Wild cultivation begins with wielding the Taiyin talisman.

Inside the dilapidated temple, no one spoke for a moment.

Han Qingluan held the half of the blood confession in her hand, the edges of the paper still covered with dried blood scabs.

Zhao, the squad leader, stood at the door, his complexion having recovered somewhat.

He was a seasoned veteran, and although he was shocked, he quickly regained his composure.

"This blood oath cannot be taken as fact."

Zhao, the squad leader, said, "Before a person dies, who knows if they were forced to write it by the murderer? Besides, Shi Mingxin is already involved in the case, so it's not surprising that he wants to implicate me."

Lin Ye crossed his arms: "Before Pan bit you, did he also slit his own throat?"

Zhao Bantou looked at him coldly and said disdainfully, "Nonsense."

Han Qingluan raised her hand, interrupting the two.

She asked the coroner, "Was the blood-written letter written before you died?"

The coroner examined the bloodstains on Shi Mingxin's fingers for a moment, then looked at them and said, "We can't be completely sure, but it should have happened some time before he died, and the handwriting is his."

Zhao, the squad leader, immediately said, "That further proves that someone is forcing us."

"It also shows that he knew he was going to die," Ning Che suddenly said.

Zhao Bantou looked at him.

Ning Che continued, "The confession was hidden inside the Buddha statue, not on the corpse. The person who killed him has not been found."

Zhao, the squad leader, said, "The situation was critical. He didn't have time to prepare much. It must have been the murderer who deliberately left clues."

Ning Che looked at him: "How could a murderer dare to attack and kill the mountain guardian in broad daylight? He probably didn't have time to check carefully before leaving, so even if he guessed that the man would be prepared, there was nothing he could do."

Zhao, the squad leader, smiled.

"Star Team Leader, you're really good at making things up."

Ning Che said, "You're quite the actor too."

Zhao Bantou ignored him.

He turned to Han Qingluan: "Chief Constable Han, this matter involves the mountain guards. According to regulations, the evidence should be sealed up in the camp and then reviewed by the commander."

Han Qingluan put the blood-written letter into the certificate bag.

"I know the rules."

Zhao Bantou breathed a sigh of relief.

Han Qingluan continued, "Therefore, the evidence will be sealed by the police station, and a copy will be sent to the mountain guard. If you disagree, go to the city lord's mansion and report me."

Outside the dilapidated temple, the wind blew through the old South Canal, carrying the smell of mud.

Han Qingluan sealed the blood-written letter and handed it to the clerk beside her.

Just as the clerk reached out, Zhao Qian suddenly took a step forward.

"slow."

Six constables simultaneously drew their knives.

Han Qingluan looked at him: "Is there something you need, Chief Zhao?"

Zhao Qian looked at the document bag and said in a steady voice, "The evidence bears the old bloodstains of the mountain guard and also involves the camp commander. It's against regulations for the police department to keep it alone."

Han Qingluan said, "I will make a copy."

"The copy can be modified."

"Even original documents can be lost."

Zhao Qian's face darkened: "Chief Constable Han, are you saying that my mountain guardian would destroy evidence?"

Han Qingluan did not back down: "I didn't say the mountain guardian, I said you."

Zhao Qian ignored him and turned to look at Ning Che.

"Captain Xing, you're also a guardian of the mountain. Are you just going to watch outsiders take away the camp's evidence?"

Ning Che walked to the Buddha statue and picked up the mountain-guarding token from the ground.

The token was old, with worn edges and a "丁" character engraved on the back.

He flipped it over and looked at it, then suddenly said, "These aren't Chen Mu's cards."

Zhao He suddenly looked up.

Zhao Qian's eyelids twitched: "The waist badges in the camp are all the same style, so what if it's not his?"

Ning Che handed the token to Han Qingluan: "Check the serial number."

Han Qingluan took it and handed it to the clerk.

The clerk carried a booklet with him and quickly found the waist tag number that the mountain guard had registered.

A moment later, he looked up: "Ding Thirty-Seven, reported missing six years ago."

Zhao Qian frowned: "It's not surprising that the lost waist token has ended up abroad."

Ning Che asked, "Who reported the loss?"

The clerk turned another page, paused, and said, "Zhao Qian."

