40: Chapter 40 Traces of the Blood Lotus Cult

"But that look in his eyes—it was exactly the same."

You lifted your teacup and took a sip, suppressing that flicker of emotion that shouldn't be there.

Chief Constable Liu Jiangyue.

In your past life, you rejected him for three years. The last time he came to find you, you watched his back disappear around the street corner, saying nothing. Later, he married the Young Miss of the Zhang family, became a county magistrate, and you saw him one last time on your way back to exact your revenge.

During that meeting, there were already strands of white in his sideburns.

You set down your teacup.

In this life, he truly does not recognize you.

And you have no intention of letting him recognize you.

The banquet ended.

Senior Brother Gu Changfeng walked by your side, silent for a long time, before suddenly saying: "That Chief Constable Liu Jiangyue, the way he looks at you isn't right."

"You're overthinking it."

"I am not overthinking it." Senior Brother Gu Changfeng paused his steps, his voice very soft, "Because that is also how I look at you."

You didn't respond, continuing your pace as you walked into the guest room and closed the door.

Over the next few days, you used the county government office as a base, splitting up to investigate traces of the Blood Lotus Cult.

Red Viper was very cautious. Once a hideout was discovered, he would immediately relocate, even scattering his followers into hiding. He was like an earthworm burrowing into the mud—you couldn't easily pin down his tail.

You visited three villages and interrogated over a dozen suspicious individuals, yet the clues remained fragmented.

Senior Brother Gu Changfeng grew somewhat restless, and Chen Yue and Fang Qingyun also showed signs of fatigue.

Chief Constable Liu Jiangyue, however, was different. Every day before dawn, he would take his men out to investigate, only returning at dusk covered in mud and sweat. He would meticulously compile the information he gathered into a booklet and deliver it to your hands.

He wasn't one to curry favor, but he was thorough in his work.

On the evening of the fifth day, as you were wiping your sword in the guest room, hurried footsteps sounded from outside the door.

"Lord Lin!" Chief Constable Liu Jiangyue's voice came from outside the door, his tone suppressed with excitement, "We found him!"

You set down your sword and opened the door.

Chief Constable Liu Jiangyue stood at the doorway, sweat still on his forehead, clutching a hand-drawn map.

"Forty miles north of the city, there is a place called Withered Well Village." He spread out the map, his finger pointing to a mark, "There was a plague three years ago; the entire village died out, and it has been abandoned since. My men were patrolling the nearby mountains today and noticed smoke rising from the village."

You took the map and glanced at it.

"Are you sure?"

"I am sure." Chief Constable Liu Jiangyue nodded, "I sent two men to sneak over and take a look. They counted about twenty or thirty people, all wearing gray robes, with red lotus markings painted on the courtyard walls."

The symbol of the Blood Lotus Cult.

You folded the map and turned to walk towards Senior Brother Gu Changfeng's room.

"Let's go, gather everyone."

— —

Half an hour later, the five of you, along with Chief Constable Liu Jiangyue and twelve constables, set off through the night.

Withered Well Village was nestled in a crevice between low hills, surrounded by mountains on all sides, with only one dirt road leading in and out. It was indeed a good place to hide people.

At the hour of the Rat, the group arrived outside the village.

The moonlight was thin, and the village in the distance was pitch black, with no lights to be seen and no sounds to be heard.

"It's too quiet." Chen Yue crouched behind a bush, frowning.

You closed your eyes and released your perception.

The sensory range of a Grandmaster Late Stage can cover a radius of a hundred zhang. You clearly "heard" the breathing in the village—twenty-six people, distributed across three houses. Among them, twenty-two had weak Auras, being ordinary people or those who had just entered the path of martial arts.

There were also four in the Innate Realm.

And—

In the room deepest within the village, there was a steady and profound Aura, like a pool of deep water.

Grandmaster Middle Stage.

"The target is in the innermost room." You opened your eyes and lowered your voice, "The four Innate experts are distributed at the village entrance, the center of the village, and on both sides."

