Chapter 257: Outsiders, the Imperial Guard Army

The 45th year of Hongguang, March 3rd.

Since after 9: 0 last night, all city gates of Datong Prefecture have been under martial law; no one is allowed to enter or exit. The entire City Guard has taken to the walls, and the whole city is on high alert, ensuring no one has a chance to leave.

The last time Datong Prefecture was under such a full-city lockdown was eighteen years ago, when the Western Allied Forces attacked.

This sudden turn of events has left many people bewildered.

However, this was merely the beginning.

Over a thousand inspectors from the General Inspectorate have been mobilized, searching the entire city!

The General Stop-Goe Academy has dispatched hundreds of martial artists, including Martial Masters and Official-Register Martial Masters.

The General Supervision Academy and the General Law Academy have also mobilized.

With a display like this, even the slowest to react know—something major has happened!

Past 5: 0 in the morning, at the crime scene in Jinsha District.

The courtyard, now reduced to ruins, has gathered quite a few people, all of them true bigwigs of Datong Prefecture:

A Steering Commissioner from the General Stop-Goe Academy, the Chief Inspector of the General Inspectorate, a Deputy Chief Supervisor of the General Supervision Academy, and Jiang Jin, the Vice Dean of the General Law Academy who had previously escorted Li Fei back to school.

These individuals are all watching an old man perform a ritual.

The old man is wearing a white robe and looks like an immortal with a refined, bony frame. He holds a Bagua plate with a needle on it, performing the ritual before the corpse of Zhang Zongyang.

This old man is from the General Law Academy; his name is Qi Yiming, a Great Mage of the Possession Realm, most skilled in investigation and tracking.

The Bagua plate in his hand is a magic treasure he refined himself.

Under normal circumstances, Great Mages of the Possession Realm choose to refine magic treasures for offense and defense; only those with surplus resources consider refining other types.

Because Qi Yiming naturally dislikes conflict, the first magic treasure he refined was a Luo Heaven Plate used for tracking.

This has instead made him a "rare commodity," occasionally borrowed by provincial or even out-of-province government offices to help solve cases.

When Zhang Zongyang was murdered, Qi Yiming was handling affairs in the provincial capital and had traveled back by car overnight.

After a period of busyness, Qi Yiming finished the ritual.

"How is it?"

Jiang Jin stepped forward and asked in a deep voice.

Qi Yiming shook his head with a grave expression: "It is too late. The other side also has someone who understands sorcery; they cut off the traces early on. If you had let me come to perform the ritual within an hour of the crime, I could have used the Luo Heaven Plate to track a few traces, but now..."

Regarding this result, the bigwigs present were not actually surprised.

The other party dared to be so insane as to assassinate a Resident Official, a Level 13 official, and a Steering Commissioner of the General Stop-Goe Academy at that; they could not possibly be stupid or incompetent, and they could not have failed to account for Qi Yiming beforehand.

"Old Qi, is there not a single clue?"

A middle-aged man with narrow eyes holding a long sword asked.

His name is Fu Lang, also a Steering Commissioner of the General Stop-Goe Academy. He had the best relationship with Zhang Zongyang in daily life, so upon hearing the news of Zhang Zongyang's murder, he immediately requested to come over.

"There is one clue. Through the Luo Heaven Plate, I sensed that the aura left by the killer was mixed with something very primitive and ferocious; it does not resemble a human, but rather something like a strange beast."

Qi Yiming said.

"A strange beast? Was it Yu Longqing who did it?"

Fu Lang thought of the "Beast King" who could drive strange beasts.

But he quickly dismissed this thought, because if Yu Longqing had truly driven a strange beast to kill, the traces left at the scene would absolutely not be like this; a strange beast is much harder to hide than a person.

The higher the rank of a strange beast, the larger its size. A strange beast capable of killing a Dao Foundation Realm expert would be at least the size of a house; how could that be done without leaving a trace?

Only the legendary top-three-grade strange beasts could possibly have small bodies.

But Yu Longqing could never obtain a strange beast of that level.

Thus, Fu Lang quickly ruled out the "Beast King" as a suspect.

"An aura like a strange beast does not mean it is truly a strange beast. There is another type of person in this world who shares these characteristics."

The Deputy Chief Supervisor of the General Supervision Academy suddenly said in a gloomy voice.

Everyone present was startled upon hearing this, and then they understood:

"You mean, the ones who did it are the 'Foreigners' from the West?"

The countries in the West are called the Western Nations because they are separated from the Great Lan Dynasty by a vast ocean.

The Great Lan Dynasty had always considered itself the Celestial Empire, the center of the world, only to later discover that there was another land across the ocean, where hundreds of millions of people lived and many countries existed.

After discovering the Western Nations, the historians of the Great Lan Dynasty called the land they inhabited "Middle Land" and the land where the Western Nations were located "West Land."

Many strange beasts grow on "Middle Land," which is why the people here were able to slowly develop martial arts and sorcery.

