The Smiling Death Incident

Qingcheng Prefecture, Jizhou

Upon learning the location for his assessment, Wei Qing rode his horse directly to Qingcheng.

He was going alone this time.

It was a rule of the Heavenly Realm Division.

If one was judged to have cheated by someone from the Inspection Department during the assessment, their status as Garrison Commander would be directly revoked.

The Heavenly Realm Division had four subordinate departments: Prison Suppression, Garrison, Inspection, and Night Owl.

The Prison Suppression Department was responsible for suppressing and detaining demons and evil martial artists imprisoned.

The Garrison Department was responsible for eradicating and apprehending various demons and evil martial artists, ensuring peace in their jurisdiction.

The Night Owl Department was responsible for gathering and relaying all kinds of intelligence.

The Inspection Division was responsible for various assessments, resource distribution, and branch inspections.

Inspectors were impartial; if a violation was discovered, having one's identity revoked was the least of it. In severe cases, one's cultivation would be crippled, or they would be executed!

Even Garrison Commanders had to show respect to Inspectors.

It took four days.

Wei Qing finally arrived at Qingcheng.

Unlike the prosperity of the capital, Qingcheng appeared much quieter.

However, this was the affair of the local magistrate; his mission here was to slay the evil demons, and other matters were outside his scope of consideration.

He presented his identification token.

Wei Qing entered the yamen without any obstruction.

Upon learning of his arrival, the Qingcheng magistrate immediately scurried over to greet him.

"I am Fang Youting. May I ask who you are?"

"Wei Qing, an intern Garrison Commander of the Heavenly Realm Division."

Wei Qing cupped his hands in a salute.

As he spoke, he was also sizing up the magistrate before him.

Before coming, he had also gathered considerable intelligence about Qingcheng.

Fang Youting, a Jinshi from the third year of Jinkang in Great Zhou, had previously served as Vice Minister of Revenue. He was later banished to Qingcheng for offending Emperor Jinkang.

After taking office, he governed with great determination, organizing the people to reclaim wasteland and develop the economy.

During his fifteen years in office, he had encountered multiple demon calamities. He had also twice declined promotions from Emperor Mingxing, choosing to remain in Qingcheng.

Wei Qing couldn't help but admire him for this.

For ordinary people, who wouldn't scramble for the emperor's favor?

How many people in the world could resist such temptation and decline?

While Wei Qing was appraising Fang Youting, Fang Youting was also appraising Wei Qing.

After a moment, Fang Youting withdrew his gaze, a warm smile appearing on his face.

"So, you are Lord Wei from the Heavenly Realm Division. You must have had a tiring journey. I shall have someone arrange dinner for you immediately. You can rest tonight."

"Regarding the matter of the demons, I will discuss it with you in detail tomorrow."

Wei Qing raised his hand to stop him. "No need to trouble yourself. I ate on the way here."

"The sooner the demons are dealt with, the sooner Qingcheng can return to peace."

In his heart, completing the mission was the priority.

After all, he had matters waiting for him back in the capital.

Hearing this, Fang Youting's warmth intensified. "Lord Wei cares for the people and is righteous and eager to help. You are truly a model for us. Since you are eager to handle the demon situation."

"I will arrange for someone to explain the case details to you immediately."

He turned and shouted towards the door, "Someone!"

"My lord, what are your orders?"

A yamen runner guarding the door stepped forward, cupped his hands, and bowed.

"Go and summon Captain Zhu."

"Yes."

The yamen runner acknowledged the order and retreated.

As the yamen runner withdrew, Fang Youting gestured. "Lord Wei, please follow me to the inner hall to wait."

"Alright."

The yamen's inner hall.

During a break while the maid served tea.

A middle-aged man in a constable's uniform, with a sturdy build and a long saber at his waist, entered the inner hall.

"Lord Fang."

"Captain Zhu, have a seat."

Fang Youting raised his hand and pointed to Wei Qing, introducing them.

"This is Lord Wei Qing from the Heavenly Realm Division. Zhu Huan is the leader of our Qingcheng constables. He's been a captain for seven years, making him the longest-serving person in the yamen, aside from myself."

"Lord Wei, during your time in Qingcheng, if you have any questions, feel free to ask Captain Zhu."

As Fang Youting introduced them, Wei Qing observed Zhu Huan.

Or rather, the moment the latter entered the hall, he had sensed Zhu Huan's strong Blood Essence.

Peak Ninth-grade Martial Artist, even a bit stronger than Chen Dong. It seemed he was only two to three months away from breaking through.

Wei Qing cupped his hands. "Greetings, Captain Zhu. I'll be troubling you a lot in the coming period."

"Lord Wei, you are too kind." Zhu Huan was somewhat flattered and hurriedly returned the gesture. "As long as it's something I know and can do, I will spare no effort to cooperate with you, sir."

No matter where they went.

People from the Heavenly Realm Division held immense status.

Someone who even the county magistrate treated with courtesy, let alone a mere constable like himself.

More importantly.

He couldn't sense any martial artist cultivation fluctuations from Wei Qing.

For someone in the Heavenly Realm Division, the first assessment was cultivation; those who weren't martial artists weren't even qualified to participate in the assessment.

The only explanation was that Wei Qing's cultivation was far beyond his own.

Thinking this.

Zhu Huan dared not be disrespectful.

Wei Qing said, "I received intelligence from the Demon Suppression Division that demons have been appearing in Qingcheng recently. Could you please elaborate on the specific situation, Captain Zhu?"

Zhu Huan nodded, tidied his thoughts slightly, and began, "Ten days ago, someone from Longdong Village in Fuyun Town reported that their husband had suddenly died. The death was peaceful, and he even had a smile on his face."

"At the same time, Linxi Village, Yang Village, Zhou Family Village, and seven or eight other villages also had people reporting similar cases. The deceased all had smiles on their faces."

"Upon receiving the reports, we immediately dispatched constables to investigate. After examination by the coroner, none of the deceased had any fatal injuries or signs of poisoning."

"Our first thought was that demons were involved."

"Since then, the number of deaths has increased daily, and the scope of the deaths has also expanded."

In the inner hall.

Wei Qing sat there, listening to Zhu Huan's account. He compared it with the information in the black scroll and found almost no discrepancies.

"Were there any other unusual circumstances after those deceased individuals died?"

"Yes." Zhu Huan swallowed nervously as he spoke. "Eighteen of the bodies went missing."

"At the time, we had four shifts of yamen runners taking turns guarding the morgue, yet not a single one saw the body snatcher or heard any unusual sounds."

"Because of this, three yamen runners couldn't take the pressure and quit."

"Oh." Wei Qing's eyes darted around, considering a possibility. He turned his gaze to Fang Youting. "Lord Fang, please send someone to retrieve the household registration information for all the deceased."

"Understood."

A moment later.

A yamen runner brought out the compiled household registration information.

[Li Daniu, resident of Longdong Village, born: First Year of Jinkang - 5th Month - 5th Day - Hour of the Sheep - 4th Ke, alive]

[Chen Feng, resident of Yang Village, born: Nineteenth Year of Kaiyuan - Summer Solstice - Hour of the Snake - 3rd Ke, alive]

[Chen Fan, resident of Yan Family Village, born: Second Year of Jinkang - 7th Month - 15th Day - Hour of the Sheep - 7th Ke, alive]

[Zhao Dabao...]

Wei Qing frowned, thinking to himself, "As expected, this is going to be a bit tricky."