The fighting spirit of the Assault Team instantly ignited. Without waiting for the commander’s order, they swarmed everywhere—smashing gates, pushing down walls, and destroying buildings.
The Middle-Grade Cultivators in the rear, who were in charge of commanding, could only look at each other and shake their heads.
The Demon Cultivators were scared out of their wits. The mighty Evil Demon Child, a Seventh-Grade Sincere, had failed to withstand a single move from an Eighth Grade. How could they possibly continue this fight?
The Ministry of Justice’s Demon Cultivators fell into chaos.
Seeing no one to stop them, the Allied Army’s Assault Team charged with even greater ferocity.
Courtyards were razed and buildings demolished, one after another, leaving only the main halls standing isolated, facing each other from a distance.
The members of the Assault Team fought as if possessed, unleashing all their usual fear and hatred for the Demon Sect upon the Ministry of Justice.
At the same time, some seemingly ordinary members of the Assault Team occasionally made off with a few documents.
The Fourth Hall, the Fifth Hall, the Sixth Hall...
Suddenly, the powerful auras of Middle-Grade Cultivators began to appear throughout the Ministry of Justice, slowly converging on the battlefield.
Only then did the commander’s unhurried voice ring out. "Tonight, we launched a minor assault on the Ministry of Justice and utterly destroyed the Nine Halls. This is an unprecedented feat, never to be surpassed! This battle is a great victory!"
"A great victory!"
"A great victory!"
Everyone roared in response, letting out all their pent-up frustration and anger.
Li Qingxian walked slowly to the front of a large hall, picked up a piece of a shattered plaque, and shook it gently. "With this broken plaque," he said, "we commemorate the great destruction of the Ministry of Justice’s Nine Halls today."
Songg Baige drooled as he helped Li Qingxian retrieve his Magical Artifacts, drooling as he watched them vanish into the Qiankun Bracelet one by one.
Supported by the others, Li Qingxian slowly left the Ministry of Justice.
The others who had participated in the assault on the Ministry of Justice followed his example, scrambling to grab pieces of the broken plaques.
There were only a few plaques, and they were quickly gone. So, people started grabbing broken door panels and frames.
When the wooden items were all taken, some began to grab roof tiles and even intact bricks.
"This plaque from the Nine Halls could be a family heirloom!"
"Of course! A great green brick from the walls of the Ministry of Justice’s Nine Halls will be a treasure for three generations!"
"This pair of door knockers from the Ministry of Justice’s Nine Halls must be passed down for ten lifetimes!"
Amidst the clamor, the night wind faded the black of the sky, revealing a pale green in the east.
"The minor assault is over. All teams are to withdraw in an orderly fashion."
As the commander gave the order, the various teams began to depart.
On a morning at the end of the sixth month, the Demon Cultivators of the Ministry of Justice stared at the western side of their headquarters, now reduced to ruins, their eyes bloodshot.
By the end of the battle, the number of people who had joined the Assault Team exceeded ten thousand.
Gathered, they were a ball of fire; scattered, they were a city full of gossip.
The morning sun filled Divine Capital City.
The newly opened breakfast stalls and morning tea shops welcomed wave after wave of Lower-Grade Cultivators from various factions and backgrounds.
Some Cultivators just ate and drank, but most couldn’t help themselves, talking animatedly about the destruction of the Ministry of Justice’s Nine Halls.
News of the Ministry of Justice’s disastrous defeat spread through the streets and alleyways as quickly as a rumor about the Emperor’s love affairs.
The evil of the Demon Sect was known to all, and cheers could be heard everywhere in Divine Capital City.
Many shops waived the bills for members of the Assault Team, stubbornly refusing any payment.
Li Qingxian’s name also began to slowly spread throughout Divine Capital City.
Back at the Patrol Bureau, Li Qingxian ignored everyone and fell into a deep sleep.
The Emperor’s Finger Divine Curse had drained all of Li Qingxian’s energy. He slept for a full day and night.
It wasn’t until the morning of the second day that Li Qingxian was woken by sheer hunger. He stumbled groggily to the table, took out all sorts of food, and began to devour it.
Han Anbo and Zheng Gaojue just watched from the side. Yur Ping whispered, "I’ll just have a taste. I won’t fight you for it."
After saying this, he would occasionally sneak a bit of food and pop it into his mouth.
"What’s the situation?" Li Qingxian asked before continuing to eat.
Han Anbo looked puzzled. "The Ministry of Justice has let their Nine Halls be destroyed without offering any explanation. But since this minor assault was such a great victory, no one can really press them for more."
"Has the Ministry of Justice made any moves?" Li Qingxian glanced at Han Anbo before returning to his food.