Lin Ye immediately clapped his hands: "Great! This is something else!"

Zhao Qian's expression finally changed.

Ning Che looked at him: "The card you discarded six years ago has reappeared next to Shi Mingxin's body today. Isn't that a coincidence?"

Zhao Qian said coldly, "Back then, I was part of a team that wiped out bandits. I lost my token during the chaotic battle, and there are records in the camp to prove it."

"As long as there's a file, that's fine."

Ning Che reached out his hand: "Give it to me."

Zhao Qian paused.

Ning Che said, "Isn't Squad Leader Zhao the most disciplined? Now, according to the rules, please show me the missing person report, the clearing record, and the team roster from back then."

Zhao Qian stared at him: "Those things are in the camp."

Han Qingluan replied, "I'll send someone to fetch it."

Zhao Qian said, "The documents of the mountain guards cannot be arbitrarily transferred by the patrol and arresting officers."

A voice came from outside the temple.

"I can adjust it."

Yu Congrong entered the dilapidated temple.

She was still covered in the dust of her journey, her long sword hanging at her waist. Her gaze first fell on the corpse, then on Zhao Qian.

Zhao Qian bowed: "I am the commander."

Yu Congrong did not let him get up.

She looked at Han Qingluan: "Where's the evidence?"

Han Qingluan handed over the blood-written letter and the waist token.

After reading it, Yu Congrong's expression remained unchanged. He simply said, "Zhao Qian, remove the knife."

Zhao Qian suddenly looked up: "Commander!"

Yu Congrong said, "I said, remove the knife."

Zhao Qian's hand remained on the hilt of the knife, without moving.

The mountain guardians outside the temple all looked over.

At that moment, even the wind stopped.

Ning Che pressed down on the Crescent Moon Blade with his left hand.

Lin Ye straightened up.

Shi Bingzhu's iron mace landed softly on the ground.

Zhao Qian looked at Yu Congrong for a long time before slowly unfastening his waist knife and placing it on the ground.

The scabbard struck the brick with a dull thud.

Yu Congrong said, "From this moment on, Zhao Qian is suspended from his duties. He must hand over all his personal tokens and case files keys. His punishment will be determined after the Rat Swamp case is thoroughly investigated."

Zhao Qian lowered his head, slowly untied the token, and placed it beside the knife.

He then took out a string of copper keys from his pocket.

Finally, there was a small black iron talisman.

Yu Congrong reached out and took it, then looked at Ning Che: "Take Zhao He and go investigate Zhao Qian's residence. Chief Constable Han will accompany you and seal it up."

Shi Bingzhu, holding his mace, replied, "Yes."

Yu Congrong waved his hand: "Take him away."

Two mountain guards stepped forward and stood on either side.

Zhao Qian did not resist.

As he walked out of the dilapidated temple, he passed by Ning Che and paused for a moment.

"Xing, do you think that stopping me means we've won the case?"

Ning Che said, "I didn't win."

Zhao Qian squinted.

Ning Che looked at the corpses beneath the Buddha statue: "Too many people have died. We can't win."

Zhao Qian didn't say anything more and was led onto the carriage.

Half an hour later, Zhao Qian's residence in the mountains was sealed off.

There weren't many things in Zhao Qian's room.

A table, a cabinet, and an old trunk.

There were tea stains on the table, a military transfer order in the cabinet, and the old box was locked tightly.

Han Qingluan tried to pry it open twice with a copper ruler, but it wouldn't open.

Lin Ye rolled up his sleeves: "Let me do it."

Han Qingluan looked at him: "This is evidence."

Lin Ye reluctantly let go: "The evidence is so delicate."

Ning Che picked up the keys Zhao Qian handed over and tried them one by one.

The third one, the lock opened.

There were no banknotes or secret accounts in the box.

There was only a stack of old military newspapers.

It's all records of rodent swamp deployment, patrols, and losses.

Ning Che flipped to six years ago.

Three pages of the record from that year are missing.

Zhao He cursed.

Han Qingluan noticed that a piece of wood at the bottom of the box was different from the surrounding area. She used a knife to pry it open and found that there was indeed a hidden layer.

Inside the compartment was an old piece of paper, seemingly torn from some letter paper.