Ink panel: Hunting the sun and surveying the sky from the bow.

Chapter 371: Seeing Huangfu Rou Again, the Secret of Ancient Times
In the Shanhaisi government office.

Huangfu Rou sat in front of a desk piled with documents and scrolls, handling government affairs meticulously.

"Sir Huangfu, there is a sergeant from the military department outside who calls himself Shen Qing and wants to see you. Do you want to see him?"

A servant in blue clothes reported softly at the door, with a hint of caution in his voice.

Upon hearing this, Huangfu Rou paused slightly with the pen in her hand, and a drop of ink accidentally splashed onto the rice paper, creating a blur of ink.

he came?
There was a flash of disbelief and surprise in her eyes, and then she quickly regained her usual composure: "Please ask him to come in, and don't neglect him."

"Yes, sir." The attendant took the order and left.

Huangfu Rou quickly straightened her clothes, stood up and stood by the window, looking at the figures hurrying through the courtyard, an inexplicable emotion welling up in her heart.

Soon, Shen Qing walked into the Weiwusi government office.

Led by the servant, they approached a small hut.

As soon as he opened the door and stepped into the house, he saw Huangfu Rou who had been waiting there.

The latter was wearing a beige official robe embroidered with mountain and river patterns, and had a graceful figure.

At this time, she had already prepared tea cups and placed them on the long table. When she saw Shen Qing coming in, she smiled and said, "Sir Shen, long time no see."

Huangfu Rou's voice is as gentle as jade, making people feel like they are in the spring breeze.

Shen Qing looked up and saw that there was a bit more maturity and stability between Huangfu Rou's brows.

The corners of his mouth rose unconsciously, he walked up slowly, and said with a smile: "It won't be long, just a few months."

Huangfu Rou was slightly stunned. Was it so short? She thought it had been a long time.

"sit down."

Shen Qing didn't hesitate and walked up to Huangfu Rou and sat opposite her. He waved his hand and the door behind him closed.

Huangfu Rou's eyes sparkled: "Has Lord Shen's cultivation improved again?"

"You have a very good eye." Shen Qing did not hide it. He pinched a small part of his little finger with his thumb and said, "I was lucky before and managed to break through a little bit. Just this little bit."

Huangfu Rou immediately laughed and said, "I'm afraid that this little bit of yours is beyond the reach of many people."

She could roughly see that Shen Qing had no stagnation when using his spiritual power, and he had clearly broken through to the Lingxu realm. This was not just a simple breakthrough, he was clearly higher than her.

Now what Shen Qing said also confirmed her judgment.

Seeing Shen Qing's rapid progress in cultivation in the blink of an eye, she did not feel jealous at all, but was very happy for him.

Such cultivation and talent are not too bad compared with those of the aristocratic families in Kyoto.

It's a good thing.

Huangfu Rou put away her smile, poured a cup of tea herself, pushed it in front of Shen Qing and said, "Is the pacification meeting over?"

"You know it all?"

Shen Qing took the tea, sniffed it, and took a sip.

Huangfu Rou also picked up a cup of tea and said, "I deal with all kinds of intelligence every day in the Mountain and River Division. How could I not know? You were chosen to join the Chaos Society this time because Xue Bai and Xue Zhao did it on purpose. Even our Division Master has secretly informed His Majesty of this matter."

Shen Qingyi was a little surprised. She didn't expect that there was such a thing behind this.

The Xue family has been targeting him time and again, really treating him like a persimmon.

Huangfu Rou said sincerely: "So, it's really not easy for you to get out smoothly this time. It's amazing."

"Just good luck."

Huangfu Rou knew that only one person from the pacification society was alive and was rewarded by His Majesty, so he entered the Kyoto Military Department.

Now it seems to be Shen Qing.

Although she looked calm on the surface, a huge wave had already been set off in her heart.

Their Shanhai Division had some strong men at the Yuanshen realm attending the pacification meeting, but in the end, they were defeated and no news was ever given.

It is unbelievable that Shen Qing could achieve this level all by himself.

Huangfu Rou put down her teacup and asked, "The Imperial Astronomical Observatory calculated that there was a spirit in Danzhou during the meeting to quell the rebellion. Have you seen it?"

Shen Qing nodded and said, "Yes, a relic from ancient times appeared, and many people died."

"It is true." Huangfu Rou muttered to herself, "It seems that those records from the ancient times are real, and a lot of the information I found is also true."

Shen Qing asked curiously: "Why? Is there any secret in ancient times?"

