The courtyard was quiet, with only the whispering of the wind.

As soon as Guo Jinfa finished speaking, the eyes of the entire group of Yinzhou guards stabbed like knife blades.

Their eyes were filled with a sharp eagerness and an uncontrollable excitement.

Whoever dared to participate in the Mountain Patrolling Guards' trials, which of them hadn't already put life and death aside?

Since they came, no one expected to retreat safely.

They only wished to be among the Mountain Patrolling Guards, using their merits as stairs to reach a higher realm.

Guo Jinfa took in everyone's expressions, hung the wine pot back on his waist, and then spoke in a deep voice: "Twenty Yinzhou guards are willing to go to the trial, but this time the Mountain Patrolling Guards will only take ten."

The recruitment of Mountain Patrolling Guards was naturally extremely strict, requiring the best of the best.

Qin An frowned slightly, not knowing that the spots were so limited, his five fingers slowly clenched, gripping the black knife at his waist.

He must pass this mission.

Only by joining the Mountain Patrolling Guards can he earn more merits to exchange for the needed cultivation technique.

Now the Demonic Court sees him as a thorn in their side, and the Lingzhou demonic forces wish to grind him to dust. If he doesn't quickly enhance his strength, only death awaits him.

The Mountain Patrolling Guards are a good path; danger often accompanies benefit, a fact he understood better than anyone.

Seeing the crowd's emotions gradually stabilize, Guo Jinfa continued: "The trial mission relates to the Fire Crow Race, which you must have some understanding of."

Within Lingzhou, besides the Demonic Court, seven major demonic powers still occupy.

Now, Cangyun Valley, Hidden Mountain, and Tree Lord have all been destroyed in the Tiger Race's secret cache.

Among the remaining three forces, the Fire Crow Race is one of them.

It is said the Fire Crow Race resides in the depths of a volcano, with flames scorching the sky, and ordinary cultivators entering it would be tortured beyond recognition before even seeing its true form.

The Evil Extermination Bureau once tried to annihilate them but the place the Fire Crow Race resides in is intolerably hot, and the cost of forced attacks is too high.

Fearing the destabilization of Lingzhou's situation, they have remained inactive.

Guo Jinfa continued: "Recently, a remote county under Lingzhou was harassed by the Fire Crow Race. Being at the frontier, the Evil Extermination Bureau's county magistrate couldn't reach it, so this matter fell upon the Mountain Patrolling Guards."

"The situation is unclear now, and their intentions are unknown, but many villagers have already been poisoned by fire."

"This matter should have been resolved by us, but since you want to join the Mountain Patrolling Guards, why not treat it as a trial mission?"

"Investigate the cause, eliminate the culprit."

"After the trial, rankings will be decided based on individual performance."

At this point, Guo Jinfa's voice abruptly stopped.

One of the Yinzhou guards stepped out and loudly asked, "How are individual performances determined?"

According to what Guo Jinfa just said, the ranking is based on individual performance.

Everyone is acting solo, with no one monitoring. What if someone falsely reports merits?

Guo Jinfa let out a cold laugh and took out twenty black copper plaques from his chest.

The center of the plaque was crossed by a copper pattern, faintly emitting a cold light.

"This is called the Mountain Patrolling Copper Plaque. If you pass the trial, it will be your symbol of identity."

Flicking the plaque with his finger, Guo Jinfa explained: "It can not only communicate with colleagues but also record merits."

"After killing the demonic pseudo-gods, the Evil Qi will remain in it, evaluating merits without falsehood."

Qin An stood among the crowd, nodding slightly.

This item is indeed of infinite use.

It can communicate with fellow Mountain Patrolling Guards of the same rank and record merits, saving the hassle of going back and forth to the Evil Extermination Bureau.

The Mountain Patrolling Guards often roam various places with demonic creatures, so naturally, they don't frequently return to the Evil Extermination Bureau for records, and having this makes things much more convenient.

After saying this, Guo Jinfa proceeded to distribute the plaques to each Yinzhou guard.

Qin An received and examined the plaque, finding the communication range limited to about a hundred miles.

Once all the Yinzhou guards became familiar with the plaques, Guo Jinfa waved his large hand, his voice like a bell.

