Chapter 452: The Local Bullies

He Lingchuan split up with the Stone Gate Merchant Caravan and Li Qingge at Tai’an City. Those two parties continued north, while He Lingchuan peeled off along the trail of clues and, after a few detours, made his way to Shuangyi City.

Before he left, Li Qingge actually stuffed a formula into his hands.

It was an upgrade recipe for a golden-armored copper guard, similar to the one He Lingchuan had gotten in Panlong City, but not exactly the same.

Songyang Mansion specialized in forging and fabrication. Clearly, the moment she heard about He Lingchuan’s deal with Fushan Yue, she immediately understood what he was trying to do and what he would need.

This woman truly is something else.

Now that He Lingchuan had taken Fushan Yue’s payment, he had to earn it. He had to find out what happened to Lingxu City’s missing courier, and the clues from Tai’an City pointed straight here.

Just then, up ahead, the loud clanging of bells sounded

The sound was weirdly enchanting, like it carried a spell or some magical property of its own. The locals who heard it dropped whatever they were doing and ran toward it.

He Lingchuan even saw a few shopkeepers abandon their shops or stalls entirely, craning their necks as they jogged along.

“What’s the excitement up there?” He had actually seen a similar scene before.

The tiger monster Jiao Yu had long been accustomed to the sound. He licked his lips. “It’s an execution. They’re putting a criminal to death.”

Right.

He Lingchuan instantly remembered the scene he had witnessed when he first entered the State of Baoshu, an execution that drew men and women, old and young alike, all fighting for the best viewing spot. The town had been as lively as a festival.

So it’s the same even here.

He Lingchuan followed the crowd at an unhurried pace. At the entrance to the market, a tall platform had been erected. The space beneath it was already packed with spectators. On the platform, two constables held a prisoner in place while another officer read out the charges.

He had arrived late, but he had a massive tiger at his side, walking step for step. The townsfolk, whether they were human or monster, automatically retreated at least three meters, no one daring to come close.

The constables on the platform noticed too. They stared hard at them for a few seconds, but did not dare say anything.

He Lingchuan listened and learned that the charges were no small matter.

This guy stole herbs from an official medicinal field and killed the monster assigned to guard it?

The prisoner on the platform had a pockmarked face, a pointy mouth, sunken cheeks, and shifty eyes. He frankly looked like a drifting lowlife. The boldest thing someone like that would normally do was harass a girl on the roadside.

This is supposed to be someone who dared to kill an official monster guard?

Is this one of those cases where looks meant nothing?

He Lingchuan edged a few steps to the side and asked an elderly man who stood with his hands clasped behind his back, craning his neck to watch. “Sir, is that criminal from this town?”

“No.”

He Lingchuan thought the lead had died right there until the old man continued, “He’s a mottled eel from Baiyang Township. His surname is Wang, and everyone calls him Pockmarked Wang.”

“Mottled eel[1]?”

“It’s local slang. It means a vagrant, a bum, a second-rate drifter—one of those useless types.” The old man coughed and spat. “That kid’s got some nerve. Stealing from an official field and killing a monster from Master Ling’s household?”

Master Ling?

“What did he do before this?”

“Petty theft. He was always doing worthless things.” The old man chuckled. “He’s in his thirties already. I heard he can’t even afford to marry a wife.” On the platform, the officer finished reading the charges and then announced the sentence: the gouging punishment.

In monster states, crimes such as stealing from official fields or mines or from military provisions were major offenses. Local authorities did not need to send the case up the chain for approval; they could carry out punishment on their own. Higher authorities might only review the case files a year or two later.

The moment Pockmarked Wang heard the sentence, his legs went weak, and he screamed, “I’m innocent! I’m being framed!”

But what good did that do? He was quickly tied to the pillar at the center of the platform.

Above the market, wings beat through the air. He Lingchuan looked up and saw over a hundred crows circling.

