Follow-up
"Take this murderer back to the dungeon first." The murderer had been shot dead. Xiao Wan'er ordered the team members to take his body back to the government office first, and she stayed there to protect Liu Mingyin.
Liu Mingyin maintained the posture of swinging the sword and stood there motionless. About half a minute later, the Jinwu Guards arrived.
The general leading the team stopped and saluted when he saw Xiao Wan'er.
"Captain Xiao, I heard the sound of fighting here earlier."
"The Fengming Guards are pursuing the murderer, and he has been brought to justice. I will stay behind to clean up the scene."
After receiving Xiao Wan'er's reply, the general decided to take his men away. "Since the murderer has been brought to justice, I will not disturb you any further. Farewell."
The Jinwu Guards came and went in a hurry, and only when their figures disappeared at the end of the road did Xiao Wan'er let down her guard.
"I don't know when it will end..." She looked at Liu Mingyin and said to herself.
It wasn't until midnight that a powerful burst of energy suddenly erupted from Liu Mingyin's body. A storm of spiritual energy gathered around him, then quickly dissipated. He opened his eyes and retracted the knife.
"Senior Sister," his eyes seemed to be twinkling with stars, "I have entered the Dao."
Xiao Wan'er brought Liu Mingyin back to the Fengmingwei official residence. As soon as she entered the residence, she headed straight for the dungeon. Liu Mingyin followed her, knife in hand, and she couldn't be driven away.
"Forget it, then you just guard outside the prison door." Xiao Wan'er had no choice but to let him guard outside the cell door and then rushed into the cell where the murderer's body was placed.
To ensure the accuracy of the divination, the body was left untreated. By the time Xiao Wan'er returned to the cell, rigor mortis had set in and lividity had appeared. Xiao Wan'er drew the formation, carefully placed the body in its center, and began divination.
Since the murderer had two souls in his body when he was alive, what Xiao Wan'er saw during divination were also the disjointed memories of two people.
"He is indeed the former young master of the Shuzhong sect." After only looking at the initial memory, Xiao Wan'er confirmed the identity of the murderer.
Contrary to what Fengming Guard had gathered, the former Young Master was dismissed not only for lack of talent but also for practicing unorthodox cultivation techniques. He was imprisoned in the manor, where his intense resentment attracted the remnant spirit of a Li clan cultivator, who also harbored resentment. The two, each seeking revenge, struck a chord and engaged in the forbidden Soul Fusion technique.
"Tsk, what the hell is this?" Xiao Wan'er cursed as she looked at it.
The former young master, who had merged with the soul of a cultivator, immediately gained power that a warrior could not possess. He slaughtered the entire sect and spared no one of his former relatives and friends. Then he improved his cultivation while heading towards the capital of gods.
As the two souls merged, the assailant grew stronger, the cultivator surnamed Li gradually gained control of his body, and the assailant gradually lost his mind. In every city he visited, he would kill at least one powerful woman. However, due to his immense power, the authorities could not even detect the edge of his clothing, leaving the case unsolved or hastily closed by finding a scapegoat. He alternately journeyed towards the Divine Capital, then found seclusion in the city or the mountains. After eleven years, he finally reached the Divine Capital.
There's no need to revisit what happened after that. Xiao Wan'er walked out of the dungeon, returned to her workstation, and began writing a memorial. In the morning, she brought the memorial into the Mingtang.
The empress took the memorial, read it, and placed it on the table, praising him: "My dear minister, you are truly a capable minister of mine!"
Xiao Wan'er's memorial fully reported the crimes of the assailant and the contributions of Fengming Guards Jiayi and Gengqi, without a single ounce of self-credit. The Empress summoned the Luoyang magistrate, ordering him to hang the assailant's body from the city gate and list his crimes. Now that the case was settled, the officials imprisoned for their wrongful convictions were punished according to the law, and rewards were subsequently distributed based on their merits.
Xiao Wan'er, having made the first contribution in this case, was naturally rewarded. Rewards flowed into her home, including utensils, fine clothing, and jewelry, but Xiao Wan'er's favorite was the box of gold. Pei Yingguan's sword talisman was the final means of killing the murderer, so the Empress awarded him the second meritorious service, rewarding him with a large sum of money and even covering the cost of renting his house. The other team members also received their own rewards.
It just so happened that the former deputy captain of Team B2 was about to retire, so Liu Mingyin, who had entered the Dao realm, filled the vacancy of the deputy captain of Team B2.
