Chapter 427
Chapter 427
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 427
>Chapter Title: Junior Celestial Supervisor
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Chapter 427: Junior Celestial Supervisor
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> The place where Li Huowang was now was the small building with a courtyard that Ji Xiang had left him. He had to admit, having such a place in the capital was very convenient—at least he didn’t need to stay at an inn, and keeping Black Tai Sui in the courtyard meant no one else would see it.
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> At this moment, he stood with his hands behind his back, brows tightly furrowed as he gazed at the cold, desolate street outside where snow was drifting down. There were hardly any people on the streets anymore, because the capital had imposed an early curfew today.
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> Li Huowang stood silently by the window, as if waiting for something.
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> Suddenly, the crisp “clop clop clop” of hooves rang out as a group of burly men clad in fur coats rode their horses charging toward the interior of the capital.
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> These were already the third batch in the past few days. The aura about them, along with the badges deliberately hung at their waists, made it clear to Li Huowang that these were personnel from the Celestial Monitoring Division stationed in the other six circuits of Great Liang.
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> After receiving the transfer orders, they had all come to the capital.
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> Though it was only dusk by the hour, the sky was so overcast with falling snow that it had already grown nearly as dark as night.
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> Not only were there few people about, but the entire capital felt like a storm was brewing, a heavy stone weighing on his heart.
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> “Swish~!” A black bird swooped past in the sky, circling wide once before landing steadily on the windowsill in front of Li Huowang.
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> Li Huowang recognized the bird—it was the one perched on the shoulder of that Mohist named Sima Lan. At this moment, it had a folded piece of paper clutched in its beak.
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> When Li Huowang unfolded the paper and read the contents, his expression lit up with excitement. “It’s finally starting!”
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> Hearing the hurried footsteps of his master descending the stairs, Mantou perked up from where he was curled under the chair. He shook his tail and approached, only to be swatted away with a single palm.
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> “Stay home and guard the place! No matter what you hear later, don’t go out and look!!”
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> With that, Li Huowang mounted the horse in the courtyard and whipped it into a gallop toward the Celestial Monitoring Division’s yamen.
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> When he passed through the yamen gate flanked by its two stone lions and entered that grand hall filled with screens via the hidden door, he found that all the screens had been removed and replaced with people.
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> Yet for some reason—whether deliberate or not—the oil lamps on the walls remained unlit, leaving the entire space in utter dimness.
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> Even with Li Huowang’s exceptional eyesight, he could only make out scattered clusters of shadowy figures in the darkness, unable to discern their faces unless he got very close.
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> Passing through this crowd gave Li Huowang a strange sensation of being back on a school playground.
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> Except these people were nothing like the vibrant students. The strange auras emanating from these standing or squatting figures made the perceptive Li Huowang feel deeply uncomfortable all over.
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> The low, muffled murmurings of the Celestial Monitoring Division members intertwined, amplifying the oppressive atmosphere of the hall and leaving everyone inside struggling to breathe.
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> Li Huowang didn’t have many acquaintances in the capital’s Celestial Monitoring Division. After glancing around, he made his way to Sima Lan, whom he had met once before—the bird that had delivered his message was back on his shoulder.
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> Such a distinctive feature made it easy for Li Huowang to spot him amid the crowd.
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> “You’re here?” The black bird turned its head and nodded toward Li Huowang.
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> “Brother Sima, all these people were transferred from the other six circuits?” Li Huowang glanced toward the others.
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> “Not just them. I hear the division pulled some strings and borrowed a few experts from Qingqiu’s Celestial Monitoring Division as well. Heh, looks like the division’s getting serious this time.”
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> “Qingqiu?” Li Huowang’s mind flashed to the old lama with the flock of black goats. He looked around and spotted someone wearing a lama’s hat in the distant corner, though he couldn’t yet tell if it was the same one.
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> “Since everyone’s here, what are we waiting for?” Li Huowang asked again.
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> “We’re waiting for Lord Junior Celestial Supervisor. He’s in charge of this matter.”
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> “Oh? So is this Lord Junior Celestial Supervisor the highest-ranking official in the Celestial Monitoring Division? Apologies, I’ve been out in the field for so long, I’m not too clear on these things.”
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> “No worries, we all start that way. It took me a while after arriving in the capital to figure it out. Actually, there are five Junior Celestial Supervisors, and they’re not the highest. The highest is the Celestial Supervisor.”
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> “Celestial Supervisor...”
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> After pondering the term for a moment, Li Huowang spoke up again. “For something as big as dealing with the Sit-Forget Dao, won’t the Celestial Supervisor or the other four Junior Celestial Supervisors be coming?”
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> “They should, by rights, but they’ve all entered the palace. Probably some urgent business.”
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> “Clang!” A crisp gong rang out, drawing everyone’s gaze toward the sound.
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> From somewhere, a soft glow like moonlight appeared, illuminating a stately official’s chair. Seated upon it was a man.
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> He was an elderly scholar-official with white hair, his wide sleeves draping all the way to the floor. His earlobes were equally unusual—vast and pendulous, hanging like earrings over his shoulders.
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> The man exuded a commanding presence, sitting there silently with an air of unspoken authority that quickly quelled the murmurs in the hall.
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> Only now did Li Huowang notice that behind the old man’s chair stood a neat row of people. Due to the dimness, he couldn’t make out their faces.
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> “The Celestial Monitoring Division has summoned you all today—I trust I needn’t explain why.”
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> As the Junior Celestial Supervisor spoke, a terrifying aura crashed down like a mountain, instantly silencing the entire hall.
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> “Thud~! Thud~! Thud!” Here and there in the crowd, bodies stiffened and toppled straight to the ground.
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> Just as Li Huowang thought they had fainted from fear, others approached them, hooking iron claws into their faces and peeling back their skin. The mahjong tile patterns revealed beneath confirmed their identities: Sit-Forget Daoists.
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> They had gathered precisely to deal with the Sit-Forget Dao, yet five of them had tried to infiltrate their ranks. Though on second thought, it made sense—the Sit-Forget Dao couldn’t possibly be blind to the Celestial Monitoring Division’s intentions.
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> The Junior Celestial Supervisor’s gaze swept indifferently over the exposed impostors, as if he had expected as much.
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> “Dealing with the Sit-Forget Dao isn’t hard in itself. The difficulty lies in those swindlers hiding among the common folk and refusing to show themselves. But no matter— the capital is our capital, not theirs.”
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> “They think their disguises are flawless, but that’s just self-deception. To dare openly murder one of our division’s deputy directors! Hmph! As if we can’t spare the hands to crush them!”
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>(End of chapter)