A Pawn's Passage

Chapter 88: Revealed Motives (IV)

The Dragon Eye Bullet had penetrated Bai Yongguan’s chest, completely shattering his Spiritual Statue.

After the Spiritual Statue disappeared, the green snake that restrained Wang Zicheng also turned into little streams of light and dissipated.

Wang Zicheng looked at Qi Xuansu, a little surprised.

When Wang Zicheng first arrived, he only saw Qi Xuansu fighting with Bai Yongguan. In the end, it was Qi Xuansu who gave Bai Yongguan a fatal blow, which showed that the former was no ordinary person.

Qi Xuansu put away the Divine Dragon Pistol, took out his insignia, and introduced himself. “I’m Qi Xuansu, a deacon of Tiangang Hall.”

Wang Zicheng breathed a sigh of relief and took out his badge. “Wang Zicheng, Pacification Commander of the Green Phoenix Guard.”

Qi Xuansu did not panic upon hearing this, even after having previously killed many Green Phoenix Guards in Fengtai County. He acted normally. “Thank you for saving me, Pacification Commander Wang. I am eternally grateful to you.”

Wang Zicheng waved his hand. “I didn’t save you. We were teaming up to fight against the enemy. By the way, shouldn’t Beichen Hall take the lead in capturing traitors? Why is the Tiangang Hall involved?”

Qi Xuansu roughly recounted the events that led to his arrival in Qingbai Temple, starting from accidentally barging into the ancient temple with Ancient Immortal believers, to later discovering that Bai Yongguan had slaughtered and cooked his disciple.

After Wang Zicheng heard this, he was speechless for a long time.

Qi Xuansu asked, “Pacification Commander Wang, why did you come here?”

Wang Zicheng did not hide anything from Qi Xuansu and told him how his boat had capsized on the Tongtian River when he was traveling incognito, and how he was ambushed by Shamans on the shore.

Qi Xuansu never expected this group of Ancient Immortal believers to be so bold as to attack a Pacification Commander. But it all made sense to him when he recalled Bai Yongguan mentioning the need for a vessel.

It seemed that the Ancient Immortal believers were planning to hold a divine descent ceremony in this area.

The so-called divine descent, as Zhang Yuelu once mentioned, was allowing an external incarnation of the Ancient Immortal to descend to the mortal realm. Since the mortal realm was a huge cage for the Ancient Immortals, many of their actions were restricted. Thus, Ancient Immortals had to use this kind of trick to do things that they could not do personally.

Qi Xuansu also described the scene of Zhang Yuelu’s divination using the Purple Star Astrology. “There are seven of them in total. Two have already surfaced so far, so there are five left. The monk, gentry, scholar, court official, and a mysterious person in a cloak.”

Wang Zicheng said with a solemn expression, “An old man in court robes? I’m afraid that Mage Zhang will be in trouble if she goes to the local Major’s Office by herself.”

Qi Xuansu asked, “Pacification Commander, do you think that there are more demons lurking in the Major’s Office?”

“Yes.” Wang Zicheng nodded and added, “I’m quite certain that’s how I got ambushed on the way here.”

Speaking of this, Qi Xuansu suddenly remembered something and hurriedly went to Bai Yongguan’s corpse. Qi Xuansu searched around Bai Yongguan’s corpse, finding a string of beads on his wrist and a jade pendant in his sleeve pocket. Qi Xuansu put them in his satchel, pulled out his sword, Qing Yuan, and cut off Bai Yongguan’s head.

Wang Zicheng understood Qi Xuansu’s intention. He roughly scanned the temple but found nothing. Bai Yue had taken the opportunity to escape during the chaotic fight. The remaining Daoist believers were merely ordinary citizens who had nothing to do with the secret societies.

Qi Xuansu carried Bai Yongguan’s head and ran out, followed closely by Wang Zicheng.

When the two left Qingbai Temple, they saw that Li Zhen’er was still standing on the side of the road. When Li Zhen’er saw Qi Xuansu holding Bai Yongguan’s decapitated head, she breathed a long sigh of relief and slumped down on the roadside.

