Jiangning.

August 17th. After a night of unrest, a somber atmosphere pervaded the city.

In the afternoon, the news that Lin Zongwu would challenge the "Million Soldiers Arena" in a few days spread from the territory of "King of Reincarnation," dominating conversation in the city's various districts.

People admired Sect Leader Lin's martial prowess, but they also felt the overbearing nature of Xu Zhaonan, the "King of Reincarnation." After the Zhou Shang faction's surprise attack the previous night, instead of considering a truce, they were continuing to challenge the remaining factions, including Zhou Shang. The fire had been lit, and it seemed almost impossible to extinguish.

Some well-informed individuals had already heard that the "King of Reincarnation" faction's entry into Jiangning from outside the city that afternoon was significantly increased, with Xu Zhaonan clearly starting to rally his forces. At the same time, the "King Yama" faction entering from the west of the city also saw a large-scale increase. After the large-scale brawl at dawn, Wei Xuwen had also started calling for reinforcements.

Various districts occupied by established forces began to enhance their defenses on a large scale. Some individuals who had come to the city to "strike gold" were uneasy and were already planning to escape outside the city. Of course, more desperate individuals felt that the time had come, sharpening their knives and preparing to make a fortune or earn a reputation, hoping for both.

Occasionally, people lamented the "decline of morals" and the "collapse of order."

Some mentioned the "King of Fairness'" law enforcement team running around the city, and "Dragon Sage" Fu Pingbo's efforts to convene negotiations between all parties, which ultimately turned into a farce. Neither Wei Xuwen nor Xu Zhaonan gave him any face. The main force of "Heavenly Kill" had already been arranged to leave the city after completing their mission. When Fu Pingbo summoned both parties, they were long gone. As for Xu Zhaonan, he pushed everything onto Sect Leader Lin, telling Fu Pingbo to talk to him, which Fu Pingbo naturally dared not do.

These specific details, embellished with exaggeration, spread quickly, enriching the various details.

With the other four kings displaying their abilities, the so-called "King of Fairness" could only hold onto the old ways, patching things up, with no ambition for progress, and even unable to deal with troublemakers. When people in the city talked about it, they couldn't help but ridicule him, feeling that the "King of Fairness" was truly powerless to deal with the situation in the city.

Amidst discussions and a somber atmosphere, the daylight faded, and night fell. Each faction strengthened its patrols in its own territory, while the "King of Fairness'" law enforcement team patrolled in some relatively neutral territories, passively maintaining order.

People held their breath, waiting for the next brawl to break out...

Midnight.

Near an abandoned village more than twenty miles south of Jiangning, teams of people silently gathered, assembling at pre-arranged locations.

In the nearby village, bonfires were burning, and figures of Jianghu individuals gathered around the fire, some already asleep, others still playing.

Some faint sounds came from the nearby hills.

"Reporting to Lord Fu, the outer sentries have been eliminated..."

The scout responsible for reporting, passing through the sparse woodland, reported the information to "Dragon Sage" Fu Pingbo, who had arrived silently at the edge of the hill overlooking the village. Fu Pingbo nodded.

"Move out," he said. "Those who resist... kill."

A moment later, teams of people rose from the darkness, converging on the village. Then the sounds of fighting began, and the abandoned village was set ablaze in the night, figures fighting and falling in the flames...

**************

The night gradually faded.

As dawn broke, people who had been tense all night in a courtyard where the "Undying Guard" were concentrated felt fatigued.

Kuang Wenbo applied medicine to the wounds on his face while looking in a bronze mirror. Occasionally, when the pain in the bridge of his nose was aggravated, he couldn't help but mutter curses.

Everyone had thought that they would be going out last night to fight with the "King Yama" faction to avenge the events of the 17th dawn, but for some reason, the order to move out was delayed, and those who had access to information said that there had been a change at the top, so the arrangement had been changed.

Most of those who joined the upper-level action team of the "Undying Guard" were veterans who had tasted blood, and although they remained tense at night, they each had their own ways to relax. They only felt slightly tired in the morning, and their condition was not affected too much. However, Kuang Wenbo was in a worse state. He had been punched unconscious in the fight a few days ago during the capture operation. When he woke up, the bridge of his nose had been broken, his upper lip had been split by the punch, and his teeth were slightly loose.

These were not considered major injuries, but his face and mouth hurt with every movement, even affecting his eating habits, and he couldn't go to the semi-closed doors he used to frequent. Staying up late also brought various pains.

Simply unlucky.

He hadn't even been able to see the thug's face clearly.

At this time, he applied medicine to his broken nose and put a new patch on it with gauze. He had tried to make it look as good as possible, but it still looked sleazy... This was indeed the most embarrassing injury he had suffered in his decades in Jianghu, not to mention that he had the title of Undying Guard. When people saw an Undying Guard with bandages on his face, they might laugh behind his back: The Undying Guard may be undying, but they still can't avoid getting hurt, hahaha...

