Chapter 165 - 25 Targeted

Words : 1476 Updated : Sep 28th, 2025

Chapter 165: Chapter 25 TargetedFaced with such a situation, Zheng Mo actually felt a little suicidal. Getting involved in royal affairs could lead to the extermination of one’s entire family at the slightest misstep. If he died on the spot, maybe only he would die, and he could even dump the whole mess onto others. But now, not to mention the possible punishment for unfinished duties, if he actually did the job too well, if he really caught that Commandery Princess or Royal Lady, and she said something he shouldn’t know... ——Ah, I don’t want to die! Thinking of this, Zheng Mo was in great agony. Fortunately, the Provincial Governor had some humanity—he had transferred a group of Red Armored Guards and Demon-Warding Guards who were supposed to be nearby exterminating demons to reinforce the city’s defenses in Ming City, so that Zheng Mo wouldn’t die inexplicably like Shu Zheng before he could perform some meritorious deed. ——Someone’s got to live to take the blame after all. Zheng Mo complained inwardly but still appreciated that his superiors were willing to lend a hand. But the bad news came again—because of the disturbance in Hanging Fate Valley, an Evil Born Demon had escaped. The Red Armored Guards and Demon-Warding Guards were still stationed in the mountains nearby, clearing the demon miasma, and it would be at least twenty days before they could return to Ming City—by that time, the snow would almost be finished falling! In the end, Zheng Mo still had to face everything alone. Just when the city was unbearably empty, unrest began within Ming City itself. The town’s protector Grandmaster had been gone for too long, and even though most people had faith in Shu Zheng’s strength and didn’t believe he would die, this fact alone proved that he was currently in deep trouble and powerless to return to the city. The various forces previously suppressed by Shu Zheng started stirring, testing the waters in secret—they weren’t necessarily trying to challenge Da Chen’s authority, but they did want a piece of the pie during this rare opportunity. Especially the local gangs in Ming City, the big business owners had already started fighting in private. While Shu Zheng was present, he kept everyone in line, but now, they could redraw their territory and use the opportunity to eliminate some of the smaller forces or personal enemies they disliked. Those who had gone missing, the merchants who had suddenly disappeared—in Zheng Mo’s view, they were victims of these private conflicts. But such thoughts were too naive, for he soon received new information. ——People from the Heaven’s Will Demon Sect had already infiltrated Ming City! Even though he didn’t know what they were up to, just the fact that people from the Heaven’s Will Demon Sect had entered the city was enough to cause him great distress. Not to mention, Zheng Mo had recently received news from Da Chen’s Imperial Astronomical Bureau that Frost Calamity hadn’t ceased yet, and its aftermath had spread to the vicinity of Western Mountain. Even though it was only the aftermath, the might of heaven and earth upon people was a terrifying disaster. Soon, a massive blizzard capable of crushing many houses would descend upon Wild State. By that time, Zheng Mo would have to activate the Earth Vein Great Formation to protect the city’s inhabitants from disaster... but without Shu Zheng, no one was there to protect him, and he would have to contend with both the natural disaster and the possibility of a Demon Sect surprise attack! This was the predicament that Magistrate Zheng (title) currently faced. He was terrified, but now he had no other choice. Zheng Mo sighed deeply and frequently in the grand hall. A tiny Lotus Seed Drone was turning its camera around near a lantern. In the inn, An Jing thoughtfully took off the drone’s glasses, "It seems this City Magistrate is not a bad person; he probably isn’t targeting me." "Moreover, Frost Calamity has spread here? No wonder the City Magistrate is so anxious." Although it’s winter, Ming City’s situation was still relatively good, there was no snow accumulation within the city, and after several days of no snowfall, the streets were drying up. But this was merely the calm before the monstrous snowstorm, and no one knew better than An Jing what it meant when they said, "Even cities could be buried" under the overwhelming snow! Kanming City was still in relatively good shape, after all, there were Talisman Granting Officials to prevent disaster, and by the time the Frost Calamity’s power spread to the northwest, it was already at the end of its rope, likely to last only another ten days to half a month. As long as people could withstand the storm, there wouldn’t be too many casualties. However, when combating the forces of nature, if someone were to launch a sneak attack... the dead would not just be Magistrate Zheng alone, but tens of hundreds of thousands of Kanming City’s people! This was precisely why Zheng Mo was under such immense pressure and why he was deeply concerned about the Demon Sect and demons, not to mention, he also had the task of searching for the one with "Mysterious Pupil Golden Eye". "I don’t think it’s the Demon Sect; the people from the Demon Sect don’t operate like this." After retracting the Lotus Platform drone and pondering for a while, An Jing shook his head and said to the Sword Spirit in his mind, "Shu Zheng is from the Demon Sect. If we have to say, from the beginning, the Heaven’s Will Demon Sect has already been in the city; there’s simply no need for them to sneak in." "Moreover, the news of Shu Zheng’s death should have already spread throughout the Demon Sect by now. In addition, with Hanging Fate Manor wiped out and many hands around it falling at the hands of the Evil Born Demon, the members of the Heaven’s Will Demon Sect should now be tucking their tails, shrinking back into their lair." "So..." Subdue Evil pondered, "Did someone deceive this City Magistrate?" "Yes. But that doesn’t mean all the information is false; after all, nine truths mixed with one lie are the most deceiving." An Jing pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "The fact that Kanming City is becoming increasingly chaotic is true, and that someone has infiltrated the city is absolutely no falsehood." "However, considering this place is practically the Demon Sect’s headquarters, even if the Demon Sect wanted to eat the grass on its own turf, they would not make such a big commotion." "I suspect that someone is creating momentum ahead of time, intending to pin the blame for what follows onto the Demon Sect." "After all, it’s the Demon Sect; they are naturally the ones to be splashed with mud and carry the blame." "Moreover, these people are also exploring the Earth Veins and have found their way to Granny Huai’s doorstep... yeah, everything makes sense now." Although he didn’t yet understand why they were doing this, An Jing was sure that whatever these people were up to was something significant. If they had found their way to an Earth Pulse Node, could it still be a minor matter? However, even if their influence had permeated the Da Chen government, they were ultimately not the government itself. With this in mind, An Jing felt much relieved; even if the enemy had likely seized control of half the Patrol and Arrest Division, he remained unconcerned. Unless a Talisman Granting Official activates the Great Formation of Earth Veins, could he not fight or escape? "What we need to do next is to catch the traces of those hiding in the shadows and then figure out their real plans." Having determined his course of action, An Jing planned to start tracking from the next day. But who would have thought, without the need for him to search, those ’hidden in the shadows’ would jump out right in front of his eyes. "What does this mean?" The next morning, as An Jing left the inn, ready to take action, he was blocked at the door by two constables. An Jing stared at the ’Temporary Residence Registration Certificate’ in front of him with a deeply furrowed brow: "Are you serious?" "Could it be fake?" The two constables stood with their hands behind their backs, sneering, "Not only do you have to write it today, but you’ll have to write it every day in the future!" "What are you standing there for, hurry up and sign it once you’re done! As long as you’re in the city for a day, you have to fill out this document every single day!" "Dust Li’s bumpkin, you really think Da Chen is as unruly as your backwater places?"

Chapter 165 - 25 Targeted

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