The Rich Cultivator
Chapter 218. Detective Lily is Back

Chapter 218: 218. Detective Lily is Back

"Why do you always talk to Astrid like that? Are you... hitting on her?" Tyler asked Mathilda through divine sense.

Mathilda shot him a serious reply, "Bruh, I’m hitting on very cute girls, not her." She glanced over at Astrid, her voice softening. "It’s just that... sometimes she seems lonely. I’m just reminding her that we’re here for her, you know?"

Tyler fell silent, understanding her intentions. Beneath her teasing and playful nature, Mathilda was always perceptive, picking up on the subtle things others often missed. There were depths to her care for the crew that Tyler respected.

They didn’t have a chance to continue the conversation because, just then, Lily appeared, breezing in with her usual lively energy. "Tyler White, yo! What’re you up to, yo?" she called out, plopping down beside Astrid.

"Hey, Astrid, yo! And pervert yo," she added, waving at Mathilda and giving Astrid a playful fist bump on the shoulder.

"What’s with the ’yo’?" Tyler asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Huh... I just came back from a place called Hood Town. Everyone talks like that," Lily said, sighing dramatically. "I guess it rubbed off on me. Anyway, I’ll stop if it’s that weird."

"Alright, let’s get to the point," Tyler said, leaning forward. "I want answers: who, what, where, and how?"

Lily tilted her head in confusion. "I get ’where,’ ’who,’ and ’what,’ but... ’how’?"

Mathilda grinned, leaning in as well. "Yeah, how did you find a clue this fast, Vice Captain?"

Lily gave them a sly smile. "You guys forget my previous job? I was a top detective back at the old sect. This stuff is nothing."

Tyler and Mathilda nodded in agreement, impressed but not surprised. Before joining Tyler’s crew, Lily had earned a reputation for her investigative skills, often uncovering mysteries that even seasoned elders failed to solve.

"Alright, listen up. Here’s what I found," Lily began, taking a deep breath. "First question: who? So, Tyler, you told me that the resonance happened once when we first arrived on Cedar Island, and then again during the afternoon, right before the final interview, correct?"

Tyler nodded, while Mathilda and Astrid leaned in with rapt attention.

"Good. You also mentioned that the resonance stopped within a few hours of reaching the island. So, I figured I’d start by tracking down everyone who used the teleportation arrays that day. I paid some Lydia to get me info on who used the teleportation arrays—both on Cedar Island and at the academy," Lily explained.

Tyler raised an eyebrow. "Wait... wasn’t that admission day? thousands of people, maybe more than that used it. That’s a huge list."

Lily shrugged, undeterred. "I know. But think about it. You said the resonance led you to the dormitory area, right? That means it’s likely one of the students or staff members living or working there. It’s a way to narrow it down."

"Smart," Astrid murmured, nodding.

"Once I had the list of teleportation array users on Cedar Island that day, I compared it to the academy’s records. After some careful cross-referencing, I found five names that matched. Five people. That means one of these five is the person who used the teleportation array six months ago on Cedar Island and again during the admissions period here."

"As expected of Lily Onee-sama," Mathilda said with genuine admiration.

"You understood any of that?" Tyler teased her.

Mathilda looked at him with a proud grin. "Not a word," she replied, clearly unfazed.

Tyler chuckled, returning his attention to Lily. "Seems straightforward, but that’s a lot of groundwork. Nice job."

Lily shrugged, her casual expression unbothered. "Eh, wasn’t hard. This is only the beginning, though." She paused, letting her words sink in before giving Tyler a knowing look. "So, we’ve somehow managed to narrow down ’who.’ Now it’s time to figure out ’what.’"

She gestured to Tyler, who responded by pulling a small, unassuming cube from his pocket and placing it on the table. As he set it down, a slight shimmer covered the table area, like the glimmer of heat over a road in summer. It was a Voice Isolation Array— Tyler had come up with during a recent array class. With it active, they could talk freely without anyone overhearing their conversation, no matter how close they got.

A student passing by glanced curiously at them, noticing their lips moving but hearing nothing. Tyler paid them no mind, leaning in as he focused on Lily’s words.

