Where is the train from Hanjing heading? To New City.

That thing is packed full to bursting.

Who knows how much stuff Secretary Qiu crammed in for Lu Ding.

At the same time.

New City.

Under the churning clouds and the impending storm, there is a suppressed calm.

All the special envoys from various districts and regions are holding back the three fires of a new official taking office.

They are reorganizing the 749 Bureau across all regions.

Gathering and talking to the family powers and strong rogue cultivators within their respective subordinate areas.

Cleaning up the troublemakers and demons, ghosts, and monsters causing disturbances in each region.

It seems like quite a big commotion.

But everyone knows, this is just the foreplay.

Wuwang hasn't made a move yet, and the other countries and powerful factions besides Great Han haven't openly stepped onto the stage to act or declare war.

Everyone is waiting for an opportunity.

A spark that can completely ignite the flames of war!!!

Including the special envoy assigned to Lady's Temple, She Fei, God Ascension Fourth Layer, from the Jinghe Autonomous Region 749, one of Great Han's one hundred and eight autonomous regions.

He is the top genius leader of the local 749 in that region.

Being ranked at the very bottom of Great Han's regional administrative units among the autonomous regions isn't because it's weak, which is why it comes after one capital, two cities, three continents, thirty-six provinces, and seventy-two jurisdictions.

It's because there are many autonomous regions, and it sounds better this way.

Except for the capital, Hanjing, and the two cities, with Jiangcheng being undeniably high-value, the other places are a mixed bag of fish and dragons, with huge gaps in strength and not very united.

And among these, the most outrageous are the one hundred and eight autonomous regions.

Some autonomous regions can't even muster a few people, and the highest cultivation level within the region is only around the Fifth Restriction.

While some autonomous regions have God Ascension cultivators by the handful, hiding dragons and crouching tigers.

Since She Fei arrived at Lady's Temple, the basic process hasn't changed much: recruiting the local investigators of Lady's Temple, streamlining and downsizing, and talking to the local powers of Lady's Temple.

This includes the most famous power in the Lady's Temple area, the Slaughter Goddess Temple.

Although the Slaughter Goddess Temple has the strength to directly confront the Lady's Temple 749.

Because there's Lu Ding, a special envoy, who has been stirring things up vigorously in New City, serving as a precedent, they haven't been particularly resistant to She Fei, this outsider special investigator, and the Jinghe 749 investigators he brought.

What if he's also someone who acts ruthlessly at the slightest disagreement? After all, he has God Ascension cultivation.

But they aren't particularly friendly either.

Just one sentence.

Right now, half of this territory is occupied by Lu Ding. The Slaughter Goddess Temple would like to cooperate with you and is willing to follow your orders.

But Lu Ding is just too overbearing.

He's not here now. What if the temple shows submission and willingness to cooperate with you, and then when Lu Ding returns, the temple is caught in the middle, pleasing neither side?

You need to talk it out with Grand Duke Lu first.

As long as you reach an agreement, the temple is willing to submit and cooperate at any time.

Besides the temple, the Fierce Pursuit Hall, which had two of its Grand Guardians killed by Lu Ding, said pretty much the same thing.

'Fierce Pursuit Hall previously had a misunderstanding with Grand Duke Lu. If we rashly submit and cooperate with you now, and then the misunderstanding with Grand Duke Lu isn't resolved by the time he returns, what if he sees that we, after offending him, have also pledged allegiance to another special envoy...'

Well, every one of them has a stance that seems reasonable and justifiable.

Not every special envoy is like Lu Ding, who is reasonable and legal but not compliant.

And not every special envoy has the audacity to be lawless and fearless.

Moreover, the other party is Lu Ding, the Corpse-Shattering Taishui who has recently risen to great fame in Great Han, breaking records.

She Fei thought it over carefully.

Their concerns are actually quite normal.

But then again.

Although Lu Ding's combat power is formidable, and according to internal 749 Bureau news, Lu Ding has already broken through to God Ascension during his mission to Great Jing, with achievements including killing veteran God Ascension Qi Refiners and even Spirit Refinement powerhouses.

But She Fei hasn't seen it with his own eyes. He still doesn't quite believe it, thinking it might not be that straightforward, perhaps there was interference from external factors.

As if he himself isn't a genius.

Precisely because he is a genius, he understands that defeating a God Ascension cultivator at the Fifth Restriction is different from killing one.

Just entering God Ascension and being able to kill a Spirit Refinement cultivator is a daydream.

He more or less doesn't believe that Lu Ding can be that awesome!!!

Originally, for the management efficiency of Lady's Temple, he should have taken back the half of Lady's Temple occupied by Lu Ding long ago.

With his methods and the powerhouses from the original Jinghe 749 Bureau he brought, dealing with the investigators under Lu Ding's command in White Ridge and the Path of Dry Bones wouldn't be too simple, but it wouldn't be too difficult either.

But!!

We are all 749 Bureau investigators!!

I am a genius, you are a genius too. Alright then, I'll wait for you. Let's clash. If I win, not only will the temple territory be returned in full, but you'll have to compensate me a bit extra.

If I lose, I'll pack up and go home!

If I've already lost, and lost the territory too, what's the point of talking about being a special envoy or not?

Better go home early.

Thus, She Fei has been waiting for Lu Ding's return all along.

Behind the scenes, Hall Master Xue Hen of the Fierce Pursuit Hall found the temple keeper of the Slaughter Goddess Temple, and the two discussed together what to do next.

Previously, Xue Hen wanted to make a move against Lu Ding because his subordinate Grand Guardians died one after another at Lu Ding's hands. As a result, just as he was preparing to ally with the temple.

Lu Ding achieved the glorious feat of facing a siege by Wuwang members and almost single-handedly wiping them all out.

Later, he even returned to Hanjing and did things Xue Hen wouldn't dare to imagine in his entire life.

At this point, he had basically given up any thought of opposing Lu Ding, let alone dealing with him.

His only worry was whether Lu Ding, upon returning from Hanjing, would kick him to death like kicking a stray dog by the roadside.

Now it's good.

She Fei has come!!

He's also a special envoy.

Although special envoys are also people, and among people, there are distinctions of high and low.

But at least he can check and balance Lu Ding a bit, right?

When the time comes, he can then firmly pledge allegiance to Lu Ding from among the choices. This way, he can show his sincerity and turn conflict into friendship.

As for pledging allegiance to She Fei!?

Don't joke around. Xue Hen isn't stupid. Although Lu Ding and She Fei haven't clashed head-on yet, just based on She Fei being willing to first clash with Lu Ding because of their few words.

He is inferior to the Corpse-Shattering Taishui.

If it were Lu Ding's temper, he wouldn't care where you're from. Since you've been notified today, you have to make a decision for me: either kneel and live, or lie down and die. Cut the useless crap.

Only someone like that.

Is worthy of pressing Xue Hen down.

Inside the Slaughter Goddess Temple, the flickering candlelight dragged the twisted shadows of the divine statue.

The girl in the white dress, not revealing a hint of spring scenery, sat cross-legged before the divine statue, showing her fair back, facing away from Xue Hen.

"Hall Master Xue, you've come again."

Xue Hen glanced at the flawless, pure white back facing him, not a trace of desire flickering in his eyes.

Only fear towards Lu Ding the person, this name, this image swirling in his mind.