Chapter 817

[Two: Why aren't you sleeping in the middle of the night?]

Even through the "screen" of the Earth Scroll, one could sense the dissatisfaction of the Flying Swallow Heroine. She must be sitting at the table in her robe, looking at the message lazily and unhappily.

On the other side, Chu Yuanzhen instinctively felt that Li Miaozhen's attitude was off. After all, Xu Cijiu's relationship with Li Miaozhen had not reached the point where they could joke around and criticize each other.

Moreover, Li Miaozhen was still staying at the Xu Mansion. However, Li Miaozhen's temperament was too strong and she was used to being straightforward. It was inevitable that she was lacking in social skills.

[Four: Huh, Master Hengy Yuan did not respond …]

After waiting for a while, Hengy Yuan still did not respond. With Hengy Yuan saying that there was an ambush around the health hall, everyone immediately realized that something was wrong.

Xu Qi 'an sent a message: [Something happened to Hengy Yuan. He's involved in a major case. The Yuanjing Emperor has sent people to hunt him down. It's not just for revenge, but to silence him.]

Involved in a major case, silence him, and it's related to the Yuanjing Emperor?!

The Heaven & Earth Society was shocked. They did not understand why Number Three would make such a judgment and say such a thing.

Chu Yuanzhen sent a message: [Number Three, what's going on with Hengy Yuan? Did you notice something?]

He asked the question that was on everyone's mind in Heaven and Earth Association. No one said anything. The impatient heroine, the foodie Blacky, the high-ranking Number One, and the peeping Taoist Priest Golden Lotus were all waiting for Number Three to explain.

[Three: It's hard to explain in a few words. The most important thing now is to go to the health hall outside the city and check on the situation.]

[Two: Alright!]

Immediately, Xu Qi 'an put down the Earth Book, grabbed a robe and put it on. He said, "I'm going out to lie down. Come with me."

Zhong Li nodded and got up from the couch. She wore her embroidered shoes as slippers and followed him out the door.

The sound of the rain hitting the roof tiles was pitter-pattering along the eaves. When the lightning flashed, it was like a curtain of pearls swaying in the wind. When the cold wind blew, it was like flying flowers and broken pieces of jade falling diagonally into the roof.

There was a shallow layer of water in the courtyard, and the violent raindrops smashed down, creating a misty mist.

Xu Qi 'an faced the damp air and saw Li Miaozhen standing quietly under the eaves at the other end of the courtyard. She was wearing a Taoist robe made of feathers.

The two of them exchanged glances and did not say anything. Li Miaozhen tossed out her flying sword, which hovered in the courtyard. The three of them leaped up and stepped on the flying sword.

The Holy Maiden of the Heavenly Sect made a seal with one hand, and the flying sword broke through the curtain of rain and soared into the sky.

As long as the Supervisor allowed them to fly above the capital, there would be no problem.

Soon, they flew over the inner city and arrived at the outer city. Li Miaozhen pushed the tip of her sword down and stabbed it towards the southern part of the city.

Li Miaozhen did not land recklessly. Instead, she hovered in the air for a while and asked, "How is it?"

"It's safe for now."

Xu Qi 'an replied.

He did not detect any hostility. Either the people lying in ambush had controlled themselves well and did not look up. Or they had already left.

Li Miaozhen analyzed seriously, "They might have hidden themselves. Maybe they've already set up a trap and are waiting for us to come."

Xu Qi 'an frowned. "We can't rule out this possibility. The Yuanjing Emperor knows that we're in cahoots with Hengy Yuan. We can't let our guard down."

"Surround them and attack the reinforcements?"

Li Miaozhen sighed. "That's a good description. You're worthy of being called the Guardian Deity. You'll be the vanguard. Even a Level Four master's' Will 'would have a hard time breaking through your' Vajra Deity '."

Xu Qi 'an nodded in agreement. "You'll help me in the air."

After analyzing the situation, they looked at each other and smiled.

At this moment, they heard Zhong Li whisper, "There's no ambush below. There's no martial artist …"

Xu Qi 'an and Li Miaozhen's expressions froze.

They almost forgot that Zhong Li was a warlock and was proficient in the Aura Observation Technique. Sigh, it's all her usual weakness. It left a deep impression on me … Xu Qi 'an thought.

Li Miaozhen thought the same. She stopped hovering and landed in the rain. The street was uneven and had not been repaired for years. The low houses on both sides looked bleak and dilapidated in the rain.

The door of Yangsheng Hall was tightly shut.

Xu Qi 'an squinted his eyes and scanned the surroundings. He was about to say' no signs of battle 'when he heard Zhong Li and Li Miaozhen say in unison, "Someone's dead."

His heart sank.

The three of them jumped over the wall and entered Yangsheng Hall.

