Chapter 632: What Am I? I Am Your Celestial Official, Grandpa Shen!

"Zhu Shixiong, I feel something strange in my heart."

The Daoist couple from the Purple Cloud Sect looked at the towering city wall ahead, stepped quickly through the city gate, and the female disciple suddenly stopped in her tracks.

"..."

The male disciple's face also changed slightly; he stared straight at the city guard beside him, only to find the other man seemed completely unable to see him. In an instant, a bean-sized bead of sweat slid down from his forehead.

"This is bad!"

Jianyang Prefecture is protected by Imperial Qi, so few dare to use demonic arts here. Besides the Earth God, other Celestial Officials must be stationed within the Prefect's government office, and the Prefect himself can command the Imperial Qi to repel enemies.

Unless that Puti Sect practitioner does not wish to live, he would never dare to commit violence within the city.

The two of us have been targeted long ago!

The path we took was not the direction back to the city at all.

Thinking of this, the male disciple suddenly looked into the city gate. What came into his view was not the familiar long street, but rather as if he had walked into a dim temple.

Only one statue stood inside the temple. Though its back was turned to the two of them, judging by its clothing and appearance, it was clearly the same person as the statue they had seen earlier in the commoner's house.

Bang!

With a loud crash, the city gate slammed shut tightly, cutting off the last sliver of light and severing their retreat.

The two Daoist couples stood back-to-back, their faces instantly turning deathly pale.

When the city gate catches fire, the fish in the moat suffer.

The two Puti Sect practitioners were fighting; the three of us, fools who meddled in it, are the fish that suffered.

Our lives are over!

Inside the equally dim temple.

The tall, slender youth slowly stopped his steps, closed the manuscript in his hand, and raised his eyes to look forward.

Shen Yi had experienced illusionary arts before, but this was the first time he had encountered a technique that left him completely unaware.

He saw that on the high altar, the statue with its back to the temple door was slowly moving.

Dust fell in a rustling shower; it shrugged its shoulders and turned its head to look back.

Though draped in a monk's robe, it topped a rat's head, its long mouth twisting into a mocking smile.

It turned its body, sat casually on the altar, and pinched its long beard: "Do you know why I sought you out first?"

Without waiting for Shen Yi to answer, it stretched its voice, speaking sharply as if performing in a grand opera: "Because you are cheap!"

"Having neither background nor strength, you dare to meddle in everything."

This rat demon, like a eunuch, poked a few times with his index finger and said in a lecturing tone: "If you do not die, who will?"

Those two sect disciples clearly did not know this matter involved the Puti Sect, but the person before them was different; holding the Puti Sect's Lotus Platform Dharma, he must surely know what kind of figure was pursuing them.

This made the rat demon feel offended.

What made it even more dissatisfied was that even after it appeared, this youth still showed no fear or trepidation, standing there like a fool, neither kneeling nor begging for mercy.

Killing him so easily would not make the guilt in that stupid dog Zhikong's heart reach its deepest point.

Just then, the rat demon's ears twitched.

In the next moment, a low roar like thunder erupted outside the temple.

"Stop!"

Along with the low roar came the deafening sound of a staff being swung.

Amidst the boom, the entire dim great temple shook violently!

That strike seemed to hit the rat demon on its back, causing it to stumble and fall from the altar. Its already injured body now suffered a relapse of old wounds, its rotten teeth stained bright red by blood.

As if the intense pain had awakened its ferocity.

The rat demon did not get angry but laughed instead; it rubbed its chest to catch its breath, stood up straight again, and slowly circled around Shen Yi: "Do you hate him? He is a Puti Sect practitioner, high above all others; a single broken scripture of his can take your life."

To escape Zhikong's pursuit, one must shatter the monk's Buddha-heart in one blow.

"And you?"

"What are you?"

The rat demon slowed its pace with a sinister grin, stopped directly in front of Shen Yi, and looked at him with a half-smile.

Then the entire smile froze on its face.

Even though staffs fell outside like a violent storm, making its figure increasingly hunched, it did not cause the slightest change in the expression on its face.

The rat demon stared blankly at the youth.

It saw the other party calmly take a Bai Xi seal from his sleeve and hold it quietly in his palm.

On the fair and handsome face, a pair of black eyes were crystal clear.

The youth seemed to have said nothing, yet also seemed to have said everything.

He is not "what"; he is the Celestial Court's direct order, a Seventh-Rank Celestial Official, the parent of Shen Yidi.

"I... I..."

The rat demon suddenly swallowed its saliva, its eyelids twitching uncontrollably.

Although nominally, the Three Teachings jointly govern the Celestial Court, and the Puti Sect is considered one of its components, there is no need to fear Celestial Officials... but this absolutely does not include an ordinary practitioner like itself.

Strength is strength, status is status.

To strike at a Celestial Official, let alone a Pan Sect practitioner like itself, even a practitioner from the seat of a proper Venerable would find it hard for anyone to protect it.

