Fairy, please don't do this!

Therefore, the team is now full of newcomers, and there is no established team leader.

The dark-skinned young man next to Wang Han quickly stepped forward and whispered, "Brother-in-law, you didn't say that yesterday?"

"Didn't we agree that once we've taken them all down one by one, the team leader position will naturally be yours?"

Wang Han's face darkened, and he kicked him, saying, "Go cool off somewhere else!"

He then turned to Gu Jinzhao, looking somewhat embarrassed: "This is my brother-in-law, Ma Xu, who also comes from the Martial Yuan Sect and has an early-stage eighth-rank cultivation."

"He speaks recklessly, Team Leader Gu, don't take it personally."

"In the cultivation world today, who doesn't know the renowned reputation of the Little Sword Immortal of the Qingyun Sect?"

Upon hearing this title, Gu Jinzhao suddenly understood and turned his gaze to the five wooden nameplates hanging in a row on the wall.

The ink marks on it are clear, and they are indeed the names of the five people in the Gengjin group.

Gu Jinzhao, Jiang Tinglan, Shao Baxing, Wang Han, Ma Xu.

Ok?

Shao Baxing?

This poisonous milk actually managed to infiltrate the Demon Suppression Division, and even happened to be assigned to my group.

Gu Jinzhao was taken aback, and his gaze involuntarily turned to the tall and thin young man in brocade robes on the other side.

Shao Baxing bowed to him, speaking calmly: "I am Shao Baxing, an early-stage eighth-rank divine cultivator."

"Although I am from a prominent family, I have long heard of Brother Gu's deeds in sweeping through the Zen realm."

"It is the people's expectation that you will be appointed as the team leader."

"I have no objection either."

At this moment, a clear, melodious female voice rang out.

Gu Jinzhao looked in the direction of the sound and saw a woman leaning against the door frame of the duty room.

Her white tiger-patterned black robe was tailored to fit her perfectly, tightly cinching her slender waist, highlighting her full and impressive bust, and her long, straight legs that made up almost seven-tenths of her height.

The morning light just happened to sweep across the eaves and fall on her well-defined profile, making her lips red and teeth white, and her features exquisitely beautiful.

Especially his eyes, which were clear and sharp, with a hint of menace, were as awe-inspiring as a tiger in the mountains.

Undoubtedly, she is a dashing and sophisticated woman.

Gu Jinzhao looked at her, his brows twitching almost imperceptibly.

Jiang Tinglan was also looking at him, her gaze open and unblinking: "Jiang Tinglan, from a noble family, a seventh-grade early-stage Divine Dao cultivator."

A knowing look flashed across Gu Jinzhao's eyes, and he then solemnly cupped his hands to the four people present: "Gu Jinzhao, disciple of Qingyun Sect, early stage of seventh-grade Divine Path."

"Since I am so grateful for the kindness of my colleagues, I will temporarily assume the position of head of the Gengjin Group."

"In future official business, I hope you will work together with one heart and mind and give me more guidance."

Upon hearing this, Wang Han burst into laughter, waving his fan-like hand and exclaimed, "What are you trying to teach me!"

"Once you join the Gengjin Group, you're in the same boat, sharing both good and bad fortune!"

"We'll work together, share the credit, and if we ever fall apart..."

At this point, he pointed to the large, half-person-high black iron vat in the corner of the yard: "Pour the ashes into this vat as fertilizer for the crooked old jujube tree in the backyard. That way, it'll be of some use!"

Chapter 101, I am irreconcilably opposed to evil (3.3K)

Ma Xu said unhappily, "That's not a good omen. What if we die before we even get started?"

Wang Han slapped him hard on the back of the head and cursed, "You're full of pretentious and pedantic phrases. Do you want to abandon martial arts and take the civil service exam to become a scholar?"

Just then, Shao Baxing, who had been watching closely, subtly moved his eyes and whispered a reminder: "Commander Zhao has arrived."

Everyone's expression turned serious, and they instantly stopped laughing.

A middle-aged man, about forty years old, with an ordinary face, emerged from the back door of the duty room.

He was dressed in a dark tiger-patterned casual suit, without armor, and only had an old-fashioned, sheathless longsword hanging at his waist.

He was unremarkable in appearance, except for his eyes, which were as sharp as those of a hawk hunting for prey, as they slowly swept over the five people in the courtyard.

He spoke, his voice calm and even, yet clearly reaching everyone's ears: "My name is Zhao Jinbei, and from now on I will be your superior."

"Team leader, has it been selected?"

