If You Stand Up for the Provocateur Again, You Will Be the Next One Lying in There

Xu Jin halted and looked back.

Several figures raced over along the riverbank. The young man in green robes at their head wore a cold, arrogant expression. From several yards away, he raised his voice, his tone carrying the imperious force of a command.

"Inspector Xu, hold!"

"Shen Ze, official demon-slaying envoy of the Provincial Prefecture's Western Office, has come under orders to provide reinforcement!"

The group ran up and stopped nearby.

Shen Ze's gaze swept over the wreckage of the ritual altar along the bank and the black water stains carpeting the ground before settling on Xu Jin. His brows furrowed slightly, his eyes carrying a trace of scrutiny and disdain.

He had assumed Xu Jin would already be overwhelmed, unable to hold the situation together. Yet Xu Jin appeared utterly composed, leaving the speech Shen Ze had prepared to take command caught in his throat.

"A breach in a mid-grade Yin Domain is no trivial matter."

Shen Ze cleared his throat and spoke with his chin lifted, his tone naturally carrying the arrogance of a scion of a great clan.

"You are merely a probationary inspector and have never received orthodox training in handling Yin Domains. If you keep stubbornly holding on, you'll only make this mess worse."

"From this moment onward, I will assume command here. Stand aside and await orders."

Xu Jin's brow did not so much as twitch after hearing him out.

Command?

He could talk about who was in command after Xu Jin had beheaded Altar Master Zhou and sealed the Yin Domain.

He could not be bothered to waste words on him. With a tap of his toes, his body became a streak of golden light as he leapt straight into the river running through the side passage.

Black waves surged and swallowed him in an instant.

Everyone on the bank was stunned.

Shen Ze's face darkened. He had not expected Xu Jin to disregard him so completely—not even deigning to answer before simply jumping into the river and leaving.

He stared at the roiling surface and let out a cold laugh, his anger flaring instead.

"Hah. What an uncouth country bumpkin."

"He must know he has made a disastrous mess and has no grounds to answer me, so he deliberately hid inside the Yin Domain to avoid the heat."

The old inspector beside him hurriedly echoed his words.

"That must be it! What could a probationary inspector possibly know about a mid-grade Yin Domain? He probably stumbled in blindly and made things worse, and now he's hiding because he's afraid of being held responsible."

"Lord Shen, you came at just the right time. When he comes out, you must properly discipline him. That wild, unorthodox way of doing things will drag all of us down sooner or later!"

Standing with his hands behind his back, Shen Ze looked out at the river, the arrogance on his face deepening.

"When he comes out, I will naturally correct his improper methods according to the rules."

"A mid-grade Yin Domain involves the earth-vein pill furnace. The Containment Faction has its own established methods; it cannot be resolved by relying on a brute's courage to slaughter a few small fry."

"His wipe-them-all-out approach will only destroy the pill furnace's inheritance and throw the Yin Domain into even greater turmoil."

Squad Leader Zhang Yao stood nearby, frowning as he tried to smooth things over.

"Lord Shen, please calm your anger. Inspector Xu has held out alone for so long and kept the Yin Domain from spreading onto the shore. That is no easy feat. We can ask about the situation once he comes out."

Shen Ze snorted and said nothing.

In his eyes, Xu Jin had lasted this long only because his yang-aspected cultivation art countered yin. He had merely guarded the chokepoint and cut down a few low-level water puppets.

If he had truly encountered someone like Altar Master Zhou, he would probably have fled long ago.

Once Xu Jin came crawling out in disgrace, Shen Ze could smoothly take over command and show these lowly inspectors what the methods of an orthodox Evil-Refining clan truly looked like.

Boom—

The river's surface suddenly exploded, sending black waves several yards high into the air.

The tremendous blast shook loose stones from the embankment as white mist billowed upward.

A figure in black stepped out atop the waves. His black robes were held aloft by astral force, not a drop of water touching them.

Xu Jin held a bloody head in his left hand, his body still wreathed in lingering pure-yang golden radiance and blood-soaked Baleful Intent.

His wet black hair clung to the side of his forehead. His profile was hard and cold as his indifferent gaze swept across those on the bank.

The discussion onshore abruptly died.

When the old inspector saw the face on that severed head, he sharply sucked in a breath. His feet instinctively shuffled backward, and all color drained from his face.

Zhang Yao's pupils contracted as his heart dropped heavily.

Zhou Qing?

