Just as those dozen or so personal guards were about to reach him,
Lin Hu stood perfectly still, a cold smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"I wanted to talk this out, but you just had to force me to fight."
As his words fell,
a majestic, suffocating saintly might burst forth from him.
White light swept out in every direction like a tangible shock wave, releasing without restraint the pressure of an early Ninth-tier Martial Saint.
"Boom!"
The dozen or so guards charging at him were sent flying by that saintly might.
The swords and blades flew from their hands and clattered to the ground.
They tumbled across the ground for several rolls before stopping, every one of them deathly pale.
Those with weaker cultivation even spat out blood and couldn't get back to their feet.
The many more guards rushing over from nearby to reinforce them all froze in place.
Their hands trembled uncontrollably around their weapons, and their legs felt as heavy as if they'd been filled with lead.
That saintly might pressed down on everyone like a mountain, making it hard even to breathe.
"N-Ninth-Rank Martial Saint?!"
Someone in the crowd cried out, their voice full of shock and disbelief.
The front courtyard of the Prefectural Governor's Mansion fell utterly silent.
Everyone looked at Lin Hu differently now.
The contempt and suspicion they'd shown before had turned to fear and awe.
Lin Hu stood with his hands behind his back.
White saintly might flowed around him as if it were tangible.
He glanced at the guards he'd sent flying, then looked at Inspector Sun Tai.
Then he spoke slowly, his voice cold.
"I am White Tiger Guard Lin Hu, serving under Prince Wu'an. I have come to Xu Province under Imperial Edict to oversee the suppression of the Demon Cult."
"Here is my token. Who still dares call me a fake?"
He displayed the token again, its purple-gold surface gleaming brightly in the light of his saintly might.
The guards around them looked at one another, seeing the same thought in each other's eyes.
How could a Ninth-Rank Martial Saint possibly forge a token and impersonate an envoy?
A person of such standing needed only to give his name for a regional power to welcome him as an honored guest.
Why would he need to impersonate anyone?
Lin Hu put away his token and continued.
"I have come under His Majesty's Imperial Edict and Prince Wu'an's military orders. Anyone who dares obstruct me is defying the Imperial Edict."
"If anyone dares lay a hand on me again—"
He paused, his voice turning even colder.
"it will be treated as treason."
"Don't blame me when I put down the rebellion."
The words "treason" and "put down the rebellion" changed every face in the courtyard.
The guards still debating whether to continue fighting hurriedly put away their weapons.
What kind of joke was this?
Attack a Ninth-Rank Martial Saint? A Ninth-Rank Martial Saint carrying out his duties under Imperial Edict, no less?
What else could that be but rebellion?
They were just ordinary guards, paid by the imperial court. They hadn't signed up to die alongside the Inspector.
Sun Tai, standing on the steps, had gone completely rigid.
His legs trembled uncontrollably, his knees knocking together with faint clicks.
The back of his official robe was soaked through with cold sweat, clinging tightly to his skin.
There wasn't a trace left of the arrogance and contempt in his narrow eyes. They were now filled with fear and panic.
A Ninth-Rank Martial Saint.
That white-haired giant... was actually a Ninth-Rank Martial Saint!
The instant that saintly might pressed down on him, he'd felt as if a towering mountain had crashed onto him.
He'd nearly stopped breathing.
And what made him even more desperate was that he'd made things worse by trying to be clever.
He'd made a complete mess of things.
He'd thought the other man was just a lackey serving under Prince Wu'an, with a cultivation level of six or seven ranks at most.
If he could seize him on the charge of "impersonating an envoy," he could delay the suppression operation.
That would give the Branch Sect hideouts concealed across Xu Province's various commanderies ample time to destroy evidence and move their people.
Once the Branch Sect had completely withdrawn, he could release the man and make up some excuse to brush the whole matter aside.
But he'd never imagined that this inconspicuous-looking white-haired giant was a genuine Ninth-Rank Martial Saint!
One of Prince Wu'an's envoys was a Ninth-Rank Martial Saint.
Who the hell could have seen that coming?!
Now look at what he'd done.
Not only had he failed to seize the man and buy time, he'd exposed himself instead.
Lord Lin Hu would surely become suspicious of him.
Should he grow suspicious, the methods of Prince Wu'an and the Demon Suppressing Division would lead them straight from the clues to Sun Tai's dealings with the Holy Demon God Sect.
He had watched with his own eyes as Qian Youde, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, was executed by slicing after a thousand cuts in court, his entire clan condemned to death.
And there were the court officials seized on the spot, each wearing an ashen expression as they were dragged from the Hall of Supreme Harmony.
Those vivid examples stood right before him.
