Fury Dares to Drag an Immortal Down

Chapter 44: A Rage That Dares to Drag an Immortal Down to Earth

Zi Bofeng's rapid-fire string of words was so sharp and quick, where was the slightest hint of drunkenness? The Chief Clerk cast a strange look at the Prefect. How could the Prefect possibly know this Zi Bofeng so well?

After hearing Zi Bofeng out, Feijianzi's expression remained unmoved. He smiled faintly and said, "Great floods and droughts are natural disasters. As practitioners of the Dao, we must embody the heart of Heaven and act in accordance with the laws of the universe. As for the rampant bandits, those are worldly matters of the mortal realm; you have asked the wrong person. My Bird-Mouse Temple protects this region, subduing demons and upholding the Heavenly Dao—that is the duty of a cultivator. As for those injured because of me, I naturally harbor apologies in my heart."

Apologies in his heart? A surge of wicked fire rushed straight to the top of Zi Bofeng's head, making his very hair feel as though it were standing on end.

If Feijianzi had tried to play dumb, denied it, or done anything else, Zi Bofeng wouldn't have been this angry. But this single phrase, "apologies in my heart," made Zi Bofeng's fury erupt. What was this supposed to be? What a predictably noble and aloof response!

In that moment, fueled by both rage and alcohol, his emotions finally spiraled out of control.

It wasn't just anger; it was an indescribable urge. He wanted to smash his fist into that smiling face before him, to drive the man's nose into his mouth and his mouth into his stomach!

He grinned, like a beast that had finally locked onto its prey. His pupils constricted as he stared fixedly at Feijianzi: "You just said, 'subduing demons'? When have the Daoists of your Bird-Mouse Temple ever actually subdued a demon?"

Feijianzi's expression turned stern. "Over a decade ago, when my senior brother descended the mountain to collect the Jade Tax, he heard that a Luo Fish was wreaking havoc by the Yang River. With one man and one sword, he slew and subdued it, sparing the mortal world a great catastrophe. Is that not protecting the region?"

Speaking of the senior brother he respected most, Feijianzi felt a sense of longing, and his tone grew exceptionally grave.

"Ha..." Zi Bofeng laughed. But after that single sound, he turned around and, with a retching noise, vomited.

He truly vomited. The wine, meat, and vegetables he had consumed, mixed with stomach acid and bile, splattered all over the ground.

Feijianzi quietly stepped back, frowning. "You are drunk. I will not hold this against you today, but if you dare to show disrespect to my senior brother again, I shall grant you a taste of my sword."

The boy before him gave him such a strange feeling—he vaguely resembled his own past self—which was why he hadn't drawn his blade immediately.

"Hahahaha..." Wiping his mouth with his sleeve, completely abandoning all decorum, Zi Bofeng threw his head back and laughed, as if he had just heard the greatest joke in the world.

"You say over a decade ago, by the Yang River, a Luo Fish?"

"That is correct. Over a decade ago, by the Yang River, a Luo Fish," Feijianzi said sternly, his patience wearing thin.

Zi Bofeng suddenly stopped laughing.

He stood up straight, no longer swaying, and stared intensely at Feijianzi: "Feijianzi, do you know my surname?"

"Surname Zi?" Feijianzi frowned slightly. He was losing his patience; it was only thanks to the cultivation of the mind that he had maintained his composure this long.

"That's right, my surname is Zi," Zi Bofeng said in a low voice. "Zi is not a common surname. Within a thousand miles, there is only one place where people bear it: Zi Village by the Yang River. The entire village had three hundred and eighty-three people, not one more, not one less. But now, there are fewer than ten people with the surname Zi left within a thousand miles, and one of them is me, Zi Bofeng. This is all thanks to your esteemed senior brother."

Zi Bofeng lifted his head, lost in memory. He no longer cared about consequences or trouble; he only wanted to pour out everything in his heart. How many people in this world knew the truth?

"The Luo Fish lived in my Zi Village. Back then, I read and wrote by the Yang River every day. The Luo Fish kept me company, listening to me recite poetry. When there was a drought, it would summon clouds and rain; when there was flooding, it would divert the water into the river. It lived in harmony with the villagers of Zi Village. But one day, a demonic Daoist arrived, claiming to be from Bird-Mouse Mountain..."

"Silence!" Feijianzi's flying sword hovered in the air, aimed directly at Zi Bofeng. "Say one more word, and I shall strike you down!"

"Quick, pull him back!" The Prefect was horrified and immediately gave the order. Though their legs were trembling, several soldiers rushed forward.

"Stay where you are!" Zi Bofeng held out a hand to stop the approaching soldiers, his eyes locked on Feijianzi.

The handsome, refined young cultivator now wore a savage expression; he truly wanted to kill Zi Bofeng on the spot.

"That Daoist back then was just like you are now—outwardly dignified and righteous, but inwardly filled with filth." Zi Bofeng seemed afraid that he wasn't provoking Feijianzi enough. "You can kill me, and you can kill everyone else who knows the truth—there are only ten of us left, anyway. But can you go back and kill your demonic senior brother?"

As the saying goes, wine is the courage of heroes. After vomiting, the alcohol hit Zi Bofeng even harder, and he was now truly filled with righteous indignation.

Zi Bofeng closed his eyes and recounted everything he had witnessed, sentence by sentence—the sky-high floods, the look of despair, and the Daoist who possessed the grace of an immortal but hid such corruption within...

After finishing, Zi Bofeng opened his eyes and looked at Feijianzi.