That was the master of Profound Yin Hall's Green-Mud Ferry branch altar, a yin cultivator at the early Grandmaster realm!

How long had Xu Jin been down there?

He had actually beheaded him?

Shen Ze froze where he stood, staring fixedly at the severed head with a blank mind.

Impossible.

How could a probationary inspector at the eighth level of the Insight Realm kill Altar Master Zhou, an early Grandmaster?

Altar Master Zhou must have already been badly wounded, and Xu Jin had merely exploited the opening to pick up the spoils!

Xu Jin landed back on the bank and casually tossed the head aside.

It rolled several times before stopping right at Shen Ze's toes.

Xu Jin looked up at Shen Ze, one brow slightly raised.

"You wanted to assume command?"

Shen Ze abruptly came to his senses, shocked and furious.

Forcibly suppressing the turmoil in his heart, he formed a hand seal and summoned the Evil-Refining Seal from his chest.

Black light blazed. The seal hovered before him—his most prized inherited treasure, and the source of his confidence in daring to take over this situation.

"Impudence!"

"I am an official demon-slaying envoy of the Western Office, a direct descendant of the Evil-Refining Shen Clan!"

"You killed the leader of the evil cultivators without authorization, cutting off the clues needed to track down the remaining members and their inheritance. You have ruined the Containment Faction's grand plan, and you still dare speak disrespectfully to me?"

Before his words had even faded, Xu Jin flicked his finger.

A streak of sword qi tore through the air and struck the seal squarely in its center.

Clang—

The piercing ring of metal striking metal rang out.

Shen Ze felt an immense force surge wildly through the seal. The web between his thumb and forefinger split open at once, blood streaming down through his fingers.

The seal's light dimmed sharply, fine cracks spreading over its surface as the backlash rushed into his meridians.

"Puh—"

He staggered back several steps. Then his knees gave way, and one knee crashed heavily into the mud.

"Your inherited seal is nothing special."

Xu Jin stood with his hands behind his back, looking down at him.

"You wanted to pick up the spoils?"

"You do not even have the skill for that."

Seeing Shen Ze suffer a loss, the old inspector at the side relied on their numbers and forced himself to step forward to support him.

The instant he took a step, Xu Jin casually brushed his sleeve.

A blast of astral force swept over.

The old inspector cried, "Aiyo!" and flew backward, crashing into the reeds a dozen feet away. He could not get up for a long while.

The remaining inspectors were so frightened that they fell silent as cicadas in winter, not daring even to raise their heads.

"Inspector Xu, please calm your anger! Please!"

Squad Leader Zhang Yao hurried forward, bowing as he shielded Shen Ze with his body. Cold sweat beaded across his forehead.

"We are all colleagues, all here to reinforce the fight against evil! Lord Shen is young and hot-blooded, and his words were unguarded. He never intended to offend you! Please be magnanimous and show mercy!"

Xu Jin cast him a glance.

"The restraint of the strong has never been capital for the weak to provoke them at will."

"The Demon Suppression Bureau defends the land and eradicates evil through demon-slaying achievements, not clan pedigree, and certainly not by wagging tongues behind people's backs."

"If he dared disparage me, he had better be prepared to bear the consequences."

"You stepped forward to speak fairly, so I will give you face and not make things difficult for you."

"But if you stand up for someone who provokes me again, you will be the next one lying there."

Zhang Yao swallowed, cold sweat instantly soaking his back.

He had long heard of Molten-Gold Yama's fierce reputation.

But only after witnessing it today did he understand that the rumors had not exaggerated in the least—if anything, they had held back.

This man was ruthless toward evil cultivators, and he showed not the slightest indulgence toward his own people either.

Yet the reason was indeed on Xu Jin's side—Shen Ze had been the one to disparage him behind his back, only to be caught red-handed.

The old inspector in the reeds had long since fallen silent, holding back even his groans.

Shen Ze knelt on the ground, his fingers digging into the mud.

Humiliation, resentment, and rage were all slowly crushed down before the absolute disparity in strength.

He knew full well that Xu Jin had held back with that strike.

Had Xu Jin truly intended to kill him, he would already be a corpse.

He drew a deep breath, lowered his head, and spoke hoarsely, with none of his prior arrogance remaining.

"It was I, Shen, who was arrogant. I did not know Inspector Xu's true capabilities and spoke recklessly."

"I accept the punishment."

"I beg Inspector Xu for forgiveness."