The Divine Official on Duty, a Breakthrough at Hand

Inside a thatched cottage in the Path-Seeking Courtyard.

Two Daoists sat across a table from each other.

Xuan Kong took out a token and set it on the table.

It was palm-sized, dark throughout, and forged from a special iron ore. Intricate patterns traced its edges, while the character for "execute" occupied its center. Its strokes were iron lines and silver hooks, soaring dragons and dancing Phoenixes, exuding intense killing intent and dominance.

It was an Execution Warrant.

To judge what was straight, one needed a plumb line.

To draw squares and circles, one needed a square and compass.

The Great Xuan Divine Dynasty had joined forces with the various factions to govern the cultivation world, establishing numerous institutions and laying down rule after rule.

One such rule forbade the arbitrary destruction of cultivation factions. If a feud became a matter of life and death, it first had to be reported. Only after conclusive evidence was presented and an Execution Warrant issued could the Resentment be settled.

The Broad Dharma Bureau was the law enforcement office responsible for disputes between cultivators in the Great Xuan Divine Dynasty and for issuing wanted notices.

It did not recruit externally. Its personnel were transferred from offices such as the Heaven and Earth Academy, the Heaven and Earth Tower, Bodhi Hall, and the Pantheon, then placed under officials dispatched by the Great Xuan Divine Dynasty.

Mediation was its primary approach to handling disputes.

If no peaceful resolution was possible, and the party in the right stood firm and refused to yield, the Broad Dharma Bureau would verify the evidence and issue an Execution Warrant, allowing both sides to attack each other.

Life and death rested with fate; the bureau accepted no responsibility.

Execution Warrants were divided into four grades: gold, silver, bronze, and iron.

Iron Execution Warrants applied to third-rate factions and Essence Refining Realm cultivators.

Bronze Execution Warrants applied to second-rate factions and Qi Refining Realm cultivators.

Silver Execution Warrants applied to first-rate factions and Spirit Refining Realm cultivators.

Gold Execution Warrants applied to top-tier sacred lands and even more terrifying experts.

The Truth-Seeking Abbey was of limited standing, merely a small faction tucked away in a remote corner. Xuanming knew little about the last category. Even his knowledge of the Broad Dharma Bureau's composition came from Senior Brother Xuan Ye's time in the Heaven and Earth Academy.

Looking at the Execution Warrant on the table, Xuanming signaled with his eyes for Xuan Kong to begin. He was curious.

Had something unexpected happened along the way?

Or was there a problem with the Execution Warrant?

Xuan Kong did not keep him guessing. He began:

"Senior Brother, when I went to Fengyang Commandery, the Broad Dharma Bureau seemed to be deliberately stalling..."

As he recounted his experiences in detail, Xuanming came to understand the whole story.

After Xuan Kong arrived at the Broad Dharma Bureau, the Divine Official on duty did not appear immediately. The official delayed for a full half-incense-stick's worth of time before showing up.

Despite the mountain of irrefutable evidence—the Projection Stone and Old Master Chen's corpse—the Divine Official still wanted to mediate, urging Xuan Kong to be patient and not fly into a rage.

The official spoke of resolving enmities rather than deepening them, of how those who had left secular life should show compassion, and of leaving others a way out so future meetings would remain possible. It was hard to tell whether these were sincere words meant to prevent bloodshed or merely part of the routine.

At first, Xuan Kong paid it little mind. He simply thought he had been unlucky enough to encounter a muddleheaded Divine Official who could not get priorities straight.

But when he insisted that the official issue an Execution Warrant, the Divine Official seemed not to understand and continued rambling. Every word carried the same implication: "The chief culprit is already dead. Without Old Master Chen's protection, the Chen clan will inevitably plummet. There is no need to wipe them out to the last."

Only then did Xuan Kong sense something was wrong.

Wasn't this Divine Official talking far too much?

And meddling far too broadly?

Or was the official deliberately stalling?

Or genuinely unwilling to issue an Execution Warrant?

