Chapter 396: Seeking Death

When the steward of the Prefecture Mansion brought word from the Dungeon, saying that someone had broken into the Prefecture City Dungeon and had even killed Xiong Yi, Chen Xun was instantly struck with terror.

Inside the Dungeon, there were three experts of the True Qi Realm standing guard, and there were bunkers like a forest, with powerful bows and heavy crossbows!

Who could have possibly broken in, and even beheaded Xiong Yi?

At that time, Chen Xun was discussing with Yang Ji and Li Hong how to set up overt and covert defenses for the execution ground where Shen Yanliu would be executed after daybreak. Upon hearing this news, the three immediately interrupted their discussion and hurried to the Dungeon together.

In the gray light of dawn, torches had already been lit throughout the Dungeon, the flames burning fiercely, illuminating the inside and outside of the Dungeon as bright as day.

Chen Xun looked at Xiong Yi's headless, bloody corpse with a gloomy face.

Li Hong pulled out the Willow Leaf Knife that had been stuck into the ground, frowned slightly in the torchlight, and looked at Chen Xun, saying, "It is a throwing knife technique! A single strike to explode the head; the person who made the move is likely at least at the True Qi Realm Second Layer."

Hearing this, the two people in plain clothes standing not far away both trembled and looked at each other. These two were the other two True Qi Realm experts guarding the Dungeon.

They were both at the First Layer of the True Qi Realm; since the opponent could kill Xiong Yi without a sound, if they made a move, they could kill them just the same!

Under the reflection of the firelight, Chen Xun's expression was extremely ugly.

Those two stood there as silent as cicadas in winter; they were both people who had followed Chen Xun for years, so they naturally could feel Chen Xun's current rage.

Chen Xun turned his head to look at the two of them, the muscles on his face twitching; he almost cursed the word "trash" that was on the tip of his tongue.

Chen Xun suppressed the anger in his heart, took a slight breath, and glanced at the cell behind him; he saw that in the shadow cast by the firelight, a person wearing prison clothes and covered in bloodstains was lying on a pile of dry straw.

Chen Xun said coldly, "Open the cell door!"

The person who had been playing mahjong at the entrance of the bunker immediately fished a ring of keys from his waist, gripped one key, opened the fist-sized copper lock on the cell door, removed the Iron Chain, and pushed the cell door open.

Chen Xun walked in slowly.

Seeing Chen Xun walk into the Dungeon, Li Hong immediately took a torch from a soldier nearby and followed him in.

Borrowing the bright red firelight, Chen Xun examined "Shen Yanliu" lying on the pile of straw, seeing only that his hair was disheveled and he was unconscious with his eyes tightly shut.

The two people guarding the Dungeon had already reported to Chen Xun just moments ago that the prisoners in this area had all been drugged with a potent sleeping potion.

Chen Xun leaned forward and bent his waist, brushing aside Shen Yanliu's disheveled hair; under the reflection of the firelight, he saw that face clearly.

His heart instantly eased; although someone had broken into the Dungeon, fortunately, the most important prisoner in this case had not been abducted.

It seemed that the person who broke into the prison was aiming for Tang Wanhong.

Chen Xun looked at "Shen Yanliu's" blood-stained body, his gaze shifting slightly; he suddenly reached out and squeezed several joints at his ankles and elbows.

That familiar bone-dislocating technique and force made him even more certain.

Chen Xun strode out of the cell, swept his gaze around, and said coldly, "Where is Tang Wanhong's cell? Take me to see it!"

That person with the long, thin horse-face immediately led Chen Xun toward Tang Wanhong's cell.

Meanwhile, the other person took the keys and locked the door to Shen Yanliu's cell again.

Chen Xun walked to the front of Tang Wanhong's cell and saw that the cell door had already been opened, with the Iron Chain and the opened copper lock hanging on a crossbeam of the wooden fence.

Chen Xun glanced at the opened copper lock and asked, "Was this cell door opened by the person who broke into the prison? Or did you open it?"

