Demonfiends, Ghosts, and Gentry Shared Rule of the Realm

Leaving Happiness Street and entering Wanping Street was like turning off a boiling kettle; the clamor vanished.

Zheng Hui said, "Everyone coming and going on this street is either rich or noble. Who knows which high official or marquis each shop relies on? Be careful. Times have changed. We Night Guards have to keep our tails tucked between our legs. Qingxian, you're the youngest and the most prone to acting on impulse, but this old brother has to advise you: the waters in the eastern district of the Divine Capital run deep, with dragons coiled and tigers crouching. This isn't the outer district where you could run wild as a child."

"Captain Zheng, rest assured. Over these past six months in the Night Guard, I've gradually gotten the hang of things. If I still didn't improve, I'd truly have lived for nothing," Li Qingxian said, then sighed softly.

"You really came at the wrong time. Back then, at the sight of these brocade uniforms, even Upper Three Ranks officials wouldn't dare show their fangs. Now we're worse off than the Military and Horse Bureau. Sigh..." Zheng Hui sighed.

Wanping Street in the early morning was paved with neat bluestone slabs. Pedestrians were sparse, the taverns and flower towers still shut, while only the shops selling goods had their doors wide open.

As the party of four passed by, shopkeepers and clerks from many stores took the initiative to greet them, grinning as they called Zheng Black "Brother Zheng."

Some acquaintances gave them food. Zheng Hui normally refused, but today he accepted some peanuts, crisp cakes, osmanthus cakes, and other snacks. Han Anbo did not eat snacks, so he gave them to Li Qingxian and Yu Ping.

Yu Ping's eyes narrowed into slits with delight as he ate to his heart's content, secretly thanking Li Qingxian. "Stay sick a few more days. This is all thanks to you."

Li Qingxian glanced at the snacks in his hand and asked, "You don't like osmanthus cakes?"

"I like them too much. I can't bear to eat them, so I'm saving them to savor slowly." Yu Ping carefully stroked the packet of osmanthus cakes.

Before long, they passed Liu's Fengxiang Silk Shop.

Two burly men dressed in black, short martial outfits stood at the entrance. They gave the four a cold look before turning their gazes elsewhere.

After walking a few steps, Zheng Hui said in a low voice, "The Liu's on the signboard is gone. There's a blood-red rose beneath it now. The Demon Sect must have just stamped it there. Poor Old Liu."

Han Anbo sighed and shook his head.

Wanping Street was cold and deserted in the morning. Near the end of the street, a faint fragrance of wine drifted through the air.

Zheng Hui sniffed hard and looked toward Flower Sea Tower.

A grand three-story wooden building towered ahead, its clerks wiping down the large red lanterns hanging everywhere.

At the lower right corner of the Flower Sea Tower plaque above the main entrance was the unmistakable inscription of Xu Ziping, founding prime minister of the dynasty.

Unlike other establishments, the wine banner before this one was bordered in scarlet and yellow. Only shops the Emperor had visited could fly such a banner.

Two wine streamers swayed gently before the tower. The right one read, "Brewing wines of spring, summer, autumn, and winter," while the left read, "Drunk are people from east, west, south, and north."

Zheng Hui could not help glancing at Li Qingxian. "Last time, you said that once you advanced to Tenth Rank, or I advanced to Ninth Rank, you'd buy me a jar of Flower Sea Strong Brew. Don't forget."

"When that day truly comes, I'll pawn my Night Blade if I have to, but I'll buy you a jar," Li Qingxian said.

"Fine, I'll wait. We Martial Cultivators who've entered the ranks find those yellow wines bland and tasteless. We need strong liquor like Flower Sea Strong Brew! Sadly, it's too expensive," Zheng Hui said.

Li Qingxian recalled that his father, Li Gangfeng, occasionally drank yellow wine as well. Great Qi seemed to have very little strong liquor, and even when it did, production was extremely limited.

At the end of Wanping Street, Zheng Hui stopped before Zhao's Clothing Shop.

"Check your weapons."

All four drew their blades and inspected them for cracks and chips.

"You all brought your whistles, right?" Zheng Hui took a bamboo whistle from the leather belt at his right side.

Li Qingxian also took out his whistle. It had long been tied to his belt with a strip of cloth, opposite the Deer-and-Crane Jade Pendant.

"We split into two groups. Blow the whistle if anything happens! Qingxian, let's go."

At that moment, a carriage came toward them. A black flag atop it bore a white embroidered character for "Night," and it suddenly stopped ahead of them.

Behind the carriage stood four Night Guard soldiers with hands on their sword hilts, glaring like tigers eyeing prey.

"Street Patrol Office?"

