"Wait!"
The voice of a man halted them from entering the portal. Aldrian turned around and saw a middle-aged man in a black robe. The man had a stern face and a sword strapped to his waist. When Aldrian noticed the insignia on the man's robe, he recognized that the man was a member of the city guards corps.
"I'm sorry to disturb you. My name is Dan, and I'm the leader of the 4th Squadron of the Dual Horns City guards," the man said, cupping his hands in a gesture of respect.
"How can I help you, Team Leader Dan?" Aldrian asked.
"We've discovered numerous corpses scattered around the city and have launched an investigation to find the culprits. I hope you and your group can cooperate with us. If we find nothing wrong, we will release you immediately, and your trip will not be canceled. I apologize for the inconvenience," Dan explained.
"Of course, we will cooperate as best as we can, Team Leader Dan," Aldrian replied.
"Thank you. Let's sit on that bench so we can discuss this more comfortably," Dan said, pointing to a nearby bench. They moved there immediately. Dan then take out an oval-shaped artifact with a crystal at its center.
"This is a lying detector artifact. It will monitor your heartbeat, energy fluctuations, and soul fluctuations. If someone is lying, the crystal will display a red color, if they are honest, it will show white. Please place your hand on it one at a time, and I will ask you questions," Dan instructed. Aldrian looked at the artifact for a moment before touching it without hesitation.
"Now then, I have a few simple questions for you. What have you been doing for the last two hours?" Team Leader Dan asked as they settled into their seats.
"We were walking on the eastern side of the city, just enjoying our time while waiting for our turn after coming out of the teleportation station. Then we moved to the southern side of the city," Aldrian replied. The artifact displayed a white color.
"Did you see any suspicious individuals wielding a sword on your way? They might have had bloodstains or exhibited killing intent that you could sense."
"No, I didn't see anyone matching that description, although I did encounter many sword cultivators. I'm not sure if they could be considered suspicious," Aldrian answered. The artifact displayed white again.
"One last question, Did you kill anyone in this city?" As Team Leader Dan asked the question, Aldrian's group remained expressionless, but inside, Eleine and Sylphia felt a tremor of panic, worried that they might be discovered. This question was psychological in nature, even if they had managed to evade the earlier questions, this one was designed to reveal the truth.
If they hadn't committed any killings, that would be fine. But Aldrian and Xin Haotian had indeed killed people earlier, and the artifact would reveal this no matter what their answers were. As the others waited for Aldrian's response, they watched his mouth move as he gave his answer,
"No, I have never killed anyone in this city," Aldrian said, and the artifact displayed a white color. The group was astonished. They looked at the artifact and then at Aldrian, puzzled. How could the artifact not detect his lie? Did the artifact was broken? They doubted it.
Xin Haotian was also perplexed. He had anticipated having to use verbal gymnastics to navigate this situation. Although he had never used this artifact before, he didn't believe the city authorities would employ a fragile artifact that was easily deceived.
One might be able to deceive an artifact that detects heartbeat or energy fluctuations, but concealing a lie from an artifact that reads the soul was much more challenging. When someone lies, their soul unconsciously reveals a fluctuation. Looking at the current situation, he began to suspect that Aldrian had a method to bypass it.
"Just answer the question like I do, and you'll be fine," a voice transmission suddenly reached the three of them. They were confused but trusted Aldrian. When it was their turn to answer, the artifact only displayed white. They were truly surprised and began to think that it wasn't Aldrian but rather the artifact that had a problem.
"Alright, thank you for your cooperation. Once again, I apologize for the inconvenience. You may continue your journey," Team Leader Dan said, cupping his hands in a gesture of respect.
"No problem, Team Leader. I'm glad we could assist with your investigation." Aldrian replied. His group then stood up and walked toward the teleportation portal.
"How did you do that?" Xin Haotian transmitted a voice message back to Aldrian.
"I altered the formation inside the artifact. Now, it's practically broken and will always show white, regardless of whether the answer is true or not." Aldrian replied.
The trio felt a sense of admiration for Aldrian's quick thinking. That's also why Aldrian had volunteered to be the first. When he touched the artifact, he scanned its formation and with his rapid comprehension, he understood the formation structure and laws, allowing him to send his energy to alter it.
"You're a formation master too?" Xin Haotian asked.