"Reporting to the Prefecture Master, it was we who discovered that the prisoner was missing from this cell, so we opened it to go in and check." The person holding the ring of keys, who had walked over by now, immediately replied.

Upon hearing this, Chen Xun did not speak and walked into the cell.

Li Hong continued to hold the torch and followed him in.

The two men stood at the entrance, both wiping cold sweat from their foreheads.

Chen Xun looked at the hole in the center of the cell and felt as if he had swallowed a fly; he had never imagined that the Prefecture City Dungeon, which he had built with his own hands to be as solid as a fortress, would one day be breached by someone using such a method.

Chen Xun stood by the hole for a while, then slowly walked back to the wooden fence of the cell; standing there, he looked toward where Xiong Yi was, and he realized that to shoot a throwing knife from here, the angle was very tricky.

Li Hong stood behind him, and seeing the position Chen Xun was standing in, he understood what he was thinking.

Li Hong said, "The cell door was closed. The person who broke into the prison might have made the move while standing right here!"

"That should be it." Chen Xun's voice was low. "It's just that the angle is a bit tricky!"

Li Hong said, "That shows that the person's mental cultivation for throwing knife techniques is quite astonishing!"

Chen Xun turned his head to look at him and said, "Among the martial arts experts in the nearby prefectures and counties, is there anyone who excels at throwing knife techniques?"

"There are a few who excel at throwing knife techniques. But to reach the True Qi Realm Second Layer and be able to explode Xiong Yi's head with a single knife, I fear only the Mr. Guo the Second from years ago could do it."

"Guo the Second?" Chen Xun pondered slightly and said, "That person has been in retirement for, what, ten years now?"

"Eleven years!" Li Hong said with a certain tone.

Chen Xun looked at him again and said, "What? Are you acquainted with this person?"

Li Hong smiled slightly and said, "We had some dealings in the past, but it wouldn't count as being friends."

Chen Xun nodded and said, "Find someone to investigate and see if this Guo the Second ever had any favors to return to Tang Wanhong." After he finished, he paused and continued, "Since you knew him in the early years, have you ever heard that he had this ability to dig tunnels?"

"I have never heard of that." Li Hong pondered slightly and said, "Perhaps there were two people who broke into the prison."

Upon hearing this, Chen Xun's gaze flashed; he turned his head and walked slowly back to the hole in the center of the cell, then suddenly looked outside the cell and asked, "Where was this tunnel dug from?"

"It was from a civilian house that has been abandoned for many years not far from the Dungeon. My subordinates have already sent people to surround that house, and the bailiffs are currently screening the residents around that house. To see if anyone has seen any unusual people or heard any unusual movements in the past few days?"

Chen Xun nodded and looked at the person outside the door indifferently.

He stood there for another while, then sighed lightly and walked out of the cell.

At this time, the flames of the torches outside were still roaring, but the sky was already bright; Chen Xun glanced at Shen Yanliu's cell not far away, turned his head to look sideways at Li Hong, and said, "In three more hours, it will be the hour of the execution at noon. You will guard Shen Yanliu here personally; do not let any more mishaps occur."

"Rest assured, Prefecture Master!" Li Hong cupped his fists and replied behind Chen Xun.

Li Hong was an expert of the True Qi Realm Second Layer, and since it was already broad daylight, Chen Xun reckoned that there should be no more accidents here.

Although the Dungeon had suffered a prison break, fortunately, the most important prisoner, Shen Yanliu, had not had any problems.

Chen Xun felt a lingering fear just thinking about it; if Shen Yanliu had been abducted, wouldn't all his hard work have been for nothing? One had to know that Shen Yanliu was not clean, and he himself was not exactly clean either; however, he had used mental calculation against the unsuspecting and had struck first to gain the advantage.

Fortunately, those people who broke into the prison were clearly aiming for Tang Wanhong.

Previously, when he had personally set the trap for Tang Wanhong, he had investigated this person.

