Heat of the Moment Informant-Daoist Master Fan

"Nothing."

Faced with Xie Jiuyi's concerned inquiry, Fan Wu simply answered with two words.

"Good to hear!" Xie Jiuyi breathed a sigh of relief.

His voice still carried a faint tremor of shock. Clearly, he had yet to come back to himself from the scenes he had just witnessed.

After composing himself, he continued, "I never expected to be saved by you again, Daoist Master Fan. If you hadn't stepped in to help in time, I'm afraid Squad Leader Shen and I would have been in grave danger tonight."

This was not flattery.

Xie Jiuyi was merely speaking the truth.

With his and Shen Jiyue's strength, if the Ghost Groom and Ghost Bride had been separate... then although they might not necessarily have been able to defeat them, they could at least have held them off for a while.

But once the Ghost Groom and Ghost Bride had merged into one, the strength of the two of them was nowhere near enough.

Let alone holding them off for a while...

Whether they could last ten breaths was questionable!

This time, they could be said to have taken a turn hovering before Ghost Gate Pass.

Although he was not afraid of death, being able to reclaim his life was ultimately a good thing.

He was, in the end, somewhat thankful.

"Thank you, Daoist Master, for slaying the evil spirit, for protecting the Heavenly Mechanism Coffin, and for saving the people of Baihe County!"

Shen Jiyue had come over at some point.

She earnestly thanked him three times, then said with a solemn expression, "Whether it is Baihe County or the Imperial Astronomy Bureau, we will remember your kindness, Daoist Master!"

To Fan Wu's ears, their thanks were no different from farting on the ground.

If not for you two brats, and if not for that lousy coffin in the inn—

why would those Great Venerable's followers have come here?

And why would he have run into those Great Venerable's followers again?

Thinking of this...

Fan Wu mentally reviewed just how many times he had offended the Great Venerable over the past few days.

First, he had put a Blue-faced Water Ghost's leg shackle in the Prison Dragon County yamen. That counted as making one of the Great Venerable's offerings disappear. Then he had killed Xuan Shizi, which counted as butchering one of the Great Venerable's followers.

Before killing Xuan Shizi, he had also trampled on the Great Venerable's face and kicked the Great Venerable's statue... which counted as blaspheming Them.

Then, because Xie Jiuyi was transporting the Heavenly Mechanism Coffin, it had drawn out a strange shadow. After killing the strange shadow... he had once again butchered one of the Great Venerable's followers.

Then that lousy coffin had come seeking his protection, drawing out the Ghost Groom and Ghost Bride and forcing him to take action.

The result... was obvious. He had butchered another of the Great Venerable's followers.

Two of them, at that!

Sigh!

Fan Wu discovered that he was not only at odds with Prison Dragon County, but with the Imperial Astronomy Bureau as well!

Perhaps because he was not in a very good mood, a faint gloom clouded his face.

Combined with the aura radiating from him, which was like that of a ferocious beast...

It made Xie Jiuyi and Shen Jiyue...

both feel a chill in their hearts!

Naturally, they had no idea why Fan Wu was in a bad mood.

All they knew was that Daoist Master Fan before them gave off an extremely terrifying feeling.

That oppressive sensation—even cultivators...

could not help but feel their hearts tremble beneath it!

This made them deeply uneasy.

What was going on?

Hiss!!

Could it be that something they had just said had offended Daoist Master Fan?

Upon thinking of this possibility, both Shen Jiyue and Xie Jiuyi...

panicked!

They could no longer remain composed!

Just as the two of them were feeling apprehensive, Fan Wu's voice suddenly rang out.

This was one of the rare occasions when he had taken the initiative to speak to people from the Imperial Astronomy Bureau. "The two of you flag officers, does your Imperial Astronomy Bureau know of a strange entity?"

"Huh?" Shen Jiyue had thought the fury of Fan Wu was about to descend upon them. After all, Daoist Master Fan's expression had not looked very good.

The result was completely unexpected.

