Sage of Humanity

If today's events weren't caused by Lu Yiye, it would be fine, since the Law Enforcement Hall often deals with offending people. Team A-5 has offended quite a few people over the years, inevitably leaving some with grudges, waiting for an opportunity to strike and vent their anger.

But if it truly was Lu Yiye, what should be said if this escalates to Lord Department Chief?

Zhou Kui, a physique cultivator at True Lake Level 9, was beaten by a combat cultivator at Level 5? And it happened right under the noses of other Team A-5 members...

If word gets out, it won't sound good; it makes Team A-5 seem too incompetent, and Zhou Kui as the captain would lose face.

Zhou Kui was abruptly enlightened by a remark, his expression shifting unpredictably, and decisively said, "Return to Haotian City!"

As long as Lu Yiye can be heavily punished, losing some face is nothing.

In the great hall of the Justice Department, Qian Wudang looked silently at Lu Ye, "Does this tea still have any taste?"

Lu Ye had already drunk three cups...

He didn't hold back, and after finishing, he poured himself another cup.

"It's alright."

Qian Wudang helplessly rubbed his forehead, "If you like this tea, you may take some back with you."

"Then I thank you, Lord." Lu Ye quickly expressed his gratitude.

Heavy footsteps approached from outside, and shortly after, a sturdy figure stepped in, his presence filled with the scent of blood.

Qian Wudang raised his eyes, seeing Zhou Kui's miserable condition, and his face suddenly darkened: "What happened?"

Zhou Kui clearly looked like he had been beaten, and the perpetrator had used a Spiritual Artifact, judging by the fresh bleeding wounds on his body, obviously injured by sharp objects. The most noticeable was the large shoe print on his face, looking extremely comical, obviously from a kick.

Zhou Kui possessed True Lake Level 9 cultivation; whoever could beat him to such a state was likely from the Divine Sea Realm.

Qian Wudang instinctively thought it was a Divine Sea Realm cultivator from Haotian City who attacked Zhou Kui.

In the end, Zhou Kui was one of his subordinates, having performed well over the past few years. Even if he made mistakes, it should be Qian Wudang, the Justice Department Chief, who punishes him, not someone overstepping their bounds.

"I ask you, my Lord, to stand up for your humble servant!" Zhou Kui clasped his fists, calling out in a deep voice, slightly tilting his head, appearing extremely ashamed, "Two hundred miles outside the city, your humble servant was ambushed!"

"Who did it?" Qian Wudang coldly asked, fury raged within him.

Ambushing his subordinates, how could this be tolerated? Inwardly vowing, no matter which Divine Sea Realm cultivator did it, he must demand an explanation today!

Harming his subordinates was akin to striking at Qian Wudang's face, defiling the Justice Department's honor! How could such a thing be allowed?

"Lu Yiye!" Zhou Kui gritted his teeth to report a name, his face showing even more humiliation, since he, at Level 9, admitted to being beaten by Lu Ye, a Level 5 cultivator, which was indeed embarrassing.

But as long as Lu Yiye could be punished, the sacrifice would be worth it.

Qian Wudang was stunned and raised his eyes to look not far behind Zhou Kui, where Lu Ye sat in a chair, legs crossed, holding a teacup.

As their eyes met, Lu Ye had a look of bewilderment.

"Who did you say?" Qian Wudang frowned.

"It was Lu Yiye, with whom I had an altercation at the Hundred Fragrance House a few days ago!"

"When did this happen?" Qian Wudang inquired again.

"Just one incense stick's time ago."

"What nonsense are you talking?" A somewhat familiar voice suddenly came from behind him, followed by footsteps, and Zhou Kui suddenly turned around, seeing Lu Ye standing up with a teacup, walking towards him.

"Why are you here?" Zhou Kui's eyes burned with anger. Earlier when he entered, he was solely focused on complaining and hadn't noticed someone behind him.

"Why shouldn't I be here?" Lu Ye snorted, placed the teacup on the table before Qian Wudang, and clasped his fists, saying, "Lord, Zhou Kui is falsely accusing and slandering a colleague; I hope you see clearly."

Zhou Kui raised his hand to grab Lu Ye's collar, fiercely saying, "It's you; don't think I didn't notice."

Lu Ye didn't resist and turned his head to Qian Wudang: "Lord, you see, he even wants to attack me. How can such arrogance be tolerated in front of you? Please allow me to instruct him, to teach him the rules of our Justice Department."

"Let go!" Qian Wudang sternly shouted while maintaining his composure.

Zhou Kui dared not disobey and promptly released Lu Ye's collar, apologizing, "Lord, forgive me. Your subordinate lost composure because that fellow bullied me excessively!"

Lu Ye raised his hand to smooth the wrinkles on his collar, calmly standing where he was.

Looking at Zhou Kui, Qian Wudang spoke in a deep voice, "You said Lu Yiye ambushed you one incense stick's time ago?"

"Yes!" Zhou Kui responded solemnly, "Just earlier, I took a mission from the Hunting Pavilion, leading a squad out of Haotian City, when two hundred miles outside the city, this fellow suddenly attacked, catching me off guard. Lord Department Chief, look at my injuries; they were all inflicted by this barghest. Such audacity, secretly attacking a colleague, is reckless. I hope, my Lord, you investigate!"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Lu Ye snorted coldly.

