Lu Jun was locked in the prison of the Demon Slaying Division.
Old Man Yun had specially chosen Lu Jun a fine private cell.
Before leaving, Old Man Yun gave Lu Jun one last instruction: "Stay here for a while. Don't worry, it won't be more than three days."
Lu Jun nodded.
As long as it was no more than three days, he could accept it.
Otherwise, to one degree or another, it would affect his demon-slaying.
The next day, Fang Yilin came in to deliver Lu Jun his food, and brought along an important piece of information.
"Xiao Yungui's principal wife has already explained the whole course of events to the three Golden-Clad Envoys."
"But he is ultimately still an official of the imperial court. Even if he committed adultery with demons, the Demon Slaying Division must judge him before the law can be brought to bear..."
"You used extrajudicial punishment. In the end, you'll have to stand trial." Fang Yilin let out a soft sigh.
Lu Jun nodded, his emotions steady. "How will I be judged?"
Fang Yilin said, "In two days, the three Golden-Clad Envoys of the Demon Slaying Division will jointly try you. Only then will they fully determine whether you're guilty."
"You need at least two Golden-Clad Envoys to believe you're innocent before you can emerge unscathed. Otherwise... you'll inevitably suffer a spell of imprisonment..."
"Remember to prepare yourself."
Fang Yilin continued, "To be honest, the three Golden-Clad Envoys don't have a very good relationship. They rarely interact in ordinary times."
"Yun Jinyi thinks highly of you, so you have potential. He'll certainly vote for you, but whether the other two Golden-Clad Envoys will believe you're innocent remains unknown."
Lu Jun asked, "What kind of people are the other two Golden-Clad Envoys?"
"One is surnamed Fang, and the other is surnamed Mo."
"Fang Jinyi is upright and meticulous in everything he does. He is especially strict about the rules of law and order—so strict that he can seem almost pedantic."
"As for Mo Jinyi, his reputation isn't very good. He is extremely greedy for wealth and fond of gold, silver, and jewels. Quite a few Demon Slaying Envoys seeking promotion even bribe him in hopes of securing a path upward..."
Lu Jun nodded to show he understood, then closed his eyes and quietly meditated in the prison.
The Demon Slaying Division was putting him on trial... but when had he not also been judging whether the Demon Slaying Division was truly worth staying in?
At the same time, in a certain courtyard of the Demon Slaying Division.
The courtyard was extravagantly luxurious. A winding path of crimson-and-white jade snaked through it, while an entire hill of Blood-Congealed Coral Stone had been piled into an ornamental rockery.
The buildings were all made of the finest golden-thread nanmu and roofed with azure glazed tiles.
The luxurious surroundings were utterly unlike the plain, temple-like Demon Slaying Division outside.
At that moment, Mo Jinyi, one of the Demon Slaying Division's three Golden-Clad Envoys, sat upright in the principal seat. He toyed with a jade thumb ring, his eyes burning as he stared at the two chests before him, both crammed with gold, silver, and all kinds of precious jewels.
Mo Jinyi swallowed softly, but kept his outward composure. Looking at the middle-aged man before him, he pretended not to understand and asked,
"What's all this about...?"
The middle-aged man smiled. "Our general admires Mo Jinyi's character and achievements in slaying demons. He wishes to become friends with you. These valuables are our general's meeting gift."
"Ah, this is too much... You're too kind..." Mo Jinyi smiled, his eyes still constantly surveying the chests before him. "When conducting oneself in society, one must always return a courtesy with a courtesy. If your general has anything he needs my help with, I'll do everything within my power and never refuse."
Mo Jinyi had grown accustomed to accepting gifts. Naturally, he was as comfortable as a fish in water with this routine, and had no desire to waste words. He simply asked what the other side wanted.
"It's nothing much. I heard that in two days, Mo Jinyi will try a Demon Slaying Envoy together with the other two Golden-Clad Envoys?"
"I suppose that's happening. A Copper-Clad Envoy reported it to me earlier, but I didn't pay much attention. What's the matter? Do you want to protect that man?"
The middle-aged man hurriedly said, "That man killed our general's nephew... so..."
"Understood, understood. You want him found guilty, is that it..." Mo Jinyi waved a hand casually, his expression unconcerned.
