Chapter 231: 224 Heaven Expansion

Tang Zhao did not expect Deputy Envoy Mai to come and welcome him personally. Surprised and delighted, he said, "Mai Jie, it has been a long time. How did you know I was coming?"

He was about to offer a formal salute, but Mai Shiyu had already pulled him back, saying affectionately, "Of course I knew. Why stand on ceremony with your own people? Come, come, let's go inside. I've been waiting for you for a long time; today, I must have a good drink with you."

Just then, he heard two angry snorts from behind, like cattle or horses clearing their noses. Tang Zhao looked back to see the two Doctors from Qingtian Temple looking absolutely livid, their faces twisted with indignation. Feeling slightly awkward, he said, "Mai Jie, the two of them..."

Mai Shiyu laughed and said, "Today is such a happy occasion with us siblings reuniting, why bother with 'the two of them'? Don't think so much about it." With that, she took Tang Zhao's arm and pulled him straight into the city, leaving the two noble envoys from Qingtian Temple behind, fuming with rage.

After crossing the drawbridge and entering the city, shielded by the city walls with no one else around, Tang Zhao finally said, "Sister, those two just now..."

Those two were Doctors from Qingtian Temple, at least Fifth Rank, holding a higher rank than even the Deputy Town Guardian of the Land Inspection Division, Mai Shiyu. Moreover, Qingtian Temple and the Land Inspection Division were inseparable; no matter how strong the Land Inspection Division was, it would have no place to exert its strength without the intelligence support of Qingtian Temple, so they were absolutely not to be offended. And Qingtian Temple was unique in the world, existing only at the center of power; if one offended them, there was nowhere to seek redress.

Mai Shiyu sneered, "Don't pay any mind to those two pieces of trash. The Demon Cave is imminent, and the people of the whole city are under threat, yet they can't calculate the time or location of a single thing. They are completely useless, looking down on this person and that person day after day, putting on the airs of masters from Jingcheng. How do they not know shame? Why did you come with them?"

Tang Zhao explained, "I met them on the road. They had just returned from an investigation in the countryside, so I hitched a ride with them. They do have bad tempers, but at least they are willing to work. As for not being able to calculate it... human strength has its limits, so there is nothing to be done about that."

Mai Shiyu shook her head and said, "You are still that same soft-hearted person, seeing everyone as decent and everyone as having their reasons. That is your virtue. Your Mai Jie, however, is a sharp-tongued person. You don't know these two; when they first arrived, they made all sorts of grand promises, as if calculating the Empty-Type Demon Cave was a simple task that wouldn't even take overnight. As a result, after suffering a few setbacks, they started to back out, and we had to coax and beg them to keep calculating. They barely persisted for a few more days, and with no progress, they just gave up entirely. No amount of coaxing worked, so later I turned hostile and forced them to calculate. I know they just can't calculate it and are running around every day fooling ghosts, but I just can't stand their uselessness combined with their snide remarks. One moment it's, 'What does it matter if a few commoners die?' and the next, 'How can there be no deaths in a Yin Calamity?' If it weren't for the official hats on their heads, I would really like to plaster them against a wall."

Hearing this, Tang Zhao couldn't help but say, "What kind of people are these? Have they read all their books into a dog's belly?"

Mai Shiyu said, "That's what I'm saying. Are these the scholars who studied hard for ten years? It would be one thing if they didn't understand the hardships of the people, but to have such poor patience and perseverance that they can't even hold out for a month? Was it like this when they were studying?"

Tang Zhao thought for a moment and said, "They were both child prodigies who passed the provincial exams, so one could only say they were stars of literature descended to earth, with no need for hard study. Furthermore, they were recruited directly into Qingtian Temple, becoming Fifth Rank officials right away, even higher than the Hanlin Academy. Having never served a single term as a magistrate close to the people, I suppose they don't understand the ways of the world."

Mai Shiyu sneered, "I don't care if they are provincial graduates or Doctors; this is a one-time deal anyway. Once the Demon Cave descends, we will part ways, and I never want to see these two bastards again. If they say they are going to Jingcheng to report me, then let them report me. I want to see just how far Qingtian Temple can go in putting private interests above public duty and turning right into wrong."

Tang Zhao said, "But Qingtian Temple is just overbearing. They are the only ones in the world who can calculate Demon Caves. If only we in Yunzhou could also calculate Demon Caves..."

Mai Shiyu suddenly said, "Don't say it. That is a taboo."

The two fell silent. By then, they had passed through the quiet streets, turned into an alley, and arrived in front of a house. It was an ordinary civilian residence, the kind that was relatively spacious among the homes of commoners. Mai Shiyu said, "You will stay here for these two days."

As the door opened, they saw Jiang Shenyi sitting in the courtyard under a bean trellis, holding a large bowl of tea, saying, "Oh, you're here?"

Tang Zhao was not surprised—if Jiang Shenyi hadn't arrived a step ahead, how would Mai Shiyu have known he was coming? When it came to traveling, flying was certainly faster than running.

This house consisted of three rooms and a small courtyard, which was clean and tidy. Tang Zhao sat down in the courtyard with Mai Shiyu and said, "Mai Jie, shouldn't you take me to pay respects to the Town Guardian to receive orders?"

