Chapter 8
High above the Enforcement Hall, two figures lingered unseen.
Minghan Zhenren—who had never once taken on a disciple since beginning her path of cultivation—had only changed her mind after encountering Wu Fengshu, a rare bearer of the Thousand Illusions Body.
This visit to the Wendao Sect had been voluntary. On the surface, it was to discuss important sect matters. In truth… she also intended to show off her disciple a little.
Qingxuzi listened with an easy smile.
“What a coincidence,” he said lightly. “Uncle-Master Zixiao recently accepted a disciple as well. Her talent is quite remarkable—she possesses both the Immaculate Body and the Hidden Thunder Spiritual Root.”
Minghan’s lips twitched almost imperceptibly.
“...”
Remarkable?
The Thousand Illusions Body appeared perhaps once in a hundred years.
The Immaculate Body… once in ten thousand.
That was no longer “remarkable.” That was monstrous.
She knew that smile on Qingxuzi’s face all too well—it never meant anything good.
With a faint exhale, Minghan suggested they go meet this disciple in person, and the two of them made their way toward the Enforcement Hall.
They had barely arrived when Wu Fengshu stepped inside.
And then—
Lou Yuqing’s inner voice rang out.
Minghan’s expression shifted.
Qingxuzi noticed it instantly.
So… she could hear it too.
He couldn’t help but wonder again—what exactly were the conditions for hearing that voice?
Still, he wasn’t worried. No matter what one heard, it was impossible to speak it aloud—no matter the form, no matter the wording.
Even entertaining the thought of exposing it invited a suffocating pressure… as though some unseen, terrifying existence had locked its gaze upon you.
Minghan spoke first, her tone calm. “My disciple’s romantic path has been… uneven. But perhaps that is not a bad thing. It will temper her character.”
She knew Wu Fengshu far too well.
“If she continues to act arrogantly and recklessly, she will inevitably stumble into real danger.”
Qingxuzi chuckled. “Young people always need room to grow. I’d say she still has plenty of room left… at the very least, she can’t fall any lower.”
Minghan cast him a sidelong glance.
He wasn’t even trying to hide it—clearly siding with his own sect’s disciple. After all, Wu Fengshu had been the one to provoke Si Nidie first.
“Consider the matter of the Seven Sects Alliance Competition carefully,” she said at last. “I will await your answer.”
With that, her figure flickered—
—and in the next instant, she took Wu Fengshu with her and vanished into the sky.
Outside the listening chamber, Wu Fengshu stood still, her expression dazed.
The moment she saw her master, her composure cracked.
“Master…” she said, voice soft with grievance. “Your disciple… is truly pitiful.”
According to that voice—
She was destined to remain single her entire life.
Such a future… it was almost unbearable.
As the daughter of a Martial Emperor, even if she hadn’t surpassed her father, she hadn’t even reached one-thousandth of his prowess in matters of the heart.
It was humiliating.
Minghan gently patted her head.
“Fengshu, matters of the heart are unpredictable. They follow fate. This is not something I can help you with.”
Wu Fengshu hesitated, then asked quietly, “Master… you heard that voice too?”
Minghan nodded. “I did. But the future is not set in stone. Do not let this become an obsession.”
Her gaze softened slightly. “We cultivators pursue the Great Dao. Everything else… is secondary.”
Wu Fengshu pressed her lips together.
A long silence passed before she answered, voice low, “Your disciple understands.”
Minghan knew she didn’t—not yet.
But that was fine.
She was still young. Time and experience would teach her what words could not.
Soon, the two figures disappeared into the horizon.
Watching them go, Qingxuzi fell into thought.
The matter of the Seven Sects Alliance Competition remained unresolved… yet the Bailing Sect had already made the first move.
It seemed they hoped the Wendao Sect would take the lead.
After all, even if they weren’t the strongest sect on the continent, their position among the Seven Sects was undeniably dominant.
Qingxuzi came and went like a passing breeze.
Aside from Gu Buqi—Zixiao Immortal Venerable—no one realized the sect leader had even set foot in the Enforcement Hall.
Gu Buqi, meanwhile, stood in quiet contemplation.
After repeated observation, he had more or less determined the range of that strange “voice transmission.”
Ten zhang.
Roughly thirty-three meters.
Beyond that distance, nothing could be heard.
At first, he had assumed that those involved in the gossip wouldn’t be able to hear it.
But Si Nanren and Wu Fengshu both had.
So what set them apart from people like Zeng Changfeng and Tang Xueyao?
Gu Buqi’s gaze darkened slightly.
Could it be… whether or not they harbor ill intent toward my disciple?
If so—
Then the conditions might be: Within ten zhang… and no malicious intent.
A preliminary conclusion—but not yet confirmed.
Inside the hall, Lou Yuqing stretched lazily, completely unaware that her master was conducting a quiet analysis of supernatural mechanics.
Having just finished a particularly satisfying round of gossip, she still felt a little unsated.
“Senior Sister,” she said, turning to Si Nidie, “the senior brother on duty went to the Enforcement Hall to observe a case today, right? Should we go take a look too?”
Si Nidie, having just successfully sent her brother away, was in an excellent mood.
“Of course. I’ll show you how trials are conducted. We in the observation area are also responsible for recording case details.”
The three of them moved through an internal passage and entered the main hall.