An off-white gauze curtain was flipped outward from within the carriage. A middle-aged man with three wisps of beard leaned out, revealing his brocade official robe.

Li Qingxian and the other three focused their gazes. The rank badge on his official robe bore a majestic leopard, its four edges trimmed with gold thread.

Principal Seventh Rank.

"Captain Zheng Hui of Squad A-Nine pays respects to Chief Pang," Zheng Hui said, stepping forward and bowing with clasped fists.

Li Qingxian and the other three immediately lowered their heads slightly in salute.

"I remember now. Zheng Black, right?" Pang Mingjing rested his right arm on the carriage window, smiling.

"Yes, my lord," Zheng Hui said.

"I'm going to Ministry of Revenue Street to collect arrears. I need someone young and quick-witted. You... you there. Follow along." Pang Mingjing pointed at Li Qingxian, then pointed behind the carriage.

The instant he heard "Ministry of Revenue Street," Li Qingxian's heart gave a violent leap.

The expressions of Zheng Hui and the other two changed slightly. Zheng Hui froze, while Han Anbo stepped half a pace forward. "Reporting to Lord Pang, Li Qingxian has not recovered from a serious illness and needs to return to see Doctor Sun. Lord Zhou specifically instructed us to look after him."

"Oh?" The smile vanished from Pang Mingjing's face, and his gaze turned cold.

Zheng Hui plastered on a smile. "Lord Pang, Li Qingxian is a reckless brute, not quick-witted at all. Why not take me instead? Rest assured, I possess Tenth Rank strength at any rate."

Pang Mingjing swept his gaze over the four, then crooked a finger at Zheng Hui.

Zheng Hui hurried several steps forward, stopping beneath the carriage window. He lowered his head slightly, his hands hanging at his sides.

"Tenth Rank. How imposing." Pang Mingjing extended his fair right hand and lightly patted Zheng Hui's shoulder three times.

"This subordinate would not dare." Zheng Hui lowered his head further.

"The status of our Finance Office worsens with every passing day," Pang Mingjing sighed.

A cold wind swept past. Not a crow cawed, not a sparrow chirped.

Of the Night Guard's eighteen departments, the Finance Office held authority over all Night Guard finances. It was the true number-one department of the Night Guard.

Zheng Hui raised his head, about to speak.

Hiss, hiss, hiss...

A piercing sound came from all around Zheng Hui. His clothes abruptly swelled and split open in dense webs of tears. A moment later, his garments exploded, scraps of cloth flying everywhere.

Zheng Hui was completely uninjured, but his clothes had become shredded strips hanging from his body, trembling in the wind and unable to conceal his dark skin.

Everyone was too stunned for words.

Pedestrians and shopkeepers in the distance pointed at him, bursts of mocking laughter carrying over.

A crimson flush spread across Zheng Hui's dark face, staining his entire neck red.

Li Qingxian clenched his teeth hard.

"Will you come, or will he?" Pang Mingjing asked.

Zheng Hui hunched his back and clasped his fists. "Li Qingxian is the son of Lord Li Gangfeng, and Lord Zhou Chunfeng has specifically looked after him. He is seriously ill at present and cannot conveniently go. But this lowly one is willing to serve you like a dog or horse, my lord."

Li Qingxian looked at Zheng Black, who usually nagged so much, and warmth surged through his heart.

Pang Mingjing seemed taken aback. A moment later, he tossed something out with his right hand.

With a smack, it landed at Zheng Hui's feet.

Li Qingxian looked over, and his entire body went rigid.

Wood grain. The shape of a command token. Black background, golden characters.

No!

A clear memory surfaced in Li Qingxian's mind. This was a Night Guard command token. Once it was invoked, its holder could directly execute anyone below Ninth Rank.

No one would produce a Gold-Character Command Token for an ordinary soldier.

Pang Mingjing had come prepared!

Zheng Hui lowered his head to stare at the Gold-Character Command Token. His mouth opened, his fists clenched tightly, veins bulging from his forehead, yet he could not force out a word.

Suddenly, a shrill whistle sounded.

Li Qingxian turned and saw Yu Ping with a bamboo whistle in his mouth, alternating long and short notes—the Night Guard's call for aid.

"Disarm them!"

At Pang Mingjing's command, the four powerful Night Guard soldiers behind the carriage rushed over. They seized Yu Ping's whistle and removed the whistles from Li Qingxian's and Han Anbo's waists as well.

Li Qingxian looked at Yu Ping. Yu Ping grinned. "When you have money later, remember to treat me to mutton soup. Don't be as stingy as Captain Zheng."

Inside the carriage, Pang Mingjing slowly took out a copper whistle and blew it three times, each blast three long notes followed by one short.

