Chapter 1678: Suspicion

Zu An had previously obtained the "Records of Books" given by Lu Sheng in the secret realm, which gave him a natural premonition of danger.

Just now, a series of images flashed through his mind. He quickly dodged sideways, simultaneously activating the Primordial Chaos Scripture at full power to protect his entire body.

However, the opponent's witchcraft was too sinister; it could not be evaded by mere physical dodging.

As the scarecrow's right arm was torn off, Zu An felt a mysterious force envelop his shoulder. His entire arm was wracked with a tearing pain, his skin splitting open and blood gushing out.

Fortunately, his body had been tempered through several rounds of Primordial Chaos Qi, making it incredibly resilient. This prevented the witchcraft from severing his arm immediately.

He then swiftly activated the Primordial Chaos Scripture to heal his injured arm, and the wounds on it began to close at a visible rate.

Yet, the sinister force did not dissipate; it continued to tear at the muscles in his arm.

The continuous cycle of tearing, healing, and re-tearing made even Zu An, with his strong will, gasp. The pain wasn't necessarily the main issue; the critical problem was that if this sinister force didn't subside, his body would eventually give out.

Suddenly, an idea struck him. He immediately activated the Gluttonous Devouring Art, and a black hole seemed to appear at his shoulder. Gradually, the sinister forces were absorbed into it.

The rate at which his shoulder wound deteriorated visibly slowed, and soon, the flesh began to close back together.

Zhang Xie, standing opposite, looked utterly bewildered. The scene before him completely defied his understanding. How could anyone be unharmed after being struck by his witchcraft?

A hint of fear flashed in his heart, and he was no longer as calm as before. Abandoning his cat-and-mouse approach, he twisted the scarecrow's head directly, intending to take the opponent's life instantly.

Zu An felt a pain in his neck, but by now, he had already figured out the opponent's strategy. He had already activated the Gluttonous Devouring Art throughout his body, absorbing all the strange forces.

"How is this possible!" Zhang Xie almost collapsed upon seeing Zu An completely unharmed.

He bit the tip of his tongue, spitting out a mouthful of blood, and began murmuring strange syllables. Black patterns started to emerge across his entire face.

The atmosphere in the room instantly became extremely eerie, as if something terrifying and grotesque was about to be summoned.

Zu An dared not take any more chances. The opponent's witchcraft was far too sinister; who knew if he could handle whatever was summoned this time.

So, he spoke directly: "What are you looking at?"

Zhang Xie paused, then instinctively retorted, "What's it to you?"

With that interruption, his summoning ritual was slightly disrupted, and a brilliant sword light met him.

"I regret it so much, truly. Why did I even reply to him? I still had my most powerful move left unused. This is so unfair!" This was Zhang Xie's last thought before he died. His intense reluctance kept his eyes from closing even after he had drawn his last breath.

With his death, the eerie atmosphere in the room gradually faded, and even the terrifying and powerful aura dissipated. Zu An wiped away cold sweat, thinking to himself that these sorcerous methods were truly unpredictable and had nearly caused him to fail.

He woke the unconscious individuals in the room. Xiao Jianren and the others, upon learning that Zhang Xie, the culprit, had been executed, collectively breathed a sigh of relief. However, their spirits soon sank again upon realizing that their comrades had died in battle.

It was an inevitable reality of their profession; they never knew when it would be their turn.

At this point, Zu An said, "Ensure both of them receive a grand burial and generous compensation for their families. Additionally, I will submit a memorial to secure them spots in the Hall of Honor."

"Your Excellency is most righteous!" Xiao Jianren and the others were visibly uplifted. The Hall of Honor was considered the highest posthumous honor for Embroidered Uniform Envoys. Many envoys died each year, but only a select few were granted entry into the Hall of Honor.

It not only recognized their merits but also guaranteed prosperity for their families for at least three generations.

Zu An glanced at Zhang Zitong, who was standing nearby, and continued, "In the case of Zhang Xie, it was thanks to Zhang Zitong's denouncement and her cooperation in setting up the trap that we were able to bring the culprit to justice."

Zhang Zitong was startled and looked at him with a complicated expression.

