Speculation Abounds

Fang Xiao saw the atmosphere soften and finally spoke: "We went to pursue the Teahouse Owner and the Girl, but the result was that the Teahouse Owner died in Willow Town, the Girl vanished, and Zhang Yi, who had been impersonating Yuan Chengji, also died in Willow Town."

"The Teahouse Owner and Zhang Yi possessed identical identity tokens and practiced the same Blood Fiend Technique. This matter is now quite clear: Zhang Yi was the second mole."

Shao Pengshu and Tan Hong's expressions shifted. They sheathed their embroidered sabers with grim looks, though they were secretly shocked.

Zhang Yi, whom they had spent years with, had actually been a member of the Blood Fiend Cult.

And what kind of organization was this Blood Fiend Cult?

"Palm technique..."

As the group pondered, Lin Zhenwu's gaze locked onto the palm prints on the chests of the two corpses, then he looked at Hou Ping: "Chief Constable Hou, don't tell me you've been secretly learning palm techniques."

The implication was clear: these two weren't killed by you, Hou Ping, were they?

"I..."

Hou Ping's eyes flickered. He had originally intended to remain silent and maintain his image as an expert, but after being prompted, he realized that the fatal wounds on both men were indeed caused by a palm technique.

He paused, then recounted the sequence of events: "While you were pursuing the Teahouse Owner and the Girl, Zhang Yi lured me to Wheat Valley Alley, intending to devour my heart and liver. In that moment of peril, a mysterious person appeared and slew Zhang Yi."

"The Teahouse Owner's corpse appeared at my feet at that very moment."

"That mysterious person's movement technique was too agile, and with the dim light in Wheat Valley Alley, I only caught a glimpse of a black shadow before the person vanished."

"You didn't discover anything else?" Lin Zhenwu asked.

Hou Ping thought for a moment and mused: "If I had to say, when that person brushed past me, I smelled a faint scent of ink."

"Ink?" Lin Zhenwu was lost in thought.

People who carry the scent of ink are usually those who deal with brushes and paper, such as civil officials or Confucian scholars.

But such people, aside from having enough strength to hold a brush, could hardly be said to have the strength to truss a chicken.

A scholar? A martial artist?

Or perhaps, a martial artist who enjoys reading?

But that seemed highly unlikely.

Studying is a time-consuming and energy-draining endeavor, and martial arts training is the same, if not more demanding—at least, that was his view.

The mysterious person's martial arts realm was not low; they must have spent a vast amount of time to achieve it. How could they still have time to study?

Or was the scent of ink merely a disguise?

Was the mysterious person a martial arts expert disguised as a Confucian scholar?

The others remained silent.

Only one person felt his heart skip a beat upon hearing the mention of ink.

"The palm technique used to kill these two shows extremely high attainment and is imbued with dense blood energy. I estimate... it is a Blood Activation Realm master at the perfection stage, with eleven strands of blood energy."

"Even if I were to strike with all my might, I could only achieve this effect."

Seeing the group silent, Lin Zhenwu spoke again.

Eleven strands of blood energy?!

That young master?!

Hou Ping's heart trembled violently.

He was now caught between two extreme conjectures, a contradiction that made him feel deeply uneasy:

The young master of the Fang family could not possibly be the one who saved him;

The young master of the Fang family was exactly the one who saved him.

Hearing this, Fang Xiao's brow furrowed even tighter.

Among those present, if anyone else besides Hou Ping was caught in a contradiction, it was Fang Xiao.

Palm prints! The scent of ink!

Two more coincidences!

The night before last, the mysterious person had delivered complete evidence to him. With all these coincidences, he was basically certain that the mysterious person was the young master.

And the palm prints on the two corpses before him were very similar to those on the deceased bailiff Yuan Chengji—both were killed with a single strike.

Could it be the young master again?

But... the young master has condensed eleven strands of blood energy?!

Is that even possible?

"If Instructor Lin mentions palm techniques, could it be..."

