55: Enter Canglan County

“Improving Soul Power can actually increase affinity with Heaven and Earth?”

He felt his affinity with Heaven and Earth changing. He circulated Star Soul lead, connecting with the stars and resonating with them, increasing the success rate to one-tenth.

Chu Jiang was somewhat surprised. If he could enhance his affinity with Heaven and Earth through Cultivating Soul Power, it would be a huge advantage for him.

After all, only by maintaining a good relationship with Heaven and Earth could one better absorb Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, and the efficiency of Cultivating martial arts would also increase.

Chu Jiang spent some time adapting to the changes brought about by the sudden surge in his Soul Power.

Three days later.

At the gate of Yunzhou Demon Suppression Division.

Two majestic mounts stood there, with a single horn on their heads and a snow-azure body, robust and strong. These were the Unicorn Wind Steeds of the Demon Suppression Division.

They could travel three thousand li by day and two thousand li by night, and they did not sink when stepping on water.

Only when completing important missions would the Demon Suppression Division provide such high-grade treasure steeds.

After a while.

An heroic woman walked out, dressed in a kirin uniform, with a Demon Suppression Blade at her waist, eyes like stars, and a neat short haircut fluttering in the wind.

“Vajra Realm Late Stage!”

Chu Jiang looked at Fu Yunxuan, sighing inwardly.

This Heavenly Origin Pool was indeed miraculous. After only three days, Fu Yunxuan had actually broken through a minor Realm, and was not far from Vajra Peak.

“Sir, let’s go!”

Fu Yunxuan suddenly pushed off the ground, her body lightly flipped, and she steadily mounted the Unicorn Wind Steed.

A brilliant smile bloomed on her face, her laughter clear and pleasant, like the melodious sound of silver bells.

Excitement and anticipation flickered in her eyes.

Chu Jiang nodded, slowly riding the Unicorn Wind Steed away from the Demon Suppression Division.

Seeing this, Fu Yunxuan quickly urged her horse to follow, riding side-by-side with Chu Jiang.

Direction – Canglan County.

...

Canglan County is rich in resources and has extensive waterways, traversed by three large rivers and dozens of medium-sized rivers, all navigable by large ships.

The largest force in Canglan County is the Cao Gang, which controls almost sixty percent of the entire county's waterways.

Most other forces could only grovel at the feet of the Cao Gang, just to make a living.

Chu Jiang and his companion galloped for a day and a half, finally arriving at the Lingxi waterway near the Canglong River, where a desolate dock appeared before their eyes.

Canglan County indeed lived up to its name as a 'water county'; rivers were everywhere. If they hadn't been riding Unicorn Wind Steeds, which didn't sink when stepping on water, they might not have arrived so quickly.

Chu Jiang's gaze sharply scanned the dock, paying attention to every movement of each person.

They did not hide their identities.

The kirin uniform and Unicorn Wind Steed all highlighted their status as special envoys sent by the imperial court to investigate the water monster disturbances in the Canglong River.

Chu Jiang and his group came to Canglan County to quell the unrest and inform all forces of their arrival. Hiding their identities now would be meaningless.

“It’s the high officials sent by the imperial court to rescue us! Quickly, follow me and kowtow to the sirs.”

An old man who was fishing suddenly knelt down with a 'thud', crying profusely with tears of gratitude, seemingly having encountered something terrible.

Immediately, a large number of people on the dock knelt down.

As the saying goes, when high officials arrive, no matter what they are here for, kneeling is always the right thing to do.

If you kneel, you're fine.

If you don't kneel, well then.

You've most likely found a path to death.

“Rise!”

Chu Jiang said softly.

To the surprise of the kneeling fishermen and dock workers, their bodies uncontrollably stood up; they couldn't even kneel if they wanted to.

This was a truly powerful expert, one they could never have seen in their entire lives.

“Our Canglan County is saved!”

The merchants and fishermen were overjoyed. The stronger the people sent by the imperial court, the more it showed how much they valued the matter, and their problems would also be resolved.

“Speak, what happened.” Chu Jiang said decisively, giving people a great sense of stability.

The news received a few days ago was that only the Canglong River had water monsters causing trouble, halting cargo transport and incurring huge economic losses daily.

But this was the Lingxi River basin, which did not intersect with the Canglong River.

The usually bustling dock was also so desolate at this moment, which was clearly abnormal.

Immediately, there was a clamor, everyone speaking at once, eager to complain to Chu Jiang.

“Silence! Send one representative forward to speak with my Sir. If you continue to be so noisy, my Sir may go to another place!” Fu Yunxuan said expressionlessly, her tone cold, and her gaze indifferent as she looked at the crowd.

The crowd was instantly silenced, not daring to speak, fearing that they might displease the special envoy and that if he truly left, no one would solve their problems.

Seeing that no one spoke for a long time, the old fishing man who had spoken first stepped forward.

“Sir, let this old man represent them and speak to you. The problems everyone has encountered are basically the same,” the old fishing man said.

“Tell me in detail, omit nothing,” Chu Jiang said calmly.

“Sir, the Lingxi River is one of the dozens of medium-sized rivers in Canglan County, and daily cargo transport is busy. But since two days ago, rumors spread that there are water monsters in the Lingxi River that eat people. It is said that they have already attacked dozens of cargo ships, including some small fishing boats. My eldest son went out fishing and never returned... His life or death is still unknown.”

As the old fishing man spoke, his cloudy eyes instantly welled up with tears, and his body trembled. His eldest son had just married.

He hadn't even left an heir before being attacked by the damned water monster...

“Oh, Sir, my three sons, the second and third sons joined the Cao Gang and were killed in a Gang fight. The eldest son stayed at home, intending to carry on the family line... I never thought...”

This accident came too suddenly.

It shattered the dreams of this family.

He knew his eldest son was dead, but he had never been able to accept it.

He hadn't even seen the body yet.

The old fishing man composed himself and continued:

“Now, everyone is afraid of water monster attacks and dares not enter the river. Even approaching the shore is done cautiously, fearing being affected by the water monster.”

“Incoming merchant ships have also successively halted, and many dock workers who rely on loading and unloading goods have lost their source of income. It's a chain reaction; the disaster of the water monster has a widespread impact.”

“We beg Sir to eliminate the water monster and restore peace to our Canglan County!”

The old fishing man wept as he kowtowed; the water monster had destroyed their family's last hope.

And this was just one of the dozens of people kneeling at Chu Jiang's feet.

Each of them, perhaps, had experienced such a tragedy, some even worse than the old fishing man.

Just one small dock on one of the dozens of medium-sized rivers in Canglan County had affected the livelihoods and lives and property of dozens of people.

To see one spot is to know the whole leopard.

What kind of scene must the source of the water monster, the Canglong River, be? The disaster would only be more severe.

The affected population would probably be tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands.