Qingxian Enters West Imperial Prison for the First Time; Ge Chao Suffers Punishment and Loses Another Star
Zhou Chunfeng chuckled and said, "You're the most shrewd. By the way, the Demon-Hunting Office has confirmed that tomorrow afternoon, your Team Jia-Nine will be hunting Demon-Hunting Office with their team."
"Oh? I just learned how to use Thunder Talisman, and I haven't drawn many yet," Li Qingxian said.
"When you return from the Imperial Prison, go back and draw more Thunder Talisman to save your life. Every few months during this period, the Demon Race is in a period of shortage of men and women. Not only are there scattered Demon Race, but also large groups of Demon Race raiding various places," Zhou Chunfeng said.
"Can't defend against it?"
"The Old Great Wall and the Great River are only for defending against large armies of the Demon Race, not small groups of Demon Race. The biggest fear is that small groups of Demon Race will suddenly gather and attack cities and seize territories," Zhou Chunfeng said.
"It seems that every year, small cities are suddenly attacked and slaughtered by a convergence of Demon Race."
"There's nothing we can do; in most small counties, the highest-ranking official is only Seventh Rank official."
Instead of taking the usual route through the south gate of the Imperial Prison, the three of them left the Night Guard and walked from the outside to the west gate of the Imperial Prison.
The west gate of the Imperial Prison was much taller and more spacious than the south gate. Two rows of soldiers stood on either side of the gate, fully armed and clad in gleaming armor.
Li Qingxian knew that the West Courtyard and the East Courtyard of the Imperial Prison were completely different things.
The East Courtyard the Imperial Prison was equivalent to the Night Guard's own prison, while the West Courtyard of the Imperial Prison was the prison for the four departments of the Night Guard, the Eastern Depot, the Western Depot, and the Inner Factory. The West Courtyard of the Imperial Prison had a special "Imperial Prison Envoy" who also served as the Imperial Prison Bureau. He Principal Fourth Rank official appointed by Emperor Taining, above ordinary officials, and of the same rank as Zhou Chunfeng.
Zhou Chunfeng took out a jade paperweight with a dragon design from his Luck Silver-Fish Pouch and handed it to Li Qingxian.
"The Demon-Locking Maze in the West Courtyard contains countless powerful demons and monsters. Even a leak of their aura would be like being poisoned to those below the Middle Rank. This treasure has been refined by my righteous energy for many years and is no less powerful than an ordinary Fifth Rank weapon. You can keep it for now to ward off evil spirits."
"Can it ward off Eerie Demon?" Li Qingxian asked as he looked at it.
Zhou Chunfeng shook his head slightly and said, "Nothing can ward off Eerie Demon."
"Thank you, Uncle Zhou. I'll return it when I return from hunting demons," Li Qingxian said, carefully placing it in his pocket.
Zhou Hen stared wide-eyed:???
Zhou Chunfeng was both amused and exasperated, saying, "You've been hanging out with Luo Jing for too long; you've picked up all the bad habits of the Ministry of Revenue."
"Make the best use of it. Anyway, you have a Righteous Qi and you'll soon advance to the Third Rank, so you won't lack this. But I can't. This thing is for me to save my life," Li Qingxian said.
Zhou Chunfeng thought for a moment and said, "Then remember to seal it with Spirit-Awakening Talisman, and remove the talisman when you need to use it."
"Good."
The three walked to the gate, and the guard took out a palm-sized white jade crane with a golden beak and touched the back of each of their hands. After waiting for a while, the white jade crane did not change color, and then the three were allowed to enter.
At first glance, the West Courtyard looked almost identical to the East Courtyard, with dark roads, black walls, and black houses. However, an indescribable aura permeated the air, making Li Qingxian's hair stand on end, and the Thunder Dragon Fire Seal in his Spirit Platform actively accelerated the release of magical power.
As Zhou Chunfeng walked, he said, "This place is protected by multiple magic arrays. You can only walk on the dark paths, not the dirt paths or the grassy areas. There are no white paths here. If you see a white path, either stay where you are and wait for someone to rescue you, or try to get to the dark path. People from the West Courtyard cannot wear yellow clothes. If you see someone wearing yellow clothes, run, but don't call for help while you run. Remember, if you see someone in yellow clothes, you must run, understand?"
As he finished speaking, Zhou Chunfeng stared at Li Qingxian, his bright black and white eyes flashing with an eerie light.
"Okay." Li Qingxian felt a chill run down his spine.
Li Qingxian followed closely behind Zhou Chunfeng.
After several twists and turns, the three arrived at the entrance of a prison cell on the ground.
