Chapter 282: Thanks to Fenghua Courtyard
This Xianyuan Guard from the Cloud River Realm must be at least at the level of a commander, Lu Ye thought to himself.
"Lord Inspector, what brings you here?" The Xianyuan Guard glanced at the Token in Amber's mouth and asked.
Lu Ye had figured out the status that the Token represented, but the word "Inspector" was intriguing, leaving him uncertain about what exactly he was supposed to inspect.
"I heard some people were captured?" Lu Ye inquired.
The Xianyuan Guard nodded, "Those people trespassed into Xianyuan City, showed no respect for laws, and disrupted the peace of the citizens. The Xianyuan Guard simply followed the City Lord's rules in dealing with them."
In the entire Xianyuan City, without a single living person, how could the peace be disrupted...
Lu Ye knew that these Xianyuan Guards, while somewhat spiritually intelligent, had unclear consciousnesses; otherwise, they would not have so readily acknowledged him as the "Lord Inspector."
He did not bother to argue with the Guard and said indifferently, "I am here on that person's orders to take someone."
"That person?" The Xianyuan Guard Commander was suspicious at first, then seemed to realize something, his brow furrowed, "The dungeons are a crucial area for the Xianyuan Guard. Even if the Lord Inspector wants to take someone, he would still need that person's written order to do so."
Lu Ye did not know who "that person" the Guard was referring to, but he was just bluffing using the red-robed woman's authority. In his mind, since she casually gave him a Token that represented the Inspector's status, her position within the city must be substantial.
Now, going to the red-robed woman for a written order was out of the question, so he exerted a bit of spirit force, gripped the handle of his knife with a little more strength, and said expressionlessly, "I haven't seen any written order, just a verbal command from that person. If the Xianyuan Guard refuses to release the prisoners, that's fine too, but you'll have to explain it to that person yourself."
The expression on the face of the Xianyuan Guard before him was one of conflict, obviously in a difficult position. This confirmed to Lu Ye that the red-robed woman truly represented significant clout.
"Well then, since it is that person's request, the City Lord is unlikely to refuse. Follow me," the Xianyuan Guard Commander spoke and turned to press his hand against the heavy door ahead.
With a flash of spirit light across the door, complicated and arcane patterns flowed by, followed by the door slowly opening.
Not far away, Jik Yan, who had been watching the situation, let out a deep breath of relief when he saw Lu Ye appear ready to fight just a moment ago. Worried to death, he had been prepared to have the Surreptitious Palace send reinforcements.
It was Lu Ye who had asked for help in the rescue mission to the dungeon, and if there was any danger, the Surreptitious Palace could not stand by and do nothing.
Fortunately, all had gone smoothly.
Once inside the dungeon, the door behind them closed with a loud boom, causing Lu Ye's heart to tighten.
If a fight broke out, there would be nowhere to run.
Fortunately, the Xianyuan Guard leading the way showed no signs of hostility, leading Lu Ye and Giant Armor further down.
The entrance of the dungeon was a spiral staircase that went down dozens of feet.
After walking for quite some time, he arrived in the dark and dank dungeon. Gazing around, the only light sources were a few flickering torches along the corridor walls.
Shouts and curses came from different cells, along with anguished roars of defiance.
With a sweep of his gaze, Lu Ye quickly spotted a somewhat familiar face pressed against the iron bars, looking at him with a bewildered and overjoyed expression.
If he was not mistaken, this person was one of the Surreptitious Palace cultivators, one of those who had come with Jik Yan, and now found himself imprisoned.
"This person," Lu Ye said, pointing at the Surreptitious Palace cultivator.
The Xianyuan Guard Commander gestured, and a prison guard-like Spiritual Body immediately appeared, carrying a large bunch of keys at his waist.
"Bring the person out."
The prison guard hastily complied, unlocking the cell door as the Surreptitious Palace cultivator quickly walked out. Lu Ye gave him a meaningful glance, signaling for him to stand by his side, and they continued on.
The Xianyuan Guard Commander and the prison guard followed closely behind.
As they passed by a cell, Lu Ye peered inside and immediately saw a gaunt face press up against the bars, first in shock and then in ecstasy, shouting, "Fellow Daoist, save me!"
Lu Ye glanced back at the Surreptitious Palace cultivator by his side, who shook his head to indicate he didn't recognize the person.
Lu Ye then raised the back of his hand to reveal the Battlefield Marking.
The cultivator's expression changed, attempting a strained smile, "I'm also from the Haotian Alliance, please save me!"
Lu Ye couldn't be bothered with him and carried on.
The imprisoned cultivators, hearing the commotion, all stood at their doorways, straining to look. As they encountered each one, Lu Ye had the Surreptitious Palace cultivator identify them. Those recognized were saved, while strangers were identified by their markings to ascertain allegiances. If they were from the Haotian Alliance, they would be rescued; as for those from Ten Thousand Demons Ridge... their fate was of no concern.
Yet, Lu Ye grew more cautious, finding this dungeon somewhat peculiar.
Those who were imprisoned showed no obvious injuries, clearly, they hadn't suffered harsh treatment and were merely being detained here.
But aside from the few who had just been brought in from the Surreptitious Palace, the others were all emaciated; their complexions pallid, the severe cases barely able to stand, now being carried on Giant Armor's shoulders.
They all exuded a rotting stench!
Lu Ye felt even more so that since entering the dungeon, something inexplicable was slowly being drained from his body, making him feel increasingly lethargic and weary.