He didn't know Feijianzi's age, but he realized that this man possessed the naivety of a young boy.

"You... you are spouting nonsense!" That was the only rebuttal Feijianzi could muster.

"You can believe I'm spouting nonsense, but you can go and ask around. When has Zi Bofeng ever told a lie?" Zi Bofeng gave a cold laugh. "If you still don't believe me, you can go see for yourself. Two hundred miles east of Meng City, at the foot of Gui Mountain, on the sunny side of the Yang Water—there were seven or eight villages there, and Zi Village was just one of them. You can ask around in the vicinity to see what the truth really is. I might be able to deceive you, but I cannot deceive the entire world."

After hearing Zi Bofeng's words, Feijianzi was already seventy or eighty percent convinced.

He knew that for the sake of the sect, his senior brother would sacrifice anything and do anything; such a thing was well within his capabilities. However, he refused to believe it.

Furthermore, this did not mean he was swayed by Zi Bofeng.

He had never forgotten Zi Bofeng's true objective.

"You say all this just to keep me from collecting the Jade Tax?" Feijianzi sneered. "I, Feijianzi, was sent down the mountain with a mission; there is no reason to abandon it halfway. If you are harboring such wishful thinking, you might as well give up. You ask me, Feijianzi, by what right I collect the Jade Tax? Then I will tell you plainly."

Feijianzi stood tall, looking down on Zi Bofeng with contempt, and said word by word: "By this sword of mine!"

The three-foot-long sword hovered in the air before him, pointing straight at Zi Bofeng. A single thought from Feijianzi would be enough to pierce through his body.

But Zi Bofeng stood even straighter. The fire of rage burning in his heart had made him forget fear.

"I thought I was reasoning with a man, but I was merely playing the lute to a cow." Zi Bofeng turned to leave. After a few steps, he paused and said coldly: "In this world, there is more than just this one sword."

Feijianzi's sword vibrated in the air, but in the end, he did not strike from behind.

Then I shall prove you wrong! Feijianzi shouted in his heart. He had accused Zi Bofeng of wishful thinking, but in truth, the one harboring such thoughts was himself.

"Ah, ah..." Seeing Zi Bofeng walk away, Tauxue looked back at Feijianzi, then at Zi Bofeng, and trotted after him, rubbing its head against Zi Bofeng's shoulder.

Feijianzi scanned his surroundings coldly. How could the people hiding in corners, behind rocks, and in the bushes escape his notice? He said coldly: "Three months is the deadline. I will collect the Jade Tax. If the time passes, you shall taste my sword!"

The crowd was silent as cicadas in winter; even the Prefect's face turned pale.

Feijianzi turned and entered his small courtyard. The gate slammed shut with a bang, and he was seen no more.

Only then did the two soldiers step forward to support Zi Bofeng, grumbling in low voices: "Scholar, what kind of madness has taken hold of you..."

The Chief Clerk also shook his head, disapproving of Zi Bofeng's methods.

The Prefect sighed; Zi Bofeng was still too impulsive. Before, it had only been testing the waters, but later on, the fellow was truly risking his own life.

However, the secret Zi Bofeng had revealed today had solved a long-standing mystery for the Prefect. It was precisely from over a decade ago that a township under the jurisdiction of Mengcheng Prefecture had been nearly wiped off the map by a great flood. The floodwaters had raged for over a year, causing immeasurable losses and dealing a fatal blow to Mengcheng's already strained finances.

In the aftermath, the displaced populace had led to bandits running rampant everywhere and frequent chaos. Fortunately, the Prefect at the time had broken the household registration system, allowing the refugees to settle down where they were, which had temporarily curbed the disorder. Yet, the impact from that time had not dissipated even by the time this current Prefect took office. Once chaos erupts, it is difficult to govern again; this had indirectly prompted the Prefect to commission the Academy to select talented individuals, which in turn created the current Village Head of Lower Yan, Zi Bofeng. And now, Zi Bofeng stood before the Prefect, tearing the truth wide open.

Fate is truly wondrous; every sip and every bite is perhaps predestined.

Yet, the Prefect's appreciation for Zi Bofeng only grew.

Although he was a bit reckless, he possessed courage, strategy, and a sense of responsibility. Such young men were becoming increasingly rare these days.

In the midst of his eloquent argument, his momentum had actually managed to suppress even Feijianzi.

But strength is strength; eloquence alone cannot change anything.

This world is just that cruel.

The Chief Clerk shook his head and sighed on the sidelines, and the Prefect, after glancing at him, sighed in his heart as well.

This Chief Clerk was something of a local tyrant, having served since the previous Prefect's tenure. He was capable of maintaining the status quo but lacked the vision for expansion, and when it came to the matter of the Jade Tax, he was of no help at all, acting as if he would let the tall ones handle it if the sky were to fall. Although Zi Bofeng was a bit reckless, he had at least managed to extract a preliminary deadline.

Three months was actually quite generous—generous enough for the Prefect to arrange a few things.

"Take Bofeng to rest, serve him well, and tell me as soon as he sobers up," the Prefect ordered. "No one is to speak of today's events to outsiders; violators will be executed immediately!"

The crowd looked at each other in shock. The courtyard where Feijianzi resided was already secluded, and since Feijianzi's arrival, no idlers dared to approach. Those nearby now were either people of status or the Prefect's trusted confidants, and upon hearing this, they all bowed in trembling obedience.

Yet, the tale of Zi Bofeng cursing Feijianzi still managed to spread.

Record of Raising Monsters