Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 521 The public is furious

The man slumped there, his voice weak, "If you let me go, everything is negotiable. If you kill me, a plague will break out, and many commoners and officials will be implicated. Even the high-ranking officials in the prefecture will probably be held accountable..."

If such a thing were to happen, all the officials in the prefecture would be guilty of dereliction of duty.

The man was confident that even if the governor were to appear in person, the governor would try to downplay the matter and resolve it peacefully, rather than trying to take his life like Lu Zheng had done.

Lu Zheng said calmly, "This is your arrangement? It seems you have grand ambitions. This shouldn't be something you could have accomplished alone, right? Who else is helping you? Is it the Chu people or...?"

The man raised an eyebrow upon hearing this, but simply grinned. Knowing that he couldn't fool Lu Zheng with his words, he remained silent.

The man said quietly, "Since you have cultivated to such a level, why bother with these worldly disputes? They have nothing to do with you."

Lu Zhengdao said, "I am a Confucian scholar, haven't you realized that yet?"

The man sighed, "I can see that you Confucian scholars and Taoists just like to meddle in other people's business, right? I admit defeat. You let me go, and I'll take them away... If we both back down, it'll be better for everyone."

Lu Zheng's eyes were cold. He would not make any concessions. These demons had harmed countless people. Should he let them go and cause harm elsewhere?
Lu Zheng turned his head slightly and sent a telepathic message to Qing Wan outside.

Soon, Qingwan brought Qingyi to the room.

Lu Zheng asked Qing Wan, "Where did you meet him?"

Upon hearing this, Qing Wan recounted in detail: "It was Qing Yi who discovered it in Cangjiang..."

Lu Zheng couldn't help but look at Qing Yi, thinking that even though this man was staying in his own cave, Qing Yi could still detect something was wrong. Her perception at the Tongxuan realm was truly remarkable.

Lu Zheng squatted down, smiled at Qingyi, and said, "I'll teach you a new spell. Can you help me capture some people?"

Qingyi nodded emphatically without hesitation.

Hearing this, the man next to him couldn't help but say, "Aren't you afraid of alerting them? Do you really think you can catch them all? If my descendants get sick and cause an epidemic, the responsibility will be entirely yours!"

Lu Zheng said calmly, "To stir up trouble? It would take for those little insects to react."

Lu Zheng still didn't believe that the monsters could receive the message faster than Qingyi could act.

Lu Zheng raised his hand and pressed down on the man, directly casting a spell to extract the man's bloodline.

The man was convulsing uncontrollably, and he cried out in shock and anger, "You, you can't do this... Do you know who I am?"

Lu Zheng's expression remained unchanged. "Even if you have a saint as your backer, you should be punished for doing evil."

Lu Zheng didn't care what background the man had. He dared to threaten him with the lives of so many people, so there was no reason for him to let this demon go.

A moment later, a blood-red bead appeared in Lu Zheng's hand.

The man lay on the ground, barely alive, feeling completely drained. He couldn't muster any strength, and couldn't even commit suicide in a desperate act.

Lu Zheng handed the blood bead to Qingyi and then began to instruct her, "Use this blood bead to cast another spell, and you'll be able to sense those hidden monsters more clearly and bring them all back..."

Lu Zheng also took out a map and made some plans, and gave Qingyi a letter, asking her to inform the state government office on her way.

Qingyi listened attentively and quickly learned the magic that Lu Zheng taught her.

After giving his instructions, Lu Zheng asked, "Do you understand everything?"

Qingyi nodded and said, "Yes!"

As a being at the Tongxuan Realm, Qingyi possesses strong memory and comprehension abilities. She may be simple-minded, but that doesn't mean she's not quick-witted.

Lu Zheng smiled and said, "Alright, go ahead."

As soon as she finished speaking, Qingyi vanished. Seeing that Lu Zheng had actually sent that little girl to capture the demon, the man couldn't help but ask, "What abilities does she have that you would send her?"

The man thought that Lu Zheng would be the one to catch the demon. Although he had been suppressed by Qing Yi before, he felt that this little girl had a childlike personality and could really get things done.
Of course, he actually hoped things would go wrong.

Lu Zheng said unhurriedly, "To be honest, she doesn't have any special skills in catching demons. It's just that her cultivation level is higher, making it easier for her to find demons than for me."

Lu Zheng paused, then said, "As a Transcendent Realm cultivator, I think she should be able to capture all your descendants, right?"

The man's expression changed drastically. With such strength, crushing him was no different than crushing an ant.

He wasn't easily subdued by Qingyi before, so it turns out she held back?
The man's face turned pale. With a Transcendent Realm expert making a move, none of his descendants would likely escape. There wouldn't even be time for them to react and trigger the plague.

If it were a cultivator at the fifth realm, the man wouldn't be too worried.

However, those who have reached the Sixth Realm of Profound Understanding are already at another level. If they were to get serious, they could probably search the entire state in less than a day.

He couldn't even hide in his cave at the bottom of the Cangjiang River, let alone his descendants.

Looking at the man with a vacant gaze, Lu Zheng said calmly, "Is there anything else you'd like to add?"

The man was speechless. Faced with absolute power, his threats and bargaining chips seemed ridiculous. What else could he say?
Seeing that the man had given up struggling, Lu Zheng instructed Qing Wan, "Stay with him, don't let him die."

Qingwan said, "With me here, he can't die even if he wants to!"

After saying that, Lu Zheng left the room and went outside.

The crowd was still waiting to see what would happen.

The county magistrate and the county constable stood there anxiously, feeling as if the sky had fallen.

Seeing the curious looks from the crowd, Lu Zheng explained, "That demon is indeed a menace, and it has many of its own kind. I have already sent someone to appeal to the prefectural government, and they will all be arrested and punished accordingly."

"thump……"

The county magistrate's body went limp and he collapsed.

The crowd of people turned their heads to look at this, their eyes filled with schadenfreude and disgust.

These officials already had a bad reputation, and the actions of the county magistrate and county commandant these days made them even more disgusted with them.

"Snapped!"

Someone in the crowd threw a bowl, which hit the county magistrate directly on the head.

This smash immediately triggered a chain reaction.

The crowd was immediately enraged, and they swarmed forward, surrounding the county magistrate and the county constable.

"You corrupt official! Give me back my child's life!"

"If it weren't for officials like you, there wouldn't be any plague..."

……

The people were furious. They denounced the two men and punched and kicked them to vent their anger and frustration.

The county magistrate and the county constable dared not resist and cowered on the ground, protecting their vital organs.

Despite the fact that these civilians were physically weak, they were martial artists with cultivation, and the two of them were beaten half to death and covered in injuries.

(End of this chapter)