Only after repeated requests did the Divine Lord issue the Execution Warrant with a livid expression, grumbling that the Truth-Seeking Abbey was too bloodthirsty, too ruthless, and too steeped in aggression.

Xuan Kong swallowed his temper, accepted the Execution Warrant, and hurried out of the Broad Dharma Bureau. He pondered the matter all the way back.

The more he turned it over, the more deliberate the Divine Official's actions seemed. After all, the official had stalled from beginning to end.

But Xuan Kong could not be certain, so he had come to consult Xuanming.

Only cultivators in the Qi Refining Realm were qualified to serve as Divine Officials in the Broad Dharma Bureau. This was an absolute requirement.

With someone of that level involved, the stakes were too high for him not to take it seriously.

If he was merely fearing that the sky might fall, all would be well.

But if not, why had that Divine Official interfered? What connection did the official have to the Chen Residence? Was the official a friend or foe of the Truth-Seeking Abbey?

They needed answers to all of these questions.

If there truly was a grudge, they had to prepare early. Otherwise, when disaster struck, they would be utterly bewildered, not even knowing how they had been tricked to their deaths, stumbling into the underworld so foolishly that their founding patriarch would refuse to acknowledge them.

Inside the thatched cottage, the mountain spring water came to a boil.

Just as Xuan Kong fell silent, the water in the kettle was ready.

Xuanming reached out to lift it, but Xuan Kong beat him to it. "Senior Brother, leave it to me."

Xuanming withdrew his right hand without standing on ceremony.

For one thing, trading polite refusals would have been too insincere.

For another, Xuan Kong loved good food and drink.

He was better at brewing tea than Xuanming.

With someone willing to attend to him, Xuanming was happy to enjoy it.

Gently stroking the beard beneath his chin, Xuanming sank into thought.

They had to guard against what Xuan Kong feared.

They needed to establish whether the Divine Official on duty was a friend or foe, and whether the actions had been inadvertent or deliberate.

Once Xuan Kong handed him a cup of clear tea, Xuanming said, "Your concerns are well-founded, Junior Brother! With caution, one can catch a thousand-year cicada. This concerns the safety of our Truth-Seeking Abbey. No amount of caution is excessive."

"Since this began with the Chen clan, we shall start our investigation there. Tomorrow, I will instruct Xuan Yin and Changchunzi to thoroughly search the residences of Old Master Chen, the Chen clan head, and the other senior members. They should look for secret chambers and hidden compartments, and examine the correspondence for the faintest threads of clues."

"We must also investigate the Chen clan's hundred-year history, teasing apart the tangled threads to sort out their present and past connections, and determine whether they have ties to any factions within Fengyang Commandery."

"Also, sorry for the trouble, Junior Brother, but please make another trip to Fengyang Commandery tomorrow and discreetly inquire about the Divine Official who was on duty last night."

After a moment's thought, Xuanming added, "If you have the opportunity, you might ask whether that Divine Official swapped shifts with someone last night."

Xuan Kong was no fool. After a little thought, he guessed part of what Xuanming meant and could not help asking, "Senior Brother, do you suspect that Divine Official was being used as someone else's weapon?"

Xuanming said, "We cannot rule it out. If the Divine Official on duty at the Broad Dharma Bureau deliberately sought to obstruct you, the traces were far too obvious."

"There are three possibilities: either the Divine Official's brain isn't... their thinking is unusual, and they did it deliberately; or the Divine Official was being used without realizing it; or their personality is... unconventional, and good intentions produced a bad result, leaving us to worry over nothing."

Xuan Kong said, "We do need to consider every angle."

After moistening his throat with tea, Xuanming continued:

"We will first do what we can. If we discover nothing, we can only wait for Junior Brother Xuanxu to emerge from seclusion."

"Our founding patriarch had an old friendship with the Heavenly Seal Sect's fifth-generation patriarch. True Person Yuanji of that sect currently serves in the Broad Dharma Bureau in Fengyang Commandery. This time, we may need Junior Brother Xuanxu to make a trip and call upon that old bond."

