Chapter 21: A Widow Who Still Holds Her Charm

The training ground.

The personnel had already assembled.

Five from the Ding Fire Division and five from the Gui Water Division, plus two Commanders of the Banner.

The Tianlin Guard's affairs were complex and varied, and they often faced a shortage of hands; cooperation between different divisions was a common occurrence.

Only this time, the situation was a little unusual…

The runners of the Ding Fire Division looked at that upright figure, their hearts tense and uneasy.

They had witnessed Chen Mo's methods with their own eyes; if they accidentally offended this fierce god, the consequences would likely be especially tragic!

Li Yuan stood to one side, silent, no one knew what she was thinking.

Seeing that it was getting late, Chen Mo swung himself onto his horse.

"Set out."

"Yes!"

……

The western suburbs.

To be precise, this place did not belong to Ducheng, but to a subordinate prefecture and county.

The place they were headed was called Tongling County, not far from the city proper. Added to the fact that the Tianlin Guard's Crimson Blood Horses carried the bloodline of strange beasts and were extremely fast, it was roughly only a single shichen's journey.

Arriving at the county gate, the county magistrate and a group of constables, who had long been waiting there, came forward to greet them.

Chen Mo and Li Yuan showed their waist badges.

Seeing they were Commanders of the Banner of the Tianlin Guard, the crowd's expressions grew even more deferential.

"Greetings, my lords."

The county magistrate, clad in a green official robe, short and plump of build, cupped his hands and said, "This subordinate is Li Minghan. I have been awaiting the two lords for some time."

In terms of official rank, he was an Imperial Rank 7 appointed official, equivalent in position to the two of them.

But the same rank did not mean the same standing.

The Tianlin Guard was a special institution specially authorized by imperial power, with extremely great authority and a notorious reputation; its various cruel methods made people's blood run cold…

A small county magistrate like him, with no backing or connections, simply could not be compared.

"This subordinate has prepared some wine and dishes. The hour is already late, and you have all traveled a long way and are weary. Why not go to the tavern first to rest and recover, wash off the dust of the road, and discuss other matters tomorrow."

Li Minghan forced out a brilliant smile.

Beside him, an old constable captain frowned, seeming to want to say something, but seeing the county magistrate secretly glare at him, could only lower his head helplessly.

This was not the first time the higher-ups had sent people.

It was nothing more than going through the motions, casually dealing with it and calling it done.

Besides, these two were so young. The man was handsome and noble in bearing, clearly a young master raised in luxury; the woman had an exaggerated greatsword slung across her shoulder… however one looked at it, they did not seem like people here to handle a case.

Serve them well with food and drink, and once tomorrow comes, see them off.

"There's no need for rest. Who's going to tell me the specifics of this case?"

Chen Mo went straight to the point.

Li Minghan was taken aback. Why was this handsome young master not playing by the rules?

Could it be that there were too many people present, he couldn't save face, and wanted to put on a show?

Though inwardly grumbling, he did not dare slight them, and said, "Captain Xing, report the details to my lords, exactly as they are."

"Yes."

The old constable captain responded, and gave a rough account of the whole affair.

Three months ago, murders had occurred one after another within the city.

And the manner of death was strikingly similar in every case:

The victims were all male, dressed in bright red wedding robes, with bizarre smiles on their faces.

Their skulls had been pried open, the insides empty and hollow, as if something had eaten them clean.

Hearing this, Chen Mo and Li Yuan exchanged a glance.

"If it were an evil cultivator, there'd be no need to dress the dead in wedding robes. It's most likely…"

"A demon-ghost!"

The two instantly confirmed the answer.

Only demon-ghosts would act in such a way; their methods were bizarre and could not be judged by common sense.

Although the Three Sage Sect had driven out most of the demon-ghosts, some inevitably slipped through the net, and bizarre incidents of havoc occurred from time to time.

But this was right beneath the Son of Heaven's feet, under the clear light of day—how dare they run rampant to such a degree?

"To date, how many people have died in total?"

Chen Mo asked.

"Twenty-nine."

Captain Xing's tone was heavy.

"That many?"

Chen Mo raised an eyebrow. "Why was it delayed so long before being reported?"

