They all became female demons after being reborn.

Chapter 68 The Corpse Speaks

"Li Changfeng?!"

Liu Lu was startled and immediately released his grip, retreating back to the monk's side. He then looked at Wu Cheng with suspicion and uncertainty. "Are you Li Changfeng, the one who is as famous as the Five Tigers Severing the Gate Saber King, and who is renowned throughout western Zheng County and parts of Kaifeng?!"

Wu Cheng: "???"

No, he just wanted to use a pseudonym, why is the reaction so exaggerated?

Are Li Changfeng and Wang Dang really that famous?

While inwardly complaining, Wu Cheng outwardly remained calm and cupped his hands in greeting, saying, "It is indeed I, your humble servant."

"It's you, Master Li. No wonder the medicine didn't poison you." Liu Lu's expression shifted between light and shadow. He continued, "Master Li, we've kept to ourselves. If you leave now, I'll pretend I didn't see you today. But if you insist on meddling..."

"how?"

"Today, I will make you, the Autumn Water Swordsman, perish here!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Cheng smiled slightly, then tossed aside the long sword he was holding. "Seeing injustice on the road, I'll draw my sword to help. It seems that today, a few more lives will be lost under the sword of the Autumn Water Swordsman."

"Hmph! With Zen Master Yuanmie here, I'd like to see who dares to leave their life behind!"

With a sinister grin, Liu Lu retreated behind the monk who had been watching coldly, then clasped his hands respectfully and said, "Master Yuanmie, I'm sorry to trouble you to take action."

"Benefactor Liu got into this trouble because of my help, so I will handle it myself."

The monk stepped forward, placing one palm in front of his chest, and said, "This old monk, Iron Buddha Temple, has been destroyed. I humbly request guidance from Autumn Water Swordsman."

"It was you!" Sun Kewang approached Wu Cheng, his eyes bloodshot with rage as he glared at Yuan Mie. "Is my sister dead or alive?!"

Wu Cheng turned his head and asked, "What happened?"

Sun Kewang clenched his teeth and pointed his finger, "This is the person who said my younger sister is dead! But my investigation revealed something fishy!"

Wu Cheng narrowed his eyes slightly. "I see. I heard that Yuan Hao, the magistrate of Luoyang who died by Wu Cheng's sword, secretly collected young boys and girls and gave them to powerful people in exchange for benefits. Your Iron Buddha Temple has also been taking advantage of believers' eagerness to have children for many years to make countless children disappear under the pretense of death... Could it be that you are colluding with him?"

"Oh, I see. You're trying to collude with the magistrate of Luoyang to betray our Great Yu and become traitors!"

Yuanmie flew into a rage, "You brat, don't spout nonsense! My Iron Buddha Temple has never done anything treasonous!"

Wu Cheng suddenly realized, "So that's what they did—stealing children to curry favor with the powerful? Iron Buddha Temple truly is a den of iniquity!"

The crowd gathered around the inn gasped in surprise, but quickly suppressed it.

"You...you...!"

Wu Cheng was furious when Yuan Mie pointed at him, and his well-maintained face turned visibly red.

Wu Cheng smiled slightly, thinking to himself that the old-fashioned method of labeling people still works.

"Brother Sun, isn't the government going to do anything about this?"

Sun Kewang, his eyes bloodshot, stared intently at Yuan Mie and Liu Lu. "Master Li, the magistrate of Xin'an County... his surname is Liu!"

Wu Cheng glanced around and saw that apart from a few bloodthirsty martial artists who were excitedly watching the show, the rest of the locals had numb expressions and dared not speak out in anger. He immediately understood.

"Zen Master! What are you waiting for! Kill them!"

Liu Lu shouted, but received no response from Yuan Mie.

"A Zen master?"

Yuanmie, who was furious just moments before, now had his monk's robes billowing without wind, but he stared intently at Wu Cheng without making a move.

Looking at the composed Wu Cheng, cold sweat gradually seeped out from his forehead.

"Master Li, are you really going to meddle in other people's business?" he asked again.

There are always some things that cannot be done.

Wu Cheng lowered his eyes slightly and placed his hand on the hilt of the wooden sword at his waist.

"But there are some things... that must be done."

Zzzzz!

Everyone saw a blur before their eyes, followed by the cry of a sword!

Once everyone's vision returned, they saw that Wu Cheng had bypassed Yuan Mie and arrived in front of Liu Lu.

