Since When Did Flower-Fruit Mountain Start Producing Merit Gold Bricks?

Ordinarily, a greenhorn fresh out of the gate would lose his composure when a demon king threatened him with death.

Yet Chen Wei's expression remained unchanged. He barely even furrowed his brow.

Back when he had studied and traveled in the mortal world, he had seen plenty of street thugs and scoundrels. Rolling over boards of nails, splashing dog's blood, slitting their own throats in the street to extort others-their tricks had been far more elaborate than this Black Bear Spirit's.

Trying to stage an accident and extort me?

You picked the wrong man.

"My good fellow." Chen Wei approached Big Bear and released his immortal power while bending down to inspect his wounds.

Big Bear felt half his body go numb, his demonic power sealed away.

Demon kings had thick hides and tough flesh; an ordinary Heavenly Immortal could hardly subdue one so easily. Unfortunately, he had foolishly plunged two sharp knives into his own chest, making him easy to capture in his wounded state.

"Don't panic, my good fellow." Chen Wei gripped the handle of the knife in Big Bear's left chest, putting on an official tone.

Squelch!

The barbed knife came free, and a jet of blood spurted out, splashing across the floor.

Chen Wei raised the dripping knife before his eyes and examined it with solemn attention. "Let's first study the weapon carefully. I know you're in a hurry, but don't hurry just yet."

The moment he finished speaking,

Chen Wei aimed the knife at the bloody hole he had just made and thrust it straight back in.

Squelch!

The blade sank into flesh, right up to the hilt.

Big Bear's eyes bulged, his eyelids twitching wildly with pain. "You... argh!"

Before he could finish,

"Oh, Official Ma, collect the evidence!" Chen Wei reached out with his left hand, seized the knife in Big Bear's right chest, and whipped it out in one swift motion.

Ma Muzhi blinked, then broke into a grin. "Yes, yes, yes! Collect the evidence! A rigorous investigation, with proof piled as solid as a mountain!"

Big Bear's features twisted in agony, but the immortal spell held him down. All he could do was glare.

Chen Wei shook his head, seemingly dissatisfied with the second knife.

With a flick of his hand, he thrust it back.

Squelch!

The knife returned to Big Bear's right chest along its original path.

Immediately afterward, Chen Wei seized the handle in his left chest with his right hand and yanked it out.

Blood sprayed everywhere.

"Sorry, I took the wrong knife." Chen Wei looked apologetic, his tone sincere.

"Argh... you!"

"Oh, sorry, wrong again."

"You..."

Big Bear's Adam's apple bobbed. He opened his great mouth, about to curse.

Squelch!

The knife went back in again.

After several rounds of this,

Big Bear had turned deathly pale and looked ready to die in the main hall for real.

Xiahou Lie could no longer hold himself together. He had hoped his foolish bear subordinate could force the heavenly officials to retreat. Who could have imagined that the other party would ride the current instead, examining the wounds on the spot? If this continued, he would lose a formidable subordinate.

"Official Chen! Official Ma!"

"Please show mercy, heavenly officials! Let this good fellow go and have his wounds treated first. We can talk things over slowly, can't we?"

Xiahou Lie hurried around the desk and stopped in front of Chen Wei, bowing repeatedly with cupped hands.

That was precisely what Chen Wei had been waiting for. Enough of this smoke-and-mirrors performance. They had thrown out a servant to take the blame and allowed a demon king to stage an extortion attempt. Now every trick had been played, and every one had been thwarted.

They could speak openly and deal with matters as they ought to be dealt with.

The rear hall of the Mountain God Temple.

Chen Wei and Ma Muzhi sat upright in armchairs, a tray placed beside each of them.

On each tray, ten square gold bricks were stacked in perfect order.

They were no ordinary mortal gold.

They were the Heavenly Court's hard currency: Merit Gold Bricks.

A single brick was condensed from a hundred years of merit.

Ten bricks meant a full thousand years of merit.

In the Heavenly Court, merit was the hard currency used to advance cultivation below the Golden Immortal level. Above that level, it was a protective talisman against the three calamities and nine tribulations. After toiling for years in the Imperial Stables, Ma Muzhi had saved only a hundred years of merit.

Now a thousand years of merit lay brazenly before him.

Ma Muzhi forcibly suppressed his shock and dared not utter an extra word.

He understood the Heavenly Court's rules. Until the chief official spoke, his deputy could not overstep and take charge.

Chen Wei swept his gaze over the gold bricks without any change in expression, barely lifting his eyelids.

Xiahou Lie secretly watched his face. Seeing such composure, he could not help raising his estimation of him.

"My lords."

Xiahou Lie rubbed his hands together, his face wreathed in an eager smile. "You've traveled a long, dusty road to carry out your duties here on Flower-Fruit Mountain. This humble official lives in a remote backwater and has little with which to entertain you. These are local specialties of Flower-Fruit Mountain. Please take them back with you, just to try something fresh!"

Local specialties.

A thousand years of merit offered as local specialties.

