I'm just an ornamental fish in the water.

Lady Luoshui looked at the scales on her hand.

If you look at these scales individually, they are indeed very beautiful.

In fact, these scales and the reason for their appearance are truly unique in the entire Three Realms.

But for Lady Luoshui, she felt from the bottom of her heart that this thing was extremely ugly, her greatest shame, and her deepest nightmare.

However, Lady Luoshui had no choice but to accept the existence of this thing, because it had haunted her for thousands of years like a persistent boil.

"Fuxi's eldest daughter, captivated by the scenery of the Luo River, refused to ascend to the Fire Cloud Cave with her father..."

Lady Luoshui laughed self-deprecatingly, muttering to herself. She raised her other hand, her long nails digging fiercely into the gaps in the scales, completely disregarding the blood seeping out, and dug the scales out of the back of her hand alive.

This was undoubtedly immense pain, but Lady Luoshui had clearly done it countless times before, her face remaining calm and composed without any tremor.

The wound was bleeding profusely, but it healed very quickly.

As Lady Luoshui looked at the blood-stained scale in her hand, a flame rose up and burned the scale to ashes.

She looked at the empty, tightly closed back door.

"Li'er, how similar you and I are..."

After leaving the inner hall, Jiang Li behaved as usual, and even had time to tease Chi'er for a few moments.

"It's getting late, so I'll go and rest now. But the Empress can't do without you, sister. Thank you for your hard work."

Jiang Li smiled and cupped her hands in greeting to Chi'er, her words as sweet as ever.

Chi'er laughed and said, "You're so good at talking. You've been busy for a long time, go and rest. The work of the Cloud and Rain Bureau is not heavy. After this, you should have several days off."

Jiang Li smiled and nodded, bidding farewell to Chi'er. He turned around, seemingly heading towards the Cloud and Rain Bureau, but instead arrived directly outside the Luoshui Divine Palace.

With a twist of its body, it revealed its true form as a red carp, and then disappeared without a trace.

By the time Jiang Li crossed the Luo River and arrived outside Yanshi County, only an hour had passed.

It is now just before dawn, the darkest time of day. It had just rained, and now that the rain has stopped, the stars and moon are shining a little light in the sky.

Jiang Li appeared silently outside Yanshi County, but did not enter the city.

It wasn't because the city gates stopped him, but because Jiang Li knew very well that the ghosts and gods of the City God Temple in Yanshi County were probably out in full force.

Jiang Li never doubted the capabilities of the local City God's Office. If Jiang Li had come under a legitimate order, then she could naturally swagger in to ask the City God's Office for information.

But since the Empress said to keep the investigation confidential, Jiang Li naturally wouldn't act with the City God's Mansion, and would even try to hide as much as possible.

In fact, Jiang Li didn't really have any clue about this matter, but she couldn't just foolishly wait for her so-called great fortune to come into play.

Now, after several fortuitous encounters, Jiang Li has gained some understanding of her special abilities.

One cannot rely on one's own great fortune, nor can one simply wait for it to come to them, nor can one rely solely on this ability to accomplish anything after discovering that one possesses such a unique trait.

He needs a trigger, or rather, a cause and effect.

She met King Yu because the Goddess of Luo River needed to decorate the reception hall, and she met Ge Xuan because Jiang Li needed to go to Luoyang City to make purchases.

The reason Jiang Li met the Great Teacher was because he was investigating the Goddess Wusheng.

These are all reasons.

Because of this cause, Jiang Li was able to unleash the power of her great fortune.

In other words, Jiang Li must take concrete actions to stimulate her great fortune to some extent.

However, where should they begin? Jiang Li found a village under the jurisdiction of Yanshi County. In the fields of this village, there was a stream.

He sat down on a rock by the stream.

There are only two or three breakthroughs in investigating a case.

He was either the perpetrator, the victim, or a witness.

Of these three points, the perpetrator is in the hands of the City God's Mansion, and Jiang Li herself is one of the witnesses.

Then the only remaining point of attack is the victim.

Magistrate of Yanshi County.

A strange object rarely seen even in the Three Realms; rarity often signifies preciousness.

This strange thing either acts on its own or is being directed by someone behind the scenes.