"Huh? Did I never mention that?" Aldrian responded.
"No, you didn't. Then i'm really lucky to have met you. It will make things much easier."
As they were about to step into the portal, the portal suddenly vanished. They stopped and turned to see what had happened. To their surprise, the city guards were now watching them warily. Aldrian noticed the boy he had saved earlier trembling beside a man with a white beard. The boy was holding the lying detection artifact, looking scared.
"Are they the ones?" the man asked the boy.
"Ye… yes," the boy stammered.
"I'm sorry, ladies and gentlemen, but you are under arrest on suspicion of serial murder in the city. Please follow me for further investigation. If you do not comply, we will have to use force to bring you into custody," the man announced.
"It looks like your heroic act has backfired on us," Xin Haotian transmitted to Aldrian.
"Well, whatever, we'll need to adapt to the situation. For now, let's follow them if it comes to that," Aldrian replied and sent another transmission to the two women.
"I'm sorry it came to this. Because of me, we're in this situation, but don't worry, I'll handle it," Aldrian sent a sound transmission to Eleine and Sylphia.
"You don't need to apologize, little brother. Your actions were justified, and it's good to punish those scoundrels," Eleine replied.
"Yes, Aldrian, I believe your actions were justified, and I will always support you," Sylphia added.
Aldrian smiled and addressed the man, "What is this? We've already been checked, and the results were clear."
"That's for me to decide. You must follow me, or we will use whatever means necessary to drag you into custody," said the man with the white beard.
"And who are you?" Aldrian asked, while he quickly assessed the man's information. A smile crept across his face as he listened to the man speak.
"I'm Jin Tae-Yang, the commander of the city guard battalion. Now that you know who I am, please follow me!" Commander Jin declared. The surrounding city guards drew their swords, ready for battle. Xin Haotian rested his hand on the hilt of his sword, and the two women began circulating their energy, preparing their techniques. However, Aldrian raised a hand to signal them to hold off.
"Alright, we will follow you, Commander Jin. I don't know what the issue is, but perhaps there's been a misunderstanding," Aldrian said, his eyes showing no sign of fear. Commander Jin smiled upon hearing this.
"Wise choice. Guards, escort them!" Commander Jin ordered.
He also brought the boy along, while the guards handcuffed Aldrian's group with an artifact that blocked their energy flow, effectively incapacitating them. The onlookers parted to let them pass as news of the serial murders, with the victims being members of the local gang known as the 'Skull of Dual Horns' spread throughout the city.
Many gasped in shock. They had assumed this untouchable gang would remain in power indefinitely, as the authorities had previously ignored their crimes. Every investigation ended with the gang members being declared innocent, leading many to believe the city's authorities were complicit. Thus, the deaths of the gang members brought a sense of relief and joy to the populace.
Aldrian and his group were taken to the city guard headquarters, located in a heavily fortified part of the city. The area was surrounded by high walls, and security was extremely tight, with numerous city guards, sentries, and defensive traps formation in place. This was also where the guards' dungeon for detaining prisoners was located.
Aldrian was separated from the rest of his group and escorted to a private interrogation room inside one of the main building. The room was dark and gloomy, containing only two chairs and a square table between them, illuminated dimly by a few candles. Aldrian took a seat, closed his eyes, and waited for someone to enter.
After a few minutes, the door to the room opened, and Commander Jin walked in, taking a seat in the chair opposite Aldrian. As Jin settled into his seat, Aldrian opened his eyes and fixed his gaze on the man in the black and white robe, while Jin assessed Aldrian in turn. The silence between them was thick with tension before Commander Jin finally spoke.
"I don't know what your issue is with those people. Why did you kill them?"
"Why? Aren't they a problem for this city? I'm merely enacting justice for the masses." Aldrian replied calmly.
"Even if they were in the wrong, they should have gone through a trial to determine their punishment!"
"I'm afraid that day will never come, Commander."
A vein bulged on Commander Jin's forehead. "Are you trying to challenge the authority of this city? I don't care if you're an orthodox cultivator or from some noble family, here, you're expected to obey our rules!" he shouted.
"Authority of this city, huh?" Aldrian said, his voice steady. "Then let me ask you something, Commander."
"What?" Commander Jin responded.
"Why is there a devil in this city? Is the authority aware of this?"