Qi Xuansu was worried about Zhang Yuelu’s safety, so he ran down the mountain, not bothering to glance at Li Zhen’er.

Right after Qi Xuansu and Wang Zicheng left, Li Zhen’er gradually regained her senses. She slowly stood up and planned to leave this horrendous place.

She turned to look back at Qingbai Temple, where she had lived for many years, and murmured, “Bai Yongguan, Lu Yu, you’re all dead—”

Before she finished speaking, her body suddenly stiffened. The tip of a knife had penetrated through her chest, and the blood stain on her robe gradually expanded.

Bai Yue, who had escaped from Qingbai Temple, returned to stab Li Zhen’er. She slowly pulled out the knife and stretched out her hand to push Li Zhen’er forward.

Li Zhen’er fell with her face forward onto the ground, blood pooling under her body. Soon, she became silent.

Bai Yue tossed the knife aside, looked back at Qingbai Temple, and ran down the mountain from the other direction.

......

In the Major’s Office, Zhang Yuelu was still surrounded by the many Green Phoenix Guards. However, she did not panic.

Luo Xiao walked to the rubble in the corridor and dug out He Nian with his bare hands.

He Nian looked miserable, with minor wounds all over. His neck was almost broken as well, so his head tilted to the side. However, he was still breathing weakly and was not completely dead.

Just as Zhang Yuelu expected, Luo Xiao would not believe an outsider like her without definite evidence to doubt his subordinate. At this time, Luo Xiao’s face was grim when he saw He Nian at death's door.

Zhang Yuelu said calmly, “I struck him in the neck, but he didn’t die immediately. This shows how tough his body is. He should be at the Guizhen stage, so how could someone with such a high level of cultivation willingly stay stagnant as a mere assistant major for such a long time? Major Luo, you said so yourself that he has been in the Major’s Office for more than ten years. Do you even know that your assistant major is in the Guizhen stage?”

Luo Xiao was speechless.

At this moment, the Green Phoenix Guard Lieutenant Colonel, who had stood aside, finally spoke. “Mage Zhang.”

Zhang Yuelu looked at the Lieutenant Colonel and asked, “And you are?”

The Green Phoenix Guard Lieutenant Colonel briefly saluted her. “I am Lin Zhenyuan, the Lieutenant Colonel in Yongzhou.”

Yongzhou bordered Liangzhou, Shuzhou, Qinzhou, and Xizhou. The Great Xuan Dynasty established a Governor’s Office, a Provincial Administrative Office, a Provincial Surveillance Commission, and a Lieutenant Colonel’s Office in this state, which were all under the control of the Xiliang Censorate. In the Daoist community, this territory fell under the jurisdiction of the Kunlun Daoist Mansion.

Zhang Yuelu said, “Greetings, Lieutenant Colonel Lin.”

Lin Zhenyuan questioned, “Mage Zhang, why are you so sure that Assistant Major He is from a secret society just because he’s in the Guizhen stage? Don’t you think you’re being too prejudiced? Even if there is something wrong with Assistant Major He, you should let the Green Phoenix Guard’s Southern Military Commission handle him. This isn’t something the Daoist Order’s Tiangang Hall is authorized to do.”

Zhang Yuelu emphasized. “I told you that he was the one who attacked me first. I was merely acting in self-defense.”

Lin Zhenyuan disputed. “Mage Zhang, your cultivation level is obvious to everyone. Even if He Nian is in the Guizhen stage, how could he try to attack you first?”

“What if it’s a sneak attack?” Zhang Yuelu asked back, “Lieutenant Colonel, do you expect me to just stand here and wait to be killed?”

There were many unwritten rules between the Daoist Order and the Imperial Court. One of them was that the Imperia Court had no right to deal with disciples from the Daoist Order, and vice versa. If a court official committed a crime and fell into the hands of the Daoist Order, the latter had to hand the criminal over to the Imperial Court for disposal, and vice versa.

Although Lin Zhenyuan did not say it explicitly, he was reminding Zhang Yuelu of this rule. Zhang Yuelu also understood that she had overstepped her bounds.

