On the streets, people kept coming out of their homes carrying lanterns, and some who had seen the ghosts were already trembling with fear.

The government quickly sent people to appease the situation, and even the Imperial City Guard was alarmed. Upon learning that a ghost had appeared, the government naturally did not believe it, but since the whole city was in an uproar, they dared not take any action and could only let the people take to the streets. After all, too much interference in this matter could easily cause chaos, and this was the capital city.

At that moment, a group of Imperial Guards arrived near the inn where Li Daoyi was staying, which was the street where Li San had seen the ghost.

“My lord, this man is Li San, a night watchman. It is said that he was the first to see a ghost.” A soldier dragged the trembling Li San to an officer in armor.

"When did you see the ghost?" the officer asked.

"Yes, sir, it was just past midnight when I saw it. It was a female ghost dressed entirely in white," Li San stammered.

The officer frowned. He had always scoffed at talk of ghosts and spirits, but now that so many eyewitnesses had appeared in Lin'an, it was highly suspicious.

"Could it be some martial arts practitioners playing tricks?" the officer thought to himself.

"ah…"

Just then, Li San suddenly collapsed to the ground, screaming as he backed away, his eyes filled with fear as he stared at the sky.

"Huh?" The officer was puzzled for a moment, then looked up at the sky, his pupils suddenly shrinking.

A white figure appeared in the air, several meters above the ground, with disheveled hair. Most importantly, the white figure was surrounded by black energy, giving off a sinister feeling.

"What? What is this?" The surrounding soldiers exclaimed in surprise, retreating one by one as they witnessed this horrifying scene.

"Playing tricks!" the officer shouted suddenly.

"Whoosh." He then drew the sword from his waist and threw it at the figure in the air. The speed was extremely fast. This officer was actually a Xiantian expert.

However, what happened next shocked everyone. The sword actually pierced through the opponent as if it had passed through a pool of water, which was extremely bizarre.

"Hehehe..." The ghostly figure in the air let out a series of chilling laughs.

Soon, countless screams erupted from all around, and ghosts reappeared in many places, plunging the entire city of Lin'an into chaos.

"Hehehe..." The female ghost chuckled sinisterly a few times, then flew away to another place.

"Chase after her!" the officer ordered hastily. He then leaped onto a nearby rooftop and gave chase in the direction the female ghost had fled.

The soldiers had no choice but to grit their teeth and follow, leaving Li San trembling in place.

"The Imperial City Guard? It's similar to the Embroidered Uniform Guard." In the courtyard, Li Daoyi sighed as he watched the officer leap away into the distance.

That night, the entire city of Lin'an was plunged into sleeplessness, with news of ghosts harming people constantly arriving. The chaos continued until dawn before gradually subsiding. At this time, in addition to the Imperial City Guards, the Imperial Palace also dispatched a large number of Imperial Guards to maintain order and appease the people.

As the sun gradually rose, the people basking in its light finally felt a little more at ease.

Several eunuchs hurriedly walked out of the palace and searched for something on the street until they found the Chief of the Imperial City Guard on a street.

"Prefect Chen, Prefect Chen," a eunuch in his forties called out.

"Eunuch Li, what brings you here?"

But then they saw Eunuch Li pull out a yellow scroll from his pocket.

"Chen Ting receives the imperial decree."

Chen Duzhi, along with the soldiers and civilians around him, all knelt down.

Eunuch Li opened the imperial edict and read it aloud.

"Imperial Edict: Chen Ting, the Chief of the Imperial City Guard, is hereby ordered to investigate the haunting incident in Lin'an. All government offices in Lin'an are to cooperate fully and handle the aftermath properly. I hereby authorize you to act as you see fit. So be it."

"Your subject accepts the decree and expresses his gratitude." After saying this, Chen Ting stood up and accepted the imperial decree.

(P.S.: The imperial edict, issued by the Mandate of Heaven, originated in the Ming Dynasty. Before the Song Dynasty, imperial edicts were very concise and clear, and were mostly written by the emperor himself.)

"Lord Chen, His Majesty didn't sleep a wink last night. Do you have any leads now?"

"Alas, to be honest, I am also completely baffled. These tales of ghosts and gods have always been just rumors, but I never expected so many strange things to happen last night," Chen Ting sighed.

"I heard someone died?"

Chen Ting's expression was somewhat unpleasant, but he still nodded.

"More than a dozen people died."

"Oh!" Upon hearing this, Eunuch Li breathed a sigh of relief; there weren't many people.

"His Majesty said that if necessary, we can ask wandering sorcerers or similar practitioners for help," Eunuch Li said in a low voice.

Chen Ting hesitated upon hearing this, but ultimately did not refute it. He had never had a good impression of people from the martial arts world.

Just then, a little boy, eating a string of candied hawthorns and carrying a large carp, leisurely passed by the group, immediately attracting the attention of Chen Ting and Eunuch Li.

The two then exchanged a strange look. They had just mentioned a wandering sorcerer, and now a child dressed as a Taoist priest had appeared before them.

Seeing the child walk away, Chen Ting quickly gave his subordinate a look.

Several soldiers rushed forward and stopped the man.

Yang Guo was happily eating candied hawthorns when he was suddenly startled by soldiers who jumped out in front of him.

"Why are you stopping me?" Yang Guo asked, puzzled.

"Young man, don't be afraid. Our superiors have something to ask you," the soldier said.