"Do you dare say it wasn't you?" Zhou Kui turned to glare angrily at him, "Don't think you can deceive the Lord by running here after beating people; the Lord's discerning eye sees through everything and can determine the truth!"

"Of course, it wasn't me." Lu Ye looked at Zhou Kui as if he were an idiot. "I know you've suffered a little under my hand these past few days and you're resentful, looking for an opportunity for revenge. But you don't need to resort to such despicable means." He then turned to Qian Wudang: "Lord, this man is maliciously slandering me and trying to tarnish my reputation. I ask for your justice!"

Qian Wudang, irritated by their argument, looked at Zhou Kui and asked, "Did you see him attacking you with your own eyes?"

Zhou Kui replied, "He wore a mask when he struck, hiding his true face, but his build is the same, his cultivation is the same. I fought with him at close range for a moment, and I'm sure it was him!"

"It couldn't have been him!" Qian Wudang spoke.

Zhou Kui's face of anger turned to astonishment as he looked at Qian Wudang in confusion.

"He was with me for one incense stick's time, drinking three cups of tea! If you were truly attacked before a tea break, it was definitely not him!"

Zhou Kui was dumbfounded.

If someone else had said that, he would have found it hard to believe, but the words came from his own Department Chief, making it impossible not to believe.

"This is impossible!" Zhou Kui began to shout.

The one who ambushed him was clearly Lu Yiye. How could it not be him?

If it wasn't him, then who could it have been?

With such a close confrontation, Zhou Kui was confident he couldn't have mistaken the person.

"Do you think I, the Department Chief, am deceiving you?" Qian Wudang coldly glared at Zhou Kui.

Zhou Kui jolted, hurriedly saying, "I dare not!" He suddenly recalled something and turned to Lu Ye: "If you truly weren't the one who ambushed me earlier, do you dare to swear by Heaven's Augury?"

Under Heaven's Augury, all lies are judged!

"Why should I?" Lu Ye sneered, "With the Lord Department Chief testifying for me, why would I need to swear by Heaven's Augury?"

"If you don't swear by Heaven's Augury, then it was you!"

"Having done so many shady things yourself, you don't even know who gave you a lesson, yet you come here to splash dirt on me, how ridiculous!"

Seeing Zhou Kui still wanted to argue, Qian Wudang slapped the table: "Enough!"

Murmuring endlessly, what could this turn into?

Zhou Kui and Lu Ye both fell silent.

"I, the Department Chief, said it's not him, Zhou Kui, stop entangling this!"

Zhou Kui opened his mouth, but in the end, he only replied, "Yes!"

Could it really not be him? But if it wasn't him, who else could it be? At that moment, Zhou Kui's firm belief started to waver.

Thinking about it again, could Lu Yiye at a Level 5 realm have such formidable strength? In that brief engagement, he was almost unable to fight back at all. That was definitely not the ability of a True Lake Level 5 realm.

Could it really have been a Divine Sea Realm who concealed their cultivation to teach him a lesson?

Zhou Kui's heart skipped a beat as he pondered possible candidates, but he had no leads.

While he was lost in thought, Lu Ye seized the moment to make his move: "Lord, Zhou Kui harbors resentment and seeks revenge, slandering his colleagues. If not for your testimony, I would have had no way to clear my name. If our Justice Department people all act like this, speaking without evidence and fabricating slander, how can we enforce justice? In the long run, the Justice Department will lose its authority. I implore you to severely punish him to uphold the Justice Department's integrity!"

"You..." Zhou Kui turned, glaring at Lu Ye, utterly surprised that after failing to make a complaint, Lu Yiye would take advantage of the situation to further trouble him. Moreover, this guy was using the banner of the Justice Department to pressure him, making Zhou Kui feel a sense of unease.

Qian Wudang glanced at Lu Ye, not wanting to escalate the situation. No matter what, Zhou Kui got beaten this time, and Lu Ye didn't suffer any loss. It would be best to turn great issues into small ones and small ones into nothing.

But with Lu Ye putting it this way, if he didn't punish Zhou Kui, it seemed unreasonable. After all, Lu Ye was indeed slandered, and Zhou Kui was indeed making baseless accusations.

"Then what do you think... should be the punishment?"

Lu Ye said solemnly, "The Justice Department is under your command, Lord, I only act according to orders!"

Qian Wudang looked at him with some annoyance, inwardly cursing him for being shrewd, then turned to Zhou Kui: "Without evidence, slandering a colleague, spreading rumors, Zhou Kui, you'll be fined a month's salary and receive ten lashes from the penal bureau. Do you have any objections?"

Zhou Kui didn't dare to have any objections, bowing his head like a wilted eggplant, weakly clasping his fists: "I accept the punishment!"

"Go ahead." Qian Wudang waved his hand.

Zhou Kui turned away, looking somewhat lost, not because of the punishment, but pondering one thing: if the previous incident wasn't Lu Yiye's doing, then which Divine Sea Realm was teaching him a lesson...

Being watched secretly was an uncomfortable feeling, especially when the one watching was a Divine Sea Realm.

"Don't undertake missions for a while; it's important to recover well." Qian Wudang further advised.

"Yes." Zhou Kui responded.

Watching Zhou Kui leave, Qian Wudang then looked at Lu Ye: "Satisfied?"

Lu Ye clasped his fists: "The Lord enforces justice impartially, I will certainly follow your example and strive to emulate it. Now, I'll leave you to your work, Lord. Farewell!"