Chapter 2670: Suspicion

In the mystic realm, Zu'an had obtained the *Records of Life and Death* from Lu Sheng, which granted him a natural premonition of danger.

Just a moment ago, images had flashed through his mind. He quickly dodged to the side, simultaneously channeling the Primordial Chaos Scripture at full power to protect his entire body.

However, the opponent's Voodoo Curse was too insidious; it could not be evaded through physical dodging.

As the scarecrow's right arm was torn off, Zu'an felt a mysterious force envelop his shoulder. His entire arm was racked with tearing pain, the skin ripped open and blood flowing freely.

Fortunately, after several rounds of tempering by Primordial Qi, his body had become incredibly resilient, preventing the Voodoo Curse from tearing it off immediately.

He then quickly channeled the Primordial Chaos Scripture to heal his injured arm, and the wounds visibly closed at a rapid pace.

Yet, the insidious force had not vanished; it continued to tear at the muscles in his arm.

The continuous cycle of tearing—healing—tearing again made even Zu'an, with his strong will, gasp sharply. The pain wasn't necessarily the main issue; the crucial point was that as long as this insidious force persisted, his body would eventually give out.

Suddenly, an idea struck him. He immediately activated the Gluttonous Devouring Art, and a black hole seemed to appear at his shoulder, gradually absorbing the insidious forces.

The rate at which the wound on his shoulder deteriorated visibly slowed, and soon the flesh began to knit back together.

Opposite him, Zhang Xie looked utterly bewildered. This scene completely defied his understanding; how could anyone remain unharmed after being struck by his Voodoo Curse?

A flicker of fear crossed his mind. He no longer remained as composed as before, abandoning his cat-and-mouse approach. Instead, he twisted the scarecrow's head directly, intending to take the opponent's life instantly.

Zu'an felt a sharp pain in his neck, but by now he had understood his opponent's methods. He had already fully activated the Gluttonous Devouring Art throughout his body, absorbing all the bizarre forces.

"How is this possible!" Zhang Xie nearly collapsed upon seeing Zu'an completely unharmed.

He bit his tongue, spraying out a mouthful of blood, and began murmuring strange syllables. Black patterns started to appear all over his face.

The atmosphere in the entire room suddenly became extremely eerie, as if something terrifying and bizarre was about to be summoned.

Zu'an dared not take any more chances. The opponent's Voodoo Curse was truly too insidious; who knew if he could handle whatever was summoned this time.

So he spoke directly: "What are you looking at?"

Zhang Xie was momentarily stunned, then instinctively replied, "What about it?"

With that interruption, his summoning ritual was slightly disrupted, and what greeted him was a brilliant flash of sword light.

"I regret it so much, truly. Why did I even bother responding to him? I still had my most powerful move unused, how unwilling I am!" This was Zhang Xie's last thought before he died, his intense reluctance preventing his eyes from closing even after his last breath.

With his death, the eerie atmosphere in the room gradually receded, and even the terrifying and powerful aura vanished. Zu'an wiped away a cold sweat, thinking how truly unpredictable these sorcerer's methods were; he had almost been defeated.

He woke the unconscious individuals in the room. Xiao Jianren and the others breathed a sigh of relief upon learning that Zhang Xie, the mastermind, had been apprehended and executed. However, their spirits then dampened upon hearing that their colleagues had fallen in battle.

Those in their line of work would inevitably face such a day, never knowing when their own turn would come.

At this, Zu'an said, "Give them a proper burial, and ensure generous pensions for their families. Additionally, I will submit a petition to secure a spot for them in the Hall of Glory."

"Your Excellency is truly righteous!" Xiao Jianren and the others were visibly invigorated. The Hall of Glory was considered the highest honor for Embroidered Uniform Envoys after their deaths. While many envoys died each year, only a handful ever made it into the Hall of Glory.

It was not only a recognition of their merits but also ensured prosperity for their families for at least three generations.

Zu'an glanced at Zhang Zitong beside him, then continued, "In the case of Zhang Xie, it was largely thanks to Zhang Zitong's denunciation and cooperation in setting the trap that the culprit was brought to justice."

Zhang Zitong was startled, looking at him with a complicated expression.