Colluding with the Demon Cult was an unforgivable crime, punishable by the extermination of one's entire clan!
At the thought, Sun Tai felt all the blood in his body turn cold.
He forced down his fear and dropped to his knees with a thump.
The arrogance and sneer on his face had vanished completely, replaced by a fawning, ingratiating smile.
"E-Envoy, please calm down! This subordinate was blind and failed to recognize your arrival!"
He kowtowed again and again, his forehead thudding against the bricks.
"This subordinate deserves to die! I am guilty! But I was truly acting out of caution, and never meant to offend you!"
"After all, the Demon Cult is rampant these days, with spies everywhere. As Inspector of Xu Province, I have no choice but to act carefully!"
"Please, Envoy, in consideration of this subordinate's loyalty, forgive my offense just now!"
The more he spoke, the more worked up he became, until tears and snot smeared his face.
He looked nothing like the overbearing Inspector he'd been moments ago.
Lin Hu looked down at Sun Tai, kneeling before him and kowtowing like a pestle, his expression unchanged.
That reaction just now hadn't looked like he was "acting out of caution."
When an ordinary official encountered someone bearing a token, even if he suspected it was fake, he should have invited the person inside and checked it carefully.
Who would immediately try to seize him without a word? And on the most serious charge of "impersonating an envoy," at that?
That wasn't caution. That was a guilty conscience!
But there was no need to waste words on him.
Lin Hu raised his hand and sent out a streak of Spiritual Power, sealing Sun Tai's mouth.
Sun Tai's mouth hung open. He made muffled sounds in his throat, but couldn't utter a single word.
A flash of terror crossed his eyes, and he tried to struggle and say something.
Lin Hu ignored him and turned to the advisor kneeling nearby.
"You."
The advisor shuddered all over and hurriedly answered,
"Y-Yes, sir!"
Lin Hu's tone was calm but left no room for refusal.
"Go summon the Xu Province Commander-in-Chief, who oversees all the Prefectural Army in Xu Province, and the local Branch Garrison Chief Envoy of the Demon Suppressing Division."
"I have an Imperial Edict to announce."
The advisor scrambled to his feet and ran out, nearly rolling as he went.
"I'll go right away! Right away!"
As he dashed through the mansion gate, he nearly tripped over the threshold, stumbling several steps before regaining his balance.
Then he hurried off toward the Commander-in-Chief's office.
Before long,
two figures strode into the front courtyard of the Prefectural Governor's Mansion.
The one in front was a middle-aged military officer dressed in armor, broad-shouldered and rugged.
He was Han Meng, Xu Province Commander-in-Chief, a peak Seventh-Rank Grandmaster who commanded all the garrisons within Xu Province.
Following behind him was an old man in black official robes.
He was Sun Zhengyang, Xu Province's Branch Garrison Chief Envoy of the Demon Suppressing Division, a mid-Seventh-Rank Grandmaster.
The moment the two entered the courtyard, they were stunned by what they saw.
The courtyard was in shambles.
A dozen or so personal guards lay scattered across the ground, and some were still vomiting blood.
Swords and blades were strewn everywhere, their edges flashing coldly in the sunlight.
Their colleague, Xu Province Inspector Sun Tai, was kneeling before a white-haired giant, his mouth sealed and muffled sounds coming from his throat.
His expression was impossible to read as anything but fear or despair.
The advisor had already told them the gist of the matter on the way over.
The Branch Sect hideouts of the Holy Demon God Sect concealed in several commanderies and counties of Xu Province had been uncovered. The entire Great Yu had now been notified, and prominent court officials were leading local branches and stationed troops in a full-scale suppression operation.
The man in charge of the suppression in Xu Province was the white-haired giant before them: White Tiger Guard Lin Hu, serving under Prince Wu'an, the Ninth-Rank Martial Saint!
Though the advisor had already told them the most important details,
when the two men actually felt the saintly might lingering in the courtyard, they still couldn't help but shudder.
That aura was majestic, domineering, and fierce, like a primordial beast lying in wait. It sent a chill down their spines!
Han Meng and Sun Zhengyang exchanged a look, seeing the same shock in each other's eyes.
They strode forward and bowed to Lin Hu.
"This subordinate is Han Meng, Xu Province Commander-in-Chief."
"This subordinate is Sun Zhengyang, Xu Province Branch Garrison Chief Envoy of the Demon Suppressing Division."
"We pay our respects to you, Envoy!"
Lin Hu nodded in acknowledgment.
He didn't waste words. He raised his hand and sent out two streaks of Spiritual Power, sealing away all of Sun Tai's cultivation.
Sun Tai's body stiffened. He felt the Spiritual Power in his body freeze, unable to circulate at all.
He was no different from an ordinary person now.