Chapter 156 The True Colors Are Revealed

The banquet was drawing to a close, and many yamen runners had already risen unsteadily to take their leave. Xu Changze, his face flushed with wine, cupped his hands and bade farewell to each of them, his words fully displaying his concern for his subordinates.

Chen Mu and Qi Huan exchanged a look and followed the crowd toward the stairs.

"Squad Leader Chen, Banner Officer Qi, please stay for a moment. I still have some official business to discuss with the two of you."

Xu Changze raised a hand to stop them, his expression gentle.

Liu Ziming originally wanted to step forward to say something, but was stopped by a glance from Xu Changze, so he had to retreat with the crowd.

Chen Mu and Qi Huan turned around, only to see that Xu Changze had already shed the hearty smile he wore during the banquet. He stood alone in the center of the hall with his hands behind his back, a sinister look faintly visible on his face.

"Does my Lord have further instructions?" Qi Huan cupped his hands, his tone laced with caution.

Xu Changze did not answer immediately. He paced to the window and pushed open a carved wooden casement. The night wind rushed in, dissipating some of the alcohol fumes.

"Instructions? How would I dare to give instructions to you two?"

He turned back, his face no longer showing a shred of magnanimity or appreciation for talent, but rather an undisguised, icy calculation.

"Chen Mu, Qi Huan, do you think that because I hosted a banquet today and heaped praise upon you, I am afraid of you, or that I am bowing my head to you?"

At this moment, he addressed them directly by name, his tone shifting from official decorum.

Qi Huan furrowed his brows. "This subordinate would not dare."

Xu Changze sneered, his gaze locking onto Chen Mu.

"Would not dare? Chen Mu, you have quite a lot of nerve."

"You killed the Ghostly Creature raised by Zhao Qinghe, ruined my plans, harmed my Luck at the Peony Pavilion, damaged my cultivation, and last night you were even more audacious, slaying both the Yunmeng City God and Nie Feng!"

"With all these incidents, did you really think I was some clay figurine or wooden carving with no awareness? Did you really think I could do nothing to you?"

The atmosphere in the hall tightened abruptly, the lingering traces of alcohol swept away by this sudden murderous intent.

Chen Mu met Xu Changze's gaze and slowly placed his hand on the hilt of his sword at his waist.

This action already said everything.

"It seems that today, Lord Xu, your 'reconciling over wine' was a lie, and trapping us here was the truth."

Xu Changze clapped his hands, the ferocity in his eyes intensifying.

"Chen Mu, from the moment you first defied me in the main hall of the Demon Suppression Division, you were already a dead man. You have lived until today only because I wanted to see exactly how capable you are and who is backing you."

"Now, I have set up a Formation on the third floor of Zuixian Tower, isolating it from the outside world. Today shall be the day of your deaths!"

Before the words had even faded, the aura around Xu Changze erupted.

It was not the pressure he had previously borrowed from his official seal, but a strange power that was extremely cold, yet mixed with a certain aura of piety.

Even more chilling was the fact that in the Void Realm behind him, countless blurry phantoms vaguely emerged.

Those phantoms were neither demons nor Ghostly Creatures, but ordinary people with blurred faces and tattered clothes, kneeling or bowing, their expressions numb yet pious, muttering incantations. Wisps of grayish-white aura drifted from them, gradually merging into Xu Changze's body.

At the same time, the gilded official seal in Xu Changze's robes floated out on its own, hovering above his head and casting down streams of golden light. It intertwined with the Power Of Will from the people, forming a sturdy layer of protection.

"The Power Of Faith of the people?!" Qi Huan exclaimed, his face drained of all color.

"You... you actually dared to gather and steal the Power Of Faith of the people! This is a great taboo of the divine path and a grave crime against the imperial court!"

Xu Changze laughed maniacally, his voice filled with madness. "Crime? History is written by the victors. As long as I eliminate you today, who would know?"

"The Yunmeng City God is dead, and the order of Yin and Yang needs someone to maintain it. I am merely absorbing some of the Power Of Will from the people who are grateful to their local official to protect myself and strengthen my body—what is wrong with that?"

