Immortal Chuan gave Immortal Green Staff a look, who stood reverently and quietly on one side. Then, he gave Immortal Ke He a look, who kept growling and bellowing on the other side, with a face all purple and swollen up with bruises, and body bathed in blood. Finally, he lightly cleared his throat while bringing his right palm forward and slightly pressing it down, "I"m sure my fellow Immortals know the laws of the Heaven. No matter how fiercely you were to fight each other, as long as you are outside any of the Heaven"s administrative centers, Heaven will not interrupt the matter between you."
He paused for a brief moment, raising his head as he said with a sigh, "But if anyone dares to actively stir up a fight in any of Heaven"s administrative center, on the very ground ruled by the Heaven, he or she would have to be severely punished. Without doing that, how are we going to preserve the Heaven"s dignity? How are we going to protect the dignity of all the Emperors?"
Pointing his finger at the sky, Immortal Chuan said deeply with a solemn expression, "It is not only the dignity and faces of all the Emperors, how about the dignity and faces of Those?"
With a humble reverence, Immortal Green Staff said, "I hope Immortal Monarch can give this a thorough investigation. It is not us, Yuan Hua Sect, who is actively stirring up the trouble here."
Immediately, Immortal Ke He stamped with rage and roared, "Could that be me, a severely wounded man, was the one who was actively stirring up troubles here? You have two Heaven Immortals!"
Clasping his hands behind his back, Immortal Chuan frowned with a thoughtful expression. He turned to look at Immortal Green Staff, then Immortal Ke He, yet he did not utter a single word. Instead, there was a bright gleam flickering in his eyes, and n.o.body knew what he was thinking about. In the meanwhile, Wu Qi narrowed his eyes as he kept staring at Immortal Chuan. That expression looked extremely familiar to him. Back in those years, when Le Xiaobai was bribing the officials in various countries, they had the same exact expression!
For a full fifteen minutes, Immortal Chuan remained silent. Suddenly, Wu Qi walked out of the crowd towards him, offering him a respectful bow as he said, "Immortal Monarch, may I make bold to provide you the evidence of the incident? Also, Immortal Monarch can inquire the few Immortal Officials present, who can be the witnesses that it was Immortal Ke He of Huiling Sect who initiated a deadly attack at us, the disciples of Yuan Hua Sect, which then forced our Masters to counterattack."
With sleeves covering his hands, Wu Qi pa.s.sed a storage bag over to Immortal Chuan. The bag had an internal storage s.p.a.ce the size of a house, inside which were placed a few metal crates fully filled with energy stones of various kinds. If all of them were to be exchanged for lower-grade energy stones, they would worth a whopping two million lower-grade energy stones.
Immortal Chuan gave Wu Qi a look of surprise. He turned to look at Immortal Green Staff, then smiled and said with a nod, "Fellow Immortal Green Staff, do drop by Puluo Heavenly Realm more often in the future when you are free!"
Not batting an eyelid, he rolled back his sleeve and brought the storage back over from Wu Qi"s hand. He nodded at Wu Qi smilingly and said, "What a clever little fellow! I can see that you have a great potential. Hmm, now tell me, what"s all this about? Who is the one that attacked first? You must tell me everything in detail!" Immortal Chuan gave a glare to the few Nascent Divinity Immortal Officials standing on a corner.
Not daring to show even the slightest hesitation, the few Nascent Divinity cultivators hurled themselves forward and dropped to their knees, telling all that was happening just now.
However, after being touched up with some sublime words, Wu Qi"s curse for Immortal Ke He had changed completely, becoming so insignificant that it was not even worth mentioning. The few Immortal Officials kept emphasizing on how Immortal Ke He cast his flying sword upon meeting Wu Qi, trying to kill the latter mercilessly. Among them, a handsome Nascent Divinity cultivator said sternly and justly, "Immortal Monarch, this Immortal Ke He is tyrannical by nature. He failed to comply with the Heaven"s Law by trying to kill someone here. This is a heavy offense!"
Wu Qi gave Immortal Chuan a deep bow as he said lightly, "Immortal Monarch, please evaluate the evidence. What they said is the truth."
Immortal Chuan looked at Wu Qi with appreciative eyes. With hands clasping behind his back, he grinned coldly and asked, "Ke He, is there anything else you wish to say?"
Not waiting for the dumbstruck Immortal Ke He to speak in his defense, Immortal Chuan sneered and said, "Punishment without prior warning is a torment, and that is something I will never do. I"ll make you understand thoroughly why you are being punished today! By killing someone openly in Puluo Heavenly Realm, are you dissatisfied with me? Are you dissatisfied with the Heaven"s Laws? Are being dissatisfied with all the Emperors? Or, are you dissatisfied with Those who enacted the laws?"
