[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-immortal-through-martial-path-i-who-cannot-die-s":3,"chapter-immortal-through-martial-path-i-who-cannot-die-s-immortal-through-martial-path-i-who-cannot-die-s-chapter-19":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Immortal Through Martial Path, I Who Cannot Die Shall Ultimately Be Invincible",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2325237,4549,"Chapter 19: Immortals Fight, Minor Spirits Suffer","immortal-through-martial-path-i-who-cannot-die-s-chapter-19",19,"\u003Cp>Chen Guanlou had indeed looked into the full backstory of this lawsuit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outside the city, a Liu landowner invested money and labor to organize people to reclaim wasteland; over three years, he turned roughly five thousand mu of barren land into arable land.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, a Wu landowner appeared, claiming the wasteland belonged to his family, and now he demanded the return of the five thousand mu of well-cultivated land, producing a land deed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Liu landowner naturally refused. He had poured heart and soul into reclaiming five thousand mu; the land had just become productive, and now someone showed up to snatch the harvest without offering any compensation. In any place, he held the moral high ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two sides traded blows repeatedly, neither yielding, tempers rising higher and higher—until finally, verbal conflict escalated into physical violence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In a world that revered martial strength, only force could resolve the issue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Liu landowner’s household had retainers and guards, their martial power unquestionable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Wu landowner’s household also had retainers and guards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the two sides clashed, the scene was explosive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After fighting back and forth, the Wu landowner’s martial strength clearly could not match the Liu landowner’s. In a rage, the Wu landowner hired a gang of hired thugs to settle the matter in a final showdown.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The result was both sides brought weapons—and people were killed on the spot. The case first went to the county yamen; everyone assumed it was a simple matter, but it turned out to involve powerful figures from the capital.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Liu landowner’s patron was none other than the Hou Fu; the Liu landowner acted as a frontman, representing the marquis’s interests in seizing land and acquiring wealth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Wu landowner’s patron was the court’s new favorite, Jiang Tu, currently serving as Vice Minister of the Ministry of Finance and Inspector of City Gates, tasked by the Emperor with extracting revenue—and deeply favored by him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A sharp-tongued courtier gave Jiang Tu a nickname: “Jiang Imperial Consort.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This revealed just how much favor he enjoyed. The Emperor could not go a single day without Jiang Tu; seven or eight out of every ten suggestions Jiang Tu made were adopted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No minister in court could rival Jiang Tu’s standing in the Emperor’s eyes—not even the Crown Prince or the Imperial Princes dared to ignore him; all sought to curry favor with this rising power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Wu landowner had once been a destitute man; Jiang Tu himself came from humble origins. Once Jiang Tu rose to power, the Wu landowner leveraged his distant familial ties to the Jiang family and, within just a few years, amassed a vast fortune, growing ever more arrogant. Others, intimidated by Jiang Tu’s influence, gave way to him, emboldening the Wu landowner further—until now he dared to scheme against the Hou Fu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet the Liu landowner, emboldened by the Hou Fu’s backing, paid him no mind—and since he held the moral advantage, the conflict erupted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The local county magistrate initially had no idea how deep the waters ran and instinctively leaned toward favoring the Wu landowner. Fortunately, the private secretary intervened with a quiet warning; the magistrate broke into a cold sweat. He dared not offend either side, so he escalated the case upward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Jingzhao Yin: …\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fuck, do you think I’m immune to this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The case kept escalating, finally landing in the hands of the Ministry of Justice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Ministry of Justice had no way to resolve it; everyone there was thoroughly frustrated. One overzealous official proposed a solution: lock both parties up. The intent was to keep them under close watch, preventing any mishaps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But everyone knew the place most prone to mishaps was the Tianlaomiao.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If jailers in the countryside had a Danzi  of 5, jailers in the Tianlaomiao had a Danzi  of 10.