Starting as the heir of a marquis's mansion, I gained access to a summoning system.

Master Wuchen and Zhao Banshan stayed behind.

After agreeing on a meeting place and code word, Dongfang Weiwo mounted his horse and continued westward along the official road.

Master Wuchen and Zhao Banshan trailed far behind, maintaining a distance of three to five miles. They neither approached nor separated.

From today onwards, he is no longer alone.

Five years of lying low. Five years of forbearance.

The pieces have now been placed. The chessboard has been laid out.

Qinghe City, Zhenfu Division.

This small to medium-sized city, located in Pingyang County, Guangling Prefecture, has a registered population of just over 200,000. It's insignificant on the map of the entire Xuantian Dynasty. However, it's backed by the vast Cangmang Mountains, making it rich in demonic beast resources and spiritual herbs. Rogue cultivators and demon-hunting teams frequently travel through the city, resulting in a significantly higher number of martial artists compared to other cities of similar size.

Where there are martial artists, there is conflict.

Where there is conflict, there is a need for a pacification commission.

The government office of the Qinghe Town Pacification Division was located in the west of the city. It was a three-courtyard complex made of blue bricks. Two stone lions stood guard at the entrance, and a black plaque with gold characters hung above the door—"Qinghe Town Pacification Division."

The government office wasn't large. It had no more than thirty or forty people in total.

The head of the branch office was a probationary centurion. His surname was Zheng, and his given name was Yuanlang. He was in his forties, with the cultivation level of the early stage of the Qi Sea Realm. He had been the head of the Zhenfu Branch Office in Qinghe City for five years. He had neither made any great achievements nor committed any major offenses. He was quite average.

Zheng Yuanlang had three commanders under his command. Each commander was in charge of about ten men. Of the three commanders, one was in charge of maintaining order within the city, one was in charge of patrolling the villages and fortresses outside the city, and the third was specifically responsible for apprehending fugitive criminals.

But that happened last month.

This month, the three general flags were reduced to two.

One person died.

The deceased captain's surname was Zhou, and his name was Zhou Tie. He had the cultivation level of the early stage of the Acquired Divine Power Realm and was the most capable fighter among the three captains.

Two weeks ago, Zhou Tie led five of his men to the outskirts of the Cangmang Mountains to pursue a gang of ruthless bandits. However, they encountered an unexpected incident in a canyon more than a hundred miles into the mountains.

No one knows exactly what happened.

Only two of the young flags returned alive. One had a broken arm, and the other suffered internal injuries from the shockwave. When they were carried back, they were delirious, repeatedly muttering "dark shadow, dark shadow." That night, the delirious young flag also died.

Zheng Yuanlang personally led a team to investigate the canyon. They only found a few mutilated corpses and Zhou Tie's sword, which was broken in two. Zhou Tie's own body was not found.

Only a large splatter of blood was found on the cliff face. Judging from the distribution of the blood, he must have been in an extremely fierce battle before he died.

But who is the opponent? We don't know.

Beside the bloodstain, several crooked characters were carved with the tip of a knife. It wasn't Zhou Tie's handwriting, nor did it resemble any known script; rather, it looked like some kind of ancient rune.

Zheng Yuanlang made rubbings of the runes and sent them, along with the dossier, to the Guangling Prefecture Thousand-Household Office. The people at the Thousand-Household Office looked at them for a long time but couldn't figure them out, so they sent them up to the Provincial Garrison Command.

Then it vanished without a trace. There was no further response.

Zhou Tie's death thus became an unsolved mystery.

With one captain gone, a position became vacant. These days, several senior junior officers in the branch office are eyeing that position, openly and secretly vying for it.

Zheng Yuanlang understood, but didn't say anything. He was waiting for the transfer order from the Guangling Prefecture Thousand-Household Office—an appointment at the level of a captain couldn't be decided by a mere probationary centurion; it required the approval of the entire Thousand-Household Office.

That evening, Zheng Yuanlang sat in his study in the back hall of the branch office, flipping through the file left by Zhou Tie once again. The flickering candlelight illuminated his tightly furrowed brows.

Footsteps came from outside the door.

"My lord." A young flag bearer lifted the curtain and entered, bowing respectfully. "Someone from the Guangling Prefecture's Thousand-Household Office has arrived. They say they brought a transfer order and new recruits."

Zheng Yuanlang put down the file: "Let him in."

The man who entered was in his early thirties. He was lean and had dark skin.

He was dressed in the standard black official robes of the Zhenfu Division, with a silver eagle embroidered on his chest—the insignia of a centurion. Zheng Yuanlang recognized him. Han Tieshan, a centurion of the Guangling Prefecture Thousand-Household Office. He wasn't a big shot in the office, but he had a wide network of connections and could speak with people from all walks of life.

"Lord Zheng." Han Tieshan clasped his hands in a respectful gesture, his tone casual yet familiar.

"Commander Han," Zheng Yuanlang rose to return the greeting, "What brings you here?"

Two things.

Han Tieshan took out an official document bearing the seal of the Guangling Prefecture Thousand-Household Office from his pocket and placed it on the table.

"First, the transfer order from the Thousand Households Office. The vacancy for the Chief of the Qinghe City Branch Command is not planned to be filled by transferring someone from outside for the time being. You are to promote from within. Lord Zheng will draft a list and submit it later. The Thousand Households Office will just go through the motions and approve it."

Zheng Yuanlang took the document, glanced at it, and nodded.

This was within his expectations. In a small place like Qinghe City, the garrison wouldn't bother to send someone over specifically. Promoting someone locally was the easiest way.

"And the second one?"

Han Tieshan did not answer immediately. He stepped aside, revealing the curtain behind him.

"The second thing is, I'll send you someone."

The curtain was lifted.

A boy walked in.

He was about fifteen or sixteen years old. Tall and slender with delicate features. He wore a clean and neat black outfit, with a horizontal sword at his waist. His eyes were calm. He was neither as reserved and nervous as an ordinary recruit, nor as arrogant as a scion of a noble family. He just stood there calmly, as composed as if he were in his own courtyard.

Zheng Yuanlang's gaze swept over the boy, and he raised an eyebrow slightly.

Peak of Body Refinement Realm.

At this age, with this level of skill—not quite a genius, but certainly not bad either. More importantly, this young man possesses a certain temperament: calm, reserved, and neither arrogant nor humble. It's unlike what one would expect from a typical family.

"And who is this?" Zheng Yuanlang asked, looking at Han Tieshan.

Han Tieshan coughed, took a half step closer, and lowered his voice, saying, "He's from the capital. I don't know his exact background, but I know that the commander personally instructed him to be assigned to the Qinghe City branch, starting as a junior officer."

Zheng Yuanlang's expression changed slightly.

He came from the capital. The commander personally instructed him to start as a low-ranking officer.

These three pieces of information combined are enough to explain a lot. In the capital city, even a random brick falling could hit several people with powerful connections. For this young man to be personally arranged by a commander, his background must be quite formidable.

As for why he didn't stay in the Imperial Palace but instead came to a small place like Qinghe City—that's not his place to ask.

"What's your name?" Zheng Yuanlang asked the boy.

The young man clasped his hands in a respectful greeting. His movements were clean and crisp, and his voice was clear and unassuming.

"Dongfang Weiwo greets Lord Zheng."

East.