Supreme Golden Palace

Chapter 62: Jingzhao Yin (Part )
The next day, at the Jingzhao government office,
Behind the main hall, in the courtyard wing, Wang Hu leaned back in his official chair with a solemn expression, staring at the fox fur in front of the table, feeling that the situation was tricky.

"Fox demon, how could there be a fox demon in such a bright and clear world, disrupting the law?"

When Wang Hu received the report from his constables and yamen runners, he felt a chill run down his spine. He was thankful the fox demon hadn't caused any major trouble. Otherwise, as a judicial officer in charge of criminal matters in the Six Departments of Jingzhao Prefecture, he would have at least been charged with negligence.

The head constable Tieying whispered, "Sir, do you think we should report this to Lord Yu?"

Wang Hu raised his hand and rubbed his temple, saying, "Of course I have to report it. I will bring the fox fur to you and see what you have to say."

With that, Wang Hu stood up, left the wing, and headed straight for the main hall. After arriving at the main hall, Wang Hu gathered himself, straightened his official uniform, and then raised his hand and knocked on the door.

"Come in,"

Hearing the voices from inside, Wang Hu, with a solemn expression, pushed the door open and entered. He saw Yu Qingze sitting at his desk, reviewing the pile of documents before him. He looked up and saw it was Wang Hu, nodded slightly, and said, "General Wang, how are you dealing with the evil cultivators in Banzhengfang?"

Wang Hu replied: "Sir, something happened."

Yu Qingze paused, glanced at Wang Hu indifferently, and said, "Tell me, what happened?"

"Sir, look at this,"

Wang Hu's heart skipped a beat when Yu Qingze looked at him. He quickly presented the fox fur to Yu Qingze and said, "Sir, this was found last night when the detectives were searching for evil cultivators. After identification, it was confirmed to be fox demon hair."

"Fox demon? But have you found out the origin of the fox demon?"

After seeing the fox fur, Yu Qingze was silent for a moment and went straight to the essence of the problem. Foxes are different from each other. Wild foxes can naturally be killed or skinned to uphold the rules of the Sui Dynasty, but if it is a celestial fox, then how to deal with it requires careful consideration.

The so-called celestial foxes were born into prominent families, such as descendants of the Tushan clan or the Qingqiu clan, whose ancestors were once prominent. Or perhaps they were canonized by the Heavenly Court, possessing a celestial talisman, becoming mountain gods, land gods, city gods, or river gods. These were celestial foxes.

It is said that the Heart Moon Fox, one of the twenty-eight constellations in the upper realm, is the oldest celestial fox.

Wang Hu said, "Sir, we went to Tongfu Lane and questioned Liu. After examination by the alchemists of Jingzhao Prefecture, it was found that Liu was struck by a spell that could cause confusion and disturbing thoughts. This spell has extremely harmful effects on practitioners."

"Generally, only unorthodox practitioners who follow unconventional paths would practice this. Those with some connections would stay away from it."

Yu Qingze said calmly, "You mean, this is a wild fox?"

Wang Hu said, "It should be a wild fox. Even if he is a celestial fox, as long as he practices the Soul-Bewitching and Heart-Disturbing Spell, he will be no different from a wild fox."

Yu Qingze said coldly, "Since he's a wild fox, then take him to justice. I will mobilize capable men from Jingzhao Prefecture to help you apprehend this beast. He won't be able to escape from my grasp."

Wang Hu replied: "Yes,"

As a founding hero, and one of the four nobles of Kaihuang along with Gao Jiong, Yang Xiong, and Su Wei, Yu Qingze is fully qualified to say this. He now holds such great power that he has reached the pinnacle of officialdom.
Among all the civil and military officials in the court, except for King Kaoshan who could surpass him, even Gao Jiong had to give him three points.

