Dawn was breaking, but the sun had not yet risen. Zhou Henn roused Li Qingxian, who then led the three people from his room to the Magic Altar in the backyard of the Chunfeng Inn.
Stepping through the courtyard gate, Li Qingxian saw Zhou Chunfeng’s back and asked, "Uncle Zhou, how did it go?"
Zhou Chunfeng turned around, coughed lightly, and said, "Things have gotten out of hand."
"What happened?" Li Qingxian’s eyes lit up.
"Last time the Mud Society targeted the Celestial Prison, it was just to save the Mud Layman. This time, many prisoners inside the Celestial Prison had been conspiring for a long time, with several factions providing covert support from the outside. Not many escaped, but their Grade Levels were extremely high—the opposite of last time. However, the most important thing isn’t the number of escapees, but *who* they are. Guess who was among them?"
"How could I possibly guess?" Li Qingxian said.
"The King of Jiangcheng."
"Huh? What? Didn’t the King of Jiangcheng commit treason... I..." Li Qingxian and everyone else were dumbfounded.
Li Qingxian was completely bewildered. He said slowly, "Let’s get this straight. Three years ago, the King of Jiangcheng suffered a Qigong Deviation during his cultivation and went on a rampage, slaughtering an entire city. After coming to his senses, he compounded one mistake with another, heading north to defect to the Demon Race. But fortunately, the Imperial Court got word in advance. A joint force of experts intercepted and killed him before he could cross the Great River. So the King of Jiangcheng isn’t dead?"
Zhou Chunfeng gave a mysterious smile. "He’s more than ’not dead’! After high-level experts from all over entered the Celestial Prison, the King of Jiangcheng suddenly appeared. He cursed Demon Transformation Mountain, calling them utterly depraved. He claimed they coveted his Martial Arts, so they dispatched two First-Grade Experts to ambush and capture him. Then, they sent someone to impersonate him, carry out the massacre, and stage the defection. The King of Jiangcheng who ’died’ was actually a Puppet created by the Demon Sect using a Secret Skill. He was alive the whole time, held in the Celestial Prison and subjected to inhuman torture. I heard the Ministry of Justice even wanted to kill him to silence him, but a large number of Upper-Grade Experts turned their backs to him, forming a tight protective circle."
"Demon Transformation Mountain is insane! He’s a Third-Grade Expert and a legitimate Military Merit Prince! Is the Ministry of War just going to take this?"
"Word is already spreading through the military, and it’s causing unrest."
"With something this major, shouldn’t they be holding a Grand Court Assembly? How do you have time to be here?"
"This matter is too shocking. The Cabinet would never dare hold a Grand Assembly. They can only convene an Upper-Grade Assembly, where only those of the Upper Grade are permitted to attend," Zhou Chunfeng said.
Li Qingxian was still a bit confused. He said, "But how did Demon Transformation Mountain dare? I remember the King of Jiangcheng was a pretty standard case of a Third-Grade enfeoffment, rising entirely on military merit. I don’t think I’ve ever heard any nasty rumors about him. How could they dare to move against such an upstanding general?"
Zhou Chunfeng sighed and said, "What other reason could there be? The King of Jiangcheng cultivates a type of Daoist Inner Power. The cultivation is exceptionally difficult, but once he advances to the Upper Grade, it will coalesce into a special Martial Arts Golden Core. This Golden Core suppresses all poisons, including Demon Poison. It’s also why the King of Jiangcheng is still alive after being tormented for three years."
"Demon Transformation Mountain couldn’t have pulled this off alone. It looks like multiple Demon Sects collaborated on this," Li Qingxian said.
"Indeed. This incident is far bigger than we imagined. Martial Cultivators are already frequent victims of the Demon Sect—most of their Puppets are former Martial Cultivators. Now that there’s irrefutable proof, the Martial Cultivators won’t let this rest. I heard that even the Martial King, who rarely attends court, showed up in person."
Li Qingxian chuckled. "I’m guessing the Martial King, Zhao Longgu, is about to play whack-a-mole again."
The others laughed along. Years ago, the Martial King had gotten into a dispute with a Third-Grade Expert. In front of the entire court, he had slammed the man into the stone floor of Jinluan Hall with a single palm strike, sealing his acupoints and Qi Meridians, leaving him completely stuck.
Emperor Taining didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, so he made an excuse and left. Not daring to say a word, the other officials quickly departed as well.
Afterward, the court did not convene for three days. The man wasn’t rescued until the fourth day.
After three such "whack-a-mole" incidents, no one ever dared to argue with the Martial King in the Imperial Court again.
"The Demon Sect’s methods are appalling," Han Anbo said, shaking his head with a sigh.
