Yangzhou City, in the sitting room of the City Lord’s Mansion.
The scent of fragrant tea filled the room, creating an illusion of harmony.
Lu Li sat calmly in the guest seat, his fingers lightly tracing the edge of the white porcelain teacup.
He silently listened to City Lord Zhao Zongchang, who was muttering softly, lamenting the difficulties of managing Yangzhou City and his heartbreak over the disappearance of the children.
Zhao Zongchang wore his usual expression—a mixture of mediocrity and helplessness—accompanied by a sigh.
“Sigh… Master Lu, you don’t know, every day I think of the parents of those missing children and how they come to me weeping—it feels like my heart is being twisted by a thousand knives…”
Before Zhao Zongchang finished speaking, a crystal-clear Transmission Secret Art voice rang sharply in Lu Li’s ears, tinged with urgency and excitement.
“Senior Lu! I have found the secret chamber in the backyard where Zhao Zongchang kept the children!”
“I have successfully reunited here with Brother Qingkong in the underground chamber!”
“All the children have been rescued safely!”
“Additionally, I discovered irrefutable evidence in Zhao Zongchang’s study and his daughter’s Coffin hall—his Private Diary and procurement lists—which prove he is the mastermind!”
“All his actions were to set up an Evil Array, attempting to defy fate and resurrect his deceased daughter!”
“The Coffin of his daughter has remained in the backyard for two years without burial, solid proof of his Resurrection Ritual!”
“The evidence is undeniable. Please decide the next step, Senior!”
Gongsang Yu’s Transmission Secret Art struck Lu Li like thunder, instantly shattering the last threads of doubt in his mind.
He then relayed every crucial detail he had uncovered without omission through Transmission Secret Art.
A sharp, sword-like coldness flashed suddenly deep within Lu Li’s previously calm eyes.
Zhao Zongchang continued his performance, oblivious to the subtle shift in Lu Li’s aura and expression, still beating his chest in lament, “Sigh… I am incompetent. I have yet to catch the true culprit. I feel deeply ashamed before the people of Yangzhou and before Master Lu’s trust…”
Suddenly, Lu Li set down the teacup.
The clear “ding” of porcelain touching the table echoed crisply through the somewhat empty sitting room, interrupting Zhao Zongchang’s complaints.
Zhao Zongchang froze, sharply lifting his head to look at Lu Li.
Lu Li slowly raised his eyes, his gaze no longer calm but sharp and oppressive, as if seeing through all lies.
He fixed Zhao Zongchang with an unblinking stare, his voice low but cutting through the warm air like a bitter winter wind:
“City Lord Zhao.”
An inexplicable tightness seized Zhao Zongchang’s heart.
The habitual smile on his face stiffened.
“Uh… Master Lu, what instructions do you have?”
Lu Li leaned slightly forward, enunciating each word clearly.
“Just now, I suddenly recalled something. I heard that your daughter, Miss Mingyin, passed away nearly two years ago?”
At the mention of his daughter, Zhao Zongchang’s face drained of color instantly.
His pupils constricted sharply, and his right hand clenched the robe on his knee until his knuckles turned white.
He clearly had not expected Lu Li to bring up his daughter so suddenly.
“Uh… yes, that’s correct…”
His voice dry and trembling faintly, Zhao Zongchang forced a smile, “I didn’t expect… Master Lu to concern yourself with such trivial matters. My daughter was unfortunate—she passed away the year before last…”
Lu Li’s gaze was like solid steel, locking tightly onto Zhao Zongchang and scrutinizing every subtle twitch of his expression.
He continued in that flat yet commanding tone: ‘
“Oh? If that is so, then why have I heard that Miss Mingyin’s Coffin remains in the mansion, kept in the hall for two years without burial?”
Lu Li’s words struck Zhao Zongchang’s chest like a hammer.
He sprang to his feet so abruptly the chair behind him scraped harshly across the floor.
Sweat beaded on his forehead, his eyes darted anxiously, avoiding Lu Li’s gaze, yet he forced out a defense.
“Uh… Master Lu, you don’t understand! It’s not that I refuse to let my daughter rest, but because my wife’s grief is so severe, she cannot bear to be apart from her. So we have kept the Coffin here temporarily, to be able to pay respects often and soothe our sorrow…”
Zhao Zongchang’s explanation was pale and weak.
