Chapter 203 - 117: Consolidating Mountain Search Authority, the First Step into Jiangyin Prefecture, Killing with a Borrowed Knife to Eliminate Future Troubles

Chapter 203: Chapter 117: Consolidating Mountain Search Authority, the First Step into Jiangyin Prefecture, Killing with a Borrowed Knife to Eliminate Future Troubles

Anning County. Inner Street.

"Is... is it... over?"

Lu Chengfeng and his men arrived just as the sky began to pale, their faces etched with worry and exhaustion.

They rubbed their eyes, and what they saw left them utterly speechless.

Meanwhile, a clamor of voices reached their ears:

"The Demons... were they brought by that venerable deity?"

The townsfolk, who had been deceived by the Central Yellow Cultists, had just survived a great calamity. They watched with their own eyes as Ji Xiu set things right—even the Divine Being that claimed to have come to "save them from their suffering"...

...was hoisted up with the Dragon Whale’s spine and devoured whole in mid-air!

The sight of such a world-shattering spectacle instantly made their legs tremble with fear.

They saw Duan Chenzhou give chase, saber in hand, hunting down the Great General Altar Master, Wei Changjiao.

When they saw the County Soldiers and the fierce-looking Martial Artists from the Martial Arts Halls approaching with weapons drawn, they fell into a panicked retreat. The mob scattered, no longer daring to follow the Central Yellow Believers and their rebellion.

After the fact, as reason returned, they began to understand.

Why had the Great Xuan Empire explicitly forbidden Divine Beings from spreading their teachings and manifesting as saints?

The Great Xuan’s rule, entrenched for hundreds of years, was built on a deep understanding of human nature. Its "rules" had permeated every corner of the land, even the most remote rural counties.

Previously, in the face of a life-or-death crisis, their judgment had been clouded, and they were easily incited.

Now that they had recovered their senses, they looked toward Ji Xiu, their expressions shaken.

"He’s right, he’s right... Master Ji was right! Those Central Yellow Believers... those Remnants... they can stir up trouble, attack the County Yamen, kill Officials, and rebel, and then just leave. But us? We’ll be the ones who lose our heads afterward!"

"If the Garrison Commander in Jiangyin Prefecture hears about this and sends troops to our county, every last one of us will lose our heads!"

"’Saving us from suffering, killing Demons, rebelling’... In the end, it was all for their own selfish desires! They just used us as cannon fodder. When were they ever going to give us common folk a bite to eat!"

Some who came to their senses early muttered to themselves, slapping their thighs in frustration.

The Central Yellow Sect Members of the Spirit Summoning and Saint Manifestation Grand General Altar had used the chaos to recruit displaced commoners, gaining them followers.

But such devotion was unstable. It came quickly, and it could disappear just as fast.

This was especially true given the immense reputation Ji Xiu had built in Anning County over the past few months.

He had risen from a mere Groom to a man of far-reaching fame. He established the Mountain Living enterprise, forgave debts with a smile, and wiped the slate clean of the Three Great Gangs’ dirty business.

He paid generous wages for hunting beasts and gathering herbs. As long as one was willing to work, there was hope for the future. Those who did well even had the chance to be taught martial arts and be promoted to Guest status...

He had even stood up for the laborers at the docks, getting into a widely publicized spat with a noble from the Prefecture City!

With one deed stacked upon another, a single word from his lips now carried more weight in the eyes of these common county folk than a command from the County Magistrate or the great Instructors!

His few words.

And the torrent of refugees, which had been on the verge of spiraling out of control and would have required violence and weapons to suppress, was instantly pacified. Now, they waited uneas-ily for the aftermath.

"Yes, it’s over."

"But with Demons having run rampant through the county, it’s inevitable that some remain."

"Your Excellency, the County Magistrate, all the Instructors, and the three leaders of the Wind and Cloud Association, I must ask for your help in this matter. Please dispatch your men and ensure every last one is wiped out!"

His gaze drifted to where Duan Chenzhou had disappeared, a lone figure with a saber, chasing the wounded and frantically fleeing Central Yellow Altar Master, Wei Changjiao.

Seeing Lu Chengfeng arrive with a large group of blood-soaked Martial Artists, Ji Xiu immediately turned and spoke, his gaze then shifting to Zhao Jiu.

"Brother Zhao."

"These county folk are short-sighted and don’t know any better. They’re all just trying to make a living in the mud. It’s inevitable they would take a misstep after being deceived by the Demon Calamity orchestrated by the Central Yellow Sect."

"Now, with hundreds, even thousands, of Demons having entered the county, even though the Calamity itself has been stopped, the aftershocks will be hard to quell. Among the hundred thousand households in Anning County, there will inevitably be many casualties."

"If we impose harsh punishments at a time like this, it will surely cause a panic. We don’t know how many people will be displaced, and Anning as a county could become desolate."

"You come from the Prefecture City Grand Lineage, so you have a broader perspective. You must understand the logic here. I ask you to be lenient."

He looked at the crowd of county residents—some coerced, some incited by the Central Yellow Sect—who now hung their heads as they listened to Ji Xiu.

Zhao Jiu was silent for a moment, then let out a long sigh.

"A riot in the streets, Demons swarming the county like a plague of locusts... and all this during the New Year, in the dead of winter. I doubt many houses are left with their roofs intact."

"Anning County only has so many people. If I go and hold every one of these followers accountable, I’ll turn Anning into a ghost town, with nine out of every ten homes empty."

"When the higher-ups come down, whether for taxes or for an inquiry, I won’t be able to shoulder that responsibility, even with my background in the ’Thirty-Six Professions’."

"No matter how small, a county is still under the rule of the Great Xuan. It’s just... after this incident..."

Zhao Jiu plopped down, the plates of his armor scraping against the gravel. His eyes filled with deep worry.

"Most of the livelihoods, shops, and businesses in Anning County have been destroyed. And with so many people dead, the Jiangyin Prefect and the other Prefecture Officials are bound to launch an inquiry."

"I’m in deep trouble this time!"

"But the Demons are one thing. These ’Central Yellow’ Remnants... where the hell did they pop out from?"

"I gave repeated orders in this county to strictly investigate and root out any ’Central Yellow Remnants.’ Yet the moment trouble starts, they swarm out of the woodwork, and I was completely oblivious!"

Zhao Jiu was utterly furious about this.

As the saying goes: how can you let a tiger sleep soundly beside your own bed?

What was the difference between that and having a sword held to his neck!?

Arriving with the three leaders of the Wind and Cloud Association were Old Huang from the Medicine House and the Great Pill Master, Xu Li, from the Medicine Shop.