Chapter 474: The Heterodox Gather

Back on the road, Li Yan had already noticed that this scholar was not what he seemed.

His stance while walking was extremely stable, yet he deliberately worked up a bit of sweat...

He kept both hands behind his back at all times; firstly, to appear upright and imposing, and secondly, to use his large sleeves to hide the calluses on his hands...

His speech was refined, yet he never spoke more than necessary, and he was able to seize the initiative at every critical moment...

He wore a human-skin mask on his face,

and restrained his entire aura when entering the temple.

To act so convincingly, he was most likely a swindler from the "Bee, Hemp, Swallow, Sparrow" four sects of the Dark Eight Gates, using a group of foolish scholars as a front.

It was chaotic during the day, so he probably wouldn't be able to find him; he would have to come back at night...

Li Yan shook his head slightly and prepared to leave.

But just then, a voice suddenly rang out from behind, "Greetings, brother."

Li Yan frowned slightly and turned slowly.

He saw that Zhu Chen, surrounded by several scholars, was striding toward him. Zhu Chen cupped his hands slightly and said, "Seeing your extraordinary bearing and the weapon you carry, you must be a hero of the martial world. Would you be willing to assist us in investigating this matter?"

His attitude was refined, and he smiled with great innocence.

The other scholars looked on with vigilance and confusion.

This Zhu Chen was a famous talent in Yiling Commandery and had even been scouted by the Heshan Academy. Thus, as soon as he arrived in Chengdu, everyone had immediately flocked to him.

The scholarly circle valued reputation, and mutual flattery was indispensable.

It was just like when one of them went to another region; if they had one or two good friends to organize a banquet or poetry gathering and invite the local scholars, only then would they have "face."

If they went and no one paid them any mind, wouldn't they lose all face?

Those wealthy merchants and gentry were also quite willing to sponsor such events to soak up some literary aura and gild their own reputations.

Therefore, it could be considered a mutually beneficial unspoken rule.

Scholarly reputation was accumulated bit by bit in this way.

What they found strange was, why was this Zhu Chen so reckless?

Knowing full well that the other party was a person of the martial world and not knowing his background, he still dared to come up and invite him. Wasn't he afraid he was a villain?

Moreover, the other party might not even be willing.

But to their surprise, Li Yan merely stroked his two thin mustaches and nodded without hesitation, saying, "The world reveres Zhuge Wu Hou. Since someone dares to cause chaos here, I naturally must investigate it clearly."

Li Yan knew that the other party had a sharp eye and also saw that he was no ordinary person; perhaps he had come for the "Zither Insect," so he was testing him with his words.

"Brother is truly a righteous man!"

"You have also worked hard, brother."

"I am Zhu Chen. May I ask your honorable name?"

"I am Li Conan."

"That name is rare. I wonder if it is your real name?"

"Walking the martial world, one should never seek the truth in all things..."

"That is true. Once a person is dead, whether it is true or false no longer matters."

The two exchanged words, leaving the others confused, not knowing what kind of hidden meanings they were trading.

In fact, it was very simple.

Meeting and mentioning hard work is a sure sign of a martial world person.

Li Yan saying the other party had worked hard was to point out his identity.

And although this "Zhu Chen" did not know Li Yan's background, he relied on his own skills and arts, so he didn't care. He thought Li Yan was a spy from some faction and wanted to keep him by his side.

He was very confident, even resorting to threats.

Yet he did not know that Li Yan carried the "Dragon Snake Tablet" with him, and his entire aura was masked, causing him to misjudge.

Seeing that Li Yan stopped wasting words, "Zhu Chen" nodded with satisfaction, then looked at the surrounding scholars and continued to incite them, "Gentlemen, if we can work together to clear this matter up, it will be a beautiful tale in the future..."

These words made all the scholars feel moved.

One of them hesitated and said, "But none of us are skilled in criminal investigation. Where should we start?"

"It's very simple."

"Zhu Chen" said with a face full of pride, "I have dabbled in this slightly, but we must first find the temple keeper and ask clearly about what happened. I'm just afraid he might be difficult to talk to."

