Chapter 433 - 365: Impeachment Deliberation, Sacrificial Refining Success

"Tong Jin is dead?"

Inside the Weishui Garrison, Liu Yuanhua was completely numb when he heard the news.

The investigation team from the Canglong State Qiankun Bureau had arrived in Weishui County some time ago. As the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Weishui Garrison, he had naturally dealt with them before.

The Qiankun Bureau held supervisory authority. Nominally, they were here to investigate the death of Cao Yingxiong, but who knew what other motives they might have. The Weishui Garrison had been operating here for many years, and its affairs were hardly flawless. Of all the people in power, who could claim to be one hundred percent clean?

Therefore, Liu Yuanhua had been exceedingly cautious and vigilant in all his dealings with them.

In fact, it wasn’t just the Weishui Garrison. Which of the Noble Families in the city could say they were truly clean? So many of their deeds couldn’t see the light of day and were unfit for public discussion.

Cao Yingxiong had presided over Weishui for many years with supervisory authority. Which of these Noble Families hadn’t engaged in secret dealings with him? They all had business interests intertwined to some degree!

Under these circumstances, the sudden arrival of an investigation team from the Canglong State Qiankun Bureau, ostensibly for Cao Yingxiong’s death, naturally put everyone on high alert. On the surface, they were all exceedingly polite and cooperative, but in private, they were all holding back!

Long before this team from the Qiankun Bureau arrived, Liu Yuanhua had already done a detailed background check on them.

The investigation team was led by Feng Chengxiu of the Qiankun Bureau, a cultivator at the Pseudo-Master Realm. His Wind-Chasing Life-Taking Palm technique had once killed a master from the Dragon and Tiger Chart! According to outside speculation, his combat prowess was equivalent to seventy percent of a true Grandmaster’s! Even among Pseudo Grandmasters, he was an exceptional existence!

Besides Feng Chengxiu, the ten-plus members of the investigation team included several Absolute Masters, all of whom were renowned figures. Even in Weishui County City, they would be considered top-tier experts!

And Tong Jin, at Profound Light Middle Realm Perfection. His Gold-Splitting Jade-Breaking Hand was sharp and fierce, placing him in the first tier of combat power just below an Absolute Master!

Furthermore, according to the information Liu Yuanhua had gathered, although Tong Jin’s abilities were average, he seemed to be highly regarded within the Qiankun Bureau.

Connecting this with previous information, he guessed that Tong Jin must have the backing of a Grandmaster!

A Grandmaster!

’A Grandmaster!’

’What a figure! If an existence like that so much as stomped their foot, the entire Weishui County City would tremble!’

But now...

Tong Jin was dead!

Killed at the hands of Chen Ping’an, no less!

"Chen Ping’an, oh, Chen Ping’an, how could you... sigh..."

Just thinking of the name gave Liu Yuanhua a headache.

The matter with the Seven Extremes Elder of the Celestial Net Sect wasn’t even over, and now this thorny issue had cropped up. And at this critical juncture, right after the Qiankun Bureau’s investigation team had settled in Weishui!

Setting aside the potential intervention of the Grandmaster backing Tong Jin, the death itself had profound implications. If this matter wasn’t handled well, it could escalate to a direct confrontation between the Qiankun Bureau and the Garrison Commandant’s Office.

Liu Yuanhua had conducted a thorough investigation into the cause and effect of the incident. Tong Jin was indeed the one at fault first, but Chen Ping’an’s methods had been a bit too extreme.

However, Chen Ping’an was, after all, a prodigy on the Rising Star Chart and a rising star within the Garrison Commandant’s Office, garnering the attention of major figures in the State Garrison Command. Plus, since Tong Jin had been the initial aggressor, even though Chen Ping’an’s response was extreme, they couldn’t just decide to make him pay with his life.

Thus, how to quell this matter as quickly as possible and minimize the fallout had become a difficult problem.

The current situation required them to both satisfy the Qiankun Bureau and protect Chen Ping’an. All these considerations were incredibly troublesome.

"Mang Blade! Mang Blade! You’ve already reached your current position, how can you still act so recklessly!"

The Ten Thousand Demons vying for merit, the Seven Extremes Elder, the Beicang Chaos, the interests of the Trade Route...

So many things were already a tangled mess, leaving him overwhelmed, stressed, and utterly exhausted. And now this!

"Sigh..." At this thought, Liu Yuanhua couldn’t help but sigh again.

However... it wasn’t all bad news.

Severely injuring Tong Jin, a cultivator at Profound Light Middle Realm Perfection, with a single palm strike... the strength Chen Ping’an had displayed in that battle seemed absurdly powerful.

’Could it be that he’s already entered the Peak Realm!?’

’If that’s true, then this young man’s talent can only be described as monstrous!’

...

The news that Tong Jin of the Qiankun Bureau had provoked Outer Trade Road Patrol Envoy Chen Ping’an in front of the Five Peaks Mountain Town Pacification Bureau and was killed by him in two palm strikes spread quickly through Weishui County City. However, due to the high-level nature of the incident, the story only circulated within the circles of the Noble Families. The ordinary middle and lower classes of the city remained unaware.

"Tong Jin’s dead? You mean that arrogant guy from the Qiankun Bureau!?"

"Hahaha, serves him right! That’ll teach him to look down his nose at people!"

"Chen Ping’an killed Tong Jin in two palm strikes!? If I remember correctly, wasn’t Tong Jin at Profound Light Middle Realm Perfection!"

"That’s right, Profound Light Middle Realm Perfection! Wait, if that’s the case... then Chen Ping’an must be..."

"At the Peak Realm!!!"

"No way, no way! Isn’t Chen Ping’an only twenty-two years old!"

"That’s unbelievable!"

"..."

As the story spread, the onlookers’ focus was not on the political fallout but on the strength Chen Ping’an had displayed in the fight. The reactions of the Qiankun Bureau, the response of the Garrison Commandant’s Office, and the predicament Chen Ping’an might face were all secondary concerns.

Back in the Liu Family estate, Liu Ziming had naturally also heard the news.

’The Peak Realm!’ Liu Ziming’s heart trembled, and his eyes widened as if they would burst!