This Tang Wanhong was originally an antique dealer, but because he was shrewd and sophisticated, he was favored by Shen Yanliu.

With twenty or thirty years of friendship between the two, Tang Wanhong had long since become Shen Yanliu's most important confidant.

This man mixed with the people of the jianghu and the marketplace; the people he associated with were already a motley crew, and after following Shen Yanliu, he ran errands for him in all directions, so the breadth of his social circle was something ordinary people could hardly imagine.

Among these people he associated with, there might have been some blood-brave fellows with a sense of gratitude and loyalty who, knowing he had suffered such a great disaster, devised a way to rescue him.

As for killing Xiong Yi, it was very likely that the commotion on their side startled Xiong Yi, who was not far away.

The position where Xiong Yi was located was originally arranged by him specifically to guard Shen Yanliu.

As for Shen Yanliu, after this case, the two had already turned against each other; he and Tang Wanhong were already nearly enemies, and since those people were there to save Tang Wanhong, why would they bother with Shen Yanliu?

On the road as Chen Xun rode his horse back to the Prefecture Government Office, he was no longer so anxious in his heart.

Tang Wanhong was actually already a dispensable character in this case; taking him down in the first place was for the purpose of biting out Shen Yanliu. Since Shen Yanliu had already been taken, his value had been fully exhausted.

Even so, it was a major case of breaking out of prison, so he would still investigate with all his might, but that would have to wait until after he executed Shen Yanliu at noon that day.

If he did not kill this man, the stone in his heart would not be lifted.

Initially, when he heard that the Prefecture City Dungeon had been raided, he thought something had gone wrong with Shen Yanliu, so on the way to the dungeon, he asked Li Hong about news regarding Shen Mizhi.

Li Hong said he had just received news from that side not long ago; Shen Mizhi had only left the border post after dusk yesterday, and calculating the journey, the earliest she could arrive here in Ruyang City would be this morning.

In a Wild Forest twenty miles outside of Tongbai County!

The desolate Wild Forest was rarely visited by people, but at this moment, a carriage rumbled through, and before long, it stopped outside the door of a ruined temple.

Ximen Kankan gave a "Whoa" and pulled on the reins.

The carriage cabin jolted, shaking Duan Rong, who had already fallen asleep, awake.

Duan Rong got up, pulled back the carriage curtain, and looked at the familiar ruined temple in the wild forest before him; it was exactly the place where he used to stay when escorting goods in previous years.

He carried Shen Yanliu on his back, got off the carriage, walked into the ruined temple, and laid him flat on a pile of hay in the corner.

At this time, Ximen Kankan tied up the carriage and also walked in, fixing his gaze on Shen Yanliu.

He saw that Shen Yanliu was covered in blood and filth, his face pale, with a small scab of blood on his right cheek.

Previously, it had been dark, and Ximen Kankan had not seen Shen Yanliu; he had only heard Duan Rong say that he had already rescued the person. Seeing him now, it was indeed Shen Yanliu lying here, and he felt a sudden sense of admiration.

That was the Prefecture City Dungeon!

And this Inspector of the prefecture was what kind of major criminal?!

Duan Rong turned his head and happened to see Ximen Kankan looking at him with some astonishment. He smiled and said, "How is it? Is your feeling of admiration for me like the surging river, continuous and unending?"

Upon hearing this, Ximen Kankan's shocked expression instantly turned into a cheeky grin, and he laughed, "Yes! My feeling of admiration for you is just like a bladder of urine held in all night, about to spray all over your face!"

After Ximen Kankan finished speaking, he immediately hid by the temple door, fearing that Duan Rong would take the opportunity to kick his backside.

Duan Rong merely glanced at him; he had no time to mess around with Ximen Kankan.

He flipped his hand and took out a Medicine Pill; this was left behind by Shen Ping. Duan Rong decided to let Shen Yanliu take one. He was covered in wounds and his dantian had also been destroyed, so he could be said to be seriously injured. He had gone through so much trouble to get him out of the dungeon; if he were to die now, wouldn't it have all been for nothing?

