Start slaying demons from the proficiency panel.

"As expected, someone is secretly controlling things." As soon as Ning Xiu left the water, he used his Qi Observation and Qi Recognition Technique to discover traces of the demon hiding on the shore.

He then swiftly used the Seven Steps to Catch the Cicada's Lightness Skill to move rapidly across the river, intending to capture the demon.

The Seven Steps to Catch the Cicada's Lightness Skill excels at agility and movement. When used on water, it is no different from floating on water, thus allowing Ning Xiu to see the river surface as flat ground.

In less than ten breaths, he reached the shore. The demon who controlled the water ghost knew that he was no match for Ning Xiu's speed, so he simply stopped on the shore and waited for Ning Xiu to arrive.

“You seem to know the situation quite well,” Ning Xiu said, looking at the cloaked demon.

With the concealment technique in place, the demon was completely unable to perceive Ning Xiu's true strength. Under such circumstances where his true strength was so unfathomable, his expression was quite solemn.

On the other hand, Ning Xiu remained calm. In his eyes, the strength of this demon was crystal clear; he was nothing more than a fifth-grade immortal.

The sorcerer remained silent, gripped the bell tightly with both hands, and began to chant silently.

Suddenly, the wind and water stirred all around. The originally complex rain seemed to be controlled by an invisible giant hand, gathering in large quantities and transforming into a giant palm that grabbed at Ning Xiu.

It may appear to be just a hand formed from rainwater, but the weight it contains is considerable, enough to crush a person into a pulp.

At the same time, a strong wind arose, forming a circle of wind around Ning Xiu to prevent him from escaping, forcing him to take the blow head-on.

As the giant hand drew ever closer, Ning Xiu showed no sign of making a move, and the demon couldn't help but reveal a triumphant smile.

But in an instant, a golden light suddenly shone from Ning Xiu's body, revealing a glittering golden bell that enveloped Ning Xiu completely.

Bang!

The giant hand struck the golden bell, but it only lasted a few breaths before collapsing into a shower of water droplets that crashed to the ground, utterly destroyed. It posed absolutely no threat to Ning Xiu.

"How is that possible!" The demon's expression changed instantly.

The next moment, Ning Xiu's hand had already grabbed his neck, lifting the man directly off the ground.

"Tell me, what are you planning to do in Qiantang City? Tell the truth and I might spare your life," Ning Xiu asked, applying slight pressure to his hand.

It's unclear whether this sorcerer in front of them is the same group as the sorcerers Qin Zhen and the others are searching for. If they can extract some information from him, that would be ideal.

"Uh!"

To everyone's surprise, this demon was stubborn enough to keep his mouth shut. Even when Ning Xiu increased the pressure on his hands, he gritted his teeth and refused to make a sound. The veins on his forehead were already bulging, but he still intended to tough it out.

Seeing this, Ning Xiu had no choice but to put the Thunder Hammer on the ground and use one hand to feel around the man's body and clothes. He quickly found several items in the demon's arms.

The token of a constable from the yamen, a ring shaped like an evil god, and a bamboo tube.

"The constables of Qiantang City..." Ning Xiu pondered.

If he had killed a constable, there would be no reason for him to keep the token on his person. That means that the sorcerer's usual disguise was that of a constable from Qiantang City.

This is indeed valuable good news.

The ring, which on the surface resembled an evil god, was something Ning Xiu had seen before; it was the symbol of the Black Heaven Gate.

Once the demon had completely fainted, Ning Xiu threw him on the ground and opened the bamboo tube to examine him.

Inside the bamboo tube was a letter on oiled paper, which briefly mentioned that the sorcerer should clear the entire surface of the Dragon King River basin by any means necessary.

No boat may be allowed to fish on the Longwang River until the rainy season ends.

The contents of this letter can explain why the fishermen's boats are frequently attacked.

This isn't just a problem with the fish demon; there's also a demon manipulating things in the shadows.

"It seems that the Black Heaven Gate has a big plan to implement in Qiantang City. Although we don't know what these demons are after, the important thing is to destroy their plan and not let the Black Heaven Gate's conspiracy succeed."