After applying the patch, he prepared to drink a bowl of meat porridge in his room and then catch up on sleep. At this moment, a subordinate came to knock on the door, saying, "Something happened."

The incident did not happen on their side.

When the morning sun dispersed the fog, "Dragon Sage" Fu Pingbo led his team back from the south gate of the city. The entire team was covered in blood and filled with murderous intent. Some captives and wounded were rudely tied with ropes and driven forward, and a large cart was piled with heads.

This fierce news spread throughout the city, and curious people gathered in the large square of the central vegetable market. Kuang Wenbo and a group of Undying Guards also occupied a spot. Among the crowd, representatives of various foreign forces also gathered, hiding among them to check the situation on the stage.

When the square was almost completely packed with people, the middle-aged man known as "Dragon Sage" stood up and began to speak to the crowd below.

"...As everyone knows, in the early hours of August 17th, the city was disturbed by incoming bandits. These bandits carried knives and guns, killing and setting fires in the city... From the early hours of the 17th to dawn, for more than two hours, hundreds of houses were set on fire in the city, causing nearly a thousand casualties. These bandits were extremely vicious, and they left after killing, setting fires, and robbing..."

"...Entrusted by Mr. He Wen, Fu Pingbo is responsible for managing order and investigating illegal activities in the city! After this incident, an investigation was immediately launched... Last night, the location of these bandits was identified, and a capture operation was launched. However, these people, these thugs – resisted stubbornly. After our persuasion failed, we could only use thunderous means to strike them down."

"...Everyone has seen... In this capture, many of our people were injured and sacrificed due to the resistance of these bandits! But fortunately, we did not fail in our mission, and we have captured these people, one by one! Some resisted fiercely, and we killed them on the spot, while others knelt down and begged for mercy, and we spared their lives. But there are also some who have blood debts on their hands and cannot be easily spared. Today, we will give everyone an explanation!"

Fu Pingbo's voice was deep and resonant. He looked at the people below, his tone rising and falling. The prisoners on the stage were divided into two groups. Most of them were kneeling in the back, and a small number of them were driven to the front, beaten with sticks in front of everyone, and forced to kneel properly.

"Oh, right," Fu Pingbo said. "...During the investigation of this matter, we found that some people said that these bandits were subordinates of General Wei Xuwen... So yesterday, I personally asked General Wei about it. According to General Wei's clarification, it has been proven that this is nonsense, a false rumor, and a malicious slander! How could these extremely vicious bandits be General Wei's people... Shameless."

"So here, I would also like to specifically clarify this matter to restore General Wei's innocence."

The morning breeze swept across the square. In a certain part of the crowd, some people began to curse and agitate, obviously the hands of the "King Yama" faction. Fu Pingbo looked over there, and the soldiers guarding the square tapped the ground with their guns and sticks, shouting in unison, "Silence! Silence!" The sound was orderly, obviously from elite soldiers, and some other people on the stage even took out bows and crossbows, aiming at the restless crowd.

Fu Pingbo just watched quietly and indifferently. After a while, the agitation was defeated by this sense of oppression, and gradually stopped. Fu Pingbo looked ahead and opened his arms.

"Today, these thugs will be executed on the spot! To give all the dead, justice—"

The crowd below watched this scene. Kuang Wenbo and others roughly understood why they had not launched an equal revenge last night. It was very likely that they had noticed Fu Pingbo's methods. Wei Xuwen acted in the early hours of the 17th and then withdrew a group of thugs from Jiangning. Who knew that Fu Pingbo would lead his troops to raid them that very night? If they had acted today, Fu Pingbo might have used the banner of chasing down murderers to directly attack them.

On the side of the square, in the second floor of a teahouse, "Heavenly Kill" Wei Xuwen, who had a somewhat feminine appearance and narrow, snake-like eyes, quietly watched this scene. When the seventeen prisoners who were charged with serious crimes were pressed down to be beheaded, he slammed his teacup on the ground.

In a corner of the square, Zuo Xiuquan, Yinping, Yue Yun, and others watched the execution. After seventeen people were beheaded one after another, the rest would be subjected to caning. Perhaps at this moment, people finally recalled that in many cases, the "King of Fairness'" laws were also very fierce, either killing people or using military sticks to cripple them.

Just like the thousand-person brawl at the Su family's old house, hundreds of people were arrested at that time, and one by one, even a dozen wooden sticks were broken. After being beaten in one round, most people were basically crippled.

"'King of Fairness' has undiminished tigerish power. 'Heavenly Kill' is not as good as 'Dragon Sage'," Zuo Xiuquan whispered. "In this way, we can touch base with this side in private."

Zuo Xiuquan and others came this time representing the Southeast Dynasty. Their purpose, of course, was to find among the five factions of the Fairness Party a power that could appreciate each other, cooperate with them, and ultimately open the way into the Fairness Party.

