"We searched Danyang Academy all night."
"The Academy was empty, not a soul to be found, and no clues were discovered. After checking the list, it turned out everyone who was absent yesterday had vanished. We then deployed hounds and found more than ten corpses in the back mountains."
"Identified by the students of the Academy, they were the abbot, the bookkeeper, the treasurer, and the servants who worked at the Academy."
"Only the Sacrificial Officer Liu Danqiu was nowhere to be found!"
Zhou Kai’s eyes narrowed slightly, "He has no family?"
The Thousand Households garrison commander bowed respectfully and said, "I have already inquired about this. This Liu Danqiu is a Confucian Magician who originally lived in Guizhou City."
"Ten years ago, the Maitreya Sect started a rebellion in Guanzhong and subsequently, a plague erged on the battlefield that spread to Ezhou. All of Liu Danqiu’s family contracted the disease and died, leaving only a grandson."
"Later, when his grandson went out to seek education, he was killed by river pirates, and since then Liu Danqiu has lived in a hut in the mountains, only returning to the Academy for rituals..."
Sha Lifei’s eyes rolled, and he whispered, "Brother Yan, this sounds familiar. It couldn’t be the sa person who caused trouble at Zhu Family Castle, could it?"
Li Yan found it strange, "It’s already been reported. If it were the case, judging by the hours, Confucianism should have co to capture him a long ti ago..."
Zhou Kai quickly asked by their side, "What are you two talking about?"
Li Yan did not hide anything and recounted the events.
After all, Zhou Kai was also a Confucian, and even if not a Magician, he should be clear on these matters.
Unexpectedly, Zhou Kai, after listening, thoughtfully said, "You two may not be aware, but if it’s a routine case report in Ezhou, it must first be sent to Wenjin Academy and then distributed down for verification of the Academy’s Sacrificial Officers."
"This process can take a lot of ti. But if it involves the Prophetic Technique, they will definitely use the court post station’s fast horses to send ssages, and three days would be more than enough..."
"Bring Wu Defa here!"
The sound of chains echoed as County Magistrate Wu Defa was dragged in.
Although he was imprisoned, he was still an official and had not been tortured harshly; he was just disheveled with a dazed expression.
Zhou Kai said coldly, "Wu Defa, I am asking you, has Wenjin Academy sent any docunts to verify the Academy’s Sacrificial Officers?"
Faced with such a massive disaster, Wu Defa knew there was no escape and was utterly disheartened. He made no attempt to conceal the truth, bowing his head and mumbling, "These matters were all handled by the clerk."
"What a useless wretch!"
Zhou Kai’s face showed disgust, and he directly ordered n to drag him away and fetch the clerk from the jail.
This clerk was even worse, not a mber of the Heavenly Saint Sect, but had been bribed and had done many depraved things.
He had been beaten bloody after last night’s interrogation.
Seeing the nacing looks from everyone, he dared not hide anything and gave a full account.
Indeed, a few days earlier, Wenjin Academy had sent a letter.
But the gang leader of the Heavenly Saint Sect, Lu Yuan, suddenly approached him, threatened him with leverage in his hands and forced him to reply with a letter, and used the County Magistrate’s great seal without authorization to deceive them...
Just these facts alone were enough to confirm the other party’s identity.
Daoist Feng shook his head and said, "I’ve also t this Master Liu. Ever since his family passed away, he’s beco eccentric, and I fear he may have been in touch with the Ghost Sect from that ti."
"Although he is a Confucian Magician, he’s old and frail, does not know martial arts, only understands so ritual practices, and is not valued by others, living a rather impoverished life."
"I didn’t expect that he had secretly learned the Prophetic Technique in the dark, I’ve really misjudged..."
The garrison commander of the Thousand Households bowed again and said, "Sir, we have searched the surrounding mountains and found no traces of demons. Please instruct us on our next steps."
Zhou Kai said in a deep voice, "This matter may be related to the native mountain strongholds, just guard the city well and do not slack off in any way!"
"Yes!"
The Thousand Households commander bowed in acknowledgnt and left.
After his departure, Zhou Kai’s eyes narrowed slightly, and he said in a low voice, "Young Hero Li, based on last night’s testimonies, that Wu Shiqing is fond of Buddhist scriptures, often going to the Gratitude Light Temple outside the north gate."
"At the ti of the incident, he was returning from there; there may be sothing amiss, also the old City God Temple in the west of the city has had its share of strange incidents."
"Please leave secretly to investigate."
Li Yan imdiately understood, "You suspect the Thousand Households garrison?"
Zhou Kai said solemnly, "The Zigui Thousand Households garrison has been stationed for years, it’s true they can’t leave without military orders, but after such a major incident, they never reported it before! Moreover, the news has leaked too quickly."
"I suspect that soone in the garrison has joined the Ghost Sect. During the Great Song period, they promised great profits and enticed many officials to join the Sect, which is why the troubles escalated."
"Zigui County is in turbulent tis now, we must be vigilant. They didn’t join the rebellion yesterday, perhaps they have bigger plans."
"The only people I can trust are the ones I brought from Yunyang, only a few are left now."
Li Yan’s eyes narrowed, "Are you not afraid, Sir?"
Prefect Zhou Kai was calm, "Young Hero Li, there is no need for probing. As filthy as the officialdom can be, if it’s related to the security of Divine State, if everyone were to act ignobly, how could Great Xuan stand for a hundred years?"
"My duty is to stabilize the people in the city. The reinforcents from Yichang will arrive tomorrow, then we can be at ease."
"Understood!"
Li Yan gave a formal bow and turned to leave.
"I will join you!"
Daoist Feng quickly stood up, "There is a secret passage in the City God Temple that leads directly outside the city. You’re not familiar with the way, I can help."
"Good."
Li Yan could tell that the old Daoist was worried, probably anxious about potential problems with the Thousand Households garrison.
After they left, Prefect Zhou Kai sighed, took out a map, and slowly spread it out, his expression growing darker as he looked.
"Jing Chu Mountain people, Heavenly Saint Sect, Ghost Sect, Yang Family of Bozhou..."
Sha Lifei’s comnts earlier had inadvertently reminded him.
Looking at the map, the Jing Chu rebel army had already occupied Zhushan County and there was only Shennongjia in between Zhushan and Zigui County.
User Comments
0 comments from readers