"Target—Luozhe County Town."

"I don't care if you go alone or in teams, but don't be afraid to die. Those afraid of dying can't become Mountain Patrolling Guards, so you better get lost early!"

"Set off!"

Upon these words, Guo Jinfa leaped into the air, disappearing from the courtyard in a few jumps.

The many Yinzhou guards exchanged glances, some quickly forming alliances while others watched coldly.

This time, only ten people could join the Mountain Patrolling Guards, and there was room for maneuver even if teaming up.

No one teamed up with Qin An, saving him quite a bit of trouble.

After contemplating briefly, Qin An walked out of the courtyard, fetched a fast horse, and rode out of the city alone.

Liu Qingzhou glanced at Qin An's departing figure and then turned his gaze to Nie Ruhai.

At this moment, Nie Ruhai pretended not to know Liu Qingzhou, chatting and laughing with three other Yinzhou guards.

Detecting Liu Qingzhou's gaze, Nie Ruhai acting nonchalantly, signaled him to stay put.

"If not for the nobles of the Demonic Court being busy with the head bureau, why rely on this Liu Qingzhou?"

Nie Ruhai thought to himself.

Now, with many eyes around, acting rashly would only expose them; better to wait for the opportune moment.

As more Yinzhou guards gathered, the small courtyard gradually emptied.

...

In the twilight, the official road was like a faded yellow silk, lying crookedly over the barren plain.

A few withered trees stood by the roadside, with branches like skinny ghost claws reaching for the leaden skies.

Cracked earth made a muffled sound like rotten wood breaking, startling two or three crows to flap away into the distance.

Their calls pierced the stillness of the air.

The fast horse galloped, and the silhouette of Luozhe County Town became clearer.

Ahead, a county town's outline gradually appeared.

Qin An tightened the reins, with a few Yinzhou guards already arriving behind him.

Luozhe County Town, belonging to Lingzhou, was extremely marginal.

The so-called mountain-patrolling by the Mountain Patrolling Guards was specifically to slay demons and remove monsters in places the Evil Extermination Bureau's county magistrates could not reach.

Luozhe County had four city gates, and each of the twenty Yinzhou guards, with their own motives, dispersed to enter through the four gates.

Qin An glanced back.

A few Yinzhou guards, like Qin An, were walking alone, each heading toward Luozhe County.

After entering the city gate, Qin An squinted his eyes.

A wave of heat hit him in the face.

Although not intense, compared to the outside, the temperature had clearly risen.

The faces of the street-side villagers were reddened, their steps unsteady.

Upon closer inspection, Qin An discovered that these villagers' faces were red, but not from blood, rather due to the abnormal surrounding temperature.

"How should we start this investigation?"

With no clues at hand, and no sign of demonic pseudo-gods, it was his first time handling such a task, leaving him at a loss.

As Qin An contemplated this, he saw several Yinzhou guards quietly blend into the crowd, clearly intending to gather information from the townspeople.

Qin An rubbed his chin, thinking, "That's indeed a good method."

With that thought in mind, Qin An's eyes flashed, and he stopped a passerby.

The townspeople, seeing Qin An in dark clothing and a black knife at his waist, immediately showed a horrified expression and trembled as they spoke, "Sir, what do you need?"

Qin An asked, "Why is it so hot here?"

The townspeople, upon hearing that, cautiously scanned the surroundings but dared not speak.

After a moment of reflection, Qin An took out a few silver coins and placed them into the townspeople's hands, "Just speak freely. I'm an outsider, merely curious."

The silver coins were not many, but for the townspeople, it was an unexpected fortune.

Sometimes money can solve many problems.

The townspeople tightly clutched the silver coins and whispered, "It's all because of that brick kiln in the northwest! Ever since Mr. Yu started the kiln, the county hasn't been cool. The County Magistrate sent people to investigate, but..."

They looked around and swallowed hard, "Mr. Yu is dead!"

Dead?

Qin An rubbed his chin, pondering in his heart, "This is interesting."

With such an incident, it was only natural for the County Magistrate to investigate.

But the subject suddenly dying was quite suspicious.

The townspeople looked left and right, "If there's nothing else..."