The courtyard was dark and overgrown with weeds. Raindrops fell on the ground. In the east side of the hall, a dim yellow light shone through the window.

The three of them approached and saw a simple wooden bed in the hall. A skinny body was covered with a white cloth.

Xu Qi 'an could tell that it was not Hengy Yuan at first glance, but this did not make him feel relaxed.

An old official sat beside the corpse with his head lowered in dejection. His aged face was full of wrinkles, filled with sorrow and helplessness.

Xu Qi 'an had been to Yangsheng Hall many times and knew him. This old official's surname was Li. He was also a lonely old man, but due to his good health, he was arranged to work in Yangsheng Hall.

"Old Li, what's going on?"

Xu Qi 'an deliberately made loud footsteps to attract Old Li's attention, but he was still startled. His whole body was trembling as if he had just been frightened.

"Xu, Xu Yinluo …"

Seeing Xu Qi 'an, the old official's cloudy eyes shone with hope.

He was pleasantly surprised. He stood up shakily and said excitedly, "Why is Xu Yinluo here?"

Xu Qi 'an held his hand and repeated, "What happened?"

Hearing this, the old official became excited again and said, "In the afternoon, a neighbor came to tell us that someone was looking for Master Hengy Yuan and even had his portrait.

"I asked Master Hengy Yuan to go out and hide for a while. At dusk, a group of mysterious people barged into Yangsheng Hall. They didn't catch Master Hengy Yuan, so they asked me a few things about him and left.

"Who knew that when the sky turned dark, they came back and forcefully brought the elderly and children of Yangsheng Hall to the entrance. They said that if Master Hengy Yuan didn't come back, they would kill one person every fifteen minutes …"

When the old official said this, tears streamed down his face, "Old Zhang was unlucky. He was slit on the neck by that group of people. When he died, he was in great pain and kept struggling on the ground.

"After that, Master Hengy Yuan came back. They took him and left. I don't know where they went. Whether Master Hengy Yuan is dead or alive, this old one doesn't know either …"

Li Miaozhen's face was ashen.

"Did you see what those people looked like?" Xu Qi 'an asked.

"They were wearing black robes and masks. I couldn't see their faces," the old official said sorrowfully.

Duke Huai's secret agents!

Xu Qi 'an and Li Miaozhen looked at each other. Because they had already expected it, they weren't surprised, but more angry.

Without a doubt, if Hengy Yuan didn't appear, everyone in Yangsheng Hall would have been killed.

"We all underestimated the ruthlessness of Duke Huai's secret agents," Xu Qi 'an said in a low voice.

A group of cold-blooded animals.

No matter what, human lives shouldn't be treated like grass, to be killed at will. Moreover, it was a lonely old man.

"I want to kill them all."

Li Miaozhen squeezed out the words from between her teeth, "My master said before, those who don't respect life, don't need to be respected."

Xu Qi 'an was silent for a moment, then said, "Are the others alright? Mn, the child in the backyard … "

The old official nodded, "They all suffered a bit of shock, but they're fine. They'll be fine after some sleep."

There would definitely be grief and sadness afterwards, but no one cared about the feelings of these widows and widows.

"We'll be resting here tonight. You're old, you should go back and rest."

Xu Qi 'an sent the old official back to his room and returned to the East Hall. Zhong Li and Li Miaozhen stood in the hall. No one said anything, and the atmosphere was dead silent.

The situation was dire.

Hengy Yuan had been taken away by Duke Huai's secret agents, and he was doomed.

The Earth Sect's treasure, the fragment of the Book of the Earth, had fallen into the hands of the Yuanjing Emperor, and the Yuanjing Emperor was in cahoots with the Earth Sect …

They might even be able to pry information about the Heaven & Earth Society from Hengy Yuan. Of course, Hengy Yuan wouldn't confess, but the Earth Sect had a way to make him confess, such as killing people and summoning their souls.

Once Xu Qi 'an's identity as the owner of the fragment of the Book of the Earth, the Dao Master of the Earth Sect would realize that the mysterious Overlord who had appeared in Chu Zhou City was Xu Qi' an.

The Yuanjing Emperor would also guess that the sealed artifact under the Sampo was with Xu Qi 'an.

Suddenly, the pressure came.

Xu Qi 'an wiped his face and said, "Miaozhen, tell them that Hengy Yuan has been taken away, and we don't know if he's dead or alive. The fragment of the Book of the Earth is also in the hands of the Yuanjing Emperor. "

Li Miaozhen nodded, took out the fragment of the Book of the Earth and told the members of the Heaven & Earth Society what had happened.

[Four: Things are developing in the worst possible direction.]

Chu Yuanzhen sighed and sent the letter.

Five: What should we do now?

Even Lina, who wasn't very smart, felt that things were getting tricky.

No one answered her. They didn't even know if Hengy Yuan was dead or alive. Plus, their opponent was the Emperor.

