Chapter 63

"Chief Constable Wei, you're here so early. There's no barbecue to eat if you come this early," Lu Yang teased with a smile at the entrance.

It was still morning when Chief Constable Wei arrived at the barbecue shop with two constables and a silk banner.

"Look, I've brought you the banner we agreed on yesterday."

Chief Constable Wei shook the banner open on the street, intentionally displaying it. The banner read: "Righteous Action, Promoting Integrity."

This act naturally attracted quite a few onlookers.

The two constables held the banner up and hung it on the wall directly facing the main entrance of the hall, making it very conspicuous.

Originally, there were two vengeful ghosts in the hall skewering meat, but Lu Yang had let them go to the backyard to work, telling them not to show their faces.

Lu Yang brought over three cups of tea and asked casually: "Did you find out anything from those stupid thieves yesterday? Where are these outsiders from, daring to provoke the famous Iron-Faced Chief Constable?"

"Sigh, don't mention it. We didn't find out anything." Chief Constable Wei picked up the boiling hot tea and downed it in one gulp.

A Foundation Establishment stage throat doesn't fear boiling water.

"Why is that?"

"That bunch of idiots didn't have strong willpower; they started talking once we scared them. Just as they were about to say why a group of cultivators came to Yanjiang Prefecture, they were killed by an assassin who appeared from nowhere. Nine ox-hair poison needles were stuck in their necks, and they died instantly. The room was sealed, and I don't know how the assassin got in."

"At the time, I instinctively went outside to find the assassin, but I found nothing. Later, I figured it out: the assassin must have mastered some kind of shadow-related spell. He was hiding in the shadows beforehand. As soon as we asked a question, he killed them, and while I ran outside, he slipped away along the shadows."

"If I had blocked the door at the time, I wouldn't have let the assassin escape. I only hate that I was too angry back then and didn't think of that!" After saying this, Chief Constable Wei angrily drank the tea meant for the other two constables until it was bone dry.

The two constables looked at Chief Constable Wei in a daze; they hadn't even had a sip yet.

Lu Yang smiled as he sent off the furious Chief Constable Wei and the two unlucky constables who hadn't even managed to drink a drop of water.

Meng Jingzhou sent a voice transmission: "According to yesterday's plan, did you kill Qin Yuanhao?"

After returning last night, Lu Yang had recounted what he saw. Since they knew the location of the Yanjiang Branch, there was no need for Qin Yuanhao to stay alive.

The three of them had spent the night formulating a plan to ambush Qin Yuanhao.

Specifically, Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou discussed it, while Seeing Man Gu listened in.

"No rush. I have some new ideas; let's prepare a bit more."

……

The figure in the black robe knocked lightly on Qin Yuanhao's gate, but after a long time, no one opened it.

The black-robed figure just waited there.

Finally, the gate opened, but there was no one at the entrance; it was as if the gate had opened on its own.

The gate stood wide open, like the giant maw of a demon, ready to swallow the ignorant.

The black-robed figure walked into the mansion without haste. As soon as he entered, the gate slammed shut with a bang, the bolt slid into place, locking the black-robed figure inside.

The black-robed figure took out a bone token and said loudly: "Is Senior Qin Yuanhao in? I have been entrusted by my master to pay a visit."

"I wondered who it was; so it's a vengeful ghost under Brother Tiger."

The voice came from behind the vengeful ghost. Qin Yuanhao appeared suddenly; the ghost hadn't even noticed which direction he came from, as if he had appeared out of thin air.

"What do you want with me?"

"My master said it has been thinking for a few days and feels that what you said makes sense—it's good to lean on a big tree for shade. It wants to join the Yanjiang Branch, but it has some concerns and would like to invite you to Songshan for a chat."

Qin Yuanhao looked at the vengeful ghost with amusement: "Oh, Brother Tiger hasn't replied for so long; I thought it had no intention of joining the Yanjiang Branch."

The vengeful ghost smiled obsequiously: "My master needed a long time to think."

Qin Yuanhao's expression changed, and he grabbed the vengeful ghost by the neck: "You dare play tricks in front of me? Tell me, who sent you? With Brother Tiger's personality, how could it possibly take the initiative to join the Yanjiang Branch!"