But there are no strange beasts in "West Land," only Foreigners.

So-called Foreigners are people whose bloodlines differ from ordinary people. For some reason, their bloodlines are mixed with a portion of strange beast blood, so once their bloodline power awakens, they can also possess certain extraordinary abilities.

Because of this, in "West Land," the ruling classes of various countries are all families possessing Foreigner bloodlines; they consider themselves "Heaven-Chosen People," naturally born to stand high above and enslave mortals.

When the Western Allied Forces invaded the Great Lan Dynasty, there were many Foreigners among them. They did not just rely on powerful gunpowder weapons to fight the Great Lan Dynasty; they also had extraordinary powers as support.

The strength of a Foreigner depends entirely on the power of their bloodline. Although they can learn various techniques, the bloodline directly limits a person's maximum potential, unlike martial artists who possess infinite possibilities.

If it were over a decade ago, a Foreigner capable of killing a Dao Foundation Realm expert would necessarily have an incredibly powerful bloodline; in West Land, they would either be royalty or top-tier nobility.

However, in recent years, not only has the Great Lan Dynasty been "learning from the barbarians to control them," but the Western nations have also been studying and researching the martial arts and sorcery of the Middle Land. Some Foreigners even have unique advantages in practicing martial arts.

Therefore, a Foreigner capable of killing a Dao Foundation Realm expert today may not necessarily have a strong bloodline; it is very likely that they themselves are also in the Dao Foundation Realm.

"So, is it possible that this was done by spies from the Meijia Nation?"

Fu Lang asked.

"That is the most likely possibility."

The Deputy Chief Supervisor of the General Supervision Academy nodded.

Under normal circumstances, if it were just internal strife, who the hell would be insane enough to kill a fourth-rank Resident Official?

Even killing a third-rank imperial official would be enough to shock the entire prefecture!

Such an insane, bottomless, and reckless act is indeed very likely the work of Meijia Nation spies.

Only these people have the guts and the motive.

"My lord, the people from the Zhang family are asking when they can collect the corpse of Steering Commissioner Zhang?"

An Official-Register Martial Master from the Stop-Goe Academy walked over and said to Fu Lang.

The head of the Zhang family has been dead for nearly ten hours, yet until now, the Zhang family members have not even been able to see Zhang Zongyang's corpse.

This matter is indeed somewhat ironic, but that is reality.

Although the Zhang family is one of the three great clans of Datong Prefecture, they have been struggling with a lack of successors for years; they cannot find any talent in the family, leaving only Zhang Zongyang to hold the line.

Now that Zhang Zongyang is dead, the entire Zhang family is leaderless, and there is no one left who can reach the top of the power structure in Datong Prefecture, leading to this awkward scene:

The corpse of the Zhang family head is laid out here, but there is not a single Zhang family member around.

"Everyone, since we have a direction for now, let's go investigate. Zongyang's corpse..."

Fu Lang pointed at the corpse on the ground, wanting to let the Zhang family members come to collect it; he did not want his friend's corpse to be left here for too long.

"Steering Commissioner Fu."

Du Changhe, who had been silent, suddenly spoke up.

He is the head of the Du family, one of the three great clans, and also the Chief Inspector of the Datong Prefecture General Inspectorate:

"The death of Steering Commissioner Zhang is of great importance. His corpse might still hold other clues. Before we find the killer, I'm afraid it's not appropriate to let the Zhang family collect it."

Fu Lang fell silent.

The other party's words were indeed official and reasonable; he could not refute them.

"Then let the General Stop-Goe Academy collect the corpse first."

Fu Lang said.

"The General Inspectorate has several skilled forensic experts; I will send them to the General Stop-Goe Academy in a moment."

Du Changhe said calmly.

The term "forensic expert" is influenced by Western culture; they used to be called coroners. Du Changhe's meaning was to have someone perform an autopsy on Zhang Zongyang's corpse.

Fu Lang turned his head, looking at the other party with a sharp gaze.

Du Changhe met Fu Lang's gaze without backing down: "I just want to solve the case as quickly as possible. This matter will definitely alarm those above. If it drags on without a result, I'm afraid none of us here will have an easy time."

With Zhang Zongyang dead, the General Stop-Goe Academy will be the first to be punished by those above, and the General Inspectorate cannot escape responsibility either, as they are responsible for the city's security.

And if this matter is related to Meijia Nation spies, the General Supervision Academy and the General Law Academy, who are currently working together to capture spies, will also be unable to absolve themselves.

So Du Changhe's words were indeed correct.

"In that case, my General Supervision Academy will also send some personnel to help and accompany the transport of Steering Commissioner Zhang's corpse back to the General Stop-Goe Academy."

The Deputy Chief Supervisor of the General Supervision Academy said.

His words clearly showed he did not trust the Inspectorate or the Stop-Goe Academy and wanted to send people to monitor the entire "autopsy" process, but the General Supervision Academy does indeed have that authority.