During the massacre in Chu Zhou City, their opponent was also the Emperor, but their "allies" included the officials, the Supervisor, and Zhao Shou from the Yunlu Academy.

The situation was different. At that time, they were going against the trend. The Yuanjing Emperor went against the trend, so he lost.

This time, there was only the Heaven & Earth Society.

In the depressing silence, the Jinlian Taoist priest suddenly sent a message: "I sensed that Hengy Yuan's fragment of the Book of the Earth is near you."

Xu Qi 'an's eyes lit up.

The Jinlian Taoist priest didn't say who he was referring to, but Xu Qi 'an knew it was them.

"That's right, I underestimated Master Hengy Yuan. If he had decided to exchange his life for the lives of the people in the Yangsheng Hall, he wouldn't have brought the fragment of the Book of the Earth with him …" Xu Qi 'an immediately looked at Tenzō Shōnin.

"Miaozhen!"

Li Miaozhen opened the pouch on her waist and released a plume of green smoke. The smoke spread out from the Yangsheng Hall, looking for the fragment of the Book of the Earth.

After the time it took for a stick of incense to burn, a green smoke returned with a mirror wrapped in it. It gently placed it on the table and floated in front of Li Miaozhen. It wiggled as if it was asking for praise.

"I will give you double the Yin Qi tomorrow."

Li Miaozhen made the promise and opened the pouch. She opened her mouth and let out a soundless scream.

After a while, wisps of green smoke received the summons and surged back into the sachet.

"Hengy Yuan threw the fragment of the Book of the Earth in the bushes by the roadside. It's not far from the Yangsheng Hall." Tenzō Shōnin said and sent a message to the other holders of the fragment.

The Jinlian Taoist priest sent a message: [Very well. Everyone, I feels that we should have a proper discussion next.]

[One: That's what I was thinking.]

Number One replied quickly. Obviously, he (she) had been paying attention to the development of the situation.

Chu Yuanzhen then sent a message: [Number Three, you were the one who discovered this. Shouldn't you tell us the specifics?]

Xu Qi 'an thought for a moment, then used his finger as a pen and sent a message: [Do you still remember the incident where Master Hengy Yuan broke into Count Pingyuan's Mansion and killed him? At the time, I was the one who saved him.]

This incident happened last year, before the Sampo Case. Of course, everyone remembered it.

[Four: Does the Yuanjing Emperor's attack on Hengy Yuan have anything to do with this incident?]

Li Miaozhen raised her head in shock and looked at Xu Qi 'an.

[Three: I found out from a secret channel that the organization controlled by Count Pingyuan is truly loyal to the Yuanjing Emperor.]

[One: Impossible!]

Number One refuted him with three short words, but his attitude was firm.

[Four: Although I don't like the Yuanjing Emperor, I don't think he's the mastermind behind the human trafficking organization. There's no need for that.]

Who was the Emperor?

He was the most powerful person in the imperial court. Who else had more power than him? No. The supervisor was stronger than him, but in terms of power, he had to admit that the Emperor held the greatest power.

Not to mention the common people, the Emperor had the power to control the life and death of the nobles.

'Why would the Emperor need to abduct people?

'I know it's hard to believe. It's like Jack Ma stealing battery-powered cars to make a decent living …' Xu Qi 'an thought.

He continued to send a message: [Brother Chu, you're a scholar, but your mind is not sharp enough. There must be a reason why the Yuanjing Emperor did this.]

[Nine: What reason?]

This time, the Jinlian Taoist priest was the first to ask. He seemed to be quite curious.

[Three: I don't know the specific inside story, but I know that the organization will regularly send a batch of living people into the palace. I can't confirm how long this process has been going on, but it must have been many years.]

He did not stop and continued to send the message:

[Count Pingyuan thought that he had something on the Yuanjing Emperor, so his ambition grew. He wanted to gain more power and status, so he cooperated with the Liang Clique and killed Princess Pingyang.

[In this case, the Yuanjing Emperor knew everything, but he chose to protect Count Pingyuan. That was until Count Pingyuan did not know how to restrain himself and attracted Wei Yuan's attention. In order to prevent the matter from being exposed, the Yuanjing Emperor thought of a way. He used Princess Pingyang's case to kill Count Pingyuan to silence him.]

Li Miaozhen raised her head abruptly. Her beautiful eyes were wide open, and the extremely shocked expression on her face indicated that she had guessed what would happen next.

[One: You mean, Hengy Yuan became a tool in the hands of His Majesty and killed Count Pingyuan.]

Other than Lina, the intelligence of the members of the Heaven & Earth Society was above average.

Of course, Lina's combat power was also above average. She was the little overlord of the Southern Border, and had the strength to pick up mountains.

