43: Chapter 43 The Police Arrive

The Second-Turn Clam Spirit pointed a tentacle at the cluster of reefs not far away.

"Build it with coral. Make it sturdy and good-looking, and inlay pearls on the temple eaves to make it brighter."

The Little Clam Spirits listened blankly, and another Clam Spirit raised its tongue.

"What about offering incense? There is no fire in the sea..."

"Blow bubbles."

The Second-Turn Clam Spirit said.

"Stuff the incense into the bubbles. That is how you can light it and make an incense offering."

It paused, and its voice became heavier.

"Anyone who tries to slack off, fails to build the temple properly, or fails to make proper incense offerings—"

"—won't get a share of this dragon meat."

The Little Clam Spirits' tongues swung in unison.

Build a temple, offer incense, in exchange for dragon meat.

They could figure this math out.

Because the temptation of this Little Li Dragon's meat was simply too huge for them~

It was the broad and smooth road leading them to their second turn!

"We will build it right now!"

One Little Clam Spirit shouted first.

Following closely, the second, the third, and more than forty Little Clam Spirits responded in unison, the sound of their shell gaps opening and closing merging into one.

The Second-Turn Clam Spirit nodded with satisfaction.

It secretly raised its head. Although it could not see Lord Qinling's figure, it knew that Lord Qinling must be paying attention here.

Since Lord Qinling had not issued any divine decree, it must mean he agreed.

The Second-Turn Clam Spirit immediately waved its tongue and said,

"Get to work!"

More than forty First-Turn Clam Spirits thus began building the temple.

...

Just as the Clam Spirits were building the temple on the shallow sea floor, the dust on the official road was kicked high by horse hooves.

A group of four riders came from the direction of the county town, heading all the way north along the coastline.

The leader of these four riders was a man approaching forty named Constable Meng Yu.

He was the head constable of the county yamen's constable bureau. His internal Qi and Blood surged differently from ordinary people, making him a First-Turn Late-Stage Martial Artist in Qi and Blood Martial Arts.

The four behind him were all constables under his command: two First-Turn Early-Stage Martial Artists and one First-Turn Mid-Stage Martial Artist.

This group of constables made quite a significant presence in Guanhai County.

Naturally, the reason these four martial artists were patrolling out was because the villages along the East China Sea coast had not been peaceful recently.

Urgent reports from various coastal villages flew into the county yamen like snowflakes.

Some said monsters crawled out of the sea, some said fishing boats never returned once they went out to sea, and others said entire villages were fleeing from famine.

The Chief Secretary of the county finally could not sit still any longer and sent them down to take a look.

"Boss."

A young constable behind him spurred his horse forward and pointed ahead.

"Qin Family Village is almost here."

Constable Meng Yu narrowed his eyes. As a martial artist, his vision, stimulated by his Qi and Blood, surpassed that of ordinary people.

When the horse hooves stepped onto the dirt road at the entrance of the village, Constable Meng Yu suddenly pulled on the reins.

Several children ran out from under the Old Locust Tree at the village entrance, chasing a patterned leather ball, pushing and shoving each other while laughing heartily.

A boy wearing a bellyband ran too fast and took a tumble. His round belly rolled on the ground a few times before he climbed back up.

Looking at the fat spilling over the edges of the bellyband, Constable Meng Yu froze in place.

Ever since he started patrolling the coastal villages, this was the first time he had seen such a child.

Constable Meng Yu's constables behind him also froze.

Along the way, the children they had seen were either skinny to the bone or had dull eyes.

A physique that could roll on the ground like that without injury was truly rare.

Constable Meng Yu flipped off his horse and walked inward leading it.

Passing by the fish-drying ground, he stopped.

Rows of dried fish were hung on bamboo racks, both fat and thin, gleaming with an oily light under the sunlight.

Next to them were piled several baskets of freshly dried fish that had not been put away yet, and the air was filled with a salty, fishy smell.

"So many fish!"

A constable behind him was full of surprise in his voice.

