Chapter 379: I Am No Longer Myself

"Not bad, Hengzhi, you are famous all over the world now, you've almost forgotten your old friend!"

Upon seeing Shen Yu, Yang Lixin was still a bit hesitant to recognize him. After all, the man was now famous throughout the world and could no longer be spoken of in the same breath; how could he have returned to this small, run-down place of his?

But after looking closely, he realized it really was this kid. Although his temperament now looked worlds apart from back then, his features were still easy to recognize.

However, it was a bit of a struggle for Shen Yu to recognize the other party. In his impression, Yang Lixin had been dark and fat back then, practically a little dark fatty.

But now, not only was he fairer and much thinner, but his temperament was also vastly different.

The Yang Lixin of the past was somewhat insecure in every way and usually a bit timid, while now he was confident and carried a few traces of dominance; compared to before, one could say he was like two different people.

The current Yang Lixin could definitely be called dashing and handsome; walking down the street, he would surely be able to charm a crowd of middle-aged women.

Back in the Capital, because their courtesy names were somewhat similar, and they were both sons of humble families, they chatted quite congenially afterward and thus cherished each other.

Before the imperial examinations, the two supported each other, lived in the same small, run-down house, and even shared their food; their relationship could be called inseparable.

Afterward, both passed the examinations, but they were sent to two different places, one in the south and one in the north, and their contact gradually decreased from then on.

Moreover, that was the memory of the predecessor, and it was hard for Shen Yu to empathize with it.

When he arrived, the predecessor was already the County Magistrate in Baian County. All the past events were like a movie to him, a series of replays.

So, at the moment he saw Yang Lixin, he really didn't recognize him for a moment.

"Hengzhi, I didn't expect you to be able to come to my place. It truly makes my little Lujiang City shine with splendor. Come back with me quickly, so I can fulfill the duties of a host!"

"No rush, I'll go in and take a look first!" Waving his hand at Yang Lixin, Shen Yu then strode into the residence, and Yang Lixin followed along beside him.

"Hengzhi, you just said the people inside weren't killed by a woman; what is that based on?"

"The people inside had their essence and energy stolen, and they died from mental collapse. If you don't believe me, you can have the Coroner check; I guarantee no injuries will be found."

"No need. Since you, Hengzhi, said so, then it must be so!" Following Shen Yu as he walked quickly inside, Yang Lixin couldn't help but frown slightly as he looked at the tragic scene within.

Each of them had a ferocious and painful expression, clearly having suffered a certain degree of torture before death. If it were just the adults who were killed, that would be one thing, but they hadn't even spared the children.

It was evident that the person who committed such evil must be a heinous villain. However, he couldn't help much; investigating crime scenes was not his forte, so he could only watch Shen Yu's actions.

After walking into the residence, although his Super Perception had already fully scanned the situation inside just a moment ago, Shen Yu still checked them one by one again.

"Hengzhi!" Walking up, Yang Lixin asked in a low voice, "How is it? Any findings?"

"If I'm not mistaken, it should be a Gu!" After a short while, Shen Yu had already made his judgment.

"Someone planted a Gu Insect in them. Once these Gu Insects grow up, they will absorb the essence, energy, and spirit within their bodies, and then break out of their bodies!"

"And the absorbed essence, energy, and spirit will be flown back to the original owner by the Gu Insect to be consumed by them, thereby becoming nourishment for their continuous growth."

"Bastards, these Jianghu ruffians are becoming more and more excessive; they can even think of such tactics!" Looking at the courtyard full of corpses, Yang Lixin was furious.

Not a single member of the family had escaped; it was clear they had been targeted long ago, and the timing was definitely before that Wet Nurse arrived, otherwise, that Wet Nurse wouldn't have been spared.

That such a thing happened under his jurisdiction meant he was also hard to absolve of blame!

Seeing Yang Lixin's irritable appearance, Shen Yu couldn't help but ask, "What, is the county not peaceful lately?"

"Yes, actually, it's shameful to say!" In front of his former old friend, there were some things he didn't want to say, as it was easy to lose face.

But since such a thing had happened under his jurisdiction and he might not be able to handle it, it was better to ask this old friend for help. It was for the sake of the common people, so it wasn't shameful.

"Hengzhi doesn't know, but a while ago, those experts in the county somehow all made breakthroughs. After gaining strength, they couldn't endure the loneliness and started fighting each other."

"These people don't even put the County Government Office in their eyes; they dare to fight bloody battles in the streets in broad daylight, causing quite a stir."

"Some Martial Artists even dare to openly cultivate with human blood or strengthen themselves through plundering and supplementing, leaving us overwhelmed."

"I once sought help from the Prefecture Office and the Capture Gate, and even sent a request for aid to the Black-Clad Guard, but these were all like stones sinking into the sea. Sigh, you don't know how difficult I was at that time."

"Fortunately, I held on through it all!" He sighed lightly. With no outside help, relying solely on himself to maintain the peace of this city, who knew how he had lived through that time.

It was no exaggeration to say that he was the target of everyone's criticism at that time, as if someone were holding a knife to his neck every day.

Gangs within the county might fight each other, but as soon as he thought about intervening to persuade them to kill less, they would turn their guns and unanimously aim them at him.

At that time, he couldn't sleep at night, even worrying that if he were careless one night, thugs would rush into the County Government Office to punish the wicked and promote good, while shouting that corrupt officials deserve to be killed by everyone.

"Every place and every county is probably not easy right now!" Looking at Yang Lixin's appearance, Shen Yu knew how difficult it had been here before.

The rapid growth in strength brought by the Spiritual Qi Surge made the already unruly Jianghu experts think they were capable again, and they started fighting and vying for power.

The Jianghu was filled with blood and slaughter for a time; how could the clashes between experts not affect ordinary people? The stronger they were, the greater the harm to ordinary people.

It wasn't just Lujiang City; the situation everywhere was actually about the same. Without a powerful person to suppress them, the turmoil would likely continue until a winner was finally decided.

However, by that time, most of the old monsters would have awakened, and everyone would end up as rations.

If these so-called Jianghu experts knew that their desperate fighting to win would all be in vain in the end, I wonder what they would think.

"Ziheng, how did you solve the problem in Lujiang City?"

"It was by luck that I made a breakthrough, and with the cooperation of Constable He and the others in the city, I used a little trick to forcibly suppress them all."

Speaking of this, Yang Lixin was still a bit embarrassed. "Fortunately, everything went smoothly, otherwise, who knows what kind of scene Lujiang City would be in."

"I thought I had already intimidated them, but who would have thought these Jianghu ruffians would now dare to commit murder in broad daylight."

"These people fear nothing but chaos; they don't care about the lives of the common people when they act. They all deserve to die!"

"Wait!" Suddenly, Shen Yu seemed to remember something, his gaze turning to Yang Lixin. "I remember you shouldn't know Martial Arts, right?"

"Hengzhi, you must know that one should look at a scholar with new eyes after three days of separation. I remember you didn't know Martial Arts back then either, yet now you are famous throughout the world and awe-inspiring in all directions."

"That's true, after three days of separation, everything is vastly different!"