Chapter 609: Deputy City Lord Ning Zhuo

"What an exaggerated progress!" Even Ning Zhuo himself was secretly amazed at the speed of his own soul cultivation.

"I consumed a large amount of spiritual food for more than ten days before, and only then did I increase my soul to a thousand people."

“Now using the four treasures in succession, after just two rounds, it has skyrocketed to ten thousand souls!”

This progress of cultivation is totally against common sense, and it is also very rapid in the end.

But if you think about it carefully, it makes sense.

The spiritual food Ning Zhuo had previously consumed were all foundation-building spiritual food, but the four treasures he was using now were all at the Nascent Soul level!Foundation building, golden elixir, and Nascent Soul, this is the normal order.

Now Ning Zhuo has directly skipped the Jindan level and is using the Yuanying level resources on himself, while he is only a cultivator in the Foundation Establishment stage at this time.

This is definitely a waste of talent and also quite a luxury.

This was quite rare among super sects, as if inner disciples had used up the cultivation resources that only true disciples or even sect elders were qualified to enjoy.

Ning Zhuo continued his spiritual practice on the one hand, and on the other hand, he was also paying attention to the outside world.

After the six Jindan ghost generals were defeated, no one came to invade this place anymore. And the ghosts that started the massacre in the city were gradually eliminated because of Wen Ruanyu's performance.

Ning Zhuo also observed Sun Lingtong's environment through the life hanging by a thread, and observed the situation from the battlefield outside the city.

"The defense of the fairy city is really strong!" Ning Zhuo and Sun Lingtong sighed in unison.

The Yin army sent out by the Wangchuan Underworld is absolutely elite, but after attacking the Immortal City for a long time, not only did they suffer heavy casualties, but they also have not achieved any results.

Soon after, the military flags waved and the troops were called back.

The Yin army retreated slowly and took the initiative to end the siege.

They paid the price of 30% of their military strength, but in return they only achieved the result of peeling off a few layers of talisman paper from the wall of the immortal city.

They retreated without chaos, with several Jindan ghost generals personally leading the charge, and everything was in order.

Sun Lingtong mingled among them and acted in concert with them.

This Yin army did not retreat directly to the underworld, but stationed in the wasteland ten miles away from Baizhi Immortal City and slowly built a camp.

Since he could not take the city by force and heard that the unrest in the city was gradually subsiding, the leader of the Yin Army had no choice but to retreat first, secretly hoping that the city guards in Baizhi Fairy City could go out of the city for a field battle.

Field battle?

Even if you die!

Tie Guzheng knew very well that his city guards could not use military tactics, while the enemy was a real army. If they really wanted to fight in the field, without the strong geographical advantage of Baizhi Xiancheng, the city guards would not be enough to defeat the underworld army.

Wen Ruanyu returned to the giant paper statue.

He slowly put away his self-portrait and looked at Ning Zhuohun Xiu, feeling envious.

These four soul-cultivating treasures are all of Nascent Soul level. Wen Runyu has been in Baizhi Immortal City for so long, but he has never possessed so many items at the same time.

"Cold Bone Moon Dew Wine is a combination of soul cultivation and Confucian cultivation. It takes the energy of the Nine Netherworlds and condenses the essence of the moonlight. It is brewed with the liquor that has been brewed for more than a hundred years from spirit grains and fairy fruits as the base."

"The Nine Springs Benzoin was made by Sangle Youling. She specialized in the Nine Springs Sound Method, which gave her the ability to make this kind of incense. With her death, it has become the last of its kind."

"The Hungry Ghost Backbiting Cauldron is a great gift from the Soul Devouring Sect to the City Lord. They crafted it with great care, referring to the Soul Devouring Art, but without revealing the sect's core skills at all. It's quite ingenious."

"The rarest one is the "Book of Punishment in the Underworld". This is a national treasure of the underworld. I don't know how the city lord got it."

When Ning Zhuo saw Wen Ruanyu coming back, he slowly stopped practicing.

Wen Ruanyu smiled and first congratulated Ning Zhuo for his great contribution. The Lord of Baizhi City gave him great praise.

Ning Zhuo was curious and asked what the reward was.

Wen Ruanyu took out a seal with a complicated expression and handed it to Ning Zhuo: "Jiao Ma, from now on, you are the deputy city lord of our Baizhi Xiancheng."

Even though Ning Zhuo had many guesses, he was still extremely surprised to see such a reward.

He knew that Baizhi Xiancheng rarely appointed deputy city lords. There was only one leader here, and that was the city lord himself.

I didn’t expect that the Lord of Baizhi City was so generous that he directly handed the seal of the deputy city lord to Ning Zhuo.

"Does the Lord of White Paper City trust me so much?"

"Or are you sure that I am the savior of this crisis? That's too much courtesy to me."

"Or is she confident in the means she planted for me?"

The Lord of Baizhi City placed a talisman in each of Ning Zhuo's three dantians.

