"Unreasonable? That’s putting it mildly. I saw a Tenth-Grade Night Guard with my own eyes. He was fine when he left the cell, but when he came back, he’d been flayed. They literally peeled his skin off. Last night, I kept dreaming of his screams drilling into my ears. There was another guy, in the same cell as us, who never left. Then, one day, while we were all eating lunch, BANG! The man just exploded. Blood and bits of flesh sprayed all over our bodies and faces. Can you imagine finding an eyeball in your watery porridge? I’ve stood guard on the front lines and never felt fear, but what if a swarm of red-threaded worms crawled out of that eyeball, screaming at us and trying to burrow into our eyes? Right now, my bones are numb."
Everyone fell silent.
Hex Lei continued, "There’s more, stuff I can’t even talk about at the dinner table. If Qingxian and Lord Zhou had acted a few days later, I wouldn’t have made it back in one piece. The Demon Sect... they’re truly fucking bastards! From now on, if the Night Guard ever attacks the Ministry of Justice, I’ll be the first to volunteer!"
Han Anbo said slowly, "This is why, after leaving the Celestial Prison, everyone must undergo a purification and inspection with the Vast Righteous Qi of Literature Cultivation."
Hex Lei nodded and silently drained his fourth cup.
Jingg Guan smiled. "Still, the Ministry of Justice got what it deserved. A Third-Grade Grandmaster was executed directly. I hear that recently, Demon Sects all over the country have been lying low. Even in those few states controlled by the Demon Sect, things have suddenly gotten much quieter."
"It’s a shame they didn’t execute him in the street at the market. I would’ve gone to watch," Li Qingxian said.
"He was a Third Grade of the Demon Sect, after all. A public execution would have been inappropriate. Forcing him to drink poison and then beheading him was enough."
Li Qingxian said, "Who knows if it was faked? The Demon Sect has too many tricks up its sleeve."
Jingg Guan was displeased. "Qingxian, are you looking down on the Inner Court? The Inner Court, the Ministry of Justice, the Imperial Censorate, and other departments jointly supervised the execution. There’s no way anything could have gone wrong. At worst, his soul was refined into a Magical Artifact."
"A Magical Artifact Puppet isn’t much different from being alive."
"And not much different from being dead, either."
Hex Lei couldn’t help but chuckle. "You two, stop bickering. Anyway, everyone in the Ministry of Justice is in mourning right now, and I’m quite happy about it. A friend of mine in the Front Army Governor’s Mansion said that the Cabinet could never get Xizhou to do anything before. Now, the Xizhou Demon Sect has no choice but to mobilize its disciples and start eliminating demons."
Han Anbo said, "I have to admit, enfeoffing Xizhou and Shazhou to the Demon Sect and the Evil Sect, respectively, was a stroke of genius. Neither place was wealthy to begin with, and more importantly, they both border the Demon Race’s territory. As long as the Demon Race is there, the Demon Sect and the Evil Sect have no choice but to fight. On top of that, the Demon Sect and the Evil Sect sometimes cooperate and sometimes fight amongst themselves, consuming a great deal of their strength."
Hex Lei said, "The initial idea was good, but who knew the Demon Sect and Evil Factions would secretly collude with the Demon Race? They’d stage a few minor skirmishes each year but trade with each other in peacetime. The Demon Race didn’t station many troops on the borders of the two states. In reality, because of these two enfeoffed states, both the Demon Sect and the Evil Sect have been growing stronger."
"Is it serious?" Han Anbo asked with concern.
Hex Lei glanced around. Except for Yur Ping, who was focused on his cold appetizers, everyone else was looking at him.
Hex Lei said, "I heard that in the past two years, the situation became extremely serious. The Demon Sect and Evil Sect were just enriching themselves, and the people in the two states were suffering terribly. The recent coordinated move against the Demon Sect by the entire court, both civil and military officials, was very likely done on someone’s orders. The plan is probably to weaken the Demon Sect and force them to push west and fight the Demon Race."
"What about Ganzhou, the Underworld’s fief? That’s my hometown," said Zheng Gaojue.
"Ganzhou borders both Xizhou and Shazhou, but it’s not on the front lines, so the situation is much better than in those two states. Besides, the Puppet Cultivators and the Underworld still treat people like people. They might dig up a few graves or ancestral tombs now and then, but they don’t torment the living. Compared to Shazhou and Xizhou, the people of Ganzhou are incredibly supportive of the Underworld. I hear that in Ganzhou, more people pray to the Ten Hall Yamas than to the Emperor." Hex Lei lowered his voice as he finished.
