News of the Second Portion of Blood Essence

The onlookers were all deeply shaken upon hearing this.

They heard every single word Lin Yi said, but their first reaction was almost always disbelief.

The current patriarch of the Silent Huo Family, Constant Lord Huo Yi, personally handed it over?

Who is Huo Yi?

He was one of the true pinnacle beings in the Left Silent Cosmos Domain, Constant Lord of the Constant Source Realm, and the head of the Huo Family.

By personally handing over the communication footage of his own branch of the family to the Constant Guard, wasn't he essentially sending Huo Wen to his doom?

Lin Yi had no reason to lie.

As a member of the Constant Guard, every word he uttered in front of all the experts at the Eternal Source Realm in the city represented the credibility of the Constant Guard.

If he said it was given by Huo Yi, then it must have been given by Huo Yi.

At this moment, the clan leaders, who had roughly figured out what had happened, exchanged shocked glances and a single thought simultaneously arose in their minds.

"That's really ruthless..."

Lin Yi took in the complex expressions on the faces of the family leaders.

He knew what these people were thinking.

Because at the time, that's what he thought too.

Indeed, the Constant Guard's intelligence network is formidable.

After officially becoming a member of the Constant Guard, the intelligence network he had access to was far deeper than he had previously imagined.

From intelligence points scattered throughout the major cities of the Silent Cosmos Domain, to the undercover agents infiltrating various chambers of commerce, families, and forces, and even to secret information channels that even experts at the Constant Source Realm might not know about, the Constant Guard's intelligence system is like a giant net, and almost nothing can escape its eyes.

But it's only "almost".

This network isn't powerful enough to completely infiltrate the core secrets of every family.

Therefore, this video was indeed handed to him personally by Huo Yi.

Lin Yi lowered his gaze slightly.

The top rankings in the Constant Guard assessment, the official awarding of the first rank, the internal welcome banquet, the acquaintance with colleagues... these events, though more than a hundred Epoch have passed, still feel like yesterday when recalled now.

He remembered that he had just told Li the results of the Constant Guard's assessment, and then the two of them decided to go see Commander Lainiadun together. But before they could even set off, Lainiadun came over on his own.

Lin Yi still remembers clearly the undisguised joy on Lainiadun's face.

The commander said he had just received the news from Commander Wen Qianfei and had come specifically to offer his congratulations, also conveying the commander's congratulations.

Lin Yi smiled on the surface, but in his mind he was rapidly calculating something else.

Now that the military lord has received the news, it will eventually reach Mist Sea City. As long as the Mist Sea Huo Family is not stupid, they will definitely take precautions.

Therefore, he had to suppress the Huo Family before the news reached Mist Sea City.

He immediately asked Lainiadun to help contact Lord Wen Qianfei, and then, as a newly Constant Guard, he asked Lord Wen Qianfei to convey his request to Lord Ote, hoping that the city lord's mansion could immediately seal off the Huo Family's floating island and deal with it after he returned to Mist Sea City.

Wen Qianfei agreed readily.

The attitude of this highest military commander of Mist Sea City towards him has changed significantly compared to when he was still under her command.

She clearly indicated in an attitude of equality that she would fully cooperate with the Constant Guard's actions.

Wen Qianfei specifically asked if the Imperial Army stationed in Mist Sea City needed to assist in the blockade, but he politely declined, saying that the City Lord's Mansion would suffice.

After arranging this matter properly, his original plan was simple - first, to control the Huo Family's floating island and prevent anyone from entering or leaving. After returning to Mist Sea City, he would then use the authority and resources of the Constant Guard to collect evidence of the Huo Family's crimes little by little.

Given enough time, he didn't believe he couldn't uncover enough evidence to convict him.

He had even drafted several investigation routes, planning to start with the batch of goods that were robbed from the Rui Family back then, and follow the clues to piece together the complete chain of evidence step by step.

But what he didn't expect was that he didn't need to do that at all.

After the welcome banquet within the Constant Guard ended, he exchanged contact information with his enthusiastic colleagues and then returned to the secondary crystal cluster assigned to him at his post.

As a result, he had just settled down in the cultivation room when he received a visitor notification.

Two people arrived.

One of them was Wen Xiao.

The other was a middle-aged man wearing a dark jade-colored brocade robe.

Lin Yi recognized the man at a glance.

Huo Yi, the Constant Lord of the Huo Family.

He actually paid a personal visit, accompanied by Wen Xiao.

He was extremely wary the moment he saw Huo Yi.

The fact that a Constant Lord personally visited the Constant Guard's garrison and brought Wen Xiao along was quite a grand affair.

Therefore, his first reaction was... was this a plea for compromise, a negotiation, or even an attempt to exert pressure?