"Congratulations, junior brother. You will be a seventh-rank official in the future." After the eunuch who delivered the imperial edict left, Xiao Wan'er smiled and congratulated Liu Mingyin, and Liu Mingyin was also very excited.
Liuyun was also very pleased. Now, Biyun Temple had three disciples who had transcended the mortal realm and entered the Dao. Although the disciples were few, they were all powerful. Delighted, he took his three disciples to a restaurant in the West Market for a feast.
When they returned from the restaurant, the four saw the servant from Princess Taiping's mansion at the door.
"Commander Liuyun, Captain Pei, Captain Xiao, and Deputy Captain Liu, my prince will hold a banquet at the princess's residence in three days to celebrate the surrender of the murderer. I hope the four gentlemen will honor you with the honor." Seeing the target, the servant respectfully handed over the invitation.
Liuyun put the invitation away and said, "Please tell your Highness that I will be there with my disciples."
"Hey, look who's here?" On the day of the banquet, Xiao Wan'er heard Princess Taiping's welcome as soon as she entered the women's courtyard. "So it's the hero who killed the murderer!"
Princess Taiping, dressed in gorgeous clothes and with her hair covered in gold and jade, walked slowly towards them, supported by her maid. She excused Xiao Wan'er from her formalities and asked her to sit with her at the lower left of the main seat.
"I'm hosting a banquet today to thank the officials who apprehended the murderer. You are the most meritorious official, so of course you deserve a seat of honor."
"In that case, I would be disrespectful to refuse." Xiao Wan'er sat down with peace of mind.
Various delicacies were served one after another. This time, the women of the noble family were extremely well behaved, and the meal was a great delight for both the host and the guests.
In the men's guesthouse, Liuyun and the other two were also guests of honor. The Prince of Xiang presided over the men's guesthouse, and several other princes were also present. As Pei Yingguan greeted each one, he suddenly sensed something and caught the eye of one of the princes.
"This is my third son, the Prince of Linzi," Xiang Wang noticed the two men's affair and was delighted to hear about it. "Since you and the Taoist priest have a connection, if you have time, you may come to my Xiang Wang Mansion more often."
Prince Xiang believed that this was a fate destined by heaven, but he did not expect that the two noticed each other because they both harbored hatred.
"Wan'er, please come with me." After the banquet was over and everyone wanted to leave, Princess Taiping stopped Xiao Wan'er.
Princess Taiping brought Xiao Wan'er to the men's guest house and said to Prince Xiang, "Brother, look who I brought with me."
At this time, all the guests in the men's guest house had left, leaving only the Prince of Xiang, several princes, and their husbands.
Prince Xiang was a gentle man. He looked at Xiao Wan'er with a smile, "Isn't this the man who made the murderer surrender this time?"
"Your humble servant, Xiao Wan'er, greets the Prince of Xiang."
"Master Xiao, there's no need for formalities," the Prince of Xiang exempted Xiao Wan'er from the formalities. "Thanks to Master Xiao for killing the culprit, the Divine Capital has regained peace. Master Xiao is so young, yet he possesses such strength. He's far more talented than my sons."
"Your Highness, you are too kind. The princes and princesses are all of outstanding appearance. I, a humble official from the countryside, can hardly compare to them." Xiao Wan'er was also very good at praising each other in business, and for a while, both sides were in harmony.
When the Prince of Xiang was happy, he called all the princes and introduced them to Xiao Wan'er one by one.
Perhaps some people in this world are destined to have conflicting auras. When introduced to Prince Linzi, Xiao Wan'er suddenly felt unwell. The warnings she'd received from her divination training made every hair on her body stand on end.
Suppressing the discomfort in her heart, she saluted to Prince Linzi and said, "This humble official greets Prince Linzi."
Prince Linzi also felt a strong sense of danger upon seeing Xiao Wan'er, the kind of vigilance a young beast king feels when encountering a hunter. He had been a descendant of the emperor and was still young, so even if he tried to hide his emotions, some of his flaws were still revealed.
The scene was awkward for a moment.
"Your Highness, the banquet is over. My master, brothers and junior fellow students are still waiting for me, so I will not stay any longer." Seeing this, Xiao Wan'er took her leave.
Princess Taiping let her go and said, "Go ahead. I'll invite you to any banquet in the future."
Xiao Wan'er hurried out of the Princess's residence and returned home with Liuyun and the other two who were guarding the door. Unlike Pei Yingguan, who praised Prince Linzi endlessly, Xiao Wan'er could never forget his deep eyes.
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