Ning Xiu looked at the demon who had fainted on the ground, grabbed him and carried him on his shoulder. He then controlled the Overlord to swim up from the water and led the Overlord across the Dragon King River towards Qiantang City on the other side.

……

The Qiantang City Government Office, located in the city center, was built with wide gates and high walls, making it quite impressive.

The entire government office was surrounded by main roads, and unless something major happened, no one would approach it.

Since the sorcerer who was caught is a constable of this city, investigating his identity at the yamen might yield some useful clues.

In the heavy rain, the Qiantang City government office appeared particularly gloomy and silent. There were no guards standing outside the gate, and the gate was tightly closed, making it impossible to see what was going on inside.

Ning Xiu carried the demon's body over the high wall. After landing, he saw that the interior of the government office was filled with ornamental trees and flowerbeds taller than a person, with only one narrow path for one person to walk through.

Ning Xiu's first impression of this place was that it was a maze; you couldn't see the nearby paths while walking among trees and flowers that were taller than a person.

The only path sometimes branches into several intersections, making it easy to lose one's sense of direction.

As Ning Xiu walked, he suddenly heard voices nearby. Because of the rain, he couldn't hear the voices clearly, so he moved towards the direction from which the voices came.

"The rain has been coming in more and more frequently lately, it looks like the day is approaching."

"This is a rare opportunity, and I hope nothing unexpected will happen this time."

Soon, Ning Xiu saw two constables, each dragging a prisoner in prison clothes behind them, and it was unclear where they were being taken.

The two constables were clearly taken aback when they saw Ning Xiu, never expecting a stranger to appear in such a place at this time.

"Who are you, daring to trespass on the yamen?" a yamen runner immediately shouted.

Ning Xiu initially thought they were all yamen runners and was even prepared to reveal his body, but suddenly a different idea popped into his head.

He immediately used his Qi Observation Technique to examine the two men in front of him and saw that the evil lines on their faces were much larger than their good lines, clearly indicating that they were not good people.

Thinking of the demon disguised as a constable, Ning Xiu acted instantly, launching an attack at a speed that left the two of them completely unable to react.

These two were no match for Ning Xiu at all, and were knocked unconscious by Ning Xiu's palm strike one after another.

Ning Xiu dragged their bodies to a secluded spot and stripped one of them of his clothes to examine him. Sure enough, the guy had the Black Heaven Gate tattoo on his body.

Looking at the other constable, who was also a demon from the Black Heaven Gate, Ning Xiu's guess was immediately confirmed.

The government office in Qiantang City has been infiltrated by the Black Heaven Gate at some unknown time.

However, it is still unclear how far this infiltration has spread, or whether the entire government office has been taken over by the Black Heaven Gate. If that is the case, the consequences could be quite troublesome.

Since the bodies of the three demons have been confirmed, there is no need to keep them alive.

With each blow, Ning Xiu eliminated his opponent, gaining proficiency in all three general strokes once again.

After stuffing the three corpses into the flower bushes beside the road, Ning Xiu quickly left the place. He needed to thoroughly investigate the specifics of the Qiantang City government office today.

……

Inside the room, Yan Chong, the city magistrate who was in charge of the city's administration, sat in his room, looking at the book in his hands with a troubled mind.

Not far from him, a young man in black robes sat calmly drinking tea, with a long sword lying across his lap.

"You've persevered for so many days, and there are only a few days left. I hope you won't cause any trouble or make any mistakes."

Sensing Yan Chong's occasional glances, the black-robed youth spoke in a cold voice.

Yan Chong felt a chill run down his spine and quickly replied, "I know, I know."

Just then, a figure suddenly appeared outside the door. After knocking three times on the door, the person said, "Is Lord Yan here?"

Yan Chong glanced at the young man, signaling him to give instructions. The young man put down his teacup and slowly nodded.

"Yes, come in."

As soon as Yan Chong finished speaking, the door was pushed open from the outside, and Ning Xiu and Ba Wang walked in.

