Chapter 69: A Night Incursion, Delivering Oneself to the Door, Wasn't It You?

The night was as deep and black as thick ink.

As soon as Zhen Jie arrived, Chiliarch Fan had him accommodated in a spacious and imposing mansion within the town.

Over the dinner table, Chai He had chatted with him casually, mentioning that the current court situation could be described as intricate and convoluted.

The military governor forces in various regions acted independently and carved out their own territories, making it difficult to centralize military command.

Worse still, the stipends for the garrison soldiers were directly drawn and distributed by local military commissioners from the tax revenues they collected. Not only did this drastically reduce central treasury revenues, but it also placed a heavy burden on local finances.

Under such circumstances, generals everywhere naturally began devising ways to collect pay for ghost soldiers for personal gain.

Even if there were an upright official who refused to take a cut, and you didn't take a cut, how could the higher-ups take theirs?

Therefore, even though the Area Commander had never met him before, he still faintly displayed a sense of hostility toward him.

As for Senior Sister Shan, although she was the deputy commander of the Xuanwu Camp, she belonged to the Crown Prince's faction.

He had yet to meet this Crown Prince; whether he was a good person or harbored other motives was still hard to say...

"Here."

Just as Xia He approached the exterior of a massive mansion, the shrill screams of a woman and the playful laughter of a man drifted out from within.

With a brief observation, he knew that Zhen Jie was right inside.

Xia He hesitated somewhat.

Not only was Zhen Jie a noble Area Commander, but he was also a powerful martial artist who had reached the Bone-Tempering realm.

If he launched a surprise attack while the man was unprepared, could he kill him in one fell swoop? It was hard to say for certain.

If he truly succeeded in killing this Area Commander Lord, it would be equivalent to completely offending the military commissioner behind him.

Without a doubt, the military commissioner would inevitably launch a thorough investigation into the matter and was highly likely to lock his suspicion onto him.

Conversely, if he failed to secure the kill and let Zhen Jie escape by chance, would the man let the matter rest? Sooner or later, suspicion would still fall upon him, and at the mere thought of this, he would likely find it hard to sleep peacefully even at night.

In short, striking now carried immense risks.

However, Xia He quickly thought of a solution to the problem—he did not necessarily have to make a move personally.

Shan had arrived early before the start of spring, and her coming here this time was clearly far from being as simple as a so-called mountain selection.

Presumably, she had been privately entrusted by the Crown Prince to handle important matters here.

Recalling Shan Ling's careful inquiry into every detail of the events that had occurred in the town previously, Xia He grew increasingly convinced that her actions were definitely intended to unearth dirt on Chiliarch Fan and his associates.

That being the case, wouldn't things become much easier?

After all, Chiliarch Fan accumulating wealth was only one aspect.

The most crucial point was that in order to break through to the Viscera-Tempering realm, he had acquired the barbarian "Blood Fiend Skill" method, attempting to utilize the vital energy and blood of dead people to refine a kind of blood salt imbued with malevolent qi.

Yet the Area Commander and the military commissioner might not necessarily be unaware of this.

Compared to the lives of ordinary commoners, if a few more Viscera-Tempering martial artists could be produced, they would presumably be quite happy to see it happen.

Such a mad and inhuman act, once brought to light...

Xia He's scalp tingled.

"Forget it, let him live a few more days until I completely break through the Bone-Tempering realm."

At this thought, Xia He gripped the javelin in his hand and turned to leave.

...

Shan Xiong paced the street with a troubled mind.

It was his first time accompanying his elder sister out on official business, and he had originally been filled with excitement.

He was single-mindedly thinking of making a big splash so that his sister would hold him in higher regard.

However, things turned out contrary to his wishes; Shan Ling had secretly instructed him to quietly gather some intelligence, but for some reason, the people in this town seemed to deliberately avoid him.

After finally managing to catch a few suspicious fellows, the moment they caught sight of him, they reacted like mice encountering a cat, showing no resistance whatsoever and instead dropping to their knees in unison to beg for mercy.

Such a situation made Shan Xiong feel extremely stifled, much like punching with all his might only to strike a soft lump of cotton with nowhere to exert any force.

A whole day slipped by in a flurry of futile hustle and bustle for Shan Xiong.

With no other choice, he had to bite the bullet and head to the inn to report the situation truthfully to his sister.

Just as he reached the entrance of the inn, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a dark shadow flashing past, followed immediately by a dull thud, as if someone had leaped down from a high vantage point.

Thinking he was under attack, Shan Xiong tensed every muscle in his body and abruptly drew his saber.

"Who goes there!"

Yet just as the blade-light flashed, he noticed a muffled, indistinct whimpering sound coming from that dark shadow.

Only then did he realize that this person had actually been bound tightly and securely with ropes.

At the same time, Shan Ling heard the commotion outside and walked briskly out of her room.

With a quick glance and a subtle gesture from Shan Ling, Shan Xiong removed the rag stuffed in the captive's mouth.

"You... what do you want? I am one of Chiliarch Fan's men. Are you courting death!"

The brother and sister exchanged glances, staring at the terrified figure before them, momentarily looking at each other in bewilderment.

"You're one of Chiliarch Fan's men?"

He just delivered himself right to our doorstep, didn't he? You really are quite a nice person.

"Good, good, good."

Shan Xiong instantly beamed with joy, the dejection on his face vanishing entirely.

...

...

Early the next morning.

Xia He stretched lazily. Just as he stepped out the door, a figure appeared before his eyes—it was none other than Shan Ling!

A look of astonishment immediately surfaced on his face.

He hurriedly greeted her: "Senior Sister Shan, good morning! Why are you here?"

Staring intently at Xia He, Shan Ling walked straight up to him and grabbed his hand.

This sudden action caught Xia He off guard, but he quickly regained his composure. He heard Shan Ling say softly, "Junior Brother, I happened to be passing by and was afraid you might run into trouble with your martial arts practice, so I specifically came to check on you."

Hearing this, Xia He felt flattered.

He quickly replied, "Thank you for your concern, Senior Sister!"

But he immediately added, "Senior Sister, I am truly sorry, but I still have to go report for duty at the garrison office first. We can have a discussion after I return."

"No matter, go ahead."

Shan Ling nodded and did not try to stop him.

After Xia He turned and left, her previously calm expression furrowed slightly into a frown.

"Could it not be him?"

Shan Ling harbored doubts.

If Xia He had truly made a move in the middle of the night, it would inevitably have depleted his vital energy and blood.

The cultivation of vital energy and blood is extremely arduous; once expended in a fight, it usually requires careful nourishment with blood-replenishing soups for quite some time to gradually recover.

Yet upon initial contact just now, the vital energy and blood within his body were exceptionally vigorous, showing no signs of depletion whatsoever.

This left Shan Ling feeling thoroughly puzzled.

If it wasn't him, then who on earth was it?

Shan Ling let out a faint sigh.

"Forget it, whoever it is, I'll report what I found out last night to His Highness the Crown Prince first."

...

...

"That was too close. Senior Sister Shan is quite perceptive, isn't she?"

Seeing that Shan Ling wasn't following him, Xia He finally let out a breath of relief.

However, it seemed that the recent probing had successfully passed.

Shan Ling touching his hand was naturally not to take advantage of him; at that instant, he could feel a surge of vital energy and blood within his body, which should have been some special technique for probing vital energy and blood.