The Huo Family's main branch finally made its move, faster than he had anticipated, and directly mobilized the Constant Lord.

But he wasn't afraid.

At this moment, he is in the Constant Guard's garrison. Let alone one Constant Lord, even if three Constant Lord joined forces, they would not be able to gain any advantage in the Constant Guard's stronghold.

Furthermore, if anyone dares to harm the Constant Guard Constant Guard within its territory, it would be declaring war on the entire Constant Ban system.

No family would dare to take such a risk.

So he met with his guests in a very open and generous manner.

Wen Xiao didn't say much, but after introducing himself, he naturally stepped aside, giving Huo Yi some space.

Huo Yi did not sit down.

He simply took out an information crystal and placed it directly on the table between the two of them.

Lin Constant Ban...

Lin Yi still remembered what Huo Yi had said back then, "This contains all the evidence of the crimes committed by the Mist Sea Huo Family branch that you need. They have confessed to everything themselves."

When he heard that something he had planned to go through a lot of trouble to obtain had suddenly been delivered to him, his first reaction was not surprise, but astonishment.

Yes, he was surprised.

He had considered that the main branch of the Huo Family would intervene, that Huo Yi would come up with all sorts of reasons to exonerate the Lanming branch, that someone within the Constant Guard might be asked to intercede, and even that the Huo Family might use some high-level connections to try to suppress the matter.

But to everyone's surprise, Huo Yi's personal visit brought not any explanations or pressure, but irrefutable evidence that could directly sever the Mist Sea Huo Family branch.

Huo Yi seemed to notice the surprise in his eyes.

He turned his head slightly, shifting his gaze to Wen Xiao, who was watching the scene with his arms crossed. After a moment of silence, he looked back at Lin Yi.

"Our main branch of the Huo Family was unaware of the Lanming branch's affairs beforehand. We have no intention of getting involved or protecting them."

That was a flawless statement.

Then Wen Xiao spoke up at the opportune moment.

He smiled and said, "Huo Yi Constant Lord of great principle. He took the initiative to provide the Constant Guard with evidence of the Lanming branch's crimes. This is both a respect for the imperial law and a strong support for the Constant Guard's work. The Constant Guard will remember this cooperation and trust."

Huo Yi bowed slightly to Wen Xiao.

The conversation between the two was natural and smooth, like two seasoned veterans who had dealt with each other many times completing a routine procedure they had done countless times.

They even went on to chat for a while about the recent situation in the Silent Cosmos Domain.

To be honest, seeing the two Constant Lord having such a pleasant conversation, he felt quite emotional at the time.

Clearly, in Huo Yi's eyes, those people from the Mist Sea Huo Family branch were probably not even considered expendable pawns.

As for Wen Xiao's attitude towards Huo Yi, he later figured it out.

In Wen Xiao's perception, the Ji Zuo Huo Family is clean, or at least largely clean.

That's why Wen Xiao was willing to accompany Huo Yi after learning of his visit.

That seems normal. In the Silent Left Giant City, if a family were too shady or too eccentric, they would probably have been wiped out by the Constant Guard long ago and wouldn't have survived until now.

The reason why Huo Yi was able to so readily hand over the evidence of the Lanming branch's crimes was because he believed that the main branch of the Huo Family could withstand investigation.

If you can withstand investigation, you won't be afraid of being dragged down.

Otherwise, wouldn't he become a door-to-door deliveryman?

Since the corrupt branch is the one that is not clean, handing over the branch voluntarily will not only avoid implicating the main branch, but will also earn the Constant Guard a good reputation for being righteous and understanding.

Although Huo Yi's accusation of splitting up the family business shocked him, another thing Huo Yi did left a deeper impression on him.

After accompanying Huo Yi to report the incident, Wen Xiao left immediately.

The inspector was very busy and didn't have time to linger here. If Huo Yi hadn't come in person, Wen Xiao wouldn't have made this trip.

With Wen Xiao gone, only he and Huo Yi remained.

He had assumed that Huo Yi would also take his leave shortly.

After all, the important business has been completed. A Constant Lord's time is extremely precious, and there's no need to waste any more time on this newly promoted Constant Guard.

But Huo Yi did not leave.

He stood still, then slowly began to speak.

"Lin Constant Ban."

Lin Yi remembered that Huo Yi's voice had a slow and unhurried rhythm at the time.

It felt like he was deliberating, or confirming a decision he had been preparing for. "I overheard something that might be useful to you."

He didn't say anything at the time, but simply made a gesture of listening attentively.

"The blood essence of the Misi Crimson Armor Beast, ranked ninth on the Chaos Beast Ranking..." Huo Yi said this in a very calm tone, as if he were talking about a trivial matter, "I know its whereabouts."