"That’s right, Ganzhou really is nice. They say the Puppet Cultivators there have developed the cities very well. My father even said that if we can’t make it in the Divine Capital, we should go back to our old home in Ganzhou."
Hex Lei nodded. "My comrades who’ve returned from Ganzhou all say it’s no worse than the Divine Capital. Most Puppet Cultivators there consider themselves human and run things seriously. The only downside is that Ganzhou is slowly becoming profit-driven. Many Puppet Cultivators enjoy developing clever gadgets and intricate contraptions. Although this trend has just begun, it’s growing rapidly. Moreover, these Puppet Cultivators only care about money and nothing else, so they’re also major players in trade with the Demon Race. Of course, the Puppet Cultivators still primarily trade with the Underworld and the Human Race; their trade with the Demon Race isn’t as significant."
Jingg Guan said, "It’s true that more and more things from Ganzhou have been making their way into the palace recently."
Li Qingxian asked, "What kind of clever gadgets and intricate contraptions? Tell me more."
Hex Lei laughed. "I almost forgot, now that you mention it. You’re a rich man, so you and Ganzhou are a perfect match. Ganzhou isn’t just satisfied with making porcelain anymore. They’ve started producing all sorts of glassware, and the craftsmanship is breathtaking. On top of that, their Mechanisms are also being developed for civilian use. They’re a bit expensive, but they sure make life comfortable. Of course, they’re still powered by Magical Power or True Essence, so ordinary people can’t use them. They’re basically cheaper Magical Artifacts."
Jingg Guan added, "Ganzhou isn’t entirely peaceful, though. According to the court circulars, stray Demon Race stragglers and deserters are active there too."
"Nowhere is truly peaceful. The Cyan Cloud Examination is coming up, which is right after the autumn harvest when the Demon Race’s forces are strong and well-fed. They make their move at this time every year," Hex Lei said, shaking his head.
Jingg Guan smiled. "Qingxian, you probably won’t make it to this year’s Seventh-Grade Cyan Cloud Examination. Why not participate in the Eighth-Grade one for fun and to gain some experience?"
Hex Lei nodded. "I suggest Qingxian give it a try. Although Night Guards can be directly promoted to Senior Eighth Grade and are exempt from the Eighth-Grade Cyan Cloud Examination, you must participate in the Seventh-Grade Cyan Cloud Examination to reach Senior Seventh Grade. We’re different from those unaffiliated cultivators. We’re Imperial Court officials. If you don’t pass the Official Grade Cyan Cloud Examinations, it’s very detrimental to your future career. The Ministry of Personnel might say they treat everyone who joins the Imperial Court equally, but all else being equal, if they have to choose between someone who fought their way up from the Junior Ninth Grade Cyan Cloud Examination step by step, and an unaffiliated cultivator who only started participating at the Middle Grade, the Ministry of Personnel will definitely pick the former."
Jingg Guan nodded. "That’s exactly my point. In the Imperial Court, you have to build a solid foundation and not give outsiders any leverage against you. This year’s Eighth-Grade Cyan Cloud Examination will probably still be a minor affair, but the Seventh-Grade one is different. I hear that in order to deal with the increasingly powerful Demon Race, and with the Emperor intending to support newcomers, the various Sects are also happy to go along. They’re preparing to bring out one of the Celestial Fate Sect’s three great sect-guarding Treasures, the ’Celestial Destiny All-Encompassing Map,’ for the Seventh Grade cultivators to enter for their Cultivation. That’s why you saw Bone Filth Child at the Ministry of Justice the other day. Without a supreme Treasure like this on the line, there’s no way Bone Filth Child would participate in the Seventh-Grade Cyan Cloud Examination."
"No wonder," Li Qingxian said.
Hex Lei said in astonishment, "They’re actually bringing out the Celestial Destiny All-Encompassing Map? The last time was ten years ago, after the Emperor swept away All the Kings and stabilized the realm. The Celestial Fate Sect offered it for the Cyan Cloud Examination on their own initiative to show their support, which caused the National Fortune to rise dramatically. If they’re bringing out the Celestial Destiny All-Encompassing Map again this year, I’m afraid something extraordinary is about to happen."
Jingg Guan smiled faintly. "The Emperor is determined to innovate, and this Celestial Destiny All-Encompassing Map is a signal. Therefore, this Cyan Cloud Examination is of the utmost importance. If any of you have friends or relatives who are Junior Seventh Grade, they absolutely must participate. It’s a pity about Qingxian, though. You’re only Eighth Grade, or you could have taken a trip inside as well. That Myriad Phenomena Map, I hear, is an independent realm of its own, with an unimaginable number of Treasures."