Another person spoke up, "Brother Zhu, rest assured. My Liu family has donated plenty of incense money to the Wu Hou Shrine; we still have that much face."

Having said that, he led everyone straight to find the temple keeper.

Li Yan could feel that although "Zhu Chen" appeared to be talking to others, his attention was always on him.

Li Yan didn't care and followed honestly behind.

He was also completely confused about this matter. He had originally thought he was looking for the "Zither Insect," but it seemed it wasn't that simple.

If he could get some information, that would naturally be better.

Although this group of scholars was a bit foolish and didn't understand the sinister nature of the human heart, their family backgrounds were better than the last. Coming together, the temple keeper had to treat them with care.

The temple keeper was a fire-dwelling Daoist over fifty years old, with the Daoist name Ling Yun. Although he managed the place with grandeur and had the appearance of an immortal, he was actually only at the First Floor.

His cultivation was low, and he was better at flattery and befriending the powerful.

"Young Master Liu, is your father's health well?"

"Young Master Wang, at the end of the year, this poor Daoist will inevitably have to come and disturb you..."

After some pleasantries, everyone couldn't help but ask about the matter.

"Daoist Ling Yun, what exactly happened at the Wu Hou Shrine?"

"Exactly, why did people die, and the yamen didn't send anyone to seal off this place? Could there be some hidden secret?"

"I heard it was caused by evil spirits?"

Daoist Ling Yun was startled when he heard this and hurriedly waved his hands, "Gentlemen, you must not speak recklessly. The Wu Hou Shrine is a place of sages; how could there be evil spirits? It is nothing more than wild beasts hurting people."

"The Imperial Wang Wang Yushi sent by the imperial court is currently in Chengdu Prefecture. If someone were to seize this matter and make a big deal out of it, it would be no small trouble..."

Once these words were spoken, everyone suddenly understood.

Because some time ago, regarding the Chongqing Prefecture affair, the Prince of Shu was reprimanded by the Emperor and punished to reflect behind closed doors, and an Imperial Wang Wang Yushi was even sent.

It was said he was responsible for patrolling Chengdu Prefecture, but everyone knew he was there to monitor the Prince of Shu, and the person was chosen by high-ranking court officials; he was likely searching everywhere for evidence against the Prince of Shu.

This was also a warning from the Emperor.

The families of these scholars all had more or less some connection with the Prince of Shu's mansion, so they naturally knew the severity of the situation.

"Zhu Chen," upon hearing this, frowned even more deeply, "If that's the case, why are you still dragging your feet? We must investigate it clearly as soon as possible to eliminate the influence."

"This young master does not know."

Old Daoist Ling Yun shook his head, "This matter has already been reported to the Chenghuangmiao, and the Law Enforcement Hall has also sent people to investigate, but they didn't find anything, so they invited a demon hunter to wait for the rabbit."

"There was no movement for the past two days, but last night even that demon hunter died. This poor Daoist sent people to the Chenghuangmiao again, but the Huang Ling Sect doesn't know what happened; it's a mess, and they can't even bother to pay attention to this side..."

Li Yan, upon hearing this, knew the reason.

The stone coffin of the ancient Wuxian Kingdom had been robbed; the Huang Ling Sect would certainly attach great importance to it, especially since it involved their own sect members, so they had to be even more careful.

Like Mount Qingcheng, they tried their best to avoid suspicion and not get involved in the matter between the Prince of Shu and the imperial court, so they didn't attach importance to this.

One of the scholars sensed something and his eyes flickered, "Could it be that there really is some evil thing causing trouble?" "Young Master Wang is joking."

Old Daoist Ling Yun firmly denied it, "The Wu Hou Shrine's incense is flourishing. Let alone evil things, even if the Mystic Sect experts from Mount Qingcheng came, they wouldn't dare to use their arts recklessly. It must be wild beasts hurting people."

"Zhu Chen" pondered for a moment, "Daoist, please tell us the details of the matter again. Perhaps we can find clues."

