Appointed County Lieutenant, County Magistrate Du Guinian

Lu Yang had just walked out of the Qianfeng Merchant Association when two familiar figures came toward him.

"Zhao Hu, Wang Fang, why are you here?" Lu Yang asked.

Wang Fang said, "Replying to Chief Constable, County Magistrate Lord Du requests your presence."

Lu Yang was not surprised by this.

The Fox Demon was already dead, so the soul-bewitching art controlling County Magistrate Du Guinian had naturally been undone as well.

Speaking of which, he, Lu Yang, was Du Guinian's lifesaving benefactor.

Not to mention, he had also helped Black Mountain County cut away the hidden Demon Race members and traitors. Whether by sentiment or reason, public duty or private feeling, Du Guinian had every need to summon Lu Yang.

"Brother Yang, this time it was really all thanks to you!" Zhao Hu thumped his chest, still shaken, and said, "If you hadn't appeared in time and killed that dogshit Lu Jue, we brothers would have been handed over by him to the Demon Race as rations!"

After a brief exchange, Lu Yang learned that not long after he had left, Lu Jue had used the pretext of eliminating demons to trick several constables under Lu Yang out of the city and imprison them.

All because those people did not believe Lu Yang would collude with the Demon Race and murder Sheng San!

Lu Yang asked, "Who saved you?"

Zhao Hu said, "It was Lord Wang Liao who sent the brothers of the City Guard. They found us in an abandoned village outside the city."

"Mm." Lu Yang nodded slightly and silently remembered the matter.

This Wang Liao was usually unsmiling and made few friends. Aside from insisting on carrying out his duties, he lived in seclusion and devoted himself to cultivating martial arts.

At the critical moment, though, he proved to be a reliable person.

This time, he had saved Zhao Hu, Wang Fang, and the others, and had led troops to clear out the Demon Race remnants in the city. Lu Yang secretly planned to find an opportunity to thank him in person.

Thinking of this, Lu Yang said again, "I was in seclusion for three days. How is the situation in the city now?"

Wang Fang said, "Replying to Chief Constable, Lord Wang Liao led the City Guard to purge the remnants of the major clans and the Demon Race. Inside and outside the county seat, the 'blood food' that the major families had been preparing to secretly deliver to the Demon Race recently was also rescued by the City Guard."

"That's good." Lu Yang let out a slight breath of relief.

Zhao Hu, however, frowned and said, "The city is still fairly stable for the moment, but the situation outside the city hasn't been too good these past two days. The Demon Race has harassed the area repeatedly, and quite a few commoners have died."

As they spoke, the group arrived at the County Yamen.

Because the County Assistant Magistrate and the County Lieutenant, along with their trusted aides, had all been executed, the main hall of the County Yamen seemed somewhat empty at this moment.

Aside from several yamen runners on duty, there was only a thin figure seated at the head of the hall.

Lu Yang walked slowly to the center of the main hall, bowed, and offered his respects. "This humble subordinate, Lu Yang, greets County Magistrate, My Lord."

In the main hall, Du Guinian's complexion was sallow, the corners of his lips pale, his vitality extremely poor. He looked as though he truly had suffered a serious illness.

Though his cultivation was at the peak of Eighth-tier Xiantian, the aura around him was extremely feeble, probably only barely reaching the level of the early Xiantian Realm.

Lu Yang felt that if the two of them fought at this moment, he was fully capable of killing Du Guinian in a single move.

"Heh, no need for excessive courtesy." Du Guinian forced out a trace of a gentle smile. "It shames this official to say it, but one careless move allowed that Fox Demon to take advantage of me, and I fell into her trap. Thanks to you, Black Mountain County did not fall into great chaos."

"It was merely my duty, My Lord. Your praise is too much," Lu Yang said. "May I ask what instructions My Lord has in summoning me this time?"

Du Guinian said, "You saved this official's life, and you also saved the entirety of Black Mountain County. Whether in public duty or private feeling, this official must say thank you to you."

Lu Yang nodded, silently waiting for what came next.

