Chapter 49

Today, the city of Lin'an is much busier than usual.

Because today is the day the Zhao family will be executed.

The Zhao family.

They can be considered one of the prominent families in Lin'an.

During the twenty years of Zhao Fang's reign, the Zhao family benefited greatly, and their power grew rapidly.

In the eyes of the people of Lin'an,

the Zhao family was like the sky.

But things are different now.

The Zhao family has been stripped of their wealth and power, and they will no longer have the authority they once had.

Seeing the many bailiffs escorting the Zhao family members to the execution ground in prison carts, many people gathered to watch.

In the crowd,

there were also some martial artists quietly observing everything.

"That new magistrate is not simple at all!"

Cui Cheng suddenly sighed.

Zhao Yue, standing beside him, looked puzzled: "Why do you say that, Senior Brother?"

"There was a lot of commotion last night, and today the government office carried out some bodies, indicating that many people died. If I'm not mistaken, the ones who attacked the government office last night were likely strong members of the Eternal Alliance.

Zhao Fang was a member of the Eternal Alliance, and now that the Zhao family is to be executed, the Eternal Alliance would not remain idle.

If the Eternal Alliance had succeeded yesterday, there would be no execution of the Zhao family today."

Cui Cheng looked calm as he watched the prison carts carrying the Zhao family members.

"Being able to eliminate a village of demons, their strength is likely at the mid-to-late stage of the Meridian Channel realm. Even so, they were defeated by this person. The Eternal Alliance is backed by demons, but now it is led by demonized humans.

They are not fools. The loss of a demon at the mid-to-late stage of the Meridian Channel realm would prompt them to send even stronger individuals, likely at the late stage of the Meridian Channel realm, or even at the Innate realm.

Even so, they failed to break the prisoners out.

This magistrate is far more powerful than he appears."

From these events,

Cui Cheng could infer much more.

If he were a demonized human of the Eternal Alliance, he would not send weaklings to their deaths after learning about Shen Changqing's strength.

Thus,

Shen Changqing's strength can be imagined.

Zhao Yue, looking at Shen Changqing riding at the front, revealed a look of shock.

"Senior Brother, are you saying that this Shen Magistrate is likely an Innate realm expert?"

"Even if he is not at the Innate realm, he is not far off. I thought the Demon Suppression Bureau, being tied up by demons in various regions, would not send many strong individuals to a small place like Lin'an.

Now it seems I was wrong.

The Demon Suppression Bureau's strength is far beyond what any martial arts sect can compare to."

Cui Cheng's face showed a sense of awe.

The strongest in his Guiyuan Sword Sect is only at the Innate realm.

Although he is at the late stage of the Meridian Channel realm, breaking through to the Innate realm will take a considerable amount of time.

Moreover, it involves a matter of opportunity.

In the martial arts world,

the number of Meridian Channel realm martial artists is not small, but the number of Innate realm experts is drastically reduced.

Any Innate realm expert holds a significant position in the martial arts world.

Therefore, after realizing that Shen Changqing might be an Innate realm expert, Cui Cheng's vigilance increased significantly.

Hearing this,

Zhao Yue nodded in understanding, and her gaze towards Shen Changqing's back seemed to change.

---

In the eastern part of the city, at the execution ground.

A canopy had been set up in front of the execution ground, and Shen Changqing was sitting inside, with Shi Qingsheng standing beside him.

The prison carts carrying the Zhao family members had stopped next to the execution ground.

There were about twenty carts, each carrying six to seven people.

There was no choice.

The government office only had so many prison carts, so they had to be crammed together.

"Bring them down!"

Shen Changqing waved his hand and gave the order.

Hearing this,

the bailiffs at the front of the prison carts immediately opened the doors and dragged the people out. Some cried and refused to move, while others were numb and allowed themselves to be dragged out.

Standing on the execution ground, Zhao Li, wearing shackles, suddenly caught sight of Cui Cheng in the crowd, and a glimmer of hope arose in his heart.

But when he noticed Cui Cheng avoiding his gaze, that glimmer of hope vanished.

Looking at the position of the prison carts, Zhao Li turned to the canopy.

"Magistrate Shen, the Zhao family acknowledges our grave sins and has no objections to the court's judgment. However, some of our clan members are innocent. Could you show mercy and spare their lives?"

After saying this, Zhao Li knelt down without hesitation.

Shen Changqing's face was indifferent: "I enforce the law. The court's judgment states that the entire clan is to be executed, so it shall be done.

I believe that not only those present here, but also the branches of the Zhao family in other regions, will face the same fate.

Remember, colluding with demons is an unforgivable crime."

"To blame—blame Zhao Fang for colluding with demons and betraying the human race!"

"To blame—blame them for being part of the Zhao family!"

"Magistrate—"

Zhao Li's face was anxious, and he wanted to say more.

