Chapter 330: Chen Mu, I will make you pay!

Nan Wuyi's eyes flashed purple, a flicker of gloom and resentment passing through as he growled, "It's Ding Tianpeng and Zhao Fukang! The two most troublesome investigators in the Southeast Circuit's Garrison Office headquarters!"

"Hmph, these two despicable scoundrels—if it were one-on-one, I'd fear none of them! But they always stick together, excelling in joint-strike techniques; together, their strength doubles. I'm not ready to clash with them head-on yet."

"So they're investigators!"

The square-faced middle-aged man suddenly understood, his face twisting with lingering dread.

Garrison Office investigators—they're the ruthless types assigned to handle major internal offenders and formidable enemies, each possessing extraordinary power; no wonder even Lord Mo Yan had to avoid them for now.

But then his expression abruptly changed, his voice urgent, "My lord! What about Tang Ji and Xie Manfeng? If they've fallen into the investigators' hands, our operation—especially the Giant Serpent King eggs—won't it be completely exposed?!"

"Exactly!"

Nan Wuyi gnashed his teeth, his eyes overflowing with venomous hatred, "Two years of meticulous planning, countless resources invested—just on the verge of success… all ruined by that damned Chen Mu! And those two relentless bastards, Ding Tianpeng and Zhao Fukang!"

"Then… what do we do now?"

The square-faced middle-aged man was utterly panicked; exposure of the plan meant all their arrangements in Weizhou might be uprooted, possibly drawing even more terrifying investigations.

Nan Wuyi's eyes flickered violently, then hardened into icy resolve as he said grimly, "What else can we do? The plan must be canceled immediately! That batch of Giant Serpent King eggs—abandon transporting them into Weizhou for now; find another hidden place to seal them away."

"Hatching must be postponed indefinitely. Wait until this storm passes, until the Garrison Office's attention shifts—then we'll choose a new location and start over!"

"But… but we prepared for so long…" The square-faced man's face twisted with resentment, his voice trembling.

"Fool!"

Nan Wuyi hissed, "Is the plan more important, or your life?! If the Southeast Circuit Garrison Office headquarters is targeting you, and you don't flee now, are you waiting to be wiped out?!"

The square-faced man bowed his head, silent, but his lowered eyes brimmed with suppressed fury and venomous hatred.

He dared not resent Nan Wuyi, nor dare to resent Ding Tianpeng or Zhao Fukang—all his rage and frustration ultimately converged on one name.

Chen Mu!

"It's all that damned Chen Mu's fault!"

He roared silently in his heart, fingernails digging deep into his palms until blood seeped out, "If he hadn't suddenly appeared in Weizhou, if he hadn't clung to Liang Zhongshi's case, if he hadn't brought Ding Tianpeng and Zhao Fukang… how could our grand plan have failed?!"

"Chen Mu, I will make you pay!"

…

…

In the depths of the dungeon beneath the Garrison Office in Weizhoucheng.

Tang Ji, He Xiaoming, and Xie Manfeng were separately imprisoned, their cultivation sealed by specially crafted shackles, interrogated in turn by Ding Tianpeng and Zhao Fukang themselves.

Under soul-level pressure and the drive of survival instinct, the three eventually broke, confessing everything they knew: their infiltration in Weizhou, collusion with the Serpent King Island pirates, details of the Giant Serpent King egg transport plan, possible rendezvous points and codewords, and partial lists of hidden operatives.

Several days later, a public execution in Weizhoucheng's central square shook the entire city.

Tang Ji, He Xiaoming, Xie Manfeng, along with the deceased Du Yuansheng and other leaders of the conspiring factions, were publicly sentenced for grave crimes: "colluding with pirates, betraying the imperial court, plotting treason, and harming the people."

Tang Ji, He Xiaoming, Xie Manfeng, and others were executed in public, their corpses hung on the city gates for three days as a warning to others.

Chen Mu acquired two more Soul-Enhancing Cards!

Though dead, Du Yuansheng's official rank was posthumously stripped, and his family was investigated and punished.

This thunderous crackdown completely purged the poison within Weizhou's Garrison Office and greatly intimidated all factions within Weizhou.

For a time, the officialdom and martial world of Weizhou were thoroughly cleansed.

To prevent the Serpent King Island pirates from panicking and forcibly transporting the dangerous Giant Serpent King eggs ashore, Ding Tianpeng and Zhao Fukang did not leave immediately.

They stationed themselves in Weizhou while urgently contacting, through secret channels, a major naval port where the Zhou Dynasty maintained forces along the southeast coast.

The Garrison Office and the navy collaborated closely, laying a vast net around the several most likely secret landing sites mentioned in Tang Ji's confessions, as well as key waterways along Weizhou's coast.

The navy deployed several medium-sized warships equipped with barrier-breaking crossbows and arrays to patrol, while Ding Tianpeng and Zhao Fukang personally led a contingent of elite Garrison Office experts, rotating vigil at hidden land-based outposts, weapons at the ready, waiting for the Serpent King Island ships to walk into the trap.

Yet one day, two days, three days…

Seven days passed.

The expected pirate ships never appeared.

The coast remained calm, save for ordinary fishing and merchant vessels—no suspicious traces at all.

Even the occasional small bands of coastal bandits that occasionally harassed border villagers had vanished.

Ding Tianpeng and Zhao Fukang did not lower their guard, fearing this might be a decoy.

They patiently continued strict surveillance for another full seven days.

Fourteen days passed; the expected landing window had long since closed, yet the sea remained utterly tranquil.

At this point, Chen Mu understood clearly.

The Serpent King Island side must have received word that Mo Yan had escaped back, realizing the plan was utterly exposed and Weizhou had already set its net.

Weighing the pros and cons, they decisively canceled this smuggling operation for the Giant Serpent King eggs.

After all, though the eggs were precious, abandoning them temporarily was clearly wiser than risking exposure of more forces and facing the combined strike of the Zhou navy and the Garrison Office.

Ding Tianpeng and Zhao Fukang reached the same conclusion.

Yet these two investigators always acted with ruthless caution.

To guard against any possibility, they deliberately appeared publicly in Weizhoucheng, feigning completion of their mission and preparing to return to the Southeast Circuit Garrison Office headquarters.

They departed Weizhoucheng in grand style, with full carriages and ceremonial escort, drawing widespread attention.

But barely a hundred li beyond Weizhou, at a prearranged hidden location, they slipped away quietly, leaving the empty carriages to continue onward as a decoy, while they themselves, using superior concealment and stealth techniques, slipped back into Weizhou unseen, hiding in the shadows like the most patient hunters, continuing to observe.

This wait lasted another seven days.

The pirates remained utterly silent; no abnormal energy fluctuations appeared along the coastal defenses.

At last, Ding Tianpeng and Zhao Fukang truly relaxed.

They confirmed the Serpent King Island had indeed abandoned this operation and would not target Weizhou again in the near term.

Only then did the two quietly depart, returning to headquarters to report…