My family tree hollow connects to the modern era : Chapter 30

Even though it was not the weekend, there were still plenty of people in the zoo. They were either couples or families, and some children were even being pushed in strollers at such a young age, they were probably just there to see the commotion.

This zoo was quite famous in the city, and there were two reasons for its fame. First, they had many animals that far exceeded normal sizes.

For instance, they had what could be called the world’s largest wild boar. It was about four meters long and weighed nearly six hundred kilograms. It lived in a specially built pavilion that required a separate ticket, and daily ticket sales were limited. Many people came from far and wide just to see this colossal beast with their own eyes.

The second reason was that the animals in this zoo were exceptionally intelligent. Some of the friendlier ones were kept in semi-open exhibit areas, allowing them to interact with visitors across a protective ditch, and many of these animals had even become internet celebrities.

When Bai Zhizhi entered, he took a specific look at the array on the main gate. The power of the array was quite strong, enveloping the entire zoo in a barrier that allowed evil spirits to enter but not exit.

Lu Mingyu had originally thought Bai Zhizhi would not dare to enter. One had to understand that to keep demons here, the security level would only be higher than that of the Management Bureau; otherwise, what if those hard-to-tame demons secretly escaped when no one was looking?

As it turned out, Bai Zhizhi just swaggered in right behind him.

Lu Mingyu asked, “Aren’t you afraid that once you get in, you won’t be able to get out?”

Bai Zhizhi replied, “Why wouldn’t I be able to get out?”

Lu Mingyu glanced around: “Didn’t you feel the presence of the array?”

Bai Zhizhi nodded: “I felt it, but what does that have to do with me?”

Lu Mingyu let out a laugh, teasingly trying to scare him: “Actually, I tricked you into coming here on purpose. Jiang Lin isn’t here, and the people in the courtyard can’t control you. I’m going to lock you up here first, and we can talk about it when Jiang Lin comes out.”

Bai Zhizhi laughed along with him, then took a step and walked right out of the barrier without any hindrance.

Looking at the completely undisturbed grand array, Lu Mingyu was shocked. He did not suspect Bai Zhizhi; his first reaction was that the grand array here was broken. Perhaps that was exactly how the fox demon in the park had escaped and harmed people.

Bai Zhizhi stepped back inside: “This kind of array you use to control evil spirits has no effect on me.”

Lu Mingyu instinctively gripped his magical instrument tighter: “What do you mean?”

Bai Zhizhi said, “Just what it means literally. I am not an evil spirit.”

He belonged to the noble Qingqiu Fox Clan, possessing a genuine royal lineage. His parents were immortal lords who had successfully transcended tribulation, and he practiced orthodox immortal arts. How could an array meant to suppress evil spirits possibly work on him?

In this world, whether due to the thin spiritual energy or a break in the heritage, many of the beasts that had gained intelligence did not follow the orthodox path. In fact, even their awakening of intelligence happened through various coincidences.

As a result, these demons still retained a certain amount of their wild, beastly nature. With this untamed nature lingering while they simultaneously entered the path of cultivation, the combination of the two forces became demonic energy.

This kind of demonic energy carried a certain degree of malevolence. Those who could restrain themselves and avoid crooked paths could slowly eliminate this malevolence. But if they could not control themselves, strayed into wicked practices, or let their beastly nature drive them to spill blood, they would become evil demons.

In Qingqiu, there was not much difference among the celestial, demon, and human races. As long as one did not fall into demonic corruption, it was simply a matter of different origins—unlike here, where it seemed that as long as you were a demon, you were bad.

Lu Mingyu clearly had trouble understanding: “You are not a demon?”

Bai Zhizhi said, “Demon cultivators are demon cultivators, and evil spirits are evil spirits. You humans also have orthodox cultivators and evil cultivators. They are all humans, but does that mean orthodox and evil cultivators are the same?”

Lu Mingyu was stunned. He had never thought of it this way. In his eyes, all demons were the same; the only difference was whether they could be restrained or not.

However, he could not be blamed for having such a perception, as virtually every demon he had ever seen was indeed like that. A demon like Bai Zhizhi was something he was encountering for the first time.

Now was not the time to debate this. Lu Mingyu set his thoughts aside and walked toward the fox exhibit, but the wariness toward Bai Zhizhi in his heart grew deeper.

The fox exhibit was not as lively as the others. Because the red fox spent every day sleeping in the enclosure and barely interacted with visitors, the other ordinary foxes were suppressed by its demonic energy. They only dared to hide far away every day, looking so terrified and cowed that they seemed abused.

Seeing this, visitors could not help but lodge complaints about whether the red fox was bullying the others. After all, its size was clearly several times larger than the other foxes, and it looked very fierce.