Shao Pengshu, having calmed down and regained his reason, walked over to examine the two corpses. His eyes then lit up with a sharp glint as he looked at Fang Xiao.

"Instructor Fang, it is very similar to the palm technique that killed Yuan Chengji!"

"It's the mysterious person who delivered the evidence to us!"

Lin Zhenwu became interested: "To think such an expert is hiding in Willow Town!"

"Old Fang, you've had the most contact with him, tell me. How could an expert like this be buried in Willow Town? He belongs in the Criminal Defense Division."

Fang Xiao snapped out of his shock, his gaze sweeping over the two corpses before he spoke slowly: "The mysterious person's movement techniques and concealment skills were too high-level. It was the middle of the night, and I couldn't find a single trace."

"Then we must find this person even more!" Lin Zhenwu gripped his spear, excitement surfacing on his face: "To earn such an evaluation from you, Old Fang, this person's strength is definitely no weaker than..."

"This person's strength might only be slightly weaker than mine."

"..."

At least eleven strands of blood energy refined, superb mastery of palm techniques, and capable of shaking off Instructor Fang's pursuit—this is only "slightly weaker" than you?

If not stronger, they are at least on par, right?

Fang Xiao looked toward the street outside the yamen hall, lost in thought.

Is it you, Young Master?

If that is the case, then this play I had Shao Pengshu put on feels rather meaningless.

He glanced sideways at Shao Pengshu.

The Young Master has refined eleven strands of blood energy, while Shao Pengshu has only seven.

Who is protecting whom?

But how could the Young Master have refined eleven strands of blood energy...

How long has it been? Eleven strands in one month?

Shao Pengshu felt his heart drum under Fang Xiao's stare, wondering if he had said something he shouldn't have.

But it seemed he only mentioned the mysterious person.

Is one not allowed to talk about the mysterious person?

Or perhaps...

His eyes suddenly shifted, a strange thought popping into his mind.

The mysterious person doesn't exist at all; Instructor Fang is that mysterious person!

Yes, that must be it.

Instructor Fang obtained the paper ball himself, no one saw it, and then he fabricated a mysterious person.

Today, when we left town to pursue the Teahouse Owner and the Girl, we split up; Instructor Fang had every opportunity to return to town and kill the two of them.

Shao Pengshu felt all the clues click into place.

But when he confidently looked up at Fang Xiao, more doubts surfaced in his heart.

Why would Instructor Fang do this?

It would be completely unnecessary!

No, that's not right...

The motive is insufficient.

For a moment, the yamen hall fell into silence, with everyone seemingly lost in their own thoughts.

A long while later.

"Old Fang, let's put the matter of the mysterious person aside for now." Lin Zhenwu sat on a nearby chair, looking at the two corpses, and said:

"What we can confirm is that there is a Blood Fiend Cult operating in the shadows, and that Girl you mentioned—the Young Master—received a tip-off from Zhang Yi and escaped."

"We don't know where she fled."

"The Blood Fiend Cult's techniques devour human organs and are extremely dangerous; we must continue the investigation."

"Furthermore, this Blood Fiend Cult has even reached into our Criminal Defense Division."

Lin Zhenwu's tone was sharp, and as he spoke, his gaze swept over Shao Pengshu and Tan Hong.

The two of them understood the implication immediately and hurriedly explained.

"Instructor Lin, I was brought up by you and Instructor Fang; I have absolutely no connection to that Blood Fiend Cult. If there's any connection at all, it's that I, Shao Pengshu, am determined to catch them!"

"My Lords, I, Tan Hong, have no parents and was adopted by the Criminal Defense Division when I was very young. It is impossible for me to commit such a treasonous act."

Lin Zhenwu looked at the two of them, his expression softening: "I'm not talking about you two. I suspect there is still a mole from the Blood Fiend Cult inside the Criminal Defense Division."

He then looked around the room, gripped his spear tightly, and said coldly: "This matter must not only be investigated, it must be investigated thoroughly!"