No taboos

Chapter 513 Even jumping into the canal won't clear my name
Song Weiming also had informants in the Jiaozhi South Office of the Bureau of Purification.

Liu Hu, Princess Ruicheng's "informant," is an imposter, solely there to curry favor with the prince and, consequently, with Mr. Wenqi.

Xu Yuan's sparring match with the large, beautiful female martial artist from the Southern Bureau was secretly tipped off to His Highness by Liu Hu.

But Song Weiming, this informant, is actually a traitor.

Xu Yuan had already sensed it and was not surprised at all.

This is Luocheng, and the Jiaozhi Southern Government has six or seven hundred people; it's impossible for them to be a unified entity.

Xu Yuan, having worked hard all night, quietly returned to the yamen to rest through the back door.

Nothing much happened today.

When Gu Tongzhen is not "awakened", he is still Gu Tongzhen.

Everything about them is the same as always.

Urged by Song Weiming to return to Yingzuikou River Bridge, he was so sleepy that he kept yawning before noon. Even after drinking several cups of strong tea, he still had no energy.

"Damn Song Weiming, what's the point of all this nagging? He's practically begging me to give up."

"Nothing really happened all day, did it?"

Gu Tongzhen recalled the pleasures of last night. Hanyan was so tender, especially the way she tried so hard to please him even though she was already exhausted—Gu Tongzhen became more and more excited as he thought about it, and started planning to go back to the city tonight…

"You guys keep watch, I'm going to catch up on some sleep."

Let's get some rest and fight Snow Moon Tower again tonight!

Inside the yamen, Xu Yuan had rested enough to recharge. He took his men and bid farewell to Lord Ma Tianshou before setting off back to Champa in the afternoon.

As soon as they left the government office, someone quickly reported to Song Weiming.

Song Weiming's eyes gleamed: "Finally, the opportunity I've been waiting for has arrived!"

He immediately ordered his men to quickly inform Yingzuikou Heqiao and prepare accordingly.

He himself went straight to Tianrenju.

"Young Master, Xu Yuan has left the city!"

Murong Zunlong was overjoyed and laughed loudly, "Good! Let's send him on his way!"

The two groups met up.

But they did not leave the city together.

The two groups of people were too conspicuous when they were together.

After killing Xu Yuan, the Exorcism Division will definitely investigate.

Although they felt that the Exorcism Bureau couldn't ultimately do anything to them, it was still a nuisance, so they still had to cover it up.

Murong Zunlong followed Xu Yuan out through the east gate.

Song Weiming went around in circles and exited the city through the north gate.

Murong You and Jia Yuan, who were both suspicious, felt that this was a deliberate arrangement by Song Weiming.

Anyone with eyes could see that their young master was following Xu Yuan out of the city.

If anything happened to Xu Yuan, everyone would suspect the young master first, while Song Weiming distanced himself from the matter.

"What a treacherous scoundrel!" the two thought to themselves.

The two sides agreed to lie in ambush outside Eagle's Beak.

Yu Tani made the first move.

Once the "Sky Net" is cast and captures Xu Yuan, they will work together to kill him and his entourage.

Therefore, once they left the city, both sides moved at top speed, determined to get ahead of Xu Yuan.

……

In the southern office of Jiaozhi, Colonel Lei Zheyun had just returned from outside.

He had just secretly informed Song Weiming of Xu Yuan's departure.

Song Weiming's reward was a profound cultivation method.

Lei Zheyun was not greedy for money; his salary from the Exorcism Department was enough for him to support his family.

He was ambitious and wanted to stand out among the many officers in the Jiaozhi Southern Commandery.

This excellent cultivation method can help him.

But as soon as he entered the government office, he looked up and saw Xu Yuan.

Lei Zheyun was taken aback: "Lord Xu, you..."

Xu Yuan laughed and said, "Surprised? It's strange that I'm back again. Hehe, I never left at all."

Lei Zheyun sensed something was wrong and instinctively turned to leave—but Xiang Qinghuai and the others came out from behind him.

Xiang Qinghuai's face was cold. With a wave of his hand, the captains behind him rushed forward and seized Lei Zheyun.

He spat in his face: "You little bastard, you betrayed your own people, you're a real scoundrel!"

Xu Yuan shook his head and walked away with his hands behind his back.

Xu Yuan need not worry about Lei Zheyun's fate.

Xiang Qinghuai will make him disappear without a trace.