Moreover, this person possesses a Dao Realm cultivation yet wields a Seventh-Rank Celestial Seal; who would believe there is no connection behind him?

"Immortal Lord, this might be a misunderstanding."

The entire temple trembled incessantly under Zhikong's smashing, and the rat demon's body shook just as much.

It did not quite understand; although it had committed a grave crime, that was a matter within the sect, not a violation of the Heavenly Laws, so how could it attract the pursuit of a Celestial Official?!

"Hah."

The risk of using this immortal seal was too great; Shen Yi had been observing just now to see if there was any other way to resolve it.

To deduce a cultivation method right in front of a Practitioner's body was almost no different from seeking death, and Master Zhikong wouldn't be able to break in for a while yet.

Now that the seal had already been taken out… what was there left to call a misunderstanding.

Shen Yi was not Lingyun Shiren, who only knew how to smash people with the great seal.

His five fingers tightened slightly as the Four Flood immortal power swiftly surged into his body, causing a warm white glow to rise between his skin. His entire form was as if carved from jade, and amid the fluttering of his sleeves, he had already ascended to the Taiyi Zhenxian realm.

"Hai!"

The moment it sensed this change, the rat demon drew a mixed-iron staff from the void to shield itself in front of its body. Its figure erupted into motion, retreating backward toward the high platform!

At the same time, Shen Yi's mind stirred slightly.

The instant the Four Flood immortal power blessed his body, he suddenly noticed something inside him move.

That Precious Mountain taken from the Banshan Sect had remained dormant all this time, but now, under the immersion of immortal power, it actually radiated a glorious light.

Divine Mountain… Suppresses the Blue Heavens.

Shen Yi's gaze swept forward; everything within the temple froze in place, including the faintly swaying firelight and the rat demon leaping into midair.

This monk-robed rat, its features savage, seemed to have sunk into a mire. Its two palms gripped the mixed-iron staff tightly, yet no matter what, it could not swing it even an inch.

The low roars outside the temple continued without end.

Another staff-strike made the great temple shudder, landing on the rat demon's back as well. Under the suppression of Divine Mountain Suppresses the Blue Heavens, it was completely unguarded this time and took the blow head-on, raising its head to spit out a mouthful of blood.

And what horrified it most was that even the blood it spat out hung suspended in midair.

Within the entire temple, only the black-robed youth's movements remained unaffected. He walked slowly forward, passing through the sky-filling blood, then seized the rat demon's throat with one hand.

Boom!

In an instant, the rat demon was slammed onto the ground viciously like a torn burlap sack!

It summoned Jin Guang to protect its body—clearly also an orthodox Practitioner's method—though compared to the Monk Zhikong, it was far fainter.

Shen Yi's five fingers formed a fist and smashed down toward the rat demon's face without hesitation!

The fist, likewise cloaked in jade light, cleanly and decisively broke through that golden light thin as a cicada's wing and shattered its cheekbone.

Drops of blood splashed onto skin still like carved jade, adding a few hints of savagery to that ethereal, immortal-like youth.

"This is going too far!"

The rat demon finally managed to barely break free of the Divine Mountain's restraint and swung its staff to strike.

Yet the entire great temple was under Shen Yi's control. He reversed his grip, seized the mixed-iron staff tightly, and yanked it hard; the staff then fell into his hand.

Bang—

His long boot stamped ruthlessly onto the rat demon's chest, pinning it dead to the ground. With an expressionless face, Shen Yi raised the long staff high. The Four Flood immortal power poured into it, and in an instant, the staff, carrying vast, tremendous force, smashed down viciously onto the rat demon's body.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

Muffled sounds of tendons snapping and bones shattering echoed one after another through the great hall.

Shen Yi, as if tireless, kept bringing the staff down. Blood soaked his hem, even splashing onto his face.

The rat demon went from a muffled groan at the very start to its head lolling to one side later, gradually losing all signs of life. Its entire body, together with that monk's robe, had rotted into a mashed-up mess; it was no longer recognizable as human.

Clatter.

Shen Yi finally tossed aside the mixed-iron staff, bent down, and hauled it up. After a familiar search of a moment, a bloodstained scripture appeared in his hand.

The scripture seemed forged from those golden pages; blood droplets falling on it did not seep in.

He gave it a casual shake twice and made out the four characters "Dragon Tiger Great Scripture" on it.

The pages rustled loudly, and the characters upon them swiftly reflected into Shen Yi's eyes.

At the same time.

The entire temple slowly dispersed, turning into a graveyard.

Only a few rat holes remained in the graveyard.

The Monk Zhikong held his long staff high, staring blankly ahead, and only blinked twice after a long while.

He saw the black-robed youth, drenched all over in blood, holding a corpse in one hand and clutching the Dragon Tiger Great Scripture in the other. Coupled with the night wind sweeping through the graveyard, there was a thoroughly absurd air to it.

Beside another rat hole.

The two Dao-companions of the Ziyun Sect, who had already been scared into paralysis on the ground, were also staring at Shen Yi with twisted features, not yet having recovered from the fright of moments ago.