Bai Zhizhi had been concealing his aura all this time. The red fox was merely a minor demon who had just gained intelligence, so it naturally could not sense that Bai Zhizhi, with his aura hidden, was not a human. However, when they approached, the red fox still raised its head immediately. It looked over with an unfriendly glare, but it was looking not at Bai Zhizhi, but at Lu Mingyu, who clearly possessed the aura of cultivation.

Lu Mingyu glanced back at it and then went to the office. Not long after, the red fox was brought in. It transformed from a fox into a fair-skinned, clean-cut youth with short reddish hair.

He did not know Lu Mingyu, but he knew this was a cultivator. He could only suppress his temper, endure his irritation toward humans, and sit down obediently.

Lu Mingyu said, “Hu Fei, we need your cooperation in an investigation. Where were you between two and five this morning?”

Hu Fei disliked his interrogative tone, but since his cultivation was inferior, he could only accept being suppressed. He muttered in dissatisfaction, “Where else could I be at that hour? Sleeping in the dorms, of course.”

He currently lived and ate at the zoo, which provided staff dorms. There were other demons in the dorms as well, like pig demons and bear demons. Although they did not room together, they lived in the same building. They had to stay in the enclosures during the day, and they would attend classes together at night. If their exam scores met the standard, they would get a day or two of vacation time.

But being outside required money for food, lodging, and transport. The human world had many rules; they could not steal or rob. The zoo’s wages were meager, so even if they wanted to have fun, they had no money for it.

The key point was that the Management Bureau had said once they graduated from their studies, they would be free and would not have to work at the zoo anymore. While they would be free by then, they would also lose a place that provided free room and board.

After discussing it with the other demons, he decided that being cared for right now was actually the most relaxing. It was better to save up as much money as possible now so they would not starve to death outside once they gained their freedom, or be forced to flee back into the mountains as a last resort. Having grown accustomed to eating human food, going back to the mountains to eat raw meat was not very appetizing anymore.

To save money, they only went out for walks even on their days off, let alone at four or five in the morning. Not sleeping in the dorms at that hour meant they would have to spend money to sleep elsewhere!

Lu Mingyu said, “A homicide has occurred. A family of three was killed, and they have claw marks on them. We detected that the demonic energy on those claw marks belongs to you.”

Hu Fei protested, “How is that possible! Don’t you dare frame me! I haven’t stepped foot out of the zoo. What does their death have to do with me!”

Beside them, Bai Zhizhi said to him, “Let me see your nails.”

It was one thing for this human cultivator to interrogate him, but who did this person with no cultivation think he was? Hu Fei immediately snapped in annoyance, “Who do you think you are!”

Bai Zhizhi released a tiny thread of his demonic energy: “Your ancestor!”

Just that single thread of demonic energy frightened Hu Fei so much that his fur stood on end. With a sharp yelp, a pile of clothes fell to the floor, and a red fox scrambled to hide under a stool in the corner.

His fear was pure instinct. Between demons, besides the difference in cultivation levels, there was also the suppression of bloodlines. Although he was a fox that had gained intelligence by accident and possessed no heritage, the instincts of his bloodline were engraved in his bones, which could not be changed even after gaining intelligence.

Looking at Hu Fei who had puffed up and hidden away, Bai Zhizhi said, “Come here.”

Though terrified, he was obedient.

Hu Fei ran over with his large fluffy tail practically tucked between his legs. He even rubbed against Bai Zhizhi’s feet, his pointed fox face completely filled with flattery. He was just a step away from rolling over to expose his belly to curry favor. Fortunately, he had learned some human rules of decency and manners during his time in the mortal world, so he did not dare to take his flattery too far.

Bai Zhizhi said, “Let me see your nails.”

Hu Fei lay flat on the ground and obediently extended both paws.

Bai Zhizhi inspected the claws closely and said, “You clipped your nails. Who clipped them for you? Where are the clippings?”

The red fox, with its furry face, spoke in human tongue. His voice still carried a distinct childishness that was different from his human transformation: “I clipped them myself. I sold them.”

Bai Zhizhi was puzzled: “Selling nails?”

Hu Fei whispered, “The claws and fur of a demon carry demonic energy and cultivation. Some people buy them to ward off evil spirits.”

But fur was different from claws. The fur with demonic energy was on specific parts of the body; although plucking it did not affect one’s cultivation, plucking fur hurt a lot. Claws also carried demonic energy and cultivation, but clipping claws did not hurt, so selling claws was the most suitable option.

To save up money, they really were trying very hard.

Bai Zhizhi looked at Lu Mingyu: “The source of the demonic energy is solved.”

Lu Mingyu looked at the fox: “Who did you sell them to?”

Hu Fei ignored him, only staying close to Bai Zhizhi’s feet with his large fluffy tail swishing back and forth on the floor.

