Chapter 1981 - Law Enforcement Token

“There’s far more behind this than we realized, Palace Master,” Ning Chi said, frowning as she addressed Shui Yao.

“The Heavenly Alliance is already closing in around the Azure Jade Palace,” Yuan Shao agreed. The elder overseeing the investigation had delivered his findings to both deputy palace masters.

“The Heavenly Alliance, you say?”

Shui Yao opened her eyes. With her awakening, the divine sense projection dissolved and flowed back into her.

“The Yan, Liang, and Wen Clans have served under us for years, and none has ever fallen short on tribute. Yet our investigation has revealed that all three have ties with the Heavenly Alliance. A portion of their funds vanishes every year without any explanation. I believe those resources are going to the alliance,” Ning Chi reported.

Ordinarily, small subsidiary clans warranted little scrutiny from them. However, secret allegiance to the Heavenly Alliance would make those same clans another matter entirely.

Shui Yao considered the news. A month earlier, Xiao Wufa had come in person while she remained in seclusion. Yuan Shao had received him and courteously refused his invitation to join the Heavenly Alliance.

“And the other clans? What have you found about them?” Shui Yao asked after half a breath of silence.

“The investigation is ongoing. We should have further reports soon,” Ning Chi answered.

Time seemed to drag as a grave stillness settled upon the Matriarch Cradle Peak.

“Liu Wuxie’s reaction suggests he uncovered the three clans’ connection to the Heavenly Alliance, Palace Master. Xiao Wufa betrayed Immortal Emperor Liu and joined others in attacking him. If this young man really is him, he won’t leave that debt unsettled,” Yuan Shao said after considering the matter.

An ordinary disciple would hardly have reacted so strongly after visiting the three clans’ fields. According to the immortal crane, Liu Wuxie had radiated such fury and coldness that even Ling’er had fled in fear.

Ling’er might have been a bird, but its cultivation was by no means weak. The murderous intent of a mere Profound Immortal should never have driven it away.

“Even if he isn’t Immortal Emperor Liu, he knows something. Why not bring him here and ask him?” Ning Chi proposed. She admired Immortal Emperor Liu greatly. Never having met him was one of her greatest regrets.

“Nothing said here today is to leave this room. Whether he is that man or someone else, no one is to test him. Let the events unfold naturally,” Shui Yao said, bringing the discussion to an end.

If Liu Wuxie was not Immortal Emperor Liu, summoning him would reveal that an Immortal Emperor had taken an interest in him. If word spread, her reputation would suffer. Yet if he truly was Immortal Emperor Liu, how could they face each other afterward? In his previous life, even someone of her exalted status had stood beneath him.

Both deputies nodded immediately. The consequences extended far beyond this mountain. If their suspicions became known, the revelation would shake the entire Celestial Realm.

“If he is truly Immortal Emperor Liu reincarnated, the Azure Jade Palace will face grave danger should Xiao Wufa discover him here,” Ning Chi said, voicing her concern.

A third of the Celestial Realm’s territories were already under the Heavenly Alliance’s control. Opposing it was almost equivalent to opposing the entire realm.

“And if he isn’t Immortal Emperor Liu reincarnated? We would be throwing away an extraordinary prodigy by expelling him,” Yuan Shao countered.

They had no proof to establish Liu Wuxie’s identity. Their entire discussion rested upon conjecture.

“That wasn’t my intention. I’m looking at what this means for the sect,” Ning Chi replied. She understood how selfish her argument sounded, but a deputy palace master could not ignore the consequences for everyone else. One disciple’s presence could not be allowed to imperil the whole Azure Jade Palace.

Disagreement rarely divided the two deputy palace masters. Never before had their views collided so openly.

“He passed our recruitment assessment. He is therefore a disciple of the Azure Jade Palace. Apply the rules as you would to anyone else,” Shui Yao said, bringing the argument to an end.

Ning Chi and Yuan Shao bowed their heads. Both recognized that their composure had slipped.

Silence again weighed over the Matriarch Cradle Peak as time went by. Then two beams of light fell from the sky. Each deputy palace master caught one and received the memories carried by that special method of transmission.

Once they had absorbed the contents, Ning Chi and Yuan Shao looked at each other.

“Half the forces in Mulberry Sea City have been dealing with the Heavenly Alliance behind our backs, Palace Master. Some rejected its invitation, some remain undecided, and others have secretly joined it. I never imagined the Heavenly Alliance had already brought a third of the city’s clans under its control,” Ning Chi said, with disbelief plain on her face.

“We have both failed you, Palace Master,” Yuan Shao said remorsefully. Mulberry Sea City had undergone a sweeping transformation while they remained unaware. By underestimating the Heavenly Alliance’s ambitions, they had allowed its influence to reach into the city.

“How do we proceed, Palace Master? Do we destroy the forces that secretly pledged themselves to the Heavenly Alliance?”

The Azure Jade Palace won loyalty through honorable conduct, but honor did not make it powerless. Its protection bound the clans of Mulberry Sea City to its rules. Any clan wishing to join the Heavenly Alliance first had to relinquish that protection and cut its ties with the Azure Jade Palace.