"The Upper Rank and Middle Rank prisoners are kept underground, while the bottom Third Rank prisoners are kept in cells above ground," Zhou Chunfeng said.
The three entered the cell and were greeted by a clean little square hall, but the stench unique to prisons hit them right in the face.
Jing Guan, an eunuch from the Inner Treasury Office who was involved in the winery, was inside. Upon seeing an acquaintance, Jing Guan didn't say much and led his men to drag Ge Chao out of the cell.
Ge Chao's hair was disheveled, and his entire body was covered with a layer of dark red flesh, his skin completely gone.
His hands hung limply, his finger bones shattered, and all ten fingernails vanished.
His chest, abdomen, and shoulders were pierced by iron bars as thick as a thumb.
He slowly raised his head, Li Qingxian was startled.
Ge Chao's entire face was gone, leaving it a bloody mess.
His eyes moved slowly like white stone balls, his gaze lifeless, devoid of any human brilliance.
He seemed not to recognize Li Qingxian anymore.
Only one day had passed since we last met.
The jailer pinned him to the ground and stomped on his calves.
Li Qingxian sighed softly, glanced at Zhou Chunfeng and Zhou Hen, and found that their expressions were normal.
Li Qingxian found a chair and sat down, saying, "Uncle Zhou, I'm Fate Observation and Qi Gazing now."
Zhou Chunfeng nodded.
Li Qingxian Dragon Appears's aura.
Above Ge Chao's head were rows of decaying, crossed swords, small piles of bone dust, and an ancient tomb sealed off by rocks, devoid of any greenery; above them lay a dark void.
When the four evils of defeat, death, grave, and extinction arrive together, Fortune is utterly destroyed.
A Fate Projection appeared in the sky. He fell onto the straw in the cell, his body slowly stiffening, his breathing ceasing.
Three days later, Ge Chao died.
Li Qingxian sighed inwardly and entered Ge Chao's Fate Mansion.
Li Qingxian felt extremely uncomfortable and looked up at the sky.
At the end of the pitch-black void, a bright yellow star twinkled, high in the center, like a great sun, radiating a vast and powerful pressure, sealing Ge Chao's Fate Mold.
Around that bright yellow star, countless stars densely surrounded and guarded it, forming one with the star.
On the distant edge, a cluster of stars appears and disappears, emitting a faint light.
"This is... the Emperor Star Suppressing Fate, Ge Chao is doomed."
A faint smile appeared on Li Qingxian's face.
With the Emperor Star Suppressing Fate, all the power of the Ge Chao's benefactors, trends, and Fate Mold will be crushed to the extreme, making the process of hunting for destiny incredibly simple, with a difficulty roughly equivalent to fishing for Shen Goudan's destiny.
Li Qingxian took a close look at Ge Chao's Fate Mansion.
A faint black smoke rose from all the Fate Star.
Li Qingxian hurriedly returned to his own Fate Mansion and recited the incantation of the Life-Hunting Art.
"Life and death, premature death and longevity are called fate; prosperity and decline, poverty and success are called fortune..."
A Fortune Fish out, transforming into a pure white bridge that pierced through the void, connecting to Ge Chao's Fate Mansion and revealing Ge Chao's six Fate Star.
Steel-Forged Sword, Gold Glittering Beneath the Stream, Outcast Harmful Horse, Sparrow Hiding in Its Nest, Tiny Scales Hiding in the Grass, and Chameleon Concealment.
"The Steel-Forged Sword and the Gold Glittering Beneath the Stream are of little use, Sparrow Hiding in Its Nest, the Tiny Scales Hiding in the Grass, and the hermit's Chameleon Concealment are of great use to me. If I had these three Fate Star in my Fate Mansion, this demon hunt would be ten times safer. Even the most Eerie Demon would not be completely unaffected by such a strong Fate Mold. As for the Outcast Harmful Horse, it is not very useful at present, but if used at the right time, its effect would be immeasurable."
After a moment's thought, Li Qingxian cast his Fate Fishing Rod, aiming at the Sparrow Hiding in Its Nest.
Ge Chao's Middle-Aged Fate Ground was a perfect combination of four elements, which should have made him far more difficult to catch than Pang Mingjing's Fate Mold. Yet, on the first try, the hook came within half a foot of Ge Chao, making it frighteningly easy.
Li Qingxian took notes while fishing.
Just a quarter of an hour later, the fishing hook landed on the Sparrow Hiding in Its Nest Fate Star.
Li Qingxian glanced up at the Emperor Star above Ge Chao's head and continued hunting for destiny.