"There are quite a few." Huangfu Rou nodded and said, "After I entered the Shanhai Division, I mainly collected spiritual essences for the royal family and came into contact with many secrets. From the information collected so far, all the spiritual essences that appeared in the Great Zhou Kingdom are from ancient times. Including the fallen objects we found that time, they also originated from ancient times."

Shen Qing was surprised and said, "The ancient times cannot be verified, right? I remember that the records and heritage of that period have been lost, right?"

"Everything that was left behind must have traces. What happened in the ancient times was too long ago, so it is indeed difficult to verify, but the Shanhai Division has still found many clues from it."

Huangfu Rou said seriously, "Not long ago, a spiritual aura appeared near Jinzhou. We sent people to investigate and found an ancient cultivator who was sealed by a whole piece of spiritual ore. When he was born, it was said that one could hear his heartbeat, which was amazing. It's a pity that he was later taken away and eaten by a demon, so we couldn't do any further research."

Shen Qing was very surprised after hearing this. He said in a low voice: "In this case, there are probably many ancient cultivators alive today."

"Have you seen it too?" Huangfu Rou asked in surprise.

"Among the ruins that appeared in Danzhou City this time, there is a woman with amazing cultivation. I guess she must be a cultivator from ancient times." Shen Qing said worriedly.

The thing he was most worried about finally showed some signs of happening.

This world will most likely not be peaceful in the future.

Shen Qing took the porcelain pot, pressed down the lid and poured a cup of tea for Huangfu Rou, and also poured a cup for himself.

He put down the teapot, picked up the teacup and said, "Just now you said that you found an ancient monk being devoured by a demon in Jinzhou. Now I see demons everywhere in Da Zhou. Are these demons also related to the ancient times? Why doesn't the temple care much about this?"

"From the current perspective, there are records of demons in ancient times, so it is most likely related. As for the fact that the temple does not care much about demons, it is a bit complicated." Huangfu Rou revealed a barely perceptible fatigue between her brows.

"What do you mean?" Shen Qing asked.

Huangfu Rou sighed, "You know that the demon pills of demons are very beneficial to cultivators in terms of improving their cultivation, right?"

Shen Qing nodded and said, "That's true."

Ever since he killed the first tiger demon, he had obtained demon pills and improved his cultivation a lot because of them.

"Then do you know that His Majesty has become increasingly strict in restraining his military power over the past ten years?"

Shen Qing frowned, and he could tell there was something else behind Huangfu Rou's words.

He looked directly at Huangfu Rou and said, "I'd like to hear the details."

"I only found out about this after I entered the Shanhai Division." Huangfu Rou sorted out her thoughts and continued, "The so-called martial arts include martial arts-like skills, elixirs, wish beads, methods of advancement, and a series of other things related to martial arts. If a martial artist wants to practice, without martial arts, there will be no future at all if he only relies on his own training."

"After the royal family collected the martial arts, they did not simply store them. As far as I know, apart from martial arts, all other consumables were used by the royal family. There are even rumors that all the martial arts in the world are used to support one member of the royal family."

"Who?" "The ancestor of the Ji family."

Shen Qing felt as if he had touched upon a secret, and his eyes lit up.

"He wants to break through the unity realm, impact the sky, and become the only one here." Huangfu Rou said slowly.

It takes great courage to use all the resources in the world to achieve one's own goals.

After listening to this, Shen Qing felt shocked.

"Then what does this have to do with demons?" Shen Qing asked.

Huangfu Rou said: "You have to know that the Ji family's ancestor is not the only one in the world who has the ambition to make progress. The old monsters of the same generation as him in the aristocratic families are still alive. They also want to impact Tianzhi and gain a long lifespan."

"But the Ji family's ancestor alone blocked the way, so naturally these people set their sights on the demon pill."

"If the imperial court steps in to eliminate the demons, then the demon pills will naturally belong to the imperial court, which is something many officials in the court do not want to see. So they obstructed it in every possible way, and the establishment of the military guards in various places was reduced again and again."

Shen Qing was puzzled and asked, "So the temple just watched the demons wreak havoc?"

"How is that possible? In fact, the cities with demons in the world have almost been divided up by the people in the temple. The demons that appear there are secretly dealt with by the people of each family. A complicated underground operation has already been formed. It's just that we didn't know it before."

Huangfu Rou said with a gloomy look, "This time the Xue family targeted you and Yongzhou because they saw that there were many demons there and wanted to get involved. Do you know what they call this city after they take it?"

