26: Chapter 26 Evil God, Righteous God, and the City God of Xin'an County!

The one who arrived was the steward of the Li Residence whom they had seen when buying grain before.

This man walked over accompanied by two young servants and two burly guards.

"Steward... Steward Li?" Li Feipeng hurriedly stepped forward upon seeing him.

"Our master just heard from the servants about your situation, so he sent me to bring you to the house," the steward said with a cupped-fist salute.

"This..." Li Feipeng feigned astonishment.

The man warmly put an arm around his shoulder and said, "Our master is kind-hearted, as you know. Besides, we share the surname Li; five hundred years ago, we were one family. He couldn't bear to see you suffering, so come with me quickly!"

As soon as he arrived with his men, the surrounding Common People watching the commotion dispersed.

One could see from this how the Li Residence was regarded in Xinan County.

Because of this, even without anyone stepping forward to warn Li Feipeng and the others, they became more alert.

It seemed Young Master Zhang hadn't been deceived this time.

"That soldier told us to go to the county office first, saying the County Magistrate heard about us and wants to settle us in." Li Feipeng was cautious and didn't follow directly as previously agreed.

Instead, he planned to show his face at the county office first.

Regardless of the outcome, once the Government Office took notice, the people of the Li Residence would have to be more cautious if they had ill intentions.

"This... Steward Li, what do you think?" He put on a troubled and hesitant expression.

"Then I'll take you to the county office first," Steward Li said without hesitation.

He thought to himself that the office's news was quite fast.

Old Master Li had always kept trusted aides stationed at the city gate, ordering them to report immediately if they saw any Li Clan Members fleeing here.

Upon receiving the news, he had rushed over immediately.

He hadn't expected the County Magistrate's side to know as well.

But he didn't think too much about it.

He guessed the office was mostly interested in the Demon Rats skins and wolf skins on the cart.

Every year, the county had to send animal skins to the Prefecture City, which also counted toward the County Magistrate's political performance.

Additionally, the government might not necessarily care if Common People suffered other misfortunes.

But cases involving demons and ghosts had to be questioned and recorded to prevent inquiries from superiors and to guard against demons causing trouble in the jurisdiction.

Since the Li Clan Members were asked to go, then they would make a trip.

"They're just a group of refugees. The master will let the Clerk see them, write a statement, and the matter will be over," the steward thought privately. "Investigate? Impossible."

Even if the County Magistrate wanted to investigate, he wouldn't find anything on their master.

It was Zhang Qianlü who did those things; it had nothing to do with their Li Residence.

The master was so cautious that he hadn't even sent someone out of the city to follow or investigate.

He just sat there steadily, waiting.

The master's calculations were infallible; wasn't he just waiting for this?

The steward chuckled inwardly as he led Li Feipeng toward the county office.

These Li Clan Members, especially the leader Li Feipeng, clearly had some experience; they were wary of the Li Residence and knew to be on guard.

Unfortunately, these people didn't know that the master's plans were far-reaching.

Did they think their master wanted to harm them and steal the animal skins?

Tsk tsk, their master wouldn't look twice at such things.

However, these wolf skins, especially this Rat King skin...

If it could fall into his own hands, wouldn't that be even better?

"Oh, our County Magistrate is young, but he's quite crafty!" He grumbled inwardly, but his face showed a look of respect and admiration as he said some good things about the Xinan County Magistrate to Li Feipeng.

This County Magistrate had a background.

Giving a few compliments only brought benefits, no harm.

Moreover, doing so would further dispel the suspicions of Li Feipeng and the others.

See? If you want to go to the county office, I'll accompany you. This clearly shows our Li family has no ill will toward you and is completely open!

When they arrived at the county office...

It was exactly as he had thought.

The County Magistrate didn't show his face; only his advisor, along with a Clerk and a few Bailiffs, met Li Feipeng and the others.

