I am a fairy in Journey to the West

Chapter 486 Yin and Yang are Divided
The Yintai Mountain Divine Palace sent people to search for more than ten days, but they still couldn't find any trace of Huan Mi.

Later, Yan Xie sent out all six spirit generals and searched for another half month, but still found nothing.

Meanwhile, the process of registrar Yu Songzhi investigating the properties of Yuanqiao Cave also encountered difficulties.

In short, all those industries were taken over by the disciples of Yuanqiao Cave, and all traces related to Yuanqiao Cave were erased.

Therefore, when Yu Songzhi investigated, he found that these properties had no connection with Yuanqiao Cave and were all the properties of these disciples themselves.

When Yu Songzhi returned to the Yintai Mountain Divine Palace to report, Yan Xiezhi was also helpless and knew that the news had been leaked.

“Someone must have leaked the information,” Yan Xiezhi said.

Yu Songzhi said, "Divine Lord, should we investigate the people in the Divine Palace? If this news is leaked, there must be a traitor within the Divine Palace."

Yan Xiezhi waved his hand and said, "No, we can't investigate."

Yu Songzhi asked, "Why can't we investigate the Divine Palace?"

Yan Xiezhi said, "We have many disciples in our various cave dwellings, and naturally there are also some in our divine palace. It is normal for them to inform their benefactors when something happens."

“So we’re just going to let it go? That would make it very difficult for the Divine Palace to do anything in the future,” Yu Songzhi said, shaking his head.

Yan Xiezhi smiled and said, "Not investigating now doesn't mean we won't pursue it later. As I just said, the various cave dwellings have many disciples, so we must proceed slowly."

Yu Songzhi said, "Then what should we do now? Yuanqiao Cave and all the concealed industries have been separated, and without Huan Mi as a witness, I'm afraid the Divine Palace can't do anything to Yuanqiao Cave."

“You’ve got the wrong idea,” Yan Xiezhi said with a smile. “The reason Yuanqiao Cave concealed the truth was to pay less tax. Although we can’t punish Yuanqiao Cave for concealing the truth, we can still collect the tax.”

Yu Songzhi's eyes lit up, and he said, "That's right, we can collect the taxes."

Yan Xiezhi nodded and said, "As long as the taxes can be collected, everything else can be done slowly. We can't be too hasty, lest we become desperate and do something rash."

Yu Songzhi cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty is wise."

So Yan Xiezhi ordered Yu Songzhi to lead the spirits down the mountain to collect taxes door-to-door. Although Yuanqiao Cave had severed ties with those industries, collecting taxes was still a common practice.

Regardless of whether it's property belonging to Yuanqiao Cave or not, taxes still need to be paid. Now that it's been discovered, all taxes must be paid.

Moreover, they will be fined, since these industries were not reported voluntarily; they were discovered by Yintaishan Shenfu.

Therefore, Yu Songzhi imposed double the penalties on all these industries, collecting double the taxes. However, the taxes from these industries had already been collected by Yuanqiao Cave, and the little purple money left was simply not enough to pay the double taxes.

There was no other way. Yu Songzhi immediately ordered all the spirit generals to pick spirit herbs and plants and catch spirit fish. Since there was no money, they would pay the tax in kind.

Therefore, all the unreported businesses that were discovered, regardless of whether they were from Yuanqiao Cave, were completely exploited.

Although Yuanqiao Cave made the cut ahead of time to avoid being punished by the Divine Palace, it still suffered a great loss.

Why are traitors so hateful? The reason is that whenever betrayal occurs, someone will inevitably be harmed, only the extent of the loss may vary.

On this trip down the mountain, Yu Songzhi confiscated over 300,000 purple coins worth of spiritual treasures and valuables, which he then deposited entirely into the treasury.

Yuanqiao Cave is located in Guanling Prefecture, and Huanxu is the leader of the demon realm in Guanling Prefecture.

This time, the Yintaishan Divine Palace investigated and confiscated unreported properties and their assets. Although it seemed to have nothing to do with Yuanqiao Cave on the surface, both sides knew the truth in their hearts.

Three days later, Yan Xiezhi hosted a banquet at the Yuzhu Hall of the Divine Palace on Yintai Mountain, inviting Huan Xu and his family to attend.

Huan Xu, following orders, led the main members of Yuanqiao Cave to the Divine Palace on Yintai Mountain for a banquet.

At the banquet, Yan Xiezhi first asked about the death of Huan Xu's daughter-in-law. Huan Xu and his son pretended to be sad and answered, and Yan Xiezhi then comforted them.

Yan Xiezhi then brought up the matter of those industries that had been concealed, and Huan Xu also stated frankly that he was unaware of them.

As for Huan Mi, both sides tacitly avoided mentioning him, as if he had never existed.