They tried hard to sort out their thoughts, only to find their minds growing more tangled the more they tried to organize them.

Two Practitioners of the Puti Sect were fighting like immortals, and had casually meant to deal with the three mortals who had stumbled in by accident.

And now that mortal was just standing there, holding that immortal in his hand…

Looking again at the youth's indifferent expression, he was indeed a repeat offender—just a murderer.

"Here."

Shen Yi walked slowly to Master Zhikong and held out the Dragon Tiger Great Scripture.

The Monk Zhikong stared blankly for a long while before hurriedly putting away his staff and receiving the scripture with both palms cupped. The other party had helped him recover such a precious fruit-position, yet didn't mention any matter of reward at all.

Even though he had little worldly experience, he still felt his face flush with embarrassment.

"Many thanks, Benefactor!"

The Monk Zhikong retrieved the Dragon Tiger Great Scripture and performed a great bow in thanks. Yet after his gaze swept over the scripture, he clearly noticed something off.

Scriptures involving a Practitioner's fruit-position… once read by different people, would all leave traces.

At a glance, being read only once didn't seem like any big matter.

But at such a realm, who among them wasn't someone with photographic memory?

He stood in a daze for a moment, then cast a furtive glance at the two Ziyun Sect Dao-companions whose lives had been spared. He sighed inwardly, continued to finish his thanks, and at the same time silently brushed over the scripture to disperse the traces upon it, lest the elders of the Sect discover them.

If not for Shen Xianyou on this trip, the sins he would have committed would have been great indeed.

Hmm, it seems I forgot something.

Monk Zhikong looked at Shen Xianyou's empty, blood-stained right hand; what had the other been holding just now? How did it vanish in an instant?

Oh no! It's my senior brother!

The instant Zhikong realized what had happened, before he could utter a word, Shen Yi had already turned around.

There has never been a precedent for giving up a demon one has personally slain.

However, Zhikong's subtle movement just now had not escaped Shen Yi's eyes. Though he did not know its specific function, seeing the master's guilty expression, it was highly likely he was covering something up.

I must be more careful in the future.

"..."

Monk Zhikong wore a bitter smile on his face and sighed inwardly once more.

Shen Xianyou's conduct is indeed strange, but the other is certainly not a bad person; he can see that much.

Besides, the other has rendered such great assistance.

Enough, enough.

Yet he was equally curious: Shen Xianyou clearly has not entered the Taiyi Zhenxian realm, nor has he ever cultivated the Path of the Walker. How exactly did he defeat my senior brother?

Monk Zhikong had no habit of prying; he quickly stepped forward to follow.

"Master Zhikong! Senior Shen! Wait for us!"

The Daoist couple of the Purple Cloud Sect had just escaped death; their hearts still trembled with lingering fear. How could they dare to stay alone? They propped themselves up and chased after the two.

"..."

Shen Yi had no mind to attend to anything else right now.

He frowned slightly, silently staring at his panel.

A few simple notifications.

【Slayed a seventh-rank Rat Demon, total lifespan fourteen kalpas, remaining lifespan five kalpas, absorption complete】

【Remaining demon lifespan: two hundred and one kalpas】

According to what Master Zhikong stated earlier, one kalpa equals one hundred twenty-nine thousand years.

Shen Yi calculated over and over again several times, confirming he had not lost out, only then did he finally set his mind at ease.

He then shifted his gaze to the other two notifications.

【Seventh-rank. Three-Kalpa Lotus Throne Method: Not entered】

【Fifth-rank. Dragon and Tiger Great Sutra: Not entered】

Master Zhikong indeed spoke no falsehoods; if not for the accident that occurred later, the other would truly have given a Walker cultivation technique comparable to a Taiyi Zhenxian method over a trivial matter.

But compared to this Three-Kalpa Lotus Throne Method, the Dragon and Tiger Great Sutra obtained from the Rat Demon's body is a value beyond estimation.

Attaining a fruit seat and ascending to the Arhat realm is equivalent to a Taiyi Immortal.

With only eighty-one kalpas, I could attain nearly three!

"Benefactor, it cannot hold so much."

Monk Zhikong silently followed behind Shen Yi. To avoid embarrassing the other yet unable to speak too bluntly, he could only wear a bitter expression, struggling to organize his words: "A third-rank Lotus Throne cannot hold too large a fruit. To subdue the Dragon and Tiger, at least a Six-Kalpa Lotus Throne is required."

Looking at Shen Xianyou's expression, he truly intends to cultivate this?!

No, changing paths is like crossing a mountain; from Taiyi Immortal to Walker, even the Patriarch changes. Does he have absolutely no mental barrier?

"..."

Shen Yi's expression froze slightly; he coughed dryly twice. Indeed, he was discovered after all.

He simply pretended not to understand.

Now that he has the Rat Demon's corpse, there is no need to ask Master Zhikong about many things anymore.

The group thus, each with their own thoughts, headed toward the Earth God Temple.

(End of this chapter)