Villain? No, I'll catch up with the protagonist after passing the civil service exam.

The first "great earthquake" since the creation of the world occurred in the underworld.

This is not because some demon king broke through the Gates of Hell, nor because Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva moved his residence.

It was simply because the judge who returned from the mortal realm was clutching a stack of blank paper titled "Outline of Modern Justice" tightly in his arms.

When the judge returned to the Yama's Palace and presented the handbook, which was imbued with Lu Jingyan's golden aura, he...

The entire upper echelons of the Netherworld were in complete uproar.

"Nonsense! This is utterly ridiculous!"

The ten Kings of Hell stood in a circle, staring at the printed A4 sheet of paper, their faces even paler than those of ancient corpses.

"What does 'the defendant has the right to remain silent' mean? Here, even a stone has to speak!"

"And this 'legal aid mechanism'—do we have to hire lawyers for those evil spirits?"

The judge pushed up the black-rimmed glasses on the bridge of his nose, which he had just entrusted to his descendants in a dream to be burned down.

His demeanor has now transformed from that of a sinister ghost into that of an extremely rigorous legal pioneer.

"My lords, times have changed."

The judge cleared his throat, his voice exuding an unprecedented level of professionalism.

"Teacher Lu... oh no, Director Lu is right. Our old 'snatch away the soul and blow up the door' approach was too barbaric."

"That's called 'lack of procedural justice in law enforcement,' which can lead to wrongful convictions and a decline in the reputation of the underworld."

Thus, with the judge's strong insistence, the underworld ushered in the most hardcore institutional reform in three thousand years.

In less than three days, a sign was hung at the entrance of the once gloomy and terrifying Yama Palace.

[The First Basic People's Court of the Underworld].

Those evil spirits who were originally lining up to be boiled in oil were surprised to find that they had actually received a "notification".

"Hey? Bro, I have to go to court too? I only committed robbery in my previous life, wouldn't it be enough to just be reborn as an animal?"

"Shh! Keep your voice down. The rule now is 'evidence first, then verdict.' See those guys in suits over there? They're law school graduates who just died. They're our public defenders now."

The efficiency of the underworld's work has inexplicably improved after the introduction of the modern judicial system.

The karmic debts that had accumulated for hundreds of years were settled very quickly under the logic of "combined case handling" and "closed-loop evidence chain".

The judge's favorite thing to do every day is not to collect souls, but to go to the mortal world to "study" with Lu Jingyan.

Supernatural Phenomena Management Bureau, Director's Office.

Lu Jingyan was rubbing his temples as he worked on a stack of budget sheets for "monster resettlement fees".

The air in front of the desk suddenly distorted, and a dark crack slowly opened.

The judge's imposing figure squeezed out, a pen in his hand, his face showing a humble and eager expression.

"Professor Lu, I apologize for bothering you. I still have some logical questions about the applicability of that 'probation' in the underworld."

Lu Jingyan didn't even look up, but pointed to the chair opposite him.

"Sit down. That's not called probation. In the environment of the underworld, it's called 'external labor observation period'."

"After all, you don't have prison walls where you are; you rely entirely on the causal chain, so logically you have to emphasize 'social contribution value' more."

Zhao Tiezhu walked in carrying a teacup, and seeing the judge discussing law with his boss, he was already used to it.

"Old Pan, here for tutoring again? Did you bring the tuition this time?"

The judge chuckled and pulled out a piece of ancient, ebony wood that shimmered with a warm, lustrous sheen from his sleeve.

"Yes, yes, this is a small gift for Teacher Lu, a paperweight."

Lu Jingyan glanced at the priceless treasure, then expressionlessly put it into the drawer.

"This will not be repeated. As a teacher, I do not advocate this kind of 'quid pro quo'. But according to the Bureau's classification, this is considered a gift for interdimensional technology exchange and is permitted to be put into storage."

The two talked in the office from afternoon until dusk, from the general principles of criminal law to evidence law.

The judge listened with great interest, filling his notebook with a long, densely packed string of notes.