Constable Meng Yu did not reply; he continued walking inward.

The dock was right ahead.

A fishing boat was moored there, with newly repaired wooden boards on its gunwales—some darker in color, some lighter, but all neatly arranged.

The mooring ropes were tied tightly, the fishing nets were hung on the racks, and the meshes were completely clean.

A constable squatted by the edge of the dock, looked for a long time, stood up, and wore a complicated expression on his face.

"Boss, this boat is also completely fine."

Constable Meng Yu nodded, looking at the shimmering sea under the sunlight.

It was the same sea, so why was Qin Family Village so special, without any traces of being disturbed?

The four constables leading their horses into the village had naturally long attracted the attention of the Qin Family Village villagers.

The villagers quickly gathered around.

In less than the time it took to burn half a stick of incense, dozens of people had gathered near the fish-drying ground.

Someone recognized the lead constable.

"Head Constable Meng!"

Village Chief Qin Zongliang of Qin Family Village squeezed out from the crowd leaning on a walking stick, the wrinkles on his face blooming into smiles.

"Oh, Head Constable Meng, I haven't seen you in several years!"

"The last time I saw you, it must have been when you patrolled the villages to test the children's innate blood and Qi."

Constable Meng Yu handed the reins to the constable behind him, stepped forward, and cupped his fists in salute.

"Village Chief Qin, is your health still holding up?"

Village Chief Qin Zongliang patted his legs and said,

"Sturdy, sturdy! Thanks to the blessing of Lord Qinling, this old bone of mine can still hold out for a few more years."

Constable Meng Yu's brow twitched. He cleared his throat and said,

"Village Chief Qin, the Chief Secretary heard that demon troubles have broken out frequently in various coastal villages recently, so he specially dispatched us to inspect."

"Coming all this way, we indeed saw that most villages suffered from monster disturbances, but your Qin Family Village..."

Constable Meng Yu's voice carried a hint of surprise.

"Qin Family Village is doing extremely well instead, without any traces of being disturbed by monsters. Food is plentiful, and the atmosphere is peaceful."

"Did your Qin Family Village not encounter any monsters?"

Constable Meng Yu asked Village Chief Qin Zongliang.

"Of course we encountered them."

Village Chief Qin Zongliang said, leaning on his walking stick.

"You encountered them? Then why is Qin Family Village completely fine?"

Constable Meng Yu was slightly stunned.

"Naturally because we have Lord Qinling's protection."

Village Chief Qin Zongliang said it as a matter of course.

Confusion appeared in Constable Meng Yu's eyes. This was the second time he had heard the name "Lord Qinling".

"Village Chief Qin."

He weighed his words and continued to ask,

"Who is this Lord Qinling you speak of?"

Village Chief Qin Zongliang's gaze crossed over him and fell on the eaves of the small temple in the center of the village.

"Lord Qinling is the deity worshipped in our village. The temple is right in the center of the village. If Head Constable Meng has time, you can go offer a stick of incense."

Constable Meng Yu's brow furrowed.

He was a martial artist, a First-Turn Late-Stage Martial Artist, having stepped up rank by rank from a constable to a head constable.

He had seen demons and killed demons.

He had flipped through countless records about "divine miracles" in the county yamen's archives, all of which were ultimately proven to be the work of evil spirits and monsters.

Deities?

He never believed in them.

He turned his head to glance at the three constables behind him.

Those three constables were also exchanging glances with each other.

The three of them had reactions similar to his.

Some curled their lips, some raised their eyebrows, and a younger one simply let out a scoff.

Constable Meng Yu turned back to look at Village Chief Qin Zongliang, his voice growing a bit colder.

"Village Chief Qin, nowadays, there are no lack of things playing god and playing ghosts."

"It's a good thing your village is safe and sound, but if you insist on saying it's protected by some deity..."

Constable Meng Yu did not continue, but the meaning was already very clear.

He, the head constable of the Guanhai County yamen, definitely did not believe in any talk of deities!