"what?"

"Vegetable city!" Huangfu Rou uttered a chilling word between her lips: "Take the whole city as a vegetable garden and harvest it every once in a while."

Shen Qing was shocked after listening to what Huangfu Rou said.

Until this moment, he had figured out many things that he had not been able to understand in the past.

Why are there so many demons, but Ji Zikong doesn’t kill them?

Why do we have to constantly consume martial artists? We would rather let them die than let them continue to practice.

……

Shen Qing looked down at the teacup in his hand, and after a while he said, "So there are some places where demons have never been eliminated. Is there someone raising a big pill?"

Huangfu Rou replied, "Yes. The higher the level of the demon's demon pill, the greater the effect it has on them."

"So, now Yongzhou and Taiping County are actually popular in the eyes of these people." Shen Qing looked up at Huangfu Rou and said calmly.

Huangfu Rou said nothing more and fell into silence.

Shen Qing picked up the cup and said, "Drink tea, it's cold."

After drinking a cup of tea, Shen Qing felt the astringency of the tea became more and more obvious.

Right now he has no power and is in the military department. If Huangfu Rou had not told him these things today, if he offended someone one day and was sent to the mouth of a big demon to become food, he would probably be kept in the dark and would never know the secret.

After all, the higher the level of a martial artist's cultivation, the more nourishing and attractive he is in the eyes of demons.

Huangfu Rou asked: "What are your plans next?"

"I don't know. Let's take a step and see."

Huangfu Rou pondered for a while and said, "According to the news I have received, Xue Zhao should be returning to the capital soon. With his vindictive style, he will not let you go. You'd better find a backer in Kyoto, so as not to be too passive and lose your life without knowing why."

Shen Qing said helplessly: "It's not that easy to find a strong supporter."

Lan Gongliang had helped him a lot before and had the qualifications to become a strong figure.

But he had no idea of ​​Lan Gongliang's intentions and did not dare to take any risks.

He was completely clueless about the rest in the capital, so it had nothing to do with him at all.

"Let's take one step at a time."

Shen Qing stood up and said, "I have drunk the tea and met the people. I will not delay Master Huangfu from handling his official business. I will go back first."

Huangfu Rou's eyes moved slightly, and then she stood up and said, "I'll see you off."

"Master Huangfu, please stay. There is still a long time to come, and you will have the opportunity to send me off in the future. You should take care of your official duties first and take care of yourself. Judging from your condition, you must have been worried and exhausted during this period."

"I live on Pingkang Street now. You can come and see me if you are free."

After saying that, Shen Qing waved his hand, turned around and was about to leave.

Huangfu Rou suddenly stopped him and said, "By the way, I found something interesting recently."

Shen Qing paused, turned around and asked, "What's the matter?"

"In ancient times, there was a supreme being of humanity. People called him the Green Emperor, which is the same as your name."

Shen Qing laughed dumbly and said, "Do you think I am the Green Emperor? Hahahaha... I didn't even know that I have lived for ten thousand years."

Huangfu Rou also laughed, and her body trembled.

"gone."

Shen Qing left straight away.

Huangfu Rou put away her smile and her mood suddenly became much brighter.

She sat back down at the long table, the smile on her face faded, and she immediately returned to her usual cold and frosty self.

……

The night passed by in a hurry.

On the second day, Shen Qing arrived at the Bingmasi Yamen at exactly the right time.

At this time, Wei Chengye had already arrived.

Shen Qing stepped forward, clasped his fists and said, "Sorry to have kept you waiting, Lord Wei."

"I just got here too." Wei Chengye led out two horses and said, "Come on, I'll take you to get familiar with Kyoto and the things you'll be responsible for next."

"it is good."

Shen Qing took the reins and climbed onto the horse.

The two walked side by side on the street.

Walking on the street, Wei Chengye introduced: "There are a total of 72 wards in Kyoto, and there are 20 of our people in each ward. The outer city and the capital area are divided into 91 wards and towns, and there are 30 to 40 people in each place."

"You are responsible for the fourteen neighborhoods in the southern section of the city gate, the sixteen towns and villages in the outer city, and the military affairs of the various cities in the southern area of ​​the Great Zhou."

Wei Chengye continued, "Generally speaking, you can leave most of the things here to your officers and patrolmen. If nothing major happens and we are not needed, it will be fine for you to focus on your cultivation."

Shen Qing felt that this was exactly what he wanted and understood what Wei Chengye said.

(End of this chapter)