Starting from the steel of the heart, slaying demons and monsters.

Chapter 5 The Secret Chamber

"Boss, is everything alright?"

Zhou Zheng watched Zhang Ping flex his wrists, while inside the cell were the members of the Changyun Escort Agency groaning and moaning.

He really didn't understand why Zhang Ping would still beat these people up even though they had already been arrested.

"What could be wrong?"

Zhang Ping flexed his wrists, looking completely unconcerned.

He originally thought that he could only see this kind of brainless rich kid in novels and on TV, but he never expected to actually encounter it.

Moreover, since these people have been captured, he naturally cannot let them go, as it can increase his health.

His health has now exceeded 5050.

However, after dealing with them, we did hear some news: Li Changyun was not actually in Fenggu City; he had gone out of the city to deliver goods a few days ago.

No wonder that after such a big incident, this person didn't show up, but instead his brainless son stepped forward.

"Let's go and take a look at their security escort agency."

Zhao Zhen's crime of colluding with demons has now been confirmed, and Li Changyun is not currently at home.

Zhang Ping's eyes lit up. He couldn't let this opportunity slip by. If Li Changyun's family had enough money and food, he could take advantage of this chance to gain something.

For him, there's no need to be too strapped for cash.

Zhou Zheng nodded upon hearing this, and then selected several people to go together, since if there was any situation at the escort agency, more people could handle it.

His gaze toward Zhang Ping grew increasingly one of admiration.

Thus, the dozen or so of them walked from Zhengdong Road, through three streets, and turned into a relatively quiet alley.

At the end of the alley stood a large house with gray bricks and blue tiles, and a plaque with gold characters on a black background hung above the door.

The four characters "Changyun Escort Agency" were clearly written on it.

The gate was tightly closed, but the two stone lions at the entrance looked imposing.

Upon arriving at the location, Zhang Ping gestured to Zhou Zheng to go open the door.

Boom, boom, boom.

A dull knock echoed through the quiet alley.

A moment later, a series of dragging footsteps came from behind the door, followed by the bolt being pulled open and the door creaking open a crack.

A small face peeked out from under the door, and a voice said, "Who is it? The security agency is not receiving guests today, please leave!"

The man had barely finished speaking when he saw Zhou Zheng's official robes and immediately stopped.

Zhou Zheng reached out and pressed his hand on the door, forcefully pushing it open, and coldly shouted, "This is an official case."

As the door was pushed open, a young man of about seventeen or eighteen years old appeared before them, dressed simply; he was just a handyman.

Seeing Zhang Ping and his group's aggressive demeanor, the man immediately shrank to the side.

At this moment, Zhang Ping also stepped forward.

The front yard was spacious, paved with blue bricks, and weapon racks were placed in the four corners, with swords, spears, and halberds arranged neatly, gleaming coldly in the sunlight.

In the center of the courtyard stood a flag with a large "常" character embroidered in gold on a black background, which fluttered in the wind.

"That does have some presence."

Zhang Ping said something, and then, without any hesitation, walked directly to the stone bench under the big tree in the courtyard and poured himself a cup of tea.

Then he had the young man who opened the door call everyone in the escort agency into the courtyard.

The young man nodded repeatedly, and soon, several maids, grooms, cooks, and servants stood in the courtyard.

There were no bodyguards among them. It is likely that they were all taken away by Li Changzai to fill in the gaps, and then all of them were captured by him. Some of them were out on escort missions.

Seeing that everyone was there, Zhang Ping cleared his throat and said, "Zhao Zhen colluded with demons to slaughter civilians. I arrested him last night, and now I need your assistance in the investigation."

"I advise you to speak frankly and completely, otherwise if I discover that you have concealed anything..."

Before he could finish speaking, Zhang Ping drew his broadsword, channeling all his strength into his arm, and with a single slash, the stone table in front of him was split in two.

This scene terrified many of the servants present, causing them to tremble with fear.

Subsequently, Zhang Ping arranged for three people to search the area to see if there was any evidence of Zhao Zhen colluding with demons.

Of course, when he went there, he gave those three a meaningful look.

Those three were seasoned veterans; how could they not understand Zhang Ping's hints?

After all, this search requires a lot of skill.

The task of interrogating these people naturally fell to Zhou Zheng.

Zhang Ping had nothing to do while standing there, so he started to wander around and look at things.

They slowly walked onto the path leading to the inner courtyard.

The inner courtyard is smaller than the front courtyard, but its layout is more exquisite.

The corridors are winding, with artificial hills and flowing water, and a few old locust trees provide shade.

If one didn't know this was a security escort agency, it would resemble a wealthy family's residence.

"This Li Changyun does have some vision, managing to indulge in such leisurely pursuits."

At this point, Zhang Ping hadn't discovered anything yet. After wandering around and finding nothing, he went back.

At this moment, Zhou Zheng walked over with a confession in his hand. "Boss, the maids and servants didn't say anything. The only unusual thing is that half a month ago, their master said that they were not allowed to go to the inner courtyard anymore."

"And they also said that ever since that was said, strange noises have often been heard from the inner courtyard, and there have been unpleasant smells from time to time."

"Strange noise, unpleasant smell?"

If that's the case, then something unusual must be going on.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Ping turned and headed back into the inner courtyard.

Sunlight streamed down, a gentle breeze blew by, swaying the branches of the locust tree, creating dappled light and shadow—it looked quite ordinary.

However, since there is something unusual, he needs to observe this place carefully.

His gaze swept across the inner courtyard again and again, finally stopping next to a rockery in the southwest corner.

There was a patch of ground there, its color different from the surrounding area, as if it had been repeatedly trampled on.

Upon seeing this, Zhang Ping immediately went over.

You can see it more clearly when you get closer.

That dark patch of ground wasn't the natural color of the soil, but rather a mark left by something that had seeped into it.

He squatted down, tucked a little soil between his fingers, and put it on the tip of his nose.

It has a faint fishy smell.

It wasn't the smell of blood, but a more complex and unsettling odor, like the stench of animals.

He was all too familiar with this smell; it was the same smell from the rat demon he had killed last night.

"Looks like there's something here!"

Zhang Ping frowned, then hooked his fingers into the soil, his fingertips touching something cold.

When he pulled out his hand again, he pulled out an iron ring with a chain attached.

Then, he pulled his arm up forcefully again.

crunch...

A series of harsh metallic scraping sounds came from below.

Immediately afterwards, the artificial hill next to it slowly moved, revealing a dark entrance.

As soon as the cave entrance appeared, a strong, fishy stench wafted out, causing Zhang Ping and Zhou Zheng to cover their noses and back away.

This smell is much more pungent than the smell in the prison.

"Looks like we've found something good."

Looking at the steps leading down from the cave entrance, Zhang Ping's words became more serious.