Chapter 752

The sky was just beginning to lighten when the heavy gates of the Jiangzhe Merchants’ Association were pounded urgently.

The doorkeeper rushed over, saying Lu Xiaowu had come again.

Li Yan and the others exchanged puzzled glances but still went to the front hall to meet him.

Lu Xiaowu’s face bore an expression mingling excitement and anxiety; upon seeing Li Yan and the others, he bowed and deliberately raised his voice:

“Brother Li, Master Wang, all of you—urgent news!”

His voice was loud enough to carry clearly to others within the courtyard.

This fellow had tasted profit and wanted to reinforce the illusion that he was the key link to the Twelve Zodiacs, so he could seize greater gains in the future.

Li Yan saw through Lu Xiaowu’s scheming but said nothing, calmly asking: “Young Master Lu, what brings you here so early?”

Lu Xiaowu took a deep breath: “I just received word—great disaster! The Descendant Sage’s Mansion is in chaos!”

He paused deliberately, his gaze sweeping over them all: “The eldest legitimate son of the Kong family, Kong Zhenyuan—the one most likely to inherit the title of Descendant Sage—last night…”

“Was killed in his own residence in Jinan!”

Everyone present was stunned.

Before they could process the news, Lu Xiaowu dropped an even more horrifying detail:

“And the manner of death… was horrific.”

Li Yan’s eyes sharpened instantly; Wang Daoxuan frowned deeply.

Such a brutal killing method clearly wasn’t ordinary revenge or political intrigue.

Lu Xiaowu’s news wasn’t finished: “To make matters worse, at nearly the same time, Kong Shangan—the Descendant Sage’s legitimate grandson, and Kong Zhenyuan’s son—was murdered in the ancestral home in Qufu; his head was cut off!”

Kong Shangzhao’s face darkened instantly; he had always been at odds with Kong Zhenyuan and his son, so he cared nothing for their deaths.

The problem was, with Kong Zhenyuan and his son dead, his father’s position had become precarious.

Watching their reactions, Lu Xiaowu added: “There’s another more critical piece of news! This incident has stirred the Mingde Academy—Master Lu Hongyuan has already arrived in Jinan to take charge personally!”

“Lu Hongyuan is coming?”

At the name, Li Yan’s expression grew grave.

Lu Hongyuan was one of the Ten Great Masters of Shenzhou, who had unified Xingyi, Bagua, and Taiji boxing into a single path of literary and martial Dao.

His martial skill was secondary; his status was key.

Within Confucianism, he was a figure of patriarchal authority, with considerable influence in court.

The air seemed to freeze; a heavy pressure settled over the entire front hall.

Wang Daoxuan stroked his beard thoughtfully: “How did Kong Zhenyuan die?”

Lu Xiaowu whispered: “I heard the killer drilled into his Baihui point and poured mercury inside, then peeled off his entire skin.”

“Mercury poured into the crown.” Wang Daoxuan’s face changed slightly. “This torture… has problems.”

Meeting their gazes, he said gravely: “This punishment was used by the founding emperor of our dynasty—mercury poured into corrupt officials, then their skins peeled and stuffed with straw as a warning. It was later abolished. Some esoteric sects also used it to make drums from human skin.”

“There’s another method.”

Kuai Dayou crossed his arms and shook his head: “Ancient alchemists used this to imprison living souls as tomb guardians.”

Li Yan said solemnly: “Whichever it is, it shows deep hatred. The roots of this matter must lie with Kong Zhenyuan and his son—perhaps connected to the man we captured last night. Did he confess?”

“No.”

Lu Xiaowu replied: “Last night, the two factions of the Kong family caused a riot at the yamen. After they left, the prisoner seized an opportunity when the jailers weren’t looking and slammed his head into an iron spike, killing himself.”

Li Yan narrowed his eyes: “That man was a skilled practitioner of the Cuojiao hidden force. He chose to die like this—he was protecting someone.”

Lu Xiaowu shook his head: “I don’t know who. Prince Wang sent me to warn you all—this matter is too big. You must wake the Kong merchant as soon as possible and extract his confession. Otherwise, when Master Lu arrives in Jinan, things may turn even more chaotic.”

“Thank you for Prince Wang’s warning,” Li Yan said solemnly, bowing respectfully.

After he left, everyone turned to Wang Daoxuan.

“No problem.”

Wang Daoxuan stroked his beard: “He’ll wake by noon.”

…………

In the yamen’s signing chamber, the air was oppressively heavy.

