Chapter 1030: 妖异光芒

Sang Hong thought about their interactions during this period; the Gold Medal Eleven was indeed very mysterious, so he didn't press the matter further.

Pei You, on the other hand, was still exhilarated by what had just happened: "Lord Eleven is incredibly cool! With so many soldiers, he just moved his hands and feet and brought them all down. How could we ever fear Jian Taiding's army after this?"

"It's not that simple," Sang Hong, with his evidently broader knowledge, interjected. "Actual armies possess various means to counter such sonic attacks."

In fact, he wasn't sure if it was a sonic or a soul attack, as he had felt his own soul tremble at the time.

"Either way, it was amazing! I definitely need to ask him for pointers if I get the chance. If I could learn that technique, imagine how impressive I'd be!" Pei You's eyes sparkled with excitement; he was clearly already fantasizing about showing off in front of everyone with a musical instrument.

Zu An coughed. "I'm afraid you can't learn that."

"Pfft, my talent is among the best of my generation..." Pei You glanced at Zu An, and his confidence immediately wavered. "Though I'm not as good as Brother Zu, I'm still ranked among the top three or four. How could I not learn it?"

Zu An's expression was strange. Daji's ability was an innate skill; even if she could speak, she couldn't teach it, let alone when she couldn't.

"Alright, alright," Sang Hong advised with the air of a senior. "That definitely relates to cultivation. If your cultivation is insufficient, attempting to learn it might harm you instead."

Pei You nodded. "Lord Eleven's cultivation is indeed unfathomable. What rank is he, exactly? Or has he already reached the Grandmaster level?"

Sang Hong shook his head. "I can't see through him either. His cultivation doesn't seem very high, yet the combat power he displays is astonishing."

The way he effortlessly incapacitated so many county soldiers during their casual conversation today was something Sang Hong himself could never achieve.

"Originally, I was still a bit worried, but now I realize how wrong I was. Those appointed as Gold Medal Embroidered Uniform envoys truly are peerless masters," Sang Hong marveled. "With Gold Medal Eleven and Ah Zu now on our side, we don't need to fear even if we truly fall out with Jian Taiding."

Zu An, who was sipping tea to soothe his throat, nearly choked upon hearing this. He felt it necessary to remind Sang Hong: "Uh, while Lord Eleven is indeed unfathomable, we shouldn't rely on him too heavily. His mission might not align with ours; otherwise, he wouldn't consistently avoid meeting us. Furthermore, since he operates in the shadows, timely communication with him is difficult. What if a conflict truly arises, and he just happens not to be around?"

Knowing Sang Hong's strategic capabilities, Zu An worried about misleading him into overestimating their strength and making a wrong decision, so he felt it best to clarify things beforehand.

Sang Hong nodded repeatedly. "Ah Zu, you are indeed meticulous. What you said is certainly possible. From now on, we must factor in his potential absence when planning anything."

Seizing the opportunity, Zu An suggested, "How about we interrogate Dong Jin first?"

It felt truly strange discussing himself with others while pretending not to know he was the subject.

Using Daji to impersonate Gold Medal Eleven inevitably had its flaws, and he worried that continuing the discussion might expose them.

"Good!" Sang Hong had originally intended to meet Gold Medal Eleven first to express gratitude and discuss the current situation. Since the envoy wasn't present, interrogating Dong Jin became the immediate priority. "Bring Xiao Jianren along."

As a Silver Medal Embroidered Uniform envoy, investigation was his forte. With Gold Medal Eleven absent, he was the highest-ranking Embroidered Uniform envoy present.

Soon, the group arrived at the makeshift prison. Dong Jin sat weakly on the bed.

The Feathered Forest Guard had already given him wound medicine, so though his injuries were severe, his life was not in danger.

"Lord Dong, tell us, who sent you to cause trouble?" Sang Hong asked coldly.

"No one sent me. I was just indignant that the Prefect was arrested by you without reason, so I came to demand an explanation," Dong Jin replied, secretly glancing at Zu An. It was hard to imagine such terrifying explosive power from someone with such delicate skin.

"We had just apprehended him when you arrived with your troops right after. How could that be such a coincidence?" Sang Hong scoffed. "Don't use constant observation of the city's movements as an excuse. Even if your spies were everywhere, you couldn't have reacted so quickly."

Dong Jin hesitated before replying, "It seems I was set up. Earlier, some subordinates reported what happened and said that the Prefect had sent someone to ask for my help. I didn't think much of it at the time, so I brought my men over."

"Which specific subordinates?" Xiao Jianren, who was nearby, asked, pulling out a small notebook to record the information.