Han Anbo hesitated for a moment. "According to street rumors, the Ministry of Justice was in meetings all day yesterday. The Upper-Grade Officials were cursing everyone out, and the Middle-Grade and Lower-Grade members had a miserable time. Also, that Bone Filth Child was reportedly lightly injured, which will likely affect his performance in the Cyan Cloud Examination."
"Sometimes, the ’Cabinet Elders’ of the streets have very accurate information," Li Qingxian nodded.
Han Anbo continued, "But your reputation has been made. All of Divine Capital is saying ’a tiger father has no dog son,’ and even those stuffy Literature Cultivation practitioners agree that you haven’t brought shame to Mr. Gangfeng’s name."
"It’s not good to have a big reputation without the strength to back it up. I need to lie low for a while. If I have to, I’ll go hide out and cultivate at Qingxiao Temple," Li Qingxian said.
"I think that’s a good idea. By the way, Lord Zhou said that once you woke up, you should pay a visit to Chunfeng Inn."
Li Qingxian nodded. After finishing his meal and quickly washing up, he left the room.
Yur Ping’s voice came from inside the room.
"Are you gonna finish the rest of this?"
"It’s all yours!"
"Alright!"
Li Qingxian arrived at Chunfeng Inn to find that Zhou Chunfeng wasn’t there. He closed his eyes, began to recall the Magic Text in his Spirit Platform, and continued his research on the Life-Seeking Skill.
The system of Secret Skills was complex. The Life-Seeking Skill seemed simple, but was in fact exceptionally profound.
The Life-Seeking Skill had two core principles: seeking and concealing. Learning only a little of one was not enough to utilize the skill’s full potential.
Inside his Qiankun Bracelet, the Communication Talisman Disc stirred.
It was a message from Guo Xiang of the Black Lamp Department.
"Our Mountain Fate Sect wants to trade the Method of Opening the Life Land for your Emperor’s Finger Divine Curse. We don’t need the full *High Supreme Divine Sky Jade Star Cutting and Investigating Five Thunders Method*—we figure you don’t have it anyway."
"Cut the crap. Didn’t you say your Mountain Fate Sect doesn’t have an Earth-Opening Technique?"
"We know you want it. As long as you agree, we’ll trade for it with another Fate Sect."
Li Qingxian hadn’t realized the Emperor’s Finger Divine Curse was so special. He sent a message to Jiangg Youfei.
"Sister Youfei, the Mountain Fate Sect wants to trade the Method of Opening the Life Land for my Emperor’s Finger Divine Curse. Do you think it’s a fair deal?"
After a long while, Jiangg Youfei replied.
"The Emperor’s Finger Divine Curse is no ordinary technique; it leads directly to the supreme Great Dao of the Daoist Sect. The Method of Opening the Life Land is rare, but it’s not very useful for most Fate Masters, as Fate Skills require slow and steady practice. If they are willing to add the ’Mountain Opening Technique’ and the ’Mountain Building Technique’, then make the trade."
"Will they agree to that? Even though it’s not the complete *Mountain Fate Skill*, the Mountain Opening Technique is incredibly powerful, and the Mountain Building Technique is the very foundation of the Mountain Fate Sect. Even the Celestial Fate Sect has to buy Destiny Mountains from them."
"As long as you don’t leak it, it’s no different to the Mountain Fate Sect than having one more Outer Disciple. Besides, Destiny Mountains aren’t easy to create. Even if you were to sell them, how many years would it take you to build one? The impact on the Mountain Fate Sect would be negligible."
"Alright, thank you, Sister Youfei."
Li Qingxian thought for a moment and replied to Guo Xiang.
"Old Guo, don’t try to fool me. I just asked my Sister Youfei. She said the Emperor’s Finger Divine Curse is the core of the core of the *High Supreme Divine Sky Jade Star Cutting and Investigating Five Thunders Method*. It points directly to the supreme Great Dao! Once learned, the path of Thunder Skills becomes completely unobstructed, reaching to the highest heavens and down to the deepest underworld, allowing one to directly perceive the Yuqing True King. Emperor’s Village... TSK TSK, just the name sounds extraordinary. My sister says you’ll need to offer the complete *Mountain Fate Skill* and the Opening Life Land Technique at the very least."
Guo Xiang replied quickly.
"You sure know how to ask for an exorbitant price. Fairy Qingcheng would never make such a wild demand. We’re different from the Life-Seeking Sect. For them, finding a Fate Skill genius like you is a mandatory practice. We in the Mountain Fate Sect do the hard labor—Mountain Opening, Vessel Collection, Mountain Building. Why do you think the Celestial Fate Sect never gives us or the River Fate Sect any trouble? It’s because they look down on us. Give me your bottom line, or we can’t negotiate."
"That is my bottom line."