Then, from below the platform, a deep, powerful voice boomed, “Seven or eight of my clansmen vanished without a trace, and the county office thinks it can shove some trash like this in our faces as a scapegoat and call it done?”

He Lingchuan turned toward the voice and saw five or six giant sheep forcing their way through the crowd.

These were not the small mountain goats raised behind farmhouses, tender and fragrant. These were hulking beasts, as tall as fine warhorses, their bodies an azure color with a single black arc running along the side. The one in front was over three meters tall, with sleek, balanced muscle lines visible beneath its hide.

He Lingchuan could tell at a glance that it was built for speed and agility. Its weapons were its horns, which were spiraling and long.

Those great horns thrust forward, their tips sharp as daggers. Midway along each horn was a small fork that was clearly meant to tear and bleed an opponent.

He Lingchuan had never seen a sheep that looked this vicious. Anyone unlucky enough to be gored by this kind of monster really must have accumulated eight lifetimes of bad karma.

In

Strange Tales of the Middle Era

, this monster was recorded as a drillwind beast. It was known to ride the wind and was notorious for killing at high speeds. Its innate gift was called Wind-Skimming, which allowed it to summon wind to increase its speed and lighten its body.

And like the bo beast, it could eat meat.

He Lingchuan remembered that the book also said drillwind beasts had awful tempers. Even predators were often killed by their horns. Sure enough, the leading sheep or ram stepped forward, tilted its head, and slammed its horns into the platform, nearly snapping a support post in half.

The constables and the prisoner shrieked together.

The constables did not get angry; they immediately plastered on smiles and tried to calm the other party. “Master Ling, there’s no need to be upset. The county never said this case was closed.”

“Not closed?” the giant sheep rumbled. “Is that you talking or the county magistrate?”

The constable did not dare claim responsibility. “Once this one is executed according to law, if further evidence is found, we’ll reopen the matter!”

The giant sheep’s eyes bulged. “And if you don’t find any evidence, you won’t reopen anything, will you?”

“N-no, no! We’ll definitely pursue it to the end!”

Even He Lingchuan could not stand that kind of empty talk, let alone a drillwind beast. “The government’s mouth is a liar’s mouth. I’ve endured you for days. Hand the man over now. I’ll take him back, interrogate him myself, and find the real culprit!”

The constable jolted. “M-Master Ling, that’s kidnapping a condemned prisoner. That’s a serious crime!”

The drillwind beast answered with another headbutt, clearly switching into full “I’m not listening” mode.

With a crack, the platform collapsed, and dust exploded into the air.

The crowd and the other monsters scattered at once. No one wanted to provoke five or six enraged giant sheep.

The constables and the prisoner tumbled down like rolling gourds.

He Lingchuan stood farther back. He asked the old man quietly, “The drillwind beasts live here too?”

“That whole chunk of land on the east side of the county belongs to their family.” The old man knew the details. “Master Ling is a general at court. When there’s no war, he comes home to recuperate. Their clan has a huge say around here—” He then lowered his voice and added, “They’re the local bullies. Even the county office fears them. The biggest and most valuable medicinal field in the county? The government handed it to them to manage and guard.”

A constable had just struggled back up and was coughing when another drillwind beast lowered its head and charged for the prisoner.

𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

However, it did not gore him. It clamped its teeth on the rope binding his wrists and yanked him over like a sack.

With their supposed prey having been stolen, the circling crows erupted into angry caws, clearly displeased.

Only then did people notice why the crows had been circling for so long without landing. It turned out that on the rooftop beside the platform, a black-headed, gray-backed goshawk was perched and watching.

Seizing the moment, the prisoner screamed, “I am innocent! Those spirit beasts disappeared on their own! I had nothing to do with it! I’m lame! I fell and crippled my leg! How could I possibly kill them?!”

When he moved, he truly limped, his legs unsteady.

He Lingchuan had long learned not to meddle, but the word “disappeared” pricked his attention.