Immortal Chuan questioned with an emphatic tone, and the few "dissatisfied" in his questions instantly turned Immortal Ke He"s face deadly pale. He staggered a few steps back, body covered with sweat as he dared not to refute. But that would not make Immortal Chuan spare him from the punishment. Suddenly, a silver whip appeared in Immortal Chuan"s grip. He flung it and gave Immortal Ke He a powerful smote, throwing the latter to the ground.
The silver whip was enshrouded in a thin layer of flame. Wu Qi knew that flame, which was the "White Suppressing Flame", which had an extremely high temperature and could only be found above the Ninth Sky. It was an upper-grade flame with Pure Yang characteristics that could melt down any lower-grade Immortal Items easily. Although it was an Acquired Flame, it had an incredible power. Only higher tier Heaven Immortals could control this kind of a Heavenly Flame. It was a surprise that Immortal Chuan"s silver whip actually came with such a strong flame. Imaginably, this immortal item must be crafted by some higher tier Heaven Immortal and then given to Immortal Chuan as a gift.
As Wu Qi learned from Lady Dark Gold Water"s memories, every single Immortal Monarch who ran a heavenly realm would be given a powerful immortal item by the Heaven, serving as a repressive measure. The immortal item that Immortal Chuan was using now must be the benefit he received from the Heaven. It was extremely tough for an itinerant Immortal to obtain a handy immortal item. But, although these Heaven Immortals who rendered a service to the Heaven were bound by the Heaven"s laws and regulations, the benefits they received were substantial.
Immortal Ke He howled horribly as the whip smote him. All of a sudden, he was entirely enveloped by a large sheet of white heavenly flame, which began to burn his skin and flesh while producing sizzling noises. Then, a ringing of ticking echoed out as tens of blood crystals shot out of his body. The incineration of his body by the heavenly flame had caused his blood essence to spray out, transforming into blood crystals that fell to the ground. Wu Qi gave them a count, and found that there were a total of sixteen blood crystals, each having an amount of energy roughly equal to the one hundred years of cultivation base for a Heaven Immortal. With just one whip, Immortal Chuan had removed the energy essence and magical power that Immortal Ke He obtained through one thousand six hundred years of laborious cultivation.
As he was already severely wounded, the serious punishment from Immortal Chuan"s whip had inflicted an even greater damage to his root. Even if all sixteen blood crystals on the ground were to return to him, the losses during their absorption would still make him lose nearly one thousand years of cultivation base.
Having his body enshrouded in a faint layer of flame, Immortal Ke He kept struggling and twitching convulsively on the ground, wailing and howling something that could not be understood by anyone. Those disciples of Huiling Sect standing behind him either covered their faces and dared not to give him a look, or were staring at Wu Qi with vicious hatred in their eyes, as if they were trying their best to memorize his face in their minds.
Wu Qi gave these disciples of Huiling Sect a cold grin, then turned to Immortal Chuan, cupping his fist as he said, "Immortal Monarch has made a reasonable and impartial judgment without compunction or mercy. All of us juniors have a great admiration for you!"
Immortal Chuan"s mouth corners curved into a smile as he said in a flat tone, "This is what I am supposed to do. As the Immortal Official who is in charge of administering the Puluo Heavenly Realm, I"ve to naturally uphold the public order and justice here... Hmm, Green Staff, I reckon these disciples and apprentices around you are here to partic.i.p.ate in the deathmatch? They all have a good potential, and this little guy is the best among all. What is his name?"
Wearing a smile on his face, Wu Qi took a step backward, while Immortal Green Staff cupped his fist and said, "You"re right, Immortal Monarch. These disciples are taken in by Green Staff"s youngest disciple after he finished his apprentices.h.i.+p with me many years ago, and established a sect in the other realm. This little guy is Wu Qi, and indeed he is a very clever and witty fellow."
Immortal Chuan kept nodding as he gave Wu Qi another look with a smile. "Good, good, good! I can see a good prospect in this little fellow"s future. One day, he will surely become the pillar of Yuan Hua Sect. Green Staff, I know you are rus.h.i.+ng, so you can go ahead with your errand now... Hmm, as for you guys from Huiling Sect, you can leave as well. Remember, if you ever violate the Heaven"s Laws again, don"t blame me for being ruthless to you." Waving his hand, Immortal Chuan signaled that everyone could leave now.