Next, Duan Rong gathered his Divine Sense, penetrating the various bone joints of Shen Yanliu's body. He suddenly reached out and began pinching and pressing at various points on Shen Yanliu's body.

He was resetting Shen Yanliu's dislocated bones.

There was a series of cracking sounds from the bones all over his body; Shen Yanliu was clearly in great pain and let out a muffled groan.

The Medicine Pill he had just swallowed already had detoxifying properties, and coupled with the intense pain in his body, Shen Yanliu slowly woke up.

His mind was first a blur, and then he looked at Duan Rong beside him and the surrounding environment.

Shen Yanliu's eyes suddenly narrowed, and he immediately looked around. He saw Ximen Kankan standing at the temple door, this ruined temple, and through the temple door, he also saw the Wild Forest outside.

This was clearly not the Prefecture City Dungeon.

"Where is this?" Shen Yanliu's throat was dry and hoarse as he looked at Duan Rong and asked.

Duan Rong said, "This is a ruined temple in the suburbs of Tongbai County."

Shen Yanliu's eyes moved; Tongbai County was already some distance from Ruyang Prefecture. "Did you save me?"

"Yes."

"Did Mizhi ask you to save me?"

"Yes!"

Shen Yanliu said coldly, "Send me back!"

Duan Rong was slightly stunned, and he and Ximen Kankan looked at each other, not understanding what Shen Yanliu was trying to do. This person was a bit too ungrateful. Someone saved you, and instead of saying thank you, you say you want to go back.

Ximen Kankan said, "If you go back, you'll die!"

Shen Yanliu said, "I am already a useless person; death is not a pity! Doing this will implicate Mizhi and will also implicate you! It's not worth it!"

Duan Rong said, "Since I saved you, I will not leave behind any handle for them to pursue."

Shen Yanliu's eyes flickered.

It was not that he did not believe Duan Rong, but he really could not figure out what Duan Rong meant by not leaving behind a handle for them to pursue.

He was an Inspector of a prefecture, a major criminal in a case personally tried by the Prefecture Master; now that he had escaped from the dungeon, how could they not pursue him?

Shen Yanliu shook his head and said, "If I don't die, Chen Xun will not let Mizhi go!"

"Send me back, or I will bash my head in here!" As Shen Yanliu spoke, he actually struggled to get up.

His joints were broken all over his body, and this movement immediately caused him to break out in a cold sweat, his breath coming in ragged gasps, but he still struggled to crawl toward the large pillar over there.

Duan Rong looked at Shen Yanliu's desperate attempt to die and felt a slight stir in his heart.

He knew he was afraid of implicating Shen Mizhi. Even a tiger does not eat its own cubs!

He suddenly flicked his sleeve, and a cloud of potent anesthetic powder was scattered onto Shen Yanliu's face. Shen Yanliu was already panting heavily, and he inhaled much of the Medicine Powder at once, immediately feeling the world spin, his eyes going black as he passed out.

Duan Rong helped Shen Yanliu lie back down on the pile of hay. He turned his head to look at Ximen Kankan and said, "Watch him. If he wakes up again, persuade him well; just say Shen Mizhi will come to see him in a while."

Ximen Kankan looked troubled and said, "I'm not sure I can handle him!"

"If you can't handle him, knock him out!"

As Duan Rong spoke, he stepped out of the door. As he left, he threw a black Porcelain Bottle at Ximen Kankan's feet.

When Ximen Kankan saw the Porcelain Bottle, his eyes lit up with joy; that was clearly the anesthetic Duan Rong had just used to knock out Shen Yanliu.

Duan Rong had not expected Shen Yanliu to be so intense; had he known, he wouldn't have woken him up. Shen Ping's Medicine Pill had detoxifying effects, so the potent anesthetic probably wouldn't last long.

What a headache!

(End of chapter)