"Teacher Lu, after listening to your words, I feel like I've been a government official for three thousand years in vain."

The judge stood up and bowed deeply in sincere admiration.

"Once the second phase of the legal reform of our underworld is completed, I will definitely invite you down to cut the ribbon."

"I'd rather skip the ribbon-cutting ceremony. I have a long life ahead of me, and I don't plan to participate in such an event so early in the year."

Lu Jingyan waved his hand, coldly rejecting this rather ominous invitation.

After the judge left, the office returned to silence.

Lu Jingyan walked to the floor-to-ceiling window and looked at the orderly city of Jinghai outside.

On the street, several monsters who had obtained ID cards were waiting for the traffic light along with ordinary citizens.

The vampire count was busy with quality inspections at the blood bank, while the werewolf was running around happily at the police dog base.

Under such robust legal measures, the order of the Three Realms has achieved an unprecedented level of stability and balance.

There are no protagonists who can destroy the world at any time, and no unreasonable cause and effect.

Everything became so... human.

"Director Lu, it's time to get off work. How about we go eat crab roe buns at that place tonight?"

Su Xiaoxiao pushed open the door and entered. She had completely regained her energy, her ponytail swinging back and forth behind her head.

She walked to the computer, preparing to conduct one last routine psionic scan of the entire city.

"Let's go. Let's call Tiezhu too, that guy's been clamoring for barbecue lately."

Lu Jingyan picked up his coat, preparing to turn off the power.

However, Su Xiaoxiao's relaxed expression froze completely on her face in that instant.

"Drip—drip—drip—"

Suddenly, an unprecedented, piercing red alarm erupted on the holographic projection screen.

This is not a chaotic signal caused by a spiritual resurgence.

This is a high-dimensional oscillation that is extremely condensed, extremely cold, and carries destructive intent.

"Director Lu...something's not right..."

Su Xiaoxiao's voice became shrill, and her fingers danced wildly on the keyboard.

"SkyNet satellites report... A massive spatial collapse has occurred in the outer stratosphere!"

Lu Jingyan turned around abruptly and stared intently at the screen.

On the high-resolution satellite cloud image, it can be seen that it is in geosynchronous orbit directly above Jinghai City.

A massive, pitch-black vortex, more than three kilometers in diameter, is spinning and expanding wildly.

At the center of the vortex emanated a kind of arrogant, self-important arrogance that Lu Jingyan found repulsive.

"This is not dimensional fusion, this is forced connection."

Lu Jingyan's eyes sharpened, and his rule-level [Absolute Rationality] instantly made him realize the truth.

"Someone drilled a hole in the outside, right in front of our foreheads."

On the big screen, the space around the pitch-black wormhole was peeling away like shattered mirror.

"Director Lu! The wormhole is expanding at an even faster rate!"

Su Xiaoxiao turned around, her face pale, her eyes filled with an unprecedented fear.

"That hole...is right in front of the Jinghai City Supermarket Management Bureau building!"

Lu Jingyan didn't speak; he slowly buttoned up the top button of his police uniform.

The cold glint in his eyes, bathed in the afterglow of the setting sun, was colder than a blade.

"They evaded the Doctor, drove away the Creator God, and settled accounts with the Underworld."

Lu Jingyan slowly drew his sidearm from his waist, the sound of a bullet being chambered ringing out crisply in the deathly silent office.

"It seems there are still some fearless individuals who want to come here and engage in illegal construction."

He strode to the window and looked up at the sky, which was originally azure but was now occupied by a black vortex.

"Xiaoxiao, notify the military."

Lu Jingyan's voice was cold, yet it carried his usual arrogance and murderous intent.

"Tell them that a giant illegal outer space construction has been discovered."

"Request to activate the 'Nantianmen' level defensive weaponry."

"I don't care who the powerful being coming from, even if it's the Buddha himself descending..."

"If he doesn't go through the proper customs and immigration procedures, I'll show him what 'physical isolation' really means!"

Su Xiaoxiao pressed the confirmation button abruptly and responded loudly:

"Understood! Top alert issued, Project Nantianmen... activated!"