23 Chapter 23: Lifeless Sect

Outside Liang Sheng's Mansion!

Eventually, the two people hiding in the corner still did not choose to take action. One of them sighed and then spoke.

"Forget it, the master of this house has been kind to me, and I always pay my debts. Besides, his poor strength is of no importance to us. Let's just let him go."

The man who spoke had a determined look in his eyes. Seeing his determination, and thinking about the rumors in the city, the other person decided to do him a favor.

"Alright! We are in the city this time because of your favor, but you surely won't let go of the other people in the Liang family, will you?"

The man's eyes flashed with cruelty. "I have long since left the Liang family, and I, Hongzhi, have already joined Buddha's teachings."

Turns out, the man was Liang Qi from the Liang family, who went by the name Hongzhi after converting to Buddhism at Jinshan Temple. Unbeknownst to everyone, he had secretly come to Jinzhou City.

Afterwards, he quickly drew an obscure emblem at the bottom corner of the mansion's main gate. Once the others saw it, they would not enter the mansion.

Then, the two men hurriedly disappeared into the night, just around the corner. Liang Sheng was completely unaware of their presence.

At the same time when Liang Sheng was carefully hiding, Jinzhou City's County Government Office was also facing troubled times.

At this moment, County Lord Xia Zhiqiu was sitting in the main seat, with Liang Ying and Wu Chang on either side. Liang Ying's face was rosy, and he looked full of pride, while Wu Chang looked somewhat aged.

After all, Wu Chang was already seventy years old. He looked at the youthful Liang Ying and couldn't help feeling helpless, wondering why the Wu family did not have such outstanding descendants.

Of course, the Wu family also had many younger generations at the Postnatal Sixth Realm, but they were trapped by bottlenecks and could not break through to the High-Level Martial Arts Superior State.

The road to cultivation is so difficult!

Liang Ying did not know what Wu Chang was thinking. At this moment, he looked at Xia Zhiqiu and Wu Chang, who were both silent. Of the three people present, he was the youngest, and he finally couldn't help himself.

"County Lord, Father-in-law, we have mobilized a large number of people to search for the murderer in the past few days. We have almost turned Jinzhou City upside down, but still have not found the murderer.

From this, we can see that there is only one reason: the murderer's strength is extremely strong, at least a high-level martial artist or the results wouldn't be like this."

Xia Zhiqiu and Wu Chang listened without speaking, just looking at Liang Ying and gesturing for him to continue.

They could, of course, think of these things, but the problem was what to do next. Liang Ying was blunt, suddenly standing up and taking out a few teacups on the tea table.

"I remember that after the massacre outside the city, the first person who died in the city was a Dianshi, the second day it was the secretary, and the third day... "

As Liang Ying listed the victims one by one, the expressions on Xia Zhiqiu and Wu Chang's faces became more and more serious.

"But the day before yesterday and yesterday, the deceased were managers of both the Liang family area - Liang Chuan, and the Wu family area - Wu Lei, which means there is a pattern."

Xia Zhiqiu had a vague idea of what Liang Ying was thinking, and he couldn't help standing up and walking over to Liang Ying, with Wu Chang doing the same.

"Looking at the trajectory of the crimes, the first target was the Dianshi in charge of the county government warehouse, then the secretary responsible for dispatching documents, and finally the managers of the outer areas of both the Liang and Wu families. And, these all have to do with money and goods."

As the Dianshi was in charge of the county government warehouse, and the secretary was responsible for the accounts, both the Liang and Wu family managers had control over a large amount of wealth.

At this moment, Liang Ying spoke with great conviction, "Furthermore, the Bai Chen and Chen families, the biggest grain merchants in our city, were wiped out outside the city. These people have a clear goal; it's not just about obtaining wealth. Have you noticed that the prices of food and grain have soared dramatically in the city in the past few days?"

Upon hearing this, Xia Zhiqiu was shaken and suddenly slapped on the table, "These thieves have a huge appetite!"

If Liang Ying's speculation was correct, the culprits' goals were definitely more than just robbery and murder. It might be a premeditated action.

At this moment, they finally had a direction. A sharp flash passed through the eyes of the three of them. However, Xia Zhiqiu felt that something was amiss.

"If they first planned to supply the city, they have completed this task now. If I were the thief, then next ..."

Xia Zhiqiu lowered his head to think. At this time, Liang Ying and Wu Chang were also thinking about what they would do if they were the other party. However, there were too many possibilities.

Just then, Zheng Wanchun suddenly rushed in without knocking, his face slightly anxious, and glanced at Liang Ying.

"Master, the city is on fire."

Huh?

When Xia Zhiqiu and the other two heard this, they immediately left the room and saw that the eastern part of the city was as bright as day, with flames reaching the sky, thick smoke rolling, and faint cries audible.

Liang Ying's face couldn't help but change since the east of the city was where the Liang Family's camp was located. Not having time to greet them, he directly left and headed east.

At first, Wu Chang was shocked, then relieved that it wasn't the Wu Family's area. But at this moment, Xia Zhiqiu's voice came with a hint of gloom.

"The Liang Family Ancestor should be at the Liang Family's main residence in the east of the city. If the thief sets fire to the city, the Liang Family Ancestor shouldn't let them escape, right?"

With that, Xia Zhiqiu looked at Zheng Wanchun, and the Jinzhou City Head with a cultivation level of the Post-Natal "Eighth" Level had a difficult expression on his face.

"Reporting to the County Lord, we didn't catch anyone. By the time the Liang Family Ancestor appeared, the thieves had long disappeared!"

"Then why didn't you say anything earlier?"

Xia Zhiqiu's face couldn't help but change upon hearing this. The reason the Liang Family could stand firm in Jinzhou City was because of the stabilizer provided by the Liang Family Ancestor.

But now that the Liang Family Ancestor didn't catch the thieves, they had to reassess the thief's strength!

At this moment, Zheng Wanchun glanced at Wu Chang, hesitating in his expression. When Wu Chang saw this, he immediately excused himself and left.

After all, he was also worried in his heart. Since the thief could set fire to the Liang Family area, why couldn't they do the same to the Wu Family?

When Wu Chang left, and only two people remained in the room, Zheng Wanchun cautiously said, "Actually, during my patrol in the east, I encountered a few black-clothed men. They fled at the first opportunity, and I couldn't catch up.

However, I managed to grab one of them by the sleeve and saw a white lotus mark on his left arm."

As he spoke, Zheng Wanchun took out a torn black sleeve. Xia Zhiqiu took only one look, and his face turned extremely ugly.

"The Lifeless Sect!"

Zheng Wanchun nodded, as he had the same thought. Xia Zhiqiu took a deep breath, patted Zheng Wanchun on the shoulder, and said it was indeed not appropriate to speak up just now.

They couldn't let the Liang and Wu Families know that the Lifeless Sect was the hidden hand behind this; otherwise, they might flee overnight.

After all, the Dayan Dynasty had been hunting the Lifeless Sect for hundreds of years, but they still existed, and countless families had been destroyed by them.

"No wonder the Liang Family Ancestor couldn't catch the thieves; if it's the Lifeless Sect, it makes sense."

With an increasingly worried expression on his face, Zheng Wanchun looked at Xia Zhiqiu and hesitated but didn't speak. Xia Zhiqiu thought for a moment and said:

"You don't have to worry too much. Dealing with the Lifeless Sect cannot be done conventionally. Send a trusted confidant to the provincial capital immediately and report that the Lifeless Sect is causing chaos in Jinzhou City!"

Upon hearing this, Zheng Wanchun's eyes flashed with surprise and joy.

Xia Zhiqiu smiled without speaking!