"But Teacher Cheng and the others have been here several times. This Mr. He has a deep prejudice against us..."

"This is one time, that was another. Since Mr. He has already opened his doors widely, it wouldn't hurt to talk again."

Among the crowd, various people who saw this scene naturally had various thoughts. This time, the King of Fairness had added a few points for his side.

**************

The power struggles were felt by the little people in the city, but not deeply.

While "Dragon Sage" Fu Pingbo was escorting the captives into the city in a high-profile manner, Xue Jin under the bridge was setting up a tile pot that he had finally found, brewing medicine for his weak family.

At this moment, the little hero who had left medicine for him, now more familiarly known as the "Five-Foot Yin Demon" Long Aotian, was eating a steamed bun as he walked past the bridge. He glanced down and saw that they were still doing well. He took out a steamed bun and threw it to Xue Jin. While Xue Jin knelt down and kowtowed, the young man had already left the bridge.

He passed through the city's streets and set his sights on a stall selling newspapers and some groceries.

The stall was not big, with about five or six newspapers. The printing quality was quite poor. Ning Ji looked through them and found the newspaper that was spreading rumors about him. This day's edition was also full of gossip, making it particularly unpleasant to look at.

"If you're not buying, don't keep looking."

The stall owner spoke lazily.

"Buy, buy," Ning Ji nodded. "But boss, you have to answer me a question."

"What question?"

"Who makes your newspaper? Where do you get your supplies?"

"...Can I tell you that?"

The stall owner looked at him with suspicious eyes.

Ning Ji then took money out of his pocket.

In the Chinese Army's training, there were, of course, subjects such as intelligence gathering. Pure stalking would take a lot of time, and some small matters could often be solved with money. Ning Ji had money on him from several times of "righteous acts" on the road, but in the past, he mostly relied on selling cuteness when dealing with people, rarely using the lure of profit. At this time, he hinted to the stall owner and added the price twice, but it was not smooth.

"What are you up to, kid... Why are you asking this... I think you're very suspicious..."

One standard to pay attention to when luring with profit is not to reveal too much wealth, lest the other party wants to kill and rob directly. Therefore, Ning Ji did not increase the price too much several times. However, his appearance was innocent, and after some probing, he was unable to cause much deterrence to the other party. The stall owner's eyes were becoming less and less kind.

"...Never mind."

Ning Ji sighed and shook his head dejectedly, walking away.

At this time, the sun rose, and there were already some pedestrians on the road, but it was not bustling. Ning Ji walked back dejectedly, thinking about going to another newspaper stall to inquire. After walking a few steps, he stopped again, sighed, and turned back to the stall owner. The stall owner sneered and stood up, and then Ning Ji kicked him to the ground.

The other party wanted to get up and fight back, but Ning Ji grabbed him and beat him up, kicking him in a corner for a while. He didn't use too much force, just preventing him from getting up and avoiding serious injury. After beating him up like this, the surrounding pedestrians walked by, just watching, some being frightened and walking further away.

"...Hero, hero, spare my life... I'm convinced, I'll tell you..."

Ning Ji stood there, his face complex.

"Wouldn't it have been better if you had done this earlier? I'm not a bad person!"

He was somewhat indignant that the bad society was turning good people into bad people.

Then he asked an address from the other party's mouth, gave him a few dozen coins for medicine, and hurriedly left this place in a hurry.

Once intelligence is obtained, if the mouth is not silenced, these matters must be moved to the next step as soon as possible. Otherwise, if the other party informs, the intelligence obtained will be meaningless.

Ning Ji quickly ran through the city.

At the same time, in the direction he was going, three figures, two black and one lame, were now standing in front of a messy, ink-scented courtyard, observing the dilapidated two-story building inside.

"Is this the place?"

"It smells like it."

"King of Reincarnation's territory," Yuwen Feidu pointed to the flag inserted beside the courtyard.

"Why is he going against our Tian Ge?" Xiao Hei frowned.

"The matter originated in Tongshan, which is Li Yanfeng's territory. Li Yanfeng has joined Xu Zhaonan, and that Miss Yan from Yan Family Fortress is going to marry into the Shi family, so it's probably just some eye drops," Yuwen Feidu analyzed.

Xiao Hei nodded, feeling that it made a lot of sense. The case had been half-solved.

Hei Niu did not participate in the discussion. She had already rolled up her sleeves and walked forward, pushing open the gate: "We'll find out by asking."

"Don't be so impulsive."

"You're a girl, you need to be gentle..."

"What are we afraid of? They're just a few writers... No, I am

gentle..."

"..."

"..."

"...No, no, I just think we should use etiquette first before resorting to force."

"That's right, let's pretend to be Shi Baofeng's people..."

Xiao Hei and Yuwen Feidu persuaded while walking in helplessly. Yuwen Feidu, who was walking last, looked outside.

Closing the gate.