Sun Lingtong once suggested trying to steal it for Ning Zhuo. But later, Ning Zhuo discovered the past between his mother and Baizhi Xiancheng and changed his decision to leave.

In this case, you cannot take out these three talismans rashly.

From a certain perspective, this is the basis of trust between Ning Zhuo and the Lord of White Paper City. Once it is taken out, it will be bad.

Now is not the time to take out these talismans!Ning Zhuo thought about it, then took the seal from the deputy city lord. While refining it, he asked Wen Runyu about the outcome of the handling of the silent ghost general.

Wen Runyu answered him that the five Jindan ghost generals who were captured alive were detained for interrogation.

"Speaking of which, there is someone I want you to meet." Wen Runyu thought of something and took out a token.

He shook the token.

The next moment, a ghost flew out of the token.

The ghost quickly condensed into a solid entity, with a thin body and three mouths on its face. It was none other than the old acquaintance - the talkative ghost general.

Unlike before, the talkative ghost general was now covered in a layer of paper armor, and there were many white words on his skin. These words were very small, but they were linked to each other, forming a chain, which was draped all over the ghost general's body.

"I'm here to meet Young Master Jiao Ma." The talkative ghost general took the initiative to salute. It was obvious that he had been taken care of in advance.

Even if he had not been taken care of, Ning Zhuo's previous amazing performance on the battlefield had still shocked the talkative ghost general.

Therefore, the talkative ghost general was timid in front of Ning Zhuo and had no aura of the Jindan level at all.

Ning Zhuo glanced at him, then looked at Wen Ruanyu intently: "Can you really trust me if I surrender like this?"

"Reliable, reliable, reliable!" The talkative ghost general hurriedly expressed his loyalty.

"Shut up." Ning Zhuo glanced at him lightly.

The talkative ghost shuddered and lowered his head quickly: "Yes, yes, yes."

Wen Ruanyu smiled bitterly: "Jiao Ma, do you know how much combat power my city has lost due to this internal and external turmoil?"

Wen Ruanyu reported the battle losses, which moved Ning Zhuo.

Wen Ruanyu said: "This ghost tide is different from the previous ones."

"Although Lord Wangchuan intervened in the previous ghost tide, he acted in secret. But this time, he sent a large army of ghost soldiers, showing his determination to win."

"The Wangchuan underworld is likened to a cultivation kingdom. Although the Lord of Wangchuan cannot reach the mortal world, his subordinates are like clouds and rain."

"So, this is likely to be a protracted war! We must maintain the size of our combatants so that we can have more hope of eventually surviving this disaster!"

Wen Ruanyu first talked about the necessity of recruiting enemy generals, and then introduced: "The talkative ghost general is already worthy of a lot of trust." "On the one hand, the paper armor on his body is the city lord's casting ban; on the other hand, the talkative ghost general also has my Confucian cultivator's "Recruiting and Harmonizing the Same Principle" on him."

Ning Zhuo was curious: "Recruitment and sharing the same responsibilities?"

Wen Ruanyu explained: "This is a Confucian magic that can influence and recruit enemies. It is very effective and stable and reliable."

Ning Zhuo then asked, "Was this performed by Senior Wen himself?"

Wen Ruanyu shook her head: "That's not the case, but the caster is absolutely reliable. He is the old man that Senior Sister Meng Yaoyin left behind on purpose."

"Let's get to the point."

"This time, the city lord has also ordered you and me to continue searching for the traitor."

When it comes to this, Ning Zhuo feels troubled and can't help but frown.

Wen Ruanyu had more confidence in him than Ning Zhuo had in himself: "With Jiao Ma taking action, the traitor will not be able to hide for too long."

Ning Zhuo shook his head: "I am just collecting clues and evidence, and making assumptions and deductions. If Senior Sangle Youling is still alive, then we can be sure."

When Wen Runyu mentioned her deceased colleague, her face suddenly darkened and her expression became gloomy and sad.

Ning Zhuo knew that he was not good at solving cases, but he had no choice but to go ahead with it.

This matter was quite urgent, so Ning Zhuo interrupted his practice to take care of this task.

He thought about it and then asked Wen Runyu where the source of this internal strife and massacre of the citizens by the ghosts came from?

Wen Ruanyu told him that someone had temporarily built a ghost gate deep in the Mo River, and a large number of ghosts were pouring out of the ghost gate.

Ning Zhuo suggested: "How about we start from the Mo River?"

Wen Ruanyu nodded immediately without any resistance: "Since the City Lord has ordered me to be your deputy, you can arrange it."

On the surface, it is still mainly soft jade, with burnt hemp following on the left and right.

As for the position of deputy city lord, Ning Zhuo chose to suppress it and hide it. There was no need to show off at this critical moment and invite assassination by the enemy.

Mohe River is the river in the city.

The river water is pitch black and exudes the scent of ink.

Ning Zhuo came to the section of the river where the incident occurred and dived into the river with Wen Runyu. They only found some traces but no valuable clues.

