Chapter 66

Over the next few days, Lu Zhangsheng stayed at home to practice his secret techniques.

He soon mastered the basics, waiting only for future Source Energy Points to improve them further.

The exploration of the Cangyun Mountain Range also gradually got on the right track, and every day he woke up, there were some Source Energy Points credited to his account.

This made him quite pleased.

According to his estimates, after flattening the entire volcanic crater, he would also obtain a significant amount of Fire Crystal Stones, enough for him to cultivate several martial arts to the realm of Perfection.

By then, it would be time for him to break through to Bone-forging.

Only by breaking through to Bone-forging can one truly be considered to have stepped into the ranks of the strong.

Coupled with his own perfect-level breakthrough, among all the Bone-forging warriors in the entire Changping County, he would not be considered weak.

The current situation is becoming increasingly bizarre, and it is clear that the County Lord's daughter has been tampered with and could erupt at any time; he must improve his strength as quickly as possible.

Just as Lu Zhangsheng was practicing diligently.

Inside a dim room.

A woman dressed in red robes with gorgeous makeup sat upright on a chair, looking down at the man in black kneeling on the ground in front of her.

"Continue with the plan, and send someone to take good care of the 'Spirit Seed' inside Du Ling's body..."

She looked majestic, and her tone was extremely cold.

"Your subordinate obeys the order, but if we go to contact Du Ling, will it cause the other party to be exposed?"

The man in black looked quite puzzled.

He was extremely afraid that he would accidentally ruin the Sovereign's scheme, as that would likely be a fate worse than death.

The other party's methods were not something he could withstand.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but shiver.

"It doesn't matter; Du Ling has something from the adults above to cover her aura, and no one in the county city can discover it."

The red-robed woman waved her hand, looking confident.

Her plan was finally about to begin; for this day, she had waited for decades.

………………

The next day, early morning.

Early in the morning, after washing up, Lu Zhangsheng walked out toward the street.

Yesterday, he had already arranged to meet Yue Shulan at the restaurant, intending to ask her about some matters.

On the clean and tidy street, the crowd was surging, and it was quite lively.

Some children were wearing gorgeous clothes, running on the street, as if they were in a prosperous age.

This kind of scene could absolutely not be seen in the Outer City; in the Outer City, besides the stinking gutters, there were dead rats to be seen everywhere.

Those who could live in the Inner City, besides the high-ranking officials and nobles, were these warriors like them.

"Behind the vermilion gates, meat and wine go to waste; on the road, there are bones of the frozen to death"—how similar it is to the current scene.

The people around them gave way one after another when they saw Lu Zhangsheng.

This official uniform of the DemonSubduingOffice, eighth-rank, was full of deterrent power.

The people do not fight with officials; it has been like this since ancient times.

Not long after, Lu Zhangsheng arrived in front of a large restaurant.

"Yuelai Tower."

A plaque with three gilded characters hung on the door.

He lifted his feet and walked in.

"Official, please come in quickly."

The manager saw a big shot arriving and hurriedly came up to greet him personally.

"I have an appointment with someone, so there is no need to trouble you."

After speaking, Lu Zhangsheng carried his hands behind his back and walked slowly toward the private room on the second floor.

"Creak..."

Arriving on the second floor, he pushed open the door and saw a woman in white sitting at a rosewood table; it was none other than Yue Shulan.

"What brings Brother Lu to find me today?"

Yue Shulan smiled slightly and immediately welcomed Lu Zhangsheng over.

This was the first time the other party had invited her, which made her quite surprised.

Lu Zhangsheng did not stand on ceremony and immediately sat down.

Then he smiled and said, "Does Miss Yue know why the County Lord's family was killed back then?"

After a year of peeling back the layers, he discovered that the source of all the conflicts seemed to point to the County Lord, Du Wentao.

From the slaughter of the County Lord's family to Du Ling being tampered with, plus the blood feud between the other party and the Black Mountain Bandits, all of this was not hard to discover.

There was a dark force eyeing the County Lord, and the moment it completely erupted, it would likely be earth-shattering.

Lu Zhangsheng initially suspected that it might be the handiwork of that "Sovereign," or perhaps related to the Black Mountain Bandits.

That was why he came to ask Yue Shulan about some past events today.

The other party's information would definitely be more than what he knew; this was beyond doubt.

Yue Shulan was stunned upon hearing this.

Then she said faintly, "This matter has passed for a long time, but there are some rumors; you must not spread them around, lest the County Lord be displeased."