"Alright, spill it," Tyler said, eyes intent. "What do you think the ’what’ is?"

Lily took a breath, settling into her seat. "Well, you said the copper pot resonated with... something, right? So, my theory is that whatever this ’thing’ is, it probably has a similar ability to your copper pot— like copying things. It could be another copper pot or something with the same properties."

Mathilda, who had been listening closely, raised an eyebrow. "You think someone else might have an artifact with copying abilities? Like unlimited copy as Tyler’s?"

Lily nodded. "It’s possible. Artifacts like that never existed. But some how this guy brought one from another world."

"It’s a risk." Tyler suddenly said.

"What risk?" Astrid asked.

"If someone out there has one that resonates with Tyler’s copper pot, they might be able to track him just as easily as he’s trying to track them." Lily explained.

Tyler’s face hardened. "If there’s really something like that out there, we need to find it. I don’t want anyone—or anything—tracing my copper pot through resonance. It’s a risk."

Lily’s gaze shifted, concern flickering across her face. "Agreed. If the other side also guessed the same. They might get greedy and try to kill you and snatch that thing from you. They might also leak the news and hide into the vast ocean."

Tyler glanced at Mathilda and Astrid, who were both listening with focused expressions. He nodded, his mind already spinning through possible scenarios. "Alright. So, we have an idea of who and what. But now we’re left with the toughest question."

"The ’where,’ right?" Mathilda chimed in, finishing his thought.

"Exactly," Tyler said, folding his arms. "That person seems to be hiding, and he or she doesn’t even tried to contact me. They probably don’t want anyone to track them down, which means they’re smart. Cautious."

Lily leaned forward, her voice dropping slightly as she looked Tyler in the eye. "This is the trickiest part. Where could they have hidden this artifact? They either escaped right after that last resonance or managed to stash it somewhere safe. If they have something that powerful, they wouldn’t leave it somewhere random. It would be well-protected, out of reach for most people."

Astrid, who had been quietly observing, finally spoke up. "So, the only way we’ll find it is by using everything we know from answering the ’who.’ If we can track down one of those five people and figure out if they’re involved, it might lead us to the location."

Lily nodded in agreement, her mind racing through the possibilities. "Exactly. We can start with the information we have, piece together a pattern, and try to anticipate ’who’ that person is and where he or she might be hiding. And, if we’re lucky, the artifact’s resonance might just give itself away."

Tyler exhaled slowly, processing everything. This mysterious artifact—whatever it was—had just become a top priority. If it posed a threat to him and his crew, he couldn’t afford to ignore it. They needed answers, and fast.

He looked at Lily, giving her a nod of determination. "Alright. Let’s do this. I want us to be ready to track down whoever—or whatever—has this thing."

Lily’s gaze was still thoughtful, though. "There’s something else, too. If that person is actively trying to avoid resonance, they probably don’t want any trouble. They might even be running from something else."

Tyler raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Lily shook her head, her expression uncertain. "It’s just a theory. But think about it: if they’re hiding every time there’s resonance, it could mean they’re scared of being discovered. Maybe they know what they have is dangerous. Or maybe they’re worried that someone—other than us—is hunting them."

The group fell silent, the weight of Lily’s words settling heavily over them. If someone else was after this artifact, it meant there might be lot of people who knows about this Artifact.

Mathilda finally broke the silence with a wry smile. "Well, sounds like we’re in for a wild chase. This isn’t going to be easy, is it?"

Astrid chuckled, though there was a hard edge to his voice. "When is it ever easy with us? But that’s why we have each other. We’ll get through this. All of us."

"...."

"What?" Astrid asked with innocence.

"That was too cring-" Lily was about to say something but Mathilda blocked her mouth.

"It was so cool." Tyler said immediately with a thumbs up.

Astrid gave a small smile, the camaraderie lifting her spirits.

Lily licked Mathilda’s hand, which was covering her mouth to keep her quiet.

"Lick me more... Onee-sama."

"..."

Lily had underestimated Mathilda’s perversion.