Chapter 165: Stupid Officials Praise the Demon Cave, Shadows Spread Rumors
"Oh my God! Mr. Qian, you...you are such a hero!" The vegetable seller was almost in tears.
"What happened next? What happened next?" the butcher asked impatiently.
"later?"
"It's pitch dark down there! Everywhere is covered in sticky, barbed... black vines! Those vines are alive! They're like venomous snakes, hissing at my feet, trying to drag me into hell!"
"I remained calm in the face of danger and pulled out a... cough, a protective amulet personally bestowed upon me by the Imperial Master! I silently chanted, 'Heaven and Earth are boundless, the universe borrows the law!' The amulet shone with a brilliant golden light! As soon as the demonic vines touched the golden light, they sizzled and turned to ashes!"
He described it vividly, and everyone was terrified!
"I was in that tunnel, slaying demons and eliminating monsters along the way. I walked for who knows how long! Finally, I found the core of that demon cave!"
"It was a huge underground stone chamber! The walls were covered with all sorts of bizarre, blood-red runes! Each rune looked like an open evil eye!"
"And in the center of that stone chamber... guess what I saw?"
He kept it a secret on purpose.
"What?"
"It's a... a huge, black... heart that's still beating!!!"
"ah--!!!"
The entire teahouse erupted in screams of terror!
The women covered their faces and the children cried loudly!
Even the burly butcher shuddered with fear!
"That...that heart is as big as a water tank! It's beating 'boom, boom, boom!' With every beat, the entire tunnel trembles! And those black vines are growing out of that heart!"
"I saw it at once: this is the root of all evil! So, summoning my lifelong righteousness, I rushed forward, intending to... destroy that demonic heart!"
"But at this moment, the runes on the wall suddenly came alive! Countless demons and monsters emerged from the wall! They pounced on me with their fangs and claws bared!"
"Ouch!" Censor Qian slapped his thigh, his face showing regret and fear.
"If it weren't for His Royal Highness the Regent arriving with his men in time... I would have died for my country today, dying in that devil's lair!"
When the story was finished, the whole room fell into dead silence.
After a moment, someone started applauding!
“Pah pah pah!”
Thunderous applause!
"Sir Qian, you are truly a loyal and trusted minister of Great Yan!"
"Yes! If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have known that there was such a man-eating monster hiding under the foot of this capital!"
"It's horrible! It's horrible! No wonder I've been feeling so uneasy at night lately!"
"That's right! My wife said a few days ago that she saw a black shadow flash by on the street!"
For a time, panic spread like a plague, centered at Yuelai Teahouse, and quickly spread to the entire capital!
And in a dark basement somewhere in the capital.
Several dark shadows were surrounding a dim oil lamp.
“Hehe…hehehe…”
One of the shadows let out an unpleasant laugh like a night owl.
"That idiot named Qian... is truly the best gift God has given us."
"Yes, Boss," another dark figure said flatteringly, "We just spread the word that there's an evil spirit haunting the capital, and he took the initiative to help us, making this story so fleshed out and vivid!"
"Now, the people of the entire capital believe it! They all believe that there is a demonic heart hidden underground that can eat people!"
"Very good." The leading black shadow nodded with satisfaction.
"Now that the first step has been completed, it's time to take the second step."
“Fear is the best catalyst. But fear alone is not enough.”
"We need to find an outlet for their fear."
"Boss, what you mean is..."
"Go!" The leading shadowy figure gave the order, "Send our people to blend into the crowd! Spread new rumors!"
"Let's just say... the reason demons are causing trouble, the reason even a place like Prince Yu's Mansion has become a den of demons... is all because... the current court is lacking in virtue, and Heaven has sent down a warning!"
"It's just that... that murderous regent is so violent that he attracted these ominous creatures!"
"And then..."
"Creating chaos."
"Stealing, provoking trouble... whatever you want. The more muddy the waters, the better!"
"Let those foolish people completely lose their minds in fear and anger!"
"I'm going to make Xiao Yu's backyard ablaze! I'm going to make him burn to a pulp! I'm going to make him watch helplessly as the capital city he wants to protect rots from the inside!"
"Yes! Boss, you're wise!"
After receiving the order, several dark shadows silently merged into the deeper darkness.
A huge web woven of rumors and panic began to cover the entire capital.
Zhang the butcher from East Street and Li the blacksmith from West Street had a fight over a piece of talisman paper that was said to be "blessed", and the matter was brought to the government.
Several rice shops in the south of the city were looted overnight.
The reason turned out to be that there was a rumor that rice jars could harbor dirt and breed evil spirits.
What's more, a group of people actually gathered at the gate of the Imperial College, shouting loudly, saying that Li Zongzheng of the Hanlin Academy was unworthy of his position and that this was why he attracted evil spirits, and demanded that he be dismissed!
The entire capital city was in chaos and confusion for a while!
The guards patrolling the city were exhausted, but to no avail.
Because what they were dealing with were not some bandits, but a group of ordinary people who were blinded by fear.
You caught this and there was another commotion over there.
At the foot of Xishan Mountain.
In the temporary camp of the Black Armor Army, flags fluttered and a murderous atmosphere reached the sky.
Inside the central army tent.
Xiao Yu was standing in front of a huge sand table, on which the topography of the entire West Mountain was accurately reproduced.
Yun Shen and several other disciples of the Imperial Master were gathered around the sand table, constantly inserting small flags of various colors on it according to their own deductions.
The atmosphere was solemn to the extreme.
At this moment, the curtain was lifted, and Xuan Yi walked in, covered in dust and coldness.
"Your Majesty."
His voice was low, with a hint of suppressed anger.
"The city is in chaos."
Xiao Yu did not look back, his eyes still fixed on the sand table, the highest point representing the abandoned mine.
"explain."
Xuan Yi then reported all the chaos in the city in detail.
From Censor Qian’s “storytelling” to the panic of the people, and then to the looting, smashing, and burning that were obviously fanned by someone behind the scenes.
After he finished speaking, the entire tent fell into dead silence.
The faces of those young disciples of the Imperial Master showed anger and worry.
"How ridiculous!" A disciple couldn't help but curse in a low voice, "What a bunch of unruly people! The prince is here to confront the devil for them! And they actually stab us in the back!"
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