Chapter 79: My Lord, are you willing to give your life to this concubine?

"Let's climb the wall." Lin Qingyue had already walked to the outside of the perimeter wall, then turned to ask Dongfang Qi, "Do you need help?"

The next moment, she saw him leap up, jumping onto the top of the wall with ease.

Lin Qingyue raised an eyebrow slightly: As expected, someone who could establish the Profound Mirror Division at the age of twelve and subdue a group of rabble would never be someone without the strength to truss a chicken.

The group jumped onto the wall one after another and snuck into the Xian Ya with ease.

The layout of the Xian Ya was not complex; the front was the official office, and the rear courtyard was the residence of the Xian Magistrate.

But once they reached the rear courtyard, the expressions of the group all sank: Such thick demonic aura!

In the warm chamber with embroidered curtains and red waves of quilts, the delicate laughter of a woman and the panting of a man intertwined, appearing extremely suggestive.

The man, with dark circles under his eyes and sunken cheeks, hugged the beauty in his arms and pleaded:

"My beauty, stop whetting this official's appetite. Give it to me quickly! Oh my, this official will die on your belly sooner or later!"

The beauty chuckled, her breath like orchids: "Then, my lord, are you willing to give your life to this concubine?"

"I am willing, this official's life has long been yours! For you, this official wants nothing else, I only wish to linger with my beauty night after night!"

"Good, this is what you promised..." Having said that, the beauty's palm suddenly pierced into his chest cavity.

The Xian Magistrate suddenly widened his eyes, and in an instant, he stopped breathing. From extreme pleasure to extreme pain, it was but a matter of a breath.

The next moment, Lin Qingyue, Dongfang Qi, Xie Shouzheng, as well as Damao and Ermao simultaneously broke through the roof and landed inside the room.

Just upon entering the Xian Ya, they had sensed a thick demonic aura here.

But in the end, they were still a step too late; the County Magistrate had already been murdered, and the woman on the bed had scarlet eyes, revealing sharp beaks and fangs—she was actually a fox that had attained cultivation!

"Audacious monster!" Xie Shouzheng shouted, releasing a net that instantly bound the Demon Fox into a cocoon.

The Demon Fox was naturally unwilling to be trapped, its sharp claws like hooks tearing frantically, yet it saw the net ropes tightening, the golden threads embedding into its flesh and seeping out demonic blood. Following a shrill fox cry, in the blink of an eye, it transformed into a red fox with a body like flame, whimpering and wailing with no strength left to fight back.

Damao picked up the fox along with the net and barked: "I was wondering why the Xian Magistrate kept wanting to drive us away. Every time we came to the office, he turned us away. It was you instigating it behind the scenes, right? Afraid we would discover your true form!"

"That's right, it was all you!"

"The missing persons cases in the county were also all done by you, right? Today you were actually so bold as to even murder the Xian Magistrate!"

"That's right, it was you!"

The Demon Fox shrieked, but Damao kicked it and cursed: "Still daring to quibble? We of the Profound Mirror Division drive away evil and suppress demons to guard the peace of the land. We won't let a single evil demon go, nor will we wrong any good demon! We're taking you back to the Profound Mirror Division for a detailed interrogation, so behave yourself!"

After the scolding, Damao said to Xie Shouzheng: "Lord Xie, since the culprit has been captured, we brothers must rush back to the prefecture overnight. Will you be coming with us to the prefecture?"

This was not Jingcheng, and the three of them all had important matters to attend to; if they appeared in public and accidentally exposed the Crown Prince's identity, it would be bad.

Besides, the Profound Mirror Division had very complete procedures for interrogating and suppressing evil spirits and demons, so there was no need for him to intervene.

Thus, Xie Shouzheng said: "You take it back to the prefecture for careful interrogation. This official still has official business, and I must depart early tomorrow morning. I won't get involved in your local affairs."

The subsequent matters were much easier to handle.

