Heavenly Mother Cult

The third reward was actually an Imperial Guard Strongman!

For someone who had originally only hoped to become a regular yamen servant and live off the imperial stipend,

he had become an Imperial Guard member instead!

The impact was self-evident.

It was like applying to be a driver for the city government, only to be asked whether you wanted to be the city bigshot's secretary!

The Great Wu Imperial Guard was not the Ming Dynasty Imperial Guard of history, already in decline and suppressed by the Eastern and Western Factories!

It was even more formidable than the Imperial Guard of the Ming Dynasty at its peak!

Directly under the Empress's command, as the sovereign's own disciples, tasked with overseeing all civil and military officials—their low rank yet immense authority was inevitable!

Su Mo had never dared dream that one day, he would become an Imperial Guard member!

Even if he was merely the lowest-ranking soldier!

Su Mo stared fixedly at the translucent screen and unconsciously swallowed!

Once he raised Lin Moyin's favorability to the maximum later on,

would he still need to worry about not being promoted?

An Imperial Guard Centurion held the rank of Principal Sixth Rank, two ranks higher than a county magistrate of Principal Seventh Rank!

If he became a probationary Centurion of Subordinate Sixth Rank, would the county magistrate personally pour him tea, offer it with both hands, and respectfully say, "Please have some tea, my superior"?

But Su Mo quickly realized something was off.

He had merely returned a Golden Lock. Was such a generous reward really warranted?

Could the Golden Lock truly be that important to Lin Moyin?

Just as Su Mo was feeling suspicious,

the Strongman in black who had earlier taken the Golden Lock into the garrison came back out.

He looked Su Mo up and down for a while

before saying to Gao Xin, "Put away your blade!"

"Captain Lin said to let this man leave!"

The moment those words came out,

Su Mo was instantly dumbfounded.

They were just letting him go?

Was the Female Captain not at all curious how he had obtained the Golden Lock, or how he knew it belonged to her?

All the excuses he had agonized over and pondered for so long were not needed in the slightest?

Damn it!

And hadn't it said he would become an Imperial Guard Strongman?

Where was his Strongman badge?

Did he still have to wait for Lin Moyin to handle it?

Su Mo was full of doubts.

Behind him, Gao Xin hurriedly sheathed his straight saber, stepped in front of Su Mo, cupped his hands, and said politely, "Brother, my apologies for the offense!"

"The garrison is an important place. We have no choice but to be cautious!"

"Please return!"

Su Mo could only glance once more at the garrison residence, then cup his hands toward Gao Xin and the other tall Strongman. "You two are simply carrying out your duties. Of course I understand."

"Farewell!"

With that, he turned and left.

Watching Su Mo's departing back, Gao Xin finally could not hold it in any longer and asked in a low voice, "What's this fellow's background?"

"He actually has the Centurion's token?"

The tall Strongman shook his head with a bitter smile. "I don't know that either."

"But he's definitely not simple!"

He lowered his voice. "When the Centurion saw the Golden Lock just now, she stood up from her chair!"

Gao Xin immediately sucked in a cold breath, his face full of disbelief!

Ever since Captain Lin had taken office, he had never seen the Centurion show a second expression!

She had always been cold as frost, her expression unchanged even if a great mountain collapsed before her!

Yet she had actually stood up in shock?

Good heavens!

Had he used a little too much force when he pressed his blade against that kid just now?

He hadn't accidentally sliced the man's skin, had he?

Cold sweat broke out all over Gao Xin!

Inside the garrison, Lin Moyin expressionlessly examined the thick case files from past years.

She had finally found it.

Thirty years ago: Southern Heaven Way, Yongqing Prefecture, Handu County, Mountain God Temple—the dried corpse case!

Besides Handu County, dried corpse cases had also appeared at the Locust God Temples, City God Temples, and Dragon King Temples in Taian, Dongping, and Machuan Counties of Yongqing Prefecture!

Lin Moyin let out a long breath.

It really was the Heavenly Mother Cult!

The Heavenly Mother Cult's history was identical to that of the Great Wu Dynasty.

More than fifty years ago, the Great Wu Dynasty was founded, and the Heavenly Mother Cult appeared at the same time.

