The Imperial Guards, like Yama, slaughtered until the Empress cried out for help.

the other side.

Dezheng Pavilion.

Although it is named Ge, it actually has a rather large mansion in the western part of the city.

In the very center of the mansion stands a two-story pavilion, where a faint fragrance wafts through the air, and the sound of chanting Buddhist prayers can be faintly heard.

Inside the attic, a scholarly-looking man was kneeling on a prayer cushion, holding a string of prayer beads in his hand and muttering incantations. In front of him stood a tall Buddha statue with its eyes closed.

Outside, two middle-aged men stood respectfully at the door; one of them, a short man, was the third leader of Dezheng Pavilion.

The third leader looked at the second leader beside him and whispered, "Second leader, is the sect leader's approach really going to work? We're already in this line of work, what's the point of worshipping Buddha?"

The second-in-command shook his head and remained silent.

The third leader frowned, glanced at the towering Buddha statue, and muttered, "If this thing were truly useful, we should have been in the underworld long ago..."

As soon as he finished speaking, the man in the room slowly stood up. He was Song Wen, the head of Dezheng Pavilion.

Song Wen turned to look at the third leader with a calm expression and an unusually indifferent tone: "Third brother, slap him."

The third leader glanced at the second leader, said nothing, and raised his hand to slap himself three times across the face.

The second-in-command, who was used to this, didn't seem too surprised and asked directly.

"Master, how do we get this batch of goods out? The previous methods are no longer working."

The third leader rubbed his flushed cheeks and said, "Damn it, it's all because of that new centurion. Since he arrived, there hasn't been a moment of peace in the entire Luoshui City. Last time, when he was catching Japanese pirates, he arrested a large number of the soldiers guarding the city."

"To make matters worse, they locked up all the people we bribed, so now we can't get out through any of our old channels."

Song Wen wasn't too flustered: "No need to rush, new connections are already being established, and business will be back to normal in no time."

The second-in-command nodded, but still looked worried: "But there's a problem with one of the goods in that batch. It's seriously ill, and if it doesn't see a doctor soon, it won't live much longer."

Song Wen closed his eyes and recited two lines of scripture: "Life and death are preordained. If he dies, then so be it. It is his fate."

Suddenly, a mocking voice came from the upper floor of the attic behind them.

"Dezheng Pavilion? Do you even deserve that name?"

"They're all incredibly shameless! It's true what they say, the more you lack something, the more you want it."

Shen Qing stood on the eaves of the pavilion, looking down at the group.

At the same time, he couldn't help but think of his past life.

On the internet, some people name themselves "厚德载物" (meaning "great virtue carries all things"), but be careful, because some of these people are truly lacking in virtue.

Several leaders suddenly looked up: "The Embroidered Uniform Guard?"

Just then, screams erupted from all directions of the mansion; the Imperial Guards had stormed in.

The third leader's face immediately turned ugly; clearly, he had recognized Shen Qing.

"He is Shen Qing, the new centurion of the western city."

Shen Qing looked down at the group: "You know me? Then you dare to cause trouble on my turf?"

The third leader took two steps back. He often traveled around Luoshui City and had naturally heard of Shen Qing's name. He didn't even have the thought of resisting and turned around to run away.

Before he could take two steps, a beam of azure light descended from the sky, and Qinghe cleaved the third leader in two from top to bottom. At the same time, domineering true energy surged out, and the violent true energy directly shattered the third leader's body. In an instant, blood and foam splattered everywhere.

Shen Qing tossed Qinghe aside and slowly walked towards the second-in-command and Song Wen.

The second-in-command, Mianpi, twitched. He had heard of Shen Qing's reputation and knew about violence, but he never expected him to be this violent.

The second-in-command felt his legs go weak. He turned his head and used his footwork to walk in the opposite direction, but unfortunately he was a step too slow. A fierce gust of wind, carrying domineering true energy, blasted him into blood and gore.

Song Wen remained calm, his fingers still constantly twirling the prayer beads, making a clicking sound.

Shen Qing slowly approached him: "Both of your underlings ran away, aren't you going to run?"

Song Wen said calmly, "I knew this day would come from the moment I entered this line of work. Ask whatever you want, and then kill me."

"Death is nothing to me; I have no fear."

After saying that, Song Wen slowly turned around and raised his head towards the Buddha statue.

The next moment, Shen Qing kicked him directly in the butt, and Song Wen spun around three times in the air before crashing heavily to the ground.

"You're still pretending? What's a human trafficker doing, acting like you're so upright and ready to die?"

"You're not afraid of death, are you? Then are you afraid of pain?"

Song Wen struggled to lift his head, slowly wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. His eyes remained calm, but a trace of pain and fear in them betrayed him.

"Wow, it's pretty tough." Shen Qing chuckled as she stepped forward, placing a foot on Song Wen's hand. "Can you still hold back like this?"

Shen Qing gradually increased the pressure on his foot, causing Song Wen's palm to turn red. Gradually, a cracking sound came from the ground, the sound of bones breaking. Song Wen gritted his teeth and spat out a few words.

"I give up, I give up."

But Shen Qing didn't bother listening to him at all, and kept increasing the pressure on his feet, causing Song Wen to scream in pain.

Suddenly, the stone bricks on the ground shattered, and Song Wen's hand was crushed into them. Shen Qing even spun his heel and stomped on it several times. This time, Song Wen's screams were heart-wrenching, and his hand was completely turned into a meat patty.

Shen Qing squatted down in front of Song Wen, grabbed Song Wen's hair and pulled him up. Looking at Song Wen, who was crying and spitting, Shen Qing sneered.

"I still prefer your defiant side from just now."

Song Wen cried out, "Shen Qing! Why do you have to torture me like this?"

Shen Qing smiled and said, "Because I like it."

Previously, there was a lot of heated debate about how to punish human traffickers.

Radicals believe that human traffickers should be executed on the spot.

Conservatives, on the other hand, argued that radicals were too conservative. They pointed out that human traffickers also have families and desires, so how could they be executed directly? They argued that the entire family should be wiped out.

Therefore, Shen Qing truly enjoyed torturing human traffickers.

Suddenly, footsteps were heard, and Ding ran over in a big stride.

"Sir, all the children have been found, not one missing. They've all been blindfolded and sent away. And this bunch of chickens and dogs have all been captured."

Ding Yi was wearing the Shennong Academy's uniform. Ever since the last Autumn Harvest Festival, Shen Qing had arranged for the three brothers to work as guards at the Shennong Academy, so they were now eating the government's food. On the way here, he bumped into Shen Qing and insisted on coming over to do his part for him. He couldn't be stopped.

Shen Qing didn't even turn his head: "These human traffickers don't need to be captured alive. The Hundred Households Prison isn't a garbage dump. Just chop them up on the spot."

Ding nodded slightly: "Okay."

Suddenly, Ding Yi remembered something: "Oh right, we just caught a woman in the inner room. She doesn't seem to have much cultivation. I wonder what her situation is. Should we kill her too?"

"Cut them all off."

A flicker of panic flashed in Song Wen's eyes, but Shen Qing caught it.

Shen Qing laughed and waved.

"Hey, Ding Yi, I've changed my mind. Bring that woman over here."