Chapter 136: Turning the Clouds with a Flip of the Hand

The moment Cheng Rang uttered those words, the summit of Three Elders Peak fell into deathly silence.

To disregard the authority of the imperial court was a capital offense.

Forget a mere acting county magistrate. Even if Li Shun were the legitimate county magistrate, once such a charge was proven, his life would be forfeit.

However, since Li Shun had dared to order this memorial inscription carved into the sheer cliff before everyone, he had naturally long anticipated the open attacks and hidden schemes that would follow.

Now, beneath the countless gazes fixed upon him, his expression remained completely unchanged.

Looking directly at Cheng Rang, Li Shun let out a cold laugh before speaking calmly.

"The affairs of a nation rest upon sacrifice and war. Sacrifice exists to honor virtue, repay one's origins, and instruct the people through moral example. My offering to the Three Elders is not some superstitious worship of spirits and ghosts. It is to honor the beginning of our county and repay the virtues they bestowed upon later generations."

The instant Li Shun spoke those opening words, Cheng Rang's confident expression subtly changed.

He had never expected Li Shun's response to come so swiftly.

It was as though he had anticipated this accusation from the very beginning.

The affairs of a nation rest upon sacrifice and war.

Eight simple words.

Yet they immediately seized the highest moral and legal ground, providing the most irrefutable justification possible for honoring the Three Elders.

Before anyone had time to digest those words, Li Shun's voice suddenly turned sharp and thunderous.

"You claim Shangyu County would still exist without the Three Elders. Such sophistry is born only of ignorance!"

"In the wilderness of the primordial age, pestilence ravaged the lands of Nanxu, while savage beasts roamed unchecked. Had there not been mighty elders who first rose to defend the people, slaying demons with blood-soaked hands, then no matter how many plows or hoes our ancestors possessed, they would have become nothing more than prey for monsters. How, then, could villages have formed? How could generations have prospered?"

"The Three Elders laid the foundations. Successive Water Administrators dredged the rivers. The common people devoted their strength. This is the unbroken chain of cause and effect passed down through every generation."

"Yet you deliberately sever the achievements of our ancestors from those of the people today. Such conduct is not merely foolish. It is unjust!"

Cheng Rang narrowed his eyes.

A faint sense of danger began to rise within him.

Li Shun had completely avoided becoming entangled in arguments over sacrificial rites.

Instead, he had turned the tables in a single stroke.

Every word was as sharp as spearpoints and arrows.

Li Shun pressed forward relentlessly.

"But upon further reflection, perhaps you are not foolish at all."

"Perhaps your intentions are simply malicious!"

"Today, Shangyu County enjoys peace in all directions. The people live prosperous and contented lives. Having only recently assumed responsibility for county affairs, I merely followed the solemn records preserved by our predecessors, respected the heartfelt wishes of the people, and restored the proper sacrificial rites. This is nothing more than the duty of a government official to rectify the source and stabilize the local populace."

"Yet armed with your so-called astonishing talent, instead of assisting the government and working together for the prosperity of your homeland, you lurk in the shadows, stirring trouble while publicly condemning the authorities."

"You constantly claim to speak on behalf of the people while erasing the achievements of the Three Elders. In truth, your goal is to incite unrest and encourage the people of Shangyu to become ungrateful!"

"You would have them regard their forebears as frauds and the government as fools who deceive the people. Using this matter as a pretext, you seek to divide the hearts of the populace. Your purpose is not debate."

"It is sedition!"

Like a relentless barrage, Li Shun's words poured forth without pause.

In the blink of an eye, he had skipped over debate entirely and directly branded Cheng Rang as a villain harboring sinister intentions.

This was one of the lessons he had learned from Fang Xun's decades of experience in officialdom.

When someone publicly accuses you, rushing to prove your innocence is often the worst possible strategy.

A true master immediately launches an even fiercer counteroffensive, advancing instead of retreating.

As long as your opponent's motives can be exposed as impure and malicious, every accusation they previously raised collapses on its own.

Feeling the increasingly suspicious and strange looks cast toward him by the surrounding townspeople, cold sweat began trickling down Cheng Rang's forehead.

Instinctively, he opened his mouth to argue.

Yet before he could utter a single word, Li Shun, who had already seized complete control of the situation, gave him no opportunity whatsoever.

His voice grew even more majestic, booming across the summit of Three Elders Peak like the tolling of an ancient temple bell.

"You seek to erase gratitude from the hearts of all beneath heaven and teach the people to abandon loyalty!"

"If you convince the people that they need not remember the kindness of their forebears, then tomorrow they will no longer appreciate the peace granted by the imperial court. The day after that, they will no longer obey His Majesty's laws and decrees!"

"You endlessly proclaim that you act for the sake of the people. Yet in truth, you merely borrow the people's name to uproot the very foundations of the state and overturn the rites and laws of Great Qian!"

Li Shun's eyes turned icy cold.

"With your poisonous words, you seek to destroy all reverence within the human heart, reducing the millions of people of Shangyu into unfilial rebels who acknowledge neither father nor sovereign."

