The emperor faked his death? Never mind, I will ascend the throne directly!

Song Yuwei was stunned. It seemed that her father had mentioned this in his recent letter reporting his safety.

"My father did mention this in his letter, saying that this cult is active in the Hexi region, misleading people and using cunning tactics."

"My letter also mentioned that the Changsheng Cult used some underworld tactics to win over many local people."

Li Chengfeng stood up, walked to the window, stood with his hands behind his back, looked at the dark night sky outside the window, with a hint of worry in his tone.

"Now that such strange things have also occurred in the capital, I cannot help but wonder if there is a connection between them."

Song Yuwei frowned, and after a moment's silence, she said, "Your Majesty is wise, and I also think this is no coincidence."

"The people in the gambling house always win every time they gamble. There must be someone manipulating them behind the scenes."

"I suspect this gambling house may be a tool for the Changsheng Cult to make money!"

Li Chengfeng turned around, as if Song Yuwei had hit the nail on the head. "My dear minister, what you said is absolutely right!"

"I will never allow this Immortal Cult to stir up trouble in the capital!"

Li Chengfeng pondered for a moment, then asked, "By the way, who is the owner of that gambling house?"

Song Yuwei had already sent someone to investigate and replied, "Your Majesty, the registered owner of that gambling house is named Wang Fugui, and he's just an ordinary businessman."

"Ordinary businessman?"

Li Chengfeng sneered, "I don't believe there are such coincidences in this world!"

"Pass on my order to immediately arrest Wang Fugui and bring him to justice for strict interrogation!"

"According to the order!"

Song Yuwei bowed and accepted the order.

"besides."

Li Chengfeng hesitated for a moment, then spoke again, "Although Zhao Sheng is a skilled martial artist and a relatively prudent person, he has a gambling habit. You must control it and make sure he doesn't let it cause any problems."

The corners of Song Yuwei's mouth twitched slightly, and she thought to herself: Your Majesty, you really are bringing up things that are not relevant to the topic!

This guy Zhao Sheng goes to the gambling house every few days. I have wanted to discipline him for a long time, but it is difficult to do so because he is the leader of the Hidden Dragon Guard!

"I will remember your majesty's teachings."

Song Yuwei answered respectfully.

In the Hexi region, the sky was filled with yellow sand, but inside the prefectural government office, the atmosphere was extremely solemn.

Song Zelin, Tiezhu, Xiao Liuzi, Zhang Yuan, and Chen Tingshu sat around the table. Tonight's meal was laid out on the table, but no one picked up their chopsticks.

"This Changsheng Sect is really evil!"

Tiezhu was the first to speak. He slammed his palm, as big as a palm fan, on the table so hard that the side dishes jumped up.

"I've been following that Li Ergou recently. He was quite sober before."

"Last time we met at the pharmacy, he was originally an honest man, but he even knew how to persuade his mother not to believe in those superstitious things."

"It's only been a few days, and he's already become a completely different person. His eyes are glazed over, and he's mumbling nonsense about 'Eternal Heaven'."

Xiao Liuzi's narrow eyes narrowed into slits: "That's right, many people on the street have been spreading the word lately, life is hard."

"They lured the people into joining the Immortality Cult, saying that this would free them from suffering, allow them to ascend to heaven, and enjoy endless bliss."

"In my opinion, this Changsheng Cult is probably using some kind of evil magic to control people's minds."

"Controlling people's minds? Is this their purpose?"

Zhang Yuan thought for a moment and then spoke out his guess.

Chen Tingshu put down the brush he was using to compile the information and said, "In my opinion, this Changsheng Cult is more like taking advantage of the people's ignorance, fabricating lies, and misleading people."

Song Zelin remained silent, his brows furrowed, and his fingers tapped on the table, making a dull sound.

After a long while, he slowly spoke: "What you all said makes sense, but we don't know how the Changsheng Cult can deceive people."

"The most important thing right now is to find their lair and find out what's going on."

"Master Song is right."

