Collateral Damage

Teruno Sect.

The entire garrison of Beiyang Prefecture was mobilized, a vast army of soldiers in full armor surrounding the mountain gate. To the uninitiated, it would look like a campaign to wipe out mountain bandits.

Some people shouted, some made a fuss, and some who wanted to leave were pushed back into the crowd.

Shen Gui gazed at the scarlet figure in front of the official carriage, lost in thought.

The toad shrank its neck and introduced:

"This man is called Shi Qijiang. I heard that he is in charge of all the officials in Beiyang Prefecture."

"Senior Shen, I know you're powerful, but the prefects of Yan Kingdom are all at the Mountain-Gazing cultivation level. They can write articles and fight. If you really have something to do with that wanted person, don't show your face or say anything later. There are so many people, so stand at the back. If things get chaotic, just run away."

It added, "I'm naturally easy to be ignored, but I'll be fine. Just be smarter."

"Okay." Shen Gui nodded.

At the mountain gate, the soldiers had already blocked all the way.

Disciples of the Zhaoye Sect rushed over from both sides of the stone steps, trying to maintain order, but were blocked by the guards. Several young disciples looked grim, their hands on their sword hilts, while their older senior brothers held their shoulders down.

At the center of everyone's attention was Shi Qijiang, dressed in a red robe, with the government clerk following behind him carrying a booklet.

The guards bowed their heads in unison: "Lord Prefect, we've arrived!"

The sound suddenly subsided, and the commotion in front of the mountain gate instantly fell silent. Everyone shut their mouths, fearing they might be caught in the crossfire.

Several elders of the Zhaoye Sect have already stepped forward.

One of the elders, the oldest, cupped his hands and said, "Your Excellency's arrival is an honor. Zhaoye Sect has not been able to greet you properly. Please forgive us. Please come into the mountain and have a seat."

Shi Qijiang raised his hand: "I won't go into the mountains or have tea today. I have official business to attend to. I'll leave as soon as I'm done with the investigation."

"What does Your Excellency wish to investigate?"

"Zhaoye Sect was appointed by the imperial court to educate the demons in the mountains of Beiyang Prefecture. He has worked hard over the years. However, today's disciple-acceptance ceremony is a mixed affair of humans and demons, with many outsiders. Beiyang Prefecture has been quite unsettled recently. As is customary, this prefecture is reviewing the roster to prevent any villains from hiding behind the mountain gate and to prevent anyone from taking advantage of the loopholes in the imperial appointment."

Lai Ge Bao heard clearly and quickly pulled his hood down.

It didn't dare look at Shen Gui.

But out of the corner of my eye, I could still see that person in gray standing on the edge of the crowd, as calm as if listening to someone else's story.

Elder Zhaoye's expression turned unpleasant, but he still maintained his politeness: "Your Excellency, today the mountain gates are wide open, and people and demons have come from all over. If we check the records in public, it may cause problems with the assessment, and it will also make outsiders think that Zhaoye Sect..."

"What do you think?" Shi Qijiang asked.

The elder stopped.

Shi Qijiang's smile remained unchanged: "You think Zhaoye Zong's roster can't withstand scrutiny?"

After those words were spoken, the area in front of the mountain gate became even quieter.

The elder cupped his hands in greeting: "That's not what I meant."

"Set up the table."

Shi Qijiang gave the order without showing any leniency.

He looked up and met Lu Guang's gaze in the stands.

The latter's face had turned ashen, but Shi Qijiang curled his lips into a smile. Everything was proceeding according to plan.

Four desks were carried by the soldiers to the foot of the stone steps at the mountain gate, where government documents, arrest warrants, and temporary registration books were laid out in rolls.

The disciples of the Zhaoye Sect stood to the side, their faces growing increasingly grim.

Shi Qijiang did not sit; he stood at the very front, his official robes fluttering in the mountain breeze, his voice steady.

"Start with the household registration system, check."

The clerks flipped through the books quickly, page by page, and soon read out the first name.

"Li Shuan was from Shuanghe Village, Beiyang Prefecture."

A boy of about fourteen or fifteen years old was brought out. His face was extremely pale, and his father followed behind him. His legs were already weak.

The clerk placed the household registration certificate and the register together: "Shuanghe Village reported a disaster this year, and according to the register, it should receive three shi of grain as compensation. However, the Li family has underreported one male, so they have registered this child with his maternal uncle in another village. They want to use the clan register to change his registration."

The boy's father knelt down with a thud: "My lord, I was foolish. I didn't mean to cheat on taxes. My family really couldn't afford to pay the grain tax. I thought that if my child joined the clan, our family could finally breathe a sigh of relief..."

Shi Qijiang glanced at him, and without even giving an order, soldiers came forward and dragged the father and son aside.

The clerk then read the second one.

This time, it was a steward from the outer sect of the Teruno sect.

The steward, who was in his forties, tried to back away when he heard the name, but two guards grabbed him by the shoulders.

He found three calling cards, a bag of loose silver, and several blank introduction papers without any stamp in his sleeve pocket.

Shi Qijiang didn't look at the silver; he only asked Elder Zhaoyezong, "Can the mountain gate's recommendation papers be sold privately?"

The elder spoke in a deep voice, and after a long while, he finally replied, "No."

"That makes things easier. Zhaoye Zong's men will be dealt with by Zhaoye Zong first, and the government office will keep a record of the case."

The steward's face turned pale. He opened his mouth to protest his innocence, but the disciples of the Zhaoye Sect had already covered his mouth.

Discussions arose again among the crowd.

"So there really are people who take money."

"I was wondering why some people got in without queuing yesterday."

"Keep your voice down and don't cause trouble."

The authorities had clearly already gathered some clues, and the files were being checked quickly, with more and more people or demons being mentioned.

