Chapter 134: Gold Powerhouse

"You guys only heard about it, but I saw it with my own eyes. I was working as a waiter at the Boli Hotel that day, and all the dignitaries and elites of Star City had come to celebrate the Murong Family Head's birthday. You have no idea—that Pride of the Seven Deadly Sins appeared out of thin air like a ghost. He just raised his hand, and the Murong Family Head was decapitated on the spot!"

"Isn't that a bit of an exaggeration?"

"Not an exaggeration at all. I nearly wet my pants! And it wasn't just the Murong Family Head; a ton of VIPs died too. Whoever he pointed at died on the spot. Everyone was too terrified to move, just watching helplessly as he left. Oh, right, the Murong family's third daughter was the only brave one. She actually dared to stand up and confront Pride, asking him why he was killing people. Do you know what Pride said?"

"What did he say? What did he tell her?"

"He said..." The man lowered his voice. "'Don't you find it fun to kill imperial nobles?'"

Hiss!

A chorus of sharp gasps rippled through the surrounding crowd.

Similar scenes were playing out in streets and alleys all over Star City. There had been too many witnesses. The story of Pride assassinating the nobles spread continuously, growing more outlandish by the hour. Eventually, some even claimed he was the avatar of a god, descended to punish Murong Zhuo for his many sins.

Star City Law Enforcement Bureau.

Bureau Chief Wei Zheng continuously wiped the sweat from his face with a handkerchief, bowing and scraping before a woman seated in a chair.

The woman wore a tight black combat suit that looked like leather, perfectly hugging her tall, slender figure. Her shoulder-length black hair gave her a sharp, capable look, framing delicate features and a healthy wheat-colored complexion.

Her pants were just as form-fitting, drawing a smooth line from her waist down to her ankles to highlight a pair of long, straight legs. The cuffs were tucked into tall black tactical boots. She wore no accessories of any kind.

"Captain Mu, do we really have to bring in all the survivors? They're practically all dignitaries and elites of Star City. Some of them even do business with the nobles of the Imperial Capital. This matter is simply too big; I really don't have the authority to make this call."

The woman, Mu Lingxi, was the captain of the action team dispatched from the Imperial Capital General Law Enforcement Bureau.

Hearing Wei Zheng's reluctance, Mu Lingxi's expression turned cold. "This is Lord Sikong's will."

At the mention of the name Sikong, Wei Zheng gave an involuntary shudder. Out of the corner of his eye, he couldn't help but glance toward the man sitting on the sofa at the very back of the office.

He was a middle-aged man. The years had left a few marks on his face, but they did nothing to diminish his imposing aura or charisma. His silver-grey hair was combed back immaculately without a single strand out of place. With thick, sword-like eyebrows and a piercing gaze, his chiseled face bore a deep bronze complexion.

Just sitting there, he felt like a towering mountain—utterly immovable.

"Lord Sikong Zhen, this..." Wei Zheng looked visibly troubled.

Sikong Zhen raised his eyes to look at him. In that instant, Wei Zheng felt as though he had been targeted by an apex predator. His breathing grew labored, as if a heavy weight were crushing the air out of his lungs. That overwhelming pressure choked the rest of the words in his throat.

"Do as I said," Sikong Zhen said slowly. His voice was calm, yet it left absolutely no room for question.

"Yes! Lord Sikong!" Wei Zheng snapped to attention, standing as rigidly as a soldier before a general.

Wei Zheng left to carry out the orders. The moment he stepped out of the office, his expression twisted into a bitter grimace. These people sent down from above showed no consideration for saving face at all. Sure, they could arrest people as they pleased, but when they dusted off their hands and left, he would be the one left offending everyone!

He was the chief of the Star City Law Enforcement Bureau. In the future, he still had to make a living in this one mu and three fen of land in Star City.