You lot find a fart!

The Daoist cursed inwardly, but he wouldn't say such offensive things, so he got up, closed the door, and whispered, "Speaking of this matter, it is indeed a bit strange."

"A few days ago, a group of Huizhou merchants came. They were generous and chatted happily with this poor Daoist, saying they wanted to stay in the temple and talk by candlelight."

"This poor Daoist couldn't refuse, so I agreed to their request. Who knew this group of people had ulterior motives and actually wanted to rob the Imperial Tomb."

"When they were discovered by the tomb guards, they had already dug a hole near the Imperial Tomb, but I don't know what they dug up; everyone died, leaving only a skin bag..."

"It's Wu Hou's mechanism!"

One of the scholars immediately became excited, "Rumor has it that when Wu Hou buried Emperor Zhaolie, he set up mechanisms. Although it has gone through the fires of war, the area below the Imperial Tomb has never been opened."

"These stupid thieves must have died because of Wu Hou's backup plan!"

Old Daoist Ling Yun hesitated for a moment, "This... this poor Daoist is also not clear. After those tomb robbers died, there were three more murder cases in succession. The victims were all in the same condition."

!.

"Only one survivor said that in the middle of the night, he seemed to hear someone playing the zither. The zither music was pleasant, making him unable to resist wanting to leave the temple, but because he had a bad stomach, he was vomiting and had diarrhea and couldn't get out of bed."

"His companions also heard the zither music, but they never returned after leaving. This poor Daoist led people to search the mountain in the middle of the night, and when we found them, there was only a skin bag left."

As he spoke, he couldn't help but advise, "Gentlemen, evil spirits will not enter the temple. It is mostly some strange beast hurting people. This old man has already found another demon hunter. You had better leave early."

The old Daoist was telling the truth, also wanting to persuade this group of scholars to leave.

Who knew that upon hearing it wasn't some villain or evil spirit, the scholars became interested instead, wanting to stay in the temple and wait for the demon hunter to catch it to see what kind of monster was so ferocious.

"Gentlemen, you..."

The old Daoist was suddenly furious.

Just then, a small Daoist boy ran over in a hurry, "Master, the person the Law Enforcement Hall helped find has arrived."

The old Daoist couldn't bother to pay attention to them and hurriedly went out the door.

He saw a man striding into the courtyard. He was tall, his eyes were sharp like an eagle's, he wore hard leather armor, and he carried a silver spear and a bundle on his back—a typical demon hunter's attire.

What was different was that he also carried a divine fire spear on his back.

Li Yan, upon seeing this, also became interested.

It was the first time he had seen a demon hunter using new-style firearms.

Old Daoist Ling Yun was also full of joy and hurriedly cupped his hands, "Are you Tang Ling of the Meishan Sect?"

"It is indeed me. Greetings, Daoist."

The man's expression was calm, and he cupped his hands slightly.

It's someone from the Meishan Sect...

Li Yan, upon seeing this, became even more interested.

Since the emergence of new-style firearms, the Mystic Sect had been researching them, but until now, only the hunters of the Meishan Sect had developed the art of sacrificing fire spears, which was said to be able to enhance power and range, which was extremely mysterious.

Precisely because of this, the reputation of the Meishan Dharma Sect had greatly increased.

Within the Meishan Dharma Sect, there were also many factions, scattered throughout the south, and there were also many unique inheritances passed from master to apprentice.

During the "Gaitugui-liu" (replacing native chieftains with imperial officials) affair, many people from the Meishan Dharma Sect chose to defect to the native chieftains, which displeased the imperial court and led to targeting.

But because of this matter, the imperial court also changed its strategy and sent people to Mount Meishan to appease them. Mount Meishan also followed the steps and ordered that they must not collude with the Yang family of Bozhou, and those who violated this would be expelled from the Dharma Sect.

It could be considered avoiding a catastrophe.

Could it be that this person also knows it?

But what made Li Yan pay more attention was that behind this man followed an old woman, dressed simply, like a servant.

She was the zither expert from the Prince of Shu's mansion last night.

