"If Huang Chengyue wanted to offer five portions of food to the Demonic Creatures, then he wouldn't have left our bodies intact. After all, martial artists have vigorous blood and qi, which would be a great tonic for Demonic Creatures."
"So it must be that we learned something we shouldn't have, and Huang Chengyue wanted to use the Demonic Creatures to kill us and silence us."
"Perhaps not everyone knew his secret. Maybe just one of the five of us knew, but to cover up the truth completely and keep that person from telling anyone else, he killed the rest of us as well."
"That would also explain why the Crimson Serpent Demon appeared in my room last night."
"She came for me. She wanted to kill me to silence me."
"But I've completely inherited the original owner's memories, and there's nothing about Huang Chengyue's secret in them!"
"Nor are there any secrets about the others!"
"The original owner was an upright, hot-blooded young man. Why would he have had a habit of secretly collecting other people's private information?"
"Could it be that the original owner didn't actually know Huang Chengyue's secret, and was killed only because he got caught up in it?"
"Then he really did suffer a bolt from the blue!"
"But a bloodstained fragment of clothing and my own suspicions aren't enough to convict Huang Chengyue."
"Still, with my current cultivation, I don't fear him. I'll investigate in secret first and find out what really happened!"
Chen Fan furrowed his brow, turning things over in his mind.
Huang Chengyue was also a martial artist at the Blood Martial Saint level, the Fourth Stage of the Spirit Concealment Realm. Chen Fan had reached that level too, and he had mastered Body Tempering Fist and Draw Sword Slash at the Great Perfection Level.
Huang Chengyue had used his accumulated Merit Points to visit the Longyuan Prefecture Jinyiwei Commander's Office and exchange for a more advanced Cultivation Method to replace Body Tempering Fist. But if it came down to a fight, Chen Fan wasn't afraid of him!
That was the confidence strength brought!
"Uncle?"
"Are you listening?"
Seeing Chen Fan staring blankly, Sister-in-law Zhao couldn't help speaking up.
"I'm listening, sister-in-law."
"I've remembered everything you told me."
"I'll investigate and get to the bottom of this. But until the truth comes out, I hope you'll keep it to yourself and not tell anyone. Otherwise, you might be putting your own life in danger."
Chen Fan looked solemnly at Sister-in-law Zhao as he spoke.
"Mm-hmm."
"I understand."
"You and Brother Jia were comrades and friends. Besides you, there's no one I trust."
"I'll leave this bloodstained Cloth Fragment in your care, Uncle. I hope you can get to the bottom of things."
"But if things become too dangerous, you must protect yourself. I don't want Brother Jia to die without anyone knowing the truth, but I don't want you to lose your life over this, either."
Sister-in-law Zhao nodded and handed the Flying Fish Robe fragment to Chen Fan.
"Don't worry, sister-in-law. I will."
"If you or your son run into any trouble, come to the Jinyiwei Baihu Office Barracks to find me. I'll do everything I can to help."
Chen Fan cupped his hands and spoke.
The information Sister-in-law Zhao had given him was far too important.
Although his strength was now worlds apart from what it had been before, his enemy was hidden while he was exposed. He could easily stumble into a trap.
But now, the enemy was out in the open, and so was he. They could have it out and see who came out on top!
Chen Fan said goodbye to Sister-in-law Zhao and immediately returned to the Jinyiwei Barracks.
Their usual work was rather dull. Most of the time, they patrolled the county seat or took shifts at the Jinyiwei Baihu Office; sometimes, they patrolled the area outside the city, near the county seat.
The county seat was a Human Race settlement. Demonic Creatures rarely dared to enter, so it was relatively safe. Outside the city, however, was their territory.
Many villages and towns suffered from Demonic Creatures, but the Jinyiwei were short-handed, and their main duty was to defend Ping'an County. Under normal circumstances, they didn't go out of their way to patrol the townships.
Only when someone reported Demonic Creature activity at the Barracks would they consider sending people out, after the Zongqi Officer had verified the report.
But there was one situation that required everyone to mobilize. Even the Baihu Master couldn't sit it out.
That was when Demonic Creatures massacred a village or directly occupied a town under Ping'an County. In that case, they had to turn out in full force.
Still, things like that rarely happened. Demonic Creatures weren't stupid; they had gained intelligence and knew that fighting the Jinyiwei to the death wasn't sensible.
Over the next few days, Chen Fan didn't encounter any Demonic Creatures trying to assassinate him. It was as if nothing had happened, but he felt it was only the calm before the storm.
During those days, he often followed Jinyiwei Zongqi Officer Huang Chengyue in secret, hoping to find direct evidence that he was colluding with Demonic Creatures. Unfortunately, Huang Chengyue lived the same routine every day: either he worked at the Jinyiwei Barracks or went home to enjoy a warm bed with his wife and children.
That was how most veteran Jinyiwei lived. Patrolling and running all over the place every day was exhausting. Unless they went to a pleasure house to listen to music, they went home to their wives and made babies.
After all, this might be a world of extraordinary martial power, but it didn't have that many modern conveniences for entertainment.
Huang Chengyue was fifty-eight that year. He had practiced martial arts for years, and his considerable strength made him look only a little older than Wang Chao. But the gray at his temples gave away his age.
By all rights, he had no reason to collude with Demonic Creatures.
After all, under the Great Zhou Law, colluding with Demonic Creatures was a capital crime, one that meant the extermination of three generations of one's family.
He had money, status, and a house full of descendants. It was hard for him to get promoted or make further progress in martial arts. He was at the perfect age to take it easy. Why would he risk his life?
"Stop watching him. I've seen you keep an eye on Old Huang for days."
"There's nothing wrong with him. If there were, then there wouldn't be a decent person left in Ping'an County."
A crisp voice rang out behind Chen Fan. He drew the Hundred Refinements Embroidered Spring Blade without thinking and unleashed Draw Sword Slash at the Great Perfection Level. A terrifying blade arc slashed diagonally ahead!
The newcomer swiftly retreated dozens of steps. Chen Fan's blade carved a mark into the bluestone ground three feet deep and over a zhang wide.
"What a keen blade technique. I never expected a little county seat like Ping'an to have such a martial arts prodigy hidden away in its Jinyiwei Baihu Office."
The newcomer gazed at Chen Fan from a distance and spoke with admiration, not the least bit angry at his reckless slash.
Of course, after swinging his blade, Chen Fan had held back and hadn't used his full strength.
The newcomer wore the uniform of a Ninth Rank Black-Clothed Female Constable and was clearly an officer from the county Government Office. She was also a young woman with delicate features.
"Miss, are you a constable from Ping'an County?"
Chen Fan cupped his hands and asked.
A Ninth Rank Black-Clothed Female Constable in Ping'an County held a rank equivalent to a Jinyiwei Xiaoqi Officer. But anyone who became a county constable was stronger than a Jinyiwei Xiaoqi Officer, even if she couldn't match a Jinyiwei Zongqi Officer.
She looked so young that it was hard to imagine her as the Ninth Rank Black-Clothed Female Constable Chen Fan had pictured.
"How did you know I was a female constable? I'm clearly wearing the uniform of a male constable, and I even did my best to lower my voice just now."
The female constable looked crestfallen as she spoke.
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