Yuanmie, on the other hand, stood motionless in place.

Looking at the handsome young man before him, Liu Lu's legs trembled and his crotch became wet. "You can't...you can't kill me! My father is the county magistrate!"

Wu Cheng ignored him and instead told Sun Kewang to leave.

As Sun Kewang passed Liu Lu, her eyes were red as she stared intently at him, but in the end, she gritted her teeth and followed Wu Cheng.

Seeing that the two were about to leave, Liu Lu was overjoyed.

What a load of rubbish! He really didn't dare to kill me!

He wiped his crotch; it was wet.

Oh, it was urine. I thought it was sweat.

I knew it! How could some lousy swordsman possibly make himself sweat?

Seeing that the two were about to cross the threshold, Liu Lu roared, "Li Changfeng! Sun Kewang! I, Liu Lu, swear I will not rest until I avenge this! One day I will slaughter your entire family!"

Sun Kewang turned around angrily, "Hero Li! I'm not going to run away! If you're afraid, I'll die here! I won't be a burden to you!"

Just as he was about to make a move, he saw Wu Cheng turn his head and put his index finger to his lips, "Shh... Brother Sun, did you hear that?"

Sun Kewang was taken aback. "What did you hear?"

"The corpse is talking."

As he finished speaking, a crimson stain gradually appeared on the throats of Yuan Mie, who was standing motionless, Liu Lu, who was equally stunned, and the dozen or so servants who were also standing still.

Then, blood spurted out like a fountain!

The crowd looked at each other in bewilderment. After a long while, suppressed sobs began to rise one after another, followed by deafening wails.

"My son!! If you're watching from heaven, see for yourself! Master Li has avenged you!!"

A passing swordsman exclaimed in admiration, "Truly worthy of being called the Autumn Water Swordsman! To have witnessed him today is truly worth dying for!"

Some grieved, some praised, and some felt palpitations.

Strangely, no one went to collect the bodies of Liu Lu and the others, nor did anyone choose to report it to the authorities.

The waiter who had just been rescued by Wu Cheng knelt down and kowtowed three times in the direction Wu Cheng and his companion had left.

In a corner, a pretty girl dressed in a black flying fish robe frowned and said, "How come no one reported this to the authorities when this person killed someone in the street?"

The middle-aged man with a scarred face, who was sitting opposite her and had a weathered look, also dressed in a black flying fish robe, took a sip of wine and smiled. "This shows that the Iron Buddha Temple and the county magistrate have incurred the wrath of both heaven and the people, causing widespread resentment among the populace, and therefore everyone has the right to kill them."

The girl was puzzled. "But we came all the way from Lin'an, the capital, precisely to investigate the Iron Buddha Temple and the county magistrate, didn't we?"

Then, as if struck by a sudden thought, her expression changed. "Oh no! Those two are definitely going to the magistrate's house!"

She wanted to get up and chase after him, but seeing that her boss hadn't gotten up yet, she hurriedly called out, "Brother!"

The man took another sip of his drink, frowned, and said, "When you're working, you use your job title!"

The girl pursed her lips and said reluctantly, "Lord An."

"That's more like it." Lord An smiled and countered, "Now that you're at ease, let me ask you, how much is your annual salary in our Demon Suppression Guard?"

Anxin Zizai was puzzled, but still answered truthfully, "Three hundred taels of silver a year."

"Yes, three hundred taels of silver a year is quite a lot, but it's still rather tight-fisted living in Lin'an." Lord An chuckled and laughed it off. "Why would you risk your life for three hundred taels of silver a year? Besides, do you really think Liu Lu and Yuan Mie deserved to die?"

"But......"

"There's no 'but' about it. This matter involves too many people. If we continue to investigate, even if we find out their crimes, there will be people protecting them. Our emperor is a kind and benevolent ruler, so he will definitely let them off lightly. Rather than watching them live freely and prey on the people, it's better to let that person kill them."

Anxin Zizai asked, puzzled, "Are we just going to abandon everything?"

"Of course we'll take care of it," said Lord An. "We'll go to the magistrate's office in half an hour."

An Xin hesitated for a moment, then asked in a low voice, "Brother, should we go help Qiu Shui Swordsman and his group, or should we go capture them?"

"We won't help, and we won't arrest anyone," Lord An yawned. "Besides, we need to proceed slowly; we absolutely cannot rush things."

Why?

"Of course... wait until they've killed all the villains in the magistrate's office."