Captain Xing shook his head and said, "As early as two months ago, this matter was reported to the Ducheng government office. They sent constables over, led by an Imperial Rank 7 martial artist, but that very night he died an unnatural death, his manner of death identical to the other victims."

"Later, your Tianlin Guard sent people again…"

"Cough, cough!"

At this moment, Li Minghan gave a forceful cough. Captain Xing caught on and immediately fell silent.

An Imperial Rank 7 martial artist had died?

No wonder this case required two Totem Captains.

Chen Mo's thoughts stirred slightly, and he asked, "Who did the Tianlin Guard send last time?"

Captain Xing hesitated a moment, then said in a low voice, "It was a my lord surnamed Yan from the Fire Office. He wandered around the city for a bit, then declared the case closed, and returned to Ducheng the next day."

He also drank ten jars of fine wine and pocketed two hundred taels of silver as travel expenses!

Li Minghan silently added in his heart.

Sucking the marrow from their bones, taking and demanding bribes — if the Tianlin Guard comes a few more times, they'll probably empty out the entire county office!

Hearing this, the expressions of everyone from the Fire Office grew somewhat uneasy.

A cold glint flashed in Li Yuan's eyes.

Dirty hands would be one thing, but with this many dead and he still brushed it off — how is that any different from treating human life like grass?

That day I really should have let Chen Mo cut him down with one slash!

"Judging by the pattern of the murders, on average one person dies every three days."

"It's been exactly three days since the last death. Tonight, I'm afraid…"

Captain Xing's voice was low and slow.

Fear surfaced on everyone's faces; the atmosphere was deeply oppressive.

It was like a headsman's blade hanging over their heads — no one knew whether the next to die might be themselves.

"Let's go, head into the city and take a look."

Chen Mo rode at the front, passing through the county town's main gate.

It wasn't yet the Hour of the Rooster, yet the streets were already completely empty; every household had its doors and windows tightly shut, some even fully sealed with wooden boards.

A pall of panic spread through the city.

"Which household was the first to have this happen?"

Chen Mo inquired.

"The Liu family in the west of the city."

"Master Liu was about to take a secondary wife, so he held a grand banquet that night. But when they went to crash the bridal chamber, they discovered the person was already dead…"

Captain Xing answered.

"Take me to the Liu residence."

"The rest of you go to the homes of the previous victims to investigate. If you find anything unusual, fire a whistling arrow to signal."

"Assemble at the county office before the Hour of the Pig."

Chen Mo issued his orders methodically.

"Yes!"

The constables quickly dispersed, heading to various parts of the city under the constables' lead.

Li Minghan and Captain Xing exchanged a glance, only now realizing that this Young Master didn't seem to be here just to make up the numbers…

And Li Yuan, whose temperament had always been forceful, offered no objection, silently following behind Chen Mo.

……

The Liu Residence.

The estate was quite lavish and imposing — high walls, deep courtyards, the main gate tightly shut.

Captain Xing stepped forward and knocked on the door knocker, calling out loudly, "I'm Captain Xing from the county office, the hea—"

Before he could finish, an impatient voice came from inside the gate: "The mistress has given orders to close the door to visitors. Please come back another day, Captain."

Captain Xing still wanted to say something, but Chen Mo directly raised his foot and kicked.

Bang!

The door bolt snapped, the heavy solid-wood gate burst open, and the servant was sent tumbling to the ground.

Clutching his bright-red forehead, he pointed at Chen Mo and shouted angrily, "How dare you force your way into a private residence? Do you know what kind of place this is…"

"Insolence!"

"This one here is a Totem Captain my lord of the Tianlin Guard!"

Captain Xing said in a deep voice.

"T-Tianlin Guard?!"

Hearing those three words, the servant nearly scared his soul out of his body.

He scrambled to his feet in a panic, kowtowed on the ground, and said in a trembling voice, "This servant was blind — I beg the my lord to forgive me!"

Chen Mo paid him no heed, raised his leg, and walked into the courtyard.

Just then, a woman dressed entirely in white mourning clothes walked out from the main hall.

Graceful and elegant, full-figured and rounded, her waist swaying as she walked — like a perfectly ripe peach.

At the same moment, a prompt flashed before Chen Mo's eyes:

【Special Event Triggered: The Liu Family's Widow.】

"Looks like I really did come to the right place."

The corners of Chen Mo's mouth curved up slightly.