Black Bear Gully Village

Chen Fan had only been in the Jinyiwei for a year, but thanks to the Body Tempering Fist, he had transformed from a martial arts novice into a martial artist at the peak of the Spirit Concealment Realm, having leaped through the Five Gates.

If the Left Commander of the Longyuan Prefecture's Commander's Office knew of such talent, he would surely grant him Spirit Aperture Realm cultivation techniques above his rank and keep him in Longyuan Prefecture to personally nurture him.

"So that's how it can be done."

"But I only recently reached the peak of the Spirit Concealment Realm, and I still need time to settle. Cultivation techniques for the Spirit Aperture Realm aren't that urgent."

"Besides, I won't be able to rest easy until I find the person who harmed me!"

Chen Fan exclaimed with emotion.

Lu Xuening also found it a bit strange. With such strength, how could Chen Fan have fallen into a Demonic Creature ambush some time ago and nearly lost his life?

Or did he see through that Demonic Creature attack as being deliberately orchestrated, and thus deliberately feigned injury to make the mastermind behind it lower their guard, so he could then expose them?

But he wouldn't have to watch his four colleagues die tragically at the hands of Demonic Creatures, would he?

Or were the Demonic Creatures picking them off one by one, killing his four colleagues first, and then encountering him?

No matter how she thought about it, she couldn't grasp the key point. The logic just didn't add up.

If only she knew that the Chen Fan before her was already a completely different person, and his strength had also increased dramatically in the past few days.

When he encountered the Toad Demon, he was just a nobody!

"Perhaps the results will come in a while."

"Besides, among the Jinyiwei, only certain people are involved. Ordinary Jinyiwei members and Xiaoqi Officers don't have the qualifications to collude with Demonic Creatures."

"That leaves one Baihu, and two Zongqi Officers. I know Huang Chengyue well; he's upright and hates evil, so that only leaves Cao De and Li Mo."

"You just need to be wary of these two. If they dare to make a move against you, then kill them directly. After all, with your current strength, killing them won't be difficult!"

Lu Xuening said nonchalantly.

In her opinion, Cao De, the Baihu of the Ping'an County Jinyiwei Baihu Office, was definitely suspicious. However, she didn't have enough concrete evidence yet to prove his collusion with Demonic Creatures.

Once confirmed, she could directly take action against him!

Or, if she reported this evidence, someone in Longyuan Prefecture would deal with him!

"Since Huang Chengyue is so upright, why don't we have him directly expose the evidence of the Jinyiwei and the government colluding with Demonic Creatures to harm the common people, and then we can directly kill all these people? Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Chen Fan said with a touch of fanciful thinking.

"A lot of the information I've gathered was provided by him. He only knows that Cao De and Li Mo are acting strangely and are highly likely to be colluding with Demonic Creatures in secret."

"But Cao De is very wary of him and doesn't trust him much, so he doesn't have any direct evidence to prove Cao De's collusion with Demonic Creatures to harm the populace."

"He can't even be considered a witness, and we don't have any physical evidence. How can we directly kill Cao De and the others?"

Lu Xuenning shook her head and said.

If only things were that simple.

If she and Chen Fan weren't officials, but just righteous wandering heroes, then breaking into Cao De's mansion in the middle of the night and killing him wouldn't be a problem.

But the most taboo thing in officialdom is to be unrestrained; one must follow the rules!

After Chen Fan and Lu Xuenning had a simple lunch, they decided to scout the separate courtyard next to the County Magistrate's Residence that night, agreeing to meet at the back door of the separate courtyard at midnight.

Afterward, they each returned to their respective posts, one to the Government Office and the other to the Jinyiwei barracks.

As soon as Chen Fan returned to the Jinyiwei barracks, the Jinyiwei were urgently assembled.

"Brothers!"

"Our Jinyiwei's Ten Year Inspection is approaching, so we need to increase patrols both inside and outside the county town, and also inspect the townships under Ping'an County."

"Starting today, we will divide the townships under Ping'an County into patrol zones. We will patrol the townships in small teams, protect the common people, and slay Demonic Creatures!"

"Next, I will announce the townships each small team will be responsible for."

Jinyiwei Zongqi Officer Li Mo began distributing tasks with a pre-written list. Chen Fan's Ninth Squad, being smaller in number, was only responsible for patrolling a few villages under Black Stone Town.

They were to patrol once every three days. Traveling at full speed, if there were no unexpected events, a round trip would only take three hours, so it wasn't too strenuous.

However, Chen Fan felt that things weren't that simple. If Li Mo was one of Baihu Cao De's men, and Cao De was indeed colluding with Demonic Creatures, and the person he saw at the wealthy merchant's separate courtyard that day was Cao De, then Cao De would definitely make a move against him again.

If this patrol had no issues, it would prove that Cao De might not be colluding with Demonic Creatures. If they encountered powerful Demonic Creatures again during this patrol, then Cao De's suspicion would be even greater.

"Before sunset today, complete a patrol of your assigned area. I will be waiting here for you to return. Anyone who dares to be perfunctory or cut corners, if I find out, I will show no mercy!"

Li Mo said sternly, his gaze sweeping over the Jinyiwei.

"Yes!"

All the Jinyiwei shouted in unison.

Li Mo waved his hand, and the crowd dispersed, heading to the stables to select their steeds. The Ninth Squad, led by Wang Chao, also headed straight for Black Stone Town.

"Black Stone Town is the closest town to Black Mountain and is also frequently attacked by Demonic Creatures. Although we won't be patrolling much this time, the danger is not small, so everyone must stay alert."

"If the situation becomes unmanageable, immediately return to the Jinyiwei Baihu Office to call for reinforcements. Do not try to resist head-on!"

"As long as the green hills remain, there will be wood to burn. As long as people are alive, there are infinite possibilities. If you end up like the four brothers before, then all is lost."

Wang Chao said to Chen Fan and the others as they rode their horses.

"Don't worry, Wang Tou, we know the risks."

Everyone chimed in.

"Our Ninth Squad has to patrol seven villages this time. Since there are seven of us, we'll split up once we reach Black Stone Town to save time."

"If you find any trace of Demonic Creatures, don't be reckless. Retreat immediately and regroup with your brothers. We'll discuss it before deciding whether to fight or withdraw!"

Wang Chao cautioned again, his gaze sweeping over Chen Fan as he spoke.

He then casually assigned the seven villages to be patrolled to Chen Fan and the others.

Chen Fan was assigned to Black Bear Gully Village in Black Stone Town. The village was named so because black bears used to appear there long ago.

Chen Fan entered Black Stone Town, received his orders, and headed straight for Black Bear Gully Village.

As soon as he entered Black Bear Gully Village, a foul stench wafted out. The entire village was deathly quiet. The few people moving about had vacant, numb expressions.

At the village entrance sat a ragged, filthy child. He glanced at Chen Fan, then quickly lowered his head, drawing circles on the ground.

"Little brother, why are you here alone? Where are your parents?"

Chen Fan dismounted and approached the child, asking.

"Dead."

"They were all eaten by the Big Lords."

"My parents were eaten, my grandparents were eaten, my older brother and sister were eaten yesterday, and it might be my turn today."

A child of seven or eight looked up at Chen Fan, his voice hoarse as he spoke.

Chen Fan saw the utter despair in his eyes, devoid of any light.

"I'm here. You won't be eaten."

"Tell me, where are the Big Lords?"

A cold glint flashed in Chen Fan's eyes as he suppressed his anger and asked.

"At the Village Chief's house. That blue brick, large tile house."

The child pointed towards a house in the heart of the village and replied.