Inside the Prefect's residence.
With the guards returning, Ye Li and his companion successfully stood out from the crowd of people who came to see the prefect.
We passed through the courtyard and arrived at the mansion.
Soon, a middle-aged figure with an imposing presence appeared in their line of sight.
He was dressed in a blue robe and was slowly flipping through the documents in front of him.
He seemed unremarkable, even much younger Lin Huaijin, yet Xie Huaiwei felt a sense of insignificance, as if facing a divine mountain, and her back tingled with fear.
The governor of the Xianjing Continent, and the venerable one of the Cosmic Birth Realm.
If she hadn't acted as Lord Ye's guide, she probably would never have met such an important figure more than a few times in her life.
"Dragon Pool Yao Xuan Envoy greets Prefect Cao." Xie Huaiwei subconsciously bowed and cupped her hands.
The middle-aged man in a blue robe behind the desk nodded slightly, then his gaze fell on the upright young man, and he said in a deep voice:
"Ye Li from Longtan, right?"
"Hmm." Ye Li possessed the Divine Ability to be immune to pressure, so naturally he wouldn't be as trembling as the woman; his expression remained calm.
"Was it you who personally orchestrated the destruction of the Mu family a while ago?"
Cao Ming lowered his eyes to look at the newly appointed lieutenant, and after the man nodded again, he asked with a half-smile, "Who gave you permission to take action?"
"Did you consult with your Prefect Lin before killing Mu Fusheng?"
These two short sentences were accompanied by an incredibly heavy Martial Dao pressure.
Xie Huaiwei, who was standing to the side, broke out in a cold sweat and felt her heart sink.
"No."
Before I could even ponder the source of the governor's dissatisfaction...
The calm, serene voice of the young man beside her echoed throughout the hall, instantly making Xie Huaiwei's heart leap into her throat:
"What, you have a problem with that?"
Whether they are Venerable Ones of the Cosmic Birth Realm or Governors of a Continent in the Great Sheng Dynasty, they are all powerful figures who can command the wind and rain.
Their status was extremely prestigious.
Sects with Venerable Ones presiding over them are not managed by the Nine Luminaries Division within local prefectures, but are directly governed by the Nine Luminaries Division where the governor of the continent resides. This alone demonstrates the status of the Cosmic Birth Realm Ones in the Great Sheng Dynasty.
Undisputed top expert in the continent.
Such a person, and yet Lord Ye actually asked if they had any objections?!
Xie Huaiwei felt a chill run down her spine. In the entire Longtan Grand Commandery, even including Prefect Lin, who had a mysterious background, who would dare to speak to Prefect Cao like that!
The grand main hall fell silent for a moment.
The middle-aged man in the blue robe on the High Platform seemed to be stunned by these words, and it took him a moment to come back to his senses.
"I do have a problem with that."
Cao Ming's voice turned cold. This newly appointed deputy general was unprecedented. He dared to directly and recklessly wipe out the local tyrants in the county as soon as he took office, like a wild horse that had broken free of its reins.
Unfortunately, Lin Huaijin had no concept of this and not only failed to regulate it, he granted it even more privileges.
For example, the recent Yushan baptism.
Cao Ming did not oppose making special exceptions and giving more preferential treatment to promising young cultivators; on the contrary, he greatly approved of this approach.
But this is not a reason to let the person in front of you slip out of your control.
Excessive indulgence will only breed a double-edged sword that is difficult to control, and it's hard to even say whether it's truly sharp. How can such behavior be truly responsible for the hundreds of millions of people in the Xianjing Continent?
It needs a certain amount of discipline.
"What is your basis for doing this?" Cao Ming asked slowly.
"If it's just a matter of evidence, it should be written in the performance review document."
Ye Li gave a concise answer, showing no sign of panic.
He handled the whole matter in a completely compliant and lawful manner, and even his actions were only done after special confirmation. He would never wantonly kill loyal and virtuous people.
Lin Huaijin has already said that there is no problem with this matter.
If this can be used as leverage against someone, then there's no point in staying in the Jade Mountain Nine Luminaries Division.
"It is indeed written there."
Cao Ming nodded slightly, his expression remaining indifferent. "But that's after you've made your move."
"I really want to know, if no so-called evidence of crime is found in the Mu family, what are you going to do afterward with this 'shooting the arrow first and setting up the target later' approach?"
"Let's talk about that kind of thing when it actually happens."
Ye Li looked up and casually asked, "Or is it that Prefect Cao arrested me on trumped-up charges?"
"That's arrogant enough."
Cao Ming raised an eyelid slightly and gave a nonchalant evaluation.
He had never seen a newly appointed deputy general so composed in the prefect's residence; one might mistake him for the Great Sheng Governor of Dasheng.
He closed his eyes, composed himself, and then opened them again:
"Since that's the case, I won't use fabricated charges to pressure you. I just hope you remember what you said and behave yourself from now on."
Cao Ming's tone was tinged with amusement, yet it carried an undercurrent of coldness.
"I have never seen a Retainer General as arrogant as you since I took office as governor. I hope you truly have the talent and ability to back you up."
"Otherwise, the achievements of the Mu family and the two minor demons of the Great Void wouldn't be enough to justify your current performance."
"Our Nine Luminaries Division never mistreats capable people. I will be in charge of this Jade Mountain Refinement. If you truly have the ability to win, I will personally come to apologize to you then."
Until they left the prefect's residence.
Xie Huaiwei then realized that her back was soaked with cold sweat.
Bathed in the sunlight, she felt a lingering sense of relief, as if she had survived a disaster, and looked at her captain with unease.
But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't understand where the other party got the confidence to directly challenge the prefect!
"Lord Ye..."
"Further discussion is pointless; this old man has something wrong with his head."
Ye Li's voice was calm, and his steps were steady.
His first impression of Prefect Cao was rather ordinary.
If I hadn't known that the other party was also acting from a professional standpoint, I probably would have stormed off long ago.
Fortunately, the location for the Jade Mountain Refinement has now been secured.
All you need to do now is go there and stay for three days until the refinement process begins.
As for lighting up the Life Jade, the old man said he didn't have time and would have to wait until the purification process was finished.
They're probably worried that if he behaves rudely during the cleansing ceremony, he'll simply run back to Longtan.
A Venerable One of the Cosmic Birth Realm... Sooner or later, this old bastard will also taste the feeling of being taught a lesson.
Buzz!
As the two boarded the silver-white Star Skiff, the acceleration Array Formation above the cabin gradually lit up.
Then it soared into the sky and disappeared into the distance.
"..."
In the distant courtyard, after taking in the silver streak of light, Zeng Fan, the deputy general, finally smiled slightly, "Make your move."
As soon as he finished speaking, the numerous guards behind him, fully equipped and ready to depart, boarded the Star Skiff.
Soon, a jet-black Star Skiff rose from the courtyard and sped off toward the direction of Jade Mountain!