Everyone was curious.
They wondered what else the official from Southern Yu Prefecture wanted to ask.
But no one stopped him.
County Magistrate Li said nothing either.
Lord Cheng's gaze settled on Xu Qingxiao.
He still wore a smile.
"Brother Qingxiao, please don't hold this against me."
"Unorthodox arts are a grave matter to the court-a matter of utmost importance."
"I'm actually very pleased that you haven't practiced any."
"After all, practicing unorthodox arts is no small matter. Once you take that first step, an endless abyss awaits."
"Do you know why?"
He spoke, still discussing unorthodox arts.
His words piqued Xu Qingxiao's curiosity, but Xu Qingxiao wasn't foolish enough to take the bait and ask. Instead, he shook his head. "I don't know, sir, nor do I wish to know. Being able to prove my innocence is enough to make me happy."
Xu Qingxiao refused to take the bait. This Lord Cheng was no minor figure. Who knew whether he was digging a pit and waiting for him to jump in?
Yet the man seemed to have anticipated Xu Qingxiao's answer.
He smiled gently. With a little color in his face, he might have looked rather handsome, but his deathly pale complexion made the expression decidedly strange.
"That's all right. Consider this a warning to everyone, a reminder to you all."
Lord Cheng chuckled.
Then he continued.
"The terror of unorthodox arts lies in the fact that every one of them can turn a person into a demon or monster, robbing them of reason and driving them to slaughter."
"But some people are extraordinarily lucky and avoid that transformation. Only, that is even more terrifying."
"Once you practice an unorthodox art, a demonic seed will inevitably form. Even if you are lucky enough to survive the first time and never touch unorthodox arts again, that demonic seed will keep growing stronger over time."
"Even if you never touch them again for the rest of your life, given enough time, the demonic seed will erupt completely. In other words, sooner or later, you will become a demon or monster. And the stronger you are then, the stronger your demonic nature will be."
He explained the terrifying nature of unorthodox arts to everyone.
But they frowned, seemingly unable to understand.
Perhaps it was too profound.
He showed no embarrassment. Instead, he continued.
"To put it another way."
"Anyone who practices an unorthodox art is effectively creating a heart demon inside themselves. This heart demon cultivates on its own. Once its strength surpasses yours, it will seize your body, leaving you knowing nothing but slaughter."
"And a heart demon cultivates far faster than normal. So as your demonic nature grows stronger, your only choice is to keep practicing unorthodox arts, because only they can make you stronger in an instant."
With a simple analogy, he explained what truly made unorthodox arts terrifying.
This time, everyone understood. Shock appeared on every face.
"But what if you practice an unorthodox art again, get lucky, and still don't turn into a demon? Wouldn't that suppress it?"
Someone couldn't help asking.
"Foolish."
Before Lord Cheng could speak, County Magistrate Li's voice rang out.
"A demonic seed cannot be destroyed. No matter how lucky you are, even if you escape disaster twice in a row, the danger lurking within only grows greater. Increasing your strength merely suppresses the demonic seed temporarily. After a while, it will surface again, and you will face another life-or-death choice."
"And the further you go, the stronger your demonic nature becomes. Before the Great Wei Dynasty was founded, a mighty demon would emerge every so often, leaving a million corpses floating with a single thought. That is why all the righteous powers under heaven strictly forbid unorthodox arts."
County Magistrate Li's explanation left everyone clicking their tongues in astonishment.
But Xu Qingxiao was the most shaken of all.
He had never imagined that unorthodox arts could be so terrifying.
He had thought he had escaped disaster, and had even intended never to practice them again.
Now, however, it seemed he hadn't escaped at all. He had fallen into a prolonged, deadly cycle.
If he didn't practice unorthodox arts, his cultivation would progress slowly. Sooner or later, the demonic seed would surpass him, turning him into a demon.
If he did practice them, every attempt would be a life-or-death gamble. Survive, and the danger grew greater. Fail, and he was sent straight to his final resting place.
Well, damn.
Well and truly damn.
Xu Qingxiao finally understood the terror of unorthodox arts.
He really had set foot on a road of no return.
"Is there truly no way to resolve this?"
Someone else spoke, asking the very question Xu Qingxiao wanted answered.
Once again, County Magistrate Li answered.
"The scourge of unorthodox arts has defied resolution since ancient times. If it could be resolved, they wouldn't be forbidden so strictly."
"Think about it yourselves. If the problem of the demonic seed could be solved, we could simply let people practice unorthodox arts and have powerful experts stand guard. Anyone who transformed could be killed on the spot, while those who didn't could serve the court."
"Why would they need to be forbidden throughout the world?"
County Magistrate Li's words made things even clearer.
Indeed, if there were a solution, they could simply gather a group of expendable loyalists and have powerful experts stand guard. Kill those who transformed, keep those who didn't, and put them to good use. In time, experts would fill the land like clouds.
Wouldn't unifying Mountains and Rivers be just around the corner?
That meant this was a deadly cycle with no solution.
Xu Qingxiao really was starting to panic.
Had I been handed the villain's script?
Practice evil, unorthodox arts right from the start, erupt at the final moment, become the ultimate demon, and then get killed by the chosen one?
His head hurt a little.
But Xu Qingxiao kept all his questions bottled up.
The danger hadn't fully passed yet. Whatever happened, staying alive came first.
"Heh, naturally, it's best that this was all a misunderstanding. Brother Qingxiao, you seem to have a good head on your shoulders. You've also turned misfortune into a blessing, absorbing supreme yang energy into your body. Not only have you entered the ranks, you also possess some pure yang energy."