"Then I'll thank the Golden-Clad Envoy on behalf of my general!"
After completing all this, the middle-aged man left.
The instant the middle-aged man was gone, Mo Jinyi rushed without pause to the two chests placed before him, staring so hard his eyes nearly popped out.
"My goodness!"
"Glass Grapes, luminous cups, so much gold... I'm rich, I'm rich..." Mo Jinyi beamed with delight. "That Commander of the Guards Xiao is really loaded!"
In the blink of an eye, two days passed.
Escorted by two Demon Slaying Envoys, Lu Jun arrived at the trial hall of the Demon Slaying Division.
"Three honored Golden-Clad Envoys, Lu Jun has been brought."
The trial hall was dim. Ferocious taotie patterns were carved into the load-bearing pillars all around, while candle flames burned atop bronze lampstands, casting the figures of the three Golden-Clad Envoys on the dais into stark relief.
Lu Jun raised his head and saw all three faces clearly.
Old Man Yun was no longer wearing his usual plain white robes. Instead, he had changed into a completely ink-black cloak embroidered with a huge taotie pattern in gilded thread. The easygoing expression he had worn before was gone as well, replaced by a hint of solemnity.
Lu Jun also looked toward the other two Golden-Clad Envoys. They too wore the same Golden-Clad Envoy uniforms as Old Man Yun.
One was short and stout, with narrowed eyes and rather flat features. Combined with his golden uniform, he looked like an oversized golden toad.
From Fang Yilin's description, this man was the greediest for wealth among the three Golden-Clad Envoys—Mo Jinyi, known as "Mo the Golden Toad."
Lu Jun lifted his eyes toward the last one. He was tall and powerfully built, with a square, imposing face and heroic features. A full beard covered his chin and extended all the way to his neck.
Fang Jinyi was the most fierce and unyielding of the three Golden-Clad Envoys, and the most rigorous in handling affairs.
At that moment, he occupied the principal seat.
While Lu Jun sized up the three men,
the three of them were sizing up Lu Jun as well.
However, when Fang Jinyi and Mo Jinyi saw Lu Jun's extraordinary bearing and excellent features and physique, a flicker of astonishment flashed through their eyes.
As the four exchanged looks, the atmosphere froze for a moment.
Fang Jinyi, whose face was square and upright, spoke first.
"Lu Jun, do you know your crime?"
Lu Jun raised his head, his gaze blazing. "What crime?"
"Do I need to tell you myself?! You killed Yunzhou Pacification Commissioner Xiao Yungui. Are you saying that didn't happen?!"
"Of course it happened."
"I did indeed kill him."
Lu Jun's tone was calm.
"Xiao Yungui was a fifth-rank imperial official!" Fang Jinyi roared. "Yet he died such a gruesome death!"
"What gave you the right to strike with such cruelty? How are you any different from those demons and heretical sects?"
"Because I am human, and they are demons and heretical sects. A demon or heretical sect remains a demon or heretical sect for life. Demons and heretical sects deserve to die ten thousand deaths!" Lu Jun said flatly.
Fang Jinyi was momentarily choked, then grew furious.
"And what crime did Xiao Yungui commit to make you use such savage and violent methods?"
"Was he a demon?"
"No."
"Was he a heretical sect member?"
"No."
"Then why did you deal him such a vicious blow?"
Lu Jun raised his head, fury blazing in his eyes!
"He was more hateful and more vile than demons and heretical sects! He was a traitor to humanity! Human by birth, yet he committed adultery with demons!"
"Demons are savage. They enslave ordinary people with divine abilities and treat the Human Race as blood food. They are hateful beyond measure!"
"Heretical sects are greedy. To gain power, they cast aside their identity as members of the Human Race and willingly become demons' servants. Naturally, they are vile!"
Then Lu Jun's voice suddenly rose by more than a notch.
"But Xiao Yungui! He wasn't a heretical sect member, and he didn't crave power. As a member of the Human Race and a Yunzhou commander, he dared to keep a demon in secret and commit adultery with it! That was a defiance of human morality, lower than a beast, hateful and vile!"
The expressions of the three Golden-Clad Envoys changed, and their voices fell silent in unison.
Fang Jinyi's tone eased slightly, but it remained sharp.
"But that still doesn't justify your abuse of extrajudicial punishment!"
