Fairy, please don't do this!

"Besides, I don't think that farewell you gave that time was an ordinary farewell, was it?"

The case file mentions that Mo Ya came to Baihua County because of several cases of mummified corpses that had occurred there, and he came to investigate.

Dugu Wang raised his sleeve and wiped non-existent sweat from his forehead: "The case of the mummified corpse is still unsolved!"

"As for seeing him off... it was him... he..."

Gu Jinzhao said calmly, "Was it him who suggested it, wanting to gain some benefits from it?"

In official circles, it's nothing new to go through the motions of handling cases and then find excuses to extort money and bribes.

Chapter 110, The Magistrate's Wife's Seduction? (3.6K)

Gu Jinzhao said casually, "Was it Commander Mo who suggested this, hoping to gain some benefits?"

Dugu Wang lowered his head and did not reply, which was obviously an admission of agreement.

"Take us to the morgue."

Gu Jinzhao stopped asking questions and slowly stood up.

"Please follow me, my lord."

Dugu Wang quickly led the way.

Before long, the group arrived at the cold and gloomy morgue.

Gu Jinchao glanced around and saw that there were twenty-one corpses, all of them withered and dried up.

Dugu Wang said in a low voice, "According to the coroner's record, all these people, including Lord Mo, died from having their life essence drained. It should be the work of an evil cultivator using the 'Snatching Yuan Demon Art'."

Jiang Tinglan stepped forward and carefully examined each corpse: "Judging from the appearance, it is indeed the 'Snatching Yuan Demon Art'."

Gu Jinchao's gaze fell on the corpses, and he transmitted his thoughts to his ghost wife in his mind: "Wife, please take a close look for me, and see if they really died from the Yuan-Stealing Demon Art."

In the game's storyline, the reason why the Cangyue Dynasty and the Nanzhao Kingdom completely broke down was because more than 100,000 people in Baihua County were slaughtered by a fourth-grade demon.

The one who released the demon was a Gu cultivator from the Gu Cult, the state religion of the Nanzhao Kingdom.

Upon hearing this, An Wanxi carefully scanned the dried corpses with her divine sense: "It's not the 'Snatching Yuan Demon Art,' but Blood-Eating Worms."

Gu Jinchao pondered, "So, it really was the work of the Gu cultivators of the Gu Clan!"

Blood-eating worms, as the name suggests, are a type of insect that can suck blood and vital essence.

Its shape is as thin as a hair, no more than an inch long, and translucent like glass. It disappears when exposed to light and is extremely difficult to detect.

To refine the six types of Gu, this blood-eating worm is indispensable.

Jiang Tinglan looked at him: "What does Commander Gu think?"

"It is not the Yuan-Stealing Demonic Art."

Gu Jinzhao shook his head: "It's a kind of insect called the Blood-Eating Worm!"

"The Blood-Eating Worms of the Gu Clan? How did you figure that out?"

Jiang Tinglan asked in confusion.

She also knew something about this kind of insect.

After entering the human body, it will silently absorb the essence and blood until it is completely drained before leaving.

These people have been dead for some time, and the blood-eating worms have long since left, so how could they have been found?

Gu Jinzhao lightly sliced ​​open the abdomen of a mummified corpse with his fingers, and then took out a grain-of-rice-sized object from the withered flesh.

"These are the eggs of the blood-eating worm!"

"It seems that there was a blood-eating worm that couldn't fully absorb its abundant essence blood, so it simply laid its eggs inside and relied on the remaining essence blood to hatch them."

At this point, he narrowed his eyes slightly: "With such abundant essence and blood, this corpse must have been a body cultivator of a high rank in life."

"This should be... Commander Mo, right?"

Dugu Wang quickly replied, "Your insight is astute, this mummified corpse is indeed Commander Mo!"

Jiang Tinglan immediately understood: "Mo Ya is a body cultivator at the mid-stage of the seventh rank, with a vast and boundless blood and qi. Naturally, he wouldn't be so easily drained. That's why the blood-eating worms instinctively lay their eggs inside and use his blood and qi to hatch them!"

