Chapter 65: The County Magistrate

Below was a stretch of dimness; the air was filled with a faint, musty odor, accompanied by a trace of blood.

Lu Zhangsheng slowly descended along the stairs.

Before long, a large prison appeared before his eyes.

Inside the prison, more than a dozen figures were being held.

Among them, one woman wore a white long dress; her attire was very ornate, and the jewelry on her head also looked quite precious.

Beside the woman stood a maid in a yellow dress.

Both of them looked somewhat terrified.

Upon seeing someone appear, the people inside the prison were first struck with fear, but after seeing clearly who it was, they were instantly overjoyed.

"It's an official from the Demon-Suppressing Division."

The group of people wept with joy one after another.

Seeing the official uniform of the person who had arrived, they immediately realized that someone had come to save them.

In this dark, sunless dungeon, worrying and fearing all day long, they finally had hope of escaping this place; the group was incredibly excited.

"May I ask if you are Miss Du Ling?"

Lu Zhangsheng slashed the door lock open with a blade and asked the woman in ornate attire with a smile.

He did not know the County Magistrate's daughter, but seeing the woman's attire and temperament, he had some guesses in his heart, so he asked straightforwardly.

"I am indeed Du Ling. May I ask for your name, official? Thank you for coming to rescue us."

Du Ling bowed gracefully, a smile on her face, though deep in the corners of her eyes, there was a trace of something strange.

"I am Lu Zhangsheng. Miss Du, you are too polite."

Lu Zhangsheng smiled.

"Let us all head to the surface together."

Just as the group of women inside the prison were preparing to leave, a crisp notification sound rang out from deep within Lu Zhangsheng's mind.

"Warning, warning, unknown energy field detected..."

Lu Zhangsheng's heart tightened, but his expression remained as calm as water.

He led the group toward the surface without changing his expression.

Soon, the group arrived at the surface.

The many martial artists from the county city around them also saw Du Ling and all wore expressions of regret.

"Haha, Brother Lu is quite lucky."

A group of people quickly walked up.

"Congratulations, Brother Lu."

"It was all just luck."

Lu Zhangsheng smiled slightly and greeted everyone.

Afterward, he slowly moved away from that group of women, and the notification sound did not ring in his mind again.

"There is a major problem with that group of women."

He confirmed this in his heart instantly.

"Could it be Du Ling? Or one of the other women?"

As his thoughts turned, he suspected that Du Ling was the one who had been tampered with; the others did not have enough value for that group to go to such lengths.

Thinking of this, chills surged from the depths of his heart.

If the other party had truly been tampered with and suddenly launched an attack at a critical moment, the consequences would be unimaginable.

"Could it be the scheme of that Venerable Lord? Or a backup plan of the Wenxiang Sect?"

His brain was running at high speed.

As for searching Du Ling, that was even more impractical.

The other party was not some ordinary woman who could be touched at will; even his direct superior was one rank lower than the County Magistrate.

The magistrate of a county still held great power throughout the entire county city.

Moreover, Du Ling was the County Magistrate's only daughter, cherished by him above all else.

This was like in the capital, where the Old Emperor might have hundreds of princesses, most of whom were not favored and had not even seen the Emperor's face, whereas the Changping County Magistrate had only one daughter; if he were to investigate her, wouldn't that be seeking death?

As for reporting to his superiors, he thought about it and suppressed the idea.

Without evidence, it would be a false accusation; if nothing could be found, he would be the one to suffer.

Lu Zhangsheng decided to shelve the matter for now and investigate slowly once his own strength was greater.

He suspected that some people had spent such a high price, likely for an astonishing purpose.

"In the future, I must stay further away from the County Magistrate's residence."

In an instant, Lu Zhangsheng's thoughts turned a hundred times.

Just as Lu Zhangsheng was pondering, Wei Shaoxuan suddenly walked over.

"This mission has concluded successfully; thank you all for your hard work."

"You are too polite, Commander Wei."

The group wore smiles.

Afterward, the group walked quickly toward the county city.

