"If Huang Chengyue wanted to offer five rations to demons, then none of us would have been left with intact corpses. After all, martial artists have vigorous blood and qi—an immense tonic to demons."
"So, it must be that some of us learned something we should not have known. That is why Huang Chengyue wanted to use demons to silence us."
"Perhaps not everyone knew his secret. Maybe only one among the five of us did. But to completely bury the truth and prevent that person from revealing it to the others, he killed the rest of us as well."
"That also completely explains why the Crimson Serpent Demon appeared in my room last night."
"She had come for me, to silence me."
"But I have already fully inherited the original owner's memories. Yet there is absolutely nothing in those memories concerning Huang Chengyue's secret!"
"Not just Huang Chengyue—there are no secrets about anyone else, either!"
"The original owner had been a hot-blooded, upright young man. How could he have secretly collected other people's private affairs?"
"Could it be that the original owner did not actually know Huang Chengyue's secret, and was only dragged into this and killed?"
"Then this truly is a disaster falling from the blue sky!"
"But a bloodstained scrap of cloth and my own speculation are not enough to convict Huang Chengyue."
"Still, with my current cultivation, I have nothing to fear from him. I will investigate in secret first and see just what happened from beginning to end!"
Chen Fan frowned, calculating silently to himself.
Huang Chengyue was also a martial artist at the fourth stage of the Divine Treasury Realm, the Blood Martial Saint level. Chen Fan had now reached that same level, and he had mastered both the Body Tempering Fist and Blade Draw Slash to Great Perfection.
Although Huang Chengyue had used his accumulated merit points to visit the Brocade Guard's Thousand-Household Office in Dragon Abyss Prefecture and exchange for a more profound cultivation method to replace the Body Tempering Fist, Chen Fan was not afraid of him if they truly came to blows!
That was the confidence brought by strength!
"Uncle?"
"Are you listening?"
Seeing Chen Fan's blank expression, Sister-in-Law Zhao could not help speaking up.
"Sister-in-Law, I'm listening."
"I have remembered everything you said."
"I will investigate this thoroughly. But before the truth comes to light, I hope you will keep this matter hidden in your heart and tell no one. Otherwise, it may bring you a fatal disaster as well."
Chen Fan looked at Sister-in-Law Zhao with a grave expression.
"Mm-hm."
"I understand."
"You and Brother Jia were colleagues and close friends. Other than you, I trust no one."
"I'll leave this blood-written scrap of cloth in your care, Uncle. I hope you can uncover the truth."
"But if things cannot be done, Uncle, you must protect yourself. I do not want Brother Jia to die so unclearly, but neither do I want you to suffer a fatal disaster over this matter."
Sister-in-Law Zhao nodded and handed the scrap from the Flying Fish Robe to Chen Fan.
"Rest assured, Sister-in-Law. I will."
"If anything happens to you or your son, come find me at the Brocade Guard Precinct. I will certainly do everything in my power."
Chen Fan cupped his hands as he spoke.
The information Sister-in-Law Zhao had provided was simply too important.
Though his strength was now incomparable to what it had been before, the enemy was hidden while he stood in the open. There was no guarantee he would not capsize in a gutter.
Now, however, the enemy stood in the open, and so did he. Then they could have a contest and see whose skills were superior!
After bidding farewell to Sister-in-Law Zhao, Chen Fan immediately returned to the Brocade Guard station.
Their usual work was actually rather dull. Most of the time, they patrolled the county seat or took shifts at the Brocade Guard Precinct. Sometimes, they also patrolled the outskirts near the county seat.
The county seat was a gathering place for humans. Few demons were foolish enough to enter it, so it was relatively safe. Outside the county seat, however, lay demon territory.
Many villages and towns suffered under demon calamities. But the Brocade Guard had limited manpower, and their primary duty was to guard Ping An County, so under ordinary circumstances, they would not take the initiative to patrol the outlying villages and towns.
Only when someone came to the Brocade Guard station to report demon tracks, and the Chief Squad Leader approved it, would they decide whether to dispatch men.
But in one situation, they had to mobilize everyone. Even the Centurion could not stay out of it.
That was when demons slaughtered a village or directly occupied one of the towns under Ping An County. Then they had no choice but to deploy in full force.
Normally, though, such things did not happen. Demons were not fools either. Having gained spiritual intelligence, they knew that fighting the Brocade Guard to mutual destruction was not a rational choice.
Over the next few days, Chen Fan encountered no demon assassinations, as though nothing had happened at all. Yet Chen Fan felt this was likely the stillness before the storm.
These days, he often secretly followed Huang Chengyue, the Brocade Guard's Chief Squad Leader, hoping to find direct evidence of his collusion with demons. But unfortunately, Huang Chengyue lived the same routine every day: either handling affairs at the Brocade Guard station, or staying home with his wife, children, and warm bed.
That was also how most veteran Brocade Guards lived. Running about on patrol every day was already exhausting. Unless they went to the pleasure quarters to listen to music, they went home to make babies with their wives.
After all, though this was a world where martial power transcended the ordinary, it did not have so many modern entertainment facilities.
Huang Chengyue was fifty-eight this year. Having practiced martial arts year-round and possessing considerable strength, he looked not much older than Wang Chao. Yet the gray hair at his temples gave away his age.
By all reason, he truly had no need to collude with demons.
According to the laws of Great Zhou, colluding with demons was a capital crime—one grave enough to exterminate three clans.
He had money, status, and a house full of children and grandchildren. It would be difficult for him to receive another promotion or make further progress in martial cultivation. He was at precisely the age to lie flat, so why would he risk his life?
"Stop staring. I've seen you watching Old Huang for days now."
"There's nothing wrong with him. If there were, then Ping An County truly would not have a single good person left."
A clear voice rang out behind Chen Fan. He instinctively drew the Hundred-Refined Embroidered Spring Blade at his waist and unleashed the Great Perfection Blade Draw Slash. A terrifying blade radiance slashed diagonally forward!
The newcomer swiftly retreated dozens of steps. Chen Fan's strike carved a gash three feet deep and more than a zhang wide into the bluestone ground.
"What a sharp blade technique. Who would have thought that this tiny Brocade Guard Precinct of Ping An County hid a martial arts genius like you?"
The newcomer looked at Chen Fan from afar and spoke with great admiration, showing no anger over his rash strike.
Of course, after sending out that slash, Chen Fan had held back and had not used his full strength.
The newcomer wore the black robes of a ninth-rank official and was dressed like a constable. Clearly, she was the county yamen's Ninth-Rank Black-Robed Constable—and a delicate-looking young woman at that.
"Miss, are you a constable of Ping An County?"
Chen Fan cupped his hands and asked.
A Ninth-Rank Black-Robed Constable of Ping An County held a rank equivalent to a Brocade Guard Squad Leader. Yet anyone who could serve as a county constable would be stronger than a Brocade Guard Squad Leader, even if not as strong as a Brocade Guard Chief Squad Leader.
This female constable looked very young, truly unlike the Ninth-Rank Black-Robed Constable Chen Fan had imagined.
"How did you know I'm a female constable? I am clearly wearing the official uniform of a male constable, and I already tried my best to lower my voice."
The female constable spoke with a dejected expression.
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