"Heh, good! Neither arrogant nor rash, neither servile nor overbearing. As expected, you have some of the bearing of a grandmaster!" Seeing him like this, Du Guinian did not take offense, but instead praised him warmly.

Immediately after, he steadied himself and continued, "In view of your merit in eliminating demons this time, and with the position of County Lieutenant in this county just happening to be vacant, this official has already submitted a memorial to the court to appoint you as the County Lieutenant of Black Mountain County. All demon-related matters within Black Mountain County will be handled by you with full authority."

Lu Yang's heart stirred slightly, and he cupped his fists. "This subordinate accepts the order!"

According to the yamen's customs, after a promotion, there should properly be a celebration.

As it happened, Lu Yang had money on hand recently, so that very night, he invited many colleagues, including County Magistrate Du Guinian, to a banquet at the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion.

Du Guinian's body had not yet recovered, and with him present, the subordinates were all restrained, unable to let loose and eat, drink, and make merry. After saying a few polite words for the occasion, he hurriedly left.

After he left, the atmosphere at the banquet became much livelier.

"Brother Yang, you're way too amazing! A few months ago, your cultivation was only a little stronger than us brothers, and how long has it been now? Even that fellow Lu Jue wasn't your match anymore!" Zhao Hu was dead drunk. As he spoke, he gesticulated wildly, and it could be seen that he was sincerely happy for Lu Yang.

When the others heard this, they also deeply agreed.

Over the span of several months, everyone's cultivation had improved to some extent.

Zhao Hu usually received the most guidance from Lu Yang, and now he was already at Body Tempering Eighth Level. Wang Fang and the others also had cultivations at around the sixth or seventh level of Body Tempering now. Compared with the previous constables in the yamen, their strength had increased quite a bit.

However, Lu Yang's progress over these past few months, in everyone's eyes, could already be called a divine miracle.

Toward him, everyone felt both worship and awe.

Lu Yang smiled. "The internal traitors have been removed. In the future, the losses among the brothers won't be as heavy as before. As long as you cultivate diligently, sooner or later you'll be able to grow strong."

Over the next few days, Lu Yang took charge and brought Wang Kang into the yamen, making him a constable under his command.

He also paid out of his own pocket to buy some pills, helping him raise his cultivation to Body Tempering Seventh Level.

Every day after roll call, Lu Yang would gather all the constables on duty to drill saber techniques, and he would also take the initiative to explain some of his martial arts insights.

It was not only Wang Kang, Zhao Hu, and the others. Even those stronger chief constables, after listening for several days, benefited greatly as well, and they all made no small improvements in cultivation and martial arts.

In addition, Lu Yang also entrusted Wang Kang with the [Xiantian Pill] he had bought from the Qianfeng Merchant Association, having him leave the city and deliver it into Niu Hanshan's hands. This could be considered fulfilling the promise he had made to Niu Hanshan back then.

At this point in time, Niu Hanshan breaking through to the Xiantian Realm was undoubtedly good news as well for the common people outside the city who were in dire straits.

Because many of the noble families within the city had collapsed, Lu Yang had even written a letter inviting Niu Hanshan into the county seat to establish a family clan, but the other party had politely declined.

Lu Yang guessed it was most likely because of that ancestor of his, so he did not force the matter.

The whole of Black Mountain County operated in an orderly fashion. After the internal traitors were cleared out, news of people going missing within the city very rarely spread again.

Once everything had gotten onto the right track, only then did Lu Yang go to seek an audience with the County Magistrate, Du Guinian.

Du Guinian had quite a favorable impression of this subordinate who had saved his life. The moment he saw Lu Yang, he smiled gently.

"Lu Yang, come, come, sit down quickly." He invited Lu Yang to sit opposite him, ordered the maidservant to serve tea, and only then said, "I heard that these days, you've been leading the entire Constable Office in martial training, and quite a few people have made progress. You've done very well."

Lu Yang smiled. "If the brothers' cultivation improves a little, then when they go out to quell Demonic Calamities, it'll be less strenuous than before."