Taboo Mage - Chapter 188 - Searching for Jue Chi

I have no idea how I made it back home; I just felt dazed the entire time. By the time I came to my senses, I found myself lying on the couch in my living room.

Zhou Qifang was sitting beside me, looking at me with heavy eyes. I blinked and, with a dry throat, asked, “How did I get here?”

“You collapsed on the mountain trail; a member of a tour group brought you back,” Zhou Qifang said coldly, diverting his gaze.

I rubbed my eyes and got up from the couch, trying to recall what had happened. After thinking for a while, I realized that my memory was still stuck on hearing that woman say that Jue Chi was dead…

“Right! What about that woman?” I jumped up from the couch and pulled on Zhou Qifang.

Zhou Qifang pulled his sleeve away from my grip with an expression of disdain and frowned, asking, “What woman?”

“The chubby aunt! She said Jue Chi was dead… or that she saw Jue Chi in some village. Why did you let her go?” By the end of my sentence, I was almost shouting in anger.

Zhou Qifang looked at me with a confused expression. I didn’t even bother to put on my shoes; I dashed out of the room.

At that moment, Lin Huan walked out of the kitchen with a cup of water. Seeing me like this, he quickly placed the cup on the coffee table and pulled me back.

“Boss! Please, just don’t do this! I’m begging you to get some rest, okay?”

I broke free from Lin Huan’s grasp and turned to glare at him. “Rest? Jue Chi is dead! How can I rest?”

Lin Huan was taken aback for a moment, then looked at Zhou Qifang before turning back to me, equally confused. “Boss, what are you talking about? Master Jue Chi just called back a moment ago.”

I opened my mouth in disbelief. “What did you just say? Jue Chi… called back?”

Lin Huan nodded. I turned to Zhou Qifang, who also nodded. I sat back down on the couch, feeling lost.

When I heard from that aunt that Jue Chi was dead, I hoped it was just my imagination or that she had made a mistake.

But she had sounded so convincing that I couldn’t help but believe her.

Yet now, Lin Huan was telling me that Jue Chi had called?

“Are you sure it was him? What did he say on the phone?”

I sat on the couch, my hand holding the cup trembling slightly. Lin Huan pulled out his phone and found the call he had just received.

“About an hour ago, Master Jue Chi called. He said he’s been a bit busy lately and can’t come back for now, so we shouldn’t worry.”

I took the phone from Lin Huan, glancing at the screen. It was indeed Jue Chi’s number-one I had used a long time ago.

Jue Chi had been staying at Chan Guang Monastery, and even when he did go out, he rarely contacted anyone. After I got to know him better, I gave him my old phone along with the SIM card it had in it.

Ever since that last time, I had memorized this number. It was embedded in my mind like a password; I’d never mistake it.

“What about his voice? Are you sure it was Jue Chi’s voice?”

I tightened my grip on the phone, my heart racing.

Lin Huan looked startled by my question. “I… I think so? I only glanced at the number and didn’t really listen closely…”

I shot him a glare. How could he not pay attention to something so crucial?

What if someone was impersonating Jue Chi? Now that Jue Chi’s phone was in someone else’s hands, that person could be calling us just to say Jue Chi was safe.

It was clear-Jue Chi must have encountered danger. He might have been taken by a human trafficker…

In just a few minutes, I had conjured up a whole scenario in my mind. Zhou Qifang had remained quiet, sitting silently beside me.

The more I thought about it, the more terrified I became. I was about to speak when Zhou Qifang suddenly said, “Alright, stop overthinking. It’s true that Lin Huan didn’t listen carefully to the voice, but worrying about it now won’t help.”

“What do you mean?”

“If Jue Chi really is in trouble like that woman said, then the caller must be someone who means him harm. The fact he called at all suggests he’s trying to buy time, which means either Jue Chi isn’t dead yet, or he left something important behind that they haven’t had the chance to destroy.”

“So, regardless of whether Jue Chi is in trouble or not, we have to go check it out!” I slammed my palm on the table, anxiously standing up from the couch.

When I returned downstairs with my clothes and the copper coin sword, I saw Zhou Qifang still sitting calmly on the couch, showing no signs of wanting to move.

That made me furious. I shouted at Zhou Qifang, “What are you doing? Just sitting there acting all high and mighty?”

Zhou Qifang looked up, shooting me a cold glance. “You’re the one who wants to save Jue Chi, not me. Why should I get involved?”

“You!” I was taken aback. “Zhou Qifang, don’t forget that you’re the one seeking my help right now!”

He scoffed at me, about to retort, when I threw my bag at him.

“If you don’t go with me this time, I can guarantee that you’ll never figure out where the Gu family’s ancestral grave is!”

At my words, Zhou Qifang glared at me, his teeth grinding in frustration, as if he could swallow me whole.

I knew I had hit a nerve. I lifted my chin defiantly and headed toward the door.

While Zhou Qifang was busy packing his things, I pulled up a map on my phone, getting ready to figure out where Jue Chi might have gone.

According to that aunt’s statement, Jue Chi had gone to a nearby village. I sat down in the driver’s seat and began flipping through the map on my phone.

There weren’t many villages nearby, but there were definitely over ten. I glanced at them briefly, realizing that searching through them one by one would be nearly impossible. From what I knew of Jue Chi, he wouldn’t idly wander into a village without a good reason.

Something must have been wrong in that area, and the little fox had mentioned that Jue Chi had spent several days alone in his room before leaving.

If there were issues in the area, Jue Chi wouldn’t have needed to isolate himself in that way if he was in contact with someone via his phone.

He likely discovered something significant in that vicinity, which must have consumed a lot of his energy.

I pondered this for a moment, glancing at several villages on the map. Then, I typed a few village names into my browser, adding the phrase “recent paranormal events” at the end.