The Heavenly Mother Cult was incomparably mysterious and difficult to trace. Even with the Imperial Guard's capabilities, they had only discovered that the Heavenly Mother Cult was connected to the previous dynasty.

It was highly likely that it had been founded jointly by Princess Danyang, a surviving remnant of the former imperial family who cultivated the immortal path, and True Man Jiulong, the former dynasty's Imperial Preceptor!

There were very few case files regarding the Heavenly Mother Cult in the garrison.

Or rather, at Lin Moyin's rank, this was all the information she could access.

Lin Moyin continued leafing through the scrolls.

When she saw, "[In the month following the case, locust plagues struck the four counties, then rapidly spread across three prefectures and seventy-two counties. A thousand li were stripped bare, grain harvests failed, people ate one another, and more than a million commoners died!]"

Lin Moyin's beautiful face changed color in an instant!

The circumstances were far too similar!

Dried corpse cases had appeared one after another at Yongping Mountain God Temple and Changping Locust God Temple!

If they were the same as the dried corpse cases at the temples thirty years ago,

then dried corpse cases would very likely appear in other counties next, at City God Temples and Dragon King Temples!

Once the sacrificial rituals at all four temples were complete,

the locust plague that swept across a thousand li would very likely return!

A thousand li stripped bare!

People eating one another!

More than a million commoners dead!

Lin Moyin's beautiful face became incomparably grave!

She carefully went through the case files once more.

After closing them, her gaze fell upon the Golden Lock.

She slowly closed her eyes. "Someone!"

A petite, pretty woman immediately entered the records room.

Yet her lovely face was likewise icy cold, without the slightest expression.

"Greetings, Centurion!"

Lin Moyin said indifferently, "Has that person left?"

The pretty woman nodded. "He has!"

Lin Moyin's eyes remained shut as she uttered one word. "Investigate!"

The pretty woman was secretly startled!

Naturally, she knew the Centurion's temperament!

The fewer words she used, the more urgent the matter was!

She hurriedly said, "Understood!"

"This subordinate takes her leave!"

After the woman left, a trace of suspicion finally appeared on Lin Moyin's face.

The face of the young man who had squatted atop the platform in the Locust God Temple surfaced uncontrollably in her mind.

The Golden Lock had belonged to her late mother. She had always kept it close to her body and never shown it to anyone.

Just who was Su Mo?

And how had he learned that she had lost the Golden Lock, found it, and returned it to her?

She had clearly searched beneath the persimmon tree for a long time, yet found nothing.

Even if he knew the Golden Lock belonged to her,

why had he returned it?

To curry favor with her?

Or perhaps...

A provocation???

However, Lin Moyin naturally would not meet Su Mo directly.

Her special identity and duties made it impossible for her to come into contact with Su Mo without knowing anything about his background!

Especially under such circumstances, when he had suddenly sent her the Golden Lock!

It was difficult for Lin Moyin not to think further.

Perhaps

that Su Mo was very likely connected to the Heavenly Mother Cult!

Naturally, Su Mo had no idea that he had already become Lin Moyin's prime suspect.

He left the Imperial Guard garrison full of doubts, pondering as he walked why Lin Moyin would not even meet him once.

It completely defied common sense.

But there was no use thinking about it.

His most urgent task was to find someone to inquire about the situation.

To gather information, he would naturally have to seek out someone from the yamen.

Unfortunately, he had only been here for a hundred days. On top of that, he had deliberately kept a low profile and acted like a fool, earning himself the nickname Su Lengzi. Naturally, he had no one trustworthy.

Should he walk into the net himself?

Judging from the quest reward, he was certain to survive this ordeal.

But if he truly went to the yamen, he would definitely be thrown into prison, and he might even suffer a round of flesh-and-blood pain.

Torture had always been the simplest, crudest, and most effective way for the yamen to obtain confessions.

Because most criminals were ordinary people.

Ordinary people feared pain!

Without special training or tremendous willpower, it was difficult to withstand the might of the three instruments of torture.

Su Mo naturally thought himself perfectly ordinary.

So he was deeply torn over whether to turn himself in!

Just as he was struggling with the decision,

he unknowingly returned to the crowded Eastern Market.

Someone suddenly patted him on the shoulder. "Su Lengzi, are you trying to get yourself killed?"

"Your Fast Squad is searching the whole city for you, and you still dare remain in town?"