Mai Shiyu waved her hand and said, "Don't go. I actually regret calling you over. Originally, I thought the most dangerous moment of an Empty-Type Demon Cave was the moment of its arrival. Once the time was calculated, you could use your methods as a Talisman Sword Master to isolate the commoners and seal the entrance, minimizing the harm, and then we would strike to pacify the Demon Cave. That would have been a meritorious deed, with everyone receiving credit, and as a member of the Land Inspection Division, you would have earned a merit, which would be a credential for the future. But now it has turned out like this; the Demon Cave cannot be calculated, there is no way to prepare in advance, the Yin Calamity will definitely cause a disaster, and the commoners will definitely suffer losses. What merit is there to speak of? Only sin remains. If you still participate as a member of the Land Inspection Division, you will inevitably be stained with a blemish."

Speaking of this, she felt a bit discouraged and said, "Actually, I wanted you to just go back and not wade into these muddy waters. But then I thought, that would be looking down on you too much; you are not the type of person who fears trouble. Since you are here, just assist me as a friend and serve as a combatant; as a Talisman Sword Master, there is probably no place for you to exert your strength."

Tang Zhao also felt deep regret. He had looked up quite a bit of information in Jianzhou and basically had the confidence to control the entrance of a Demon Cave, yet who would have thought there would be no place to use it.

But there was nothing he could do. No matter how profound his attainments in Rune Formula were, they were in a completely different field from the Heaven Expansion Art. The Heaven Expansion Art could be considered the rarest and most secret knowledge in the world, firmly grasped in the hands of the Qingtian Temple lineage; even his Glasses could not provide hints, so he had no way to deal with it.

He could only sigh and say, "Heaven's timing is hard to defy. Does the Lord not have any capable people who are proficient in the Heaven Expansion Art?"

Before Mai Shiyu could speak, Jiang Shenyi said, "Learning the Heaven Expansion Art in private is a crime of great rebellion, an unforgivable sin. Even if someone were truly proficient, they wouldn't dare to say it, right?"

Mai Shiyu was surprised that Jiang Shenyi knew so clearly, and said, "Exactly. As for the Imperial Court, in some places it is as if it were invisible, and even if things are in a complete mess, it never shows its face. In other places, it cannot be touched; the moment you touch it, it jumps out and gives you a heavy blow. This Heaven Expansion Art is a taboo that must be handled with care; one should mention it as little as possible in private. Besides, even if someone really learned this, how could the strength of one or two people compare to the foundation of Qingtian Temple? If Qingtian Temple has no solution, then probably no one in the world has a solution."

She rested her hand on the sword at her waist and said, "So I can only fulfill the duties of the Land Inspection Division. Land Inspection Division, Land Inspection Division—if we can't manage the affairs of the heavens, can we not manage the affairs of the earth? I am powerless when the Demon Cave descends, so I can only try my best to ensure that not one more person dies after it descends." With that, she stood up.

Because she had things on her mind, she did not truly have a drink with Tang Zhao to reminisce about old times, which Tang Zhao could naturally understand.

Before leaving, she exhorted Tang Zhao, "You wait here quietly for now; don't worry about what we are doing. You can take action on the day the Demon Cave descends. By then, you should be able to feel the anomaly in space. Or, if you see the sky filled with red and white flower petals, you can find me by following the source of the flower path."

Tang Zhao was startled and realized, "Red and white flower petals—so Sister's sword is the Flying Flower Sword?"

Mai Shiyu smiled and said, "It is the Fangfei Sword."

After leaving Tang Zhao, she took a deep breath and walked quietly through the empty streets.

In the civilian houses on both sides of the street, six or seven out of ten were still occupied by commoners. Those with money and power had long since fled Xun City, and those who had relatives to rely on had also left. The Land Inspection Division had not strictly forbidden it; there was no reason to block others' paths to survival. Those who remained here were the poor city dwellers whose roots were in Xun City, with nowhere else to go—the true commoners. Encountering such a great disaster, they could only hide in their rooms and quietly pray for the danger to pass.

The lives of these commoners were entrusted to the Land Inspection Division.

It was precisely because the Land Inspection Division had been diligent and responsible in Yunzhou all these years, and Xun City had always been well protected, that the commoners trusted them and stayed quietly in place, not fleeing in desperation, choosing to entrust their lives to them.

However... they did not know that in three or five days, some of them might suddenly be smashed to pieces, and the Land Inspection Division would be unable to protect them at all.

At the thought of this, Mai Shiyu felt overwhelmed with shame. She couldn't even lift her head to face people while walking down the street, wishing she could cover her face and run wildly.

It had all gone so smoothly when she was following Town Guardian Xing in Yuxia Jun; how did it become like this when she arrived in Xun City? Whether it was the matter of the Demon Cave or the affairs of the Division, everything was exhausting.

Sigh, if only Town Guardian Xing were still here.

Suddenly, her heart tightened. She turned around abruptly, coating her hand with Qi, and snatched an object flying through the air.

The object felt light as a feather in her hand; it was actually a crumpled ball of paper.

Mai Shiyu frowned. Before looking closely, she observed the surrounding environment. The nearby houses were ordinary, there were no traces of anyone on the walls, and she listened intently but heard no sounds of note.

Was the person who threw it hiding?

With a measure of vigilance, she opened the note, protecting her hand with Qi to guard against poison and holding her breath to guard against poisonous gas.

The note had both text and drawings, written densely.

At the first glance at the content, her eyes widened suddenly, and she could hardly believe it. Her hand tightened, crumpling the paper into a ball again, and she turned into a small alley to confirm that there was no one around before carefully unfolding it to look again.

After confirming it repeatedly, Mai Shiyu's breathing became heavy, and she almost reached out to draw her sword. But then, she calmed down and said in a low voice, word by word, "This matter is of great importance; I cannot act on my own."

Immediately after, she rushed out of the alley and ran wildly down the main road like a flash!

Her destination, of course, was the headquarters of the Land Inspection Division in Xun City.