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Zhu Xin instantly understood something.

This is yet another means by which those powerful beast-eating beings check and balance the power of human clans.

This was to curb the number of important official positions held by human clans in the imperial court.

The more human families hold official positions in the imperial court, the greater their power becomes. The beast-taming families, on the other hand, fear losing power and control over resources.

Humans can become officials and cultivate, but they cannot rise too high!

Or perhaps, power shouldn't be too great!

This is also a method of containment that the Great Xiang Empire has always used for the past three thousand years.

However, Zhu Xin opposes this method and political ideology.

In her mind, any human who has consumed the Demon Transformation Pill or the Monster Transformation Pill is no longer considered a complete human.

They can be used as one of our own.

Especially Chen Yuan.

That demonized state is not human at all!

"Damn it, if a prodigy like Chen Yuan isn't properly utilized and instead pushed to the opposite side, it will be a loss for the entire Great Xiang Empire!"

Zhu Xin murmured, glancing to one side.

Zhu Xiong stood respectfully, listened to Zhu Xin's words, and agreed, saying, "Indeed, that kid Chen Yuan is ruthless. If he can be given an important position by the Great Xiang Empire, he will surely become the sharpest blade of the Great Xiang Empire in the future."

If we don't give him a chance and continue to offend his family, he might become unruly in the future, and even the Great Xiang Empire's national-level suppression would be severely damaged.

Zhu Xin narrowed her eyes, weighing in her mind whether to destroy the knife now or continue to use it.

After a moment, she sighed, "He's still Xiao Nuomi's family. If we kill him, Xiao Nuomi will be left all alone..."

Zhu Xin stood up, her eyes showing determination. "I have to go back to the family in person and have them step in to protect the Chen family."

Zhu Xiong remained silent for a moment, then finally whispered, "Miss, are you worried that after that boy goes back, he'll seek revenge for his second uncle and go after those official families?"

He fell silent at this point.

That kid really dares to do it!

"That's right, let's go back to the family first and stabilize our decisions regarding the prefectural city!"

After Zhu Xin finished speaking, she immediately set off.

···

······

Tianqing County.

The entire county was in an uproar once again.

The major official forces that went to Yunduan Mountain to investigate the evil spirits and disasters were all wiped out. This time, it was even more shocking than the last aristocratic family assessment conference.

"This is terrifying! There must be an extremely powerful evil spirit at Cloudfall Mountain. Even powerful figures like the prefect, the assistant prefect, and the head of the law enforcement department died there!"

"My God, what kind of evil spirit is so terrifying that it wiped out everyone who went to investigate?"

"I don't know. I heard it's a terrifying rotting corpse that devours the flesh and blood of living beings. It even killed Chen Guohai, the Grand Master of the Wuxiang Sect, and almost wiped out all the members of the Chen family who became Wuxiang Guards!"

"What? So there are still survivors in the Chen family?"

"I heard it was a Wuxiang Division Chief named Chen Guodong, and the rest were a few young people who were a bit far from the scene and thus escaped unharmed!"

······

The entire Tianqing County was abuzz with discussion, and countless restaurants were bustling with activity, occasionally punctuated by gasps of surprise.

On the city wall of Tianqing County, Qi Boheng stared at the Five Finger Peak at the horizon with a gloomy expression, his eyes slightly narrowed.

"Lord Qi, this matter is terrible."

Beside him, a lieutenant spoke with a cold expression.

"Yes, all the high-ranking officials are dead? This will definitely cause a sensation in Wangdong Prefecture, and I'm afraid a Purple Mansion True Person will come to investigate next."

"The Prefect, the Assistant Prefect, the Chief Enforcement Officer, and the Chief Wuxiang... This loss is too great."

······

Many middle-aged men in armor were shocked and puzzled.

"yes."

Qi Boheng finally spoke, "There are still so many empty seats."

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone around him was stunned, and then a strange look appeared on their faces.

The initial shock vanished, replaced by a subtle sense of anticipation.

Qi Boheng's gaze returned to Five Finger Peak, and he murmured,

"Is this an evil spirit or a man-made disaster?"

"However, the explanation of evil spirits and disasters seems plausible."

"It's just a bit strange, though. All the disciples died back then, but the survivors were disciples of the Chen family."

"Now, so many powerful experts have been sent to investigate, and they've all died. Although the survivors are few, they are... mostly members of the Chen family..."

······

Like Qi Boheng, many people suspect that the Chen family is behind this, but there is no evidence or reasonable speculation.

Because many people believe that the Chen family does not have the power.

Especially since those who died were powerful figures like the prefect and the assistant prefect.

······

The Chen family.

The buildings on Five Finger Peak were covered with white cloth and white banners, and all the Chen family members were dressed in white.

Even Chen Qingcang was like that.

His hair and beard were already white, and now, dressed in a snow-white robe, he exuded a somewhat desolate and chilling aura.

His icy aura kept many people at bay.

At this moment, he stood with his hands behind his back in front of a row of tombstones and graves, his eyes slightly lowered, as if he were dozing.

Only Chen Guodong remained behind him, still standing respectfully.

"Guodong, you will be training with me for a period of time. I want to raise your cultivation level to the Great Perfection of the Yellow Court as soon as possible."

After a long silence, Chen Qingcang spoke in a deep voice.

Chen Guodong was moved; was this a sign that they were going to focus on developing him?

Or should we let him take over Chen Guohai's position?

"Thank you, Master."

Chen Guodong took a deep breath and said respectfully.

"If you don't have one, just call me Uncle."

Chen Qingcang opened his eyes and suddenly said.