Xuan Kong nodded.

"We shall do as you say, Senior Brother."

"Let us first exhaust our own efforts. If we uncover something, all the better. If not, that will be our only choice."

He, too, knew of the connection between the Truth-Seeking Abbey and the Heavenly Seal Sect.

The Heavenly Seal Sect was a major Daoist sect in Fengyang Commandery, with a legacy spanning more than five hundred years and an unbroken succession of True Persons. This generation was even more prosperous, with two True Persons presiding over it.

Precisely for that reason, the Truth-Seeking Abbey would not lightly call in this favor. Good steel had to be used for the blade's edge.

A single Divine Official from the Broad Dharma Bureau was enough to warrant spending that old goodwill.

Once they finished discussing business, they chatted briefly before Xuan Kong left.

Before his departure, Xuanming reminded him to consult Xuan Yin and the others as well, pooling their ideas.

Ultimately, this sort of matter was not his strength.

Inside a thatched cottage in the Path-Seeking Courtyard.

After finishing the tea in his cup, Xuanming sat by the window, gazed at the crescent moon newly risen in the night sky, and murmured to himself.

"It is time to break through."

He had intended to spend a while longer honing his cultivation, but worldly affairs were ever-changing. The matter of the Divine Official had disrupted his plans.

Although his strength rivaled that of a Qi Refining True Person, he was not, after all, a Qi Refining Realm cultivator. Only by becoming a True Person would he have greater confidence when facing danger.

If the Divine Official's interference was merely a coincidence, that would be the end of it.

But if there truly was a scheme behind it, any of the possibilities would be unfavorable to the Truth-Seeking Abbey, pointing to a greater crisis.

His strength had already been exposed through the Projection Stone. Enemies lurking in the shadows might not wish to see him become a True Person.

Taking everything into account, Xuanming had to seize this moment, while every faction was watching the Truth-Seeking Abbey and powerful enemies dared not act rashly in the open, to break through first and gain a greater advantage in the contest.

After all, for a fool whose reputation was known far and wide to glimpse the threshold of Qi Refining after just seven years of cultivation was already astonishing enough. His opponents would hardly imagine that he could break through at any moment. It defied all common sense.

That was precisely Xuanming's opportunity.

With that thought, he hung a sign announcing his seclusion at the door, then silently sped into the depths of Floating Cloud Mountain.

Before leaving, he also called Xuan Yang away with him.

Floating Cloud Mountain was merely an ordinary offshoot of Azure Dragon Mountain. The latter encompassed a thousand li and stretched for ten thousand li, vast and boundless, with an area one-fifth that of China in his previous life. Much of it consisted of deep mountains and dense forests where people seldom ventured.

Breaking through to Qi Refining would cause quite a disturbance.

Xuanming decided to make his breakthrough deep within Floating Cloud Mountain, where the offshoot met the main range. Even if demons, monsters, ghosts, or other creatures were present, they would be relatively weak. With Xuan Yang guarding him, it would be comparatively safe and would not attract attention.

Perhaps he could play the pig to eat the tiger once more and ambush a powerful enemy. It did not matter how old a trick was, so long as it worked.

He had not told Xuan Kong partly because more people meant more loose tongues, and each additional person who knew increased the danger, but also because Xuan Kong was far too fond of gossip and had the loosest lips.

He brought Xuan Yang because his ability to handle mundane affairs was only average. When it came to dealing with the aftermath of the Chen clan's affairs, his presence or absence made little difference.

Rather than have him merely stand around, it was better to have him guard Xuanming.

Thanks to Xuanchen0 for the donation of 1,000 Qidian coins; thanks to Black Jade Sang, Ke Wu Wang, My Will Is Carefree, 1Change1, True Person With a Treasure Mountain, Child of the Night, Leisurely and Content01, and Everyday Progress Books for one monthly vote each; thanks to Jiangnan Nan, 2018...3512, Wadi, 2019...5060, and Flowing Light-be for two monthly votes each; thanks to 2022...8800 for five monthly votes.