Having a traitor within one's own department is not something to be proud of, and no one wants it to become public knowledge.

Xu Yuan walked around the yamen a few times, and everyone could testify that Lord Xu had not left the city at all today.

……

Murong Zunlong and his group arrived at Eagle's Beak Pass first.

Today's operation required secrecy, so Murong Zunlong only brought Murong You and Jia Yuan with him.

The three found a secluded spot to hide.

He would occasionally look outside.

The river tower stood tall on the riverbank. Murong Zunlong looked at it and felt at ease.

Heqiao is situated on high ground, and anyone passing by on the official road along the river would inevitably be spotted by the lookouts above.

In this section, the river roared like an untamed beast, crashing against the steep banks, shattering white spray into pieces. The three were hiding very close to the river, where the sound of the water was deafening; they had to raise their voices to speak to each other, or they wouldn't be heard.

They did not realize that the river began to rise slowly after their arrival.

By the time they realized something was wrong, a huge wave suddenly surged up from the river, crashing onto the shore and swallowing the three of them.

"What kind of monster are you!" Murong Zunlong roared, showing no fear.

He revealed his dragon form, and was further empowered in the canal!
He thought it was evil spirits in the canal causing the trouble.

However, the giant wave only soaked Murong Zunlong completely, and then the waves receded, and the evil spirits that were stirring up trouble in the river did not attack him.

Murong Zunlong was puzzled, then suddenly realized something: Jia Yuan and Murong You were gone!
He rushed over to look and saw two figures struggling and tumbling in the rapids of the canal.

The two were swept into the river by the waves.

Murong Zunlong gritted his teeth, preparing to rush into the river to save people, but suddenly felt something strange about himself.

Deep in the river, the wrecked dragon is churning and stirring up trouble!
After dragging Jia Yuan and Murong You into the river, Pi Long quietly extended its tail from the cliff on the riverbank.

It looks like a tall lamppost with a bull horn lamp hanging on it!

Murong Zunlong looked at his hands in surprise.

Within the area illuminated by the lights, Murong Zunlong's already dragon-like body was degenerating.

The dragon claws have transformed back into human hands.

Murong Zunlong then realized that these hands were clearly not his own.

"what happened?!"

Murong Zunlong was alarmed. What kind of sorcery has this young master fallen under?
On the watchtower, Gu Tongzhen, who had been woken up in the middle of the night by Song Weiming's men, stood on the rooftop, still grumpy from being woken up, and looked around:
Xu Yuan has appeared!
"Spread the net!" he shouted.

The men were bewildered: Zhang Wang? The target hasn't appeared yet.

Gu Tongzhen pointed to the riverbank in the distance: "Xu Yuan has appeared!"

When his men went to check again, sure enough, "Xu Yuan" was standing there all alone on the riverbank.

He was holding out his hands, seemingly doing nothing.

The men were puzzled.

Not long ago, they clearly saw Murong Zunlong and his two companions lurking in that location.

How did it suddenly become "Xu Yuan"?

This was quite strange. While his men were still pondering, Gu Tongzhen impatiently shouted, "What are you all standing there for? Open the net!"

Since the centurion had said so, his men didn't think twice and immediately activated the "Sky-Catching Net".

Pilong has already retracted its tail.

However, the light from the ox-horn lamp did not dissipate.

The light shone on Pilong himself in the river.

Pi Long slowly transformed into the likeness of Murong Zunlong!
Moreover, it was Murong Zunlong's dragon form, which was incredibly lifelike!
Pi Long—now known as Murong Zunlong—showed his skills in the river and quickly pulled Murong You and Jia Yuan out of the water.

As soon as the three of them got ashore, before Jia Yuan and Murong You could ask any questions, Murong Zunlong went straight for the Sky-Catching Net!

The net has already trapped Xu Yuan.

The artifact was shrinking continuously, and "Xu Yuan" was struggling desperately.

Soon the entire net was gathered into a ball.

At this moment, Gu Tongzhen, who was controlling the "Sky-Catching Net" on the riverbank, activated another ability of this large artifact.

Thick poisonous fog billowed from the large net!
Then you can't see what's going on inside.

The Xuanhuang Dragon Blood between Murong Zunlong's eyebrows has already taken effect.

The morphing effect of the bull horn lamp has been ruined.

Pi Long, transformed into "Murong Zunlong," launched a fierce attack on the Sky-Catching Net!

