Douluo Dragon King: I'm creating a golden age behind the scenes!

The following evening, a thin mist rose in the mountains, and the air was moist and cool, characteristic of the wilderness.

A sleek, soul-guided off-road vehicle bearing the Spirit Pagoda emblem smoothly drove out of Qingling City. Today, Zhao Lin and Zhou Mingyu's group had already visited all the attractions in the city. Now, they were heading towards their destination, Qingquan Town on the outskirts of the city, along the winding mountain road.

Inside the car, Zhou Mingyu sat in the back seat, resting with his eyes closed, his expression calm. Zhao Lin sat in the passenger seat, appearing somewhat reserved, but his eyes held the excitement unique to young people and the seriousness of his mission.

He occasionally glanced at the patrol officer in the back seat through the rearview mirror, his mind replaying his father's heavy words from the previous night.

About half an hour later, the vehicle entered a valley surrounded by lush green mountains. In the distance, wisps of smoke rose from chimneys, and a rather large town came into view.

Qingquan Town—just as its name suggests, the town is built nestled against a crystal-clear mountain stream, with white-walled and gray-tiled buildings lining both banks, exuding a simple yet elegant style.

Outside the town are vast terraced fields and lush orchards, while further away are rolling hills, where natural caves and waterfalls are said to be hidden, attracting tourists.

Looking out the window, Zhao Lin smiled with a relaxed expression, preparing to introduce the history and features of Qingquan Town to Zhou Mingyu.

"Inspector, look, that's Qingquan Town. In the old days, this was just a small village with about a hundred households, living off the mountains. Later, because the Soul Masters and wealthy merchants in the city discovered the wonders of the karst caves and the hot springs in the forest, more and more tourists came here, and it gradually developed into the scale it is today, becoming one of the most popular leisure destinations around our Qingling City..." Zhao Lin's voice carried a hint of pride.

However, as the vehicle approached the town entrance, the relaxed atmosphere inside suddenly changed.

The expected bustling scene of throngs of tourists and vendors hawking their wares did not materialize. Instead, a suffocating atmosphere of desolation and tension prevailed.

At the town's only entrance, the original symbolic wooden fence has been temporarily replaced with heavy, gleaming metal barricades.

Dozens of soldiers dressed in standard soul-guided armor, holding soul-guided rifles, stood solemnly on both sides, forming a tight defensive line.

A short queue had formed at the entrance, consisting of local residents who had been turned away and a few tourists who looked like they had wandered into the area by mistake.

Their faces all wore expressions of confusion, unease, and a hint of panic.

Several officers, dressed in civilian clothes but exuding a sharp and capable air, were using some kind of soul-guided device to conduct strict checks and identity verifications on everyone trying to enter the town. Their movements were swift and carried an undeniable forcefulness.

The Soul-Guided Off-Road Vehicle slowly came to a stop about 100 meters from the checkpoint.

Zhou Mingyu had opened his eyes at some point, his deep gaze sweeping calmly across the heavily armed military formation and the tense atmosphere ahead through the car window, his brows furrowing slightly imperceptibly.

Zhao Lin's smile froze, replaced by deep astonishment and confusion. He pushed open the car door, got out of the car with Zhou Mingyu, and the two walked together towards the queue.

Standing at the end of the line, Zhao Lin looked at the scene before him, where everyone was undergoing a thorough check, and couldn't help but exclaim in a low voice:

"What's going on? Checking everyone one by one? This is quite a scene... How come it's so big?" His voice was filled with disbelief. "Normally, even during peak tourist season, when there are huge crowds, the city's law enforcement team would only send a few people over to maintain order and prevent stampedes or disputes."

But now…this is clearly under military control! What are they planning to do? What happened in Qingquan Town?

He subconsciously glanced at Zhou Mingyu beside him, hoping to find the answer or a clue on the face of this inspector from headquarters.

However, Zhou Mingyu simply stared silently ahead, his gaze lingering on the soldiers' equipment, insignia, and the actions of the officers conducting the checks, as if he were analyzing and judging something.

Clearspring Town, a peaceful town famous for its tourism, is suddenly under a large-scale martial law imposed by the Federal regular army. This is by no means unusual!

Behind this, there must have been some major event that alarmed the military and required strict information control.

Zhao Lin's heart sank. His father's carefully planned "relaxation trip" seemed to have hit an invisible wall.

The grim scene before them cast an ominous shadow over the originally beautiful landscape of Qingquan Town.

Finally, due to the army's strict prohibition on entry, the group had no choice but to return to Qingling City.

But Zhou Mingyu recalled the health station, the medical cross, the medical staff wrapped up tightly in protective gear, and the ambulances rushing by in Qingquan Town…

Instead of going directly back to his room to rest, he went straight to the temporary office at the top of the tower, which had been prepared specifically for him as the inspector.

He had just sat down behind the large ebony desk when there was a regular knocking at the door.

"Come in."

The door was pushed open, and Liao Shan strode in. This senior deacon of the Spirit Pagoda in Qingling City had a look of worry and haste on his face.

"My lord, it's a plague," Liao Shan said in a deep voice, his tone grave. "A strange disease I've never seen before is spreading very rapidly in Qingquan Town!"

According to reports from our personnel in the town, the onset of the illness is extremely rapid, with bizarre symptoms including high fever, irregular purplish-black patches on the skin, confusion, and even violent tendencies… Currently, a considerable number of people in the town have been infected, but multiple isolation zones have been established to centrally manage all suspected and confirmed cases.”

"Okay, keep an eye on this matter, and let me know as soon as anything happens."

After listening to Liao Shan's report, Zhou Mingyu felt a sense of foreboding.

As expected, Liao Shan rushed over to report the next day.

"Sir, something terrible has happened. Many cases have appeared in the city overnight. The city is now under martial law, and the epidemic seems to be spreading to other areas."

Zhou Mingyu was also shocked upon hearing this and hurriedly notified Tower Master Zhao to send out healing-type soul masters from within the tower to help treat the patient.

They reported the situation directly to headquarters and then came to the city to investigate.

In just one night, the bustling scene on the streets of Qingling City vanished without a trace, and every household kept their doors tightly shut.

The only people on the street were soldiers patrolling in full protective gear and medical staff carrying out disinfection work, with the occasional urgent siren of an ambulance.

The entire city suddenly became deserted and eerily quiet, a sense of oppression and unease permeating the air.

Zhou Mingyu arrived at the hospital under the guise of a support staff member from the Spirit Pagoda, only to find it overcrowded with patients screaming in pain, their families in a panic, and doctors running heavily down the corridors.

Looking at this scene of utter devastation, Zhou Mingyu felt a pang of unease for some reason.

But as Zhou Mingyu continued to wander aimlessly through the hospital, he sensed a very complex "power of faith" gathering above the hospital and the quarantine camp!

Thanks to the presence of a great deal of faith power from Xie Jiayun stored within his sea of ​​consciousness, Zhou Mingyu now has a great deal of understanding of faith power and can sense its existence.

No, it shouldn't be called faith!

It was a force completely opposite to the power of faith; it was filled with emotions such as panic, resentment, and pain, and it continued to gather above Qingling City as the number of patients and the degree of their suffering increased.

And it seems to be slowly flowing towards somewhere.

At this moment, Zhou Mingyu realized that this incident was deliberate!