Chapter 482: Chapter 482: General of the Brave Cavalry, Du Huan

For the Dao Court, the establishment of the Imperial City Department was like a stone tossed into a calm lake, sending ripples spreading through Celestial Wu City.

Because the Imperial City Department existed completely outside the Dao Court’s official hierarchy, its members held no official positions and thus couldn’t be constrained by the various department heads and their superiors. Furthermore, with the blessings of the Incense and Candle Divine Dao, their strongest members could reach Foundation Establishment Perfection, a level of power rivaling that of a First-Grade Official. This was more than enough to make many people wary.

What was more important were the duties of the Imperial City Department.

In short, they were responsible for security within Celestial Wu City. The enforcement of restrictions on entering and exiting the palace, all duties of the Zhou Lu Guard, and the opening and closing of the palace gates—all of it now belonged to them.

This was no small matter.

Because these had originally been the duties of the All Heaven Department. Now that they belonged to the Imperial City Department, the duties were gone, and the corresponding power had naturally vanished along with them.

How could the All Heaven Department possibly accept this?

.......

「Celestial Wu City. The Grand Protector’s Mansion.」

"His Majesty clearly doesn’t trust the All Heaven Department!"

The current Commander of the All Heaven Department, Ning Haohai, slammed his hand on the table, his face a mask of fury. "What Imperial City Department? A bunch of stinking riffraff from Overseas, coming here to the East to beg for scraps!"

"That Du Huan fellow! He bootlicked his way to a few minor merits, wormed his way into His Majesty’s favor, and wheedled this position out of him! Grand Protector, we cannot stand by and do nothing! How can we let a Demon Cultivator from Overseas occupy the Dao Capital of our Jiangdong Dao? At this rate, the nation will be a nation no more!"

On the main seat, an old man sat with his eyes closed, saying nothing.

At first glance, he seemed to be just an ordinary old man. However, the moment he opened his eyes, the impression he gave off underwent an earth-shattering transformation.

Like a flood serpent becoming a dragon.

Every breath he took stirred the ever-present Immortal Dao Law in the East, resonating and coordinating with it, drawing down boundless Mighty Power to empower him.

He was the current Grand Protector, Hu Zhichun.

He wielded the Fruit of Gold-Foil Metal and controlled the Golden Court Profound Mysterious Grotto Heaven. As his disciple, Ning Haohai had only become the Commander of the All Heaven Department through his recommendation.

"His Majesty is displeased."

Hu Zhichun’s expression was calm. "The All Heaven Department has always been under the Emperor’s direct command. Now that you are its leader, it is only natural that His Majesty would want to establish a new power of his own."

In truth, Ning Haohai’s appointment as Commander of the All Heaven Department was the result of a backroom deal between the Three Ministers and Emperor Jia You. After all, for Emperor Jia You, who was at the Middle Stage of Golden Core, to break through to the Late Stage, he would need to master at least the Three Transformation Elements, a feat that would be impossible without the help of the Three Ministers. The All Heaven Department was merely one of the bargaining chips in that deal.

However, it was clear that Emperor Jia You was, in fact, unhappy with this arrangement.

That was why he had established the Imperial City Department, founded upon the Incense and Candle Divine Dao, and had specifically promoted a member of the True Dragon Race—who had no roots in the Dao Court—to lead it.

More importantly, the source of the Incense and Candle Divine Dao was in the hands of Emperor Jia You alone.

Under these circumstances, the Imperial City Department would undoubtedly obey only Emperor Jia You’s commands, remaining uninfluenced by the other officials. This was a grave violation of the Dao Court’s established rules.

"Taian, what are your thoughts?"

Hu Zhichun’s gaze shifted to a young man beside him. The man was handsome, and his every movement carried an air of nobility and grace.

This was the current Young Protector, Li Taian.

In time, when Hu Zhichun’s life came to an end and he reincarnated, causing his Grotto Heaven to fall, it would be up to this Young Protector to support it anew. This alone was a testament to the immense importance of his position.

"My lord," Li Taian began, "I believe we should meet these developments by holding our ground."

Li Taian cupped his hands and said gravely, "The establishment of the Imperial City Department is His Majesty’s will. I suspect he also intends to use this to gauge the attitude of his ministers."

"If we feign compliance while secretly obstructing them, His Majesty will see it and only resort to more drastic measures. It would be better to take a step back and allow His Majesty to vent his frustrations for now. Afterward, we can impose restrictions. Ultimately, His Majesty still has need of you, my lord. If we give him an honorable way out, he won’t force our hand."

"And if His Majesty is still not satisfied?" Hu Zhichun asked, his voice low.

Li Taian’s expression immediately turned solemn. "Then it means His Majesty has been deceived by villains. We must submit a tearful memorial to the throne, imploring him to execute the treacherous demons and restore order to the court!"