The alarm was lifted.

The smile on Yu Ping's face froze.

Pang Mingjing turned to Li Qingxian, smiling. "Will you come, or will those three?"

"We three will!" Zheng Hui suddenly raised his head beside the carriage, stared straight at Pang Mingjing, and stepped forward half a pace.

Han Anbo and Yu Ping stepped forward in unison.

Pang Mingjing frowned slightly. Zheng Hui's dark face was rather grating to the eye.

Li Qingxian looked at his three teammates, sighed, and said, "I'll go with you, my lord. It's only that I haven't recovered from my serious illness, so I walk slowly."

"No matter. Sit beside me."

Li Qingxian's expression turned even colder. "Since my lord is so gracious, this subordinate would be rude to decline. Captain Zheng, Vice-Captain Han, Yu Ping, return now. I'll accompany Lord Pang on this trip."

"Qingxian!" Zheng Hui barked.

Li Qingxian acted as though he had not heard. He picked up the Gold-Character Command Token and walked toward the carriage.

Reaching the carriage door, Li Qingxian stopped, waved behind his back at the three men, and climbed inside.

The curtain fell.

"To Ministry of Revenue Street."

The carriage rumbled forward.

Suddenly, Han Anbo shouted, "At the Ministry of Revenue, propriety comes first. There can be no carelessness!"

"Bastard!" Zheng Hui gritted his teeth.

Yu Ping clenched his right hand so tightly that he crushed the osmanthus cake.

Han Anbo drew a deep breath. "Now is not the time to stand around in a daze! That Pang Mingjing is the chief of the Finance Section within the Finance Office, high in position and weighty in power, as well as a trusted confidant of the Finance Office's Director. This is no longer something we can resolve. Captain Zheng, you and Yu Ping must immediately return to the Night Guard Yamen and find Lord Zhou. He is an upright man; he cannot possibly stand by and watch Lord Li Gangfeng's son die without clarity. If you cannot find him, find Lord Zhou Hen. He will surely know where Lord Zhou is. Aside from Lord Zhou, no one can save Little Li now. If all else fails, strike the Night Guard Alarm Drum."

"I'll strike it!" Yu Ping said.

"What about you?" Zheng Hui asked.

Han Anbo sighed, looking at the carriage receding into the distance. "I'll follow from afar and adapt to the circumstances."

Zheng Hui's throat bobbed. He took a deep breath and said, "You've always been clever. This time too, you must... take care."

"I'm a Night Guard. So is Little Li." Han Anbo smiled and followed Pang Mingjing's carriage from afar.

"I'll return to the yamen first." Zheng Hui gave the black carriage one deep look, circulated his True Essence, supported his blade with his left hand, crouched slightly, and leaped onto a roof. His feet rattled over the tiles as he crossed one rooftop after another, racing straight toward the Night Guard Yamen.

Yu Ping lowered his head and looked at his round belly, opened his mouth to swallow the osmanthus cake stuck to his right hand, then tossed every snack on his person onto the counter of Zhao's Clothing Shop.

"They're yours." With that, Yu Ping jogged toward the Night Guard Yamen.

The wheels rumbled on, while the carriage remained deathly quiet.

Pang Mingjing's voice sounded within.

"The year the South River levees burst, Mr. Gangfeng went onto the embankment to hold back the flood. With one Righteousness Sword, he severed wave after wave of flood crests, never resting for ten days. When the waters finally receded, he slept for three days before waking. Afterward, he submitted forty-six memorials impeaching officials of the two river regions, brought down two Third Rank officials, fourteen Middle Three Ranks officials, and countless Lower Three Ranks officials. The world called him the Flood-Cleaving Sword. When the Mounted Patrol moved in the South River Case, I was among them."

Li Qingxian stared quietly ahead as though he had heard nothing.

"I once saw Lord Li in person. You resemble him by thirty percent."

Li Qingxian still did not say a word.

"Who would have thought that after so many years, things would come to this?" Pang Mingjing lowered his head slightly, seemingly looking at something.

After a long while, Pang Mingjing slowly said, "Before coming here, I didn't know you were Lord Li's son."

"What difference does knowing make? What difference does not knowing make?" Li Qingxian chuckled.

"Some jokingly say that the Censorate offended the entire court, and Lord Li accounted for half of it. Yes, so what if that is true? So what if it is not? Lord Li is gone. In the end, you cannot go far."

Silence filled the carriage.

"May I ask what Lord Pang wants me to do at the Ministry of Revenue Yamen?"

Pang Mingjing tossed a light-brown kraft paper pouch to Li Qingxian.

