Wild cultivation begins with wielding the Taiyin talisman.

Ning Che smiled as Zhao Bantou finished speaking.

"identity?"

He raised his left hand, pointed to Zhao He behind him, and then to Lin Ye and Zhong Hongyao.

"What are our identities?"

Zhao Bantou said coldly, "The mountain guard."

"What do the mountain guardians do?"

"Guard the mountain and protect the people."

"Then what's wrong with me protecting the people?"

Zhao, the squad leader, narrowed his eyes: "Squad leader, stop trying to twist the facts. The mountain camp isn't a weapon you can use to suppress the powerful families in the city."

Ning Che nodded: "That's well said."

He turned and looked at Shi Bingzhu standing at the entrance of the Shi family's house.

"Chief Shi, you are a direct descendant of the Shi family, so you know better than I do whether the Shi family has been able to establish itself in Feihu City for a century based on the reputation of our ancestors who practiced medicine and helped the needy, or on the sordid deeds of stealing prescriptions, seizing medicinal fields, cultivating miasma, and harming lives?"

Without hesitation, Shi Bingzhu answered in a loud voice, "Naturally, the former."

Before he could reply, Ning Che took another step forward and handed him Shi Mingxin's portrait with both hands:

"Shi Mingxin is a member of your Shi family. For six years, he used the name of the Shi family to forcibly collect Baijie Grass, harming the people of Caixia Village and seventeen mountain guards. The people will hold the Shi family accountable for this, not just a dead man like him."

Today you're protecting your master's family by keeping the mansion closed and refusing to investigate, but tomorrow the entire city of Feihu will be saying that the entire Shi family are scoundrels who collude with demons and disregard human life. At that point, the Shi family's century-old reputation will be completely ruined.

Shi Bingzhu took the portrait and looked down at the iron mace beside him.

"You're talking nonsense!" The Shi family steward panicked instantly, roaring angrily, "Shi Bingzhu, don't listen to his instigation! He just wants to destroy the Shi family!"

"It wasn't him who destroyed the Shi family, it was you!"

Shi Bingzhu suddenly spoke, slamming his iron mace heavily onto the ground, causing a thin crack to appear in the stone slab. He took a step forward, blocking Ning Che's path, his gaze fixed on the steward, his anger almost overflowing.

The steward's face tightened, and he stumbled back three steps, asking in a trembling voice, "What...what are you going to do?"

Ning Che finally looked at Zhao, whose face was ashen: "Zhao, now you see. It's not that I'm using the name of the mountain guard to pressure the Shi family; it's that the Shi family members themselves have all admitted to this. There are traitors within the Shi family who collude with demons and harm their comrades. Tell me, shouldn't the mountain guards do something about it?"

Zhao Bantou's lips moved, but he ultimately didn't utter a single word.

Ning Che didn't give him a chance to catch his breath, taking another step forward to meet his gaze.

Zhao Bantou was originally a seventh-rank cultivator with considerable strength, but now, facing the young man's gaze, he couldn't help but look away, and his palms were already sweating.

Upon seeing this, Shi Bingzhu immediately turned around, bowed to Yu Congrong, and said in a loud voice, "Commander Yu! On behalf of the Shi family clan, I humbly request that the Mountain Guard Camp come to the city to investigate! Any Shi family members involved in the rat swamp case or the case of harming the people shall be dealt with by the Mountain Guard Camp according to regulations, and I have no objection whatsoever!"

Upon hearing this, the surrounding crowd erupted in thunderous cheers.

After a long silence, Yu Congrong finally spoke: "Granted."

"Shi Bingzhu, you take men and guard the four gates of the Shi family mansion. No one is allowed to enter or leave without permission. Anyone who resists should be apprehended and questioned."

"Xing, take my order to the City Lord's Mansion to report. You will be in charge of thoroughly investigating this case. Can you handle this?"

"I can," Ning Che replied readily.

She paused, her gaze sweeping over the slumped supervisor and the deathly pale-faced Foreman Zhao, before adding:

"Anyone who dares to obstruct the investigation or destroy evidence today, regardless of whether they are from a noble family or are an officer in the camp, will be treated as colluding with demons and harming their comrades, and will be executed without mercy."