"My lord?" Yang Guo turned around in confusion and saw Chen Ting and the eunuch walking over.

"What a handsome child," the two couldn't help but think to themselves.

"Why did you call me?" Yang Guo asked, showing no fear whatsoever.

"Young man, are you a Taoist priest?" Chen Ting asked.

Yang Guo's eyes darted around. He didn't know if he was a Taoist, but then he thought, since his master was a Taoist, he must be a Taoist too.

"That's right, I am a Taoist priest."

"May I ask which sacred mountain you are?"

"Immortal Mountain? No, it's mine and my master's." Yang Guo shook his head.

Disappointment immediately appeared in their eyes, and they thought to themselves that this person was probably just from some unknown small Taoist temple.

"Is there something wrong? If not, I'm leaving. Everyone's waiting for me to buy some!" Yang Guo said, turning to leave. Just then, two soldiers blocked his way. With a light step, he easily turned and dodged them.

"Hmm?" Chen Ting's gaze immediately sharpened; this child actually knew martial arts.

"Wait a minute, young Taoist priest," Chen Ting couldn't help but call out.

Yang Guo immediately stopped and turned around suspiciously.

"What now?"

"You know martial arts?"

Yang Guo immediately raised his head proudly.

"That's right. I'm only a third-rate martial artist. My master said that I can reach the second-rate level in three months at most."

“Eunuch Li, this young man is no ordinary person. I think we should go and take a look,” Chen Ting whispered.

"Lord Chen, you can decide for yourself. I'll return to the palace to report." After saying this, Eunuch Li glanced at Yang Guo and left with his men.

"Young Taoist priest, do you know about the ghost story in the capital last night?" Chen Ting continued to ask.

"Tch, what's the big deal? It's just a ghost," Yang Guo said dismissively. He had even seen Yue Fei, let alone a mere ghost.

What was said in jest was taken seriously by the listener, and Chen Ting's eyes lit up immediately.

Inside the inn's courtyard, the outside commotion did not disturb the people inside at all. Li Daoyi was quietly drinking tea, while Dongfang Bubai was embroidering something, showing no signs of having once been the leader of a sect.

"Guo'er is really something. He said he was going to buy a fish, but he took so long."

Mu Nianci stood at the door, constantly gazing outside.

"Don't worry, that kid's shrewd and clever, he'll be fine," Dongfang Bubai reassured him.

"Oh, you're back." Mu Nianci said at this moment.

"Oh dear, it seems like there are a lot of military officers following behind Guo'er." Mu Nianci exclaimed in surprise.

"An officer?" Dongfang Bubai immediately stopped sewing.

"Don't be nervous, they're from the Imperial City Guard," Li Daoyi said softly.

"Mother, I'm back!" Yang Guo saw his mother standing at the door and quickly ran over.

"You silly child, you're being playful again," Mu Nianci said with a hint of anger.

"No, Mother, this gentleman has something to discuss with Master," Yang Guo quickly replied.

“Madam, I am Chen Ting, the Commander of the Imperial City Guard. I have something to ask the Taoist priest here,” Chen Ting said, bowing.

"Let him in!" Li Daoyi's voice came at that moment, as if it were right next to my ear.

"A master." Chen Ting was startled.

"My lord, please come in," Mu Nianci said.

"You wait outside," Chen Ting instructed his men, then followed the mother and son into the courtyard.

"So young." That was Li Daoyi's first impression of Chen Ting.

"What a distinguished appearance." Li Daoyi's otherworldly and dignified demeanor caught his eye.

"My name is Chen Ting."

“I know, Chief of the Imperial City Guard, Lord Chen, you’ve come because of the ghostly events of last night, haven’t you?” Li Daoyi asked directly.

Upon hearing this, Chen Ting quickly cupped his hands in greeting.

"Indeed, do you not know your full name?"

"My name is Li Daoyi."

"Greetings, Master Li," Chen Ting said hastily.

Li Dao nodded, stood up, and slowly walked to Yang Guo's side, gently stroking his little head.

"Alas, a calamity is coming, a hundred ghosts roam the night, the world is in great peril," Li Daoyi sighed softly.

"Master, what do you mean by that?" Chen Ting asked hurriedly.

"The appearance of ghosts and gods in the world means that a natural disaster is about to befall Lin'an, and Lin'an is in grave danger."

"A natural disaster?"

“Yes, the gates of hell are wide open, and wronged souls are appearing in the world. They seek revenge for their grudges and vindictiveness for their injustices. Last night was just the beginning. If I’m not mistaken, people should have died, right?” Li Daoyi said.

"Yes, a total of eighteen people died," Chen Ting quickly replied.

"Damn it."

"..." Chen Ting was stunned.

"You might as well investigate these people's backgrounds; they must be people who deserve to die."

"Master, is there any way to stop it?" Chen Ting nodded and then asked.

"Why stop them? They're all people who deserve to die," Li Daoyi asked.

“But didn’t you say Lin’an was in grave danger?” Chen Ting hurriedly said.

"When the nest is overturned, no egg remains intact; when a great building is about to collapse, it is fate; when the floodwaters surge, no wave is innocent."

Upon hearing this, Chen Ting was utterly horrified; he seemed to have grasped something.

Just then, the sunlight that had been shining on the courtyard gradually disappeared, and dark clouds appeared in the sky. The dark clouds loomed over the city, and a nameless panic arose in Chen Ting's heart.