During the banquet, Huan Xu brought up another matter, which was related to the previous Demon Lord Tai Chen.

"The Demon Lord Taichen?" Yan Xiezhi asked in surprise, "This fiend was already annihilated by True Lord Lingtai. Why is Cave Master Huanxu bringing him up again now?"

Huan Xu said, "Regarding the trouble caused by the Demon Lord Tai Chen, Hengtian Cave in Jinling Prefecture was very close to the Demon Lord Tai Chen, and many of Hengtian Cave's disciples were serving under the Demon Lord Tai Chen."

Yan Xie said, "Wasn't everything settled later?"

Huan Xu said, "There was no purge. Those disciples were very clever. They did not become the confidants of the Demon Lord Taichen. Later, the Northern Mountain Divine Palace only punished the ringleaders and the main accomplices. These peripheral people were not purgeed."

At this point, Huan Xu added, "During this period, Hengtian Cave also presented Taichen Demon Lord with goods and precious materials on several occasions, and Taichen Demon Lord also rewarded Hengtian Cave with many treasures. I also heard about something, but of course, this is just hearsay and has not been verified."

Yan Xie asked curiously, "What is it?"

Huan Xu hesitated for a moment and said, "I heard that the Demon Lord Taichen once bestowed a demonic cultivation technique upon Hengtian Cave. Of course, this is just a rumor, and it may just be false information."

"Oh," Yan Xiezhi said indifferently, "Perhaps."

Seeing Yan Xiezhi's expression, Huan Xu knew that Yan Xiezhi had become suspicious, so he said no more. Instead, he raised his wine cup to Yan Xiezhi and said, "Since the Divine Lord took office, the people of Guanling Prefecture have lived in peace and prosperity. This is all thanks to the Divine Lord's good governance."

After saying this, Huan Xu stood up with his wine cup in hand and said, "Here, I toast the Divine Lord to thank him for his grace in bringing peace to the people of Guanling Prefecture."

Huan Xu's wife, Huan Yu, Huan Xu's third brother, and everyone from Yuanqiao Cave rose to offer a toast to Yan Xiezhi.

Seeing this, Yan Xiezhi also raised his wine cup and said, "Not at all, I also want to thank Cave Master Huanxu for his assistance. The Cave Master has made great contributions to my ability to govern Guanling Prefecture. Come, let us drink this wine together."

So everyone drank it all in one gulp, and the banquet lasted for more than an hour before it ended. Afterwards, Huan Xu and the others bid farewell to Yan Xiezhi and left.

After Huan Xu and the others left, Yan Xiezhi returned to his private residence to rest.

At midnight, the registrar Yu Songzhi suddenly came to see Yan Xiezhi. Yan Xiezhi immediately got up and dressed with the help of his servants and received Yu Songzhi.

Upon entering the hermitage, Yu Songzhi immediately said to Yan Xiezhi, "My Lord, Huan Mi's whereabouts have been found."

Yan Xiezhi raised an eyebrow and suddenly looked up, asking, "Where?"

Yu Songzhi said, "It's suspected to be at Xiaoyin Peak."

"Little Silver Peak?" Yan Xiezhi frowned and said, "Little Silver Peak is not far from the main peak. Now that we've found it, we should bring it back immediately. What do you mean by 'suspected'?"

Yu Songzhi said, "My Lord, Huan Mi is suspected to have died on Little Silver Peak. Today, when the general was searching for him, he found a pile of broken bones and flesh mixed with mud on Little Silver Peak, as well as torn clothes. Judging from the fabric and accessories of the clothes, they are very similar to the clothes Huan Mi wore."

Yan Xie said, "Go and summon the Search and Kill General, and come with me to Little Silver Peak to investigate."

Yu Songzhi bowed and said, "Yes."

Soon, the Search and Kill General arrived at Yan Xiezhi's residence to pay his respects. Yan Xiezhi then led Yu Songzhi and the Search and Kill General to Little Silver Peak for inspection.

Upon seeing the pile of broken bones and flesh, Yan Xiezhi instructed Yu Songzhi and the Search and Kill General to clean out the tattered clothes inside. After a simple piecing together, they found that the clothes were indeed very similar to those worn by Huan Mi.

"After searching for so long without finding him, it turns out he died here," Yan Xiezhi said, his eyes fixed on the scene.

Yu Songzhi said, "Divine Lord, this is clearly murder to silence him." The Search and Kill General also said, "Judging from the degree of decay of this pile of broken bones and flesh, he has only been dead for about a month, and he should have been smashed alive by a very heavy blunt weapon."

Yu Songzhi said, "Moreover, Huan Mi was killed on Xiaoyin Peak, which is one of the peaks of Yintai Mountain and belongs to the area directly under the jurisdiction of the Divine Palace. Obviously, the person who killed Huan Mi was someone from within our Divine Palace."

