The hidden room was simple and bare. There was no furniture or decoration. The only thing there was a table and two chairs.
"Please, have a seat."
Leo sat down, and Sheng closed the door. Darkness descended into the room, but it was dispelled by a firefly Qi in a form of lightning he created.
"Thank you." Sheng nodded and sat on the opposite chair. He crossed his legs and leaned back, looking more relaxed.
"So, what is it that you want to talk about?"
"It's the matter of Supre Evil and his followers. I need your help."
Sheng didn't waste ti and went straight to the point. The flickering light made his face look mysterious, and his voice was low.
"But before we continue, I have to tell you regarding the request. It seems that the plan will be more difficult than I thought. The person who is causing trouble and disrupting the economy, the person who is controlling the minds of the people, the one who is manipulating the nobles and ministers. All of them are the followers of Supre Evil."
So far, Leo only suspected that they began to make a move against the Sect. But from this new information, it seed like they had infiltrated further than expected.
"Nobles and ministers? How did you find out about that?"
None of the people in the Royal Estate was a martial artist. And if there were any, they couldn't detect dark Qi that the supre evil follower used to manipulate the people. They could only guess based on the result.
The fact Emperor Sheng managed to detect that was impressive.
"I sohow found out about it after receiving reports. You can read this."
Sheng took out three scrolls and put them on the table.
Leo took one of them and unruffled it. Inside, the list of nas was written along with the title and the status. They were all martial artists belonging to so sects and clans. From the content, the people he listed were known for talents and they had their achievent written in the profile.
However, Leo couldn't understand why Sheng gave him this list at first. He looked at him and asked.
"Why did you give this?"
"Because this is related to the case, and I need your help."
"You need to investigate these people?"
"No... I an, if you can. These are the list of people missing from their sects or clans. So are missing a month back while so are recently. It's hard to tell the exact number and the date. But, the point is, all of them are missing and can't be found."
"Are you sure they aren't just hiding or running away?"
No matter how ridiculous it sounded, Leo didn't believe that the people were missing because they were killed. After all, he was in a world where people could travel using portals and could fly with their Qi.
If they wanted to escape, they could do it easily. And the people in the list were all talented, being at least 5 Stars or high-ranking mbers. No one would dare to kill them unless they were prepared for the consequences.
Therefore, it was possible that they were hiding. However...
"Yes, they are definitely not hiding. They are in a situation where they can't get my command or reply."
At that mont, Leo understood what Sheng tried to say. His gaze returned to the scroll, and he read the description again.
All of the missing people were different from each other, but each held a position where they were important yet not at the sect or clan.
The fact that all of them disappeared made him realize what was going on.
"They are Muds..."
"Correct." Sheng smiled and nodded, taking out another scroll.
This ti, the scroll was so big that it almost covered the entire table.
"This is the full list of missing people, including Bloody Squad and the Murim Alliance. Their absence is hard to miss and cannot be explained away. The timing is too suspicious."
The missing list was even longer than Leo expected. The number of people on the list was in the hundreds or even thousands.
And this list still didn't include the missing civilians as well as bandits and thieves.
'They are moving faster than I ever expected.'
Dangerous, very dangerous.
Leo knew what it ant when a lot of people went missing at once. It was a sign of trouble.
Also, if the Muds under Emperor Sheng went missing at once, their plan to destroy the Murim Alliance and the Orthodox Sect would take more ti.
"I need to warn the others. The disappearance of Muds is a big problem. The rest are now either hiding or getting injured, making them in a position where they couldn't use Qi. Surprisingly, this thod works very well. I noticed they only took a healthy one, not a sick or injured one."
"That's surprising."
'Co to think of it, the people I saw getting butchered in that village were a bunch of old, weak, and frail people. So, they only took the young and healthy one, huh?'
"And there is another thing."
Sheng paused and frowned, his expression grim. He took a deep breath and continued.
"Recently, a large amount of weapons, armor, and other goods were bought and traded by the bandits and the thieves. They are now better ard and equipped, and their number is growing. I want your help to deal with them first while I try to gather the remaining Muds."
Bandit eradication, huh?
Maybe these hyenas heard about the Murim situation and thought that they could take advantage of it. They probably thought that the Murim were weak and vulnerable now, so they could attack and plunder without getting caught.
"They want to use my subordinates' effort and eat the fruits of their hard work. How ridiculous."
Leo couldn't believe these idiots would actually do that.
"Well, it's not a surprise. They are stupid and reckless, thinking that they can go around when the Murim Alliance is occupied with the rcenary Union." Sheng smirked.
His words might have sounded calm, but Leo could feel the sarcasm hidden underneath.
Who made the Murim Alliance forgo their defense and bandit hunting to gather people? It was none other than him and his group. While he wasn't the direct cause, they were related to this problem.
"So, the bandits and thieves are a problem, huh? How much will you pay us to exterminate them?"
"A lot. This is an urgent matter, and I can provide a good price. Don't worry."
"That's good news. Let's talk about the information you've already gathered."
Sheng nodded and gave him a list. It was a map of the region, and the places where the bandits were known to appear were marked.
According to the intel, there were around 80 bandits.
In his last world or even the rcenary world, fighting against that much of an enemy would be a suicide. But in this world, he was a powerful cultivator and had a good team. They would have no problem dealing with such a small number of enemies.
'Well, the battle won't be easy, but we can handle it.'
"I will destroy them tonight. I hope your Bloody Guard won't interfere."
"Oh, of course not. I will give you the right to hunt them. Please take care of them thoroughly."
"Understood."
Leo nodded and stood up, leaving the room. He didn't forget to put his disguise back on and walk back to the banquet.
When he arrived, his clone was still sitting on the chair, looking bored and drinking while Jessica was sitting beside him.
'Looks like I wasn't missed.'
Smiling, he took his seat and acted as if nothing happened. The clone was put in the storage ring and he replaced it. He looked around and saw the banquet was still in progress. However, there seed to be a tense atmosphere brewing around the area.
Two sides clearly faced each other, and the argunt was getting heated. One side was the nobles and ministers, and the other was a group of rchants, headed by Ming Yuchan.
Leo was only gone for what seed like 10 minutes. How could sothing like this happen?
"Well, to put it simply, the noble are greedy and want to raise the tax. But the rchant here says it's not fair. They have to pay for the goods and the people they employ. Therefore, the money should be equal. And it cos into this..."
Jessica explained the situation.
'Hmm, this is interesting. I can't wait to see how this will turn out.'
Ming Yuchan was the most vocal, his voice loud and clear.
"How could you raise the tax and take our hard-earned money! We are the ones who made your kingdom grow, and now you want to squeeze us dry?! Are you not ashad, your Majesty?"
The 'Emperor' didn't speak and just watched. He didn't seem worried at all.
Leo smiled and poured himself a drink. He knew that he had a lot of things to do. But now, he would enjoy this situation.
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