Xiao Jianren and the others were momentarily surprised, but as astute individuals in their positions, they quickly understood that he intended to protect her, and naturally offered no objection.

The room was too bloody, so Xiao Jianren and the others handled the aftermath while Zu'an took Zhang Zitong to another room.

"Don't think I'll be grateful to you. Your actions merely made it impossible for me to remain in my previous faction, and you also had intentions of luring snakes out of their holes," Zhang Zitong said after a long silence.

In truth, there wasn't much affection between her and Zhang Xie, and she had only learned about his involvement with her father today.

Furthermore, he had just tried to silence her, so his death was no great loss.

However, she truly couldn't understand why Lord Eleven would spare her. After much thought, this was the only reason she could come up with.

Zu'an said calmly, "Otherwise, what other intentions do you think I have?"

Zhang Zitong's face paled. "Right," she thought. "Why am I flattering myself?"

At this, Zu'an spoke: "Since you've died once, preserve this life and live again. After all, the injustice against your parents has not been cleared."

"Furthermore, Tao Qing and Yan Ke were your colleagues. If you commit suicide again, would you be worthy of their sacrifice?"

Zhang Zitong's expression flickered, then after a long moment, she nodded: "Alright!"

Zu'an finally breathed a sigh of relief. Besides the aforementioned reason, he kept this woman because she was connected to the former dynasty's imperial grandson, believing she could be a useful pawn. After all, they were Zhao Hao's enemies, and she might prove useful someday.

After settling matters there, Zu'an went directly to the Easy City Lord's Mansion, found City Lord Liao Ling, and briefly recounted Zhang Xie's affair to him.

In the entire officialdom of Yi Commandery, there was almost no one he dared to trust, but Liao Ling was an exception. To cultivate such pure and righteous Sword Qi, his character must be upright.

Liao Ling was greatly surprised upon learning Zhang Xie's true identity, instinctively disbelieving the conclusion.

However, with Zu'an providing both human testimony and material evidence, he began to waver.

Zu'an then instructed him to maintain control over the entire Yi Commandery, preventing Zhang Xie's confidantes from resorting to desperate measures and causing unrest.

As for why he didn't let those from Prince Yan's faction handle it, it was out of fear that they would seize the opportunity to purge dissidents, which would completely upset the balance of power in Yi Commandery.

Liao Ling understood this reasoning. Although he still harbored some doubts about Zhang Xie, he agreed to help control the situation for now.

After arranging all these matters, Zu'an found a secluded spot to summon the Emperor.

However, perhaps due to previous instances, he called out several times but received no response.

Nevertheless, Zu'an didn't give up and continued calling.

A moment later, an impatient voice resonated from the golden plaque: "If there isn't a reasonable explanation this time, I will hold you accountable!"

Rage value from Zhao Hao +233,233,233...

Clearly, being summoned like a monkey several times had not pleased him. This time, he hadn't even projected his divine consciousness, only his voice.

He mused that the next time he saw this fellow, he must revoke his privilege to summon him.

Zu'an then briefly recounted what had just happened.

"Zhang Xie, a sorcerer?" Zhao Hao's voice held a hint of surprise. Clearly realizing this was no trivial matter, he no longer bothered to reprimand the other for summoning him. After a moment, he asked in a deep voice, "What was his motive?"

Evidently, he didn't lightly believe Zu'an but was curious why a high-ranking official like Zhang Xie would take such an immense risk.

"I don't know the specifics, only that there seems to be a mysterious force behind him." Zu'an did not report anything concerning the former dynasty's imperial princes and grandsons.

Zhang Xie's earlier revelations to him were, firstly, a tactic to buy time to successfully possess the sorcerer, and secondly, a malicious ploy. He knew that after learning such royal secrets, the Emperor would never tolerate him and would eventually settle accounts.

Therefore, he naturally wouldn't be foolish enough to reveal everything.

"Mysterious force..." Zhao Hao fell silent, seemingly pondering something.

Seeing his prolonged silence, Zu'an even thought he had departed.

Just then, Zhao Hao suddenly spoke, his voice filled with doubt: "Zhang Xie was a Grandmaster himself, and now he also possessed sorcerer abilities, so how were you able to kill him instead?"