Chen Wei's sharp shout rang out like thunder from a clear sky.
Zhao Dakang jumped in fright.
What was going on?
The two Golden Immortals had been trading barbed words and crossing blades in secret. How had the spear suddenly swung around to jab straight at the face of a tea-serving lackey like him?
When immortals fought, mortals suffered.
Zhao Dakang understood that principle, but he had never expected the flames to reach him so quickly, or so precisely.
He instinctively turned to Li Yin with a pleading look.
As the saying went, even when beating a dog, you had to consider its master.
Chen Wei was throwing his weight around on the Left Commissioner's turf. This was no slap on Zhao Dakang's backside-it was a slap in Li Yin's face!
Sure enough, Li Yin frowned, his expression darkening. "Lord Chen, what is the meaning of this? Have you come to my office to flaunt your authority?"
"Now, Lord Li!" Chen Wei raised a hand gently, interrupting Li Yin's attack. "I know full well that you have always been above worldly corruption, your sleeves filled with nothing but a clean breeze, untouched by dust. Unfortunately, you value personal ties too deeply to keep the Immortal Officials beneath you in line, allowing petty men to exploit the gaps and tarnish your good name."
"Those Three Demons from Spirit Mountain proved rather spineless."
"Before we even brought out the instruments of torture, they spilled everything like beans poured from a bamboo tube-all the filthy business of spreading rumors in the lower realm and coordinating their contacts."
"And as chance would have it..."
"The man threading the needle between them was Zhao Dakang."
With those few words, he placed Li Yin high above the fray and nailed Zhao Dakang to the spot.
Zhao