Damao and Ermao had to first report this matter to the local County Lieutenant, and then take the Demon Fox back to the Profound Mirror Division branch in the prefecture for interrogation, detention, and sentencing.

Lin Qingyue, Dongfang Qi, and Xie Shouzheng returned to the inn to rest.

Before leaving, Xie Shouzheng instructed Damao and the others again not to mention the fact that the three of them had appeared.

Damao patted his chest in guarantee: "My lord, rest assured, this subordinate is the best at keeping secrets and will absolutely not talk nonsense!"

The second half of the night was indeed peaceful.

Although they had been delayed for most of the night, the three still got up early the next day, ate breakfast, bought some dry rations needed for the road, and continued their journey.

On the road, Lin Qingyue even said to Dongfang Qi: "I originally thought this case wouldn't be so easy to close; I didn't expect to catch the culprit so quickly."

"It can be considered a stroke of luck. It just so happened that we went to the Xian Ya last night, and it just so happened that the Demon Fox started to act, causing the demonic aura to leak."

Dongfang Qi leaned sideways on the carriage, his wrist holding the reins shaking slightly. The morning light spilled from the horizon, gilding his profile and blending with the gentleness between his brows and eyes.

The carriage wheels rolled over the winding mountain road, and the curtains swayed gently. Through the gap, Lin Qingyue could just see half of his profile outlined by the golden light, fully displaying a refined and heroic spirit.

She clicked her tongue in admiration in her heart: Much easier on the eyes than that dog Prince.

Just at this moment, Xie Shouzheng suddenly slapped his forehead and shouted: "Oh no, my Blood Thorn Whip was left at the inn!"

Dongfang Qi glanced at him indifferently: "How could you forget your own personal weapon?"

Xie Shouzheng said: "I slept at three in the morning and got up at dawn; I was so muddled that I actually forgot my most important personal weapon! No, I have to go back and get it. Otherwise, if something happens, it won't do to not have a handy weapon."

As he spoke, he used his eyes to ask Dongfang Qi for permission: "Young Master..."

Dongfang Qi said: "You go retrieve it yourself; Deputy Envoy Lin and I will go ahead to Fengxian Prefecture to wait for you."

"Hey, hey, many thanks, Young Master, I'll go and return quickly!"

Having said that, he turned his horse around and galloped toward Fengnian County.

Meanwhile, Dongfang Qi continued to drive the carriage, moving forward at a steady pace, and even introduced to Lin Qingyue: "Fengxian Prefecture has quite a lot of delicacies, especially excelling in wheat-based foods. By the time we arrive, it will be just about lunchtime, and I will take you to properly taste the local delicacies."

Lin Qingyue rested her chin on her green-onion-like fingertips, her expression lazy and revealing a hint of nonchalance.

"Xiao Hua, I see you don't seem to be in a hurry to get on the road at all?"

The person outside the carriage curtain chuckled: "How so?"

"Clearly, riding a horse would be faster, yet you chose to take a carriage. Xie Shouzheng left something behind, and the round trip delayed us for another half day. Yet you aren't in a hurry at all, and are even thinking about tasting delicacies."

"Xiao Hua, don't forget, you only have three months."

"I haven't forgotten." Dongfang Qi's voice remained clear and calm, as if life and death were merely matters to be discussed in jest.

"It is precisely because I don't have much time left that I cannot miss the scenery and delicacies along the way. At the speed of a carriage, we can reach our destination in about ten more days. If everything goes smoothly and I can recover as before, that is naturally best. If it is fated that I can only live to be 22, then at least I have not failed to live up to the time along this journey."

"Your personality reminds me of an old friend. He was also like you, calm and indifferent."

"Is that so? I actually resemble your old friend; what was he like? Can you tell me in detail?" Dongfang Qi became a bit curious.

"He's already dead, nothing worth talking about." Lin Qingyue's gaze lowered slightly, calmly masking a touch of sadness.

If only he were still here. It's a pity that his soul had long since scattered, and he could never return.