As if she had thought of something, she frowned slightly: "Given Commander Mo's cultivation level, how could these blood-eating worms have entered his body so silently?"

Gu Jinzhao did not respond, but looked at the remaining twenty mummies and suddenly asked, "Did these people know each other when they were alive?"

Dugu Wang pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "They are all protectors of women. Even if they are not familiar with each other, they must have had some interaction."

Gu Jinzhao asked, puzzled, "What is a protector of flowers?"

Dugu Wang explained, "The annual Hundred Flowers Festival is extremely grand, and there are many things to prepare, so we need to hire a lot of people."

"Some of these people were specially hired by the county to take care of the hundred kinds of flowers during the Hundred Flowers Festival, and they were called flower protectors."

Gu Jinzhao raised an eyebrow: "Until the mummified corpse case is solved, the Hundred Flowers Feast will be temporarily suspended."

Both these twenty mummies and Mo Ya are clearly related to the Hundred Flowers Feast.

The grand flower festival will last for a whole month!

Seven days have passed, and more than twenty people have already died. If this continues, who knows how many more lives will be lost.

The most urgent task at present is to find the hiding place of the blood-eating worms, and then follow the clues to find out the mastermind behind it.

Jiang Tinglan had the same thought, so she asked, "Where will the Hundred Flowers Feast be held?"

"In the Hundred Flowers Pond Courtyard, I will lead you two there together."

Dugu Wang immediately summoned the yamen runners and led the two men toward the Hundred Flowers Pond Courtyard.

After traveling through streets and alleys to the west of the city, we soon arrived at a spacious pond.

Even before you get close, the rich fragrance of flowers wafts over you.

Dugu Wang stopped by the pond: "This is the Hundred Flowers Pond Courtyard."

Gu Jinchao looked at the huge pond courtyard in front of him.

Shaped like a phoenix spreading its wings, the water surface is shrouded in a light white mist, and three white jade arched bridges connect three floating islands in the center of the pool.

It is already December, and the cold wind is biting, but the many exotic flowers and plants on the floating island have not withered at all. Instead, they are blooming beautifully and are a sight to behold.

"The blood-eating worm hides in the light and appears in the dark."

"I used my magic weapon to block out the sunlight. I request that Magistrate Dugu order his men to thoroughly investigate the entire Hundred Flowers Pond Courtyard."

Gu Jinzhao took out the Sun-Shielding Flag from his storage ring and made a hand seal.

hum-

In the next instant, the flag swelled in the wind, transforming into a vast, dark curtain that completely enveloped the Hundred Flowers Pond Courtyard, blocking out all light.

"Check carefully, leaving no corner unchecked."

Dugu Wang ordered his constables to disperse and conduct a thorough search.

Gu Jinzhao and Jiang Tinglan walked slowly along the edge of the pool, carefully examining it.

Jiang Tinglan squatted down and carefully observed the pool water: "The water is clear and the pebbles at the bottom are visible. There are no traces of blood-eating insects."

Gu Jinzhao stepped across the winding bridge and onto one of the floating islands.

He bent down to examine the strange flowers of various shapes and sizes in front of him, his divine sense sweeping over every petal and stem like a net, but he found no trace of blood-eating worms.

The calico cat leaped onto another floating island and, relying on its keen sense of smell, darted back and forth among the flowerbeds.

The group searched from noon until nightfall, but found nothing.

Just then, the ghost wife's voice rang in his mind: "Look at those flower buds covered in frost."

Upon hearing this, Gu Jinzhao leaped onto the central floating island without hesitation.

As far as the eye could see, the island was covered with a peculiar flower, all of which were buds about to bloom, their surfaces covered with a layer of glistening frost.

What kind of flower is this?

Dugu Wang explained, "This is a rare species that blooms in the bitter cold. When the flower is in full bloom, it is as big as a bowl, shaped like a double-petaled camellia, and its color is crimson, hence the name 'Crimson Frost Flower'."

