"It's not that I don't believe you, I just..." Zhao Ning stammered, still feeling a little dizzy.

"Alright, let's save our breath and hurry back to the county office. I have a feeling that this matter in Ping'an Town is not simple..." Chen Yuan said, turning his back to Zhao Ning.

Besides Zhao Ning, the other bailiffs who had been following were left in Ping'an Town by Chen Yuan to guard the Chen family, as their speed was too slow.

There were only two horses, not enough to seat everyone.

Chen Yuan and Zhao Ning were anxious, and without the bailiffs slowing them down, they arrived at the county office in just an hour. Chen Yuan dismounted and hurried inside.

"Where is the chief constable?" Chen Yuan quickly asked a bailiff.

"Constable Chen, Chief Constable Huang is not in the county office. He took some men to patrol the county this morning and hasn't returned yet..." The bailiff glanced at the bloodstained cloth bundle in Chen Yuan's hand, looking somewhat apprehensive.

"Is the county lieutenant here?" Chen Yuan continued.

"I haven't seen the county lieutenant leave the county office. He should be..." the bailiff said uncertainly.

"Good, thank you."

Chen Yuan nodded and quickly headed towards a certain location within the county office.

Reporting matters to one's superior's superior is generally frowned upon, but Chen Yuan couldn't possibly go searching for Huang Xing in the county town. Otherwise, such an urgent matter, if delayed, would not only fail to earn him a reward from the county lieutenant but might even result in punishment.

He would just have to report to Huang Xing later and try to improve their relationship.

"Please announce, I have important news to report to the county lieutenant!" Chen Yuan cupped his fists towards the two guards at the entrance.

There were over a hundred official yamen runners in the county office, divided into three shifts and six departments, and Chen Yuan was a member of the constabulary, which held the most power in Ping'an County.

The two guards at the entrance sized Chen Yuan up, nodded, and didn't make things difficult for him. They turned and went inside to report, and soon came out.

"Go in."

Chen Yuan cupped his fists and strode forward, carrying the bloodstained cloth bundle.

Inside the hall, County Lieutenant Li Mingqi was stroking the lid of his teacup with a cold expression, his brow furrowed, as if deep in thought. Seeing Chen Yuan hurrying in, he placed the teacup on the table and asked in a low voice:

"What do you have to report?"

Chen Yuan held up the cloth bundle and said respectfully:

"Reporting to you, sir, at noon today, this subordinate discovered traces of the Unborn Church demons in Ping'an Town."

"What!"

Li Mingqi stared at Chen Yuan, his tone becoming serious.

"Is this true?"

"This is the head of an Unborn Church demon, already captured and killed..."

Li Mingqi stepped forward, bringing with him a gust of cool air, and slowly opened the cloth bundle, his brow furrowing slightly with displeasure. He said in a low voice:

"This is clearly a child. How can you call him a demonic villain?"

"Please examine this closely, sir," Chen Yuan said, neither arrogant nor humble, presenting Chen Ping'an's hands to Li Mingqi.

Li Mingqi squinted, examining the blackened fingernails and the faintly visible blood-colored patterns on the palms.

"How did you discover this villain?" Li Mingqi asked.

Chen Yuan didn't hide anything, explaining how he had noticed something amiss from Liu Lao San's words, then went to Chen Ping'an's house to investigate, leading to the fight.

However, Chen Yuan downplayed the strength of himself and Chen Ping'an, saying that he had luckily blinded Chen Ping'an with lime powder, allowing him to barely win.

"Very good, Chen Yuan, you've done well. You've killed a demonic villain in such a short time. Let's go... quickly lead this official to Ping'an Town."

"Perhaps there are other remnants hiding in Ping'an Town!"

Li Mingqi slammed the table.

"Yes, this subordinate obeys..." Chen Yuan said loudly.

"Indeed, if we can find traces of those demonic remnants, this official will definitely remember your contribution!" Li Mingqi patted Chen Yuan on the shoulder, seeming somewhat satisfied.

......

County Lieutenant Li Mingqi led a group of yamen runners quickly to Ping'an Town and thoroughly searched Chen Ping'an's house. Unfortunately, although they found some bones in a remote well in Ping'an Town, there was no trace of other demonic villains.

While they were searching, the yamen runners patrolling Si River Town were also attacked by suspected demonic experts. Two yamen runners and seven bailiffs were killed.

County Magistrate Wu Qingfeng was furious and ordered Chief Constable Huang Xing to investigate the Unborn Church demons as soon as possible, and sent someone to report to the prefectural office...

However, the response from the prefectural office wasn't significant. Besides Ping'an County, the chaos in other counties was even greater.

In comparison, Ping'an County had only lost two yamen runners and a few bailiffs, which was nothing.

County Lieutenant Li Mingqi and County Magistrate Wu Qingfeng both placed heavy pressure on Chief Constable Huang Xing, causing him a great deal of stress. As for the generous reward promised by the county lieutenant, it was not forgotten.

After consulting Chen Yuan's opinion, he was rewarded with a Tiger Bone Pill.

This was already quite a lot, because Chen Yuan hadn't truthfully disclosed Chen Ping'an's strength. Therefore, the people in the county office only thought that Chen Ping'an was a peripheral member of the Unborn Church and had no real value.

Naturally, they wouldn't give a particularly generous reward.

Chen Yuan didn't feel frustrated about this. He didn't want to expose his strength and just wanted to lay low for a while.

He had a feeling that the demonic forces in Ping'an County were not simple.

Moreover, he needed to scheme for the Marrow Cleansing Spiritual Pearl of the Huang family without arousing suspicion.

Through Chen Yuan's deliberate efforts, his relationship with Chief Constable Huang Xing began to improve.

Due to the strict orders of the county office, the constabulary's days off were forcibly turned into overtime, without overtime pay... causing the yamen runners to complain incessantly.

However, after searching most of the county, they hadn't found any trace of the demonic villains. Even the county magistrate gradually began to relax.

Of course, perhaps some yamen runners didn't want to be serious. They knew how ruthless and powerful those demonic villains were from experience, and every encounter could be a life-or-death struggle.

No one wanted to sacrifice themselves.

Many yamen runners in the yamen envied Wang Ping, who was still recovering from his injuries. Although he had broken a few ribs, he didn't have to face the ferocious demonic villains.

Another day of perfunctory patrol, Chen Yuan returned home and closed the door. The sky was gradually darkening.

He poured out a somewhat pungent Tiger Bone Pill from the porcelain bottle, a look of excitement flashing in his eyes.

His cultivation had greatly increased with the help of the Tiger Bone Pill, and he had faintly touched the perfection of Skin Refinement. In these days, he would make time to practice his posture under the sun.

The golden lacquer on his body almost covered his entire body. It could be said that as long as nothing unexpected happened, swallowing this Tiger Bone Pill would allow him to cultivate Skin Refinement to perfection.

He exhaled a mouthful of turbid air, picked up the Tiger Bone Pill, and held it in his mouth.

Soon, Chen Yuan felt a strong medicinal force washing over his skin.

With his palms facing the sky and his legs bent, the Vajra Glazed Body technique circulated, and streaks of golden lacquer began to spread rapidly throughout his body, a scorching aura adhering to his skin.