Chapter 46: The Commission

Chapter 46: Chapter 46: The Commission

After the four of them—well, only three of them actually talked—finally settled everything, and the injured people were treated in a timely manner, the steward of the City Lord’s Mansion finally led them inside.

Seeing the retreating figures of the Lou sisters, Sui Sui turned to look at Yizhou.

"Should we get going too, Senior Brother?"

Yizhou looked at him.

"Mhmm."

Seeing this, Sui Sui immediately figured out that this person was in a bad mood again. He almost scratched his head.

Who the hell had offended this person again?

The steward led them through several corridors before bringing them into a spacious hall.

Compared to the freezing cold outside, the inside of the hall was much warmer. Several heating stones had been placed around the room, their gentle warmth spreading throughout the space. The walls were decorated with simple carvings, while thick curtains covered the windows to keep the cold wind from entering. A large brazier burned quietly in the corner, adding to the warmth of the room.

Several rows of chairs had already been arranged inside the hall, and cultivators from different sects were already seated there, quietly waiting for the commission to begin.

Sui Sui followed Yizhou to an empty seat and sat down.

Not long after everyone had settled down, another person entered the hall.

The man was thin and dressed in light blue robes. His hair was tied into a low ponytail, while his phoenix-shaped eyes were riddled with dark circles, probably from a lack of sleep. His complexion looked rather sickly, making him appear as though a strong gust of wind could blow him away.

"Cough, cough. Greetings to everyone. Thank you for accepting the invitation to this commission."

The man greeted everyone before introducing himself. As expected, he was none other than the City Lord of Xuanshuang City, Xu Yunzhi.

Now that he was closer, Sui Sui could see just how exhausted the man looked. It seemed that the recent incidents had kept him busy these past few days, leaving him with hardly any time to rest.

"For this commission, I will be dividing the tasks into three."

Xu Yunzhi looked around the hall before continuing.

"The first is to help guard the city. As you all know, Xuanshuang City is not a place with many cultivators, and the remaining guards we have are not enough to keep everyone safe. I am worried about the people, so I need cultivators who are willing to help guard the city day and night."

His words were straightforward, but the concern in his voice was obvious.

The recent attacks had already caused panic throughout the city. With the culprit still hiding somewhere in Xuanshuang City, the ordinary guards alone were clearly not enough to guarantee everyone’s safety.

"For the second commission, I need some people to guard my lover. As you all have heard, she was the last person to be attacked. I fear for her safety. She is still staying at her family home, and there is a high chance that the culprit may return for her."

This time, Xu Yunzhi’s expression became noticeably heavier. clearly riddled with even more worry.

His lover had already survived one attack, but that did not mean she was safe. If the culprit was truly targeting people connected to the strange pattern behind these incidents, there was a possibility that she could be attacked again.

"Lastly, for the third commission, I need people to help us investigate and find the culprit."

At these words, the atmosphere in the hall became slightly more serious.

"We have already compiled the information and clues we have gathered, as well as the records of all the victims. For this commission, everyone is free to form their own teams and investigate independently. We will not interfere with how you choose to proceed."

Xu Yunzhi paused for a moment before adding,

"Of course, everyone who participates will be greatly rewarded, especially those who can identify the real culprit."

Once he finished explaining the three commissions, three people stepped forward from the side of the hall. They appeared to be the ones responsible for registering the cultivators and assigning them to their chosen tasks.

Soon, the cultivators began making their choices.

Quite a number of people immediately chose the first and second commissions.

Sui Sui wasn’t surprised by this.

Compared to investigating a culprit whose identity and whereabouts were completely unknown, guarding the city or protecting a specific person was obviously much easier. At the very least, they would not have to spend their days digging through clues and chasing after a murderer who could be hiding anywhere in the city.

Of course, Sui Sui and Yizhou chose the third commission.

After all, they weren’t only here to solve the case. They were also secretly searching for the Soul Bell. If they chose either of the first two commissions, they would have to spend most of their time guarding the city or protecting the City Lord’s lover, leaving them with little opportunity to investigate the clues they actually cared about.

After registering for the third commission, they were each handed a thick stack of papers.

Sui Sui flipped through them briefly. They contained information about the victims, the circumstances surrounding each attack, as well as the clues that the City Lord’s Mansion had managed to gather over the past few days.

It seemed that the City Lord’s Mansion had already done quite a lot of investigation on their own.

Sui Sui continued looking around the hall and soon noticed something.

Aside from them, there were only three other groups that had chosen the third commission.

The first was a group of female disciples from the Vermillion Moon Palace, led by Luo Qingya.

The second was the Qingyun Sect, the largest sect in the northern region.

And the last was the Wenjian Sect.

With so few groups willing to take on the investigation, it wasn’t difficult to notice who had chosen the same commission.

It seemed Luo Qingya had noticed the same thing as well.

Her gaze soon landed on Sui Sui and Yizhou. A faint smile appeared on her lips before she exchanged a few words with the disciples beside her and began walking toward them.

"We meet again, fellow cultivators. It seems we really are a little fated to meet," Luo Qingya said with a smile as she approached, followed by the other disciples of the Vermillion Moon Palace.

Her gaze briefly passed over the stack of papers in their hands before she continued.

"If the two of you don’t mind, I would like to invite you to join our team."

When Sui Sui heard this, his eyes immediately lit up.

This was good!

Wasn’t this exactly the kind of opportunity he had been waiting for?

If Luo Qingya and the other female disciples joined them, wouldn’t that give the protagonist and the future members of his harem more chances to interact?

Perhaps this was how the original plot was supposed to begin!

Sui Sui was just about to agree when he suddenly felt a sharp pinch on his waist.

His body stiffened.

He slowly turned his head.

Yizhou was looking straight ahead, his expression as calm as ever. Only the hand hidden beneath his sleeve had reached over and pinched his waist.

Before Sui Sui could even figure out what was going on, Yizhou had already spoken.

"Thank you for the offer, but we prefer to investigate on our own."

His tone was polite, and there was even a faint smile on his face, however, the firmness in his words left absolutely no room for negotiation.

Sui Sui’s mouth twitched.

Senior Brother, what are you doing?!

Luo Qingya was obviously a little disappointed by the rejection, but she quickly composed herself and was about to say something when a gentle male voice suddenly came from behind them.

"If Fellow Cultivator is unwilling to accept Miss Qingya’s invitation, then perhaps Miss Qingya and the other fellow cultivators of the Vermillion Moon Palace can join our group instead."

The man’s voice carried a warm, almost friendly smile.

"After all, we are all disciples of major sects. Working together would naturally make the investigation much more efficient."

Sui Sui turned around and carefully looked at the owner of the voice.

The man was dressed in the robes of the Wenjian Sect and appeared to be around Yizhou’s age. In terms of appearance, he was only average, but there was an approachable smile on his face that made him seem easy to get along with.

His words were polite, and there was nothing obviously wrong with what he had said.

Yet for some reason, Sui Sui couldn’t shake off the feeling that there was something deliberate behind them.

Why did it feel like this person was specifically singling them out?

At first, Sui Sui didn’t recognize him.

However, the moment Luo Qingya saw the man, her eyes showed a hint of recognition and she showed a distand polite smiled.

"Oh, it’s Cultivator Lin Fan from the Wenjian Sect. I didn’t notice that you were also participating in the commission. Qingya greets you"

Hearing the name Lin Fan, Sui Sui didn’t react for a brief moment.

Then, as if the name had suddenly struck something deep inside his mind, his expression changed.

Lin Fan.

Wasn’t this the very person who had betrayed Yizhou the worst? His childhood friend—the person who had stolen Yizhou’s identity in his first life.