But whether it's the former or the latter, there seems to be no reason to take action against a county magistrate.

If it is the former, then given its eerie nature as a demon and a ghost, it must possess extremely high spirituality and would be unaware of the immense risks involved in infiltrating the county government and assassinating the magistrate.

If the purpose is merely for the sake of practicing cultivation through killing, then to put it cruelly, killing a hundred or so refugees wouldn't cause as much of a stir as killing a county magistrate. Why take such a huge risk for nothing?

If it is the latter, then it is even more interesting. A county magistrate should not be considered special in the eyes of the forces that can make or control such strange things.

Why target a county magistrate? And why go to such extremes, not only wiping out his entire family of six, but even taking their souls?

Therefore, no matter what, this county magistrate must have some special characteristics.

What could it be?

As Jiang Li was thinking, she looked up and realized that a lot of time had passed. The morning sun had already risen, shining on the stream and making it sparkle.

A slightly unsteady set of footsteps sounded from behind Jiang Li.

Jiang Li turned around and saw an elderly man with white hair, wearing a straw raincoat and scholar's clothes underneath, carrying a fishing rod, walking slowly towards her.

A young pageboy carrying a bamboo basket followed behind him.

The old man's eyesight was clearly failing; even though he was not far from Jiang Li, he only noticed her after being reminded by the page behind him.

"This young man looks unfamiliar."

The old man greeted us with a smile and a cupped-hand salute. Please remember the only official website for this novel: www.deqixs.org. This is the only website; other websites may be discontinued at any time.

Jiang Li stood up to return the greeting and said with a smile, "I am a scholar traveling for study. I was so engrossed in the scenery along the way that I missed the time to enter the city, so I have to rest here."

As he spoke, he glanced at the fishing rod in the old man's hand and asked, "Are you here to catch the early catch, sir?"

"When people get old, they can't sleep soundly. Instead of tossing and turning in bed, they might as well go fishing for a few fish to relieve their boredom as the sun rises."

The old man chuckled as he answered, subtly glancing at Jiang Li's attire, already somewhat believing what Jiang Li said.

These days, those who can afford to study must at least come from humble backgrounds. Judging from this young man's attire, he is clearly either rich or noble.

But why travel alone?

The old man was puzzled, but with the help of his page, he sat down not far from Jiang Li and skillfully cast his fishing rod.

Upon seeing this, Jiang Li's lips twitched involuntarily.

Fishing in front of a fish, old man, you've got some nerve.

"I am Pang Jun, and I do not yet know your honorable name, young master?"

The old man stared at the water and asked slowly. Jiang Li smiled and replied, "I dare not accept such praise. I am Jiang Li, and I greet Master Pang."

"ginger?"

Pang Jun thought for a moment and asked, "Tianshui ginger, or Pengcheng ginger?"

"The student is not from a prominent family; his family lives in Luoyang and consists of only a few people."

Jiang Li paused for a moment, then answered with a smile.

Pang Jun responded with an "oh," seemingly unconcerned, and then asked, "Why does Young Master Jiang refer to himself as a student?"

Jiang Li smiled and said, "Master Pang is clearly a learned scholar with a wealth of knowledge. In your presence, I, a junior, should naturally refer to myself as a student."

Pang Jun laughed and said, "He's just relying on his family's wealth and has foolishly memorized some books. How can he be considered a learned scholar?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Li's expression shifted, and he asked, "Is Master Pang a native of Yanshi?"

"Since the Yanping era, when Zu Pangcan rose to prominence, he has always lived in Yanshi."

Pang Jun nodded, and when he mentioned his ancestors, his tone was filled with a mixture of pride and shame. He sighed, "However, we, his descendants, are incompetent. To this day, we are merely living off the legacy of our ancestors, and there is no one who can surpass them."

"Master Pang, you are mistaken. As the saying goes, the student surpasses the teacher; it's just that the time hasn't come yet," Jiang Li comforted him, then casually changed the subject.

"My elders at home have instructed me to travel and study, intending to investigate the political and social conditions of various places. Now that I have arrived in Yanshi, I am fortunate to have met Master Pang. I wonder if Master Pang could teach me?"