Senior Brother Gu Changfeng nodded: "According to the original plan, Junior Sister Lin and I will go straight for Red Viper, Chen Yue and Fang Qingyun will clear out the peripheral Innate experts, and Privy Councilor Zhao Yuanlang will lead the constables to seal off the exits—"

"Wait." You suddenly raised your hand.

Everyone held their breath.

You tilted your head to listen for two breaths.

"He knows we are here."

The moment the words left your lips, a sharp whistle pierced the night sky from within the village.

Immediately following, torchlight flared up from all three houses simultaneously. Gray-robed figures swarmed out, brandishing swords and blades, charging towards the direction of the village entrance.

"Move!" Senior Brother Gu Changfeng drew his sword.

You did not charge into the village with him. Your gaze was locked onto the direction of the innermost room—Red Viper's Aura was moving rapidly, not towards your side, but towards the hillside behind the village.

He was trying to escape.

You tapped your toes, your figure like smoke, skimming past the chaotic crowd and dashing straight for the back of the village.

Behind you, Chen Yue and Fang Qingyun each intercepted two Innate believers. Senior Brother Gu Changfeng slashed open a wall of rushing gray-robed figures with his sword, signaling Privy Councilor Zhao Yuanlang to lead the constables to tighten the encirclement.

Chief Constable Liu Jiangyue led the constables in blocking the village entrance, systematically intercepting the fleeing believers.

You ignored all of this; in your eyes, there was only Red Viper.

At the back of the village, a gaunt, gray-robed old man was vaulting over a low wall. His footwork was strange, carrying a fishy, sweet scent of blood.

You drew your sword.

The sound of the sword ringing cut a cold note through the night wind.

Red Viper whipped his head around, and the moment he saw you, his expression changed.

It was not because he recognized you, but because he felt the Aura on you.

Grandmaster Late Stage.

"Cangyun Sect?" His hoarse voice carried a trace of terror, "Just for one person like me, the Cangyun Sect sent a Grandmaster Late Stage?"

You did not answer, your pace unrelenting, as you executed the third Move of the Frost Moon Sword Technique—'Shattered Frost'.

Now, your Frost Moon Sword Technique had incorporated many profound sword styles, no longer having fixed Moves; every strike and stance was changed as you pleased.

The sword light surged, bursting forth like shattered ice.

Red Viper struck out with both palms, the palm wind carrying a layer of dark red blood mist, meeting the sword light. The two forces collided in the air, the shockwave cracking the low wall.

The blood mist was mostly torn apart by your Sword Qi, but Red Viper used the recoil force to retreat three steps, his feet gouging two deep furrows into the ground as he barely steadied himself.

"You cannot block a second strike." You said.

Red Viper's expression turned ferocious. He bit his tongue, spraying a mouthful of essence blood onto his palms, and his entire Aura suddenly climbed—this was the Blood Burning Technique unique to evil arts, which came at the cost of one's Lifespan to unleash power far exceeding one's own cultivation for a short time.

"I may not be able to kill you, but I have enough strength to drag someone down with me!"

He did not charge at you.

He turned and shot towards the village entrance, targeting the group of constables who were intercepting the believers.

Chief Constable Liu Jiangyue bore the brunt of it.

Red Viper struck out with a palm, the blood-red palm wind whistling through the chaotic crowd, heading straight for Chief Constable Liu Jiangyue's face.

Chief Constable Liu Jiangyue, at the Middle Stage of the Innate Realm, instantly felt that destructive power. His body instinctively wanted to dodge, but his legs felt as if they were filled with lead—it was not fear, but the gap in ability. The pressure of a Grandmaster level was something a Middle Stage Innate expert simply could not react to.

He saw that blood-red palm getting closer and closer, so close that he could see the blood vessels on the palm print.

It was over.

Just as this thought arose—

A figure cut in from the side, blocking in front of him.