Bai Zhizhi told Hu Fei, “Put on your clothes and transform back.”

Hu Fei gave an obedient reply, turned around, picked up his clothes in his mouth, ran to the corner, and transformed back. Then, after some hesitation, he knelt back down by Bai Zhizhi’s feet.

Seeing how obedient he was, and since this was the first fox demon he had met here, Bai Zhizhi naturally showed him a bit more patience: “Who did you sell the items to? Is there a record?”

Hu Fei nodded repeatedly: “Yes, there is!”

He quickly pulled out his phone, which showed the other party’s purchase history.

Lu Mingyu took it to look and found that it was actually the consignment platform of the Xuanmen forum. He raised his eyes to look at Hu Fei: “You even know about the Xuanmen forum.”

Hu Fei snorted and turned his head away. He had been in the mortal world for less than a year, but there were seniors who had been here for several years. They had long since figured out the rules of the mortal world. Was it not just about blending into human territory to sell a few things? They had done this more than once.

It was all for making money. Sneaking around to play human was not a shameful thing.

Hu Fei said he had not gone out, but Lu Mingyu only trusted his own investigation. He went to check the security cameras and inspected the entire zoo’s array once over. There were indeed no signs of it being triggered. With Hu Fei’s level of cultivation, sneaking out unnoticed should have been virtually impossible.

After questioning the cultivators guarding the zoo and learning that it was indeed not their vacation time yet and no demons in the park had gone out over the last two days, Lu Mingyu finally believed him a bit more.

“I will go investigate who your buyer is. Stay in the zoo during this time and do not go out.”

Hearing this, Hu Fei quickly looked at Bai Zhizhi: “Little Ancestor, aren’t you going to take me with you?”

This ancestor did not look very old, so calling him Old Ancestor did not seem right; he could only call him Little Ancestor. In any case, feeling the other’s demonic energy, this was undoubtedly a very powerful ancestor of their fox clan.

Bai Zhizhi replied, “I will come back to see you after this matter is resolved. I have only just arrived myself. Wait until I get settled first.”

He had not figured out how to return to Qingqiu from this side yet, nor had he fully mastered the timing, so it was not suitable to keep a demon by his side. Once he figured out the patterns of traveling back and forth and stabilized things in the future, he could consider taking a demon servant.

Hu Fei nodded obediently, promising repeatedly that he would wait for the Little Ancestor to come and get him.

After the questioning, Hu Fei went straight back to the dorm and dug out that handbook of human lifestyle guidelines, which contained quite a few ways to make quick money in the mortal world.

A dog demon who was on break and did not need to perform in his true form strolled by, took a glance, and gasped: “So diligent!”

Hu Fei replied, “Of course, I have to work hard to make money.”

From now on, he was not just a single fox; he had an ancestor to support!

The dog demon shook his head in confusion: “Why make so much money? Isn’t having food and drink here enough?”

Hu Fei looked him up and down, shook his head, and said, “You demons who don’t have an ancestor would never understand.”

The dog demon: “???”

Ancestor? What ancestor? Where would demons like them, who were born of heaven and earth, get an ancestor?

Obtaining the buyer’s information from Hu Fei was considered a new clue. Lu Mingyu said to Bai Zhizhi, “I will send you back to the small courtyard first. The rest will require time to investigate.”

Bai Zhizhi said, “You humans really do things so slowly.”

Investigating one clue after another, when would they ever finish?

Lu Mingyu replied, “I’m not an immortal, and I can’t know everything just by divining with my fingers. Of course I can only follow the clues one by one.”

Bai Zhizhi held out his hand: “You aren’t an immortal, but I am! Just you wait, I will divine it for you.”

The demonic energy belonged to Hu Fei. He had just checked, and Hu Fei had no blood scent on him, proving he had not killed anyone and was not the killer. The remaining malevolent energy must have been left behind by the killer.

He had been to the crime scene and had also extracted a wisp of the malevolent energy. At this moment, Bai Zhizhi released the malevolent energy and let it condense in his palm. He guided that wisp of energy with his spiritual power, and a moment later, he said, “In the southeast direction, not too far, but not close either.”

Just as Bai Zhizhi finished speaking, Lu Mingyu’s phone rang. After answering, his subordinate on the line said, “Another murder has occurred on Wuta Road. The victim is eighteen-year-old Miao Sheng, who died at home. He was also a student at Mingde High School.”

Lu Mingyu pulled over at an intersection, opened his map navigation, and glanced at Bai Zhizhi sitting beside him. Wuta Road was located precisely in the southeast direction.

It could not be said for sure that the killer was still there, but a murder had indeed taken place, proving at least that the killer had been there. Bai Zhizhi had actually predicted it accurately.