Xiao Jianren and the others were momentarily surprised, but as seasoned officials, they quickly understood that Zu An intended to protect her, and naturally offered no objections.

The room was too gruesome, so Xiao Jianren and the others handled the aftermath, while Zu An led Zhang Zitong to another room.

"Don't think I'll be grateful to you," Zhang Zitong finally said after a long silence. "Your actions merely ensure I can no longer remain in my previous faction, and you also intended to draw out other threats."

In truth, there wasn't much affection between her and Zhang Xie, and it was only today that she first learned of his involvement with her father.

Furthermore, Zhang Xie had just tried to silence her, so his death was of little consequence to her.

However, she couldn't understand why Lord Eleven had spared her. After much thought, this was the only reason she could come up with.

Zu An said indifferently, "Otherwise, what other intentions do you think I have?"

Zhang Zitong's face paled. *Right, what am I getting so self-important about?*

Then Zu An spoke, "Since you've already 'died' once, cherish this life and live anew. After all, the injustice suffered by your parents has not yet been cleared."

"Moreover, Tao Qing and Yan Ke were your colleagues. If you commit suicide now, would you be worthy of their sacrifice?"

Zhang Zitong's expression shifted between conflicted and resigned. After a long moment, she nodded and said, "Alright!"

Only then did Zu An breathe a sigh of relief. Besides the aforementioned reason, he had kept the woman alive because of her connection to the former dynasty's imperial grandson, seeing her as a potential strategic pawn. After all, they were enemies of Zhao Hao, and she might prove useful someday.

After settling matters there, Zu An went directly to the Easy City Lord's Residence and found Governor Liao Ling, giving him a general account of Zhang Xie's case.

In the entire officialdom of Easy Commandery, there was almost no one he dared to trust, but Liao Ling was an exception. Anyone capable of cultivating such pure Vast and Righteous Sword Qi must possess upright character.

Liao Ling was astonished upon learning Zhang Xie's true identity, instinctively disbelieving the conclusion.

However, with Zu An presenting both human witnesses and physical evidence, Liao Ling began to waver.

Zu An then instructed him to maintain control over the entire Easy Commandery, to prevent Zhang Xie's confidantes from acting desperately and causing unrest.

As for why he didn't let Prince Yan's faction handle it, it was out of fear that they might seize the opportunity to purge dissidents, which would completely destabilize the balance of power in Easy Commandery.

Liao Ling understood this reasoning. Although he still harbored some doubts about Zhang Xie, he agreed to help control the situation first.

After making all these arrangements, Zu An found an open space to summon the emperor.

However, perhaps due to previous occasions, he called out several times, but the emperor did not respond.

Yet, Zu An did not give up and continued to call out.

After a while, an impatient voice finally resounded from the golden token: "If there isn't a valid reason this time, I shall hold you accountable!"

Rage points from Zhao Hao +233, +233, +233...

Clearly, being summoned like a monkey these past few times was quite vexing. This time, he hadn't even projected his divine consciousness, only his voice.

He mused that the next time he saw this fellow, he would definitely revoke his right to summon him.

Zu An then gave a general account of what had just happened.

"Zhang Xie, a sorcerer?" Zhao Hao's voice revealed surprise, clearly realizing this was no trivial matter. He no longer bothered to reprimand Zu An for summoning him. After a moment, he asked in a deep voice, "What was his motive?"

Evidently, he did not lightly believe Zu An but was curious as to why a high-ranking official like Zhang Xie would take such an enormous risk.

"I don't know the specifics, only that there should be a mysterious force behind him." Zu An did not report anything concerning the former dynasty's imperial princes and grandsons.

Zhang Xie had told him those things partly to buy time to successfully allow the sorcerer to possess him, and partly with malicious intent. He knew that after Zu An learned such imperial secrets, the emperor would never tolerate him and would eventually settle accounts.

Thus, he naturally wouldn't be foolish enough to reveal everything.

"Mysterious force..." Zhao Hao fell silent, seemingly contemplating something.

Seeing his long silence, Zu An even thought he had already left.

Just then, Zhao Hao suddenly spoke, his voice full of suspicion: "Zhang Xie himself was a Grandmaster, and since he also had sorcerous abilities, how could he have been killed by you?"