I Can Extract Divine Power-Chapter 92 - 86: Corpse Oil Lantern, Five Viscera Realm

Chapter 92: Chapter 86: Corpse Oil Lantern, Five Viscera Realm

Magistrate Li lunged forward, as if grasping at the last straw. "What’s the plan?"

The Dark Venerable Envoy waved her hand, and the shadows swirling around it vanished. "We kill them. We kill Shen Bai and Qin Shuang preemptively."

"They will inevitably come for you. By now, the vegetable patch has absorbed the resentful Qi from the five dead Venerable Envoys. The anomaly is powerful enough."

"We need a place to deal with Shen Bai, and you can serve as the bait."

At this, the Dark Venerable Envoy produced a sheet of paper and placed it on the table.

"Write a letter. Tell him you’ll be waiting in Hedong Village. Once he’s there, everything will be made clear."

"I know you’re worried Shen Bai will tell the Shengyun County constables. It doesn’t matter. If it comes to that, we’ll just kill them all."

"The Great Zhou dynasty is in turmoil. As long as you leave no trace, this act of killing five Venerable Envoys from the Upper Evil Sect at a critical moment to ’protect the people of Shengyun County’ might even be held up as an example. After all, the Great Zhou Country needs heroes right now."

Magistrate Li listened to the Dark Venerable Envoy’s words, falling into a deathly silence.

After a long moment, he took the paper, picked up the brush, and began to write.

Magistrate Li placed the letter on the table and rose to his feet.

"Let’s go. Time to set out."

He had no other choice.

In recent years, every single thing he had done was a heinous crime. Any one of them was enough to have him beheaded ten times over.

His only chance of survival was to continue cooperating with the Upper Evil Sect.

"You go on ahead," the Dark Venerable Envoy said, tracing a finger over her red lips. "I need to stabilize the anomaly’s resentful Qi, then I will follow."

Magistrate Li nodded and left the room.

Once Magistrate Li was gone, the Dark Venerable Envoy glanced back into the shadows.

Four figures in black robes emerged from the darkness.

One of them spoke slowly.

"They say you’re as venomous as a viper, and it seems they’re right."

"On this trip, you’ve not only eliminated that major threat, the Light Venerable Envoy, but with just a few words, you’ve also sent Magistrate Li marching to his doom."

"Truly brilliant."

The Dark Venerable Envoy gave a seductive smile. "Isn’t this for the best? Those five have never seen eye-to-eye with us. Eliminating them benefits us all."

"As for Magistrate Li, he’s a man crossing a river with only one boat available—ours. He has no choice but to see this through to the bitter end."

"Why would I ever let him live? Even if we kill Shen Bai and Qin Shuang, how could he possibly continue to be favored by the Great Zhou court? This is a major incident, after all."

"If we wipe out Shengyun County, the Sect Leader is sure to reward us handsomely. With such a great achievement to our name, we might finally have a chance to cooperate with the Wild Taoist Sect."

Hearing this, the four Venerable Envoys nodded in agreement.

A short while later, the Dark Venerable Envoy and the four others left the room together.

...

Shen Bai and Qin Shuang encountered no resistance on their way back.

When they arrived, the constables outside the Government Office looked surprised to see them.

"Shopkeeper Shen, Lord Qin, what brings you here?"

In the Great Zhou Country, forms of address were a matter of great importance.

The constable addressed Shen Bai first, a clear sign of his fear.

He had single-handedly killed the County Magistrate’s nephew, his advisor, and two constables, yet had escaped completely unscathed.

It was hard for the constable not to be afraid.

That was to say nothing of the power Shen Bai had displayed in the great tomb. In a world where strength was paramount, such feats demanded respect.

"Go get Chief Zheng. We have urgent business to discuss," Shen Bai said.

The constable, sensing no deception, hurried off, first leading Shen Bai and his companion into the courtyard.

A short time later, Chief Zheng arrived in the courtyard with a group of constables.

Before Chief Zheng could speak, Shen Bai gave him a concise summary of what had happened.

Qin Shuang added, "As it stands, all the evidence points to Magistrate Li. We need him to cooperate with our investigation."

Chief Zheng cupped his hands. "Please wait here, you two. I’ll go find the County Magistrate."

A State Governor from the Observatory had given the order, so Chief Zheng didn’t argue.

After a while, Chief Zheng returned from the back courtyard, holding a letter. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

"Shopkeeper Shen, Magistrate Li isn’t here. But he left a letter, and it’s addressed to you personally."

Shen Bai raised an eyebrow, took the letter, and read it.

"Heh. Interesting. He’s summoning us for a private meeting."

Qin Shuang read it as well, her fine eyebrows knitting together.

The letter said that if they wanted to know the truth, they were to go to Hedong Village for a meeting—and that only Shen Bai and Qin Shuang could come.

If a third person came along, they would not see Magistrate Li.

"We’re going?" Qin Shuang asked.

Shen Bai nodded, handing the letter back to Chief Zheng. "Of course we’re going. It’s time to put an end to this. Chief Zheng, you and your men stay here."

Chief Zheng read the letter, pondered for a moment, then said, "Be careful."

He couldn’t say anything more. With Shen Bai’s level of power, his men would make no difference whether they went or not.

Shen Bai nodded, said nothing more, and turned to walk away.

"Lao Shen, be careful. That guy probably has an ambush waiting," Zhou Qing said.

He wasn’t stupid; he knew full well that going with them would only cause trouble for his friend, but he had to offer a word of warning.

Shen Bai waved a hand, signaling that it was fine.

Soon, Shen Bai and Qin Shuang had vanished into the night.

...

「Hedong Village.」

Footsteps were a rarity here.

The settlement was an outlier in Shengyun County—a deserted village.

A deathly silence hung over the deserted village.

Just then, two figures slowly approached from outside the village.

Shen Bai looked up, surveying the dilapidated village, his gaze settling on its interior.

Not far off, Magistrate Li and the Dark Venerable Envoy stood side-by-side, studying Shen Bai and Qin Shuang in turn.

"You’ve finally come," Magistrate Li sneered. "Today, it’s time we settled the score between us."

Shen Bai and Qin Shuang exchanged a glance and walked toward the village.