Several days later, a number of disturbances arose in Lingwu City. A Demonic Path expert supposedly from Liang Prefecture silently wiped out several factions in the city, including the Han Family, the Zheng Family, and Beast Heart Hall. There were scarcely any survivors.
Fortunately, the Meng Family dispatched experts to surround and intercept him, ultimately slaying him and restoring peace to Lingwu City. The leaders of the various large and small factions, who had been on tenterhooks, finally breathed a sigh of relief.
However, many of those factions had risen to prominence locally, and naturally did not believe this explanation.
Many had even guessed that the destruction of those factions was not the work of some fabricated Demonic Path expert. More likely, it had been the doing of Lingwu City's strongest force—the Meng Family.
Rumors also spread in secret that the Meng Family had dealt with those factions because they had bitten the hand that fed them. They took benefits from the Meng Family, yet sided with and aided outsiders. As traitors, they deserved no pity.
Quite a few people had also pieced together the identity of this outsider. It was likely the Ninth Prince, Beitang Shu, whose fame had risen meteorically and whose might overshadowed the Northern Lands.
In other words, this was an open and covert struggle between Meng Zhao and Beitang Shu, with treacherous currents churning beneath the surface. Those factions had foolishly involved themselves in it; they had sought their own deaths.
Peace returned to the city, while Chen Siyuan and Fu Fei, hearts filled with unease, set out on the road back to Ji Prefecture.
They had now betrayed Beitang Shu and pledged themselves to Meng Zhao. The fact could not be changed, and they had little to regret.
Their only regret was that they