Lu Changsheng and Zhao Tiezhu passed through the gate of Qingshui Mansion and came to the wilderness outside the city.
It is overgrown with weeds and desolate, creating a stark contrast to the bustle of the city.
"Master Lu, this is where the disappearance occurred."
Zhao Tiezhu pointed to a trampled grass and said.
Lu Changsheng squatted down and carefully observed the grass.
He found some strange marks on the grass, which seemed to be the footprints of some kind of large animal.
"Brother Zhao, when did these footprints be left?"
Lu Changsheng asked.
Zhao Tiezhu replied: "These footprints have only appeared in recent days, and our people in the Zhenwu Division have checked them, but no clues have been found yet."
Lu Changsheng stood up and looked around, his eyes fell on a forest in the distance.
"Brother Zhao, let's go to that woods to take a look."
The two crossed the grass and came to the edge of the woods.
Lu Changsheng's intuition told him that there was some kind of secret hidden in the woods.
"Master Lu, be careful, there may be danger in this wood."
Zhao Tiezhu reminded.
Lu Changsheng nodded, he mobilized his internal strength and sensed the surrounding aura.
Suddenly, he felt a faint fluctuation, which seemed to be the aura of some kind of creature.
"Brother Zhao, come with me."
Lu Changsheng said in a low voice, and he walked towards the depths of the woods.
Zhao Tiezhu followed closely, and the two carefully walked through the woods to an open area.
Here they found an abandoned camp with items scattered around, apparently relics of the missing caravan.
Lu Changsheng's eyes fell on a large pit in the center of the camp, and something seemed to be glowing slightly.
He took a closer look and found that there were some strange ores buried in the pit, which emitted a faint light and seemed to contain some kind of energy.
Zhao Tiezhu was speechless in surprise.
Lu Changsheng frowned, "These ores may be the cause of the disappearance. Brother Zhao, we have to handle these ores carefully, they can be very dangerous."
Zhao Tiezhu nodded, "Master Lu, we should immediately notify the Zhenwu Division and ask them to send someone to deal with these ores."
Lu Changsheng agreed to Zhao Tiezhu's suggestion, and they quickly left the camp and returned to Qingshui Mansion, ready to tell others about this discovery.
Lu Changsheng knew that this discovery might reveal the truth about the disappearance, but he also knew that this was just the tip of the iceberg, and there might be a bigger secret hidden behind it.
He is determined to continue the investigation until he finds the whereabouts of all the missing people and ensures the safety of Qingshui Mansion.
After Lu Changsheng and Zhao Tiezhu returned to Qingshui Mansion, they immediately told them what they had discovered.
Qingshui Mansion, the person in charge of the Zhenwu Division, an old man named Li Tiexin, after listening to their report, his face became solemn.
"These ores..." Li Tiexin pondered, "They may be a rare energy ore that can attract certain creatures and may even be related to foreign forces."
Lu Changsheng nodded, "Elder Li, I think we should immediately block that forest and send an elite team to investigate."
Li Tiexin agreed to Lu Changsheng's suggestion and immediately summoned the elite disciples of Zhen Wusi to prepare to go to that woods for an in-depth investigation.
Lu Changsheng decided to join the operation, hoping to personally uncover the truth about the disappearance.
Under the leadership of Li Tiexin, the group quickly went to the woods.
After arriving at the woods, Lu Changsheng found that the ores had been dug up, leaving only an empty pit.
He realized that they might be one step too late.
"It seems that someone discovered these ores earlier than us." Lu Changsheng said.
Li Tiexin frowned, "We must find out who dug up these ores, they may be related to the disappearance."
Lu Changsheng nodded, he decided to use his internal force to sense the aura around him.
He closes his eyes, concentrates, feels everything around him.
Suddenly, he felt a faint aura, which was similar to the energy fluctuations emitted by those ores.
Lu Changsheng opened his eyes and pointed in a certain direction of the woods, "Over there, I felt a similar aura."
Li Tiexin immediately ordered, "Everyone, come with me!"
The group followed Lu Changsheng's guidance, passed through the woods, and came to a hidden cave.
The cave entrance was hidden by some vines and weeds, if it weren't for Lu Changsheng's perception, it might be difficult for them to spot this entrance.
Li Tiexin looked at the cave, "It may be the hiding place of those ores."
Lu Changsheng nodded, "Let's go in and take a look."
They carefully entered the cave and found that the inside of the cave was very spacious, with those glowing ores inlaid on the walls.
And deep in the cave, they found a huge underground space filled with more ore.
Li Tiexin said shockedly, "We must notify the court immediately, this may be a huge conspiracy."
Lu Changsheng agreed with Li Tiexin's view, and they decided to return to Qingshui Mansion immediately and report this discovery to the imperial court.
On the way back, Lu Changsheng's heart was full of doubts.
How exactly did these ores appear here?
How do they relate to disappearances? What kind of secret is hidden behind it?
These questions can only be answered through in-depth investigation.
Lu Changsheng and Li Tiexin quickly returned to Qingshui Mansion with the disciples of Zhenwu Si and reported this major discovery to the imperial court.
The imperial court attached great importance to this matter and sent an investigation team composed of the royal family and court officials to Qingshui Prefecture to conduct an in-depth investigation.
Lu Changsheng, as one of the discoverers, was also invited to participate in the investigation.
After the investigation team arrived at Qingshui Mansion, Lu Changsheng explained to them in detail the process of discovering the ore and the situation in the cave.
The survey team decided to go to the cave immediately to conduct a field investigation.
Under the leadership of Lu Changsheng, the investigation team came to the hidden cave.
They found that the amount of ore in the cave was staggering, and the energy fluctuations emitted by these ores were unusually strong, which seemed to be directly related to the disappearance.
"These ores..." said an official of the investigation team frowned, "they may be some kind of powerful source of energy, capable of attracting certain creatures, and may even be used in certain evil rituals."
Lu Changsheng nodded, "We must find out the source of these ores as soon as possible and why they appeared here."
The survey team decided to bring the ore samples back to the capital, where they were studied in depth by alchemists and sorcerers of the imperial court.
At the same time, they also sent more martial arts disciples to strengthen patrols in and around Qingshui Mansion to prevent similar incidents from happening again.
After the investigation team left, Lu Changsheng did not relax his vigilance.
He decided to stay in Qingshui Mansion to assist the Zhenwu Division in the investigation.
Over time, the investigation team made progress in the Imperial City.
They discovered that these ores contained a rare element that was extremely rare in heaven and earth and had powerful energy.
The discovery of this element brought new research directions to the imperial court, and also provided new clues for the investigation of disappearances.
Lu Changsheng also made new discoveries during the investigation of Qingshui Mansion.
During a patrol, he stumbled upon an abandoned camp with some traces of foreign writing.
These texts coincide with certain clues in the disappearance and seem to point to a larger conspiracy.
Lu Changsheng realized that the secrets hidden behind the disappearance were far more complex than they thought.
He decided to investigate deeply and uncover the truth of it all.
And all of this will become another legend on his martial arts practice.