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Chapter 404: Celestial Official

Ji Lingjue had already fled. The Heaven-Devouring Python wanted to escape with its master, but its size didn't allow for a stealthy retreat... It did its best to try and follow. Its head moved out of the vicinity of the Giant Whale Mountain Manor, but its tail was still within it.

As the ginormous creature flew overhead, the sky darkened wherever it passed by, and its scales reflected flashes of light from amid the clouds.

The Heaven-Devouring Python was flying in the densely populated Central Region. The sight of it had the people below fleeing in terror.

Right then, a figure appeared in front of the Heaven-Devouring Python's enormous head.

"You've got a lot of guts, hey. You dared to act recklessly near the capital of Yu despite your size," the figure said leisurely.

He was dressed in white, with a jade belt at his waist and a gold hairpin in his lustrous hair. Judging from his face, the man appeared to be around thirty years old. He had distinctively red lips, white teeth, and skin that was fair and smooth like jade. This man seemed to have a rather carefree demeanor, as characterized by his attitude and posture.

He stood in midair and calmly gazed at the Heaven-Devouring Python. Compared to the ginormous beast, the man in white looked like a speck of dust.

In the next second, the man in white flipped his hand over, summoning a sword that glowed brightly with divine light. He gave it his all and unleashed an incredibly powerful slash.

Whoosh.

A beam of white light appeared in front of the Heaven-Devouring Python and cut into the space. It sliced straight down from the same height that the python's head reached, creating a very long black rip in the sky. As the length of the rip grew, so did its width. In an instant, the rip widened into a portal-like black hole.

The black hole was incredibly wide, stretching across the sky. The people gazing up at it from below were scared out of their minds. Yet, even such a massive black hole seemed a bit narrow compared to the Heaven-Devouring Python.

Whoosh—

Due to its tremendous size, the Heaven-Devouring Python couldn't maneuver nimbly, so it couldn't veer to the side in time to avoid the black hole. The Heaven-Devouring Python just crashed straight into it.

The sides of the python's head hit the sides of the black hole. It turned out that the hole was indeed too narrow for the python. Fortunately, the rip in the sky appeared to be elastic; it stretched slightly to accommodate the python. Once the head was inside, the rest of the python's body would have no issue entering.

However, as soon as the python's head entered the black hole, it had no desire to continue going inside and immediately tried to pull its head back out.

It seemed that there was a tremendous force pulling the Heaven-Devouring Python from inside the black hole. The Heaven-Devouring Python thrashed about in midair, struggling violently against the force. Nevertheless, it was completely unable to defy the force inside the black hole.

Boom!

A thunderous noise rang out as the black hole finally swallowed the Heaven-Devouring Python. The man in white raised his finger to the sky, and the black hole slowly closed with a loud rumble, gradually disappearing from the sky.

Just a moment later, the sky returned to a clear blue, like when dark clouds dissipated after the rain. In fact, the sky was even bluer and clearer than before, as the Heaven-Devouring Python's collision with the black hole had dispersed all of the clouds in that part of the sky.

The alarmed people below watched in wonder as the sky suddenly brightened. It was as if the ginormous python had never appeared.

"It's gone?" someone cried out in surprise. "That demonic creature disappeared?"

"You're making a fuss over nothing!" someone else sneered. "That demonic creature dared to disturb the peace near the capital of Yu, so of course, the esteemed cultivators from the Imperial Supervisory Bureau would take action. Isn't that to be expected? I don't know what you were all so afraid of."

"If you weren't scared, why are your pants wet?"

"Don't you know the urine of young boys wards off evil? I was just planning to use this to scare the demonic creature off in case it dared to come down and cause trouble."

"Stop being stubborn. Just go home and change your pants..."

"Huh? It seems there's no need to go home. Why has a pair of pants just floated down from the sky? Is this... a sign from the heavens?"

"..."

After dealing with the Heaven-Devouring Python, the man in white didn't return to the capital of Yu. He transformed into a gust of wind and headed straight to the Giant Whale Mountain Manor.

At that moment, Di Nufeng was still pounding Chi Menshen into the ground while everyone in the square watched on, dumbfounded.

Upon landing, the man in white sensed something was strange about this scene and decided not to get involved yet. Instead, he scanned the area with his divine sense until he spotted a familiar face. Then he swiftly flew over to that person's side.

"Master Dong, what's going on here?" the man in white asked.

That question was directed at a short man with a 八-shaped mustache standing on the edge of the crowd. He was Xu Hongqiu's teacher, Formation Sage Dong Futu.