When he heard this, it was hard to describe his feelings in a single word.

Given Huo Yi's level of understanding and vision, he knew that Huo Yi needed this, so he wasn't surprised at all.

However, Huo Yi chose to personally hand over the evidence of the Lanming branch's crimes to him, and then tell him the news after Wen Xiao was present and witnessed the whole process... which was clearly playing a game of cat and mouse.

Generally speaking, the Constant Guard would not accept gifts from those who were not family friends, as this would be considered bribery.

Huo Yi was clearly well aware of these unspoken rules, so he didn't bring any gifts at all.

Sending the images was a voluntary act of cooperation with the investigation; it was official business.

Here's some general information about the essence blood of a chaotic beast; strictly speaking, it can't really be considered a gift.

Huo Yi only told him about it, without personally delivering the essence blood to Lin Yi or using the Huo Family's power to obtain it for him.

It's like someone telling you there's a priceless medicinal herb in a certain mountain; whether you can find it or not is up to you.

But Lin Yi was well aware of the value of this information.

Huo Yi didn't say anything more.

After briefly summarizing the key points of the information, he nodded slightly, took his leave, and departed.

He himself stood at the entrance of the secondary crystal cluster, watching Huo Yi's figure disappear into the end of the corridor deep within the Constant Guard's garrison.

He remembered staring at the now empty corridor, with only one thought in his mind.

None of these old guys are easy to deal with.

Indeed, none of them were easy to deal with.

Huo Yi played that move brilliantly.

By handing over the branch to Constant Guard, he earned a reputation for being righteous and understanding in front of Wen Xiao, and also left a favor for Lin Yi with a well-timed piece of information.

The favor wasn't large, but it was just the right amount that made it impossible to refuse.

While the Constant Guard Constant Guard from accepting gifts, it didn't say they had to refuse a piece of useful intelligence.

He had no choice but to accept this favor.

The day after Huo Yi's visit, he had a small gathering with Wen Xu and others as agreed.

During the meal, Wen Xu slapped the table and praised Lin Yi for being number one on both lists countless times. Lin Yi tried several times to change the subject but failed.

In the end, Wen Xu only calmed down after drinking too much.

Finally, he made a special trip to the core business district of Silent Left City to convert those gifts into Eternal Cosmos Crystal.

A total of over three million.

He spent over a million, of which 700,000 was used to buy Source Fusion Marrow Crystal to help Li break through to the initial stage of the Eternal Source Realm. He spent the remaining several hundred thousand on various miscellaneous items.

After arranging everything, he set off from Silent Left Giant City and returned to Mist Sea City.

And that led to what we see today.

Lin Yi took a deep breath, suppressing those surging memories back into his heart.

Huo Wen remained kneeling in the void, firmly suppressed by the power of the Blue-Armored Machine Servant's laws.

His face was as pale as paper, his lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but he couldn't even muster the strength to speak.

The six clan elders behind him also knelt in a row, their faces ashen.

"Huo Wen, and his six accomplices," Lin Yi said slowly. "They raised pirates and robbed merchant ships. Huo Wen himself confessed to these crimes in the interrogation video; the evidence is irrefutable."

With each word he spoke, Huo Wen's body sank a little further down.

By the time he finished speaking, Huo Wen couldn't even lift his head.

"According to the law, he shall be executed."

The moment the word "execution" left Lin Yi's mouth, the surroundings fell silent.

Although everyone knew that Huo Wen would not get away with this today, when Lin Yi actually uttered the word "execution" in public, everyone present still felt a chill.

A family head who was close to the High Order of the Eternal Source Realm, and who had the backing of a family in the Constant Source Realm, was sentenced to death in public.

After Lin Yi finished speaking, he gently waved his right hand downwards.

Upon receiving the order, the Blue-Armored Machine Servant standing behind Huo Wen silently raised its hand, covered in dark blue armor, and then slapped it down from above Huo Wen's head.

Almost simultaneously, ten silver-armored Mechanical Servants also made their move.

Their figures flashed through the void, then re-formed behind each of the Huo Family elders who were forced to kneel.

The six muffled sounds almost overlapped, and the ripples of the six laws collapsing spread in all directions in the void.

But at that moment, Lin Yi's brows suddenly furrowed slightly.

Not only him, but all the experts at the Eternal Source Realm present also sensed that something was wrong.

"One escaped," Lord Ote was the first to speak.

"One did escape," Chief Barnes said in a deep voice. "One of them wasn't the Main Body."

Lin Yi noticed it as well.

The Huo Family elder named Huo Han did not exhibit the unique soul fluctuations characteristic of someone Main Body had perished.

Lin Yi sighed softly to himself.

He wasn't too surprised by the result.