The atmosphere changed instantly.
At the center of the hall, Wei Houming sat in the main seat, his posture rigid, presence sharp as a drawn blade.
To his lower left sat the observation disciples.
On both sides of the hall, enforcement disciples stood in orderly rows—silent, disciplined, imposing.
Si Nidie led Lou Yuqing and Gu Bugai to their seats with practiced ease, then gestured subtly toward the center.
“Look there.”
Lou Yuqing followed her gaze—
—and blinked.
A male disciple lay sprawled on the ground.
His face was pitch black. His robes were charred and tattered, as if he’d rolled through a pile of soot—or been blasted straight out of an explosion.
Beside him, a white-robed healer examined his condition, brows knit in confusion.
“His injuries aren’t serious,” the healer muttered. “The burns look severe, but his internal organs are unharmed. After taking medicine, the external wounds have already healed… so why hasn’t he woken up?”
This healer was skilled enough to work alongside the Enforcement Hall.
If even he couldn’t explain it—
Then there was only one possibility.
Wei Houming’s voice cut through the silence, cold and precise.
“Hao Tianping. Feigning unconsciousness will only worsen your punishment. If you don’t open your eyes now, your charges will be increased.”
The words had barely settled—
When the “unconscious” man sprang upright.
A perfectly human-shaped black imprint remained on the floor where he had been lying.
Hao Tianping stood there stiffly, head lowered. “This disciple… admits his fault.”
He hadn’t been trying to escape punishment. He had just… not wanted to face it.
The healer froze for a moment—then shot him an irritated glare.
He had doubted his own medical judgment… but never the patient.
Who would’ve thought the problem was the patient?
Around the hall, murmurs rippled.
After all—looking at Hao Tianping now, lively and intact—who would believe he had just crawled out of an explosion?
Everyone had assumed he was dead.
Instead… he had climbed out of the rubble.
Si Nidie let out a soft “Huh.”
Lou Yuqing turned. “What’s wrong?”
“I feel like I’ve heard that name before…”
Before she could think further, Wei Houming began the interrogation.
“Hao Tianping,” he said evenly, “you destroyed the alchemy room. Do you have anything to say in your defense?”
Hao Tianping bowed his head. “This disciple… has nothing to say.”
Wei Houming studied him briefly, then pronounced the sentence without hesitation.
“The alchemy room has been completely destroyed. You are fined ten thousand spirit stones, to be paid within a set period. A three-month confinement sentence will be imposed. Additionally, you are to copy the sect rules ten thousand times.”
Silence fell.
Hao Tianping’s face turned pale.
The spirit stones… he could manage.
But confinement—
He had experienced it once before. One month had nearly broken him.
Now… three?
For a moment, it truly felt like the world had ended.
“…This disciple accepts punishment,” he said hoarsely.
Wei Houming waved a hand.
“Take him away.”
Two enforcement disciples stepped forward at once, seizing Hao Tianping by the arms and dragging him toward the confinement chambers without another word.
Lou Yuqing blinked, impressed. “Captain Wei handles cases so quickly.”
Si Nidie leaned closer, lowering her voice. “He’s the fastest in the Enforcement Hall—small cases in fifteen minutes, big ones in half a day. We privately call him the ‘Case-Handling Maniac.’ Ever since he became the seated elder, there’s never been a backlog. Everything gets handled immediately.”
She spoke with enthusiasm—completely missing the faint glance Wei Houming cast in her direction.
Gu Buqi sighed inwardly.
Talking about someone… right in front of them. As if she wanted to be heard.
But he said nothing.
Some lessons were better learned the hard way.
Lou Yuqing tilted her head. “How many captains are there in the Enforcement Hall?”
Si Nidie explained readily, “Twenty, currently. At the top is Hall Master Meng Zonghan, who oversees everything—he rarely appears in public.”
Then she went on, “Below him are the twenty captains. Each commands dozens to hundreds of enforcement disciples. Even the lowest-ranking enforcement disciple is at the Foundation Establishment stage.”
She paused, then added with a hint of pride, “My brother passed the assessment and became one. He’s been insufferably smug ever since. When he becomes a captain, then he’ll really be impressive.”
Lou Yuqing nodded eagerly. “So Captain Wei… is at the Golden Core stage?”
“Exactly.”
Si Nidie continued, “There are also two special roles—the Hall Elder and the Execution Elder.”
She lifted a finger slightly as she explained, “The Hall Elder position rotates among the twenty Golden Core captains every five years. They preside over trials and handle all cases. Meanwhile, the Execution Elder goes out on missions—arresting offenders, suppressing rogue demons, monitoring cities… things like that.”
She lowered her voice slightly.
“Captain Wei just took office this year. He’s strict—very strict. No one dares provoke him. Not even us in the observation area.”
There was still a trace of lingering fear in her tone.
Clearly, she had firsthand experience.
Lou Yuqing listened, fascinated.
Her gaze drifted back to Wei Houming, a flicker of admiration rising in her chest.
And then—
He looked back.
Their eyes met.
Lou Yuqing froze.
A chill ran down her spine.
She quickly tugged at Si Nidie’s sleeve.
“I’m telling you, that Hao Tianping—hey, why are you pulling me?”
Si Nidie turned—
—and met Wei Houming’s expressionless gaze.
Her heart skipped.
Oh no.
He heard everything.