"Hmm?" Dong Futu uttered, turning his head to find the man in white beside him. His face lit up with an amused smile as he said, "Chengfeng? You're just in time. Look, Di Nufeng is beating someone up again."

Overhearing the conversation, several people nearby glanced at the pair and then nodded respectfully. "Celestial Official Li."

There was a very clear hierarchy in the Imperial Supervisory Bureau. The lowest-ranked personnel were ensigns. The heads of small stations belonging to the City Supervisory Division were flag-bearing officials, and the heads of large stations were senior flag-bearing officials. The personnel in charge of the cities were seal-holding officials, and the personnel overseeing the provinces were senior seal-holding officials.

A senior seal-holding official guarded an entire province and reported directly to the Imperial Supervisory Commissioner. This reflected the strict hierarchy and layered governance.

An exception to that hierarchy were the celestial officials. They had no subordinates, but their rank was second only to the Imperial Supervisory Bureau Chief, and they answered only to him.

The Imperial Supervisory Commissioner currently had four celestial officials under his command, all of whom were undoubtedly powerful.

Li Chengfeng was one of them. Known as the White-Robed Sword-Wielding Immortal, he was a handsome man who was famous all over the Capital of Yu. During his younger days, he was extremely popular, attracting countless female admirers of all ages. At the peak of his fame, he was as popular as the most popular disciples of the South Melody Conservatory.

Even the current top disciples of the immortal sects, like Yang Shenlong and Jiang Yuebai, couldn't compare to him. After all, their main battlefield was in the world of immortality cultivators, so their fanbases would certainly be smaller than that of Li Chengfeng, who had been active in the nine provinces.

Unfortunately, Li Chengfeng had married young and no longer appeared in public much, so his fanatical fans eventually lost interest in him.

However, Li Chengfeng had not retired. He had simply stopped handling minor affairs, as his cultivation level had increased. After all, the Imperial Supervisory Commissioner relied on the four Celestial Officials the most for missions.

Li Chengfeng was a sword cultivator, so there were even rumors that he was being groomed by the Imperial Supervisory Commissioner to be the next Dao Master of Tai'a!

Dong Futu was an honored ally of the High Heavens Pavilion and operated in the Capital of Yu. As fellow members of the cultivators' circle in the capital, Li Chengfeng was naturally well acquainted with Dong Futu.

"What just happened here, Master Dong? Could you explain it to me in detail?" Li Chengfeng asked as he joined the crowd in watching Di Nufeng beat someone up.

"It was quite chaotic earlier," Dong Futu said, blinking in disbelief as he recalled the absurd chain of events. "It was supposed to be Jiang Shenting's inauguration ceremony, and everyone was preparing to feast. Then... Then suddenly, someone set up some kind of enchanted formation here, and it was extremely powerful!"

...

After everything settled down, Jiang Shenting rushed to Xu Bashan's side with a concerned expression.

However, Xu Bashan ignored that and shot him a cold cold glare. "Why did you try to kill Hongqiu?"

Jiang Shenting pointed at Xu Hongqiu. "Chief, it was the Young Lady who conspired with the demons from the Celestial Charm Sect to kill me!"

At this moment, Xu Hongqiu finally came to her senses.

The moment she saw Xu Bashan, she threw herself into his arms and cried out, "Father! You're finally back!"

"I'm back." Xu Bashan patted Xu Hongqiu. "No one will hurt my daughter again."

"Chief..."

"Chief!"

"..."

The elders of the Ocean Tempest Hall quickly gathered around Xu Bashan. After becoming a huge mess in Xu Bashan's absence, the Whale Gang finally regained their pillar with his return.

"Everyone, please remain calm," Xu Bashan said, gently nodding to the crowd. Then he looked down at his daughter and asked, "What happened earlier?"

"I don't know either..." Xu Hongqiu murmured.

Realizing the elders of the Whale Gang had gathered around them, Xu Hongqiu pulled herself together. Once again, she hid her child-like demeanor as a loving daughter under a serious expression.

Xu Hongqiu continued, "I wanted to avenge you, but... the moment that person appeared, I lost consciousness..."

She lowered her gaze as she sifted through her memories. All she could recall were a few vague images, like fragments of a dream.

That demon from the Celestial Charm Sect grabbed my saber and cut off Jiang Shenting's arm... Jiang Shenting threw his spear at me... An inferno dragon coiled around me... and standing on top of the inferno dragon was a young man, who looked familiar even from the back...

Ah.