"If you had spared his life, the Demon Slaying Division would naturally have punished his crimes!"
"Why kill him so cruelly before the eyes of the masses, trampling the dignity of an imperial official before the eyes of the masses?!"
"Though we Demon Slaying Envoys have been favored by the Dagan Emperor from generation to generation and granted special privileges, that is not permission for someone like you to kill indiscriminately!"
"Even if Xiao Yungui committed adultery with a demon, it wasn't for you to execute him with private punishment! Where does that leave the law of our Demon Slaying Division?!"
"Today, because you outranked him, you could kill Xiao Yungui before everyone's eyes! Then tomorrow, will you use the charge of adultery with demons to kill us as well?!"
Fang Jinyi roared at Lu Jun.
Lu Jun's gaze burned. The silver pattern between his brows shimmered with silver light. He raised his hand and pointed toward the calligraphy plaque behind the three Golden-Clad Envoys.
"The four characters behind you are my answer."
All three turned to look behind them.
Upon the plaque behind them, four bold calligraphic characters were written:
Exterminate Evil to the Last!
These were the words the Taizong Emperor of Dagan had left for the Demon Slaying Division. Every Grand Executioner of the Demon Slaying Division had copied them and spread them throughout every branch of the Demon Slaying Division across Dagan.
When the three Golden-Clad Envoys saw those four characters, their bodies trembled involuntarily.
Even Mo Jinyi's hand, which had been fidgeting with his jade thumb ring, froze.
"You speak of the law of the Demon Slaying Division? Of morality and ritual propriety?"
"You condemn me for striking down someone above my station. In the end, it's nothing more than the fact that my official rank wasn't high enough—that after killing the demon, I shouldn't have killed Xiao Yungui as well, because it violated ritual propriety!"
"But if the law worked, if morality and ritual propriety worked, then tell me: would even a single demon still remain in the world today?"
"If your morality, ritual propriety, and laws worked, and the world's demons and heretical sects had been wiped out, why would I be needed today?"
"Why would any of you need to sit high above the court today?"
"Presumptuous! Do you know what you're saying?!" Fang Jinyi shouted sternly.
Lu Jun's words did not slacken in the slightest. He still held his head high. "Of course I know!"
"Across the world, the multitudes travel from north to south, while the calamity of demons treats all common people as fish upon a chopping board!"
"The disaster wrought by heretical sects is immense. They drain the essence and blood of the people, then cast them aside like worn-out shoes!"
"And now there are even those who sit high in the imperial court, acting wantonly for the sake of personal emotions and committing adultery with demons!"
"Why did I kill him at once that day instead of leaving him alive to face judgment? Because he was the final remnant of 'evil' left in the entire demon incident! I wanted to eradicate evil and exterminate it to the last!"
"I also wanted to strike fear into everyone—to frighten, before the eyes of the masses, all those in the world who wished to commit adultery with demons like Xiao Yungui! I wanted their souls and spirits to tremble!"
"If I hadn't killed him that day! If I had allowed him to live for more than three days, that would have been my sin!! I would have stripped my bones and torn out my heart to question my own conscience! Then I would have smashed my head against a shrine worshiped by all the people, atoned with my death, never finding rebirth in the cycle of reincarnation! I would have remained without rebirth amid the torments of the cycle!"
The three Golden-Clad Envoys were all stunned, their expressions involuntarily moved.
"You... rebellious madman!"
"You... do you truly not fear death?!" Fang Jinyi rose in fury, his finger trembling as he pointed at Lu Jun.
Lu Jun sneered and spoke in a clear, ringing voice:
"Have you never heard the ancient sage say: 'If one hears the Dao in the morning, one may die content in the evening'?"
"I have heard the Dao. My heart shines clear! Exterminate evil to the last! Sweep all heresies from beneath heaven!"
"Life or death, I harbor no regret!!! Even regret cannot move me!!!"
"Those who slay demons, those who kill those who commit adultery with demons—I, Lu Jun, am all of them!"
"The one who wielded the golden authority that day was none other than Lu Jun!!!"
"Wield the golden authority! Wield the golden authority!"
"I am the one who wields the golden authority! I shall annihilate the demons! I shall plow through their courts! I shall scour their lairs!"
"I shall exterminate evil to the last!!!"
Before you continue