One was Daoist Master Fan from Dragon-Imprisoning Monastery, and the other claimed to be a Squad Leader of the Imperial Astronomy Bureau.
The conversation between the two left those few young masters utterly afraid to interrupt!
They merely had some spare money in their families; at most, they wielded a little local influence.
But the people before them... whether Fan Wu or Shen Jiyue.
Both possessed extraordinary techniques and held no lowly positions!
How could those young masters dare to speak?
Even when Shen Jiyue, a Squad Leader of the Imperial Astronomy Bureau, called them "spoiled young masters" to their faces, they did not dare retort. They did not even dare let the slightest discontent arise in their hearts!
In this World of Gods and Anomalies.
Those who possessed extraordinary techniques...
Held lofty status!
Suddenly.
Someone else entered the inn. A fierce, chilling aura radiated from him. The moment he came in, his gaze and attention were drawn toward Fan Wu.
He froze for a moment.
But he still forcibly shifted his gaze away and looked toward Shen Jiyue. Cupping his hands, he said seriously, "Squad Leader, this subordinate has an important matter to report. May I speak with you in private?"
"Say it here!" Shen Jiyue waved her hand indifferently and asked casually, "What is it?"
"Ah? But, my lord, this is..."
"Say. It. Here."
"...Yes, my lord!"
The newcomer was clearly also a member of the Imperial Astronomy Bureau.
Seeing that Shen Jiyue had no intention of moving, and hearing her second reminder, each word enunciated separately... he could only brace himself and walk a little closer to her.
Then, lowering his voice, he reported, "My lord, someone claiming to be a Lieutenant of the Imperial Astronomy Bureau has arrived here. He says he has brought a special item that we urgently need."
"Is his name Xie Jiuyi?" Shen Jiyue thought for a moment before asking.
"Yes."
"Understood. I'll go back and see him. Help me carry this wine." Shen Jiyue nodded.
She picked up an unopened jar of wine from the table and casually tossed it to the Imperial Astronomy Bureau member, who caught it in a fluster.
Just as Shen Jiyue was about to feel around for her money pouch...
Her movement suddenly stopped.
She looked at her subordinate.
Her subordinate instantly fell silent.
Soon, he said with a familiarity that was almost heartbreaking, "My lord, I'll pay for you."
"Mm." Shen Jiyue was not embarrassed in the slightest. She grabbed something resting beside her and stood up.
Only then did everyone in the inn notice that a weapon had been placed beside Shen Jiyue's feet—a Xuanhua Axe that looked incredibly heavy!
Faintly visible across the axe were densely packed talismanic inscriptions.
The blade was covered in mottled red marks, making one seriously suspect that they were a large patch of dried blood!
The diners in the inn were nearly numb with shock!
They had merely come out for a meal. How had everyone they encountered in the inn become more outrageous than the last?
Two were legendary members of the Imperial Astronomy Bureau!
One was an extremely intimidating Daoist!
Shen Jiyue did not care at all about the strange looks from those around her. Now that she was standing, she was definitely taller than every man present except Fan Wu.
"Fellow Daoist Fan, I have some pressing matters to handle, so I shall bid you farewell for today. I hope we can meet again another day."
Shen Jiyue cupped her hands in farewell.
As if I want to see you again!
Fan Wu had no desire to say anything more to her. He could only force out a stiff smile that was awkward yet polite.
After watching Shen Jiyue and the other Imperial Astronomy Bureau member leave.
Fan Wu immediately wiped the smile from his face.
He did not dislike Shen Jiyue or the other person. He simply did not want to have too much to do with the Imperial Astronomy Bureau.
After all, an imperial department like the Imperial Astronomy Bureau, which frequently handled strange incidents...
Must have countless troubles entangling it in its daily affairs.
For example, a few days ago, he had encountered Xie Jiuyi, a Lieutenant of the Imperial Astronomy Bureau, who had proactively approached him for a chat.
And then...
That very night, he had run into a strange incident!
If Fan Wu himself had not been capable enough, he probably would have died that night!
All he could say was...
Do not get close to the Imperial Astronomy Bureau.
Misfortune would follow!
Time.
Night soon arrived.
During the day, Fan Wu had bought everything he needed, such as clothes for changing into and dry provisions for the road.
He had also deliberately taken Old Green Ox to have its hooves shod... roughly speaking, the old ox had been fitted with four things resembling horseshoes.
After all, if Old Green Ox was going to travel far with him, traversing mountains and rivers day and night would surely cause considerable wear to its hooves.
The shoeing took quite a while. By the time the old craftsman had finished, it was nearly evening.
Fan Wu decided to stay one night in Baihe County.
It would serve as a proper rest.
To avoid running into the Imperial Astronomy Bureau members again, Fan Wu deliberately changed to another inn.
At that moment, he was watching the night outside the window while playing with a silver ingot.
The hard silver ingot seemed like a lump of rubber in his palm, something he could knead at will. He casually pinched it into all sorts of shapes.
"Silver really doesn't last long. Preparing some travel funds for the journey ahead really was necessary." After playing with the ingot for a long while, Fan Wu sighed.
He had spent more than ten taels of silver after staying in Baihe County for only half a day!
If he had not obtained that chest of gold and silver from Xuan Shizi...
With only the dozen or so taels of silver he had previously received from Constable Liu in Prison Dragon County, along with the dozen or so taels of private savings he had secretly accumulated over the years...
He probably would have become an outlaw from sheer poverty before even reaching the Southern Commandery Prefecture!
Suddenly.
Fan Wu seemed to sense something unusual, and his eyes narrowed at once.
The pitch-black night seemed unable to block his gaze.
He could see the distant scene clearly.
Imperial Astronomy Bureau Squad Leader—Fate: 310—Strength: 8.5—Techniques: Dragon Elephant Body Protection Skill, Hundred Killings Divine Path Technique, Seven Seals of Demon Suppression, Complete Collection of Basic Talismanic Arts, Imperial Astronomy Bureau Sixteenth Edition
Although it was exceptionally far away, Fan Wu's astonishing vision allowed him to make out even characters as tiny as mites.
This was the familiar status panel.
It belonged to that Squad Leader of the Imperial Astronomy Bureau!
"Her [Fate] attribute has dropped quite a bit compared with this morning... I remember her [Fate] attribute was 329 during the day. Now it's only 310. Was she injured?"
Fan Wu raised an eyebrow.
Having witnessed Xie Jiuyi's strength before, he could roughly estimate what level of strength this Squad Leader possessed.
Someone in Baihe County had actually managed to injure a Squad Leader of the Imperial Astronomy Bureau?
Moreover, the Squad Leader's attribute information had only flashed by in the distance before disappearing.
It looked like... she was pursuing something.
Fan Wu withdrew his gaze. He was neither curious about the matter nor interested in interfering.
Rashly meddling in the Imperial Astronomy Bureau's affairs would simply be inviting trouble!
Offending one Great Venerable had already been enough.
If a few more beings like that Great Venerable appeared, Fan Wu felt... he would have to find some remote, deep mountain forest and lie low for a while.
However, just as Fan Wu was preparing to close the window and get a good night's sleep.
His movement suddenly halted.
The next moment.
A terrified cry, its voice trembling with fear, rang out from the first floor of the inn where he was staying.
"There's... a ghost! There's a ghost! There's a ghost—aaaaah!!!"
Fan Wu: "..."
Before you continue