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墨書 Inktalez
"All of your clothing, food, housing, and transportation will be directly provided by the court. The court will take full responsibility for your personal safety. If any misfortune occurs while you are in the Safe Zone, the court will provide you with compensation. However, if you ignore our advice and attempt to escape or incite a riot before we have identified the source of the illness, we will not hesitate to take forceful measures—executing one as an example for all, without mercy!"
Yin Luo cast a cold glance over the common people and said, "You are the citizens of Li Country. As long as you cooperate with the court, the court will never abandon any one of you. I promise you this in my capacity as Consort Jin. We will spare no effort to identify the source of the illness and restore your freedom and safety!"
Though only fifteen or sixteen years old, she combined strength with gentleness, merging authority with reassurance. Her stirring words not only calmed the Common People, but also earned her respect from the guards present, stirring their emotions.
The common people dispersed back to their living areas, while Yin Luo arrived at the place where the three hundred individuals had originally lived.
Since those people had contracted the illness here, it was very likely that the source still existed.
Yin Luo ordered several living areas to be cordoned off and then summoned two dogs.
Dogs have a much more sensitive sense of smell than humans and quickly discovered something unusual—two bags scattered on the ground that resembled lime powder.
"What is this?" Yin Luo pointed to several bags that were present in both areas.
The Zhou County Magistrate turned around and looked at one of the leading guards among them. The man hurriedly stepped forward and said to Yin Luo, "Reporting to the Consort, this is lime powder, used for moisture control due to the dense population in the Safe Zone."
Lime powder?
Yin Luo crouched down to examine the powder scattered on the ground. It did indeed look like lime powder, but if it were just lime powder, why were both dogs barking at it incessantly?
Yin Luo immediately stood up and said, "Bring me a dagger and some water."
Although everyone was unsure of the meaning, they immediately fetched it.
Yin Luo took the dagger and directly cut a slit in the bag, then poured water into the opening.
It was very calm, with no reaction at all.
She made the slit wider, pouring an entire bowl of water inside, soaking the powder completely, yet there was still no unusual reaction.
Yin Luo frowned and said, "This is not lime powder."
As soon as she finished speaking, the two dogs that had been barking suddenly collapsed, foaming at the mouth, and died.
Everyone was startled. Yin Luo stepped back a bit, her expression serious as she said, "If I’m not mistaken, this is the source of the disease."
With a loud noise, the crowd erupted in chaos; some even took a few steps back, their faces filled with terror.
Yin Luo looked up and instructed He Xin, "Take a portion and bring it to the doctor for examination. The rest must be destroyed."
She then turned to Zhao Qian and said, "County Magistrate Zhou, the next steps require your orders. Immediately remove all suspected powders from within the safe zone. Kitchen supplies must undergo strict inspection before use to prevent contamination. Additionally, disinfectant should be sprayed in every corner of the safe zone. At noon when the sun is at its peak, dismantle the roof to allow full sunlight into the safe zone."
Her gaze swept across the crowd; her originally cold eyes suddenly became sharp: "Since this substance is the source of the disease, it indicates that someone who shouldn't be here has infiltrated our safe zone. This incident occurred this evening; it has already been over an hour. If this infiltrator intends to create panic, they may still be hiding within our safe zone. He Xin! Immediately order to seal off all exits! Gather everyone urgently—whether they are guards or kitchen helpers—no one can be overlooked. Until we identify this infiltrator, everyone here is a suspect. Only after thoroughly clearing all suspicions can anyone leave!"
He Xin's eyes shone like stars as he replied, "Yes, I will ensure this task is completed."
He immediately went out to relay the orders. Soon, flames blazed throughout the safe zone as everyone gathered in the square.
There are dozens of safe zones here, each guarded by its own responsible personnel. The safe zones do not communicate with each other, making the investigation much easier.
In this safe zone, there are over two thousand people in total, with more than three hundred guards, and around four hundred personnel in other positions.
Although the area has been reduced, the data remains vast.
Fortunately, not many people know that the lime powder is the source of the disease.
Yin Luo strictly ordered these individuals to keep it a secret and had He Xin temporarily set up a room in the living area, organizing them into groups of ten to take turns.