At this moment, Luo Xiao had already searched He Nian’s body and found no beads or other objects proving that the latter was affiliated with the Ancient Immortals. Instead, he found a jade pendant with no special words or carvings. It was shaped like a ring.

Zhang Yuelu was disappointed to see this. She did not expect He Nian to be so cautious that he did not carry the beads of the Lingshan Witch Cult with him. The prayer beads of Lingshan Witch Cult were not just simple tokens. They contained divine power that could be used in an emergency.

Lin Zhenyuan glanced at the unconscious He Nian and stated, “Since it has come to this point, He Nian will be temporarily detained by the Yongzhou Lieutenant Colonel’s Office. I will report this to the Southern Military Commissioner’s Office, and they will investigate whether He Nian is related to any secret associations.

“I will also report to the Lord Commander that you have assaulted an assistant major. He will communicate with your Hall Master regarding your punishment. But before that, you will have to stay here in the Major’s Office, Mage Zhang. I hope you won’t make things more difficult for us.”

Zhang Yuelu frowned slightly. Judging from her divination, she saw seven Ancient Immortal believers surrounding the statue. Aside from the Shaman whom she had previously injured, there were another six cult demons. He Nian was undoubtedly one of them.

To find the remaining five individuals, Zhang Yuelu had to find clues from He Nian. Thus, if the Green Phoenix Guards took He Nian away, she would lose important clues to the case. Moreover, she could not stay put at the Major’s Office. She had to find out where the cult demons were hiding as quickly as possible.

However, Zhang Yuelu could not just abduct He Nian and leave like a wanted criminal. Just as Zhang Yuelu hesitated, a voice came from behind them.

“There is no need to report to the Southern Military Commissioner’s Office. This is exactly why I came here for an inspection this time.”

Lin Zhenyuan and Zhang Yuelu both looked toward the source of the voice.

The person who spoke was none other than Wang Zicheng, accompanied by Qi Xuansu.

Wang Zicheng held up his badge and declared, “I am Wang Zicheng, the Pacification Commander of the Southern Military Commission. I have been ordered to inspect Xizhou, Yongzhou, Liangzhou, and the surrounding area for any illegal activities and bring the criminals to justice.”

Aside from Lin Zhenyuan, everyone else was shocked.

The public was afraid of the Northern Military Commission, but the Green Phoenix Guards were even more afraid of the Southern Military Commission. Not to mention, Wang Zicheng was a Pacification Commander.

Even if Lieutenant Colonel Lin Zhenyuan had the same status as Wang Zicheng in the Green Phoenix Guard, in terms of official rank, the latter was the lower-fourth rank, while the former was an upper-fifth-rank official. Moreover, as an envoy of the Southern Military Commission, Wang Zicheng had to be treated with due respect.

Lin Zhenyuan examined Wang Zicheng’s badge and saluted him. “Greetings, Pacification Commander.”

Luo Xiao and the rest of the Green Phoenix Guards kneeled on one knee. “Welcome, Pacification Commander.”

Zhang Yuelu looked at Qi Xuansu and noticed how he was holding a decapitated human head, whose disheveled hair had covered the face.

Her heart dropped in shock as she thought, Did something happen at Qingbai Temple?

At this time, both Wang Zicheng and Qi Xuansu looked unkempt. Qi Xuansu was a little better, but Wang Zicheng had messy hair. If it had not been for his badge, no one would have recognized that he was the mighty envoy of the Southern Military Commission.

Qi Xuansu introduced Zhang Yuelu to Wang Zicheng, and the two greeted each other.

Luo Xiao was outspoken, so he asked, “Pacification Commander, may I ask what happened to you on your journey?”

“I was just about to tell you.” Wang Zicheng’s voice was resounding. “I was ambushed on my way here. My entourage was wiped out. I almost died at the hands of these demons too. Lieutenant Colonel, since you are the person in charge here, what do you have to say about this?”

Lin Zhenyuan’s expression changed slightly. He did not defend himself and only spoke solemnly. “My apologies for neglecting my duty, sir.”