What came was a question like this instead.

"Daoist Master Fan, the strange entity you mentioned... which one are you referring to?" Shen Jiyue suppressed the relief in her heart before asking.

"It is called the Great Venerable. Its full name seems to be—the Great Venerable of Compassion Who Saves the Suffering of Heaven and Earth." Fan Wu had no reservations whatsoever and bluntly spoke the Great Venerable's name aloud.

His purpose in revealing the Great Venerable's name was simple: he felt he could not be the only one to suffer losses.

He had inexplicably helped the Imperial Astronomy Bureau twice. They should at least do something for him in return.

As it happened, he had already thoroughly offended the Great Venerable.

And an existence like the Great Venerable was as incompatible with a court institution like the Imperial Astronomy Bureau as fire and water!

With that...

Could the Imperial Astronomy Bureau also take action against the Great Venerable?

That was right!

Fan Wu intended to find that damn Great Venerable a colossus to serve as one of Their enemies!

That enemy had best not be weak, and should be able to draw away part of the Great Venerable's attention.

So that Fan Wu could enjoy somewhat more peaceful days...

for a little while.

What could be more suitable than the Imperial Astronomy Bureau? After all, the Imperial Astronomy Bureau was born to be the Great Venerable's mortal enemy!

How could a court institution allow a strange monster to run rampant within Great Zhou?

With countless thoughts tangled in his mind, Fan Wu pondered for a moment before continuing, "This Daoist once performed rites to send an evil ghost on its way in Prison Dragon County. That evil ghost had been raised by a wicked cultivator. That wicked cultivator worshiped a strange entity called the 'Great Venerable.' That entity should be extremely powerful and possess a great many followers."

"Earlier, the strange shadow entity that Little Flag Officer Xie and I encountered spoke the words 'Great Venerable' in my presence. And just now, the Ghost Groom and Ghost Bride also mentioned the name 'Great Venerable' before me."

"From this, it can basically be determined that they have some sort of relationship with the Great Venerable—one that is difficult to explain clearly."

"It is possible that the mastermind behind the attempts to seize the Heavenly Mechanism Coffin a few days ago and tonight was also that Great Venerable."

The more Fan Wu spoke, the more solemn Shen Jiyue and Xie Jiuyi's expressions became.

When he finished, the two exchanged a glance in unison.

In their eyes, the words Daoist Master Fan had spoken...

contained far too explosive an amount of information!!

Wicked cultivators, strange entities, fierce ghosts... they all worshiped a strange existence called the "Great Venerable"?

This was faith!

The word "faith" could not be used carelessly!

Shen Jiyue took a deep breath and shook her head. She answered, "I have never heard the name 'Great Venerable.' But if what Daoist Master Fan says is true, then this Great Venerable..."

She paused, her expression extremely solemn. "It is very likely an utterly terrifying existence!"

Although she had never seen the strange shadow, she had witnessed the Ghost Groom and Ghost Bride just now.

Even such powerful fierce ghosts worshiped that Great Venerable?

What this implied...

Shen Jiyue understood perfectly.

She did not doubt the truth of Fan Wu's words. In Shen Jiyue's eyes... this Daoist Master Fan had saved her life and helped them protect the Heavenly Mechanism Coffin.

How could she possibly doubt the words of such a great benefactor?

Her expression grave, she immediately said, "This sort of demon and fiend is probably beyond the ability of the Baihe County branch of the Imperial Astronomy Bureau to handle. I will order someone to pass this major matter on to the Imperial Astronomy Bureau of Yinghe Prefecture!"

She cupped her hands toward Fan Wu. "Thank you, Daoist Master Fan, for your righteous heart and for informing me of this evil spirit capable of bringing disaster upon the nation and ruin upon the people."

Fan Wu nodded, taking it as a response.

What ill intentions could he have? He was merely a helpful citizen "reporting a crime."

Let the Imperial Astronomy Bureau and the Great Venerable...

fight it out among themselves!