Qin An snapped back to reality, waved, "No problem, you can leave on your own."

The townspeople saw Qin An's imposing aura and didn't dare say more, turning around to leave.

Qin An stood in place, carefully considering.

Mere townspeople would certainly not yield more information.

But presently, there were two suspicious points.

One is the brick kiln in the northwest, the other is Mr. Yu's residence in the county.

"Since we're in the county, let's first visit this so-called Yu Mansion."

Resolving this, Qin An found another townspeople and, after inquiring the location of Yu Mansion, headed towards it.

On the way, several other Yinzhou guards were also heading in the same direction.

Without speaking, they were all tacitly aware.

...

In front of Yu Mansion, white lanterns hung high, as if shrouded by a gloomy cloud, exuding a chilling atmosphere.

The servant at the door wore white cloth on his arm and lethargically yawned.

At this moment, the servant, hearing footsteps, snapped back to alertness, turned to see a group of people in dark clothes arriving.

They immediately perked up, guarding with vigilance.

Qin An mingled among the Yinzhou guards but did not step forward.

Since five or six Yinzhou guards had also detected the clue here, there was no need for him to speak; someone else would.

As expected, just as the thought arose, one of the Yinzhou guards stepped forward.

"Evil Extermination Bureau is investigating, outsiders keep off!" the Yinzhou guard shouted sternly.

The three words 'Evil Extermination Bureau' were more effective than the county office.

The servants immediately squealed, lowered their heads in fear, and hastily made way.

Qin An and the others smoothly entered Yu Mansion, advancing ahead.

...

Inside Yu Mansion, many servants and maids were bustling about.

When a group of people in dark clothes entered, they immediately drew the attention of all, startling the maids and servants to glance sideways.

Soon, several elegantly dressed women, surrounded by many servants, arrived and stood in the courtyard.

Leading was a dignified middle-aged woman who stepped forward, bowed slightly, and asked, "I wonder what brings these esteemed officials to my humble abode?"

The Yinzhou guard stepped forward, explained the situation thoroughly, and straightforwardly expressed their intent.

The middle-aged woman showed some hesitation on her face: "What you say, Sir, I am aware. The disaster at the brick kiln, my husband has passed, I, a mere woman, truly do not know the details."

Her words were filled with helplessness.

The Yinzhou guard frowned and asked several more times, but the answer was always ignorance.

The Yinzhou guards exchanged glances, and two of them left the courtyard.

They were solitary travelers, seeing no more movements here, naturally headed to investigate the brick kiln.

With two leading, Yinzhou guards began to leave one by one.

The middle-aged woman trembled, watching these Yinzhou guards leave the courtyard.

Until only two Yinzhou guards remained, the middle-aged woman retrieved her gaze.

One was Qin An, the other a young man with iron rings at his waist.

The young man, seeing Qin An remaining here, asked, "Mr. Qin, did you sense something amiss?"

Qin An slightly nodded, "You know me?"

The young man smiled, "Mr. Qin's prowess on the stage, I have certainly witnessed."

After speaking, he folded his hands, "My name is Duan Feng, willing to team up with Mr. Qin."

He was a solitary traveler, but now that neither had left, they must have both noticed something.

If that's the case, teaming up temporarily is acceptable.

Qin An nodded, agreeing.

That day the stage incident caused quite a stir; it was normal for this ring-wielding Duan Feng to know him.

The middle-aged woman cautiously said, "Sirs, there really are no clues at Yu Mansion, and there are quite a few ladies here. If you remain long, it might spark rumors."

Her speech was filled with etiquette, and if ordinary people saw it, they'd likely believe it.

Qin An waved his hand, "Stand aside, I'm not asking you."

The middle-aged woman was slightly stunned.

Qin An's gaze locked onto a woman among the crowd and suddenly pointed, "You, come over here. I have questions."

The middle-aged woman's expression drastically changed.

The young woman's shoulders trembled, hesitating to move forward.

Duan Feng, observing the scene, understood tacitly, and without waiting for Qin An to speak, quickly stepped forward and pulled the young woman out.

Though the young woman struggled with all her might, it was completely futile.

At this point, Qin An noticed the young woman's abdomen slightly bulging, suggesting she might be pregnant.

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