Undergoing Trial

The Nanning County yamen stood beneath a heavy dusk, dark clouds pressing down on its roofs.

In the backyard of the yamen, the interrogation room was dim and cramped, with only a single oil lamp flickering in the corner.

Gu Chang'an sat on an old wooden chair, while opposite him, three people were conducting an interrogation.

Beside them, a clerk recorded the proceedings.

At the head of the table sat He Yongnian, the chief of the criminal division. He was around fifty years old with a lean face, dressed in a grey-blue official robe. The bronze token at his waist gleamed brightly. His brows were hooked like fishhooks, his nasal bridge was high, and his gaze was as sharp as an eagle's.

"Name?"

"Gu Chang'an."

"Position?"

"A constable of the Nanning County Martial Guard Division."

"Badge number?"

"Crime Solver ID Ding 314."

"During this mission, what was your assignment?"

"To lead a team and make a detour from the west gate forest road to draw out the enemy's vanguard."

"What was the result?"

"We defeated Liang Hu, the Firewood Gang protector, along with Incense Master Duan Lie and Pei Xuan. During this period, Constable Zheng Zhen turned traitor and was killed by me in counterattack, while Liang Hu and Duan Lie swallowed Blood Pills and turned into Mad Demons. To prevent these two Mad Demons from harming my comrades, I lured them away."

"..."

"After separating from Shen Qingyan and Lin Tai, what did you and Li Hongye do?"

"Constable Li and I discovered that Yin Jiu, the left protector of the Firewood Gang, was heavily wounded from his fight with Liang Hu and was attempting to flee. To cut off future trouble, we killed him. Afterward, Liang Hu pursued us, and since we were no match for him, we could only escape down the mountain."

"During this mission, did you not go to the Pill Hall?"

"No."

"After the battle, did you discover any traces of Daoist Chai?"

"No."

"The others either died or suffered heavy injuries. Why are the two of you completely unscathed?"

"..."

Just as Gu Chang'an left, before the door had even fully closed and his footsteps had faded away, two steadier sets of footsteps slowly approached.

A moment later, County Magistrate Yang Jing and County Assistant Wu Heng walked into the interrogation room one after the other.

He Yongnian stood up immediately, cupping his fists in salute.

"Lord Yang, Lord Wu."

The two men nodded slightly and sat down, taking the seats of host and guest. Yang Jing raised his eyes to look at He Yongnian, his tone calm.

"How did the interrogation go? Is there any problem with this Gu Chang'an?"

He Yongnian opened the case file in his hands, speaking at an unhurried pace, yet with clear logic.

"Gu Chang'an's confession largely matches the accounts provided by several survivors, including Jiang Yuan and Shen Qingyan. According to Jiang Yuan, Liang Hu and Duan Lie were extremely ferocious in their Mad Demon states, and indeed had the momentum to surround and slaughter their colleagues. It was Gu Chang'an who took the initiative to draw the enemy away, followed closely by Li Hongye."

"Shen Qingyan also confirmed that she and Lin Tai fought against Yin Jiu and the others on the outskirts of the Pill Hall, and she personally witnessed Gu Chang'an rush out from the woods, luring a Mad Demon-state Liang Hu and Duan Lie, which gave her and Lin Tai a chance to break away."

"In addition, Gu Chang'an also confessed to the process of killing Zheng Zhen. The autopsy matches his description, and there are no flaws for now."

He closed the case file in his hands and delivered the final verdict.

"All of these circumstances are consistent with Gu Chang'an's confession."

"The only issue is that in this mission, everyone else from the Martial Guard Division either died or was severely injured."

"Only Gu Chang'an and Li Hongye came through safe and sound, without a single scratch. According to their account, they relied on agile movement techniques to avoid a direct confrontation with the berserk Liang Hu, using a skirmishing tactic to dodge his sharp edge, which allowed them to escape unscathed."

Wu Heng frowned slightly, his tone deep.

"Can you be certain that they never went to the Pill Hall?"

He Yongnian hesitated slightly, clearly not understanding why Wu Heng fixated on this point.

Was going to that Pill Hall important or not?

However, official rank surpassed his own, so he had no choice but to answer.

Pondering for a moment, he still answered truthfully.