Tie Zhu agreed, "But the Immortal Cult is so mysterious and their whereabouts are so elusive. Where can we find their lair?"

Little Liuzi's eyes rolled as he came up with a plan: "Isn't the Heavenly Sacrifice Ceremony at the mass grave outside the city going to be held in the next two days? When all the believers gather, it might be a good opportunity to investigate."

"However, the mass grave is already sparsely populated. If we alert the enemy..."

"What are you afraid of?" Tiezhu patted his chest. "With me, Tiezhu, here, no demon or monster dares to get close to me!"

"Brother Tiezhu is right. After all, we have followed His Majesty through thick and thin. How can we be afraid of a few followers?"

Xiao Liuzi also plucked up the courage to speak.

Song Zelin pondered for a moment and nodded, "This plan is feasible."

"But the mass grave will be crowded with people and eyes. How are we supposed to get in?"

"What's so difficult about this?"

Little Liuzi smiled confidently and said, "I've seen the followers of the Immortality Cult before. They all dress similarly. It shouldn't be difficult for me to sneak in with a disguise."

"no!"

Tiezhu refused without a second thought, "It's too dangerous. If they find out, the consequences will be disastrous."

"Brother Tiezhu, don't worry,"

Xiao Liuzi explained, "I will be careful."

"Besides, I don't just need to disguise myself in terms of clothing. I've even pretended to be a believer for a few days now, and I've gotten pretty good at it."

Tiezhu felt relieved now: "Hey, Xiao Liuzi, you are really smart."

"But, never be afraid of ten thousand, just be prepared for one..."

"It doesn't matter."

Song Zelin said, "Tiezhu, you just follow secretly when the time comes. Xiao Liuzi, just go ahead and be confident."

"Ok, deal!"

Little Liuzi slammed the table and said excitedly, "When the time comes, I'll be in the open, and Brother Tiezhu will be in the dark. With the help of both inside and outside forces, we'll definitely be able to find out the details of the Changsheng Sect!"

"Good idea!" everyone cheered.

Time passed quickly in the remaining few days, and soon it was the day of the ceremony to worship the heaven.

Xiao Liuzi disguised himself and followed a group of believers, while Tiezhu followed behind the crowd from a distance.

It was a dark and windy night. Ghost lights flickered in the eerie mass grave and mournful sobs echoed in the night sky.

Not long after, a person broke away from the crowd in front and slowly fell to the back of the team. It was Xiao Liuzi.

Little Liuzi, dressed in coarse linen clothes and with mud smeared on his face, mixed in with a group of ragged followers of the Changsheng Sect and walked towards the depths of the mass grave.

As he walked, he secretly observed the surrounding environment, looking for Tiezhu.

Suddenly, a cold wind blew, and Xiao Liuzi shivered, feeling a chill on his back.

He subconsciously looked back, only to see a dark shadow flash by and disappear into the night.

"Is it an iron pillar?"

Xiao Liuzi thought to himself.

He quickened his pace and chased in the direction where the shadow disappeared.

After passing through a mass grave, he came to a dead tree and saw a tall figure hiding behind the tree. It was Tiezhu.

"Brother Tiezhu!"

Xiao Liuzi shouted in a low voice.

Tiezhu turned around with a simple smile on his face: "Xiao Liuzi, you're here."

"Shh! Keep your voice down, don't get caught."

Little Liuzi looked around nervously.

"Don't worry, I've checked it out. There are no members of the Immortality Cult nearby."

Tiezhu patted his chest, signaling Xiao Liuzi to rest assured.

"That's good."

Xiao Liuzi breathed a sigh of relief. "What should we do next?"

Tiezhu pointed to a dilapidated temple not far ahead and said, "Look, that should be where the Changsheng Sect holds its grand ceremony to worship the heavens."

Xiao Liuzi looked in the direction of Tiezhu's finger and saw that the dilapidated temple was brightly lit, with figures swaying and a strange chanting sound faintly coming from it...