Not long after he finished burning the bodies, Ren Qing, who had finally gotten a moment of rest, was summoned to the Public Trial Hall.
This wasn't because his clandestine moving of bodies in the middle of the night had been exposed. The real reason was an order from the County Magistrate to assemble all Government Constables, mobilizing the entire West District.
From what Ren Qing understood, a mobilization of this scale was usually related to something supernatural.
The meeting hall inside the Public Trial Hall was not large. It was filled with wooden chairs, all occupied by the Fireworker Black Slaves who served as stewards for the various districts of Sanxiang City.
Most were over thirty years old, and many already had streaks of gray in their hair. Ren Qing was the sole exception, not yet even twenty.
The room was dead silent. Ren Qing sat near the door, taking the opportunity to observe everyone present.
Before long, a Scribe with a grim expression on his face walked in.
This was Clerk Zhao, who managed the Government Constables in the West District of the Government Office. He looked more like a shrewd merchant than a Scribe.
"To make a long story short, I assume you all know something about the situation at the East District Prison?"
Ren Qing glanced around. The expressions of the other Government Constables had all darkened. Only he was completely in the dark.
Clerk Zhao continued, "The inside has become a Forbidden Zone. After the Forbidden Guards have finished their work, you will be responsible for cleaning the Prison. Each street will send five men. Make sure you pick some sharp ones."
The Government Constables all agreed. Although they wouldn't have to take the risk themselves, they knew that if too many of their subordinates died, they would lose their credibility.
Ren Qing shook his head helplessly. 'Looks like the four of us from Tan Street won't be able to escape this.'
Still, his curiosity was piqued. 'Why is the Government Office making such a fuss over a prison? And what exactly is this so-called 'Forbidden Zone'?'
'Could it involve Ghost Gods…?'
"Once you're inside the Prison, remember not to expose any of your skin. You must also clean the interior thoroughly, not leaving behind a single scrap."
Clerk Zhao launched into a long speech detailing various precautions. The Government Constables listened with intense focus, some even bowing their heads to take notes.
The atmosphere in the room grew increasingly oppressive.
Ren Qing could clearly see the fear in the eyes of the other constables.
'Logically speaking, they've handled at least a thousand corpses between them all. Why would they lose their composure so completely?'
"Go back and prepare. Tell the constables who are going to get their affairs in order."
Clerk Zhao gave a dismissive wave, then turned and left the meeting hall.
Shortly after he left, the Government Constables erupted into loud arguments. A fight nearly broke out, a clear sign of their anxiety.
Ren Qing found a middle-aged Fireworker in a corner and asked, "Excuse me, but what exactly happened at the Prison?"
The middle-aged Fireworker froze for a moment before it dawned on him. "Oh, no wonder you don't know. You're from Tan Street..."
"That Prison is in the Government Office's East District. They said the prisoners slaughtered one another, filling the place with bodies. But two groups of Government Constables have already gone in over the past few days. The East District ran out of men, so now it's our turn."
Ren Qing couldn't resist asking, "Then what makes it a Forbidden Zone?"
"When a large number of people die tragically and inexplicably, the place becomes a Forbidden Zone."
After explaining, the middle-aged Fireworker hurried away, as did the rest of the constables.
Ren Qing carefully pondered Clerk Zhao's words. 'Those seemingly absurd restrictions... are they a warning about something?'
Upon returning to the Firework Hall, the first thing he did was relay what he had heard to Li Mian and the others.
The Li Brothers stared at each other in dismay. Li Mian swallowed hard and said, "I heard an old-timer from the Government Office say that going into a Forbidden Zone means facing almost certain death..."
Xiaowu was so frightened he stumbled back several steps. Thankfully, after the trials of the past few days, his nerve had grown a little. At least he didn't collapse right then and there.
Ren Qing massaged his temples. "There's no getting out of this. We might as well prepare as thoroughly as we can to prevent any mistakes."
"Alright. We'll listen to you, Constable."
Li Mian and the other two had already developed a trust in Ren Qing, and their nerves gradually settled.
After eating and drinking their fill, they followed the Scribe's instructions, covering every inch of their skin and even putting on two thick layers of clothing. Just in case, they also brought short knives, leaving only their eyes uncovered.
Ren Qing prepared some pig eyes, wrapped them in oil paper, but still felt uneasy. He swallowed a few, and a steady stream of heat began to flow through his body.
As they waited in apprehension, the sun began to dip below the horizon.
The sound of a gong echoed from somewhere within the Government Office.
Ren Qing and the other three walked out of the courtyard. He gave them one last reminder, "Stay right behind me. If I don't touch something, none of you make any unnecessary moves."
"Understood, Constable."
Exchanging silent glances, they followed the sound of the gong to a relatively open area in the West District.
A troop of over a hundred Government Constables stood assembled, ready to depart.
Ren Qing noticed his own getup wasn't even the most exaggerated. To save their own skins, many looked as if they wished they were wearing full suits of Iron Armor.
Once everyone was assembled, Clerk Zhao seemed to want to say something but held his tongue. In the end, he said nothing, simply turning to lead the way toward the Government Office's East District.
The constables they encountered on the way all stopped in their tracks, their gazes filled with complex emotions.
「By the time they reached the Prison, the moon was already high in the sky.」
The Prison didn't look large from the outside, but that was a deception. The building extended a full three floors underground, capable of holding over a thousand prisoners.
The path to the Prison was cordoned off by Official Soldiers. A few Forbidden Guards in Light Armor and Conical Hats stood under a nearby tree.
Ren Qing's gaze lingered on one of the Forbidden Guards.
He had encountered the man a few days prior while cleaning up bloodstains. Back then, the guard had seemed to be carrying a piece of old, flayed human skin.
'I'd assumed it was related to some Cultivation Technique, but now it seemed like he was dealing with the supernatural horror in the Prison.'
Clerk Zhao yelled, "Alright, constables! First, bring out the bodies of the constables from the second level. Then you can deal with the other corpses."
Ren Qing mentally reviewed the details one last time before slowly entering the Prison with the crowd.
Beyond the iron gate, the air was extremely damp. Even through two layers of head wrappings, they could smell a grotesque stench of rot mixed with blood.
The ground floor of the Prison was used by the Prison Guards as a rest area. Aside from some drag marks left by corpses, there was nothing unusual.
The first level below ground, however, was a completely different story.
The walls were caked in a thick layer of gore, strewn with fragments of flesh and blood. It was like a Hell on Earth…
The rows of prison cells were empty, but deep fingernail scratches scarred the wooden bars, testifying to the prisoners' agony before they died.
The Black Slaves began their cleanup with lime, while the Fireworkers proceeded to the next level down.
Ren Qing noticed Xiaowu's growing anxiety; his breathing had become shallow and rapid.
He patted Xiaowu on the head, and the younger man finally managed to steady his Heart Spirit.
Upon reaching the second level underground, Ren Qing found that most of the bodies had already been cleared out by the Fireworkers who had come before.
The group still conducted a careful search to ensure nothing had been missed.
Finally, by the staircase leading down to the next level, they found the bodies of the dead Fireworkers.
The bodies were contorted, their clothes torn to shreds, and their faces frozen in expressions of pure terror.
Ren Qing surmised that these Fireworkers had been trying to escape from the third level below. He couldn't imagine what they had encountered.
The men worked together to move the bodies. Just then, something the size of a human palm seemed to flash past them on the staircase.
Only Ren Qing noticed. 'Was that a tattered piece of human skin?'