Despite his inward complaints, he hadn't dared to voice them aloud. If it had only been Mu Lingxi pressuring him, he could have found a way to stall. After all, she was just a captain from the general bureau; strictly speaking, they were of the same rank.

But Sikong Zhen had spoken, and Wei Zheng didn't dare disobey. Sikong Zhen was a Gold Transcendent from the Imperial Capital, and the surname Sikong itself marked his noble status.

In the Chiyan Empire, nobles weren't necessarily Gold Transcendents, but Gold Transcendents were undoubtedly nobles!

Even if a wild Gold powerhouse appeared, the Empire would grant them a noble title and invite them into the fold to consolidate its rule.

In truth, people didn't really hate the nobles; what they hated was the fact that they weren't nobles themselves.

Bronze Coffin Company.

Nangong Mengli leaned back in a wide leather chair, looking somewhat haggard. The seat dipped slightly, its soft leather wrapping around her graceful figure. A cup of hot tea sat on her desk, sending up curling wisps of white steam.

Sitting across from her was Su Mu.

Su Mu held a newspaper in his hands, sipping his own hot tea as he read. The front-page headline detailed the Pride of the Seven Deadly Sins—a heinous criminal who had publicly assassinated imperial nobles and was now the subject of a nationwide manhunt.

"Wei Zheng, the chief of the Star City Law Enforcement Bureau, called me," Nangong Mengli said wearily. "He told everyone who attended the banquet to report to the bureau. It's mandatory. He said it was an order handed down by Sikong Zhen, a Gold powerhouse from the Imperial Capital."

The aftereffects of Instant Bloom were simply too severe. Even after resting for a full day, she still hadn't completely recovered.

But it was precisely this backlash that proved its terrifying strength. Stepping into the domain of time with a mortal body—this was the strongest known Silver Law.

After witnessing Instant Bloom that day, Su Mu finally understood why the Royal Family of the Chiyan Empire had been so determined to eradicate the Nangong Family. No one would ever want such terrifying power resting in the hands of another.

In times of war, the Nangong Family was the sharpest sword. But once peace arrived, the Royal Family grew wary, and eventually terrified. No one wanted a person who could kill them at a moment's notice lingering by their side.

At Silver 1, Nangong Mengli had been able to instantly kill a Silver 3 opponent. What if she reached the Gold tier?

"Activating Instant Bloom comes at the cost of burning your lifespan. How much did you consume this time?" Su Mu asked.

Nangong Mengli seemed reluctant to bring it up, but she answered anyway.

"Five years."

Five years of lifespan? Su Mu's eyes flickered slightly. It didn't sound like a massive number, but how many five-year spans did a person get in one life?

Silver Transcendents were still mortals of flesh and blood in the end. Even with their formidable strength, their lifespans weren't much longer than an ordinary person's. If one use cost five years, she wouldn't be able to activate it many times over her entire life.

"This was a special case," she added. "The gap in strength between Murong Zhuo and me was just too wide. To prevent any unexpected variables, I had to push the output of Instant Bloom to the absolute limit, trading it for extreme speed so he wouldn't even have time to react. That's why the cost was so high. If I were dealing with a weaker enemy, it wouldn't drain nearly as much."

Su Mu nodded. "Do you know much about this Sikong Zhen?"

Looking a little cold, Nangong Mengli wrapped her slender hands around her hot tea. The rising white steam blurred her features. "I don't. The files on every Gold powerhouse are highly classified and strictly forbidden from being leaked. But I do know a little bit—things I heard from Qian Zihao.

"Qian Zihao's mining license for the Mithril Mine was approved by the Sikong Family. Back then, to show off his clout to me, he bragged a bit about his connections in the Imperial Capital. But a connection like that is practically nothing. Wealthy merchants all over the empire fall over themselves trying to curry favor with the capital's nobles; Qian Zihao was just one of many.

"Now that Sikong Zhen is here, the Mithril Mine Qian Zihao left behind probably won't be his for much longer."