While it is generally true that cultivators with families would place their Main Body in the relatively safest family stronghold, there are always exceptions, and clearly, Huo Han's Main Body was not on the Huo Family's floating island.

There's nothing we can do about it.

The vast majority of those pirates who roamed the Chaos Cosmic Sea without restraint, and those elusive and mysterious forces, originated from this.

After they committed the crime, they weren't Main Body immediately, so they remained wanted criminals.

Even the Constant Guard could not completely prevent this situation.

But he still had to do what he was supposed to do.

"Huo Han, a former branch elder of the Huo Family, is Main Body at large," Lin Yi said slowly. "He will be added to the empire's wanted list effective immediately."

Lord Ote was the first to respond, "The City Lord's Mansion will fully cooperate in the arrest."

Barnes quickly added, "The Barnes Family will report it immediately once they discover any trace of him."

The heads of the other families also expressed their opinions, and no one dared to hesitate even slightly at this critical juncture.

Lin Yi nodded, his gaze sweeping over the pale-faced members of the Huo Family Huo Family on the floating island.

"As for the remaining branches of the Huo Family... they will be handed over to the City Lord's Mansion for a thorough investigation."

After dealing with all of this, Lin Yi turned around.

His gaze swept over the group of the Eternal Source Realm present.

"Gentlemen... the matter concerning the Huo Family is settled. But there's one thing I want to say here."

The area around the floating island was completely silent.

"If similar incidents occur in any of your clans, please conduct your own investigations during this period. Those who voluntarily confess are always better than those I find out."

A chill ran through everyone at the same time.

That couldn't be clearer.

Lin Yi's trip to Mist Sea City this time was not just for the Huo Family, or rather, the Huo Family was just the first one.

"I will be staying temporarily at the Mist Sea Imperial Army base." Lin Yi finished speaking, then revealed a faint smile, a smile that held a hint of reassurance yet nonetheless kept everyone on edge. "I hope everyone can save me some trouble."

Seeing the atmosphere was a bit cold, Ote stepped forward to smooth things over, saying, "Lord Lin, the matter of the Huo Family has been resolved, and Mist Sea City has been rid of a major scourge. The City Lord's Mansion plans to hold a welcome banquet as a way for all sectors of Mist Sea City to express their welcome to your return, my lord. What do you think, my lord?"

Lin Yi smiled slightly and shook his head. "There's no need for a welcome banquet. I appreciate Lin Yi Ote's kindness. However, I'm here to play the villain. If the villain attends the banquet, I'm afraid no one will be able to eat or drink."

Ote paused for a moment, then laughed along and stopped insisting.

Soon, the leaders of various families and forces took their leave one after another, their minds heavy with worries.

Ote was the last to leave.

He walked up to Lin Yi, his face no longer bearing the enthusiastic smile he had displayed in official circles, but instead showing more sincerity.

"Lord Lin," he bowed slightly, "The City Lord's Mansion was inadequate in handling those matters back then, and we apologize again."

Lin Yi knew what he meant.

Back when the Huo Family was putting increasing pressure on the Rui Family, the City Lord's Mansion chose to stand by and do nothing.

Ote was acknowledging him and also showing him goodwill.

"Lord Ote, you flatter me," Lin Yi said with a smile. "The past is the past. From now on, Mist Sea City will still need the City Lord's Mansion to maintain it."

Ote raised his head, met Lin Yi's gaze for a moment, and then nodded.

He didn't say anything more, turned around and boarded the flagship of the city lord's mansion.

The city guards' Flying Shuttle formation also descended onto the floating island, beginning to escort other members of the Huo Family's branches back for inspection.

The cultivators who had been watching from afar dispersed as the grand spectacle came to an end, leaving behind only a cacophony of discussions that lingered long under the dark purple sky of Mist Sea City.

The area outside the floating island gradually became empty.

The Blue-Armored Machine Servant, along with ten silver-armored Mechanical Servants, stood in formation behind Lin Yi, while several others remained in front of them.

Ruizhan remained standing there, with Ruituan and several elders of the Rui Family behind him.

He took a deep breath and stepped forward.

"Master Lin."

Ruizhan's voice sounded a little strained, but he quickly composed himself.

He said slowly, "The Rui Family wishes to invite you, sir, to the floating island. Our Rui Family will conduct a thorough investigation to ensure that we do not hinder you, sir."

In Ruizhan's words, he addressed "Lord Lin" with extreme respect, as if he were adhering to the etiquette of a formal occasion.

Lin Yi, on the other hand, was looking at Ruizhan.

Then, he suddenly laughed.

That was the first real smile he had shown since arriving in Mist Sea City that day.

"What Lord Lin?" he said. "Just call me Lin Yi."