Chapter 529

Boss Qu froze.

As soon as his hand touched the box, he was pressed to the ground by the arriving Yin officials.

The first wave of Yin officials also froze.

Two teams of Yin officials faced off, the scene…… was weird.

The Yin official holding Boss Qu down picked up the box on the ground and asked Boss Qu, "What is this?"

Boss Qu panicked, "It's a piece of blood jade, an antique, I was going to pawn it at the Yin Dang Hang for some emergency cash."

This situation, by now, is actually quite clear.

Boss Qu knew that the Yin Dang Hang had such a box, and what was inside was exactly what someone had used years ago to frame the Yin Dang Hang.

This item had always been kept in the Yin Dang Hang; the other party had long wanted to find an opportunity to pin a crime on the Yin Dang Hang, but lacking a chance, they never retrieved it.

Such an important item couldn't be kept on the first floor, so Boss Qu had to go upstairs.

He was carrying an identical box on his person, inside which lay a piece of blood jade.

Once he reached the second floor, the first team of Yin officials would immediately rush over and block him there.

Boss Qu took the chance to destroy the box he had brought; when the Yin officials later searched the Yin Dang Hang and found the box in the hidden room, the charge against the Yin Dang Hang would be confirmed.

This was the very trap that had once been sprung on Fan Chen at the Yin Dang Hang, catching him off guard.

But no one expected that this time Boss Qu wouldn't make it to the second floor, and the first team of Yin officials didn't anticipate another team arriving right behind them.

Since Boss Qu's mission wasn't completed, he could only choose to protect himself first and tell the truth.

The Yin official opened the box in front of Boss Qu to verify it.

When the box was opened, a burst of Yin Cold Qi burst out, and everyone sucked in a cold breath in unison.

Boss Qu exclaimed even more, "The thing inside the box isn't mine! It's a piece of blood jade I recently scavenged from the Gui Shi; I can find witnesses, I..."

"Boss Qu!" Yu Nian suddenly shouted, "Our Chenghuang Temple's Dang Pu Yin Dang Hang, open for business, has always had an unwritten rule: not just anyone who wants to pawn something at the Yin Dang Hang is accepted; only transactions we have screened receive advance invitations, and customers bring those invitations to the shop for formal deals. Boss Qu, where is your invitation?"

Boss Qu froze again: "Invitation? Before… before we did have them, but this time… I'm a regular customer, everyone knows my background, do we really need an invitation each time? Clearly many people don't have one…"

"Knowing one's background, Boss Qu yet barged into the Yin Dang Hang with stolen goods, trying to frame us—what kind of knowing one's background is that?" Yu Nian declared firmly, "Our Yin Dang Hang opens its doors to do business, always treating people kindly; why would Boss Qu drag us into injustice? What have we done to offend you?"

Boss Qu hurriedly defended, "I didn't steal anything! I'm innocent!"

Yu Nian snorted coldly, saying, "Lately the entire Nether Realm and Gui Shi have been abuzz: a Yin Tiger Talisman has been stolen, a token that can command the netherworld armored troops, and the whole Nether Realm only has four of them. Boss Qu claims this Yin Tiger Talisman isn't stolen—could it be that you bought it with money?"

At this moment, I really began to admire Yu Nian a little.

She is clear-headed and calm in handling affairs; a few words stirred Boss Qu's emotions, then she shifted the concept, directly leading him astray.

Boss Qu was already guilty, and now he completely fell into the trap of self-incrimination.

Whether he argued or not, he couldn't defend himself against a hundred mouths.

He subconsciously glanced sideways at the first team of Yin officials rushing over, his eyes pleading for help.

Everyone followed his gaze and looked over in unison.

That Yin official's leader's face turned green, and his underlings behind him didn't even dare lift their heads.

The leader of the second team of Yin officials suddenly spoke, puzzled: "Tonight, there are supposed to be two teams of Yin officials on patrol in the Gui Shi by order; I recall the other team isn't yours, may I ask which department you belong to?"

The leader of the first team of Yin officials, clearly prepared, replied: "We belong to the Seven Halls Yama Hall; the recently rumored stolen Yin Tiger Talisman is precisely the one belonging to the Seven Halls Yama's palace, and we have been ordered to come to the Gui Shi to search for the Yin Tiger Talisman."

"Oh, I don't recall issuing such an order,"

As they spoke, a tall figure had already stood outside the Yin Dang Hang's door.

He wore official robes, a square cap, and had a black iron saw at his waist; the moment he appeared, the already low temperature around seemed to drop even further.

Seeing the arrival, the Yin official's leader first froze: "Lord Seven Halls Yama, you… how could you…"

Immediately, his whole body began to tremble uncontrollably, and he fell to his knees in fear.

Seven Halls Yama coldly said, "False transmission of orders, causing chaos in the Gui Shi, framing and entrapment—crime aggravated, descend to the minor hell, await judgment."

Immediately, a Yin official stepped forward and detained that team.

Surprisingly, not a single one of them dared to struggle even a bit.

Is it because they have no background?

Or are they afraid to reveal their background to intimidate others?

Seven Halls Yama's gaze then fell on Boss Qu again: "You dare steal my lord's Yin Tiger Talisman, intending to resell and frame—heinous crime, on-the-spot judgment."

We only saw him wave his right hand, a flash of white light, and Boss Qu was already split in half.

He was sawn apart by Seven Halls Yama's black iron saw, his death state somewhat gruesome.

Actually, someone like Boss Qu, Seven Halls Yama could have kept him for a slow interrogation to uncover who was behind him, then follow the vine to melon.

But although this situation seems to have happened today, everyone actually knows full well that the Yin Tiger Talisman has been lost for who knows how many years, and Seven Halls Yama probably also wanted to settle this matter once and for all.

After all, this matter has long been suppressed; there's no need to dig up old scores again.

Leaving no living witness is the wisest course.

As for revenge, there's no rush at the moment.

Seven Halls Yama picked up the box on the ground, glanced at the Yin Tiger Talisman inside, put it away, then turned to Yu Nian and the others with a clasped-hand salute: "Thank you."

There were still other Yin official teams present, so it was inconvenient to say more; everything was understood without words.

Just then, the Gui Shi's bell urging everyone to leave rang; if they didn't go now, they'd likely be stranded.

"Xiao Jiu Zhanggui, would you be willing to accompany me for a stretch? Let's talk."

Seven Halls Yama looked toward the stairway.

As it turned out, he knew I was here.

I hurried downstairs, and Hu Yulin said, "Should I head back to the Dang Pu first?"

I nodded.

Hu Yulin then left.

That squad of night-patrolling underworld officials also had to go back to report.

I bid farewell to Yu Nian, followed Seven Halls Yama through the Ghost Gate Pass, and went straight to the Seven Halls Yama Hall.

Just after returning to his own territory, Seven Halls Yama staggered and nearly fell.

He steadied himself by bracing one hand against the nearby table.

I asked anxiously, "How do you feel? Do you need me to call someone over?"

Seven Halls Yama waved his hand and said, "It's fine; this is already the best day I've had in years. Before, even thinking of leaving Hu Shan was a luxury..."