Li Qingxian said, "It’s true. The Demon Sect has gotten too arrogant. If the Ministry of War and the Five Armies Commander’s Mansion don’t act, the very backbone of the Daqi Country will be broken for good."
The moment Li Qingxian finished speaking, the ground trembled and the sky shook in the direction of the Imperial Palace. A column of Divine Light then erupted, concealing all other strange phenomena.
Then, the sound of tremors traveled through the ground.
Five distinct rumbles could be heard.
The group exchanged glances.
Li Qingxian lowered his voice. "Uncle Zhou, is this... even bigger than we thought?"
"Don’t worry. I’m the one behind all this; it has nothing to do with you," Zhou Chunfeng said nonchalantly. "Oh, right. Our Patrol Bureau caught a number of fugitives outside the Celestial Prison. More than half of them, as soon as they heard we were the Night Guard, not only stopped running but started yelling that they’d been framed. They’re currently being held in the Imperial Prison and will soon be sent to the Three Judicial Departments for a joint trial. What’s interesting is that many of these prisoners were convicted and sent to the Celestial Prison without ever undergoing a joint trial by the Three Judicial Departments."
Li Qingxian said, "In the joint trials held by the Three Judicial Departments—which consist of the Ministry of Justice, another Ministry of Justice, and the Imperial Censorate—the latter Ministry of Justice and the Imperial Censorate have always been thick as thieves. This time, the first Ministry of Justice is going to be in deep trouble."
"And beyond these two matters, an even bigger headache for the Demon Sect is still to come. The Demon Sect has a history of abducting experts from all over. The forces and clans these experts belong to long ago formed a secret alliance with a simple name: the ’Demon Slaying Association.’ The Demon Slaying Association has been waiting for an opportunity; they were just a step too late when the Mud Society made its sudden move. This time, for some unknown reason, they were prepared in advance and rescued quite a few experts. If things go as expected, the Demon Slaying Association is sure to launch a counterattack, striking at Demon Sect locations everywhere."
Li Qingxian said, "’The struggle for Qi Fortune is truly terrifying. I never thought my small bit of influence would produce such an unexpected result. Still, the Demon Sect faction in the Ministry of Justice deserves it. It has nothing to do with me.’"
Zhou Chunfeng said, "Now is the time to learn from the Demon Sect and kick them while they’re down. I’m preparing to dispatch the entire Patrol Bureau. We’ll go down a list of Lower-Grade officials from the Ministry of Justice, arresting them and raiding their homes one by one, until the Ministry of Justice releases the prisoners."
"That’s bold, Uncle Zhou! I’ve been wanting to do that for a long time. Let me pick a few?" Li Qingxian asked.
Zhou Chunfeng pulled out a slip of paper and pointed to seven names on it. "These seven are all Seventh-Grade officials in the Ministry of Justice, and each one holds a lucrative post. You’ll be in charge of raiding their homes. The more you confiscate, the better."
Li Qingxian caught his meaning and smiled. "Rest assured, Uncle Zhou. If they’re clean, then so be it. But if they’re not, nothing will get past my eyes."
"The pension fund is already sufficient, but after these raids, we can double it!" Zhou Chunfeng said.
"We leave now?" Li Qingxian was eager to get started.
"Go on. The sooner, the better," Zhou Chunfeng said.
Li Qingxian assembled everyone from Class A, brought along the Eunuch Jingg Guan, and headed straight for the home of a Ministry of Justice Seventh-Grade Official named Xin Guizhi. Zhou Henn followed from a distance.
The group surrounded the Xin Residence. Before they even entered, Zhou Henn sent a message via covert voice transmission.
"Be careful. Something’s not right with this residence. It seems there’s Demon Poison."
Hearing this, Li Qingxian ordered his team to halt and then released his Destiny Measuring Ruler.
The golden ruler flew over the residence. With a flash of light, a black aura materialized above the roof, though it wasn’t very dense.
Li Qingxian shouted, "Everyone, be careful! This residence contains Demon Poison. Forget the usual procedures, just strike. Literature Cultivators, don’t forget to cleanse the Demon Poison."
As he spoke, Li Qingxian lent three Cultural Treasures to each of the five Literature Cultivators on his team. Then, he waved his hand.
One group vaulted over the walls into the courtyard, while another smashed open the front and back doors and charged inside.
Some Night Guards took positions on the walls or rushed onto the rooftops, wielding crossbows or Magical Artifacts as they surveyed the courtyard.
"Patrol Bureau on official business! We’re investigating the criminal official Xin Guizhi! Anyone who resists will be killed on the spot! Everyone, hands on your head and get on the ground! Those who disobey will be killed!"
A steward in a brocade robe said with an obsequious smile, "Sirs, my master is with the Ministry of Justice—"
A blade flashed, and a head rolled across the ground.
The hands of the Night Guards gripping their sabers were colder than the steel itself.