Can I chop him down?

After getting the medicinal ingredients for Shen Zhui, Wu Gu had been feeling uneasy.

He had paid special attention to Shen Zhui, but Shen Zhui showed no unusual signs afterward.

However, not long after Shen Zhui left, Wu Gu, who was meditating and cultivating, felt another palpitation, as if someone was spying on him.

The feeling was fleeting, as if it had never happened.

"This place is a bit strange," Wu Gu said, looking a little nervous.

"I've occasionally hidden in the county town before, but I've never felt like this."

Pacing restlessly, Wu Gu looked out the window.

"No, I need to leave."

Wu Gu made up his mind immediately. Having narrowly escaped death multiple times, he trusted his instincts.

One moment of unease could be explained as overthinking, but two or three times? It definitely wasn't a coincidence!

The divine sense of a Qi Cultivation True Person was stronger than that of a Martial Artist, granting them an innate, superhuman intuition for danger.

"Creak~" The door opened. Wu Gu, still disguised as a wealthy merchant, slowly walked towards the main entrance.

As soon as he stepped out, Wu Gu saw Shen Zhui walking towards him from the street, accompanied by two other people.

Wu Gu instantly recognized one of the people next to Shen Zhui: it was Wang Long!

"What?!" Wu Gu's scalp tingled as if it were about to explode. At that moment, he finally understood the source of the sense of danger he had felt.

With no trace of hope left in his heart, Wu Gu roared and immediately reverted to his original form, soaring into the sky, attempting to escape!

"Halt!"

Wei Wenhe, standing beside Shen Zhui, waved his hand gently. Wu Gu, who had just taken flight, found his speed reduced to that of a snail.

"No, no, no!" Wu Gu's eyes were filled with terror. He felt as if his body were sinking into a swamp, his very thoughts becoming sluggish. He immediately understood that only a county's supreme authority could possess such power!

"Break!" A skull suddenly appeared on Wu Gu's body, followed by a burst of black mist. Wu Gu's frozen form instantly regained mobility, transforming into a fiery red stream of light as he sped away.

"Hmph! Heretical fiend, you court death!" Green light flashed from Wei Wenhe's body. Simultaneously, the statue of Earl of Heyuan in the main hall of the distant City God Temple also emitted faint green light, echoing Wei Wenhe's power.

"Return to me!"

Wei Wenhe extended a hand and sharply pulled it back. Wu Gu, who had already escaped a thousand meters away, was suddenly bound by green shackles.

A faint iron chain seemed to connect these shackles to the void, holding him tightly.

"Ahhhh!" Faint black energy continuously emanated from Wu Gu's body, his face contorted in a grimace. The fiery light on his body completely retracted.

Once the black energy was depleted, Wu Gu had no strength left to struggle. His body retreated.

The next moment, Wu Gu, bound by invisible restraints, knelt on the ground before Wei Wenhe and the others.

"That was close," Shen Zhui thought, inwardly surprised that Wu Gu had lasted so long under the County Magistrate's pressure, even managing to break free for a moment.

"Good thing I didn't act rashly and try to deal with him alone. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unpredictable."

A Qi Cultivation True Person at the High-stage Xiantian realm, if killed, would yield sixty thousand Merit Points!

According to Lin Ze, this person had already been heavily injured by him.

For a fleeting moment, Shen Zhui had considered acting alone.

But now, it seemed he had underestimated the opponent. Even a heavily injured Qi Cultivation True Person was not someone a Ninth Stage Houtian Martial Artist like him could easily kill.

If he had tried, he would have been seeking death.

"It really is you, you scoundrel," Wang Long said coldly, glancing at Wu Gu.

This person deserved to die, having murdered his comrades, stolen treasures, practiced evil arts from an unorthodox sect, and stained his hands with countless lives.

Wu Gu was unable to speak, but his eyes were fixed on Shen Zhui.

He was filled with immense regret!

Why had he even greeted Shen Zhui back then?!

To fall into the hands of a mere Ninth Stage Houtian Martial Artist, Wu Gu was utterly unwilling.

"Swish~"

Lin Ze appeared beside Wei Wenhe. From a distance, he saw that the person kneeling on the ground was Wu Gu!

"Haha, Wu Gu, you actually hid in the city. You're truly courting death!" Lin Ze couldn't suppress his glee.

"That's right. You were heavily injured by me, your strength diminished. Only within the city could you buy the things you needed."

Seeing that Wu Gu couldn't speak, Lin Ze realized he had lost his composure. He turned and bowed deeply to Wei Wenhe.

"Lord Wei, thank you. If you hadn't intervened, I'm afraid my year-long mission would have failed. Your kindness is immeasurable. Please, state any command, and Lin Ze will do his utmost!"

Wei Wenhe smiled slightly. "Lord Lin, you are too kind. Assisting the Wu'an Army in apprehending villains is our duty.

"Moreover, it wasn't me who discovered this person, but Shen Zhui. If you wish to express gratitude, you should thank him."

"Shen Zhui?" Lin Ze was slightly taken aback, but he quickly cupped his hands towards Shen Zhui. "Thank you, Brother Shen. If you have any requests, please do not hesitate to ask."

