Chapter 9 Do as promised

　　Within a month, the criminal was captured. In the trial hall, Qian Geng smiled cunningly for a moment and then returned to his usual appearance.

　　Sheng Huan heard the news and arrived at the trial hall early. He seemed very curious about the process of catching the criminal by Niu Ding, so he asked very detailed questions.

　　The trial of the water robbery sickle master was assigned to Zhou Ge, and everyone eagerly waited to see what would happen. But he said that the spell of "Binding Spirit Stanchion Rune Magic" could only be used on the dead, not the living. As a result, everyone was extremely disappointed.

　　In fact, this was a lie. He was proficient in five types of witchcraft, and except for the spell of "Servitude Drive", he had mastered the other four spells perfectly. Today's spell could definitely be used for soul extraction, but it was too obvious, so he dare not use it.

　　The criminal was very weak and couldn't withstand the torture, so he had to be taken to Nan Jing City and handed over to the five city lords, Chuang Yan. When the prisoner arrived, whether he were tortured or induced to confess, the police in other cities would no longer interfere.

　　Afterwards, Pang Sheng took the criminal back to the city. Finally, everyone said their farewells in the trial hall.

　　After seeing everyone off, Zhou Ge stretched and yawned before returning to the trial hall. Looking back on this case, he felt that there were many things that were not satisfactory. Firstly, the interrogation was too hasty and should have waited for the coroner's report. Secondly, the questioning was not thorough enough and did not delve into the details of the case. Thirdly, he forgot to record the case files, which was a very obvious mistake. In all these aspects, more attention needed to be paid.

　　Soon after, Sheng Huan returned to the trial hall and care for him for a while. Zhou Ge did not conceal his mistakes and told him about them.

　　Sheng Huan thought that there was nothing serious about it and believed that as long as the first major case was successfully solved, the details could be gradually improved with experience.

　　With encouragement from his friend, Zhou Ge gained more confidence.

　　"If it were Senior Brother Sheng, he would never make mistakes." He said with emotion.

　　"The lord of the castle must have thought it through to make you a inquisitor， so don't be discouraged, and there is no need to be discouraged. Also, don't forget to go see your teacher next month."

　　Zhou Ge suddenly remembered that his teacher had left Binhicheng for over five months, and there were less than 20 days until the end of April's Spell Solvingl competition.

　　"Oh..."

　　"Bro, you didn't forget did you?"

　　"How could I? I'll start preparing as soon as I get home."

　　After finishing his daily duties and returning home, Zhou Ge carefully packed everything that he thought he might need in a bag.

　　Without making dinner, he went out to eat something simple. When he returned home, there was someone waiting outside his door.

　　After approaching and asking, he found out that it was his mother who had sent a letter.

　　The letter was similar to the one he had received when he left home. It mostly contained instructions on what to do and what not to do, as well as morning and evening routines. It also mentioned some local news and interesting stories from their travels in Furen Kingdom, and ended with words of missing him.

　　After reading the letter, Zhou Ge felt quite emotional. What he felt most was regret about possibly not being able to receive letters while in Jiangxiao.

　　On April 15th, there were still ten days left until the Capital Spell Solving Competition. The citylord Zhao Jing asked Zhou Ge to set out on a certain day. There were three people, including Sheng Huan, the oldest disciple of Liang Ran mirror master, who had the best martial arts skills and was also good at throwing darts.

　　When Sheng Huan heard that he had been chosen, he neither felt happy nor upset. Instead, he looked deeply worried, as if burdened by some heavy thoughts.

　　The second person was Zeng Gang, the leader of another detention team. Let him go to make it seem that the city lord treats everyone equally, and there is no deviation.

　　When Zeng Gang heard that he had been chosen, he was extremely delighted. So far, he had only seen small-scale scenes in Binri. This was an opportunity to see and learn how police in other places conducted their investigations, especially the police in Jiangxiao who were rumored to have very special techniques.

　　The last spot naturally belonged to Zhou Ge, who represented the inquisitor of Binri City. He was no different from Sheng Huan; he neither felt happy nor upset. His face was also clouded with worry as he thought about two things: the five-clawed gecko pattern and the five-legged sorcery; and the water robbery sickle master and the mysterious "Ming Yi" mentioned by Niu Ding. He believed that once he met Sun Fang General, everything would become clear.

　　After everyone had packed their things, they set out from the city the next morning. Before leaving, Zhao gave them a map, travel funds and supplies, as well as a pass check with the citylord's seal, ensuring that they would have unrestricted access wherever they went.

　　Simple calculations showed that the journey to Jiangxiao was not far. If they rode quickly, it would take them one day and one night; if they drove slowly, it would take at most five or six days. Therefore, nine days was more than enough time for the trip.

　　On the road, Zeng Gang was quite talkative and shared with the others his knowledge of previous Spell Solving Competition. Although he had not attended in person, he had heard of them through rumors and stories.

　　The Spell Solving Competitio in Xiyue were similar to those in nearby countries and had lasting more than 100 years. At first, police and inquisitors from each city were enthusiastic participants, but over time, their interest had gradually waned. Nowadays, people viewed the competitions more as a tourist attraction than a serious event.

　　There was another important point: most talented individuals congregated in the five cities, and the police and inquisitors from other places were no match for them. By now, the competition was almost predetermined within the capital, making it even less interesting.

　　Zeng Gang guessed that this year, except for Zhou Ge who could draw attention, there would be no outstanding police or inquisitors from other cities.

　　After listening to Zeng Gang's story, Sheng Huan smiled and asked: "So what are we going there for?"

　　"To sightsee… It's not every day that there are leaders like sickle master、knife master and whatnot. It's also interesting to see what other places are like. I heard that the young and beautiful female police officers in the five cities of the capital are quite eye-catching."

　　"Captain Zeng, you are already married…"

　　"It's just for looking, ha ha ha…"

　　The three men traveled and chatted easily, thoroughly enjoying themselves. When they passed through other cities, they showed their pass check to indicate their identity. If the posthouse were not too crowded, they stayed at the posthouse; if they were crowded, they found another place to stay.

　　In the blink of an eye, it was the fourth day, and they had lunch at an outpost outside the city before continuing on their way.

　　Zhou Ge looked around and saw that the road through the woods was immaculate. The ground was paved with square tiles, and there were stone railings on both sides of the road, on which there were often bird resting. The railings were surrounded by dense forests, and the sun filtered through the gaps in the leaves, casting countless shadows on the ground.

　　"It's better maintained than Binri City," Zhou Ge said as he stretched.

　　Just then, a flock of startled birds flew out of the eastern forest, and a tall figure darted into the western forest.

　　The man moved quickly, and no one had a chance to get a good look at him. Zhou Ge only remembered that he had a square face and a neat row of short red beards on his chin.

　　"Stop!"

　　Another man emerged from the eastern forest, leaping over the stone railing and aiming to land on Zhou Ge's carriage, presumably to use it as a springboard.

　　Zhou Ge quickly grabbed the reins.

　　Unexpectedly, the man stumbled as his foot hit an empty spot, and he toppled forward, crashing into the carriage with a "clang". Needless to say, he fell hard.

　　"Help him!" Zhou Ge shouted as he got off his horse.

　　Sheng Huan and Zeng Gang quickly dismounted and joined him at the back of the carriage. They opened the door and saw that the man had landed, with his face pressed against the bottom of the carriage.

　　Zeng Gang jumped onto the carriage: "How is he?"

　　Before the man could speak, his stomach did.

　　"He seems fine..." Zhou Ge said quietly.