Gu Jinzhao stepped forward, cupped his hands in a respectful gesture, and said, "Gu Jinzhao, leader of the Gengjin Group, greets Commander Zhao."

Zhao Jinbei's gaze fell on him, lingered for a moment, and then slowly said, "You should have heard that the five former White Tiger Guards of the Gengjin Group were all killed by three evil cultivators three days ago."

What are your thoughts on this?

Gu Jinzhao understood the deeper meaning in Zhao Jinbei's words and replied in a deep voice, "I will personally kill the evil cultivator to comfort the spirits of my comrades in heaven."

A hint of satisfaction flashed across Zhao Jinbei's eyes. He took out a file from his sleeve and handed it over: "This case will be handled by the Gengjin Group."

Having said that, he said no more and turned to leave.

Shao Baxing, quick-witted, immediately said respectfully, "Please take care, Commander Zhao."

Just as Zhao Jinbei stepped out of the courtyard, for some reason, his left foot tripped over his right foot, causing him to stumble and fall in front of everyone.

He quickly got up and turned around to look without making a sound.

But then they saw five people gathered in the courtyard, engrossed in reviewing the case files, seemingly oblivious to the embarrassing situation that had just occurred.

Zhao Jinbei then coughed lightly and walked away as if nothing had happened.

But I always felt something was off.

How could a dignified seventh-rank cultivator like himself trip over his own feet and fall flat on his face?

If this gets out, it will probably become a laughing stock.

In the courtyard, Gu Jinzhao had already unfolded the file.

It contains a detailed account of the murder of the five White Tiger Guards of the previous Gengjin Group.

The incident occurred three days ago, at 3:45 AM.

The five men received a secret report that three fugitive evil cultivators, wanted by the imperial court for a long time, were being held in the Minghe Charity Estate, three hundred miles outside Yujing City. They then set off overnight to arrest them.

But who knew, they would never return!

It wasn't until the next day that the White Tiger Guards arrived and discovered that all five of them had been killed and their life essence drained.

Shao Baxing spread out the two portraits attached to the file: "These are the three evil cultivators."

Gu Jinchao's gaze fell on the annotations beside the portrait.

[Liu Wuyan, her face deathly pale, always veiled in black gauze, exuding a putrid fragrance. Originally a concubine of an official, she fled after her affair was exposed, later falling into demonic ways and cultivating the "Secret Record of Corpse Collection," reaching the mid-stage of the eighth rank.]

Chen Qiqiao has an effeminate appearance and grayish-white pupils. Originally a failed scholar, he had an affair with Liu Wuyan. After the affair was exposed, they both entered the demonic path, specializing in the "Blood Calculation Scripture," and have reached the late stage of the eighth rank.

[Chen San, Chen Qiqiao's pageboy, developed a fleshy growth resembling an infant's mouth on his left palm due to cultivating the "Myriad Life-Devouring Technique." He needs to be constantly fed fresh blood. His cultivation level is at the early stage of the eighth rank.]

Wang Han frowned: "Of the five comrades who were killed, three were at the early stage of the eighth rank, one at the middle stage, and one at the late stage."

"With such a force, they should have been more than capable of annihilating those three evil cultivators. How could they have been completely wiped out?"

Ma Xu curled his lip and whispered, "The Blood Calculation Manual excels at divination and array formation. It must have been Chen Qiqiao who foresaw the White Tiger Guard's movements in advance and secretly set a trap, that's why..."

Before he could finish speaking, Wang Han slapped him on the back of the head: "You talk too much!"

Jiang Tinglan interrupted their argument, asking, "What were the findings of the autopsy?"

Shao Baxing quickly flipped through the records: "According to the coroner, the five bodies were thoroughly dehydrated, but their clothes and hair were intact, their fingernails were purplish-black, and there were no obvious external injuries on their bodies, except for a pinhole-sized red dot on each of their eyebrows."

"It is speculated that this was caused by the forced depletion of the body's essence and vital energy, and it is suspected that it was refined into the [Blood Essence Pill]."

The Blood Essence Pill is a common elixir in the demonic path. It is made by refining the essence, blood, and vital energy of living beings into this pill. Consuming it has a gentler and more lasting effect than directly using the Essence-Seizing Secret Technique, but the refining process is quite time-consuming.

Jiang Tinglan remained silent for a moment before voicing her doubts: "Ordinary evil cultivators would avoid the Demon Suppression Division like the plague if they encountered them, unless they had no other way out, in which case they would risk everything and fight to the death."

"According to the case file, these three evil cultivators have always acted in a strange and cautious manner. In particular, Chen Qiqiao is skilled in divination and often flees thousands of miles away before the people from the Demon Suppression Division arrive."