Upon hearing this, Yan Xiezhi immediately turned to the Search and Kill General and asked, "Search and Kill General, are you a disciple of Yuanqiao Cave?"

Upon hearing this, General Sou Sha immediately understood what Yan Xiezhi meant and bowed, saying, "My Lord, I am not a disciple of Yuanqiao Cave, but a disciple of Langya Cave in Luzhou."

Yan Xiezhi nodded slightly and said, "Investigate this matter. Find out who did it, and I will reward them handsomely."

The general immediately knelt on one knee and said, "Your subordinate obeys!"

Back in the Divine Palace, the Registrar Yu Songzhi said to Yan Xiezhi, "Divine Lord, since you know Huan Mi is dead, why not bring his spirit here as evidence?"

Yan Xiezhi's eyes lit up, and he immediately said, "Good idea, the soul can also be a witness."

Thinking of this, Yan Xiezhi immediately said, "Take my document and go to Yong'an City right away. Ask the City God if he has captured Huan Mi's soul. If his soul is in the City God Temple, bring it back to me immediately."

Yu Songzhi accepted the document, then bowed and left to receive the order.

Yu Songzhi arrived at the Yong'an City God Temple. After being informed by the ghost messenger, he entered the Underworld Hall and met the Yong'an City God.

The City God of Yong'an has been serving in Guanling Prefecture for a long time. As mentioned before, the people of Beiju Luzhou did not believe in gods and Buddhas, and the only temples that existed were the Zhenwu Temple and the City God Temple.

However, since the underworld only handles the task of capturing souls in Beiju Luzhou, it has no interference with the mortal world and has never had much presence in Beiju Luzhou before.

Upon seeing the City God of Yong'an, Yu Songzhi immediately bowed and said, "Yu Songzhi, the registrar of the Yintai Mountain Divine Palace, pays respects to the City God."

The City God of Yong'an sat on the throne, flanked by civil and military judges, soul-reaping messengers, and the shackled general, among other underworld deities. The City God of Yong'an asked, "Registrar Yu, what brings you here?"

Yu Songzhi quickly explained his purpose and said, "Please grant me this favor, Lord of the Palace. Once Huan Mi's soul has gone to the Palace of the Gods to testify, the Palace of the Silver Terrace Mountain will escort him back as soon as possible."

Upon hearing this, the City God of Yong'an said to the civil judge, "Check the Book of Ghosts in the Underworld and see if Huan Mi's soul has been imprisoned in the netherworld."

Judge Wen accepted the order and opened the Book of Ghosts to check. After a short while, he replied, "Your Majesty, Huan Mi's ghost has indeed been taken into custody by the ghost messengers and brought to justice in the underworld, but that was twenty days ago."

"Twenty days ago?" Upon hearing this, the City God of Yong'an shook his head and said, "New souls only stay in the City God Temple for seven days. After the first seven days, they will be escorted to the underworld. You are too late."

Upon hearing this, Yu Songzhi hurriedly asked, "Lord, is there any way to bring Huan Mi out of the underworld? It won't take long, just three days will be enough."

The City God of Yong'an's expression changed, and he looked at Yu Songzhi, saying, "Nonsense! Yin and Yang are separate. Once the soul has returned to the underworld, how can it return to the mortal world?"

Yu Songzhi said, "But he's involved in a major case and was murdered, so he should be able to testify, right?"

The City God of Yong'an shook his head and said, "It's impossible. Yin and Yang are in harmony, and the matter is of great importance. Not to mention me, a City God, even the Ten Kings of Hell wouldn't dare to send the souls of the underworld to the mortal realm at will. If nothing goes wrong, that's fine, but if something does go wrong, no one can bear the responsibility."

Yu Songzhi still wanted to try, "Lord, is there really no other way? My Yintai Mountain Divine Palace is also a Heavenly Palace, could we go through the handover process with the Underworld?"

The City God of Yong'an said, "The laws of the underworld clearly stipulate that once a soul has entered the underworld and been brought to justice, it can only return to the mortal world on the Ghost Festival. Apart from the Ghost Festival, if it wants to contact people in the mortal world, it can only do so through dreams."

At this point, the City God of Yong'an looked at Yu Songzhi and said, "Perhaps you can handle this case on the Ghost Festival, then Huan Mi's ghost can come to the mortal world."

Upon hearing this, Yu Songzhi said helplessly, "It's September now, and the Ghost Festival just over a month ago. We'll have to wait until next year."

The City God of Yong'an said calmly, "Then we can only wait. The laws of the underworld are equal to the laws of heaven. Who would dare to violate them?"