"Yes, Uncle."

Chen Guodong suddenly felt a heavy weight on his shoulders.

That seemed to stem from Chen Qingcang's high hopes for him.

"Master, the young master has returned."

At this moment, Jiang Shangwu walked over, glanced at Chen Guohai's grave, and whispered.

"What?"

Chen Qingcang's aged body seemed to be injected with vitality all at once, transforming from deathly dull to energetic in an instant.

"Ah... Ah Yuan? Why is he back?"

Chen Qingcang said incredulously, "Chen Yuan has only been in Tianshan County for less than two months!"

Back again?

"He came back with Second Master."

Jiang Shangwu spoke again.

"Um?"

Chen Qingcang frowned, then suddenly realized something and laughed, "I told you that Qingtian wouldn't be able to hide for long before Ayuan discovered it, but I didn't expect it to be so soon."

"Let's go see my grandson."

As he spoke, the heavy, lifeless aura around him seemed to vanish in an instant, and he quickly left the place.

Jiang Shangwu remarked with emotion, "As long as a person is alive, they still need something to look forward to."

"yes."

Chen Guodong narrowed his eyes and couldn't help but make a silent vow.

We must strive to grow up and shoulder the responsibilities of the family, so as not to cause worry to Chen Yuan and other family members who are developing outside.

······

Wangdongfu City.

In a private room.

A colorful little bird stood on Yang Zhen’s left hand, and he gently stroked the bird’s beak with his right hand, making the bird chirp happily, which made him feel relaxed.

At this moment, Zhao Ming, the presiding judge, walked in hurriedly.

"Oh? Lord Zhao, what happened? Why do you look so rushed?"

Yang Zhen didn't turn his head, and spoke calmly.

"An urgent report has been sent by Chen Guodong, the Chief of the Wuxiang Division of Tianqing County."

Zhao Ming spoke with a gloomy expression.

"Oh!"

Yang Zhen chuckled lightly, "It's just that Chief Secretary Chen Guohai died in the line of duty, isn't that a good thing?"

"It wasn't just Chen Guohai who died."

Zhao Ming spoke with a ferocious look in his eyes.

"Um?"

Yang Zhen turned around, looked at Zhao Ming, then looked away again, continuing to fiddle with the colorful little bird in her hand. "So, who else is dead?"

Zhao Ming took a deep breath and said in a deep voice, "Prefect Niu Sengru, Prefectural Assistant Gou Zongdao, Chief Enforcement Officer Sun Chengzong, and several old men from their families are all dead."

"Besides that, almost all of their important high-ranking family members are dead!"

"Chen Guodong sent an urgent message, praising them for their service, saying that they all died in the line of duty because a black tide of evil spirits occurred again while they were investigating the evil spirit disaster!"

Upon hearing this, Yang Zhen's expression froze, and he stopped what he was doing.

Zhao Ming took a deep breath and said in a deep voice again, "This matter has caused a great sensation, especially since important official positions in Tianqing County have become vacant. Many powerful families in Wangdong Prefecture have begun to make moves, coveting the positions of Prefect, Assistant Prefect, and Chief Minister."

"In addition, the Prince of Zhendong sent a message saying that natural disasters and ghostly calamities are unavoidable, but order in Tianqing County must be restored as soon as possible, high-ranking positions should be filled quickly, and the families of the deceased should not be discouraged."

After speaking, Zhao Ming looked at Yang Zhen, and they both fell silent as they began to think.

"Coo coo, coo coo!"

The sudden chirping of the colorful bird disrupted Yang Zhen's thoughts, causing a chill to set in his eyes.

Snapped!

He crushed the little bird into a bloody mist with one hand, then turned around and coldly snorted:

"Chen Guodong wants to recommend Niu Sengru and the others for commendation? Hmph, is this a provocation?"

"They're all dead, and you, a human, are here to claim credit for them? Isn't that just annoying me?"

As Yang Zhen spoke, his face turned icy cold, and even the temperature of the air seemed to have dropped to the depths of winter!

Zhao Ming didn't speak, but looked at Yang Zhen with a complicated expression.

He never imagined that killing just Chen Guohai would lead to the complete annihilation of all the high-ranking officials of Tianqing!

After a moment, Yang Zhen took a deep breath, his expression returning to calm, and said in a low voice,

"Don't all the prominent families in the prefectural city want that position?"

"Tell them to go to Tianqing County to investigate. As long as they can quell this evil calamity, they can obtain the important county-level position according to their merits."

Zhao Ming's gaze sharpened.

Most of the families in the county town are at the Xuanxiang level.

The families in the prefecture city are basically at the level of the Earthly Realm.

The biggest difference between them is whether or not a Purple Mansion exists within their family!

"Won't Qing County descend into chaos then?"

Zhao Ming took a deep breath and said.

Yang Zhen turned around, stared at his blood-stained hand, and said coldly, "Add another fuel to the fire."

He paused, a sinister glint in his eyes, and said, "Inform the families that are investigating that the Chen family possesses a sacred-grade elixir."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Ming gasped.

Yang Zhen narrowed his eyes. "Hmph, that old bastard Chen Qingcang, he's got guts! I just wanted his son dead, and instead of obediently letting his son die, he wanted to drag everyone down with him?"

Zhao Ming's gaze sharpened. "Lord Yang suspects Chen Qingcang was behind it? But... is that possible?"

Yang Zhen said, "I can have any suspicions, who cares if they're true or not? So, I'm going to destroy the Chen family!"

Zhao Ming, "..."

Yes, you're the lord of the manor, you're awesome. All you need to do is suspect, no evidence is required!