[Four: So, was the Yuanjing Emperor trying to kill Hengy Yuan to silence him? No, if he wanted to silence him, he would have done it a long time ago. Why wait until now?]

[Three: No, you're wrong. Silencing someone depends on the timing and whether it is necessary. Think about it, who is Hengy Yuan? He is just a martial monk from the Green Dragon Temple. He is just a chess piece in Princess Pingyang's case. He is insignificant. Is there a need to silence a chess piece who doesn't know the inside story?]

[Four: But now, the Yuanjing Emperor feels that there is a need to silence him.] Chu Yuanzhen sent a message.

[Three: That's right. Then what made the Yuanjing Emperor decide to silence him? Think about what Master Hengy Yuan has done recently.]

He obstructed the Imperial Guards of the Imperial Palace and Jianzhou's Guardian Lotus Seed!

The members of the Heaven & Earth Society were shocked.

[Three: Master Hengyuan is too close to you guys. He is too close to my big brother. What kind of person is my big brother? He is Wei Yuan's henchman. There is no case in the world that he can't solve.

[In the massacre in Chu Zhou City, the Yuanjing Emperor actually exposed a lot of things. When he found out that Master Hengy Yuan was with you, he got worried and decided to silence him.

[And the reason why he killed him is that Master Hengy Yuan found some important clues when he was tracking down Junior Brother Heng Hui. He might not have realized it himself, but the Yuanjing Emperor was afraid that he would reveal it.]

[One: You have a point, but I still have two questions. First, why did the Emperor secretly rob the people in the city? Second, the palace is heavily guarded, and all the transactions are recorded. The power in the palace is complicated. There are people from all sides, such as the Supervisor, the Imperial Advisor, Wei Yuan, and all the parties …

[The Emperor can't send people in just because he wants to, not to mention a certain number of people.]

To put it bluntly, the transportation channel is not reasonable … Xu Qi 'an furrowed his brows.

At this time, Lina sent a message: [That's easy. Dig a secret passage.]

This dumb girl hit the nail on the head …

The Earth Book Group suddenly went silent.

If it was a secret passage, Pingyuan Bo would definitely know about it. However, Pingyuan Bo was already dead, so who else would know? Was he the leader of the Mafia? If that was the case, Duke Wei, Duke Wei, you are too scary … Hmm, not necessarily. The secret passage must be extremely secretive. How could Pingyuan Bo let his men know about it … Xu Qi 'an pinched his forehead and sent a message.

[What we need to think about now is not the secret of the Yuanjing Emperor, but what about Master Hengy Yuan?]

No one answered him because they all felt that there was no solution.

In the silent atmosphere, the Jinlian Taoist priest sent a message: [Find out where he is first. As for his safety, you don't have to worry too much. Hengy Yuan will not die.]

Why are you so sure?

Everyone in the Earth Book Group questioned in their hearts at the same time.

[Nine: This involves a secret of Hengy Yuan. I can't reveal it without his permission. But I can tell you that it's the reason why I chose him to be the holder of the Earth Book fragment.

[Of course, we still have to find him. He is fine now, but it doesn't mean he will be fine in the future.]

If that's the case, then I don't have to worry about my identity being exposed in the short term, and I don't have to leave the capital with my family … Xu Qi 'an breathed a sigh of relief.

He sent a message: [Leave this to my big brother. The night watchman will be responsible for patrolling the streets. We can check the entry and exit records of Duke Huai's secret agents today.]

The Jinlian Taoist priest added: [Find a way to lure out Duke Huai's secret agents, kill them outside the city, and let Miaozhen summon their souls for interrogation.]

After a few more words of discussion, the Heaven & Earth Society ended this long discussion.

…

After dawn, Li Miaozhen and Xu Qi 'an returned to the inner city. The latter went to the night watchman's yamen and entrusted Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao to check the entry and exit records of the inner city and the imperial city yesterday.

They agreed to go to the brothel tomorrow to listen to music before leaving the night watchman's yamen.

Xu Qi 'an rode his beloved filly back to the mansion and left alone. After changing his clothes and appearance at the brothel, he left. After a few twists and turns, he arrived at the courtyard of the widow, Mu Nanzi.

He knocked for a long time, but no one responded.

After knocking for a long time, footsteps were finally heard from the courtyard.

"Squeak!"

The courtyard door opened, and the princess stood at the threshold with her hair messy and her eyes sleepy.

"Why are you knocking at the door so late at night? Is there an adulterer in the courtyard?" Xu Qi 'an snorted.

The princess rolled her eyes at him.

When Xu Qi 'an stepped into the courtyard, he was suddenly attracted by a weak spiritual energy. He looked at the water tank in the courtyard in shock.

The water in the vat was clear, with shallow silt settling on it. A small lotus root was half-buried in the silt, with fine roots growing out.

It was really alive.