Shen Changqing waved his hand, interrupting him: "It is noon, execute them!"

Upon the order,

the bailiffs immediately stepped forward and forcibly held Zhao Li down. The executioner, who had already prepared, took a mouthful of wine and spat it onto the gleaming blade, then brought it down.

Swish—

The blade fell, and the head was separated from the body.

The bloody scene caused the onlookers to scream in shock, and the Zhao family members turned pale.

"Father!"

Zhao Mingye cried out in grief, unable to believe that the once powerful Zhao family would end up being executed one by one on the execution ground.

With Zhao Li's death,

Zhao Mingye wanted to struggle and rush over.

But as soon as he took a step, he was held down by the bailiffs on either side and forced to kneel.

"Execute another!"

Shen Changqing's face was cold as he gave the next order.

The executioner carried out the order.

Another head fell.

"No, I don't want to die—"

"Why, it was Zhao Fang who colluded with demons, why are you killing us? I don't accept this!"

"I am just a servant of the Zhao family, I am innocent!"

One by one, they cried and shouted, wanting to live, but it was all in vain.

The blade fell,

and heads rolled.

In a short time, the execution platform was stained with blood.

Each time someone was beheaded, a bailiff would carry the body away and discard it to the side.

The strong smell of blood made many people feel extremely uncomfortable.

"This Shen Magistrate is truly ruthless!"

Watching the continuous beheadings of the Zhao family members, Cui Cheng felt a bit nauseous, but looking at Shen Changqing, who remained expressionless and had a dead look in his eyes, he realized how much this magistrate despised life.

Zhao Yue, standing beside him, had already turned pale.

The sight of the falling heads and the strong smell of blood made her feel as if her stomach was churning, and she had the urge to vomit.

"Senior Brother, let's go back!"

Zhao Yue tugged at Cui Cheng's sleeve, her speech faltering.

Cui Cheng, seeing his junior sister's pale face, shook his head: "Let's stay. If you want to walk the path of the martial arts, you will eventually have to face such scenes. Getting used to it now will benefit you."

Although he was also uncomfortable, he had no intention of leaving.

In these chaotic times,

corpses are everywhere.

If you cannot bear such scenes, how can you walk the path of the martial arts in the future?

Hearing Cui Cheng's words, Zhao Yue could only force herself to endure the discomfort.

On the other side of the crowd, two young men were also watching the scene.

"Once we return, gather more information about this Shen Magistrate. He might be a significant obstacle to our plan to obtain demon blood!"

Xiao Bo's voice was low and serious.

"Senior Brother, what does our plan to obtain demon blood have to do with him? Is the court going to intervene?" Xiao Qu, standing beside him, looked puzzled.

"Whether the court intervenes or not, this Shen Magistrate might have his own ideas about demon blood. Last night, the Eternal Alliance's strong members only caused a minor disturbance in the government office, but this person is extremely powerful.

As the saying goes, knowing your enemy and yourself ensures victory. It's better to know more."

Xiao Bo shook his head and explained patiently.

In his mind,

the battle at the government office last night should have resulted in the Eternal Alliance wiping out everyone.

After the first failure, the Eternal Alliance would have been well-prepared for the second attempt.

But even so,

the Eternal Alliance still failed.

Although some people in the government office died, the execution of the Zhao family members today clearly shows everything.

On the execution ground,

the Zhao family members were executed one by one.

Some were direct descendants of the Zhao family, while others were servants. No matter how they cried and shouted, they could not avoid the fate of losing their heads.

Shen Changqing sat there, silently watching everything.

In his eyes, there were no innocent people in the Zhao family.

The servants and guards had signed indenture contracts, making them part of the Zhao family.

During the Zhao family's prosperity, they benefited from the Zhao family, and now that the Zhao family has fallen, they must face the consequences.

Time passed slowly.

One by one, the Zhao family members were brought to the execution ground and beheaded.

The executioners, being few in number, had to exert a lot of energy to ensure each execution was successful, and some had to take short breaks.

It took nearly two hours for all the Zhao family members to be executed.

The bodies were piled up, a sight that was shocking.

The execution ground was drenched in blood, resembling a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.

"Report to the magistrate, all 187 members of the Zhao family have been executed. What should we do next?"

Shi Qingsheng reported in a low voice, and if you looked closely, you could see that his face was also pale.

Shen Changqing nodded slightly, stood up from his seat, and walked out of the canopy to look at the pile of bodies.

"The Zhao family colluded with demons and betrayed the human race. According to the laws of the Great Qin, they have been executed and displayed publicly. Now, by my order, bury the bodies of the Zhao family in the乱葬岗 outside the city, and prohibit anyone from paying respects.

At the same time, I hope others take this as a warning.

Anyone who colludes with demons and betrays the human race will be punished with the extermination of their entire clan, without any leniency!"