Song Weiming arrived just then.

Seeing that the Sky-Catching Net had already been activated, he was taken aback: "Xu Yuan arrived so quickly?"

But the one who controls the Sky-Catching Net is Gu Tongzhen, whom he bribed.

The one launching a fierce attack on the Heavenly Net is Murong Zunlong, who is also his accomplice.

Song Weiming didn't have time to think too much and immediately followed suit.

Murong You and Jia Yuan, who were standing nearby, immediately shouted, "Xu Yuan is trapped in the net! Lord Song, kill him quickly!"

After the two of them shouted, Song Weiming no longer doubted whether the person trapped in the net was Xu Yuan.

He immediately unleashed his strongest move!
The third-rate Song Weiming joined the fray, initially struggling a few times in the net of capture, but soon fell silent.

Song Weiming was still not satisfied and hit him a few more times.

Murong Zunlong, who was beside him, seemed to have already confirmed that "Xu Yuan" was dead. Instead of finishing him off, he walked to the riverbank and suddenly jumped into the river.

thump!
Murong Zunlong jumped into the river, creating a splash, and then disappeared.

Song Weiming asked, puzzled, "Where is your young master going?"

Murong You and Jia Yuan were also confused: "Take a bath?"

Song Weiming shook his head: "You all wait here for your young master. I will go and have Gu Tongzhen untie the Heaven-Catching Net."

Xu Yuan's body cannot be left here. Song Weiming plans to throw the body into the mountains to create the illusion that Xu Yuan was killed by evil spirits in the mountains.

But after taking just one step, Song Weiming suddenly realized: "Where are Xu Yuan's men?"

In the heat of the moment, Song Weiming had no time to think.

Now it suddenly dawned on me: why are there no other corpses around here?
Xu Yuan left the city with a group of his men. Where did those men go?
Murong You and Jia Yuan were also stumped by the question.

They were pulled from the river by the young master and then followed him in a fierce attack on the Heavenly Net, having no time to think about anything else.

When Song Weiming asked that question, they also realized that something was wrong.

Thinking back, it's rather strange that they were swept into the river by that giant wave when the river suddenly swelled.

Both of them are quite skilled, so they shouldn't be swept away by a single wave.

And even if they fall into the water, they should be able to swim back up quickly.

At least Murong You, being a martial arts practitioner, was able to swim up on his own.

However, after the two fell into the water, there were always undercurrents surrounding them, constantly pulling them towards the bottom of the river!
Until the young master personally pulled them out.

A thick poisonous fog still shrouded the area outside the Sky-Catching Net. Song Weiming glanced at it and felt even more uneasy: this poisonous fog was an additional ability of the Sky-Catching Net.

However, the toxicity had no effect on a fourth-rate alchemist.

Why did Gu Tongzhen release the poisonous fog?

The more Song Weiming thought about it, the more uneasy he felt, so he immediately headed straight for Heqiao.

Murong You and Jia Yuan stood by the river, gazing into the water, hoping their young master would return.

Song Weiming rushed to the riverbank at top speed and shouted up, "Gu Tongzhen!"

Someone poked their head out from the top floor of Heqiao, but it wasn't Gu Tongzhen; it was one of his squad leaders.

"The centurion has just left."

Song Weiming angrily retorted, "Nonsense! The net to capture you is still in place..."

He realized he had made a big mistake before he could finish speaking!
He stormed straight into the river and rushed to the top floor.

Gu Tongzhen has truly vanished without a trace!
"When did he leave?!"

"It was...it was around the time you killed Xu Yuan," the captain stammered.

The commander also found it strange.

The centurion didn't put away the net to catch the sky, but instead abandoned everything without a word of explanation. He turned around, rushed downstairs, mounted his horse, hung up the calligraphy scroll, and galloped away, disappearing from sight!
"Ah—" Song Weiming roared, "Gu Tongzhen, I'll curse your ancestors for eighteen generations!"

Song Weiming thought he had been tricked by Gu Tongzhen.

But this whole thing is eerily strange!

Gu Tong really had no reason to do that...

He grabbed the flag.

The innocent flag was held in his hand like a little chick: "Who among you can put away the Sky-Catching Net?"

The captain shook his head: "Only the centurion can set the net, and only he can reel it in."

Song Weiming was furious. He tightened his grip, and the captain couldn't breathe, his face turning red from holding his breath.