He stepped forward and called out, “How did they disappear?”

Pockmarked Wang was terrified that everyone would remain numb and indifferent, and he had been performing his one-man tragedy all the way to death. Now that someone actually responded, he lit up like a drowning man who had grabbed a rope. “There was light on the mountainside! They chased after it and never came back! There’s definitely a stronger monster up there!”

The drillwind beast would not let him keep spinning excuses and began dragging him away.

Just then, two crows could not resist. They swooped down, beaks stabbing at Pockmarked Wang’s face.

They had meant to peck his eyes out. Unfortunately, he jerked his head left and right, so they only drilled two bloody holes into his cheeks.

Only then did He Lingchuan fully understand what a gouging punishment meant.

There were still a hundred crows overhead. If they all came down, Pockmarked Wang would truly be pecked to death alive.

The punishments of monster states really are... creative, to say the least. This one’s basically as brutal as a thousand cuts.

He Lingchuan put two fingers to his lips and whistled once. The goshawk on the rooftop immediately dropped its relaxed, spectator posture and swept down in a slanting dive.

It skimmed over the platform, startling the two crows back into the air.

Then it landed and perched neatly on one of the horns of He Lingchuan’s mount, the cliff ram.

The constable, now reacting, slapped dust off himself and rushed forward, shouting, “Master Ling, don’t be foolish! Put the prisoner down!”

Master Ling did not even bother acknowledging him. He ordered his underlings to haul Pockmarked Wang away. Behind him, the other drillwind beasts turned to face the constables, lowering their heads and pawing at the ground in a clear attacking stance.

How could the constables dare step forward?

Just then, from the back of the crowd, a tiger’s roar blasted into the air!

The sound was so shocking that it instantly pinned the chaos in place.

The old man beside He Lingchuan clutched his chest, nearly dropping from the force of it.

Then the tiger bounded out, advanced two steps, and surprisingly spoke in human tongue, “I am Jiao Yu, Royal Palace General of Mount Bai, here under orders to investigate a case. Who dares raise a hand?”

The tiger had suddenly moved close. The constable, shaken by its ferocity, stumbled back two steps, then noticed the bronze token hanging at its throat. It was glowing with the unmistakable light of origin energy.

When he read the inscription on the token, the constable was first startled, then lit up with relief. “Lord Mount Bai, perfect timing! This—”

“Stand down.”

“Yes, sir.” The constable shut up at once, happily retreating.

When the sky falls, it’s the tall ones who hold it up. This is wonderful. Someone is finally going to curb the drillwind beasts’ arrogance.

But the constable’s hopes were about to be crushed.

The seemingly hot-tempered leader of the drillwind beasts did not erupt at all. Instead, it spoke in a slow and easy tone, “Lord Jiao, long time no see.”

...Huh?

The watching crowd felt immediate disappointment.

They know each other?

Jiao Yu nodded toward the giant sheep. “General Ling, the mobilization order should have arrived. Why haven’t you departed yet?”

“My juniors have been disappearing for no reason. How could I not investigate?” Master Ling glanced at the constables and spat on the ground. “I’m standing right here, and these trash still dare push responsibility around. If I go off to answer the summons, won’t this case go cold?” Then he asked Jiao Yu, “You aren’t here to investigate my clansmen’s disappearance, are you?”

His temper was bad, but he was not stupid. How could seven or eight missing drillwind beasts possibly warrant intervention from the Crown Prince’s people?

“Not directly, but it may be connected.”

Master Ling’s eyes flared with joy. “Good, good! If there’s a connection, that’s enough. Please do investigate it properly for me!”

Jiao Yu stepped back beside He Lingchuan. “This is the Crown Prince’s special envoy. He is the real leader of this operation. I’m only here under orders to accompany him.”

1. Note that this is actually also a colloquial slang in the real world, and it’s slang for gangster. ☜