Chapter 437

The internal competition within the Blue Office is fiercer than you can imagine; carving a path through the sea of Black-clothed Guards demands a terrible price.

He barely managed to clear a way, only to be blocked again!

This plunged Yu Baiyi into overwhelming despair.

At that moment, a voice suddenly spoke up.

"There's no need to demote him—he did nothing wrong. It was our fault for not explaining the Blue Office's rules clearly, causing him to misunderstand."

Who… is helping me speak?

Yu Baiyi turned toward the voice—and there, surprisingly, was the very guy he despised… speaking up for him.

Yet his own carefully cultivated peer, that dead-eyed fool, remained silent.

"Does Night Captain think the punishment too harsh?" Lord Jun asked, puzzled.

"Yeah, it's a bit excessive. Look at him—he's practically begging to die. It's not warranted."

Lord Jun paused, then said: "... Since Night Captain pleads for him, the demotion is hereby suspended. You and Tian Liu, take your team and head to Gu Yue Cun. Understood?"

What, what?! I'm not being punished after all?!

Yu Baiyi trembled with emotion: "Thank you, Lord Jun, for your mercy! Thank you, Night Captain, for your mercy!"

"Mm. Both of you, go prepare and set out."

"Yes!"

"Yes."

Tian Liu—that dead-eyed fool—was the White-clothed Guard in charge of records.

The two bowed out together; after leaving the room, they exchanged a glance.

That glance felt like a death stare.

Neither spoke a word, but Yu Baiyi understood—he'd been stabbed in the back, and the traitor made no effort to hide it. He did it, and he didn't care.

Too bad Lord Jun wasn't ruthless enough; Yu Baiyi kept his position.

They departed in silence; Yu Baiyi made no loud accusations or other outbursts.

Struggles within the Blue Office are always this turbulent; one misstep and you capsize in a ditch.

On the surface, everyone befriends each other calmly; behind closed doors, they'll fight to the death.

After the two left, only Fang Yue, Lin Ling, and Lord Jun remained in the room.

"Lord Jun, I was interrupted by Yu Baiyi earlier—I still have one more thing to report."

"What is it?"

"On our way to Qingsi County, we passed through Deyun Cun and found it attacked by the Night Thief. Thousands of villagers were slaughtered; only a handful of women survived, whom we secretly sheltered in Yingzhong Cun. And I killed the Night Thief 【Duan Long Tou】. This is his head."

Fang Yue placed 【Duan Long Tou】's head on the table.

Duan Long Tou?

Isn't that the Night Thief You Sisi went out to hunt?

And Deyun Cun… another Special-grade Black-level Record of a wiped-out village!

Boom!!

Lord Jun slammed his fist hard onto the table, making a thunderous crash.

"These beasts in human skin! They dare wipe out entire villages! If only their trail weren't so hard to track, I'd have crushed them long ago!"

Fang Yue could tell Lord Jun's rage was genuine.

This was a man who truly cared for other villages, who worked for others.

Yu Baiyi's behavior made Fang Yue feel he treated his duties like a mechanical climb—no passion, no fight for Qingsi County, just climbing for status.

Without passion, there is no warmth.

A man who cannot understand the pain of a village destroyed, of friends murdered, is hard to support.

"Lord Jun, in the Blue Office, are there more people like you, or more like Yu Baiyi?"

Lord Jun, caught off guard by the sudden question, paused, then said: "Naturally, there are far more like Yu Baiyi. They've grown up in silk and jade, ignorant of the world's suffering, treating everything as a passing spectacle. For them, the Blue Office is merely a title."

Lord Jun sighed deeply: "I've always wanted to recruit better talent from the surrounding villages into the Blue Office, but suitable people are too rare. Some have passion but no strength; others have strength but prefer joining richer sects to earn more money rather than join the Blue Office to help develop the Heiqing Shanmai."

Lin Ling's eyes flickered: "Uh, Lord Jun… what do you think of me?"

"You? You're from Gu Yue Cun, and you're Chief Captain—you clearly want to do something for the villages of Heiqing Shanmai. But… from your record, you've trained for years and remain stuck in Third-rate Realm, unlikely to advance further…"

"…."

Lin Ling fell silent. He wanted to follow Lord Jun—but no one would take him.

"Night Captain, if the Wu Yu tribe matter is true, I invite you to join the Blue Office directly as a White-clothed Guard—to help the Heiqing Shanmai, to help every village!"

No need to ask!

Fang Yue's expression turned solemn: "To restore the Blue Office's glory, it is our duty!"

Lin Ling:???

Damn! I want to say that too!

"Good, good. If you have free time these days, come often to the Blue Office—I'll personally guide you. Oh, and the reward for killing 【Duan Long Tou】—I'll have it delivered to your quarters after inventory. By the way, one more thing: when you killed 【Duan Long Tou】, did you encounter a woman? Tall, fierce-looking…"

"Lord Jun, are you referring to 【Qian Si Jian】 You Sisi?"

Lord Jun blinked: "You've met her?"

"No, but 【Duan Long Tou】 mentioned once that he was being pursued by her."

"Indeed. You Qingyi went out specifically to kill 【Duan Long Tou】. Though you got there first, the outcome is what matters."

Hearing this, Fang Yue asked curiously: "You Sisi… You Qingyi—what realm is she? Why did she personally hunt a Third-rate Realm 【Duan Long Tou】?"

"You Qingyi's realm? First-rate Realm. Perfect match for 【Duan Long Tou】. She despises Night Thieves and is fiercely eager—no one stopped her."

"First-rate Realm… of the post-heaven realm? And she's just a White-clothed Guard??"

"She's rather special. Under the standard assessment, without reaching the Innate Third-rate Realm, she couldn't have become a Blue-Robed. But her talent is exceptional, and her strength is growing extremely fast—she'll break through soon barring any accidents. And within Qingsi County, she has no equal at her level; she can even cross levels to defeat Innate Third-rate Realm martial artists. So the title is well-deserved, fully earned, and enough to win everyone's respect."

Able to cross levels and defeat an Innate expert?

Well, that is understandable then.

But being invincible at the same level and all that—is she really that formidable?

Fang Yue didn't quite believe it, but he didn't dwell on it either. After asking about the bounty reward for 【Broken Dragon Head】, he immediately beamed with joy.

It was just that the people of Gu Yue Cun were short on money to develop in Qingsi County. With this wave of large bounty from 【Broken Dragon Head】, suddenly there was a lot of room to maneuver.

Fang Yue was planning in his mind how to use this sum of money to seek development in Qingsi County.

Suddenly, urgent knocking sounded from outside the door.

"Lord Jun, Lord You has returned. She says the 【Broken Dragon Head】 case was stolen—someone else has already taken the head. Someone will come to post a bounty soon, and she wants you to keep an eye on this matter. She says she wants to meet in person the person who chopped off 【Broken Dragon Head】's head."

Fang Yue: …

Lord Jun: …

Can't take it anymore, going to sleep. Will make up the remaining 2 chapters tonight.

(End of this chapter)