Song Weiming suddenly thought, "Could it dispel the poisonous fog?"

The flag bearer said with difficulty, "This... is fine."

Song Weiming threw him down: "Hurry up and do it!"

The captain scrambled to disperse the poisonous fog from the net.

Song Weiming rushed downstairs again, and when he got to the Sky-Catching Net, his mind went blank and he swayed.

Where is Xu Yuan on the internet?

It's clearly Murong Zunlong!

Murong You and Jia Yuan also came over, and when they saw the corpse in the net, they were stunned!
At this moment, the drop of Xuanhuang Dragon Blood on Murong Zunlong's brow had detached and was trying to seep out of the Sky-Catching Net.

Having already given up on Murong Zunlong, it's unclear where he intends to escape to.

Murong You was the first to react, jumping up and pointing at Song Weiming, yelling, "You killed my young master!"

"I could tell from the beginning that you had ill intentions, but unfortunately, the young master was deceived by you..."

Jia Yuan grabbed Murong You, turned and ran without a word: "Let's go!"

"That guy surnamed Song wants to kill me to silence me!"

Murong You was also startled, and upon thinking about it, it was indeed true!
They quickly followed Jia Yuan and ran for their lives.

Jia Yuan's shout did indeed remind Song Weiming.

Quit your mouth!

Now the only option is to silence them!
Murong Zunlong was no ordinary person. He died here under mysterious circumstances, his body covered with wounds inflicted by himself!
The Murong family will not forgive themselves!

Even the canal administration might punish itself.

With his third-rate cultivation level, he could scare off many people, but could he scare off the Murong family? Song Weiming had no confidence.

After killing Murong You and Jia Yuan, and then slaughtering all the river soldiers in Heqiao, no one will know what really happened!
A fierce glint flashed in Song Weiming's eyes...

But in that instant, he quickly calmed down and had to admit that this time he was in a situation he couldn't clear his name even if he jumped into the canal.

Killing someone to cover it up can only delay things for a while.

Murong Zunlong still has a dozen or so servants in Luo City; they will realize something is wrong sooner or later.

Murong Zunlong's death was entirely related to himself.

Despite the many suspicious points, whoever handles this case will first and foremost be responsible for their own actions.

However, if she loses her "pregnancy" and offends the bigwigs of the General Administration, the Shanhe Division will not protect her.

All I can rely on is my third-rate skill level.

"Xu Yuan!" Song Weiming suddenly realized, "Only he has the motive to do this!"

However, he acted in secrecy, especially his conspiracy with Gu Tongzhen, which was known to only three people.

Song Weiming still couldn't understand it.

My head feels like it's going to explode!
"No, I have to run!" Song Weiming finally realized one thing: if he stayed to cooperate with the government investigation, he would at least be placed under house arrest.

He can only hope that the investigators will clear his name.

Song Weiming would not entrust his hope of survival to someone else.

Without further hesitation, he darted off into the distant mountains!
His subordinates looked bewildered: "Sir..."

Song Weiming no longer cared about them; he turned a deaf ear to their plight and focused solely on escaping for his life.

The subordinates exchanged glances, said nothing more, and each chose a direction to flee—their followers scattered when the tree fell.

Within the Heaven-Catching Net, a drop of Xuanhuang Dragon Blood finally seeped out, soaring into the air and drawing a straight red line a zhang high before plunging into the canal.

On the top of the Heqiao Tower, the flag bearer's mouth was agape, wide enough to fit a steamed bun, as he stared blankly at everything that was happening below.

He is the most perplexing person.

His river guards came to ask, "Sir, what should we do?"

The flag bearer snapped back to reality.

Looking down, I saw Murong Zunlong's corpse trapped in the Sky-Catching Net!
Without saying a word, the captain turned around, went downstairs, returned to his barracks, packed his belongings, and ran away.

Huangming can't stay here any longer. Head west to Siam and India!

Both captains quickly fled, leaving the watchtower with a full complement of one hundred river soldiers, though in reality there were only twenty.

They scattered in a panic.

……

Once everyone had left, Piron climbed out of the canal.

He was holding Gu Tongzhen in his claws.

After riding away on horseback, Gu Tongzhen went around to the upper reaches of the river and went down to the river.

Pilong was waiting for him in the water.

If someone were to follow the hoofprints in an attempt to find Gu Tongzhen, they would inevitably come up empty-handed.