"Yes!" Shi Bingzhu immediately clasped his hands in acceptance of the order.

Ning Che looked at Song Changgeng sitting on the stone steps, strode over, then bent down, his voice softening:

"Mr. Song, look, I'll go right now to seek justice for Chen Mu and for all those who died unjustly."

At the same time, Shi Bingzhu pushed back.

The vermilion gate suddenly swung open halfway.

The guards behind the gate retreated in unison.

A corner of the Shi family mansion was revealed.

Behind the screen wall stood an old man.

White hair, black clothes, leaning on a cane.

He didn't come out, but looked out the door.

Ning Che recognized him; he was Shi Chongshan, the head of the Shi family.

The street fell silent instantly.

Shi Chongshan's gaze swept over everyone and landed on Shi Bingzhu first.

"Bearing a candle, are you going to tear the house down?"

Shi Bingzhu said, "I'm afraid it will rot inside."

Shi Chongshan remained silent for a moment, then looked at Ning Che.

"You are a star?"

Ning Che replied, "Yes."

Shi Chongshan nodded: "With a missing arm, you still dare to come to the Shi family's door to demand justice? Good, young man, you have guts."

Ning Che said, "Courage is nothing. If the Shi family were clean, even if I had a hundred or ten thousand times the courage, I wouldn't dare to come here."

Shi Chongshan's face remained unchanged.

"Shi Mingxuan has made a mistake, and the Shi family will punish him."

"What should the punishment be?"

"A three-year house arrest, and compensation for the medical expenses of the free clinic."

The crowd immediately stirred.

Lin Ye sneered: "Using a patient's life to set up a scheme, you just put him under house arrest? If I beat him up, does that mean I only need to pay for his medicine?"

Shi Chongshan didn't look at the forest.

He continued, "The Shi family will investigate Shi Mingxin's matter."

Ning Che asked, "Where are they?"

Shi Chongshan said, "I left the city three days ago."

"Who put it there?"

Shi Chongshan remained silent.

Ning Che turned to look at Zhao, the squad leader: "Zhao, aren't you the one who knows the rules best?"

Zhao, the squad leader, explained, "Shi Mingxin was indeed registered in the camp before. He said he had an emergency at home, and his subordinates let him pass according to procedure."

Ning Che said, "Someone involved in the Rat Swamp draft bill just happened to leave the city before I returned to the mountain."

He looked at Zhao Bantou.

"Is this also standard procedure?"

Zhao, the squad leader, gritted his teeth: "I didn't know he was involved in the case at the time."

Ning Che smiled.

"You don't know about the swamp rotation."

"You don't know about the herb 'Hundred-Cure Grass'?"

"You don't know Shi Mingxin."

"You didn't even know the official register had been altered."

He took a step forward.

"Zhao, are you the mountain guardian, or the blind man?"

Someone in the crowd couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Zhao Bantou's face turned ashen.

Yu Congrong raised his hand.

The laughter stopped.

She looked at Zhao, the squad leader: "Now you know?"

Zhao Bantou lowered his head: "Understood."

"Then let's do it."

Zhao, the squad leader, bowed and said, "I will immediately issue an arrest warrant to bring Shi Mingxin to justice."

Ning Che looked at him: "Anything else?"

Zhao, the squad leader, suddenly sat up straight and stared intently at him.

Ning Che held up Chen Mu's waist token.

"Chen Mu died in battle, and the mountain guards should provide him with compensation. The Rat Swamp Squad has been trapped for so long, and they should also be given an explanation."

Yu Congrong replied directly, "Granted."

Zhao, the squad leader, forced out a single word through gritted teeth: "Yes."

"Go do your work." Yu Congrong turned around and tossed an iron plaque to Ning Che. Then he glanced in a certain direction, lightly touched the ground with his toes, and flew away.

Ning Che caught the iron plaque and said to Shi Chongshan, "The truth cannot be hidden, and falsehood cannot be made true; the bad cannot be made good, and the good cannot be made bad. Patriarch Shi, there is no need to be anxious. I will investigate thoroughly and bring everything to light."

Having said that, he leaped up and headed towards the city lord's mansion.

Shi Chongshan remained standing in the same spot, his white hair trembling slightly in the wind. After a long while, he finally let out a long sigh.