Instead, many had accepted membership in the alliance while continuing to enjoy the Azure Jade Palace’s support. That was betrayal, plain and simple. What entitled them to claim the advantages of both allegiances?

“Liu Wuxie brought this to light. Let him pursue it. Give him a Law Enforcement Token. In exceptional circumstances, he may call upon a portion of our forces in Mulberry Sea City,” Shui Yao said after a moment’s consideration, turning her gaze toward the city.

“Would that not breach our rules? We have only ten Law Enforcement Tokens in the Azure Jade Palace. The saints hold five, and the Elders Hall holds three. Giving one to an outer disciple will certainly draw criticism,” Ning Chi said, unable to hide her concern.

A Law Enforcement Token allowed its bearer to hold even elders accountable for misconduct. More importantly, it granted the authority to mobilize and command a portion of the sect’s elders.

Countless contributions had earned the five saints their tokens. Even the Elders Hall possessed only three, set aside for enforcing the sect’s laws.

“Take it back after one month. Carry out my orders,” Shui Yao said, dismissing them with a wave.

Ning Chi would have argued further, but Yuan Shao intervened. The palace master had decided, and they had no choice but to follow her orders. Immortal Emperors comprehended laws of heaven and earth that were out of reach for Immortal Regnants.

The deputies departed the Matriarch Cradle Peak and made their way back to the main peak.

“Am I to keep watching him, Master?” the immortal crane asked once they had gone.

“Leave that to Ling’er. I’m going out. I may be away for ten to fifteen days,” Shui Yao replied as she rose to her feet. With a flicker, she vanished from the Matriarch Cradle Peak. Her destination remained unknown to everyone.

......

Bitter winds howled across Soul-Severing Cliff. The battle once fought here had shattered heaven and earth, robbed the sun and moon of their light, and reduced countless mountains to ruin.

Above the cliff, a white figure appeared. Since that battle, the place had become a forbidden zone. The lingering laws of Immortal Emperors intertwined throughout it, and even Immortal Emperors dared not venture within.

Countless strands of sword energy still haunted the battlefield. A single strand held enough power to tear an Immortal Regnant apart.

The woman in white hovered above the devastation and spread her powerful divine sense, searching for remnants of the battle.

Wind lashed her robes with biting force, yet she raised no barrier to shelter herself. Broken artifacts covered the ground below. Seven years had drained away their spirituality, reducing them to scrap metal.

Without warning, she descended. Her white dress gathered dirt as she bent and carefully sifted through the soil. About fifteen centimeters below the surface, she found a palm-sized fragment.

“This came from the Asura Blade,” she murmured, studying the piece. A turn of her hand put it away, and she continued searching.

......

Light filled the Chai Clan’s estate. Chai Qian had arranged a meal, though vegetables alone covered the table. There was no meat.

“Please sit, Young Master Liu. Forgive us for having so little to offer,” Chai Qian said with an embarrassed smile at his humble hospitality.

“There’s no need to stand on ceremony, Patriarch Chai. Join me,” Liu Wuxie said, taking his place.

The Grand Elder attended the meal as well, along with Chai Hu and Chai Shan.

Once he had eaten his fill, Liu Wuxie withdrew to the quiet courtyard the clan had set aside for him.

The estate’s lights went out early. Later, as the darkness deepened, a shadowy figure slipped beyond its confines beneath the cover of night.

Chai Qian had not gone to bed. From the top of the Book Collection Pavilion, he kept every corner of the estate under watch.

“So we do have a traitor,” he murmured. Following in person might alert the culprit, so he gave a hand signal instead. A black-clad man stepped out of the shadows and silently took up the pursuit.

Only then did Chai Qian change into black clothing and slip quietly out of the estate.

......

Fifteen kilometers beyond the city, Master Bian waited among the trees of a grove. He had not returned to Rainbow Soaring City.

Three figures abruptly swept into the woods and landed in front of him.

“You’ve kept me waiting,” Master Bian said, making his displeasure clear.

“The Azure Jade Palace launched an unexpected investigation into us. We needed time to deal with it,” the middle-aged man in the center replied.

Had Chai Qian witnessed their arrival, he would have recognized the man as Yan Jingfu, patriarch of the Yan Clan. Beside him stood Liang Chengzhou and Wen Gongda, the other two clans’ patriarchs.

“Has the Azure Jade Palace grown suspicious of you?” Master Bian asked, concerned.

“It’s a routine inquiry, nothing more. We pay every bit of our tribute each year. They have no reason to act against us,” Wen Gongda replied.

Who would have expected the patriarchs of three major clans in the southern district to gather in a grove in the dead of night?

“Did you accomplish what we wanted?” Liang Chengzhou asked.

“I nearly had it done. Then some brat interfered and wrecked everything,” Master Bian said, anger returning to his face at the memory.

“Start from the beginning. Tell us precisely what happened,” Liang Chengzhou said with a frown. The three clans had poured substantial resources into this trap for the Chai Clan, and he made no attempt to hide his displeasure.

Shortly after the patriarchs reached the grove, Chai Qian arrived as well. He settled soundlessly into a large tree, carefully concealing his presence.