Lin Ji almost fled from Daliang Temple.
He cultivated the Six Senses Returning to Origin Technique, apart from his five senses being much sharper than others, his sixth sense was also the same.
After seeing Zhang Mi, Lin Ji's heart began to palpitate.
Panic? Nervousness?
He wasn't sure.
But this was definitely not a good sign.
"Another twist of fate, another twist of fate! How come the Ghost King has retreated, and this matter is not over yet!"
On the way down the mountain, Lin Ji's face was extremely ugly.
Every time he encountered a twist of fate, it was within his calculations. It was regretful that Lin Ji had warmly invited him to dinner back then. Who knew what trouble hearing that damned name again would cause.
"I'm just a mere fourth realm constable, a low-ranking official of the Monitoring Heaven Bureau with no ambitions. Whatever schemes or plans you have, don't involve me anymore, let me live peacefully for a few days."
With a jumble of thoughts, Lin Ji returned to Liang City.
Upon arriving at the government office, shortly after entering the study, a bailiff came to report that Master Zhan had requested his presence.
"Didn't Master Zhan leave just yesterday? Why did he come back so soon?" Lin Ji asked subconsciously.
The bailiff naturally didn't know these details and remained silent.
Lin Ji waved his hand to dismiss him and quickly made his way to the backyard of the government office.
Zhan Chengfeng was in his own courtyard, just like when Lin Ji first arrived in Liang City, reading a scroll non-stop.
However, this time, after seeing Lin Ji's arrival, he put down the scroll.
"Master Zhan, you came back so quickly. Did things go smoothly?"
"Smooth my foot!" Zhan Chengfeng's face darkened upon hearing this.
Lin Ji was stunned. He had never seen Zhan Chengfeng lose his composure like this before, but he didn't intend to inquire further.
Why invite trouble unnecessarily?
But Zhan Chengfeng directly asked, "Lin Ji, do you remember the large cauldron you saw in the cave last time?"
"Of course, I remember." Lin Ji nodded quickly, then realized and exclaimed, "Master, could it be that something happened to that cauldron?"
"That cauldron is missing, someone broke through my restrictions." Zhan Chengfeng's face darkened, his tone unfriendly. "I left yesterday for this matter. I was only planning to deal with that cauldron, but when I went to the cave, I found that someone had stolen it, without triggering my restrictions, and left a useless fake in its place."
"Was it the man in the black robe?" Lin Ji asked.
"I'm not sure, but who else could it be besides him!" Zhan Chengfeng seemed somewhat gritted his teeth. "Daring to sacrifice the blood of the people in Liangzhou, this person's audacity is truly rare in ancient times! And such a big matter, I don't even know his identity!"
Lin Ji fell silent. It was best not to speak at this moment, just listen to the complaints from above honestly.
But at the same time, Lin Ji recalled the scene of seeing the man in the black robe last time.
By the Liang River, the man in the black robe killed the Pig Dragon and said he didn't kill the people of the Monitoring Heaven Bureau because something crucial was happening, and it was not appropriate for the people of the Monitoring Heaven Bureau to be involved too early.
Could it be referring to this matter?
At the same time, it seemed that Zhan Chengfeng had finished venting his frustrations.
He looked at Lin Ji, scrutinizing him up and down.
Until Lin Ji felt somewhat uncomfortable under his gaze, he smiled somewhat mockingly and said, "You have quite the courage in Shan Yuan County."
"You already know?" Lin Ji was stunned.
The news spread really fast.
"It was a message from Lu Zhao'er. She compiled the matter in Shan Yuan County into a dossier, one copy was taken to the capital, and one was left in Liangzhou."
Zhan Chengfeng shook his head. "I already understand the situation. You handled the matter well, but it goes against the laws of Da Qin."
Upon hearing this, Lin Ji knew that Zhan Chengfeng didn't intend to make things difficult for him over this matter.
"Master, rules are dead, people are alive."
"But there must be regulations."
As he spoke, Zhan Chengfeng suddenly got up and went back into the room. After a while, he came out with a wooden box.
"According to the rules, after you are promoted to Chief Constable, you can choose a treasure from the Monitoring Heaven Bureau's secret treasury for self-defense. But because of the matter in Shan Yuan County, this reward is naturally void."
Lin Ji waited quietly for the continuation.
Zhan Chengfeng handed over the wooden box.
"Although the reward from the Monitoring Heaven Bureau is gone, you resolved the matter in the Ghost King City. If they don't reward you above, they are blind, but I can't let my subordinates be wronged. Take it."
Lin Ji took the wooden box and upon opening it, he found a suit of armor.
It felt cold to the touch, and when he infused it with spiritual energy, the armor shimmered slightly.
"Lustrous Glass Armor, I snatched this from the secret treasury in the capital when I was promoted to Chief Constable." Zhan Chengfeng said somewhat proudly.
"Snatched?" Lin Ji was taken aback.
Zhan Chengfeng nodded and smiled, "At that time, the Chief Constable of the capital was Fang Yunshan, Fang Tian Guan. He and I went to the secret treasury together. When he saw that I had chosen this armor, he wanted to back out."
He said something about the item being precious and shouldn't have appeared there. Anyway, I stubbornly insisted that what I saw was mine, and the Monitoring Heaven Bureau couldn't go back on their word."
"Fang Tian Guan couldn't persuade me, and in the end, I took the armor. But because of this incident, I lost my position as Chief Constable of the capital and was sent to Yunzhou."
Upon hearing this, Lin Ji subconsciously looked at the armor in his hand.
"Is there anything special about this armor?"
"It's not particularly special, it can neutralize most attacks below the fifth realm. It can also resist attacks above the fifth realm, but the effect is not ideal."
Zhan Chengfeng said, "This item is useless to me now, but for you, it's just right."
Lin Ji didn't hesitate and immediately removed his outer garment, putting on the armor.
After putting on the Lustrous Glass Armor, Lin Ji was amazed to find that the circulation of spiritual energy in his body seemed to be faster.
"It seems you've already noticed. The value of this item lies not in its defensive capabilities but in helping cultivators in their practice. With your cultivation at the fourth realm, increasing your cultivation speed by twenty to thirty percent is not a problem."
"Thank you for this precious gift, Master." Lin Ji bowed respectfully.
At the same time, Lin Ji faintly felt like something had disappeared.
As this feeling emerged, Lin Ji suddenly understood.
"The karma from Huang Cui's body, it turns out that the reward for this matter has fallen here."
To resolve this matter and settle the karma, it had to be known by the Monitoring Heaven Bureau.
It made sense. This matter violated the regulations, but without punishment from above, it would ultimately be left unresolved.
Lin Ji put his outer garment back on, preparing to take his leave.
But before he could speak, Zhan Chengfeng said, "You've taken the item, now it's time for you to handle the next task."
"What task?" Lin Ji felt somewhat helpless for a moment.
Is this really a life of toil?
Zhan Chengfeng placed a document in front of Lin Ji.
"It's from Linchuan County. When you went to Daliang Temple earlier, the demon catcher from Linchuan County was in a hurry, so the document was handed directly to me."
"It's your responsibility, and you must handle it properly. In addition, I'll give you two Hundred Healing Pills. These pills can heal injuries and detoxify. They were confiscated from your predecessor."
With that, Zhan Chengfeng threw a small bottle to Lin Ji and then turned and walked back into the room.
Lin Ji put away the bottle, opened the letter, but after just a quick glance, his face darkened.
(End of this chapter)