"According to Gu Chang'an, they were pursued by Liang Hu the entire time and fled into the mountain forests. Coupled with the fact that the Mad Demon-state Liang Hu was last seen on the outskirts of the Pill Hall fighting fiercely with the remaining members of the Firewood Gang, his corpse was confirmed afterward."

"What's more, both Gu Chang'an and Li Hongye have low cultivation bases, being only at the ninth rank. In such perilous circumstances, had they truly entered the Pill Hall and made contact with Daoist Chai or the other Firewood Gang experts, it would have been impossible for them to leave safely."

"All signs indicate that they truly had no opportunity to enter the Pill Hall."

Hearing this, Yang Jing nodded with a calm expression. "In that case, there is no need to investigate further. The Martial Guard Division has suffered heavy losses, and Gu Chang'an is a meritorious official. We must not chill the hearts of loyal men."

He Yongnian stood up and acknowledged the order. "Understood."

Yet Wu Heng remained silent throughout, his expression dark as he sat in his seat without moving, his fingertips tapping unconsciously against the arm of his chair.

He did not refute Yang Jing's words, nor did he echo them.

He did not believe that everything was truly this clean.

Had Gu Chang'an and Li Hongye entered the Pill Hall or not?

If they had entered the Pill Hall...

Did they... take anything away?

Did they... discover something?

Wu Heng's gaze was like a stagnant pool in a cold night, freezing within the flickering shadow of the candle on the table, and he remained silent for a long time.

The night was like ink, and the starlight was scattered.

Gu Chang'an turned his head to look at the somewhat fatigued Li Hongye beside him, asking in a low voice, "Are you alright?"

Li Hongye's expression remained calm as she softly said, "There shouldn't be any trouble."

As she spoke these words, she tightened her grip on her scabbard slightly, clearly showing that her heart remained uneasy.

Before returning to the county town, they had already aligned all their statements.

Regarding Daoist Chai and the Pill Hall, they did not mention a single word.

That hall... was too bizarre and too dangerous.

Amidst the piles of corpses, a great deal of wealth, martial arts manuals, pills, and the like had been successfully looted by them.

Just how much there was, they had not yet tallied.

All their gains were currently hidden in the wilderness and had not been brought back to the county town.

Gu Chang'an remained silent, merely nodding. "Don't worry, nothing will happen."

The night grew deeper, and the courtyard wall of the Sky Wind Martial Hall was concealed in the darkness, with only the front hall brightly lit.

They pushed open the door, and the few people inside raised their heads.

Li Tianfeng, Xie Lanzhi, and Wang Xiaojuan were gathered in the center of the hall, the glow of oil lamps reflecting the anxiety in their eyes—and the joy of seeing Gu Chang'an and Li Hongye return.

"You're back!" Xie Lanzhi hurried forward, her eye rims slightly red.

Wang Xiaojuan bit her lip, her pair of eyes fluttering as she followed closely behind. "Gu big brother, Red-Dress sister, are you alright?"

Gu Chang'an grinned, raising a hand to wave it dismissively. "Look at this handsome face of mine, could anything happen?"

Li Hongye turned slightly, taking off her outer robe and hanging it by the wall. "Still alive."

Li Tianfeng's gaze swept over the two of them, confirming that they were indeed completely uninjured, before slowly exhaling a breath and asking:

"How did... things go?"

Gu Chang'an paused, his expression bland. "The Firewood Gang is destroyed, and the Pill Hall is destroyed, but Daoist Chai escaped. We drew away Liang Hu and Duan Lie as planned, and subsequently escaped the mountain forest. Director Wang died, Old Zhou died, and many people... didn't come back."

Li Tianfeng closed his eyes and nodded gently.

Xie Lanzhi whispered softly, "So many people died... again."

Then, Li Tianfeng asked, "Then did you see... Daoist Chai?"

Li Hongye shook her head, her tone decisive. "No. We didn't even get close to the Pill Hall."

Gu Chang'an chimed in, "We were running for our lives the whole time."

They did not speak the truth, not only to avoid unnecessary trouble, but also to spare their families worry.

The four of them fell silent for a moment, and Li Tianfeng sighed softly.

"It's a good thing you were able to come back. The wind will blow fiercely from now on, so you must be careful."

Gu Chang'an nodded. "Rest assured, we know our limits."

The lamplight flickered slightly, and the atmosphere in the room relaxed.