Chapter 1132

One by one, they headed toward the exit, among them quite a few special individuals whose presence agitated the magical beasts.

After all the enslaved captives had been freed by General Ji Xia, she also took out the guards at the door, letting those people fend for themselves.

Earlier, the fleeing staff members might have already notified the city guards, but there was clearly still some time before the city guards arrived, and that window was enough for everyone to escape.

These slaves, who had seen the light of day again, knelt on the ground one after another to thank General Ji Xia for her great kindness. They had thought they would die inside the slave market, never expecting a day when they would regain their freedom—a day they would remember forever.

The Tianwu Empire strictly forbids slave trading; even if the city guards arrive, they would not dare openly seize people.

On the contrary, once word spread that an underground slave trade had appeared in Beast Pen City, if other city lords or high-ranking officials of the Empire learned of it and Your Majesty pursued accountability, the entire upper echelon of Beast Pen City would likely suffer, dragged down by collective punishment.

Things had already been exposed at this point. As these people spread the news, every common citizen of Beast Pen City would learn that an empire-banned slave trading incident had occurred within the city.

General Ji Xia returned to the inn, where Lin Cheng was waiting in his room as always.

Ji Xia told him everything about the underground slave trading venue, and also obtained an experimental potion.

Lin Cheng pressed his temple, deeply feeling as though he had gotten himself tangled in an extraordinarily troublesome affair, one that might very well endanger his life.

Earlier, he had been thinking that if Ji Xia was only conducting a secret investigation, even if the upper echelon of Beast Pen City learned of it, they would not launch an open investigation because they wouldn't dare.

But now, not only had the entire laboratory been destroyed by Ji Xia, but the experimenters had been killed and a large number of slaves freed. By now, probably everyone in the temporary magical beast detention area and the surrounding populace knew that a large number of slaves had fled out of Beast Pen City's sewers.

This matter had undoubtedly already blown up.

A cornered dog will jump over a wall; a cornered rabbit will bite people too!

Ji Xia had undoubtedly now brought this matter out into the open, and some high-ranking figure behind the scenes in Beast Pen City would surely be furious!

He might very well lose his reason and do something abnormal.

"Ji Xia, I need you to ride the mechanical wolf and return to Yongjicheng immediately, bring the evidence, and have Lord Xuan bring troops to take control of the situation in Beast Pen City. This matter will undoubtedly push the person behind the scenes into a corner; we can no longer continue the investigation. I have a premonition that if Lord Xuan doesn't come, this matter will very likely be suppressed by the upper echelon of Beast Pen City in the end."

"Right now?" Ji Xia looked at the visibly anxious Lin Cheng, not thinking the matter was all that serious.

The matter had already been brought out into the open; no matter how hard Beast Pen City tried to suppress it, how could they suppress it?

"Yes, set off immediately, or the city might very well be sealed off!"

"Alright, I'll set off right away!"

Facts proved that Lin Cheng's guess was entirely correct!

After the slave trading venue was exposed, a certain high-ranking figure in Beast Pen City flew into a rage, worried that the experiments would also be exposed as a result. He killed the soldier who came to report the news on the spot to vent his anger, and moreover ordered the entire city of Beast Pen City sealed off.

He also immediately took control of the laboratory in the underground slave market and destroyed all evidence.

Less than five minutes after Ji Xia left the city, Beast Pen City—which had not closed its gates in nearly a dozen years—closed its heavy checkpoints for the first time, and ordered a city-wide lockdown. Under the pretext of disturbing public order, it commanded all city guards to mobilize and scour the city arresting those who had escaped.......

The high-ranking figure knew very well that a mere group of slaves was not enough to blow the matter wide open; at worst, they could just find some scapegoat.

What mattered was that if the experimental slaves mixed in among them were exposed and dragged others into it, he himself—his entire clan even—would be finished along with them.

Fortunately, the previous experimental subjects had already been transported elsewhere; the number of people who had undergone experiments was now limited. He had to take precautions and capture all potential experimental subjects to silence them.

Even if it meant killing every single slave, he would not hesitate!

"Ding!"

"Beast Pen City's Underground Alchemy Experiment! Mission Description: A strange sewer slave trading venue with scarce customers seems to hide some unspeakable secret; the host must investigate thoroughly. Mission Requirement: Investigate the sewer slave trading venue. Mission Reward: Beast Transformation Potion."

"Chain mission activated."

"The Unknown Alchemist! Mission Description: Although the slave trading venue and laboratory have been destroyed, the chief alchemist behind the research escaped by luck and is currently in the City Lord's residence, and will be transferred elsewhere within days. Mission Requirement: Kill the alchemist Master Jianong. Mission Reward: Level increase, one random skill draw, one random mechanism blueprint draw."

The next day.

When Lin Cheng got up, washed, and went downstairs, he heard the proprietress O'Casey chattering apologetically.

Because of the city-wide lockdown caused by the mass escape of slaves from the magical beast detention area, city guards were now everywhere on the streets, spread across the entire city arresting those slaves. Ordinary citizens were not allowed to go out to buy groceries, nor were they allowed to leave their homes freely and interfere with the city guards' mission.