Fei Yan, the Deputy Disciplinary Officer of the Patrol Bureau, and the Beichang Guard General sat on the left, leisurely sipping their tea.
The officials of Beichang County all wore troubled expressions.
On the right, among the members of the Demon Sect from the Ministry of Justice, only Zhang Yulin was seated. The rest were standing, their clothes in tatters and covered in blood.
Zhang Yulin turned his head and glanced over them. He noticed the robes worn by Li Qingxian, Jing Guan, and the others, then looked away. To his surprise, he saw Fei Yan actually stand up and walk smilingly toward Li Qingxian.
"Lord Li, you’ve returned? You’ve captured the most people from Nether Mountain. At times like this, we really have to rely on a Fate Master! Rest assured, Lord Li, the top credit for this is yours for the taking... Come, please have a seat." Fei Yan, noticing Li Qingxian suddenly give him a look, immediately changed the subject.
Li Qingxian smiled. "I was just lucky and happened to run into some people from Nether Mountain. As for the top credit, that should go to you, my lords. What’s the plan now? Do we stay and guard, withdraw, or give chase?"
Fei Yan followed Li Qingxian’s lead. "This is one of the biggest cases we’ve seen this year. Dozens of Middle Grade experts hiding out in Beichang County—it’s shocking. This matter will surely be reported to the Cabinet for the Cabinet Elders and the Emperor to decide. For now, all we can do is continue to investigate, interrogate, and prepare."
Hearing "Fate Master" and the surname "Li," Zhang Yulin had a moment of realization and reined in his anger.
Li Qingxian glanced at Zhang Yulin and clasped his hands in a salute. "May I ask the honorable lord from the Ministry of Justice, what exactly happened here?"
Zhang Yulin sighed. "Beichang County acted on its own to arrest people from Nether Mountain, which alerted the rebels at Datong Martial Arts Hall. They chased a small gain and suffered a great loss, ruining the Ministry of Justice’s entire gambit."
"Even if you are a high official from the Cabinet, you can’t just frame us!" Yinn Shuli, seeing that Zhang Yulin had once again exempted the Patrol Bureau from blame, knew he would be made the scapegoat if he didn’t fight back, so he spoke up decisively.
"What, is Lord Yinn looking to test his strength against our Demon Transformation Mountain?"
The officials present frowned. How could someone say such a thing in official circles? He was clearly a Demon Sect Disciple who had just joined the Ministry of Justice.
Yinn Shuli replied, neither servile nor overbearing, "After receiving orders from our superiors, my Beichang County cooperated fully, without the slightest oversight. Whether it was planning, execution, or anything else, Beichang County’s role was only to cooperate. We wouldn’t dare claim credit, but we won’t take the blame for any mistakes either! By the way, I only learned today that your Ministry of Justice has been acting lawlessly in Beichang County: forcing yourselves on young men, insulting Prince Qing’s nephew, getting drunk and publicly humiliating the wife and children of an Imperial Court official, and even worse, murdering a fellow comrade from the Night Guard! I have documented every one of these incidents and will report them to the Divine Capital Prefecture tomorrow!"
A faint, purplish-red flush crept across Zhang Yulin’s jade-like face.
Li Qingxian laughed. "County Magistrate Yinn, I don’t think we should be in a hurry to report this. In my opinion, Datong Martial Arts Hall is just a minor outpost. The real priority is the rebels in the deep mountain forests. As long as we work together to capture more of them and strike their main lair in Changg Mountain, it will be a great merit for everyone. As for the minor squabbles from before, I’m sure none of you lords will mind."
Fei Yan smiled. "Worthy of being Mr. Gangfeng’s son, you see the bigger picture. I agree, let’s not rush to assign blame. Once this is all over, we can sit down and discuss it. County Magistrate Yinn, Cavalry Captain Zhang, what do you say?"
"I will follow your arrangements, my lord," County Magistrate Yinn said, clasping his hands.
Zhang Yulin was silent for a long moment before saying, "The Ministry of Justice is determined to claim the top credit for this operation. Farewell!"
After speaking, Zhang Yulin led his men and left.
The others watched Zhang Yulin’s departing figure, their faces expressionless.
Han Anbo said in a low voice, "It really is him."
Li Qingxian sighed, looked at the group, and said helplessly, "Demon Transformation Mountain is domineering. We managed to secure the top credit together this time, but I’m afraid it will be difficult next time."