They questioned them in the courtyard, took the animal skins from the cart, issued a document to Li Feipeng and the others, and gave them a bag of silver. Only then did they ask if they wanted to settle in Xinan County and if they had a place to stay.

"If not, the county office can arrange for you to stay temporarily at the Mortuary," Advisor Liu said.

"Advisor Liu, the Mortuary is outside the city. Brother Feipeng and the others just encountered Demon Ratss; they probably don't dare stay outside the city anymore," Steward Li quickly spoke up. "Our master is willing, for the sake of sharing the same surname, to take them in to stay at our residence."

Hearing this, Li Feipeng also nodded, following the lead.

He pretended to be exactly as Steward Li said, afraid to stay at the Mortuary outside the city.

"...Fine, then go with them." Hearing this, Advisor Liu said nothing more and sent them away.

After these people left with the cart, Advisor Liu turned and went back to the rear hall.

He met the County Magistrate.

He couldn't help but say, "Magistrate, it seems that old fellow is going to get his way again."

He had seen the Rat King skin; it was indeed a Spirit Demon that had gained some power.

If this Demon Rats had led a swarm of Demon Ratss to attack the Li Clan, it would have been enough to wipe out their clansmen.

"Speaking of which, these people are lucky."

The rat skin didn't look like it had been peeled off; it looked more like the flesh and blood had been completely sucked dry.

What the Li Clan Members said should be true.

It's just that after escaping this disaster, they've fallen into the old fox's mouth.

"Is that so?" The County Magistrate's eyebrows shot up.

Why did he feel like something was not quite right here?

But if he had to say it, he couldn't put his finger on it.

After thinking for a moment, he could only order, "Send someone to keep an eye on the activities in the Li Residence."

"Magistrate, do you think there will be more changes?" Advisor Liu asked in confusion. "Could those Li Clan Members actually turn around and trick Li Youfu?"

But if they wanted to trick him, how would they do it?

Could they start a massacre in the Li Residence?

"Send someone to watch first," the County Magistrate said. "I expect by now, Old Master Li should have sent someone outside the city to investigate."

The old fox wasn't so easy to believe others' words.

No matter how true the words sounded, he wouldn't.

He would definitely send his trusted aides to check and confirm that the other members of the Li Clan were dead, and died at the mouths of Yao Beasts.

Especially since they encountered a swarm of Demon Ratss, even if the bodies were all eaten, there would still be bloodstains and signs of a struggle.

...

Little Yao Mountain.

Zhang Qianlü was saying the same thing to Feng Yifan.

He hoped the Mountain God would use illusions to deceive those who came to investigate.

"Will the old fellow be as cautious as you say?" Feng Yifan asked. "However, this is not difficult."

Second Uncle Li had already followed them into the city, and Little Leopard and the others were still here.

Go block the way.

When they see someone coming, throw an illusion over them to fool them, then send them back to report. This would instead further corroborate what Li Feipeng and the others said.

"That old fellow has always been cautious; otherwise, he couldn't have accumulated such a family business," Zhang Qianlü said coldly.

Feng Yifan smiled.

He had already told the boy that he had excellent Cultivation Aptitude, and he hadn't hidden the fact that Li Linfeng, also a Divine Servant, had already joined the Sword Sect.

Zhang Qianlü had also received confirmation of the latter from the Li Clan Members.

And for some unknown reason, Li Youfu had actually lied to him, saying his Aptitude was poor.

Therefore, the boy's current enthusiasm for killing Li Youfu, his alignment with Feng Yifan as his Divine Lord, and his heart for seeking benefits for his Li Clan relatives were all beyond doubt.

The subsequent matters went very smoothly.

The following night.

Old Master Li's mind was controlled by Second Uncle Li.

Zhang Qianlü's plan to help the Li family swallow the other Li family was successfully completed.

However, an unexpected turn of events occurred that he hadn't anticipated.

...

"Oh my goodness!"

"The City God of Xinan County?"