"If you don't wish to remain in the county, you're welcome to come find me in Southern Yu Prefecture. We'll be recruiting a new batch of constables soon. You could give it a try."
The man spoke, warmly inviting Xu Qingxiao to join him. Without what had happened earlier, Xu Qingxiao might genuinely have believed he was trying to recruit him.
"You think too highly of me, sir."
Xu Qingxiao offered a polite platitude.
"Very well, Lord Li. I was somewhat abrupt today. Now that the matter has been cleared up, I still have the fugitive to deal with. Pass along any information promptly."
With that, he walked straight out of the jail.
"Take care, Lord Cheng."
County Magistrate Li called after him, then watched him leave.
Only after he was gone did County Magistrate Li breathe a sigh of relief. He glanced at Xu Qingxiao.
"Untie him quickly and take him home to rest."
With that, County Magistrate Li left the jail as well.
Once County Magistrate Li was gone, the few colleagues who remained immediately grew animated.
"Qingxiao, Qingxiao, you nearly scared us all to death!"
"I knew I was right about him. Qingxiao would never secretly learn an unorthodox art."
"Brother Qingxiao, you have no idea. If you'd admitted to secretly learning one, we'd all have been dragged down with you."
They chattered away as they hurried to unlock Xu Qingxiao’s restraints, all of them still shaken.
"What happened?"
"What exactly was going on?"
"I'm still confused."
Xu Qingxiao meant it. The whole affair had left him bewildered. Although he could guess some of it, the details remained unclear.
"Let me tell you what happened. An hour ago, someone arrived from Southern Yu Prefecture-that Lord Cheng just now. After hearing the whole story, his first reaction was to interrogate you."
"But before questioning you, Lord Cheng had already interrogated Doctor Zhao. Poor Doctor Zhao took a beating for nothing. A man in his sixties, punished without cause."
"The magistrate was fine at first, but after seeing Doctor Zhao punished, he grew unhappy and went back and forth with Lord Cheng. Otherwise, you would have been tortured too."
His young colleague gave him a rough account of what had happened.
"Doctor Zhao was tortured?"
Xu Qingxiao frowned.
"Of course. Those people from Southern Yu Prefecture are all vicious and ruthless. I see it clearly now-no one climbs that high without being ruthless."
"If Doctor Zhao hadn't been tortured, you probably would have been too. Luckily, the magistrate treats us well and kept you from it."
"But then again, if you really had practiced an unorthodox art, the magistrate would definitely have lost his official's hat, and we would all have been implicated. You have no idea how nervous we were outside the jail, each of us more anxious than the next, terrified that you really had practiced one."
"Thank goodness you hadn't."
The three took turns talking, finally making everything clear to Xu Qingxiao.
It seemed he really had been lucky.
He had come within a hair's breadth of disaster.
Thank goodness for that flash of inspiration.
Looking back, he still felt a chill of fear. Had he confessed, the magistrate would certainly have lost his post, and his colleagues probably wouldn't have escaped unscathed either. If he practiced unorthodox arts, who could guarantee they didn't?
Though collective punishment was inhumane, County Magistrate Li's earlier explanation had made Xu Qingxiao fully understand just how terrifying unorthodox arts were.
He also fully understood the extraordinary severity of the court's prohibition.
Earlier, Xu Qingxiao had thought everything would be fine as long as he never practiced them again.
Now he realized he had been far too naive.
"Come on, Qingxiao. Let's go have a drink at the tavern and settle your nerves."
They spoke, pulling Xu Qingxiao along to help him recover from the fright.
Xu Qingxiao didn't refuse.
He kept feeling that this affair was far from over.
That Lord Cheng would certainly not let it rest, especially given his final speech. On the surface, it had seemed like a warning to everyone.
In truth, it had been meant for him.
For now, the best thing was to say nothing out of turn and avoid dwelling on anything. He would act like an ordinary person and wait until this period passed.
The one thing that made Xu Qingxiao uncomfortable was this.
Doctor Zhao had been tortured.
He had been dragged into this because of him.
Xu Qingxiao felt ashamed.
Meanwhile.
Night had fallen.
In the mountains near Ping'an County.
Cheng Lidong sat astride a horse, quietly gazing into the night.
Dozens of officers followed behind him.
He remained utterly silent, radiating authority.
Just then.
His Hooked-Nose subordinate suddenly spoke from behind him.
"Sir, this Xu Qingxiao is far too suspicious. Should we plant two men at his side? Or simply kill him and spare ourselves trouble down the road?"
He was Cheng Lidong's subordinate and had followed him for decades. Naturally, he knew what Cheng Lidong was thinking, so he took the initiative to offer a solution.
But Cheng Lidong shook his head and answered in an utterly calm voice.
"No!"
"In another county, killing a runner would be no issue."
"Unfortunately, County Magistrate Li has someone backing him higher up. Our heavy-handedness has already displeased him. If we forcibly kill one of his runners as well, a complaint to the Prefectural Lord would be a minor matter, but if it reached the court, it would be anything but."
"The new dynasty has only just been established, and His Majesty enforces the law strictly. Turbulent waves churn within the court. There is no need to let something like this affect the Prefectural Lord."
"Besides, a martial artist who has only just entered the ranks can hardly stir up any waves. Even if he truly has practiced an unorthodox art and survived the first time by luck, the second will inevitably reveal his true form."
"At most, it will be a little more troublesome then. Our immediate task is to capture that fugitive as soon as possible."
"The matters tied to this man are far too significant. The Prefectural Lord cannot wait."
He spoke.
His words were cold and cutting.
Before you continue