Chapter 394: Chapter 143: Sinister Shadows in the Stone Forest, the Blood Curse Descends; The Qing Province Zhang Family’s Plot, Burial Immortal Valley Stirs Turmoil

Her sharp gaze swept over the three Captains, her tone firm. "He would never send someone he values to their death. You needn’t worry about that."

"Instead of wasting your breath arguing, you should be paying closer attention to the Zhang Family’s movements."

At her words, the expressions of the three men grew solemn.

Chen Guanhai’s expression turned grim, and he lowered his voice. "Lord Yue Mankong sent Chu Fan here specifically to investigate the Zhang Family... but before he’s even arrived, Lord Yue Mankong sends word for us to spread the news far and wide. Is he using Chu Fan as bait to lure the Zhang Family?"

The other two Demon Suppression Captains exchanged a look, each seeing the gravity in the other’s eyes.

’They couldn’t help but feel that Demon Suppression Envoy Yue Mankong’s "plan" was far too simplistic.’

’How could the Zhang Family possibly fail to see through such an obvious ploy?’

"Watch your words!" Li Mubai hissed, his voice low. "The Zhang Family controls thirty percent of the mines in Qing Province, and they have powerful backers in the imperial court. If talk like this gets out without concrete evidence, the entire Demon Suppression Bureau will be in trouble."

Zhao Lie raised an eyebrow, his palm resting on the saber at his waist. He snorted, his voice filled with indignation. "If the Zhang Family is truly colluding with the Moon Worship Sect, that’s high treason! Are we supposed to just cower and do nothing because they’re powerful?"

"It’s not about cowering, it’s about doing things by the book!"

Li Mubai’s brow furrowed, his tone urgent. "The Zhang Family has experts as numerous as the clouds. If we push them too hard, they’ll get desperate. Qing Province will be thrown into chaos, and when the common people suffer, who will take responsibility?"

Seated at the head of the table, Leng Qingqiu tapped her fingers lightly on its surface, quietly listening to the three men argue.

Only when the three men noticed her silence, fell quiet, and straightened their posture did she finally speak. "Watch the Zhang Family, but don’t startle the snake."

"Yes!"

The three Captains answered in unison, then bowed and withdrew.

Once she was alone in the hall, Leng Qingqiu rose and walked to the window.

She stood with her hands clasped behind her back, gazing at the dark clouds outside.

The lead-gray clouds hung low in the sky, and a fierce wind sent fallen leaves spiraling through the courtyard.

Muffled thunder rolled across the horizon, like the low growl of a great beast. A storm was about to break.

The Moon Worship Sect had stirred monstrous waves throughout the Great Yan Dynasty, their advance relentless and fierce.

These Cultists hid by day and moved by night, targeting the families of Cultivators. Their methods were ruthless, and their power was formidable—even their Divine Sacrifice Envoys could contend directly with the Demon Suppression Envoys.

What worried her even more, however, was the current predicament of the Demon Suppression Bureau.

The major sects and Noble Families paid lip service to the Demon Suppression Bureau but acted otherwise in private. Even within the imperial court, many coveted the Bureau’s power, obstructing them both openly and in secret.

"Internal strife and external threats..."

Leng Qingqiu murmured to herself, her fingertips unconsciously tracing the window frame.

She took a confidential letter from her sleeve and unfolded it. It was from Yue Mankong, and his assessment of Chu Fan was particularly striking: "This boy is meticulous in his thoughts, uncommonly courageous, and exceptionally talented. He is fit for great responsibility."

Yue Mankong’s standards were notoriously high; an ordinary Cultivator would never catch his eye.

To have earned such praise from him made Leng Qingqiu a little more curious about the Demon Suppression Guard she had yet to meet.

But with the treacherous undercurrents now swirling through Qing Province, the news deliberately spread by the Demon Suppression Bureau had already made Chu Fan—who had yet to even arrive—the focal point for every major power.

’Could this young man truly withstand such a storm?’

Leng Qingqiu’s gaze passed over the many-layered rooftops, looking south.

That was the direction from which Chu Fan would arrive.

PLINK. The first raindrop struck a glazed roof tile with a crisp sound.

Soon, the patter became a roar as a torrential downpour began, as if trying to wash away all the world’s filth. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

But she knew in her heart that some darkness could never be washed clean, no matter how hard it rained.

...

「South Qing Province City, Tingyu Tea House.」

It was nearly noon, and the establishment was packed to the rafters. The aroma of tea, mingled with the sweet scent of pastries, filled every corner.

A young server with a white towel draped over his shoulder weaved between the tables, carrying a long-spouted bronze kettle.

With a deft tilt of the spout, hot tea poured steadily into a teacup, not a single drop splashing out.

The patrons, however, paid the server no mind. All eyes were locked on the storyteller’s stage in the center of the teahouse.

The storyteller was a lean, middle-aged man in a faded cyan robe with frayed cuffs. In his hand, he held a folding fan painted with an ink-wash landscape.

He cleared his throat. With a SWISH, his fan snapped open, and his voice rang out, clear and bright. "Honored guests, today we continue the tale of the young hero of Cyan Yang Ancient City—Chu Fan!"

At these words, the din in the teahouse subsided.

A man by the window put down his teacup and leaned forward;

a woman at the next table stopped shelling her melon seeds, her ears perked.

"Now, the tale begins in Cyan Yang Ancient City, which was once a land of peace and harmony."

Waving his fan, the storyteller’s voice grew slower. "But who would have known that its County Magistrate, Zhang Yunpeng, was in fact a Demon from the Moon Worship Sect! He concealed his true nature deeply. By day, he pretended to be a diligent official who loved his people, but in secret, he built an altar outside the city. His goal? To activate a Blood Sacrifice Array and offer every last citizen to a Resentful Spirit!"

"HISS—"

A wave of sharp gasps swept through the teahouse, and a frightened child shrank into his mother’s arms.

"But just in the nick of time, the young hero Chu Fan burst onto the scene!"

The storyteller pointed his fan into the air, as if he were witnessing the scene firsthand. "Though Chu Fan’s cultivation was merely at the Spirit Awakening Realm, he was utterly fearless. Wielding his Long Saber, he charged into the array all by himself! In one fell swoop, he shattered dozens of the Grand Array’s nodes and forcibly destroyed the formation that sought to devour them all!"

"Bravo!"

A young patron by the window slammed his hand on the table, causing the tea in his cup to slosh. "What a hero!"

The storyteller smiled faintly. He snapped his fan shut and rapped it smartly on the tabletop. "With the Grand Array broken, the Resentful Spirit was sealed for the time being. But that villain, Zhang Yunpeng, tried to keep up his act! Putting on the airs of a County Magistrate, he showered Chu Fan with praise... but how could someone as astute as Chu Fan be fooled? He had long since seen through Zhang Yunpeng’s true colors!"