He didn't know what exactly was being drained from him, but it was not wise to linger.
He immediately hastened the search.
One after another, the cultivators from the Haotian Alliance were rescued, and the expression on the face of the Xianyuan Guard commander following behind Lu Ye slowly turned ugly, because the number of people Lu Ye had freed was too many.
"Senior Brother Gu!" A shout came through, as the cultivators from the Surreptitious Palace finally found Gu Canyang, who had been imprisoned here.
Ordering the prison guard to open the cell door, several disciples from the Surreptitious Palace rushed in and lifted the barely able to stand Gu Canyang out.
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"Lord Inspector, isn't this enough?" the commander of the Xianyuan Guard asked with a hint of displeasure in his voice.
"It's enough."
The place where Gu Canyang was imprisoned was the innermost part of the dungeon, not because of his strength, but because Gu Canyang was among the first batch to be captured and was thus thrown into the deepest part.
All those who needed to be saved had been rescued.
Under Lu Ye's lead, nearly thirty figures proceeded grandly towards the exit, though most of them looked haggard, and Giant Armor even carried two people in his hands and tucked another two under his arms, while others supported each other.
Behind them, calls for help and curses from the Ten Thousand Demons Ridge cultivators could be heard as the dungeon gate closed with a thunderous boom.
Following the spiral staircase up out of the dungeon and reaching the ground, a group of cultivators felt their eyes welling up with hot tears, inevitably giving rise to a feeling of being human in this world.
Although they did not know what exactly Lu Ye had done to have the power to lead them out of the dungeon, they also knew to keep their silence.
If there were any questions, it would not be too late to ask after they had escaped danger.
Lu Ye gave Giant Armor a meaningful glance, signaling him to lead the people away first, while he cupped his fists to the commander of the Xianyuan Guard and said, "Thank you."
The commander snorted coldly, clearly unwilling to engage with him further.
Getting no response, Lu Ye was not annoyed; he turned around and left gracefully.
Back at the place where he had parted ways with Jik Yan and the others earlier, Jik Yan immediately greeted him, naturally expressing gratitude once again.
Lu Ye waved his hand, pointing out that this time he hadn't really sacrificed much, at most he had taken a risk.
If he truly had no ability to save them, it would have been fine, but since he had the capability and so many from the Haotian Alliance were detained, not trying to save them would have left him uneasy. When his identity had been exposed before, many from the Haotian Alliance had relayed each other to protect him.
Now that the Ten Thousand Demons Ridge people in the city had been purged and those still alive were mostly imprisoned in the dungeon, there might still be a few fish that slipped through the net outside, but they were certainly hiding somewhere, not daring to show themselves.
There wasn't much danger left in the city; all they needed was to be cautious when dealing with the patrolling Xianyuan Guards.
The people from the Surreptitious Palace found a large courtyard in the city to settle down in, awaiting the closing of Xianyuan City. Those who had just been rescued were all placed there, and Jik Yan brought a group of people to wait here, both to thank Lu Ye and to invite him to join them.
"I still have some things to take care of. I'll come to find Brother Jik once I'm done," Lu Ye said.
Jik Yan naturally nodded in agreement, "Then we shall await the news from Fellow Daoist Yiye."
As he said this, he led his companions away.
After they left, Lu Ye looked at Giant Armor again. Since Sima Yang's death, he had been following Lu Ye closely, almost never leaving his side.
This was partly due to Amber and partly due to the words Lu Ye had initially said to him.
Everyone had grievances with the Fenghua Courtyard, so it was naturally better to join forces.
Now that all the people from the Fenghua Courtyard were dead, Giant Armor's vengeance had been avenged.
"What are your plans for the future?" Lu Ye asked casually as he walked forward.
Giant Armor followed silently, not uttering a word.
Ever since he started his cultivation, he had always followed Sima Yang. He never considered what to do or where to go tomorrow; he simply went wherever Sima Yang went.
Now that Sima Yang was dead, he suddenly felt somewhat lost.
"If you don't have any plans, stick with me for the time being," Lu Ye offered.
"Alright!" Giant Armor responded eagerly.
Lu Ye's mood instantly improved. A man like Giant Armor was talent that every sect and clan desperately sought after. Even though he was already at Level 9, those sects would be willing to make exceptions to take him in.
It was only because of Sima Yang's meddling that they did not join any sect, but now things were different.
With Sima Yang dead, as long as Giant Armor continued to accompany Lu Ye, he would one day belong to the Righteous Blood Sect.
Although the Righteous Blood Sect had now taken in some disciples and established a foothold in the outer circle, there were very few they could truly be proud of.
Lu Ye had not anticipated that on this trip to Xianyuan City he would pick up such a formidable physique cultivator. Even though he knew it was wrong to think this way, he couldn't help feeling... grateful to Sima Yang, grateful to Fenghua Courtyard.
Lu Ye estimated that even if he were to suggest taking Giant Armor as a disciple right now, he would not refuse. But there was no rush for such matters. It was better to take things slow and, at the very least, cultivate a sense of belonging to the sect. Otherwise, even if Giant Armor were taken into the sect, there wouldn't be much meaning to it.
Now, without the sect, it wasn't the time to discuss a sense of belonging, but he could cultivate a sense of recognition with himself.
Facing someone like Sima Yang, Giant Armor had been extremely loyal. As long as Lu Ye treated him a bit better, was there any reason Giant Armor wouldn't recognize him?