Chapter 35: Astonishing Efficiency
Inside a civilian residence in Buwa Village, this was a somewhat dilapidated house. The lower half was built from piled stone, while the upper half was made of wood, making it warm in summer and cold in winter.
The sparsely furnished home could be described as bare walls. There was a blackened yellow wooden table, two wooden stools with broken legs, and a bed severely infested with insects that seemed ready to collapse at any moment.
On that bed, which could collapse at any moment, a middle-aged man with a full beard was sound asleep. He seemed to have worked all day, as the hoe leaning against the corner of the wall still had some damp soil clinging to it.
A smell of sweat permeated the room. Combined with the man's loud snoring, he appeared to be nothing more than a bachelor farmer who had worked hard all day.
If Su Xiao hadn't received accurate information, even if this farmer walked right past him, he wouldn't have connected him to the princess murder case.
Now there were only two possibilities: either Yierduo was lying, or this "farmer" was simply too well-disguised.
"Ugh~"
The sleeping farmer scratched his face, smacked his lips, then turned over and continued sleeping, looking as peaceful as could be.
According to the intelligence provided by Yierduo, the mastermind Lu Po had little combat ability. His status among the Undead Clan was not low, but his abilities weren't suited for battle. His strength lay in his intelligence and strategic planning.
If this farmer really was Lu Po, then his planning ability was terrifying. Without being in the royal capital, he had thrown the royal family into chaos. If not for the old king's exceptional composure in the banquet hall, his plan would have succeeded.
Su Xiao gently pushed open the wooden window.
Creak~
A sound so faint it was almost negligible appeared. The farmer lying on the bed suddenly opened his eyes and reached under his pillow.
With a thunderous crash! Stone fragments and wood chips flew everywhere as Su Xiao burst through the wall of the house, appearing instantly at the farmer's bedside.
Bang!
Su Xiao punched the "farmer" in the abdomen. With a crisp cracking sound, a hole broke through the wooden bed beneath him, and something flew from his hand—a green metal ball.
Su Xiao grabbed the metal ball, feeling heat radiating from his palm. He kicked a piece of wood floating in mid-air, sending it shooting upward with a whoosh.
The plank pierced through the roof, creating a half-meter-wide hole. Su Xiao tossed the metal ball upward through the hole, watching it disappear into the night sky. He did this to prevent the ball from being struck, as it was likely some kind of weapon.
Su Xiao punched the farmer on the jaw, knocking him unconscious.
Boom!
A deafening explosion echoed above Buwa Village. A fireball three hundred meters in diameter appeared, waking the villagers, some of whom screamed in terror.
Flames rained down from the sky, gradually dissipating in mid-air without starting a fire.
There was no doubt—this farmer was the mastermind, the Undead Lu Po. Otherwise, why would an ordinary farmer react so aggressively?
[Notification: The Hunter has successfully captured the mastermind · Lu Po. Handing Lu Po over to the old king will complete the hidden side mission · Royal Family's Secret and activate the follow-up mission.]
Su Xiao picked up Lu Po and walked out of the house. With Bubu Wang following, he left Buwa Village and headed straight for the royal capital.
Along the way, Su Xiao checked the tools or mechanisms Lu Po carried. He had to admit, this guy was ruthless. Not only did he carry explosives at all times, but he also had three poison needles hidden on him and a poison sac implanted under the skin of his wrist.
Lu Po likely had other suicide methods concealed as well. This guy was ready to die at any moment to prevent the Undead Clan's secrets from leaking.
To prevent Lu Po from committing suicide upon waking, Su Xiao took a metal syringe from his storage space. The syringe contained a pinkish solution.
This item was something Su Xiao had brought back from the Hunter World. It was a toxin secreted by a tentacle-like plant from Kukuroo Mountain—a paralytic poison that wouldn't kill but had extremely strong paralytic effects. This item hadn't been certified by Reincarnation Paradise; Su Xiao had spent Paradise Coins to bring it out of the Hunter World.
After being injected with this, Lu Po couldn't even blink, let alone commit suicide.
Half an hour later, Su Xiao returned to the royal capital and arrived at the main gate of the royal palace.
The palace at night was an absolute forbidden zone. No one except a few royal family members could enter or leave. Fortunately, Su Xiao wasn't in that category, and he also had the old king's Golden Lion pendant.
