Slender willows sway in the breeze

Chapter 188 The Zhu Family
Gu Changzhou stared coldly at the Blood Spirit Cult members and loudly questioned, "What exactly are you Blood Spirit Cult members up to, stirring up trouble here and guarding this treasure chest?"

The leader of the Blood Spirit Cult sneered, his eyes full of disdain: "Gu Changzhou, do you think you can stop us? This world should be ruled by our Blood Spirit Cult. You are nothing but a mantis trying to stop a chariot!"

Gu Changzhou's expression hardened: "Absurd! The Blood Spirit Sect acts cruelly, causing immense suffering and death, and attempts to control the world with evil magic. It's utterly delusional!"

Liu Sijun: "You have committed so many evil deeds, aren't you afraid of retribution? What is hidden in this treasure chest must be the key to your evil plot. We will not let you succeed today."

The cult leader scoffed, "Retribution? In this dog-eat-dog world, only strength is truth. Once we obtain the ancient artifacts, who in this world can stop us?"

The expert beside Gu Changzhou shouted angrily, "Stop being so arrogant! You think you're qualified to talk about strength? You're nothing but a bunch of rats hiding in the shadows!"

The cult leader's gaze swept over the crowd, and he said viciously, "None of you will leave here alive today!"

After saying this, he waved his hand, and the Blood Spirit Cult followers behind him pounced on him like wolves.

That expert possessed the strength of the late-stage Nascent Soul realm, making him quite formidable among this group. He called out loudly, "Brothers, for the sake of all living beings, we must not let these villains succeed!"

The battle intensified, spiritual energy filled the cave, and shouts of battle echoed throughout.

A member of the Blood Spirit Cult seized the opportunity when Liu Sijun was distracted and attempted to rush towards the treasure chest.

Upon seeing this, Gu Changzhou immediately leaped to block him, shouting, "Lord Si, focus on dealing with the enemy! I'll guard the treasure chest!"

Liu Sijun nodded, her longsword gleaming brightly, its sword energy crisscrossing and forcing back the surrounding enemies. She shouted back, "These people seem to have no regard for their lives; the contents of the treasure chest must be extremely important to them."

At this moment, a Blood Spirit Cult member took advantage of the chaos to launch a sneak attack on Gu Changzhou. Liu Sijun, with sharp eyes, hurriedly shouted, "Changzhou, behind you!"

Gu Changzhou quickly turned around, knocked back the attacker with a single sword strike, and looked gratefully at Liu Sijun: "Thank you for the reminder, Sijun!"

Seeing the unfavorable situation, the cult leader suddenly stopped his attack, panting heavily, and said, "Gu Changzhou, do you think you've won? Even if you manage to take the treasure chest today, you can't escape the Blood Spirit Cult's scheme. When the ancient artifact appears and the world descends into chaos, that will be your doom!"

Gu Changzhou sneered: "Stop bluffing! The Blood Spirit Sect has committed numerous evils and will surely be punished by heaven."

The cult leader knew he was outmatched, but still stubbornly retorted, "Hmph, we'll see!"

Having said that, he led the remaining followers and, taking advantage of the chaos, desperately broke through the encirclement and fled.

Gu Changzhou watched their departing figures with a solemn expression: "It seems that the Blood Spirit Sect is determined to obtain this ancient artifact. We need to speed up our search."

Liu Sijun nodded: "That's right. The contents of this treasure chest may hold the key to uncovering the Blood Spirit Cult's conspiracy. We need to check it out as soon as possible."

Gu Changzhou slowly walked to the treasure chest. The chest emitted a soft, dim light, and its surface was covered with strange patterns, faintly exuding a mysterious power.

He crouched down, carefully examining the treasure chest, trying to find a way to open it.

Liu Sijun also stepped forward, squatted down and examined it with him, saying, "The patterns on this treasure chest seem to be related to the runes of the Blood Spirit Sect, but they are not exactly the same. Perhaps there is a hidden secret."

Gu Changzhou nodded slightly, reached out and gently touched the patterns, channeling spiritual energy into the treasure chest through his fingertips, but the treasure chest did not react at all.

Just then, Jiang Tai said, "My lord, Miss Liu, I've heard that the Blood Spirit Sect is skilled at using blood essence as a catalyst to open certain special restrictions. Could it be that this treasure chest also requires such a method?"

Gu Changzhou and Liu Sijun exchanged a glance, finding some truth in it.

Liu Sijun channeled his spiritual power, condensing a drop of his essence blood, which he dripped onto the treasure chest. Instantly, the chest shone brightly, and the previously tightly closed lid slowly opened.

Inside the treasure chest was a black token with a lifelike blood-red bat engraved on it, its eyes flashing with an eerie red light.

Liu Sijun reached out and picked up the token, examining it closely. His expression gradually became serious: "The aura on this token is extremely similar to that of the Blood Spirit Sect, but it has an added chilling edge. Moreover, I feel that this token looks very familiar, as if I have seen it somewhere before."

One of the experts was impatient and wanted to ask a question immediately.

But Gu Changzhou stopped him.

If you suddenly speak while your mind is focused on thinking, it could be disastrous.

Time passed slowly, and about fifteen minutes later, Liu Sijun's eyes lit up: "I saw this token when I was on a mission in Laiyang County. The Zhu family..."

There are several clans with the surname Zhu in Laiyang County.

However, Zhu Yingrong's family is the most famous.

Gu Changzhou's expression hardened: "The Zhu family? Could it be that the Blood Spirit Sect is colluding with the Zhu family? If so, things are becoming even more complicated."

Liu Sijun: "That's not certain yet."

However, the Zhu family may have been behind Zhu Yingrong's framing of her.

As for why they framed her...

Perhaps they just disliked her because she was born of the Chu family, or perhaps there was some other conspiracy involved; who knows?

After her maternal uncle became the governor of Laiyang County, she sent him a telepathic message, asking him to spare Zhu Yingrong's life. Nearly two years have passed since then, and she wondered if she could get any other information from Zhu Yingrong if she asked her now.

“In that case, let’s head to Laiyang County immediately. The connections here are intricate and complex. If we can get key clues from Zhu Yingrong, we might be able to disrupt the Blood Spirit Cult’s plans.”

Without further delay, the two immediately led everyone to Laiyang County.

Throughout the journey, Liu Sijun's feelings were quite complicated. She both hoped to learn the truth about her mother's death from Zhu Yingrong and worried that there might be a bigger conspiracy behind it.

Upon arriving in Laiyang County, they went straight to the prefectural governor's residence.

When Chu Yanghua saw them, his expression brightened, but then turned to worry: "Jun'er, Lord Gu, you've come at the right time. Laiyang County has become increasingly turbulent lately."

Liu Sijun told Chu Yanghua about the token and his suspicions about the Blood Spirit Sect's collusion with the Zhu family. Upon hearing this, Chu Yanghua's expression turned extremely ugly: "I never expected that the Zhu family would collude with the Blood Spirit Sect and commit such a heinous act. Zhu Yingrong is imprisoned in the dungeon of the prefectural governor's mansion. She has been very quiet for the past two years. Perhaps we can get some information out of her."

As the group entered the dungeon, a dark and damp atmosphere enveloped them.

Zhu Yingrong was locked in a cell. She looked even more haggard than before, but her eyes still revealed a hint of stubbornness.

Upon seeing Liu Sijun and Gu Changzhou, Zhu Yingrong was slightly taken aback, then sneered, "What are you doing here? Did you come to laugh at me?"

(End of this chapter)