Inside the room, there were ten tables, each covered with a white sheet of paper, and on each sheet was a small amount of powder. During the examination, ten people would enter at a time, and each person needed to take a sniff of the powder on the table. Afterward, they would be taken to another location in succession.
The guards were completely unaware of the purpose behind this action; some didn’t even know why they had been gathered for such an urgent matter. However, Yin Luo was unafraid; this was exactly the effect she wanted. Only by eliminating the details could they discover that this powder had hidden issues, while others remained completely oblivious.
This method proved effective. By the time they reached the tenth group, someone suddenly slammed their hand on the table, expressing strong resistance to such a trivial act of inhaling powder. They opposed Yin Luo, a mere woman, treating them as if they were being toyed with. Without hesitation, Yin Luo ordered He Xin to take that person down. Unfortunately, upon realizing their identity had been exposed, that person quickly swallowed poison they had concealed in their mouth and died.
The source of the disease was finally found and confirmed. Everyone felt a sense of relief.
However, Yin Luo clearly appeared troubled.
In the middle of the night, after a long night of turmoil and returning from the safe zone, she finally had a chance to rest. Yet shortly after arriving at Yamen's room, she suddenly came out again, dressed neatly, and directly instructed He Xin to accompany her once more.
He Xin was unsure of her intentions but was already deeply impressed by Yin Luo due to previous events. At this moment, without asking any questions, he prepared a swift horse.
After mounting her horse, Yin Luo immediately cracked her whip and galloped toward the safe zone.
Just dismounting, Yin Luo immediately inquired about the person in charge of the Safe Zone, saying, "Where did you put the body of Annihilation?"
The person in charge, surnamed Shen, was brought by Mu Changqing. Seeing Yin Luo pressing for answers, he hurriedly replied, "It's in the west, along with those who died from poisoning."
After the doctor investigated, it was revealed that the source of this illness was a type of poison that was not contagious. The earlier misconception arose because the perpetrators had dispersed the powdered toxin into the air, leading people to mistakenly believe it was a viral infection.
Yin Luo immediately said, "Take me there."
Shen Yu did not dare to delay and quickly made a gesture inviting her to follow, then strode ahead to lead the way.
Yin Luo followed him to the place where the bodies were stored.
The corpses of the deceased were laid out here, and it was deep into the night, making the entire house feel eerie.
However, Yin Luo showed no signs of fear; in fact, she didn't even blink as she stepped forward alone and walked directly to the side of the Annihilation.
The person wore ordinary guard attire. Yin Luo had previously asked about his identity; he was just a regular guard from Fenghua, with a clean background and no criminal record of collusion or wrongdoing. Moreover, this person was usually honest and simple-minded, truly not someone who would commit such cruel acts.
Yin Luo rolled up her sleeves and walked around him once before stopping at his side. She stared at his lifeless face for a long time. Suddenly, she reached out and explored behind him. Then, as her slender fingertip remained still, when she lifted it again, a piece of something thin as a cicada's wing was caught on her fingertip.
He Xin was taken aback and stepped forward, astonished. "A human skin mask?"
Yin Luo glanced at him and then continued without pausing. With a firm tug of her finger, she completely tore off the human skin mask.
What appeared beneath the mask was an entirely unfamiliar face.
He Xin stepped forward to take a look, clearly not recognizing the man. Shen Yu also took a few steps forward, pondering, "He shouldn't be one of our guards. Looking at his appearance..."
Everyone noticed that the man had a scar on the right side of his face, near his ear. It wasn't very noticeable, but the shape of the scar puzzled them.
"This is a cross scar."
He Xin quickly recognized it.
His gaze slowly swept over the man's body, and suddenly, his eyes stopped at the man's arm.
He stepped forward and rolled up the man's sleeve. Sure enough, on the outer side of his arm, close to the elbow, there was a black tattoo shaped like a scorpion, which shocked He Xin even more: "Xiyu People!"
"Xiyu?" Yin Luo raised her eyebrows. She naturally knew that there were many countries on this continent, and Xiyu was one of them. Xiyu was close to Exiled Nation, separated only by a vast ocean from Fenghua.
Xiyu was also a major power on this land. Although its strength was inferior to Exiled Nation, it had a large territory, a populous population, and was extremely wealthy. If it truly went to war with Exiled Nation, it might not necessarily lose.
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