"Your crimes deserve execution!"

"Patrol Constable Li Qing, where are you?"

"Seize this traitor!"

"Yes!"

Li Qing had long found Cheng Rang displeasing.

The instant he heard his elder brother's command, his Principle Qi erupted violently around him.

His body shot forward like an arrow loosed from its bow, carrying a roaring gale as he charged directly toward Cheng Rang.

Just as Li Qing prepared to unleash his full strength and capture him in a single blow, Li Shun's voice suddenly echoed through a voice transmission.

"Pretend you're no match for him. Spit blood and retreat."

Li Qing froze for only an instant before immediately understanding.

Everything had happened so quickly that Cheng Rang could scarcely believe it.

He had merely come to engage in a debate.

Yet in the span of moments, he had somehow become a "traitor."

Watching Li Qing charge toward him with a ferocious expression and overwhelming pressure, Cheng Rang instinctively raised a hand to defend himself.

Then...

His eyes widened in utter disbelief.

The instant the two made contact, the seemingly imposing Constable Li Qing flew backward at several times the speed of his initial charge.

"Pfft!"

While still in midair, Li Qing spat out a huge mouthful of blood before crashing heavily onto the ground, his face deathly pale.

"I... I barely even used any force..."

Cheng Rang stood there, completely bewildered.

"Wasn't Li Qing supposed to be at the peak grade of the Spirit Resonance realm? How could he be defeated so easily?"

Before he could think further, Li Shun suddenly let out a heart-rending cry.

"The traitor dares resist arrest and openly attack a government officer!"

"Quickly! Go into the city and summon County Commandant Zhang! This official shall risk his life to hold him here! Everyone, leave at once before you're caught in the crossfire!"

As he shouted to the surrounding townspeople, Li Shun helped Li Qing back to his feet.

The two brothers stood shoulder to shoulder before Cheng Rang.

What everyone had expected to be an entertaining public debate had transformed into the capture of a dangerous criminal.

Even the government's chief constable had been beaten until he coughed blood.

The common people had never witnessed such a scene before.

Terrified out of their wits, they scattered in every direction.

And the way they now looked at Cheng Rang truly resembled the way one would look upon a rebellious traitor.

Cheng Rang found himself utterly unable to defend himself.

Inwardly, he cursed Li Shun's ancestors for eighteen generations.

"Wasn't he supposed to be nothing more than a former laborer with no background?"

"How are all these schemes so flawlessly executed? How can his reactions be this fast?"

"Could there be some hidden expert advising him from behind the scenes?"

While shock and fury churned within him, Cheng Rang suddenly looked up.

The heavily injured Li Qing had casually wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.

With a savage grin, he charged forward once more.

Almost reflexively, Cheng Rang pointed a finger through the air.

Instantly, ripples spread across the sky above the summit.

Dozens of pitch-black chains materialized from thin air.

Faint golden radiance shimmered across them with imposing authority.

The chains rattled loudly as they shot forward, firmly binding Li Qing's body.

"So you're a disciple of the Legalist School."

Li Shun's amused chuckle drifted over.

To Cheng Rang's ears, that laughter only made his blood boil even further.

At that very moment, Li Qing released a deep roar.

The muscles across his body bulged violently.

Relying solely upon the brute strength of his physical body, he forcibly shattered every single chain.

Freed from the restraints, his figure blurred into a straight line as he instantly closed the distance.

His fist tore through the air with a shrill whistle like the cry of a drawn sword.

"He actually broke my Shackling Chains so easily?"

"And... he's really trying to kill me?"

"How dare he?!"

Watching Li Qing's face rapidly enlarge within his vision, filled with undisguised killing intent, Cheng Rang finally panicked.

"The net of law is vast. Though its mesh is wide, nothing escapes it."

He hurriedly recited the incantation.

Countless invisible lines suddenly appeared throughout heaven and earth, interweaving into a gigantic heavenly net.

Once again, Li Qing was firmly trapped within its confines. Unable to break free immediately, Li Qing's eyes remained filled with murderous intent.

"Damn it."

"I never should have accepted this assignment if I had known it would become such a nightmare."

His regret deepened.

Realizing the situation had completely spiraled out of control, Cheng Rang no longer dared remain.

His body flashed.

Transforming into a streak of light, he fled into the distance without even leaving behind a single parting remark.

Only then did Li Qing finally tear apart the last of the threads binding him.

Just as he prepared to give chase with a roar, Li Shun stopped him.

"No need."

"I was worried he wouldn't run."

"Now that he has fled... the charges of resisting arrest and committing treason are finally beyond dispute."

Li Shun's cold voice echoed through their voice transmission.

Standing with his hands clasped behind his back, he quietly watched Cheng Rang disappear into the horizon while carefully savoring the mysterious changes within his own body.

"After advancing into the Primal Simplicity realm, everything truly is different."

"Even my divine abilities can now influence the minds of Spirit Resonance cultivators."

"Had I not been secretly using [Thinking Without Learning], Cheng Rang would never have made one disastrous mistake after another."