Entering the palace smoothly, Su Xiao was led by two imperial guards to the door of the Kingdom Council Hall, where the old king and several princes and princesses were "reminiscing" inside.
Those qualified to reminisce with the old king were five princes and princesses: the financially powerful First Prince, the Third Prince with high military affinity, the Seventh Prince representing the Holy Warriors, the Second Princess who dabbled in both black and white markets, and the Sixth Princess known for her extreme methods.
Except for the Sixth Princess, Su Xiao had met the others before. The Sixth Princess wore a black gauze dress and appeared to be around twenty years old, though she was actually twenty-seven. She was a beauty who smiled beautifully—a venomous beauty. It was said she had a hobby of collecting the eyeballs of strong individuals.
"Father, Iron Hand is visiting you so late. Perhaps he brings good news?"
The First Prince sat closest to the old king, his smile as gentle as ever.
"Perhaps."
The old king didn't expect Su Xiao to bring good news. The incident had occurred around ten in the morning, and the whole affair was clearly meticulously planned. There was no way to find leads so quickly.
"Maybe Iron Hand has come to ask Father for help? I've learned a bit about today's events. It's likely the Undead Clan's doing."
The Sixth Princess's voice was clear. Whenever her gaze fell on any prince or princess, they would avert their eyes, because in their view, the Sixth Princess was a mad dog. No matter how beautiful she was, it couldn't hide her mad dog-like personality.
Bang.
The door to the Kingdom Council Hall was pushed open. The First Prince, Third Prince, and others were startled, thinking an assassin had arrived. The old king rubbed his forehead—this old lion was already used to it.
"Iron Hand, why aren't you resting at this hour?"
Because there were "outsiders" present, the old king's tone wasn't as casual as usual. If it were just Su Xiao and the old king, the old king's first words would likely be "Iron Hand, come forward" or "How's the matter progressing?"—much more informal than now.
"Mm."
Su Xiao's response surprised several princes and princesses. That was too casual. They looked at the old king, whose expression remained unchanged. Perhaps this was their usual dynamic.
At that moment, the First Prince, Third Prince, Seventh Prince, Second Princess, and Sixth Princess all felt a surge of excitement. They simultaneously understood that the old king's most trusted people weren't four, but two: Iron Hand and the Kingdom's Legion Commander, Heshitelite. If they could gain Iron Hand's support...
"The mastermind."
Su Xiao threw Lu Po, whom he was carrying, to the ground. Lu Po was still in his farmer disguise.
"This is..."
The old king frowned. He felt it unlikely that the mastermind behind this was human, but he considered that this human might be an Undead in disguise.
"He's Lu Po, of the Undead Clan."
"Lu Po."
The old king slowly rose from his throne.
"Father, be careful..."
The First Prince made as if to stand as well, but the old king waved his hand.
"The mastermind is the Undead Lu Po. His known accomplices are three Undead: Dunk Nick, Sajia, and Yierduo.
Yesterday, the young princess died at the hands of Legion Commander Kalun. The queen drank poison to delay me. All of this was to divert my attention, lure me away, and carry out an assassination in the banquet hall. But the assassination failed."
Su Xiao briefly recounted the entire affair. Some of this intelligence the old king had likely already learned, but now everything was connected.
Hearing Su Xiao's words, the younger Seventh Prince's mouth opened and closed. He was stunned by Su Xiao's efficiency. Such a major incident, and less than twelve hours after it occurred, a whole chain of people had been uncovered, including a big figure like Dunk Nick.
"What about Dunk Nick?"
The old king certainly knew who Dunk Nick was—a name that kept him awake at night.
"Killed."
"And the other two?"
"Killed as well. Their bodies will be delivered to the palace by tomorrow morning."
"Mm."
The old king sat back down on his throne and let out a long breath.
The princes and princesses exchanged glances. Today, they finally understood why Iron Hand had those seemingly special privileges. His efficiency was simply terrifying.
They didn't know that this was Iron Hand. Though his position wasn't high, he had no military power, no financial authority, and couldn't manage any officials. Moreover, his job carried extreme risk and would offend many people. But Iron Hand was the old lion's most trusted person. During power struggles, if any prince or princess went too far—like using treasonous methods to eliminate rivals—then Iron Hand would be their nightmare.
"There's one more thing. The Kingdom's Financial Officer, Rowen Harvey, has committed treason."
Su Xiao dropped an explosive piece of news. The council hall fell into dead silence.