my breakfast?"

Nian Bing was startled, abruptly pulling himself back to reality. He quickly shoved the golden fragrant ring into his mouth, put the chopsticks aside, and mumbled, "I'm sorry, miss. The chef's skill is just too exquisite. So, I..." While he hastily swallowed the golden fragrant ring, a veil of embarrassment swept across his face.

Ming Yuan looked at Nian Bing with surprise, asking, "Who are you exactly? How do you know the formula for making golden fragrant rings?"

Nian Bing was taken aback, then responded with a smile, "I just happened to hear a roadside vendor speak about it once and thought it was in perfect resonance with the golden fragrant ring, so I remembered it. I hope I didn't offend you."

Ming Yuan snorted, "Even if you're going to lie, consider the individual you're lying to. If everyone knew the formula for golden fragrant rings, I'd be out of business."

Xue Jing frowned in surprise at Nian Bing, about to speak, when they heard hurried footsteps. "Miss, Chef, something dreadful has happened."

Xue Jing lifted the curtains stepping out, to see a servant from Qingfeng Vegetarian Restaurant running over, his forehead dripping in sweat. Xue Jing frowned, "What's the rush? What happened? Tell me slowly."

The servant gasped for breath, "Miss, news just came in. For some unknown reason, the city lord has suddenly sealed all four gates of Bing Xue City, prohibiting anyone from entering or leaving. What's more, Dacheng Restaurant has suddenly ceased operation today. I heard that their third shopkeeper died suddenly last night."

"Dead? Liao San died? What on earth is going on?"

By now, Nian Bing and Ming Yuan had also come out. Ming Yuan advised in his calm voice, "Jing Jing, don't panic. Let's go find your father and see if he knows what's happening."

Xue Jing nodded hastily and raced off with Ming Yuan. Before he left, Ming Yuan turned back and looked at Nian Bing, "I'll find you later. You go back to the woodshed first."

Breathing a sigh of relief, Nian Bing thought to himself, 'I had planned on staying here a bit longer, but it looks like I won't be able to keep my cooking skills a secret much longer. It's too bad that I don't know about any special techniques that the cooks at Dacheng Restaurant may have. Well, if I can't keep it secret, I'll go to Feng Nu. Once I've secretly left Bing Xue City after inlaying the Zheng Yang Knife, it won't matter. But what caused the city to be sealed and Dacheng Restaurant to halt business? Liao San's death wouldn't have led to the city's lockdown.'

Dacheng Restaurant.

The grand and lustrous main hall seemed rather solemn today. The whole hall was pristine; among dozens of tables, only a single table at the center was occupied, with a total of around ten people. However, only one among them sat; the others stood reverently behind her.

The woman seated had long, white hair, appearing like an icy jade statue. The white robe with gold trim accentuated her aloof and noble temperament. Her absolutely stunning looks made it impossible to harbor any indecent thoughts about her. It was as if she was surrounded by a layer of frosty mist. As her eyes remained closed, her icy demeanor kept others from being able to approach her.

Behind the woman stood over ten people. Apart from a mage dressed in a green robe, everyone else seemed somewhat fearful. The mage's robe was emblazoned with a golden hexagram, the middle embroidered with a rising vortex, imparting a luxurious luster.

"Why didn't the President of the Martial Arts Guild come?" The woman in white who sat upright finally spoke, and the hall seemed to have become even colder.

A middle-aged man clad in lavish attire quickly stepped forward, saying respectfully, "The President of the Martial Arts Guild is out on official business, your High Priestess. He seldom stays in Bing Xue City, thus his absence." The one sitting in the Dacheng Restaurant is the only Divine Convergence Instructor on the continent looking for the Ice-Snow Goddess Stone, also the Priestess of Snow-Ice Goddess Sacrifice ceremony. Only she, as the symbol of the Bing Yue Empire and the strongest in the magic world, could declare the shut down of the second-largest city in the Bing Yue Empire.

The Ice-Snow Goddess Priestess spoke indifferently, "You all are the leaders of various aspects of Bing Xue City. Given three days, you must investigate every corner of Bing Xue City to find the Ice-Snow Goddess Stone. If the holder is powerful, just force them to use the magic power in the God Stone. I will personally handle the rest."

The middle-aged man who had spoken earlier seemed embarrassed, "Priestess of the Goddess Sacrifice, you understand that Bing Xue City is immense. Isn't three days a rather short period?"