"Before this flower blooms, it needs to absorb the cold air to condense crystals and absorb the moonlight to shine."

"However, it is cold in nature, so it should not be planted in more than three rows, and should not be appreciated for more than three quarters of an hour, otherwise it will easily lead to the invasion of cold evil into the body."

Gu Jinzhao glanced at him in surprise, then put two fingers together and gently parted the bud of a crimson frost flower, revealing the crystalline stamen inside.

Immediately afterwards, he made a fist in his palm, and a wisp of pure True Yang Sword Intent transformed into crimson flames, instantly enveloping the entire flower bud.

laugh--

The crimson frost flower was instantly burned to ashes.

However, something strange suddenly appeared in the air.

Several thin, almost transparent insect shadows writhed wildly in the residual heat of the flames, emitting a burnt smell.

Jiang Tinglan's eyes narrowed: "It's a Blood-Eating Worm!"

"I wonder which flower grower provided these Scarlet Frost Flowers. Please have the magistrate bring them here."

According to Gu Jinzhao, the flowers needed for the Hundred Flowers Feast were all carefully cultivated and provided by flower growers in the county, and then the county government selected one hundred varieties to be displayed.

These flower growers participate in the competition every year, hoping that their cultivated rare flowers can be shortlisted and become one of the hundred flowers.

"The one who nurtured the Scarlet Frost Flower was... Shen San Niang!"

Dugu Wang pondered for a moment before remembering, "Officer Zhang, quickly bring Shen Sanniang here!"

"Yes, my lord!"

The man, referred to as Constable Zhang, bowed in acceptance and quickly turned to leave.

Before long, a middle-aged woman dressed in plain clothes, still charming, was brought before the crowd.

She looked slightly bewildered and curtsied, saying, "This humble servant is Shen San Niang, greetings to all of you esteemed officials."

Gu Jinchao looked directly at her: "Do you know that there are blood-eating worms hidden in these crimson frost flowers?"

Shen San Niang shook her head: "I don't know."

"Then why do you cultivate this kind of flower?"

"I wish to be shortlisted for the Hundred Flowers Banquet and receive a reward of one hundred taels of silver."

"..."

After asking several questions, Gu Jinzhao waved his hand and said, "You can leave now."

An ordinary person without any cultivation level, whose answers just now didn't seem like a lie, clearly had no connection with the person behind the scenes.

Jiang Tinglan said, "Since Shen Sanniang is not a suspect, then we can only investigate all the bodyguards who have entered and left this place."

Dugu Wang asked, "There are a total of 126 bodyguards. Should we summon them all for questioning?"

Seeing that the constables all looked exhausted, Gu Jinzhao waved his hand and said, "It's getting late, let's call it a day."

"Yes!"

Upon hearing this, everyone felt as if they had been granted a pardon, and they dispersed in twos and threes, leaving the Hundred Flowers Pond Courtyard.

As for Gu Jinzhao and Jiang Tinglan, Dugu Wang arranged for them to stay in his residence and prepared meals for them.

At this moment, after several rounds of drinks and five dishes, the wine has been drunk and the food has been prepared.

Dugu Wang, unable to hold his liquor, had already passed out drunk on the table.

"Greenie and Redie, help Master to rest!"

Lady Dugu, who was sitting next to the main seat, spoke, her voice as sweet as honey.

She was stunningly beautiful, dressed in a dark green gauze dress that accentuated her voluptuous figure, exuding the mature charm of a beautiful woman.

After watching Dugu Wang leave with the help of two maids, Madam Dugu turned her head and was about to speak when she accidentally knocked the chopsticks off the table, which landed right under Gu Jinzhao.

She quickly bent down to pick it up, and saw two heavy, full mounds half-exposed, with a faint, white, and deep cleavage.

Lady Dugu seemed unaware of the accidental exposure of her private parts, and simply picked up her chopsticks slowly.

She then glanced at Jiang Tinglan and her gaze fell on Gu Jinzhao: "My lord is not a good drinker, so I will serve you both!"

"I'm stuffed!"