Chapter 431 - 365: Qiankun’s Reaction, Sacrificial Refinement of the Treasure Armor

’Fool! That fool, Tong Jin! I told him to investigate the details, and this is how he did it? He not only got himself killed, but he left this whole mess for me to clean up!’

Inside an office of the Qiankun Bureau, candlelight flickered, casting mottled shadows. A middle-aged man with eyes like a hawk paced back and forth, growling under his breath.

This man was none other than Feng Chengxiu, the Special Envoy from the Canglong State Qiankun Bureau, also known as Wind-Chasing Life-Taking Palm. He had been given full authority over the investigation into Cao Yingxiong’s death.

’Galloping wildly through the city, openly provoking the Garrison Commandant’s Office... His death might be the end of it for him, but what about the prestige of my Qiankun Bureau!? Foolish! Foolish! Utterly foolish!’

Feng Chengxiu repeated the word "foolish" several times, but it did nothing to quell his anger. At this moment, he was like a raging lion set ablaze by fury, his every footstep making the ground tremble slightly.

Silver Gong Qiankun Envoy Cao Yingxiong had been stationed in Weishui, a man of high position and great power. His death had severe repercussions. Upon learning of his demise, the Canglong State Qiankun Bureau had attached great importance to the matter, selecting elite members to immediately form an investigation team aimed at uncovering the cause as quickly as possible.

As the head of the State Qiankun Bureau’s inspection department, he was appointed leader of the investigation team. He had rushed thousands of miles from Canglong State City to Weishui County to meticulously unravel the case, following every lead.

Through multifaceted investigations, they had gathered a great deal of important information.

Mang Blade Chen Ping’an of the Weishui Garrison, as someone outside the Qiankun Bureau whom Cao Yingxiong met before his death, might be significantly involved in this matter!

Of course, Chen Ping’an was just one of the leads they were pursuing.

They had learned that before Cao Yingxiong’s death, members of the Ten Thousand Demons Sect were active around Red Maple Mountain. Cao Yingxiong had even killed one of their Elders. The matter was still a point of contention with Chen Ping’an of the Garrison Commandant’s Office, and no conclusion had been reached. Regardless of the final verdict, it proved that Cao Yingxiong had encountered the Ten Thousand Demons Sect. It was therefore plausible that he had died from a retaliatory strike by one of the sect’s experts!

Retaliation from the Ten Thousand Demons Sect was another major line of inquiry. Other possibilities included backlash from parties with entangled interests and revenge killings by Cao Yingxiong’s personal enemies. All of these angles were under investigation.

Cao Yingxiong had been stationed in Weishui for many years, building an extremely complex network of relationships. He had frequent dealings with various factions, their interests deeply and intricately entangled. The case was an overwhelming mess of loose ends, impossible to untangle quickly. Even for a competent team, getting to the bottom of it in a short time was a daunting task.

However, the prestige of the Qiankun Bureau was at stake, so the case had to be solved, no matter how difficult. The elite members of the investigation team split up to pursue the various leads simultaneously.

The lead assigned to Tong Jin was none other than the rising star of the Garrison Commandant’s Office, Mang Blade Chen Ping’an!

He had tasked Tong Jin with getting the details of the incident from Chen Ping’an himself and cross-referencing that account with information gathered from other sources. The goal was to gauge Chen Ping’an’s level of suspicion. If it decreased, they would hold off. If it increased, he was to be brought back to the Qiankun Bureau for interrogation.

But as it turned out... that fool Tong Jin had completely botched it! He hadn’t gathered any details, the interrogation hadn’t even started, and he just went and turned the whole thing into a public spectacle of trying to take Chen Ping’an into custody!?

’Fool!’ Feng Chengxiu couldn’t stop himself from cursing again at the thought.

As the Special Envoy of the State Qiankun Bureau, he might have seemed imposing, but in reality, his position felt like being stuck in a quagmire, his hands tied at every turn.

The powers within Weishui County were all wary of him, afraid he would uncover something that was better left buried. For the sake of the bigger picture, he had made a point of showing goodwill and sincerity, carefully trying not to provoke any of the local factions with his actions. It was all to speed up the investigation.

And the result...

That fool Tong Jin had gone and pulled a stunt like this!

All his careful planning and gestures of goodwill were now for nothing!

Whatever the final outcome, Tong Jin galloping wildly through the streets and provoking the Garrison Commandant’s Office at its own doorstep—these were indisputable facts!

The narrative that the Qiankun Bureau had initiated the provocation was now firmly established!

Mang Blade Chen Ping’an had won because of his own strength, not because of any goodwill or mercy from the Qiankun Bureau.

The local factions were already on edge about the Qiankun Bureau sending a Special Envoy to investigate. After this incident, they would surely present a united front against him.

The investigation into Cao Yingxiong’s death was already a tangled mess. This incident only added insult to injury, making an already frustrating situation unbearable!

On top of managing the reactions of the other factions, he now had to properly handle Tong Jin’s death. No matter how much he cursed the man in his heart, the issue had to be addressed.

The Qiankun Bureau’s prestige was at stake. As reluctant as he was, he had to step in and save face on Tong Jin’s behalf!

With this incident, countless eyes were now watching, waiting to see how the Qiankun Bureau would respond!

’He acted so high and mighty all the time, yet in the end, he couldn’t even defeat a junior! All those years of his life, completely wasted!’

The thought of all the trouble this incident would cause made Feng Chengxiu burn with renewed fury.

Tong Jin was an incompetent fool with no ambition! If not for his distant grand-uncle, he never would have made it this far. With his personality, it would have been no surprise at all if someone in the Qiankun Bureau had gotten him killed long ago!

If not for that connection, he never would have let Tong Jin join the investigation team in the first place.

’Now that Tong Jin is dead, I have to inform *him*.’

At this thought, Feng Chengxiu stopped pacing, sat back down in his large chair, and took up a brush to write a letter.

"Someone!" Feng Chengxiu called out from his desk.

"Lord Feng, I am here!" a voice immediately answered from outside. As the words died down, a man with an agile build, dressed in a dark blue martial uniform, entered the room.