Master Zhao Tong’s face was ashen, his eyes burning with suppressed fury.

His knuckles cracked as he clenched them, then he slammed his palm onto the solid wood desk.

“Crack!”

The thick rosewood desk split open under the blow, sending teacups bouncing and scalding tea splashing across official documents.

“The Descendant Sage was murdered in his own ancestral shrine! The mastermind’s spy killed himself right under your noses! Kong Zhenyuan and his son bled to death on their beds! You, the Jinan yamen…” He swept his gaze over the silent Jinan Prefect, Surveillance Commissioner, Regional Military Commissioner, and Battalion Commanders below, his voice low but each word a blade.

“You’ve done a fine job!”

The Jinan Prefect’s brow dripped with cold sweat: “Master Zhao, please calm down… this matter is too bizarre. The killer’s methods are cruel and seasoned—far from ordinary…”

He had never wanted to get involved in a case tied to the Kong family, only to assist—but now the situation had spiraled.

“Excuses!”

Zhao Tong roared, unleashing his righteous qi; the candles in the chamber flickered and dimmed.

“Kong Zhenyuan and his son’s deaths are linked to the shrine massacre! Is this how you intend to handle it?”

Seeing Zhao Tong’s rage about to erupt, the Jinan Prefect hurriedly spoke: “Master, don’t rush! I’ve summoned one of the Three Great Captains of Qilu—‘Ghost-Fearing’ Bai Laojiu—he’s already arrived in Jinan!”

……

In the yamen’s coroner’s chamber, the atmosphere was colder than a morgue.

The famed captain Bai Laojiu, summoned in haste, had hair and beard as white as frost, wore a faded, coarse cotton martial suit, and was lean yet as tough as iron.

He bent slightly, his face etched with age spots and deep, knife-like wrinkles, expressionless—except for his eyes, which, under the dim oil lamp, glinted with chilling light, his fingers pinching several dark-brown wood fragments.

These were clues recovered from the Qufu shrine.

The Qilu Administration Commissioner, Surveillance Commissioner, Prefect, and Zhao Tong—all present, faces grim.

Everyone held their breath, watching the legendary old captain.

Each to his craft; in investigation, he was a master.

On the table lay thick case files: not only every detail of Li Qi’s case, but now also the gruesome deaths of Kong Zhenyuan and his son.

“This case isn’t difficult,” Bai Laojiu’s voice was dry and rasping.

He lifted a larger fragment, turning it slowly under the lamp, his gaze sharp as a hawk’s. “Li Qi’s registered origin is Pingdu Prefecture—true enough. But his roots lie in Li Family Hollow on Laoshan. These fragments are pieces of yinchen wood—I’ve reconstructed them. They were part of a wine jar.”

“The residual inscriptions inside the jar are the ‘Hidden Trace Talisman’ recorded in the Yunji Qiqian!”

“This talisman is beyond the reach of Jianghu tricksters—it’s a profound Daoist secret, capable of ‘suppressing breath, concealing vital qi as if one were stone or rotting wood.’ Only a top-tier Daoist master could have carved this into the jar on Laoshan—and have ties to Li Family Hollow…”

His voice turned icy: “Only a top-tier Xuanmen master could have done this!”

He moved to the map of the Kong family shrine and continued: “The killer used the wine offering as bait, hiding lethal intent within the jar.”

“Just before the incident, a ritual was held. Someone hid inside the jar and slipped into the shrine’s storage chamber. That night, thunder and rain raged; the guards heard strange noises from the storage room and assumed it was the storm. Meanwhile, the killer, concealed within the jar, used a secret bone-shrinking technique—he had been lying in wait for hours!”

“The wound on the Descendant Sage’s chest was narrow as a finger, the heart’s pulse shattered yet bleeding minimally! This is the result of supreme qi focused into the fingertip, condensed and unyielding, instantly severing life. The strike was swift as lightning, ensuring the victim died without a sound.”

“Such ruthless precision is no ordinary revenge—it’s the long-planned vengeance of a Daoist master!”

As his words ended, the coroner’s chamber fell deathly silent.

“Top-tier Xuanmen master,” “Yunji Qiqian talisman,” “Daoist bone-shrinking technique,” “qi-finger strike…” Each phrase struck like a hammer.

With a Xuanmen master involved, the matter grew even more complex.

Given the Kong family’s status, which force would dare such audacity?

“Have you confirmed it?”

At that moment, a calm voice spoke.

At that moment, a gentle voice sounded.