The third-rank Jingzhao Yin, though not the most powerful of Yu Qingze's various positions, was not his most prestigious. His full titles were Grand General, Imperial Secretary, Minister of Personnel, and Jingzhao Yin Yu Qingze. After Wang Hu withdrew, Yu Qingze looked at the fox fur Wang Hu had presented him and muttered to himself, "Fox demon? A mere wild fox dares to flaunt its power in Daxing? He's courting death!"

If it was a celestial fox, Yu Qingze might show some mercy, considering that after death, it might serve as a minister in the same palace as its ancestors. But if it was just a wild fox that practiced evil methods and went astray, then it was destined for death.

------

In the Northern Expedition Camp,
The surrounding tents creaked loudly. After the call came, Lu Shang, wearing goose antelope armor and holding a water-ground bamboo steel whip in his hand, came to an empty training ground.

He took a deep breath, planted his feet firmly on the ground, and swung the steel whip violently. The tip of the whip cut through the air, making a sharp whistling sound. The steel whip danced quickly in his hand, turning into a series of whip shadows, which were impenetrable. Each whip shadow had a thousand pounds of divine power.

Whip shadows scattered, and the force of hardness and softness emitted a roaring sound. At this moment, not to mention being close, even watching from afar, one could feel the overwhelming pressure.

The Dragon Prison Whip Technique!

This whip technique, adapted from the Prison Dragon Stick Technique, truly transformed into a poisonous dragon in Lü Shang's hands, its every move simmering with murderous intent. As Lü Shang danced, the air around him seemed to stir, the ground collapsing with a bang, and sandstorms swept through.

"What a good weapon," he retracted the whip, the wind and sand dissipated, Lu Shang held the steel whip, looked at the water-ground bamboo steel whip, and sighed.

Lu Shang, who was originally obsessed with Taoism, embarked on the path of martial arts immortality after he found it difficult to achieve the Tao. Who would have thought that after entering the path, he seemed to have taken the Nine-Turn Great Rejuvenation Elixir, and his martial arts skills continued to improve. Although he has not yet achieved the status of martial arts immortality, he has been making great progress.

He now felt that this path of marrow training and blood transfusion seemed endless. And Gonggong's bloodline, under the constant tempering of the Shan Zi Jing and Yin Yang Yin, was increasingly showing signs of returning to its ancestral state.

Lü Shang even felt that if he continued to cultivate like this, he would have a great chance of refining Gonggong's true body in the Jambu world. Even if the Jambu world did not have the mark of innate saints, he could still prove his divine body simply by overlapping his bloodline.

You know, this bloodline path is becoming more and more pure, pure to the extreme, and it is destined to return to its innate appearance.

However, despite the promising future, Lu Shang's biggest headache right now was the lack of a truly effective weapon. The water-milled bamboo whip was indeed a powerful weapon, but he felt it wasn't good enough.

At the very least, it did not have the feeling of mind-to-mind connection that the Thunder Blade gave him. Although he had not used the Thunder Blade many times, when he held it in his hand, the state of mind-to-mind connection and unity between man and blade was something that the bamboo steel whip did not have.

Lu Shang looked at the bamboo whip and muttered to himself, "If I could re-forge the bamboo whip and the thunder knife to create a new whip, perhaps it would be different."

He did not forget that when he first obtained the Thunder Blade, he had checked the old files of the Ministry of War. The old files recorded that this Thunder Blade was not a magical weapon handed down from generation to generation. The reason why it was magical was because of its strange material.

That's why Lu Shang came up with this idea. He wanted to melt the thunder sword into the bamboo steel whip to see if he could make the bamboo whip magical.

Thinking of the newly forged bamboo steel whip, which would be able to release thunderous energy when used, Lu Shang's heart moved.

"I need Qiansui's help on this matter. The master craftsman who is capable of recasting the Thunder Blade and the Bamboo Steel Whip is the treasure of the Ministry of War. Without Qiansui's help, the Ministry of War may not give me this favor."

(End of this chapter)