Immortal of the Ages

Chapter 530: Save Me, Changfeng!

Three Arbiters…! Lu Qian's eyes trembled, and her voice cracked as she bit her teeth and asked, "Are you sure the dead are Arbiters?"

The guard replied in panic, "Absolutely certain! My brothers all saw it, it was indeed three of the six Arbiters from this afternoon..."

At this point, the guard glanced at Lu Changfeng and spoke softly, "Commander Lu, it was your three subordinates!"

He was obviously quite familiar with Lu Changfeng, calling him a commander.

"Who were the victims?" Lu Changfeng still couldn't believe his own ears.

"It was Zhao Cheng, Chi Yu, and Gu Yuan," the guard said, his voice trembling as he bowed his head.

"Them…?" Lu Changfeng and Lu Qian exchanged a look, their eyes wide in disbelief.

How could this be?

"Go back now, secure the scene, lock down all information; we'll be there immediately!" Lu Qian tried to calm herself, but her scalp tingled uncontrollably.

Once he had left, Lu Changfeng stared at Lu Qian and hissed, "What's going on? Have your people lost their minds?"

"It couldn't have been Mo Ya; he couldn't even defeat Zhao Cheng," Lu Qian hurriedly explained.

"Mayor…" Before she could finish, an old man stealthily entered from the shadows outside the wall—it was Mo Ya.

His face was stricken with fear, and as soon as he entered, he knelt before Lu Qian, his eyes filled with terror. "Why would you kill an Arbiter? I could have taken the blame for those nine lives before. But now, with three Arbiters dead, if I go out and take the blame, the Skyruler Immortal Manor will surely investigate my lineage back three generations and nine clans. Though Mo Dong is my illegitimate son and few know of him, if the Skyruler Immortal Manor thoroughly investigates, not only will he never become deputy mayor, he might even lose his life!"

Lu Qian voiced her frustration, "Are you foolish? How could this possibly be my doing?"

"Not you? But the three Arbiters were also found with their eyes pierced, hanging at the city gates..." Mo Ya gasped at this point, his voice quivering, "Someone used our murder weapon to kill, and they killed the Arbiters, whom even the Celestial Court dares not touch! Now, it's like having mud in our pants—it might not be shit, but it sure seems like it!"

"With the Arbiters dead, this has blown up..." Lu Qian's face paled as she turned to Lu Changfeng in panic. "The Skyruler Immortal Manor will never allow an Arbiter’s murderer to escape unpunished. So, they'll surely send more people, and they'll definitely trace it back to me!"

"It's over, all over!" Mo Ya's eyes were bloodshot. He had planned to use his remaining years to secure a prosperous future for his descendants, but if the truth were discovered, even if he hadn’t killed an Arbiter, his entire family would be doomed.

"Mo Ya, go down now. Say nothing, do nothing, just wait for instructions," Lu Qian commanded coldly.

"Yes..." Mo Ya bowed and hurried away, his face a mask of panic.

As soon as he left, Lu Qian suddenly fell to her knees at Lu Changfeng's feet, her voice desperate, "Changfeng, save me! If you don't save me this time, I'm as good as dead."

Tears fell from her eyes, pitifully.

"Enough, stand up." Lu Changfeng took a deep breath and said coldly, "This is targeted at me, to bring me down. How can I not destroy them? The only way now is to catch tonight’s murderer quickly and pin all the blame on him."

"Yes, yes." Lu Qian nodded quickly.

"Immediately arrange for the city to be locked down and keep the death of the Arbiters a secret. Anyone who knows, try to control them as much as possible," Lu Changfeng instructed.

"How can this news be kept under wraps?" Lu Qian shook her head.

"It's the middle of the night now; the murderer has been active recently and there are fewer people around at night, so the impact isn't too big yet... We'll stall as much as we can. I need to use this time to bring in some friends from Sky Soaring City to help!" Lu Changfeng said sternly.

"So you mean, before the Skyruler Immortal Manor gets wind of the deaths of the Arbiters, you'll bring in a few powerful friends to wrap up this case?" Lu Qian, previously frantic, finally calmed down.

"Exactly." Lu Changfeng nodded, his expression still grim. "This time I took people into action, lost three Arbiters, all of high birth; when I return, I'm bound to be marked severely, which will affect my promotion to Rank 8!"

"Changfeng, I'm sorry. I truly didn't foresee this," Lu Qian's voice carried a mournful tone.

"It's not about you," Lu Changfeng replied, gazing into the night sky, his fists clenched with venom in his voice, "Just let me find out who did this—I'll make sure they regret ever coming into this world!"

"Yes, they shall be cut to pieces a thousand times over!" Lu Qian replied with equal ferocity.

After a pause, her worry resurfaced, "Should we tell your parents about this?"

"No need." Lu Changfeng shrugged with a cold laugh. "My sister passed away mysteriously, and they spend their days weeping; they hardly have time to worry about me."

"It's indeed unfair. Compared to you, Xiaolu was not as talented; she just knew how to act sweetly and received so much affection," Lu Qian remarked softly.

Lu Changfeng scoffed, "Besides, my father is eager to become the next governor of Sky Soaring City. If he learns of this mess, he'd surely blame me again."

"Then, can you rely on your friends?" Lu Qian asked casually.

"They're sworn brothers and sisters who'd risk their lives for me, what do you think?" Lu Changfeng shrugged again, then looked down at Lu Qian. "By the way, you mentioned earlier that you skimmed off a mine of True Immortal Jade?"