The vengeful ghost was terrified, repeatedly saying that no one had sent him.

Qin Yuanhao increased the pressure on his hand, making the ghost's soul dim, before the ghost finally told the truth.

"A few days ago, a few blind cultivators entered Songshan and accidentally discovered my master's tracks. My master killed them, and while sorting through their belongings, it discovered that their sect was extraordinary, with Jin Dan stage experts among their elders."

"My master is worried that Jin Dan stage cultivators might come looking for it, and it's quite scared. It remembered Senior Qin's invitation, and after convincing the mistress, it decided to join the Yanjiang Branch. It sent me to invite you over to discuss the specific details."

Qin Yuanhao got the answer he wanted and casually tossed the vengeful ghost aside: "That's more like it."

Qin Yuanhao no longer doubted the ghost and followed him to Songshan.

"Senior Qin, my master is waiting for you not far ahead," the vengeful ghost said respectfully. "My master doesn't like anyone listening in, so please."

Qin Yuanhao ignored the ghost and walked over alone.

The forest was dense and quiet, as if no one had set foot there for a long time. The distant chirping of birds added a touch of serenity to the dense woods.

A four-meter-long tiger demon sat cross-legged ahead, with two cups of tea on a stone table, looking like it was hosting a guest.

Qin Yuanhao unconsciously relaxed his vigilance, and his pace quickened slightly.

Suddenly, his cultivation technique activated automatically, forming a thin film on his body that blocked an attack from an unknown source, leaving only a shallow line of blood on his neck.

"An ambush!"

Qin Yuanhao was incredibly experienced; he jerked backward and saw a nearly invisible thin line stretched across the air at neck height.

"This dried noodle really is useful; it almost cut his head off."

A gloating voice sounded from a tree to Qin Yuanhao's right; it was Meng Jingzhou.

What Qin Yuanhao saw wasn't a thin line, but dragon-whisker noodles Lu Yang had bought from the cafeteria.

According to the senior brother who sold the noodles, these noodles kill invisibly and are best for ambushes.

If not for Qin Yuanhao's special cultivation technique, which had an automatic defense effect, his head would have been cut off by now.

"You dare plot against me!" Qin Yuanhao glared fiercely at the tiger demon. This wasn't about inviting him over to discuss joining the Yanjiang Branch at all; it was a trap from start to finish!

Unexpectedly, the tiger demon had already vanished. The ground beneath Qin Yuanhao's feet was soft, and the Azure Edge Sword struck directly at Qin Yuanhao's crotch.

Fortunately, Qin Yuanhao reacted quickly; his right knee collided with the Azure Edge Sword, knocking the sword off course and protecting his manhood.

Seeing the situation was bad, he turned and ran.

He was completely unprepared, while the other side was fully prepared—how could he fight this?

"They must be fellow demonic cultivators!" Qin Yuanhao was certain. That sword strike just now was too underhanded; what righteous sect fights like that?

Seeing Man Gu had been waiting for him for a long time; he swung a tree and smashed it over. Qin Yuanhao was sent flying far away.

"Hmm, why didn't I feel any impact?" Seeing Man Gu was puzzled. He clearly hit the opponent, but it felt like hitting a piece of paper.

Qin Yuanhao flew a long distance, but his momentum remained strong, and he wasn't injured.

"Watch out for the opponent's technique; it's very strange!" Seeing Man Gu warned loudly.

"A few juniors want to deal with me? You're a hundred years too early!" Qin Yuanhao laughed. As long as they couldn't discover the true effect of his technique, no one could catch him.

Lu Yang jumped into the air without haste, used his identity jade pendant, and shouted at Qin Yuanhao: "Collect!"

Qin Yuanhao was stunned for a moment, not yet understanding what had happened. This jade pendant looked like an alternative storage ring, but a storage ring couldn't store him.

Qin Yuanhao noticed that the three of them were looking at him with strange expressions.

He slowly lowered his head and discovered that he was naked, his clothes having vanished at some point.

Qin Yuanhao's clothes had been collected into the jade pendant, and he was shivering in the air wearing only his underwear.

"Damn it, you guys are the strange ones!"