92: Chapter 92 Prefect of Zhenhai

Seeing this scene, Qin Ling's mind stirred.

In both Qin Family Village and Zhou Family Village, a golden light lit up between the brows of the two statues of Lord Qinling.

Like a lamp in the dark red sky, it illuminated the entire temple with a warm, gentle glow.

The golden light from the brows of the two statues drew the attention of the terrified villagers.

The villagers turned their gazes one after another, seeing the warm golden light shining from the brow of the statue, which looked down with lowered eyes.

Suddenly, their breathing steadied, their hands stopped shaking, and the fear on their faces slowly faded away.

A little girl poked her head out from her mother's embrace, staring at the speck of golden light with her mouth agape and her eyes shining brightly.

Qin Yin sheathed her long saber, leaned against the frame of the temple door, and let out a long breath.

"It's fine. No matter the situation, we have the protection of Lord Qinling!"

Qin Mo raised his spear high and shouted to the villagers in the courtyard.

Hearing Qin Mo's words, the other villagers of Qin Family Village also snapped out of it.

"That's right, we have Lord Qinling's protection!"

"With Lord Qinling here, we will be safe."

"Thank you for your protection, Lord Qinling!"

A similar scene unfolded in the temple of Zhou Family Village.

The villagers of Zhou Family Village all turned to look at the glowing statue of Lord Qinling.

Under the dark red sky, this golden light soothed the villagers' souls.

Led by Zhou Hu and Zhou Ping, they bowed to the statue of Lord Qinling.

Unlike before, Qin Ling did not immediately stop the statue from glowing this time.

Instead, he allowed the statue to keep shining.

As long as they could see this golden light, the villagers would know that Lord Qinling was with them.

...

Zhenhai Prefecture, back hall.

The doors and windows were tightly shut, and no candles were lit.

In the darkness, only a thick, inescapable stench of blood seeped through the cracks of the doors and windows, permeating the air above the entire estate.

Prefect Yin Wuji did not like light; he said it was piercing to the eyes and made him uncomfortable.

Thus, the servants in the estate did not dare to light any lamps.

At this moment, Prefect Yin Wuji of Zhenhai Prefecture sat on a grand armchair.

He had a colossal build, broad shoulders, and a thick waist. Sitting there like an iron tower, he completely filled the red sandalwood armchair.

His face was hidden in the darkness, making his features indistinguishable.

Only his eyes shone, dark red like two dying embers of charcoal.

His mouth was moving, chewing on something.

On the table before him lay a naked, tattooed woman.

The woman's face was turned toward the ceiling, her eyes wide open, but her pupils had already dilated and turned a hazy gray.

Her mouth was slightly agape, her lips pale and devoid of any color.

There was a hole in her neck, from which blood welled out, trickling down her neck and over her chest.

It flowed over a bared-claw azure dragon tattoo, staining the blue dragon patterns a dark red.

Prefect Yin Wuji pulled his mouth away from the hole and licked his lips, the tip of his tongue stained red.

He looked down at the corpse, which was still twitching slightly, a hint of satisfaction flashing in his dark red eyes.

He reached out, his massive, fan-like hand grabbing the corpse's arm, and gave it a gentle twist.

With a sharp crack, the bone broke. The arm bent at an impossible angle, and stark white bone fragments pierced through the flesh.

He did not eat it, but merely pressed his mouth to it, sucking the steaming blood that welled up from the fracture.

Beside the table lay several other corpses.

Each of these corpses had a hole in their neck. Their blood had been sucked dry, leaving their shriveled skin clinging tightly to their bones.

Prefect Yin Wuji finally raised his head from the table and pushed the last corpse aside.

The corpse rolled off the table and hit the floor with a dull thud.

He leaned back against the armchair and exhaled a long breath. The breath he exhaled was red, carrying a pungent stench of blood.

Just then, hurried footsteps echoed from outside the door.

Prefect Yin Wuji's fingers tapped gently on the armrest, as if savoring the aftertaste.

Just then, hurried footsteps echoed from outside the door.

Prefect Yin Wuji's fingers stopped, but he did not open his eyes.

"What is it?"

Yin Wuji asked indifferently.

A trembling voice responded from outside the door.

"Your Honor, the life tablet of the Guanhai County Magistrate has shattered."

Prefect Yin Wuji's eyes snapped open.

Dark red light surged from his pupils, flashing briefly in the darkness before fading away.

His eyebrows twitched slightly, his face filled with astonishment.

Prefect Yin Wuji looked down at the slightly twitching corpse on the table, pulled his mouth away from the broken arm, and wiped the corner of his mouth with his sleeve.

Then, he stood straight up from the armchair.

His colossal figure rose from the darkness like a mountain rising from the earth, bringing with it an overwhelming sense of pressure.

Prefect Yin Wuji stepped over the jumbled corpses on the floor, his boots making squelching sounds as he trod on the wet blood.

He pushed open the door, and sunlight flooded in, spilling over him.

He wore the official robes of a Daqian Dynasty Prefect—crimson in color, with a mandarin square embroidered with a skylark, a black gauze cap on his head, and a jade belt tied around his waist.

The official robes clung tightly to his body, looking as if they might burst open at any moment.

His face was pale, as white as paper, with rugged features, thick eyebrows, large eyes, and a high-bridged nose.

The corners of his mouth turned down slightly, giving him an air of natural authority.

Kneeling outside the door was a bailiff dressed in gray, trembling all over as he held a shattered jade tablet in both hands.

Prefect Yin Wuji of Zhenhai reached out and took the jade tablet.

He flipped the jade tablet over and saw that the four characters for "Guanhai County Magistrate" engraved on it had split in two, with cracks spreading outward from the center.

He stared at it for a long time, a dark red light flashing in his pupils before fading once more.

The residual aura on the jade tablet was very faint, almost imperceptible; it was Huang Zu's demonic energy.

He was dead, and had been dead for some days now, so his aura had mostly dissipated.

The bailiff knelt on the ground, not daring to raise his head.

Prefect Yin Wuji stared down at the characters for "Guanhai County Magistrate" split in half.

His brow furrowed deeply, unable to fathom how Huang Zu could have died.

He knew that Huang Zu had already promoted to a Fourth-Turn Great Demon.

In a backwater place like Guanhai County, who could possibly kill Huang Zu?

Who would dare to kill Huang Zu?

Prefect Yin Wuji clenched the jade tablet tighter, the shards sinking a bit deeper into his flesh.

This Huang Zu had spent a fortune to buy the office of Guanhai County Magistrate from him, and would frequently send offerings to curry favor.

At this thought, Prefect Yin Wuji stuffed the jade tablet into his sleeve, his dark red pupils narrowing slightly.

He originally had no intention of personally visiting a backwater place like Guanhai County.

But Huang Zu could not have died in vain!

He had spent a fortune to buy this office from him.

If Prefect Yin Wuji turned a blind eye to his death, who would dare to buy offices from him in the future?

What would the demons who were still on the fence think?

They would think that he, the Prefect, was unreliable, and that spending so much money to buy an office was not worth it.

Therefore, he had to go, find out who killed Huang Zu, and drag that entity out.

To make an example of them!