"Who are you?" Yan Chong asked immediately, looking at Ning Xiu's completely unfamiliar face.

After arriving in Qiantang City, Ning Xiu only paid a visit to the city garrison commander. He had never met the city magistrate before, so it was normal that the man did not recognize him.

After glancing at Yan Chong and the black-robed youth, Ning Xiu slammed the door shut behind him, took out the Thunder Hammer from the Overlord's body, and laughed, "Lord Yan, whether you're a member of the Black Heaven Sect or not, you'd better explain to me now how this dignified Qiantang City government office has become a hiding place for the Black Heaven Sect's demons."

Upon hearing this, Yan Chong and the black-robed youth's expressions changed instantly. The black-robed youth raised the long sword on his leg and thrust it directly towards Ning Xiu.

A sharp sword aura appeared on the surface of the longsword, and it made a sound as it was thrust out.

Clang!

The sword collided head-on with the protective golden bell. Even though the sword looked incredibly sharp, it couldn't break through the bell's defenses at all.

Under Ning Xiu's gaze, he reached out and grabbed the man's weapon: "A mere fifth-grade martial artist."

click!

As soon as he finished speaking, Ning Xiu used his internal energy to break the longsword in two in his hand.

As Ning Xiu struck out with his palm, the man was sent flying into the air and crashed heavily into the wall.

"Lord Yan, please explain," Ning Xiu said, waving his bronze leopard demon-subduing officer token.

Upon seeing this, Yan Chong immediately recognized Ning Xiu's identity and knelt down on the ground, covered in sweat: "My lord, I also have my reasons, my lord. It was all these Black Heaven Gate demons who forced me to do this. If I didn't follow their orders, my whole family of dozens of people would be in danger."

Yan Chong banged his head repeatedly, his expression and tone extremely flustered.

Ning Xiu looked down at him and asked, "Do you know anything about the four Iron Horse Demon-Subduing Guards who went missing in Qiantang City?"

Yan Chong quickly shook his head: "I don't know, sir. I really don't know. Even if you gave me thirty lives, I wouldn't dare to have anything to do with the Demon-Subduing Commandant."

【089】Dragon King Festival

After interrogating Yan Chong for a while, Ning Xiu got a general understanding of the situation.

Even though Qiantang City is located within the territory of the Great Shang Dynasty, not long ago, some demons from the Black Heaven Gate still took the risk and, using disguise, carried out a trick to steal something from the Qiantang City government office.

Many yamen runners and constables were replaced by their people, and the city magistrate was taken over, allowing him to conspire with the sorcerers.

It must be said that all of this happened quite coincidentally, just when problems arose on the frontier and the Silver Tiger Demon-Subduing Commander stationed in Qiantang City was away and had not returned yet, which was precisely when Qiantang City's forces in this regard were at their weakest.

This allowed the Black Heaven Sect demons to act so easily. However, Yan Chong had no idea what their purpose was behind all this elaborate scheme, as the Black Heaven Sect demons had never revealed it to him.

"My lord, I was forced into this situation. They have taken my family hostage and are holding me hostage. I have no one to turn to for help, so I have no choice but to obey these sorcerers."

Seeing Ning Xiu deep in thought, Yan Chong hurriedly banged his head on the ground.

"Besides the government offices, have other places in Qiantang City been infiltrated by the Black Heaven Gate demons?" Ning Xiu asked.

“I don’t know about that. I’ve been confined to this place for many days and haven’t been out for a long time. However…” Yan Chong hesitated and said, “The other day I overheard a conversation between this demon and another demon. They seemed to be looking for something in the Dragon King River.”

"Looking for something in the Dragon King River!"

Upon hearing this, Ning Xiu suddenly had a flash of inspiration. The demon he had captured by the Dragon King River was secretly instructing water ghosts to clear out the fishermen from the water to fish, and this action was extremely consistent with this purpose.

Furthermore, fish demons, which have never appeared in the Dragon King River before, have recently appeared. All these undercurrents are related to the Dragon King River. Could it be that some treasure is about to be born from the bottom of the Dragon King River?