"Inside are documents from the Night Guard Household Office. Go to the Ministry of Revenue and recover the eight thousand taels of silver they owe us. If you fail to recover it within one hour, you will be punished under military law and expelled from the Night Guard." After speaking, Pang Mingjing turned his head and gazed outside through the white gauze curtain.

"Oh."

Li Qingxian answered casually. His face remained still, but his mind spun wildly, analyzing every piece of information with all his strength in search of a way to survive.

What exactly did Han Anbo mean by saying propriety came first?

Han Anbo would never speak without cause. If his memories were clear, he would certainly understand, but Han Anbo did not know there was something wrong with his memory.

He had suspected before that the death of this world's Li Qingxian contained something suspicious. Now, there was no longer any need to doubt it.

Li Qingxian's heart sank to the bottom.

After a long while, the carriage stopped.

"My lord, we've reached the entrance to Ministry of Revenue Street."

The carriage was quiet.

"Go."

Li Qingxian lifted the carriage curtain and was about to get down when Pang Mingjing spoke again. "Take the documents."

Li Qingxian's gaze shifted. He turned back, pressed his right hand atop the documents, and looked directly into Pang Mingjing's eyes.

Pang Mingjing's eyes were like water, his expression calm.

Li Qingxian picked up the documents, turned, and left.

The curtain fell.

Pang Mingjing sighed softly.

"Unruffled in the face of danger, courage beyond ordinary men. In ten years, he would have been a second Li Gangfeng. What a pity..."

Li Qingxian got down from the carriage, looked up, and stood rooted to the spot.

What stunned Li Qingxian was not the four grim-faced Night Guards standing on either side.

Nor was it the Ministry of Revenue's strange black walls streaked with blood-gold patterns.

Nor was it the empty street.

It was the five colossal statues within the Ministry of Revenue's walls, each ten stories tall, and the tangible pressure radiating from those divine statues.

The nearest statue was nearly human in shape, entirely black and covered in scale armor outlined in blood-red. It had no facial features, only a hazy black face that contained nothing at all.

White bone spines rose from the statue's head, arranged in a ring like a crown. Behind that crown hung a bright yellow halo.

From behind the statue extended hundreds upon thousands of enormous dark blue-black arms etched with golden patterns, reaching out to either side. From top to bottom, long to short, the massive arms were arranged in orderly rows, like a pair of black wings embroidered with gold.

In the palm of every arm was carved a scarlet eye, crystalline as a gemstone.

The moment he saw the statue, Li Qingxian was engulfed by inexplicable terror. The enormous eyes in those palms seemed to come alive, rolling wildly in their sockets.

Within every giant eye seemed to lie a pitch-black world.

A thousand arms, a thousand hands, a thousand eyes, a thousand pupils.

It stood at the Ministry of Revenue, looking down upon the Divine Capital.

Of the five statues, this was the only one in human form.

Every hair on Li Qingxian's body stood on end, his eyes stung, and he instinctively lowered his head.

At that moment, a fierce wind swept past, blowing away most of the fog clouding his memories.

The statue was an Evil God.

The Evil God controlled the Ministry of Revenue.

A ceaseless roar filled his ears, and the world before his eyes churned violently.

Countless memories unfurled in Li Qingxian's mind. At last, he understood—the enormous shadow that had made him uneasy was these divine statues.

This was the Taining Era. At the end of the previous Taikang Era, four major events had occurred in succession, collectively known as the Four Calamities of Taikang.

Princes' Succession Struggle.

Demon Clan's Entry through the Pass.

Netherworld's Return of the Dead.

Martial World Power Struggle.

Afterward, Emperor Tiankang died, Emperor Taining ascended the throne, and the princes purged the court of evil influences. The Qi Kingdom descended into utter chaos.

Whether to contend against other forces or because he had no other choice, Emperor Taining actually brought the Demon Sect, the Netherworld, and the Evil Sects into court, joining forces with them against the Demon Race. From then on, the powers of Great Qi took shape.

This Ministry of Revenue was jointly controlled by the five great Evil Sects.

The Evil Sects worshiped evil as gods.

Li Qingxian roared madly within his heart.

Had he gone mad, had Emperor Taining gone mad, or had this entire world gone mad?

Evil demons entered the court, and puppet monsters presented memorials?

Was this still the human world?

This was far too Netherworld!

Li Qingxian felt his entire worldview being washed away without a trace.

At that moment, he wished he could grow ten thousand legs and ten thousand wings, then flee as far away as possible.

The Night Guard dealt with people like these?

This world was too dangerous. I want to go back to Blue Star!

Li Qingxian stood there disheveled without a breeze, utterly lost.

--

In this book, pai occasionally means "sect," and kui is homophonous with gui. Such writing devices will not be explained further.

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