"I understand."

Lu Zhangsheng took a sip of tea.

A warm current rose from his abdomen, and the fragrance lingered in his mouth. Yue Shulan continued, "It is said that the killing of the County Lord's entire family back then was also related to his younger sister."

"That year, the County Lord's sister was in the bloom of youth, at the age when her heart was first stirred, and she fell in love with a young master in the county city."

"It just so happened that the young master had some connection with the Black Mountain Bandits; the County Lord discovered it and naturally would not agree, so he secretly found a good friend to kill that man."

"You know what happened later; the two were torn apart, and the County Lord's family was killed..."

Hearing this, Lu Zhangsheng was also quite surprised.

He did not expect that there were such secrets hidden within.

At that time, Du Wentao was only a scholar, and his family was just an ordinary scholarly household.

"Some people rumored that the man seemed to be the illegitimate son of one of the Black Mountain Bandits' leaders; otherwise, they wouldn't have made such a big fuss."

Yue Shulan's eyes flickered.

"There is one more thing that is quite bizarre: the County Lord's sister seems to have disappeared, and no one knows where she went."

"Some people speculate that she died, and others speculate that she was taken away by the Black Mountain Bandits; this has become a mystery."

Lu Zhangsheng nodded slightly.

At that time, it was almost impossible for a woman without any means of self-defense to run out of the county city.

Coupled with the fact that no one found her body at the scene, it was highly probable that she was alive.

As for where she went, no one knew.

The greatest possibility was that she joined a certain force and went into hiding.

After listening to Yue Shulan's explanation, Lu Zhangsheng gradually had a clue in his heart.

All of this was inevitably inseparable from that incident back then, and the forces in the shadows could strike at any time.

As for whether that group of people had other plans, that was not something he could know.

A moment later, after bidding farewell to Yue Shulan, Lu Zhangsheng returned to his own small courtyard.

Over the next few days, the entire county city was quite calm.

As if before a storm.

Lu Zhangsheng stayed at home practicing martial arts and did not go out to walk around.

The rest of the time was spent manipulating the Pangolin to dig for Fire Crystal Stones; his days were quite fulfilling.

This day, early morning.

Lu Zhangsheng happened to be on duty in the DemonSubduingOffice main hall when suddenly a burst of hurried footsteps came from outside the door.

Not long after, a burly man dressed as a head catcher walked in.

His expression was somewhat solemn.

"What important matter brings this official to the DemonSubduingOffice?"

Lu Zhangsheng gently put down the book in his hand, his eyes carrying a trace of doubt.

"Lord Lu, some bizarre things have happened one after another on West Street; I am not sure if it is the work of something bizarre, so I would like to invite you to take a look."

The burly man cupped his fists, his face full of respect.

He did not dare to underestimate this commoner warrior who was quite famous in the DemonSubduingOffice.

"Then lead the way."

Lord Lu smiled slightly.

The three FuduDianZhu were in charge of three areas in the county city, and this West Street happened to be under the jurisdiction of Qin Ruobing.

With him on duty, this case naturally fell on his head.

Subsequently, the two walked forward all the way.

Passing through street after street, they arrived in front of a civilian house.

The eaves were still hung with white silk, which was somewhat desolate.

Lu Zhangsheng lifted his feet and walked in.

He saw a corpse lying on a wooden board, covered with a layer of white cloth, and not far away, several orphans and widows were kneeling, sobbing softly.

Seeing Lu Zhangsheng and the other arrive.

A woman dressed as a farm wife said with red eyes, "Please, Lord, find the true culprit and be the master for us..."

After speaking, she kowtowed repeatedly, her forehead stained with traces of blood.

"Madam, there is no need for this; this official will definitely investigate this matter with all his strength."

Lu Zhangsheng immediately helped the woman up.

Then he walked to the corpse.

He lifted the white cloth.

He saw an extremely bizarre male corpse come into view.

The man's face was pale, and there was a trace of a smile and satisfaction at the corners of his mouth.

It seemed as if he was experiencing something very comfortable, which made people's hair stand on end.

Even Lu Zhangsheng was seeing this phenomenon for the first time.

Subsequently, he began to carefully investigate the other party's injuries.

After a burst of searching, he did not find any injuries, as if it were a natural death.

"Is there really such a thing as dying from pleasure in this world?"

Once this strange thought emerged, it made him feel strange.

(End of chapter)