"Yes..." Lu Qian hurriedly produced a Bag of Holding. "This is to show my respect for you."

SMACK! Lu Changfeng swatted the Bag of Holding away, his voice cold, "Are you trying to appease a beggar? I get dragged into this mess for you, and this is all you bring?"

Lu Qian was stunned.

"Give me the mine," Lu Changfeng added.

Lu Qian's delicate body trembled, but all she could do was bow her head and nod silently. Inside, she bitterly smiled. All her efforts, even committing fratricide, and in the end, it was all for someone else's gain.

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A while later, Lu Changfeng and Lu Qian arrived at the gates of Sangju City.

The news was suppressed; few people were around, causing little immediate shock or panic.

On that stone pillar gate, three ropes hung, each suspending an Arbiter with hollowed eyes. In the middle hung Zhao Cheng, with Chi Yu and Gu Yuan on either side. Even in death, the lovers were not allowed to hang together...

When Lu Changfeng saw their corpses, his heart clenched painfully. He had known them since childhood, was familiar with their family backgrounds—both sets of parents prominent figures. Just this morning, they had been as lively as crickets, and now they dangled like dried radishes at the city gate...

Their deaths were gruesome, their eyes hollowed out, faces twisted in terror.

"Their deaths resemble those of the nine before them." Mo Ya, who had come over, was taking notes in an official ledger.

"However, these three Arbiters died in even greater fear, suggesting the killer truly terrified them. Capable of striking down even those in the Late True Immortal Realm, the murderer must be at least in the Establishment stage..." he muttered to himself, cautious not to speak too loudly.

"Sun Xiaoqi!" Disgusted and feeling ill, Lu Changfeng chose to look away and instead grabbed Sun Xiaoqi, who was pale and trembling. He glared into her eyes and roared, "I heard you've been lurking around here? Were you the first to find their bodies?"

"Yes, yes, yes…" Sun Xiaoqi's chin quivered violently.

"People hang corpses here and you, out of your body, see nothing?" Lu Changfeng snapped coldly.

"Deputy Changfeng, they were too fast, I—I just bowed my head to take a bite of meat, and they slipped away, totally uncatchable... I didn't dare chase them," Sun Xiaoqi cried.

"So you saw them? Who were they? Any distinctive features in their attire?" Lu Qian stepped forward, staring intently at Sun Xiaoqi.

Sun Xiaoqi hurriedly recalled, "It was a woman, tall and slim, wearing a wind robe embroidered with mulberry leaves and chrysanthemums, edged in gold... Yes, Mayor Lu Qian, just like the one you're wearing."

After she blurted out her last words, Sun Xiaoqi froze, her eyes widening as she stumbled backward in fear.

"Are you sick? Talking nonsense!" Lu Changfeng grasped her by the collar, annoyed by her foolish and stunned demeanor.

"No, really! The murderer was wearing exactly that... I get it now, she wants to frame the mayor! That’s cunning indeed. Despicable." Sun Xiaoqi came to a realization and hurriedly defended Lu Qian.

Around them, a dozen guards exchanged glances, at a loss for words.

"Frame the mayor?" Lu Changfeng glanced back at Lu Qian.

At the time of Zhao Cheng's death, Lu Qian had been exchanging pointers in bed with him; she certainly wasn't the perpetrator.

The murderer must know that the previous nine were killed by Sister Qian! Lu Changfeng's brow furrowed deeply.

With this realization of his formidable opponent, he calmed himself, took a deep breath, and fixed his gaze on Sun Xiaoqi, "Tell us what happened. Why were you alone here, and where were those three killed?"

Sun Xiaoqi recounted the arrangements made by Yun Xiao.

After she finished, she said with a grimace, "I advised Chi Yu and Gu Yuan to join me, as it was quite frightening to be here alone, but they didn’t listen to me. They didn’t show up even after it got dark."

Seeing her panic-stricken appearance, Lu Changfeng's anger boiled over, and he kicked her fiercely, glaring, "Have your parents take you back home to raise you as a celestial pig. With your cowardice, you're just wasting the Celestial Court's resources."

Hearing this, Sun Xiaoqi thought to herself, "That would be great, lying at home and eating good food—who would want to come out and live in fear..."

People like her, with ample family resources and no great ambitions, were not uncommon.

Lu Changfeng's gaze then shifted, and he asked Sun Xiaoqi, "You just said, Lu Yao and Zhao Cheng were in charge of patrolling the eastern and western districts of the city?"

"Yes, yes, yes," Sun Xiaoqi nodded.

"Someone!" Lu Changfeng's eyes were cold as ice as he shouted, "Bring Lu Yao to me!"

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At a street corner not far away, Yun Xiao stood on a rooftop, looking towards the city gates.

Beneath him, a little black beast scampered in and out from under a dress embroidered with chrysanthemums and mulberry leaves.

Blue Star remarked, "I'm impressed. You're a real cross-dressing master, love it!"

"Cut it out, it's just a disguise!" Yun Xiao said, exasperated.

"Seriously though, you look better in it than Lu Qian does," Blue Star teased.

"Get lost!"

Blue Star and Red Moon both burst into laughter.

"By the way, how are you so sure Lu Qian is the murderer?" Blue Star curiously asked.

Yun Xiao's gaze was cool. "No evidence, just a gut feeling from the first time I met her."

"Lu Changfeng is looking for you, do you think he'll suspect you?" Blue Star inquired.

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