Hearing this, Hu Zhichun nodded in satisfaction. "Excellent."

He then turned back to Ning Haohai. "Did you hear all that? The Imperial City Department was created by His Majesty’s decree. If His Majesty tells you to cooperate, then you will cooperate fully."

Just then, the sound of hurried footsteps came from outside the door.

"My lord, terrible news, my lord..."

An All Heaven Department Warrior rushed in, his expression panicked. "The Imperial City Department... that Du Huan has brought his men to our All Heaven Department’s government office!"

"What?"

Ning Haohai shot to his feet. After requesting and receiving Hu Zhichun’s permission to leave, he hurried out of the Grand Protector’s Mansion and sped away on his Flying Light.

Soon, he arrived at the All Heaven Department’s government office.

But as he looked, all he could see was the Incense Fire Divine Light soaring into the sky, and a tall, imposing figure at its center, surrounded by his followers like the moon by a cluster of stars.

"Wang Xue, Flag Officer of the All Heaven Department, embezzled the salaries of thirteen Warriors under his command! The evidence is conclusive! Immediate execution!"

"Chen Dao, Flag Officer of the All Heaven Department..."

Following the resounding proclamations, one All Heaven Department official after another was pushed forward and forced to their knees, their once-ruddy complexions now deathly pale.

Seeing this, Ning Haohai hastily sent a voice transmission:

"Spare their lives—"

SWISH! SWISH!

Almost at the very instant his voice arrived, the executioners’ blades had already risen and fallen, severing the heads of the kneeling officials.

"...You bastards!"

Witnessing this scene, Ning Haohai was beside himself with fury!

However, faced with Ning Haohai’s rage, the group of Imperial City Department Cultivators who had carried out the execution paid him no mind. After all, they weren’t on his payroll.

’Why should we listen to you?’

Not to mention, most of them were Demon Cultivators and already disliked Ning Haohai to begin with.

Even the Human Cultivators among them, after receiving a full two hundred years’ salary from Lü Yang’s own hands, would only obey the commands of Lü Yang and the Emperor!

Seeing this, Ning Haohai’s fury intensified. He pushed up the official’s hat on his head, and his Official Position as [Commander of the All Heaven Department] materialized above him. An Ability manifested, like a rising sun:

[Rising Sun Land]!

This was an Earth of Xu Ability. Xu represents the storehouse of a great furnace, the earth that scorches the plains, a place that nobles avoid. Not only did it possess a Divine Effect in combat, but it could also diminish one’s Fortune!

But in the next second, a giant hand formed entirely from Incense and Candle Qi shot in from the side, blocking the path between Ning Haohai and the executioners. The billowing Incense and Candle Qi was like a tide; as soon as one wave was refined away, a new one surged forward. As easily as snuffing out a candle, it simply pinched Ning Haohai’s Ability and crushed it!

’How is that possible...’

The sight was like a basin of cold water doused over Ning Haohai’s heart, extinguishing all his anger and causing him to shudder back to his senses.

The next moment, a black-robed Demon Cultivator strode out, his head held high.

"Well, well, if it isn’t Lord Ning."

Xiao Shan was practically glowing with success. As one of the first Demon Cultivators to join Lü Yang and a veteran of the One Heart Association, he had naturally been entrusted with great responsibility by Lü Yang.

Besides his salary, there was also the Incense Altar. Lü Yang had been anything but stingy in this regard; he’d allocated a full third of the Imperial City Department’s newly collected Incense, allowing Xiao Shan to attain an Incense Position equivalent to Foundation Establishment Perfection!

With such power backing him, Xiao Shan looked at Ning Haohai and felt that this Lord Ning—who was once so high and mighty that even the servants at his mansion gates dared to give him nasty looks—wasn’t so special after all. The Official Position of [Commander of the All Heaven Department] was only Third Grade, and he wasn’t even a Late-stage Great Trueman!

’It’s true. Only by following Lord Du Huan do we Demon Cultivators have a future...’

Xiao Shan’s conviction grew even firmer.

On the other side, Ning Haohai forced a smile onto his face. Since he couldn’t win a fight, he naturally couldn’t put on the airs of a superior officer. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

"What... what is it you people want?"

"What do we want?"

Xiao Shan let out a cold laugh. "His Majesty has already issued a decree, appointing Lord Du Huan as the General of the Brave Cavalry, in command of the Imperial City Department, with orders to investigate the corruption within the All Heaven Department!"

"In short: everything the All Heaven Department has jurisdiction over, the Imperial City Department now has jurisdiction over. And everything the All Heaven Department *doesn’t* have jurisdiction over, the Imperial City Department *especially* has jurisdiction over! Execute first, report later—a privilege granted by Imperial Authority."

"Do you understand, Lord Ning?"