"Look!" With that, he spread his arms slightly, pointing to the phantoms of the common people.

"In a single day, I ordered the construction of twenty-seven Xu Public Shrines and gratitude monuments in key locations across the counties and towns under Yunmeng's jurisdiction! I informed the people that I had eliminated evils for their sake and was injured in the battle, and that I needed their sincere prayers to help me recover so I could continue to protect the region."

"Hahaha, the ignorant masses are just that—ignorant. With a little guidance, these places of gratitude and prayers for blessings become my best nourishment and shield!"

Chen Mu's pupils contracted. He could feel Xu Changze's aura growing stronger and more stable under the infusion of the Power Of Will. That layer of protection, formed by the combination of the Power Of Will and the Luck of the official seal, gave him a feeling that it would be extremely troublesome to deal with.

"So that's it. Your collusion with the City God was likely not just to obtain evil techniques and protection, but because you had long coveted the method of the divine path's Power Of Will. Once the City God died, you couldn't wait to take it up yourself, even using the pretext of pacifying the people to carry out this act of stealing faith to strengthen yourself."

"Xu Changze, you have truly mastered the art of twisting words to suit your own ends!" Chen Mu's voice was as cold as frost.

Xu Changze sneered relentlessly upon hearing this. "Enough talk. Today, I will let you witness what it means for the hearts of the people to be directed, and what it means for official might to be as inescapable as a prison!"

"Once I kill you, there will be no one left in Yunmeng to stop me! Once I completely refine this Power Of Will and stabilize my Realm, what can even Wen Jingxing do to me if he returns?"

He stopped wasting words and raised his hand, striking out with a palm.

This palm strike was different from any previous attack; the palm wind was not spiritual energy or Protective Aura, but mixed with the golden light of the official seal, carrying a strange power that suppressed the Divine Soul. It swept toward the two of them, and wherever it passed, tables and chairs were reduced to powder.

"Watch out! This Power Of Will is mixed with too much of the people's fear, numbness, and even resentment. It has been corrupted by his evil techniques and specifically erodes Protective Aura and Divine Soul!"

Qi Huan shouted a warning, simultaneously forcing his Protective Aura to the limit. He unleashed his Five Cloud Hands with all his might, and the five-colored clouds transformed into a barrier in front of him.

"Boom!" The fierce palm wind collided with the cloud barrier, emitting a dull hiss. The five-colored clouds rapidly dimmed and dissolved. Qi Huan retreated several steps, and the cloud barrier was already teetering on the verge of collapse.

A fierce light appeared in Chen Mu's eyes; he knew he could no longer hold anything back. He stepped out with his Divine Void Step, his figure instantly splitting into several images. The soul-slaying blade was drawn with a roar, and he slashed toward Xu Changze's side, attempting to bypass that layer of Power Of Will protection and strike his true body directly.

"Mere parlor tricks!" Xu Changze sneered. He did not dodge or evade; he merely moved his mind, and the official seal above his head shone brightly. The golden light combined with the grayish-white Power Of Will swirling around him, forming a faint, looming phantom of a large bell around his body.

"Clang!" The soul-slaying blade struck the phantom bell, emitting a thunderous sound. The shockwave exploded, and the entire building shook violently.

Chen Mu was knocked back over a zhang, carving two deep furrows into the floor.

Conversely, the phantom bell merely shook violently, its light dimming slightly, but it did not shatter.

Xu Changze's figure swayed, and an unnatural flush passed over his face, but it vanished in an instant. His aura became even more ferocious, and even his voice carried a sense of gratification and arrogance.

"Do you see? This is true power! The Power Of Will of the people, combined with the orthodox Luck of the official seal—when these two are united, even an expert at the Middle Stage of the Heart-Awakening Realm might not be able to break it!"

"Chen Mu, no matter how sharp your blade technique is or how strange your Cultivation Technique may be, it is ultimately mortal power. How can it contend with this power that gathers the thoughts of an entire city's people and represents the legal authority of the imperial court!"