The third one to be summoned was the snake demon.

Previously, because of the snakeskin stall, Hu Zhaoying spoke up for it, which is why it wasn't expelled from the mountain gate.

Now it has been brought before the table again, its tail curled up tightly.

The clerk pulled out an old book: "This demon has no complete demon register. Three years ago, he injured someone and drew blood in Yan Hui Gou. He did not compensate for the medicine, and the old case remains unresolved."

The snake demon said urgently, "That man first tried to poke me with an iron fork, so I bit him. After that, I never hurt anyone in the mountains again."

Shi Qijiang asked, "Are there any witnesses?"

The snake demon shut its mouth.

"Is there anywhere that can act as guarantor?"

still none.

"Then we will temporarily suspend your eligibility to take the exam, pending the investigation of the old case in Yanhuigou."

The demon race suddenly became agitated.

Hu Zhaoying stood at a distance, its tail twitching slightly, as if it wanted to speak.

Hu Yanshan reached out and pressed his shoulder, gently shaking his head.

Hu Zhaoying's face was grim, but she did not act rashly.

Many people realized that the Prefect hadn't come here to vent his anger, nor did he really want to reopen old cases; his real target was Teruno Mō.

They brought booklets, documents, garrison soldiers, and plenty of reasons.

None of the reasons are very strong.

One thing after another, it was as if Teruno was being pressed down on a desk, with each page being turned over for everyone to see, like slaps to Teruno's face.

Shi Qijiang then turned around, looked at Zhaoyezong and his men, and finally met Lu Guang's gaze.

"The Zhaoye Sect has been converting demons and monsters for many years, and this government has always respected it. However, respect is one thing, and bestowing titles is another. The court has given you power, and the Zhaoye Sect cannot allow that power to be completely worthless. Today, this government's investigation has been truly alarming."

The elder's face turned ashen.

The young disciple behind him drew his sword half an inch, but was quickly pressed down by his senior brother next to him.

Drawing your sword at this point would truly be considered disobeying orders.

"Continue." Shi Qijiang didn't even look at them.

The clerk continued flipping through the files, then his hand paused on a certain page. He looked up and scanned the crowd: "Toad."

When Lai Ge Bao's name was called, he cursed under his breath.

It knew that bad luck would always befall it.

The guards had already approached.

The toad moved its mouth slightly, but still lifted its foot and walked forward.

After taking two steps, it turned back to look at Shen Gui.

Shen Gui stood in the crowd, neither hiding nor giving it any signal.

The toad quickly looked away: "I can walk by myself, don't pull me. This fabric is very expensive; you'll have to pay for it if you tear it!"

The guard glanced down at it but didn't touch it.

Lai Gebao walked to the table and awkwardly cupped his hands in greeting: "This little demon greets Your Excellency."

Shi Qijiang lowered his head.

"Your name is Lai Ge Bao?"

"That's what other people call me," Toad whispered. "I don't have a proper name yet."

"What about the demon register?"

"no."

"Local guarantor?"

Lai Gebao pulled out the guarantee from his pocket and handed it over with both hands: "I have this."

The clerk took it, first looking at the edge of the paper, then at the seal, and finally at the signature.

His brows furrowed quickly.

"Your Excellency, this letter is indeed a temporary guarantee issued by Dongmen today. It bears the seal of Zhaoye Zong, and the person being guaranteed only has one surname."

Shi Qijiang reached out his hand.

The clerk handed over the guarantee letter.

Shi Qijiang unfolded.

The yellow paper, damp from the rain, was somewhat soft. Teruno-museum's temporary registration stamp was affixed to the lower right corner, with a single character on the left.

[Shen].

Shi Qijiang looked at it for a while and asked, "Full name?"

The clerk flipped through the register: "Not recorded."

"Place of origin?"

"Not recorded".

"Official credentials?"

"none."

"How is cultivation level verified?"

The disciple in charge of the register at the East Gate was summoned out, his face pale.

He knelt before the table, his voice strained: "Your Excellency, it was examined back then..."

"How was it tested?"

"That person... his aura is at least above the level of Guan Chen."

"momentum?"

Shi Qijiang looked at him.

The disciple's lips trembled, and he dared not continue speaking.

He couldn't very well say in public that he almost knelt down after being glanced at.

That's not a test of cultivation, that's called being terrified. Saying it out loud would be a disgrace to the Zhaoye Sect.

An elder immediately realized something was wrong, seeing that Shi Qijiang wanted to use this as an excuse to force the sect leader into a trap.

After thinking it through, the elder immediately stepped forward and said in a deep voice, "There were many people yesterday, and the East Gate registration was rushed. My actions were inappropriate. Zhaoye Sect will make up for it."

Shi Qijiang held the guarantee letter in his hand and smiled.

"Supplementary enrollment is necessary, of course."

He raised his hand, and the yamen runner next to him immediately spread out a scroll of arrest warrants.

The portrait on the paper is rough; the subject is dressed in gray, with disheveled hair and a cold expression.

The toad only glanced at it once before quickly lowering its head.

Shi Qijiang did not look at the toad.

His gaze lingered for a moment, shifting between the character "Shen" on the guarantee and the wanted poster.

"The gray-clad assassin, of unknown origin and of extremely high skill level, disappeared after killing the official and destroying his seal."

He spoke very slowly.

"Now, there is another guarantor of unknown origin in front of the Zhaoye Sect's gate. He left only one word, without any official credentials, place of origin, or cultivation level."

Shi Qijiang raised his eyes, his gaze sweeping across the crowd like a knife.

"Leave this little demon here. I want to personally ask who its guarantor is."

"What is the reason that Teruno Mune dares to stamp this kind of message?"

"Can this government interpret this as...?"

"Is this wanted criminal a friend or an ally of your Sect Master Lu?"