"This time, however, it was unusual. Not only did they ambush and kill people, but they also failed to properly dispose of the bodies. I always felt that there was something fishy about this."

Upon hearing this, Gu Jinzhao couldn't help but glance at her in surprise.

This woman is incredibly meticulous, and her words hit the nail on the head.

The actions of those three evil cultivators were indeed deliberate.

The purpose was to use the five White Tiger Guards as bait to lure more skilled fighters from the department to go there, hunt them down, and extract their essence and blood to refine the [Blood Essence Pill].

This Blood Essence Pill was not intended for his own cultivation, but rather to be offered to the Zhao family, one of the four great families of Jade Capital City.

Zhao Qing, the patriarch of the Zhao family, has been stuck at the third rank for over a hundred years, only one step away from the second rank.

But this step became an insurmountable barrier.

Now that his lifespan is coming to an end, if he cannot break through to a higher realm, the Zhao family will lose its pillar and will inevitably be devoured by the other three great families.

Therefore, the Zhao family did not hesitate to take risks and secretly drove evil cultivators to collect a large amount of cultivators' essence blood in order to refine a sacred-grade [Blood Essence Pill] to help Zhao Qing forcibly break through the barrier.

For this reason, these newly recruited disciples of the Demon Suppression Division, who lacked background and had mediocre cultivation, became excellent materials for alchemy.

The officer Zhao Jinbei just now was a member of the Zhao family and one of the executors of this conspiracy, who specially selected suitable candidates to be sent to their deaths.

But why was Gu Jinzhao's group chosen this time?

Besides Jiang Tinglan, a seventh-grade early-stage cultivator, he himself is also a seventh-grade cultivator and a rising star among the Qingyun Sect's Little Sword Immortals.

Either of them could easily wipe out that group of evil cultivators.

The reason is actually very simple.

Zhao Jinbei appears to be a member of the Zhao family, but in reality, he belongs to the realm of Zen.

He knew that Gu Jinzhao was powerful, so he deliberately handed the case over to the Gengjin Group, intending to use Gu Jinzhao to wipe out that group of evil cultivators.

After the deed is done, they will secretly work to make the Zhao family realize that there are other hidden details in the case, and then ruthlessly kill Gu Jinzhao and the other four to eliminate any future troubles.

This plan is clearly a scheme to kill someone with a borrowed knife.

Jiang Tinglan continued her analysis: "In my opinion, the scope of the investigation may be narrowed down."

"The mushroom in Chen San's palm needs to be fed fresh blood regularly. Perhaps we can start by investigating the beggars and vagrants who have recently disappeared in the city."

"As long as we can find Chen San's trail, we can follow the clues and find out Liu Wuyan and Chen Qiqiao."

After speaking, she looked up at Gu Jinzhao, but was taken aback.

Gu Jinzhao was whispering to the calico cat on her shoulder, seemingly oblivious to what she had just said.

Jiang Tinglan frowned slightly, her tone turning cold: "Team Leader Gu, do you think this method is feasible?"

"If there are no problems, we will split up and proceed as soon as possible..."

Gu Jinzhao shook his head and said calmly, "There's no need for such trouble. I've already found a way to deal with them."

"What method?"

Upon hearing this, not only Jiang Tinglan, but also Wang Han, Ma Xu, and even Shao Baxing all showed surprise.

Gu Jinzhao gently rubbed the calico cat's fluffy little head: "The solution lies with my spirit pet."

"The little fox has an exceptional sense of smell and an extremely strong tracking ability."

"If she can sense the bodies of those five comrades, she will be able to pinpoint the location of those three evil cultivators."

Shao Baxing's eyes lit up, and he blurted out, "Team Leader Gu means that this cat is proficient in [Qi-Seeking Technique]?"

【Qi-Seeking Technique】, as the name suggests, allows one to track the owner of a wisp of residual aura.

Since the five White Tiger Guards had fought with the evil cultivators, they must have been tainted with the cultivators' aura. Therefore, searching using this method is theoretically feasible.

But then he frowned: “Our five comrades have been dead for three days. Even if they still have breaths, they must be extremely weak.”

"Little Tanuki...can she really sense it?"

Upon hearing this, the calico cat immediately raised its head and said crisply, "Leave it to me!"

Jiang Tinglan's expression grew increasingly strange, and she couldn't help but question, "As far as I know, even the Heavenly Fate Path's [Qi-Seeking Technique] requires the Qi to remain for no more than half a day, and its sensing range is at most two hundred miles."

"And the location of the crime was no less than three hundred miles away from Yujing City..."