"This traitor is quite clean!" Wen Ruanyu sighed, "We have searched several times and are now checking all the Mohe in the city."

Ning Zhuo returned to shore, thought for a moment, and said to Wen Ruonyu: "The source of these ink rivers is the ink pond. Lord Wen, you mentioned before that this ink pond was left by Senior Meng Yaoyin?"

"That's right." Wen Ruanyu replied.

Ning Zhuo was very interested in the ink pond itself: "Then let's go take a look first."

The ink pool is located underground in the White Paper Fairy City. The water is as black as ink, but it is not dirty. Instead, it reveals a calm and profound meaning, as if it can reflect people's hearts. The water surface is calm, like a piece of black jade inlaid in the ground, with occasional tiny ripples, as if there is spirituality.

There is a stone tablet beside the pool with two words inscribed on it - "Cleansing Your Heart".

When Ning Zhuo and Wen Runyu approached, a dark shadow appeared on the edge of the pool, and soon formed a hunched figure.

He was a skinny old scholar, with white hair and beard, wrinkles as deep as ravines, and a pair of cloudy eyes that occasionally gleamed with light.

He was wearing a washed-out blue-gray Confucian robe, and around his waist hung an ancient wooden plaque with the words "Shou Mo" inscribed on it.

Ning Zhuo was slightly startled, realizing that he had seen this old Confucian before. He was the gate officer he saw when he entered the city, who was responsible for recording the names of people entering the city.

"Master Zheng, this Mr. Jiao Ma is quite strategic and good at solving cases. This time he will be my deputy to investigate the traitor in Baizhi Fairy City." Wen Runyu took the initiative to salute.

The old scholar of Mo Chi's surname is Zheng. After Meng Yaoyin appointed him, he changed his name to Shoumo, which means the person who guards the Mo Chi.

The old scholar Mo Chi did not disappoint Meng Yaoyin's instructions and always performed his duties faithfully.

He had made great contributions in guarding the ink pool, and his moral character was even more admirable, so even though Wen Ruanyu was the true disciple of the Golden Elixir of the Wanxiang Sect, he was very respectful to him.

Ning Zhuo wanted to know more about his mother, so he took the opportunity to ask under the pretext of investigating a case.

Mo Chi Lao Ru introduced: "In the past, I was helped by my master and luckily survived. Since then, I have been determined to follow him and offer my lifelong loyalty."

"My master asked me to look after the ink pond, and I have never slacked off in these years!"

"The ink pond is a treasure for Confucianism, and is derived from the inkstone, one of the four treasures of the study: pen, ink, paper, and inkstone. The water in the ink pond can educate people, wash away their barbaric and violent spirits, and bring them back to the path of literature."

"It would be very expensive to build the ink pool. But my master is kind-hearted and has invested heavily in its construction, without taking any profit from the White Paper Immortal City."

"The White Paper Fairy City has been able to survive and reach the state of political stability and harmony today, and the cultural education initiated by the ink pond has played a great role!"

Like Wen Ruanyu, Mo Chi Lao Ru also highly respects Meng Yaoyin.

Ning Zhuo heard this and smiled, feeling proud.

"Old man, besides guarding the ink pool, do you do other work? I once saw you serving as a city gate officer." Ning Zhuo asked.

Wen Ruanyu smiled slightly.

The old scholar of Mochi explained: "Maintaining the daily operation of Mochi is not just a matter of simply keeping an eye on its safety."

"I must understand the people's sentiments before I can start to educate them one by one."

“Therefore, in addition to serving as a city gate officer, he also often visited alleys and participated in many aspects of city life.”

Ning Zhuo suddenly realized: "So that's how it is."

He asked many more questions, and the old scholar Mo Chi answered them one by one. His speech was neither hurried nor hurried, giving people a sense of stability and reliability.

Ning Zhuo and Wen Runyu checked the ink pool one after another, but found no clues.

Mo Chi Lao Ru took the initiative to say: "Perhaps there may be some clues that can help the two adults."

"Oh?" Ning Zhuo looked at the old scholar with anticipation.

The old scholar said, "I have no other choice but to participate in the prison's guarding and interrogation work recently, and I thought of the five golden elixir ghost generals that Lord Wen just captured."

"Maybe they know something, and we can get some clues from them."

Wen Ruanyu nodded: "That's right... Even if there are no clues, if we can torture them to get some information about the enemy, it can be considered our contribution."

Mo Chi Lao Ru smiled and said, "I am about to go to work, why not go with me?"

The three of them left the ink pool and came to the prison.

The old scholar Mo Chi led the two of them into an interrogation room.

Old Confucian Mo Chi was the leader. As soon as he came in, his subordinates reported diligently that the four Jindan ghost generals had all been explained, it was just more or less.

Only the silent ghost was very tough and had an extremely firm attitude. No matter how severely he was tortured, he never said a word.

"interesting."

"Then let me meet him." The old scholar Mo Chi rolled up his sleeves slowly and took out a soldering iron from the charcoal stove.

(End of this chapter)