…………

Two days later.

Early morning, the morning sun was rising.

Inside the County Government Office guest hall.

"Brother Lu is truly a hero among youths; to have such strength at such a young age." Du Wentao took a sip of tea, wearing a smile.

This man wore a Confucian robe, and his graying temples added a touch of elegance.

The two were not having a formal meeting, so the other party naturally was not wearing his official robes.

"The County Magistrate flatters me; I am unworthy of such praise."

Lu Zhangsheng wore a smile, appearing very humble.

In his view, this Du Wentao was no ordinary character.

In a few years, he had secured his position as County Magistrate, suppressed several major powerful families, and integrated various forces; his methods were quite brilliant.

Even the several Deputy Hall Masters had to admire this man.

Coupled with the support of the Xuanjia Army Commander, his power within the entire county city was unmatched.

At this moment, Du Wentao took out an exquisite wooden box and handed it to Lu Zhangsheng.

"There is a secret technique inside; I shall gift it to you, Brother Lu. This item was entrusted to me by a friend many years ago. I hope you will not let it go to waste..."

He wore a look of reminiscence, his gaze seemingly drifting toward the distance.

"I will certainly not fail the County Magistrate's trust."

Lu Zhangsheng nodded with a smile and took the wooden box.

Afterward, the two exchanged words for a while longer, and Lu Zhangsheng rose to leave.

Just as Lu Zhangsheng walked out of the hall, a man in white walked out.

"How was it?"

Du Wentao's eyes flickered slightly.

"Full of spirit and energy, steady temperament; not bad at all."

The man in white smiled slightly.

"I didn't expect to hear such an evaluation from you. The current situation is becoming increasingly bizarre, and there is not much time left for him. I hope the other party can grow up as quickly as possible; let this secret technique serve as a gesture of goodwill..."

Du Wentao sighed softly.

Decades ago, his entire family was slaughtered, which remained his eternal pain.

He swore to make the Black Mountain Bandits pay for their blood debt.

Now that they had actually colluded with the Wenxiang Sect, they would likely be even harder to deal with.

But no matter how difficult, he was determined to completely eradicate these two forces.

"I wonder if my little sister is doing well?"

For a long time, Du Wentao had been searching for his younger sister, but there had been no news at all.

After his family was wiped out that day, he had not found her body, and this matter had become the greatest regret in his heart.

…………

Afternoon.

Lu Zhangsheng sat upright in his study and opened the wooden box.

He saw an old, yellowed book lying quietly in the center of the box.

Three large red characters were written on the cover of the ancient book.

"Threefold Wave."

Lu Zhangsheng looked curious; he immediately took out the secret manual and began to flip through it.

"Swish, swish, swish..."

The air was very quiet, leaving only the sound of his turning pages.

A moment later.

Lu Zhangsheng closed the manual, his eyes flickering.

"Secret manual 'Threefold Wave' discovered. Do you choose to record it?"

"Record."

He nodded without hesitation.

He opened his panel.

Skill: Threefold Wave (Not yet entered).

Note: Circulates the body's Qi and blood like ocean waves, performing three layers of superposition to increase the user's strength and speed. Once perfected, its power is not trivial.

Technique Rating: Three Stars.

After finishing the entire secret manual, Lu Zhangsheng discovered that this was a very powerful secret technique.

It was much stronger than the Blood Ignition Secret Art.

His own perfected Blood Ignition Secret Art could only increase his strength by about twenty percent.

He estimated that once this 【Threefold Wave】 was perfected, it could likely increase his strength by about forty percent, which was extremely terrifying.

Among high-rank secret techniques, it was a top-tier existence, and it was probably not far from a true top-tier secret technique.

This County Magistrate was not bad; he owed the other party a favor this time.

But this was not a bad thing.

Favors are about give and take, and naturally, their friendship would grow.

Building a good relationship with the other party had significant benefits.

Since the other party had this intention, he would not be ungrateful.

Lu Zhangsheng could also guess that the other party had a hint of investment in mind.

(End of chapter)