Well, it's lively enough...

Li Yan was speechless and stood behind the scholars.

He carried the "Dragon Snake Tablet," and his entire aura was masked, no different from an ordinary person.

On the contrary, "Zhu Chen" and the old woman, as soon as they met, stared at each other, their eyes full of vigilance.

Tang Ling, the demon hunter of the Meishan Dharma Sect, also sensed that something was wrong, but his expression didn't change. He said to Old Daoist Ling Yun in a deep voice, "Daoist, I already understand what's going on with that wild beast. I will catch it tonight."

"That thing won't appear during the day. When dusk comes, Daoist, just drive away the idlers."

A scholar next to him, upon hearing this, was suddenly a bit unhappy and cupped his hands, "This gentleman, could it be that you also want to drive us away?"

Demon hunter Tang Ling glanced at him indifferently, "If you want to stay, then stay. Just don't regret it when the time comes."

Having said that, he looked at Old Daoist Ling Yun again, "Daoist, please arrange a quiet room for me. I will wait until night to act."

"Good, good, please follow this poor Daoist."

Old Daoist Ling Yun hurriedly led people to make arrangements.

After they left, the scholars were also discussing among themselves.

"Looking at the situation, it's a bit dangerous."

"What are you afraid of? We'll just stay in the Wu Hou Shrine. When they catch the thing, we'll see what it is."

"That's true."

To be honest, two of them already regretted it and were a bit afraid, but they were even more afraid of being laughed at by others, so they bit the bullet and stayed.

They found a small Daoist boy and also arranged rooms for everyone. Although it was a bit crowded, having more people made them feel at ease.

"Gentlemen, rest assured. If you hear zither music, just don't go out."

"Zhu Chen," while comforting everyone, looked at Li Yan, a cold smile appearing at the corner of his mouth...

On the other side, after demon hunter Tang Ling entered the room, as soon as the old Daoist left, he immediately closed the door, turned his head, and said in a deep voice, "Zither Demon Pei Yufang, we have an agreement. I help you catch the 'Zither Insect,' and you help me find my junior sister."

"Easy to say."

The old woman said indifferently, "Did you see that leading scholar? He used disguise arts. He might fool others, but he can't fool this old woman."

"That person is called 'Young Master Wuxiang,' a Chengdu underworld expert who has committed many major crimes. Tonight, this old woman will catch this person on the way."

"He has a prominent reputation in the Chengdu underworld. No matter who captured your junior sister, you will be able to find clues."

A fierce light flashed in Tang Ling's eyes, "Senior Pei has already defected to the Prince of Shu's mansion. Since he is a criminal wanted by the imperial court, why not send more people to surround and suppress him?"

The old woman glanced at him, "Regarding the 'Zither Insect' matter, this old woman doesn't want too many people to know. There are many hidden experts in Chengdu Prefecture. If too many come, that thing won't be my turn."

"If you want to save your junior sister, only this old woman can help."

"I hope you keep your word!"

Tang Ling looked deeply at the old woman before saying, "According to what the temple keeper said, this 'Zither Insect' has likely been sacrificed and refined by someone."

The old woman frowned, "Why do you say that?"

Tang Ling said in a deep voice, "According to the 'Classic of Mountains and Seas,' the 'Zither Insect' comes from Mount Buxian, which is today's Changbai Mountain outside the pass."

"During the time of Emperor Shun, the State of Sushen offered this thing as tribute. During the Han Dynasty, the Fangxian Dao flourished. Wu Hou likely found this thing and asked a Fangshi to set it up in the Imperial Tomb to become a tomb-guarding beast."

"Those tomb robbers must have triggered the mechanism, causing this thing to wake up. The 'Zither Insect' can use zither music to confuse people, and it will also be attracted by zither music."

"If we want to catch this thing, I'm afraid we'll have to use your Dharma Zither, senior."

The old woman, upon hearing this, nodded with satisfaction, "As expected of the number one demon hunter in Western Hunan. Tonight, I will have to trouble you..."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 475 =====