Then, the City God of Yong'an said, "Is it you or your Lord that has such great influence that you can make the Ten Kings of Hell bear such a heavy responsibility for violating the laws of the underworld?"

Yu Songzhi was speechless. In the entire Northern Continent, perhaps only the Great Emperor of the Northern Mountain had such great influence.

But thinking about it, it's impossible. Why would the Great Emperor of the Northern Mountain owe the Ten Kings of Hell a huge favor just for a small cave like Yuanqiao Cave? It's too much of a waste.

So Yu Songzhi bid farewell to the City God of Yong'an and returned to the Yintai Mountain Divine Palace to report back to Yan Xiezhi.

After listening, Yan Xiezhi sighed and said, "There's really no way around it. If we had known earlier that Huan Mi was dead, we could have gone to the City God Temple to borrow someone during his seventh day memorial service. But now that he's in the underworld and under investigation, that path is obviously blocked."

Yu Songzhi nodded, then suddenly brought up the matter of Hengtian Cave and Taichen Demon Lord that Huan Xu had mentioned at the banquet.

“Huan Xu’s sudden mention of this matter was definitely not just a casual remark,” Yu Songzhi said.

Yan Xiezhi said, "Hengtian Cave is in Jinling Prefecture, and Yuanqiao Cave is in Guanling Prefecture. Huan Xu is clearly complaining about Hengtian Cave when he says this."

Yu Songzhi said, "But these two families are so far apart and have no conflicts. Why would Huan Xu sue Hengtian Cave?"

Yan Xiezhi thought for a moment and said, "There is only one possibility. He wants to divert my attention, so he brought up the matter of Hengtian Cave's friendship with the Demon Lord Taichen. He wants us to shift our attention from the matter of Yuanqiao Cave's cover-up to Hengtian Cave."

Yu Songzhi thought about it and realized that it was indeed possible. So he said with admiration, "Huan Xu's dog-like intentions cannot be hidden from the Divine Lord. So what should the Divine Lord do next?"

Yan Xiezhi smiled and said, "Send a document to the Divine Palace of Jinling Prefecture, asking the Divine Lord of Jinling Prefecture to question Tao Mingzi, the Master of Hengtian Cave. Of course, it must be stated that this is a report from Huan Xu, the Master of Yuanqiao Cave."

Yu Songzhi suddenly realized that this was meant to incite Hengtian Cave and Yuanqiao Cave to fight each other. He immediately cupped his hands and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty is wise. I will go and issue the decree immediately."

Just as Yu Songzhi was sending a message to the Divine Palace of Jinling Prefecture, a melodious celestial sound suddenly came from Yan Xiezhi's sleeve.

Yan Xiezhi quickly took out the Heavenly Profound Jade Talisman from his sleeve and saw that it was actually Taiheng Jun calling. He immediately answered the call.

A burst of spiritual light rose, the celestial curtain unfolded, and the figure of Taiheng Jun appeared before Yan Xiezhi.

Yan Xiezhi quickly cupped his hands and bowed, saying, "Xiezhi greets his cousin."

Lord Taiheng smiled slightly and said, "There's no need for formalities among family. Thank you. The amount of tax you collected this time is quite substantial, and Father Emperor is very pleased and praised you."

Yan Xiezhi was overjoyed to hear this and quickly said, "Thank you for your praise, Your Majesty. This is what I should do."

Taiheng Jun waved his hand and said, "Besides conveying my father's praise, I have another matter to inform you about this time."

Upon hearing this, Yan Xiezhi immediately bowed respectfully and said, "Please enlighten me, cousin."

Taihengjun said, "The Grand Chancellor of Buzhou Mountain, Huoling Zhenxian, has arrived in Beiju Luzhou, but has not announced his itinerary. He seems to be in your Guanling Prefecture now, so you should pay close attention."

Upon hearing this, Yan Xiezhi's expression hardened, and he said, "Minister of the Imperial Secretariat? What is she doing in Beiju Luzhou?"

"Whatever you do, you must be careful. She assists Lingtai Zhenjun in wielding the power of the Grand Master of Fate. We can't afford to offend her," Taihengjun said emphatically.

Yan Xiezhi immediately replied, "Yes, please rest assured, cousin, I understand."

“Well, then you should be careful. You can contact me directly if anything happens,” said Taiheng Jun.

Yan Xiezhi respectfully accepted the order, and then Lord Taiheng severed all communication.

After putting away the Heavenly Profound Jade Talisman, Yan Xiezhi sat down on the sandalwood chair, thinking to himself, "Why did Lord Fire Spirit suddenly come to Beiju Luzhou without announcing his itinerary? What is his purpose?"

For a moment, Yan Xiezhi was also at a loss, sitting there lost in thought.

(End of this chapter)