"Brother Lin, this... I merely stumbled upon him by chance. You don't need to be so formal, Brother Lin," Shen Zhui waved his hand.

Shen Zhui felt indebted to Lin Ze for his guidance, and besides, this matter was for Shen Zhui's own sake, so he hadn't really helped that much.

"Ahem... Shen Zhui, Lord Lin is offering you a kindness, don't refuse it." Wang Long gave Shen Zhui a look.

The Wu'an Army indeed had the right to demand cooperation from local officials when carrying out missions, but it was customary to offer some benefits afterward.

Moreover, Lin Ze hadn't exerted much effort this time; the entire process from finding to apprehending the culprit was handled by the county yamen, meaning Lin Ze had gained credit for nothing.

This was why Lin Ze had said that in the Wu'an Army, if one was lucky, a few missions could accumulate enough resources and merit.

Of course, situations where the county yamen completed the mission were extremely rare. It was just that Wu Gu was too arrogant, relying on his dual concealment treasures to enter the county town.

And it just so happened that Shen Zhui could see his Sin Value.

Seeing Shen Zhui's prolonged silence, Lin Ze spoke first.

"Brother Shen, don't rush to decide. Let me examine the items on this scoundrel first."

He chuckled as he rummaged through Wu Gu's belongings. Afterward, Shen Zhui saw Lin Ze pull out a large pile of items.

Among them, a piece of ancient, silver-gray soft armor, a light red long robe, and a compass emitted a faint glow. Even Shen Zhui could tell they were extraordinary.

From the expression on Lin Ze's face, Shen Zhui could tell that the items on Wu Gu were clearly very valuable.

"Here, Brother Shen, look." Lin Ze pointed to the compass. "This is called the Spirit-Connecting Compass. It's a top-tier detection treasure. As long as a Xiantian Master or Qi Cultivation True Person approaches within a thousand meters, it will automatically alert and display on the compass."

"Merely this would only count as an ordinary treasure, but this Spirit-Connecting Compass can expand its detection range based on the spiritual power injected by the user. If I fully activate it, the thousand-meter range can instantly reach ten thousand meters! Within ten thousand meters, as long as they don't possess stronger treasures, Xiantian Masters or Qi Cultivation True Persons will appear on this compass. It's quite valuable; even Xiantian Masters in the Wu'an Army would need to struggle for two to three years to buy it."

Wei Wenhe and Wang Long remained silent, while Shen Zhui could only marvel.

Lin Ze paid them no mind and picked up the daoist robe, chuckling, "This villain dared to hide in the county town precisely because he relied on this Spirit-Concealing Robe."

"This Spirit-Concealing Robe can conceal divine law detection and also has excellent defensive capabilities, able to withstand a full-power strike from a late-stage Spirit Sensing realm cultivator. Daoist magic attacks below the late-stage Spirit Sensing realm can have their power weakened by fifty percent."

Lin Ze sighed, "Even in the Wu'an Army, a Xiantian Master might not be able to afford this Spirit-Concealing Robe after ten years of hard work. This villain, who knows how much ill-gotten wealth he's plundered."

Wei Wenhe and Wang Long still didn't speak, while Shen Zhui nodded. This was the first time he had seen a treasure that could conceal divine law detection.

The third treasure, the ancient silver-gray soft armor, according to Lin Ze, was specifically designed to defend against close-quarters combat from martial artists. Even a full-power strike from a high-stage Xiantian Martial Artist would struggle to penetrate its defenses. Furthermore, it had runes inscribed on it that allowed the wearer to gather spiritual energy from heaven and earth more quickly, aiding in accelerating cultivation.

The fourth treasure was a protective chest mirror, a treasure specifically for accelerating spiritual energy absorption.

The fifth treasure was a light golden soft mask that could conceal one's aura and alter one's appearance, effective against both Xiantian and Spirit Sensing realm True Persons.

As for the other miscellaneous trinkets, Lin Ze didn't elaborate, clearly indicating that their combined value didn't even compare to a single treasure.

"Brother Shen. These treasures, ranked by their value, are the Spirit-Connecting Compass, Flowing Gold Mask, Spirit-Concealing Robe, Bright Light Armor, and Spirit Gathering Mirror."

"In gratitude for your great help, you may choose any two of these items first."

Shen Zhui recalled Wang Long's distinct expressions when Lin Ze introduced the Flowing Gold Mask and Bright Light Armor earlier, and he immediately understood that Wang Long was giving him advice.

However, Shen Zhui didn't choose immediately. Instead, he asked, "Brother Lin, may I be so bold as to ask, when you carry out your missions, do you need to personally kill Wu Gu, or simply bring back his head?"

Lin Ze paused slightly but still answered Shen Zhui's question.

"I don't need to kill him personally; I just need to verify his death with the Wu'an Army's special token. Why do you ask, Brother Shen?"

"This person is extremely wicked. He almost caused my death at Red Leaf Manor before, and now he's moved next to my adoptive father's house, intending to harm my family. If it doesn't interfere with Brother Lin's mission, I'd like to personally deliver Wu Gu's punishment and execute him!"