Xu Hongqiu looked to the side.

In the hazy scene earlier, she had indeed seen Jiang Shenting throw that Dragon Spear at her. She wanted to dodge, but her body wouldn't obey her. It was as if she were just a spectator. All she could do was watch that long spear approach her with such great momentum that it shimmered with rainbow-colored light. However, just before the Dragon Spear pierced Xu Hongqiu, an Inferno Dragon suddenly descended and blocked the strike, saving her life in the nick of time.

Her father had been standing on the dragon's back, while a familiar-looking young man was standing on the dragon's head.

That person was indeed Chu Liang! Xu Hongqiu realized.

When she looked over at Chu Liang, she found he was reuniting with his teacher, Di Nufeng. There was also a certain pantless hairy-legged young man standing beside them.

The situation was still a total mess in the hall. Xu Hongqiu wanted to go over and thank Chu Liang, but she couldn't leave yet. So, she turned to look at her father instead.

Xu Bashan looked at Jiang Shenting with a dark expression and asked, "You said that Hongqiu colluded with the demons from the Celestial Charm Sect to harm me?"

"I don't know why, but everyone else saw what happened," Jiang Shenting replied.

Covered in blood and looking deathly pale, he appeared quite weak.

"That demon took action, but it was to help you break the enchanted formation!" said an elder that supported Xu Bashan.

"He was just taking the chance to escape. How could it be that Chief Jiang was the one colluding with the Celestial Charm Sect instead?" retorted an elder that supported Jiang Shenting.

With the situation more stable now, the Whale Gang gradually returned to its usual state.

Before Xu Bashan's disappearance, there had always been overt and covert strife between Xu Bashan's and Jiang Shenting's supporters. Now, that familiar tension had returned.

"I will thoroughly investigate this matter," Xu Bashan declared. "Whoever it was that colluded with the Celestial Charm Sect to harm me, I will not let them off easily!"

"If you conduct the investigation, won't it be easy to frame someone?" someone said. "Chief Jiang has already taken the helm; he should be the one leading the Whale Gang now."

"Don't forget. He only took over because Chief Xu wasn't here," someone else countered.

"Everyone, please stop arguing," Jiang Shenting urged. "Let's not talk about who is at fault for now. When I agreed to take over as chief, I said that as long as Chief Xu came back, I would return this position to him. If we keep fighting like this, we'll just end up tearing the Whale Gang apart!"

His words served as a timely reminder to everyone.

Someone immediately continued on that train of thought. "Just as well then! Rather than stick around to get falsely accused right after experiencing an assassination attempt, Chief Jiang should take the Eastern Whale Division and separate from the Whale Gang!"

"That's right. Who knows if this was all just a big scheme by the father and his daughter. Perhaps he just pretended to disappear so that his daughter could pretend to seek revenge. Right when his daughter's assassination attempt failed, he immediately appeared to save her! How could there be such a ridiculous coincidence?"

Several of Jiang Shenting's supporters chimed in one after another.

Nevertheless, Xu Bashan had just as many loyal followers, and they gave a rational and well-reasoned retort.

"You're talking out of your momma's stinky ass!"[1]

"..."

The tension between the two sides escalated. If not for Xu Bashan and Jiang Shenting suppressing them, they would have engaged in a physical fight.

Amidst the chaos, someone said loudly, "Everyone, there's no need for you to argue among yourselves. It is we, the Imperial Supervisory Bureau, who should be thoroughly investigating this matter."

The elders and members of the Whale Gang turned toward the person who spoke and saw Li Chengfeng was now standing among them.

"We wouldn't normally interfere with the internal affairs of the Whale Gang. But since this matter involves the Celestial Charm Sect, we'll have to intervene," Li Chengfeng declared, looking at Jiang Shenting and Xu Bashan.

He continued, "All elders and members of the Whale Gang present here today, please do not leave. The Imperial Supervisory Bureau will soon send people to investigate. We will find out exactly who colluded with the Celestial Charm Sect and provide you with an answer."

Xu Bashan nodded. "Since this matter is being handled by the Imperial Supervisory Bureau, I can rest easy now."

Jiang Shenting smiled. "I agree."

However, when Li Chengfeng looked at Jiang Shenting, his eyes suddenly lit up in alarm. "You're trying to leave?!"

1. Much rational. Much reasoning. I did my best to translate it so it's still funny. Here's the raw for anyone that can read it: 放你娘的狗臭屁!The direct translation is something like “your mother's super smelly fart.” It's basically some nonsense retort. ☜