Chen Wei did not touch the tray. Instead, he lifted his tea and leisurely blew at the foam floating on top. "Surely you're joking, Official Xiahou? I certainly know Flower-Fruit Mountain produces abundant fruit, but since when have Merit Gold Bricks become a local specialty too?"

He pushed back with a soft barb.

There was another meaning beneath his words.

The orchard had been destroyed, and they could not produce real fruit, so they were making up the difference with Merit Gold Bricks.

The higher the price offered for his silence, the deeper the waters behind the withered fruit trees. The great fish lurking beneath them was certainly beyond a mere Mountain God's ability to shelter.

Xiahou Lie gave an awkward chuckle. "You jest, my lord. Flower-Fruit Mountain naturally produces abundant honey peaches and immortal apricots, but today is different. With you two here, gold bricks are fruit. Take the fruit back, and you can report your assignment complete. As for the culprit, Shen He in the hall is your man. Everyone will be happy. What do you think, my lord?"

"That isn't right." Chen Wei set down his teacup and slowly shook his head.

"What isn't right, my lord?" Xiahou Lie's smile faded slightly, surprise filling his face.

"There are thorns."

"Of course, I mean there are thorns in the tea."

Chen Wei raised his head and lifted the teacup in his hand.

Xiahou Lie paused, then put on an apologetic smile. "You certainly know how to joke, my lord. How could perfectly good tea have thorns?"

"Exactly." Chen Wei spread his hands, his expression hovering between a smile and no smile. "Since when did Flower-Fruit Mountain start producing Merit Gold Bricks?"

Xiahou Lie understood. This fellow seemed easygoing, but he was too slippery to grasp and would take neither seasoning nor salt. He was a tough nut to crack.

Veiled mockery.

A soft knife cutting flesh.

The Mountain God's expression flickered between light and dark. At last, he abandoned the pretense. Gritting his teeth, he produced a bulging Storage Bag from thin air and slapped it onto the sandalwood tea table.

The mouth of the bag stood open.

Dazzling golden light poured out. Who knew how many Merit Gold Bricks were inside? Their spiritual energy pressed against them.

"My lord." Xiahou Lie planted both hands on the edge of the table. "Everything can be negotiated! More fruit can be added! Take as much fruit as you like. Any handful from this bag would equal years of hard-earned salaries for you both."

"My lord, aren't you tempted?"

Tempted?

Beside him, Ma Muzhi's eyes darted about. He had long since been tempted.

Naturally, Chen Wei was tempted too. He was no clay idol or wooden statue who had severed all emotion and desire. He had greed, and he too craved merit to advance his Dao fruition. Such a vast fortune dropped before them was enough to make any immortal official lose his reason.

But,

Chen Wei forced himself to stay clearheaded.

The situation remained murky. Fruit trees across great swaths of Flower-Fruit Mountain had mysteriously withered, and even a Heavenly Immortal's core immortal power could not revive them.

Who exactly was that monk eating peaches in the wilderness?

And whom was Xiahou Lie covering for?

More critically, Taibai Jinxing had personally assigned this task. The Star Lord had fished with a straight hook beside the White Jade Pool-but was he fishing for the creatures beneath Flower-Fruit Mountain, or for Chen Wei and Ma Muzhi?

If he accepted these things recklessly, he would be boarding Xiahou Lie's pirate ship.

Taking the merit and closing the case with a lie.

When they returned to the Heavenly Court to report, Taibai Jinxing would see through it at a glance.

What use would merit be if they lost their lives then?

He wanted the merit badly, but weighed against a high immortal's favor, which mattered more?

Chen Wei hid the ripples in his eyes and pushed the Storage Bag toward Xiahou Lie. "Official Xiahou, the fruit certainly is tempting. Unfortunately, my teeth aren't good. I'm afraid I'd shatter every tooth in my mouth."

"Are you truly unwilling to show the slightest consideration, my lord?" Xiahou Lie's face abruptly chilled.

"The Heavenly Laws hang above our heads. I dare not bend them for private favors." Chen Wei rose and smoothed the creases at the hem of his robes. "That fellow Shen He hasn't even entered the gates of immortality. Just because he found the monkeys irritating, he could obtain high-grade pills and destroy spiritual roots across the entire mountain?"

"You may believe it, Official Xiahou, but I dare not put it into the case's closing report."

"If I take that to the Bright Hall and the high immortal asks the true reason the fruit saplings withered, what am I supposed to say? Should I use your gold bricks to stop Taibai Jinxing's mouth?"

With those words, he invoked both the Heavenly Laws and Taibai Jinxing.

Needles hidden in silk, every word striking at the heart.

At the mention of Taibai Jinxing's name, Xiahou Lie's arrogance diminished by three parts.

"Investigate."

Chen Wei turned toward Ma Muzhi, his words ringing with unshakable force. "Since the fruit has thorns, we won't eat it. Investigate the roots! Let's see exactly who is uprooting the Great Sage's trees on Flower-Fruit Mountain and severing the Heavenly Court's foundations!"

He had pinned an enormous accusation on them.

Xiahou Lie hardened his heart and shouted, "Wait! You cannot investigate! This is the Mountain God Temple, and I am in charge!"