"Zhang Yong, Wang Hu, Zhao Wei..." Dong Jin listed several names, then added, "They were the ones who committed suicide outside earlier. I didn't realize they were assassins sent by someone else. This time, I've been truly victimized."

Sang Hong sneered. "Are you pushing everything onto dead men, hoping there'll be no counter-evidence?"

"I'm really not lying!" Dong Jin immediately became flustered. But at the time, those few individuals had reported to him privately, and there were no other witnesses. Anxiously, he racked his brain for a way to clear his name, when suddenly his eyes lit up. "Wait, in that situation just now, those assassins clearly wanted to escalate things. If a real fight had broken out, I probably would have died too. Why would retainers I fostered want to kill me?"

"Besides, I'm just a county lieutenant; I don't have the means to support so many assassins."

Sang Hong and the others exchanged glances, then Xiao Jianren spoke: "Whether it's true or not, we will determine. Provide a detailed account of the family backgrounds, résumés, and social connections of those individuals you just mentioned, leaving no detail out."

"Yes, yes, yes," Dong Jin said, his arrogance completely gone, as he hastily recounted the information about those men.

Seeing that no further information could be extracted, Sang Hong and the others left first.

"What do you all think?" Sang Hong asked, frowning.

"Dong Jin probably isn't lying," Pei You said. "Only ancient aristocratic families with centuries of heritage have the resources to cultivate such assassins. I've seen Dong Jin's background; he comes from a humble family and couldn't possibly afford them."

As someone from a prominent aristocratic family of the Great Zhou Dynasty, he was qualified to make such a judgment.

"So who exactly is behind this?" Zu An also agreed with the assessment; a mere county lieutenant wouldn't have such extensive capabilities.

"Although the current situation is complex and chaotic, there's a principle that helps us see the true nature of events," Sang Hong began. "Whoever stands to gain the most from this incident is the primary suspect."

"Jian Taiding!" Zu An and Pei You exclaimed in unison.

"Exactly. Previously, the Prefectural Office and the Governor-General's Office were at odds, balancing each other out. Now that Zuo Su has fallen and a series of his trusted subordinates, including the county lieutenant, are implicated, Jian Taiding will soon dominate everything." Sang Hong's brows were furrowed with worry; he felt Jian Taiding had outmaneuvered him, yet he had no choice but to follow his lead.

After all, Zuo Su's collusion with the demon race was a grave matter.

"Something still feels off," Zu An said, frowning, though he couldn't pinpoint what it was.

Just then, Xiao Jianren emerged after taking the statements. Sang Hong said, "Lord Xiao, please take the trouble to investigate the backgrounds of those assassins and see if you can find any clues."

However, since they were called "assassins," their previous résumés and backgrounds were likely fake. They could only hope for some inadvertent flaws or oversights.

"Yes, sir!" Xiao Jianren was about to leave when Zu An called out to him:

"Earlier, I asked you to keep an eye on the Crown Prince of Qi's stronghold. Have you made any discoveries?"

"The Crown Prince of Qi has mostly kept to himself. Aside from occasional visits to the Pei family, he only goes to various shops to buy gifts for Miss Pei—food, clothes, everything."

"Has no one else visited him?"

"No."

"How often does he visit the Pei family?"

"Almost every day."

Seeing that Zu An had no more questions, Xiao Jianren clasped his hands and left to investigate the soldiers' backgrounds.

Pei You clicked his tongue. "I didn't expect the Crown Prince of Qi to be such a romantic! He goes to court my cousin almost every day."

"That's not right!" Zu An suddenly stood up. "Zhao Zhi, that guy, despite his arrogance and various flaws, is absolutely not the type to forget important matters for the sake of beauty."

"And Big Manman... *cough, cough*... even if he were truly infatuated, the King of Qi would never allow it. There's something wrong with the Pei family!"

"What's wrong?" Pei You was startled. Although Pei Shao's branch wasn't directly related to theirs, they were still part of the Pei family, and he worried they might have committed some terrible crime.

"I can't say for sure right now; we'll only know after an investigation." Zu An was already restless.

Pei You suggested, "How about I go with you? As a fellow member of the Pei family, they should give me some face."

"No need, it's easier if I go alone." What a joke. With Big Manman as his intimate informant, who else would he need?

"Very well, be careful on your way!" Sang Hong advised.

Zu An nodded and quickly disappeared into the night.

Sang Hong turned to Pei You and said, "Send more men to guard Zuo Su. Make sure he cannot communicate with anyone outside."

"Leave it to me! I'll guard him personally, ensuring not even a fly gets near him," Pei You replied, accepting the order and departing.

Soon, he arrived outside the prison cell and began to meditate, while also extending his qi to monitor every blade of grass and tree around him.

In the dead of night, Pei You suddenly opened his eyes, which gleamed with an eerie light.