"Then I will trouble Old Qi to work hard once more and go along as well."

Jiang Jin was the last to state his position, having Qi Yiming participate in the "autopsy."

"Very well, let it be as the lords wish."

Fu Lang laughed in extreme anger, took one last look at his friend's corpse on the ground, and flicked his sleeves as he left.

Soon, Zhang Zongyang's corpse was carried away by people from the General Stop-Goe Academy, followed by personnel from all parties who went along to the General Stop-Goe Academy, prepared to participate in the upcoming "autopsy."

Throughout the entire process, the Zhang family members could only watch from the periphery, unable to get close or intervene.

Du Changhe took one last look at the Zhang family members and shook his head.

As a head of one of the three great clans, he is still alive, while Zhang Zongyang is already dead.

Therefore, the Zhang family is likely finished as well.

From now on, there will no longer be three great clans in Datong Prefecture.

Around 6: 0 AM on March 3rd, the corpse of Zhang Zongyang was sent back to the Zhige General Academy, and an "autopsy" began shortly thereafter.

At the same time, the preliminary suspicions regarding this case and the clues uncovered by Qi Yiming were reported to the desk of Bian Jingru, the Garrison Commander of Datong Prefecture.

After receiving the news last night, his expression had remained grim; now, having finished reading the preliminary results, he slammed a palm heavily onto the table and said sternly:

"Haven't the General Inspectorate and the General Court of Justice been capturing spies all this time? What results have they produced?"

The Secretary-General standing to the side hurriedly bowed and said:

"My lord, everyone captured so far has already been interrogated once, and none of them provided any particularly useful clues."

"What about that traitorous special-grade lecturer from Wu University?"

Bian Jingru asked.

"We couldn't extract much useful information from his mouth either, and those who had close dealings with him are all middle-to-high-level personnel at Wu University; it is not easy for the General Inspectorate to investigate that side."

"Wu University..."

Bian Jingru fell silent for a moment.

Even though he was a high-ranking Garrison Commander, it was difficult for him to speak forcefully in front of Wu University.

Therefore, no matter how angry he was, he was not insane enough to order someone to directly investigate Wu University.

"Besides Wu University, are there any other suspects?"

Bian Jingru asked.

The Secretary-General said cautiously: "There is also the Iron Peak Sect."

"The Iron Peak Sect."

Bian Jingru's gaze turned cold, "Pass on my order: have the City Guard Army leave the city immediately and surround Iron Peak Mountain for me!"

"My lord?"

The Secretary-General looked at Bian Jingru with some astonishment.

"Deploy the Imperial Camp Army."

Bian Jingru added another instruction.

"Yes!"

Now the Secretary-General understood the other's determination and immediately went to execute the order.

At 7: 0 AM, the City Guard Army of Datong Prefecture departed the city.

The City Guard Army of the prefecture is commanded by two Regional Military Commissioners; a Regional Military Commissioner is a level 10 military officer, one rank higher than a Garrison Commander, and each can command one thousand troops.

The troops under the two Regional Military Commissioners of Datong Prefecture total nearly three thousand, and among them are one thousand iron cavalry!

The iron cavalry of the Great Lan Dynasty are famous throughout the world; they are a type of cavalry between light and heavy cavalry, and both the men and horses are fully armored.

Because there are martial artists, Martial Masters, and Qi-Refining Martial Masters among the iron cavalry, if one thousand iron cavalry charge on a plain, even a powerhouse at the Dao Foundation realm would find it difficult to withstand their edge!

Now, a total of over one thousand men have set out from the prefecture city toward Iron Peak Mountain, half mounted and half on foot.

The two hundred riders at the very front have armor that is clearly different from the cavalry behind them, looking thicker and heavier.

Furthermore, they are not riding ordinary warhorses, but exotic beasts: Green Nightmare Horses!

Most of these Green Nightmare Horses are first-grade, a small number are second-grade, and there are even a few that are third-grade.

Back then, one couldn't even find more than five Green Nightmare Horses in the entire City Guard camp of Xingcheng, yet here there are two hundred!

These two hundred riders are not the City Guard Army; they are the Imperial Camp Army.

The so-called Imperial Camp Army is the most elite force of the Great Lan Dynasty, an army composed entirely of martial artists, where even the weakest is a martial artist at the Body-Breaking realm!

In addition, the equipment they use is made of baleful weapons, which is something the local Courts of Justice have been painstakingly refining.

With baleful weapons, they can form military arrays and erupt with military baleful energy; this is a large-scale destructive technique that can be utilized on the battlefield!

Military arrays and military baleful energy are the true "weapons" of the Great Lan Dynasty, and the foundation of its confidence in sweeping across all directions and being hailed as the number one empire of the current age!

Now, the Imperial Camp Army, composed of two hundred riders, is the first to charge toward the Iron Peak Sect.

(End of chapter)