They All Had to Die

"Hey, who closed the doors?"

A constable nearest the doors suddenly spoke up.

Swish, swish!

The constables and Daoists around him turned to look. A chill ran through every one of them, and their faces went pale.

"Wasn't me."

"Not me either."

"I saw it. The doors... looked like they closed on their own."

"Don't talk nonsense. Those doors are heavy. They were hard enough to push open. How could they close by themselves?"

"I'm not talking nonsense. I really saw it."

"..."

Everyone talked over one another, and the more they said, the more frightened they became. The hair stood on end for all hundred-odd constables and Daoists.

"Why are you panicking?"

Li Xianghe barked, "We're all officials serving the court. We came here today to arrest a wanted criminal, uphold the law, and protect our neighbors. Justice shines bright, Heaven protects us—why should we fear some backwoods evil spirit?"

His words had some effect. Everyone breathed easier, no longer quite as tense as before.

Then Li Xianghe stepped up to Wen Zaiqing and said quietly, "Senior Lecturer Wen, there's something strange about how those doors closed. We should have someone open them first. Let some sunlight in. If anything does happen, we'll have a hard time explaining it to Young Master Zheyu, won't we?"

Before coming to Dragon King Stronghold, Li Xianghe had not taken the place seriously.

But after arriving, he had realized that too many things were amiss.

For one, he had learned that the stronghold's chief was none other than Chen Qingshuo.

Chen Qingshuo had once been a Senior Priest of Inner-City Returning Dragon Abbey. He had even vied with Wan Zheyu's father, Wan Tusheng, for the position of abbey head. Wan Tusheng had eventually crippled him and sent him fleeing, but who had not