After all, even the most grieving parents rarely keep the body for more than a few months—how could it be two whole years?
Especially when the Zhao family is the ruling house of Yangzhou City.
Seeing this, Lu Li slowly rose to his feet.
Though not particularly tall, the imposing aura radiating from him now made Zhao Zongchang feel his breath growing labored.
“Oh? Grief that causes illness? Temporarily kept at home?”
Lu Li’s lips curled into a cold smile.
“City Lord Zhao, even a three-year-old child would find such an excuse unconvincing.”
Lu Li stepped forward, his gaze blazing like a torch as his tone suddenly sharpened in accusation:
“City Lord Zhao, you secretly set up an Evil Array under the pretense of repairs, colluded with Demonic Sect scoundrels to abduct the Four-Yin Fate Children, and attempted to perform that blasphemous resurrection ritual in Yangzhou City!”
“Hmph! Wasn’t all this for your daughter who passed away two years ago?”
“You… you lie!”
Seeing his scheme thoroughly exposed, Zhao Zongchang’s face turned deathly pale.
Staggering backward, he knocked over the tea table behind him, shattering the teaware with a series of sharp crashes.
Pointing a trembling finger at Lu Li, he said, “Master Lu! How can you slander me? What evidence do you have for these accusations?”
“Oh? Evidence?”
Lu Li sneered.
“Once I take you down, you’ll be forced to admit the truth.”
With those words, Lu Li’s spiritual power suddenly erupted throughout the hall, a fierce pressure enveloping the entire sitting room!
He then formed his fingers like a sword, and a sharp, unmatched sword intent gathered at his fingertips, pointing straight at Zhao Zongchang!
Seeing his exposure and Lu Li’s imminent attack, Zhao Zongchang’s mask of a powerless and incompetent official shattered instantly, replaced by a desperate and crazed ferocity.
“Master Lu! You leave me no choice!”
He roared, his once concealed aura turning cold and sinister.
Strange black markings appeared on his right arm, exuding a thick, suffocating black death energy!
His aura surged suddenly, skyrocketing from Qi Refinement to the peak of Foundation Establishment, even surpassing Lu Li by a step, bordering on Golden Core as a Pseudo-Core condensed inside him.
Clearly, Zhao Zongchang had concealed his true strength.
This was why earlier, when first meeting Gu Qingying, he had detected her disguise and revealed she was truly a girl.
“Hmph! You treacherous bastard! So it was you hiding your true power all along!”
Lu Li’s eyes blazed with cold light as he summoned the Twelve Flying Swords, shouting fiercely at Zhao Zongchang, “Traitor, die!”
Zhao Zongchang didn’t dodge the thunderous assault.
Instead, he swung his black-patterned right arm forward.
The black death energy instantly solidified into a shield, blocking Lu Li’s sword intent head-on.
The collision sent shockwaves rippling through the room, scattering furnishings and whipping the curtains into a frenzy!
“What crime have I committed?!”
Zhao Zongchang’s eyes burned red as he roared like a madman.
“Master Lu! Tell me! As a father, I only wanted one last meeting with my daughter! What crime is that?”
Death energy surged violently from Zhao Zongchang’s Pseudo-Core-level cultivation.
The temperature in the sitting room plummeted suddenly, as if they had fallen into an icy abyss.
Lu Li’s expression remained calm.
He waved his spiritual sword and slowly stepped forward using the Tiangang Kui Star Steps.
With each step, the room warmed slightly.
“City Lord Zhao, I understand your feelings.”
“But I do not condone your actions.”
“Your daughter was a child, yes—but what of the children you kidnapped, and the citizens of Yangzhou who fell ill because you forcibly altered the city’s ley lines? Are they not also children to their parents?”
At these words, Zhao Zongchang’s expression faltered, his aura dropping sharply.
A faint flicker of struggle appeared on his face.
But soon, he clenched his fists tightly, seeming to make a grim decision.
“In this world, there are only winners and losers!”
“Master Lu, then let our fists decide the truth!”
With that, Zhao Zongchang twisted his body, transforming into a dense black cloud that surged toward Lu Li with terrifying speed!