Gu Tongzhen untied the Sky-Catching Net, and Pi Long dragged Murong Zunlong into the mountain silently.

……

Jia Yuan and Murong You returned to Luocheng as dusk approached.

Murong You kept shouting, "Report to the authorities! Report to the authorities as soon as we get back to the city..."

Once they entered the city, the two hesitated.

Jia Yuandao said, "Song Weiming is all-powerful in the Shanhe Division. Young Master has also offended Xu Yuan. Who should we report this to?"

Murong You was dumbfounded: "Then... what do we do?"

The means of secretly communicating with family members are all in the young master's hands.

In fact, no matter who they report the case to, even if it's the Shanhe Division, it's impossible for them to be secretly harmed in the yamen.

However, both of them were already very suspicious and refused to trust anyone.

"Leave Vietnam first!"

……

Xu Yuan waited in the Southern Bureau office, guessing that Jia Yuan and his group would probably choose to report to the Exorcism Bureau rather than the Mountain and River Bureau.

There was no news that night, and the next morning, the whole morning passed, but no one came.

Xu Yuan had only developed a "suspicion," but he never expected that the two of them would become so suspicious.

In the afternoon, instead of receiving a police report, I witnessed a significant increase in my Dragon Transformation Technique cultivation!

But it didn't rise to the third tier.

Murong Zunlong was only a fourth-rate person.

Moreover, Xu Yuan is now facing a problem: he doesn't have a cultivation method beyond the third rank!

There isn't even a method for ascending to the third rank using the "Dragon Transformation Method".

After Pi Long's cultivation level increased significantly this time, Xu Yuan had a vague feeling that the conditions for the "Dragon Transformation Technique" to be upgraded to the third rank were extremely strict!
Fortunately, the few artifacts that Lord Xu had temporarily entrusted to Murong Zunlong—the Mirror of Wisdom, the Bridge to the Underworld, and the cage—were finally returned to their rightful owners!
Xu Yuan then thought of Huang Shenying again and hurriedly opened the "Dream Come True" car door.

The yellow-bodied warbler poked its head out from inside first.

He looked around furtively.

It seems they are looking for Dafu.

Not seeing Dafu, he walked out with an arrogant air.

Xu Yuan was surprised: This bird's feathers have actually grown back!

Does this feature exist in the "Dream Come True" train carriage?
This is a godsend for bald people!

But Xu Yuan immediately thought of a problem: once it grows feathers and can fly, it might rebel against him!
Xu Yuan remained calm and waited for the yellow-bodied oriole to walk right into his trap.

Huang Shenying didn't see it at all; Dafu was right behind Lord Xu.

"Chirp chirp!" The yellow-bodied warbler shook its head and chirped twice, then flapped its wings and flew straight into the sky.

In an instant, it turned into a small yellow dot.

"Gah—" Dafu called out easily.

That tagalong finally left.

However, music suddenly started playing in the "Dreams Come True" carriage.

The carriage swayed, producing a melodious sound.

Then, a yellow dot appeared on the horizon, soaring through the air—it made a high-altitude circle, and then plunged back down!

Thumping...

The yellow-bodied warbler landed back in the carriage.

It's as if this carriage is now its birdcage!

Huang Shenying poked her head out of the carriage again, her eyes full of confusion: What's going on?

Undeterred, it took flight once more—

As the music began, the yellow-bodied warbler returned to its nest.

"Screech!" it cried out in anger. After trying more than ten times, it was completely exhausted and gave up.

The bird lay limp in front of the car door, not wanting to move at all.

Xu Yuan was astonished: Is this truly a case of one thing subduing another?
"Dreams come true" can make the yellow-bodied warbler grow new feathers, but it can also completely trap it.

But the next moment, Xu Yuan's eyes lit up, and he thought of another possibility:
"Dreams coming true" may not necessarily trap the yellow-bodied warbler.

What just happened could have been "Dream Come True" using its abilities to make the Yellow-bodied Warbler think it was flying, when in fact it wasn't flying at all!

This led the Yellow-bodied Warbler to realize that she couldn't escape!
This is a mental constraint for the Yellow-bodied Warbler.

Dafu didn't care about all that.

As long as this tagalong stops bothering me, everything will be fine.

In the evening, Mr. Lan came from Champa with a worried look on his face: "Lord Xu, His Highness asked me to urge you to finish your business."

"Go home quickly once you're done."

(End of this chapter)