Wearing funeral faces as if newly bereft of both their parents, the people of Huiling Sect carried the seemingly dying Immortal Ke He and made a dash into the teleportation formation dejectedly, returning to Huiling Sect.
Wu Qi and the company offered Immortal Chuan a respectful bow, then walked into another teleportation formation.
The teleportation formation flickered with a strong light as the company was quickly transported over to where Yuan Hua Sect was located at - the Green Cliff Planet.
When a bright light finally came into everyone"s eyes and their bodies felt lighter, Immortal Green Staff gave a slap behind Wu Qi"s head. He chuckled in a low voice and said, "Good kid, you do have an excellent judgment, don"t you? Immortal Chuan"s hobby is to collect all sorts of energy stones and rare treasures. What are the things you gave him in that storage bag?"
Wu Qi told Immortal Green Staff the total number of energy stones in the storage bag with a low voice, then said while chuckling, "I just did as my Master told me before we came here. He asked me to bring some energy stones to deal with any possible emergencies. So, when I saw the look that Immortal Chuan put up just now, I felt maybe I can just give it a try."
Immortal Green Staff nodded pleasingly, then turned to the smiling Patriarch Jiang Yun and said, "I didn"t know you are such a detailed person. Tsk, two millions pieces of lower-grade energy stones, no wonder Immortal Ke He was punished by that whip. Hmm, little fellow does have a good judgment, and you can swallow your pride to openly bribe Immortal Chuan. This is something that I am unable to do."
After a brief moment of talking and laughing, Immortal Green Staff brought the company and walked out of the teleportation formation.
The teleportation formation was located within a valley, fully surrounded by lofty green mountains that looked like giant screens. The round-shaped valley measured about one hundred miles in diameter. Apart from tens of teleportation formations of various sizes, it was fully covered with countless exotic flowers and plants. At the foot of the mountains stood palaces, towers, and pavilions, that came in different designs, along with little rivers with streaming water. Everything made up a very splendid scenery. Upon seeing Immortal Green Staff walking out of the formation, the nearby executing-disciples quickly cupped their fists and bowed at him. Some addressed him as "Uncle-Master", some as "Uncle-Ancestral-Master", "Grand-Uncle-Ancestral-Master", and many other different forms of address.
Just from the many different forms of address, one would realize that Yuan Hua Sect had many, many disciples. The complicated relations.h.i.+p among them was the evidence.
Immortal Green Staff answered those executing-disciples with a nod smilingly, then brought the company as he strode towards a tall tower eastward of the valley.
They went on for over twenty miles of distance. Along the way, Immortal Green Staff told Wu Qi and the company that this place was a special arrival and departure site for Yuan Hua Sect. The nearby palaces and towers were either the residences for Yuan Hua Sect"s executing disciples, or inns, shops, and even taverns, brothels, and other similar facilities. They were now heading to Yuan Hua Sect"s "Internal Affairs Palace", where Wu Qi and his companions would have to register themselves and receive an ident.i.ty medallion, before they were allowed to enter Yuan Hua Sect"s central region.
Wu Qi and his companions nodded repeatedly, following Immortal Green Staff"s footsteps as they kept walking towards their destination.
When they finally arrived at a little square before the Internal Affair Palace"s front door, it happened that an old Daoist was walking out in their direction. He had a dark face and a long beard, clad in a dark Daoist robe with a pattern of coiling dragons embroidered on it. He had a tall crown with a dark jade set right above his brows, and there was a longsword strapped on his back. He was escorted by a group of over one hundred people. Upon looking at this dark-robed old Daoist, Immortal Green Staff"s face turned unsightly instantly.
Noticing Immortal Green Staff, the old Daoist suddenly grinned coldly and said, "Green Staff, what is the purpose of bringing this group of riffraff here?"
"Mo Luan, why do you care? It is not a business of yours!" Immortal Green Staff cried out coldly in response.
"En?" Standing right next to Daoist Mo Luan, an old Daoist with a head of gray hair glared at them as he took a step forward, unleas.h.i.+ng his immortal pressure which came pressing brutally at Wu Qi and the company.
Patriarch Jiang Yun sneered and refused to admit being inferior as he greeted upon and unleashed an immortal pressure that rolled violently forward.
Two immortal pressures collided. Immediately, both men let out a m.u.f.fled snort each while blood sprayed out from their seven apertures.
Shockingly, Patriarch Jiang Yun and the old Daoist with gray hair had just exchanged an attack head-on without giving their opponents any quarter!