Li Yuan stood amidst these scents, carefully distinguishing them. Soon... he extracted the scent from Lin the Fourth’s clothes.
The scent scattered outside the door, but it didn’t go far before it was lost.
Unless Li Yuan got close to Lin the Fourth, it was hard to smell this scent again.
He quickly grabbed Lin the Fourth’s work clothes and walked out of the distillery, then said, "Sister Xue, I’m going to the Inner City to bring Xiaohai out."
"Old Wu, go tell the Blood Saber Sect disciples patrolling outside that... someone has disappeared from Hengwu Restaurant.
This disappearance is a contempt of Silver Creek’s security! Have them wait for me in front of the restaurant."
Steward Wu quickly responded.
Indeed, if even people could disappear from Li Yuan’s restaurant, wouldn’t that mean Silver Creek Square is already unsafe?
Li Yuan watched his silhouette fade away, then turned to the woman from Lin the Fourth’s family and said, "Madam, don’t worry for now, have some tea inside."
The woman, sobbing, expressed her gratitude repeatedly.
The lady boss, concerned, said, "Be careful, dear."
Li Yuan looked around, saying, "Old Zhou, come with me."
Zhou Jia, already on his feet and poised, bowed his head, lowered his eyes, held his blade, and followed behind Li Yuan.
Li Yuan quickly returned to the carriage.
If he could overwhelm with force, he wouldn’t want to act personally...
Under the protection of allies he could defeat in an instant, he felt safe.
This time, the target was Lin the Fourth, almost certainly for the brewing secrets in the distillery.
If so, no matter who it was this time, he had to establish authority, or else others would think Li Yuan was easy to bully, that Hengwu Restaurant was easy to bully... and future business in the distillery would be difficult.
...
...
The carriage made the round trip in no time.
Soon after, on the broad streets of Silver Creek, Li Yuan walked in the middle with a Horse-Cutting Blade and Beast Horn Bow on his back, accompanied by Zhou Jia, with many Blood Saber Sect outer disciples and outer perimeter disciples alongside, including Qian Da.
In front of everyone, a human-sized black mastiff sniffed around, wandering everywhere.
This Black Rock Demon Mastiff had already captured Lin the Fourth’s scent and was now searching.
Yet, if this were in deep mountains and forests, the scent would be easier to track; in a bustling city, however, it was extremely difficult.
The Black Rock Demon Mastiff went on and stopped, soon losing the trail, turning to Li Yuan with a "woof woof" sound, which carried a sense of defeat.
Li Yuan snorted, and the demon mastiff understood, turning towards another alley to continue searching.
Even though the city’s scents were chaotic and indiscernible, if one got close... it was still possible.
Behind Li Yuan, even Zhou Jia was a bit dazed seeing such an obedient demon beast...
When had they seen such a tame demon beast?
It must have been raised from a young age to be this way, right?
After walking a bit more, Li Yuan’s expression slightly tensed.
Continuing like this wasn’t a solution.
But he couldn’t blame Xiaohai, as he himself couldn’t find the scent using the "Tracking Technique."
Li Yuan pondered for a moment, glancing at the panel:
[Name: Li Yuan]
[Add Points: 417 points]
[Skills: Grandmaster Level Breath Seeking Skill (1/160)]
Since he couldn’t find it, he might as well fill it up.
He clicked directly on "Grandmaster Level Breath Seeking Skill (1/160)" with a "++".
Instantly, 159 points were invested, and new memories emerged in his mind.
He was now proficient at hiding his form, rapidly tracking targets without being detected, and possessing the keen senses of a Ninth Grade Demon Beast, especially a sensitivity to scents that reached an unfathomable level.
But it wasn’t enough; he hoped to track a target with just a hint of a scent—this was his lifelong aspiration. He practiced repeatedly, engaged in practical battles, achieved enlightenment, and gained guidance from masters. Through years of sharpening, he finally integrated everything perfectly.
This day, as he walked through the bustling streets, all the scents presented themselves distinctly and clearly before him. Even amidst the smell of cooking cakes, he could differentiate between two households.
Moreover, this time, there were more differences.
Not only could he detect scents, but he could also block them.
When he filtered out all irrelevant scents, that wisp of scent he hoped to track became unmistakably clear, akin to finding a sound in the silent night or seeking a light in the dark.
Li Yuan paused, and everyone followed suit.
When Li Yuan reopened his eyes, he had filtered out all scents, conserving only the search for Lin the Fourth’s scent.
At this moment, the demon mastiff reached another intersection, looking left and right, somewhat bewildered.
Li Yuan sniffed lightly; under a stone not far on the left was an extremely faint scent...
He crouched down, patted the demon mastiff’s head, pushed left with his palm, saying, "Xiaohai, don’t be nervous, smell again."
Xiaohai’s head turned left naturally under the push.
Li Yuan said, "Left!"
So everyone went left.
Xiaohai: ???
Soon, they reached another crossroads.
Xiaohai stood bewildered at Silver Creek’s edge, one moment looking at the upstream of the creek on the left, another moment at the downstream on the right, evidently losing the target again.
Li Yuan sniffed. Here, the scent became clearer.
Tangled with Lin the Fourth’s scent were two other scents, one carrying a trace of women’s perfume, the other with a hint of body odor.
These three scents were unmistakably heading downstream.
So, he crouched down again, rubbed the demon mastiff’s head, discreetly nudged right with his hand, saying, "If uncertain, smell more, no rush."
"Oh..."