Fei Yan sneered. "We are all subjects serving the Emperor. As long as the job gets done, Demon Transformation Mountain can forget about snatching the credit. If they dare to interfere, I will have no choice but to report the truth to the Duke and let him deal with these little bastards."
Jing Guan smiled. "This newcomer is eager to earn merit. His courage is commendable, but unfortunately for him, things don’t always go as planned."
"Eunuch Fei, there are no outsiders here. What do you think the higher-ups will do next?" Li Qingxian asked.
Fei Yan gazed into the distance, pondering for a long time before saying, "The Patrol Office is newly established, and the Internal Factory has just been stabilized. I’m afraid the Duke is hoping for a major victory."
"But a major victory requires the blood of an Upper Grade," Li Qingxian said.
Fei Yan frowned slightly. "As long as you can locate Nether Mountain’s main lair in Changg Mountain, just like you found the Datong Martial Arts Hall, I can guarantee I’ll bring in a Third-Grade Expert."
Li Qingxian shook his head. "You don’t yet understand the Trend Formations of Fate Skills. There are three things one must not look at in a Trend Formation: the great, the void, and the distant."
"Explain it in detail," Fei Yan and the others said, looking at Li Qingxian with curiosity.
"’Do not look at the great’ means one cannot look at the Trend Formation of a place that is too powerful. For example, the Divine Capital and the Great River Battlefront right now. Their Trend Formations are too strong. If I were to observe them, my Spirit Platform would surely be damaged. I can only view the Trend Formation of a small city at my current level."
"’Do not look at the void’ means you shouldn’t just randomly look in the wilderness. If a power is hidden there, you won’t be able to see it at all. It’s not like in a city, where the various Trend Formations influence and constrain each other, making it impossible to truly hide."
"’Do not look at the distant’ means that, generally speaking, anything beyond ten li is basically invisible. Of course, a Great Fate Master could probably see across ten nations."
"Beyond these, there are other rules. I am a mere Ninth Grade. How could I possibly contend with a Trend Formation as massive as Nether Mountain’s? What’s more, there is another Fate Master interfering with me."
"This is very important..." Fei Yan said with a frown, leading Li Qingxian to an empty room to sit down.
"We received news earlier that among Nether Mountain’s three Nether Sons, the one skilled in Fate Skills, the ’White Nether Son,’ has already descended the mountain. Although he hasn’t reached Middle Grade, he is still a Seventh Grade. Is he the one causing trouble?"
Li Qingxian said, "The one interfering with me is not a Nether Son."
"Oh? Why is that?"
"My Life-Seeking Skill spreads out over various locations, but that Fate Master only disrupted it in one place. This shows he only wants to conceal something, not to actively sabotage me. If he were a Nether Son from Nether Mountain, he would have ruined all of my Fate Skills. That White Nether Son is probably not in Beichang County."
"Could he be in the Changg Mountain lair?"
Li Qingxian’s eyes lit up. "I’d actually prefer it if he were there. It would be a perfect chance to compete with our Fate Skills. It’s a shame the Imperial Court isn’t willing to open a Great Fate Altar for me. Otherwise, I would definitely defeat the White Nether Son."
Fei Yan clicked his tongue. "Forget a Great Fate Altar, they wouldn’t even part with a Small Fate Altar. After all, you’re only a Lower-Grade Fate Master. I’ll report this information up the chain. For today, continue using your Fate Skill and see if there are any fish that slipped through the net. Also... if you run into anyone from the Mud Society, arrest them as well."
Li Qingxian said, "Aren’t we making too many enemies?"
Fei Yan glanced at Li Qingxian and thought for a moment. "Fine. Our manpower is limited, after all. We’ll ignore the Mud Society for now and focus only on Nether Mountain. We can deal with the Mud Society when we have the time. However, you must be careful. Although the Mud Society and Nether Mountain have a complex relationship, if one is in trouble, the other will surely help them just to oppose the Imperial Court."
"That’s why I’m so eager for a Third Grade to be here overseeing things," Li Qingxian said.
Fei Yan hesitated for a moment, then said, "You need to be careful. I’m worried Nether Mountain might get desperate and try to assassinate you."
"That..." Li Qingxian’s expression changed slightly. "Thank you for the warning, Eunuch Fei. I’ll go prepare some Fate Skills right away."
"You should rest for a while first. We’ll continue the search in the afternoon. Leave the interrogations to me."
"Thank you for your trouble, Eunuch Fei."
Li Qingxian left with a grim expression. He first changed rooms, then changed his clothes, and finally disguised his face. He wore only a special token on his person that only a few people could recognize.