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After learning the full scope of the case, Chen Guanlou involuntarily shuddered twice. Two immortals were fighting; he was just a lowly jailer—what virtue or ability did he have to be dragged into this? They must be joking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Right now, Jiang Tu holds great power; the Wu landowner is clearly abusing Jiang Tu’s influence, seizing good farmland by force. No matter how you look at it, this lawsuit is clearly unjust on the Wu landowner’s part. Yet the authorities delay judgment and escalate the case to the Ministry of Justice—ultimately, everyone fears Jiang Tu’s power. Not because of anything else, but because they fear Jiang Tu whispering poison into the Emperor’s ear. After all, Jiang Tu sees the Emperor every day. Given this situation, why does the Hou Fu still choose to stand firm against Jiang Tu? Could this be sacrificing the big picture for a petty dispute?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Guanlou had no desire to get involved in this case; he only wanted to be a jailer who ate, slept, and slacked off every day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Liu Guanshi refused to let him off: “Little Lou, your words make sense. If this were any ordinary man, he’d have to swallow his teeth and blood, accept his fate. But Jiang Tu—fool that he is—dared provoke the Hou Fu. This case can’t end so easily. If the Hou Fu retreats, how will it ever maintain its standing among the noble houses?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Others fear Jiang Tu, but the Hou Fu doesn’t. Jiang Tu hasn’t yet achieved total control over the court. He’s merely a sycophant, a trivial plaything—and yet he dares to target noble houses. Five thousand mu of land isn’t much. If he wants it, he could simply send a servant to politely ask—and they’d hand it over. But he insists on seizing it by force? Then let the Hou Fu slap his face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Guanshi spoke with murderous intent; Chen Guanlou couldn’t help but think harder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He asked cautiously: “Is this the Hou Fu’s decision?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s not just the Hou Fu’s decision—it’s the decision of every noble house. This case isn’t the Hou Fu fighting alone. There are countless officials in court who wish Jiang Tu dead. As soon as the moment arrives, the censors will move.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From Liu Guanshi’s tone, victory in this case seemed likely. The noble houses and court officials had apparently reached an unspoken understanding: to use this case to break Jiang Tu’s pride. If they could kill him outright, so much the better.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Chen Guanlou wasn’t so optimistic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Tu’s name was known throughout the capital; even children knew the Emperor couldn’t live without him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The Emperor trusts Jiang Tu so deeply—can this case, which isn’t even that big, really topple him?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I know what you’re worried about. Even if we can’t topple him, we must annoy him. You’re still young—you don’t understand court politics. Affairs in court are never settled in a single move; they’re a long, drawn-out struggle. Whether you win or lose, when the moment comes, you must strike—show your claws—so your subordinates will stand firm behind you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Guanlou nodded vigorously; this made sense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you always hide and retreat, always yield, even the strongest power will eventually have its morale crushed. Over time, your people lose the will to fight, lose confidence, and their loyalty crumbles. Then, when the real battle comes, you turn around—and find everyone’s gone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whether you can win or not, once you’ve started the war, you must fight hard. Even if you lose, you still boost morale—you show your people that you still have the strength to fight, that you’re merely temporarily outmatched. When the right moment comes, you might still turn the tide. And this is also a perfect chance to purge your own ranks—eliminate the fence-sitters, the weak-willed, and purify your ranks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, if the Hou Fu chooses to retreat and appease Jiang Tu, what will the Emperor think when he hears of it? Will he begin to doubt the loyalty of the noble houses?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whether Jiang Tu will be suspected is uncertain—but the Hou Fu will certainly be suspected.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once suspected by the Emperor, the next step is suppression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Conversely, if the Hou Fu fights Jiang Tu, it might even bring benefits. What if the Emperor secretly approves?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Guanlou thought long and drank much wine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After this drink, he knew he couldn’t avoid this matter.\u003C\u002Fp>",1369,"2026-06-20T17:39:56.967Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","da1b550220b15a23ea8dd02d55e2f6e0bc837d0ff1bdecf7eacbc6268a49de1f","immortal-through-martial-path-i-who-cannot-die-s-chapter-20","immortal-through-martial-path-i-who-cannot-die-s-chapter-18",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fimmortal-through-martial-path-i-who-cannot-die-s-cover.jpg"]