The Ice-Snow Goddess Priestess slowly opened her eyes, revealing a chilly blue light that shot out and settled onto the middle-aged man. He instantly felt a shiver through his body, not managing to steady himself until he had retreated several steps. "Marquis Noah, if you feel the position of the City Lord of Bing Xue City is not suited to you, I can help you adjust that at any point."

Upon hearing those words, Marquis Noah's face changed instantly, hurrying to reply. "No, Priestess of the Goddess Sacrifice. I didn't mean it that way. How dare we disobey your command? However, without clues, I can't guarantee that the investigation will be fruitful."

The Ice-Snow Goddess Priestess harrumphed, "Last night, on my way here, I clearly felt the power of the Ice-Snow Goddess Stone being released. It is definitely within Bing Xue City. If this task isn't carried out well, I will hold you responsible first."

Marquis Noah appeared bitter. Finding a stone in such a large city was akin to finding a needle in a haystack, let alone with only three days. The impact of closing the city for three days would be huge for Bing Xue City and the city's operations would face problems. But he had no other choice now, reasoning was of no use to the Ice-Snow Goddess Priestess. With resignation, he nodded, "I will do my best."

"Priestess of the Goddess Sacrifice, I'm not sure if I should bring this up..." A humble voice arose from the back. The speaker was the second shopkeeper from Dacheng Restaurant. He and the store manager had been standing in the back, and his sudden words attracted the attention of the few people in front. Among them, an elderly man dressed in a gold robe said sternly, "How dare you, you have no right to speak in front of the Priestess of the Goddess Sacrifice."

The second shopkeeper showed a fearful expression, "Yes, my Lord."

"No harm done, if it's related to the Ice-Snow Goddess Stone, let him speak." The Ice-Snow Goddess Priestess directed her attention towards the second shopkeeper. He felt a chill pass through his body, as if he were naked in front of the crowd, with no secrets left.

"Yes, yes, Priestess of the Goddess Sacrifice, the issue at hand is this. Last night, my youngest brother, the third treasurer of Dacheng Restaurant, was suddenly killed by a mage."

"What magic resulted in his death?" The Ice-Snow Goddess Priestess spoke concisely.

The second shopkeeper was taken aback, "I don't know much about magic, it seemed like a large fireball."

The owner of Dacheng Restaurant retorted furiously, "Are you out of your mind? Didn't the Priestess of the Goddess Sacrifice just say that only matters related to the Ice-Snow Goddess Stone are to be discussed? Get lost and don't waste the Priestess's time."

The second shopkeeper hurriedly replied, "No, manager, if you'd let me finish. Although my brother died under the fireball, it was strange. When the fireball hit him, his whole body fell into a sea of fire, his body charred, but his head was not black, it was covered in frost, which still exists. Maybe, maybe..."

The Ice-Snow Goddess Priestess's eyes flashed an icy light, "Bring the corpse here for me to see."

"Yes, Priestess of the Goddess Sacrifice." The owner of Dacheng Restaurant promptly replied. After a while, Liao San's body was carried up. Due to the effects of the blast flame, the corpse had already turned into burnt charcoal, and a pungent stench filled the air, causing the crowd to cover their noses. A light white radiance enveloped the Ice-Snow Goddess Priestess. Without any semblance of movement, her slender figure was already in front of the corpse. Her hand as green as a spring onion protruded from her robe to gently press down onto the charred body. Through the ice element, her spiritual power instantly covered the charred body. Others might not have felt a thing, but as the president of the Bing Yue Empire Mage Guild, the wind attribute magic instructor, Long Zhi, was greatly shocked. Although his position was high enough for him to have seen the Ice-Snow Goddess Priestess, who was also a Divine Convergence Instructor and a teacher of the Bing Yue Empire, perform magic before, but seeing how she could easily wield the spiritual exploration magic without chanting a spell, she indeed lived up to her title as the best mage on the continent.

The Ice-Snow Goddess Priestess slowly lifted her head, her eyes filled with chilly determination. She directed her gaze towards the second shopkeeper "Start talking, recount the events of last night in detail."

The second shopkeeper nodded, explaining the events of the previous night in detail, without any omissions. Under the enormous invisible pressure of the Ice-Snow Goddess Priestess, he did not even dare to omit the fact that Liao San was visiting a prostitute. When he mentioned that the man in black had identified himself as a demon killer, the faces of those present immediately turned pale. On the Yangguang Continent, the most despised profession was not prostitutes or thieves or even bandits, but assassins. This distaste was particularly strong with mages, who were not skilled in close combat, because even high-level mages would struggle to survive an unsuspecting attack from an assassin. However, this was the first time they had heard of the existence of a mage among assassins, and it was clear this was no ordinary mage.