With half a game of chess, I vanquish all demons!

"You can go anywhere you like, anywhere far away from here, and spread false information about me in other places."

"How about it, can you do it?"

"We understand what you mean, but you may not know that your bounty has been withdrawn, and no one will be hunting you down anymore."

"How about you change your request..."

The older Black Iron Warrior understood Zhao Yao's thoughts, assuming that he was responding to the bounty on his head, and thus informed him of this.

"The bounty may be gone, but the villains have not disappeared."

Because of the immense scale of the bounty, these people assumed the young master possessed some kind of treasure, and their enthusiasm only grew, drawing them in droves!

Yan Rouyun looked at Zhao Yao and interjected with a serious expression.

Upon hearing this, the five Black Iron Warriors couldn't help but show an embarrassed expression.

They had thought that way before.

"Alright, just do as I say."

Zhao Yao nodded, making no changes to his request.

"Alright, then you can watch ours."

The five Black Iron Warriors immediately patted their chests and vouched for Zhao Yao.

The familiar scene and dialogue reminded Zhao Yao of Wu Wei, the Black Iron Warrior who humbled himself and begged for his life, but was still tricked by fate and died at the hands of Huo Xiaotian.

He looked at the five black iron warriors in front of him and nodded, saying:

"Alright, you can go now. Be careful on your journey."

"Take care, my benefactor."

The five Black Iron Warriors solemnly clasped their fists at Zhao Yao, and also gestured to Yan Rouyun. They then carried the body of the 2.5-meter-tall warrior who had previously informed them of the situation, and slowly descended the mountain path.

"Although the bounty has been withdrawn, there will probably be no shortage of people who want to catch you and find out 'why you were wanted.'"

After all, the commotion had become too big, and people from all walks of life in the entire Wangzhou City were in an uproar. It wasn't something that could be calmed down immediately just by withdrawing the bounty.

Let them spread false information; that should stir up some trouble.

Yan Rouyun stood beside Zhao Yao, watching the Black Iron Warriors descend the mountain with him. She frowned slightly and nodded in agreement.

Unlike Yan Rouyun's furrowed brow, Zhao Yao, the person directly involved, looked relaxed as he watched the strongmen's retreating figures, and said with a smile:

"It's just a casual move; there's no need to overthink it."

After saying this, he turned around, went straight to Song Angran's body, and began to touch the corpse.

"That day, after we parted..."

While touching the corpse, he briefly recounted his experiences to Yan Rouyun.

"Small pieces of silver"

"Jade Plaque"

That's all.

Is this all the wealth a mere military officer who runs errands for the Heavenly Dao Bureau possesses? Of course not.

Song Angran himself might not carry his wealth with him, but the wealth he plundered from three villages was all kept in a package.

Before Zhao Yao killed Song Angran in the lower realm of the desolate cliff, he had seen that bundle in the phantom of Song Angran's past.

We'll search all three villages later and find the bundle.

He stood up, clutching the jade pendant, looked at the words on it, and read them aloud:

"An unofficial member of the Demon Extermination Bureau..."

He turned the jade tablet over; there were words on this side as well. He read them aloud:

"Guide: Song Angran".

The front of this jade pendant is actually touch-sensitive.

This is the upper realm of the heavens, so while the touchscreen thing is a bit odd, it's not too strange.

"...A colleague nearby, Yan Rouyun?"

Zhao Yao clicked to view and saw a small map, as well as his colleagues' markers on the small map.

He looked up in surprise and gazed at Yan Rouyun.

"You're actually colleagues with this military officer who was supposed to be guiding us?"

"Why does my lord seem so incredulous?"

Seeing Zhao Yao's expression, Yan Rouyun was also surprised.

She took out a jade token from her bosom, handed it to Zhao Yao, and said:

"Young master, why are you so surprised? Could it be that you don't have this badge on you?"

"Unofficial correspondent of the Wind Catcher Bureau: Yan Rouyun... What, Yun'er thinks I should have this badge?"

Zhao Yao read the words on Yan Rouyun's jade tablet and handed it back to Yan Rouyun, already having some ideas in mind.

Faced with Zhao Yao's doubts, Yan Rouyun held the jade token and looked at him with a strange gaze.

After a long silence, she slowly began to explain:

"I have witnessed the majestic appearance of your sixteen-foot golden body."

Such a significant change in such a short time must mean that he entered the Ascension Pool and obtained it in the lower realm.

Those who can descend to the mortal realm to perform their duties nowadays must obtain the approval of the Imperial Decree.

Only members of the various departments of the Heavenly Dao Bureau can be ordered by the Zhaoming Bureau to go to the lower realm.

All those serving in the various departments of the Heavenly Dao Bureau, and even those who are not officially part of the bureau, such as myself and this guide, all possess a jade pendant from the Heavenly Dao Bureau. Only in this way can they have the opportunity to directly receive the edicts from the Zhaoming Bureau and obtain the qualification to descend to the mortal realm.

Since you, sir, do not possess the Heavenly Commander's token, how did you receive the imperial edict from the Mandate of Heaven to descend to the mortal realm, and how did you descend there?

As Yan Rouyun spoke, her gaze toward Zhao Yao grew increasingly strange.

The Office of Mandate, the Office of the Elderly and Young, the Office of Exorcising Demons, the Office of Catching Winds, etc., are all offices of the Heavenly Way.

The Heavenly Dao Division is a powerful force that transcends the mortal world, with its tentacles reaching throughout the Demon-Slaying Realm. It does not participate in human affairs, but acts on behalf of Heaven and oversees all the heavens.

"Could you, sir, be a remnant of the Heavenly Dao Sect?"

Yan Rouyun asked a direct question, but immediately answered it herself:

"My lord, you need not answer me. The fewer people who know about this, the better."

As she spoke, she handed back her jade token from the Wind-Catching Division:

"My lord, please keep this token safe."

If anyone mentions this extraordinary encounter in the mortal realm to you again, and you absolutely must answer, then you should pass the buck to Rouyun.

I told you that I gave my token to my beloved as a token of our love to ease our longing for each other, but I unexpectedly received a direct decree from the Imperial Decree, which led me to descend to the mortal realm... This token can transmit messages and locate each other, so this explanation is quite believable.

If others really don't believe it, let them go and question the Imperial Decree themselves.

Yan Rouyun took Zhao Yao's hand, placed the jade pendant in his hand, and spoke in a playful tone.

Zhao Yao felt the warmth in his hand, and for a moment he couldn't tell whether it was the unique material of the jade pendant or the warmth of the beauty's grace.

He nodded:

"I see."

"This matter is of utmost importance, sir. You must not give yourself away."

Yan Rouyun looked at him seriously and solemnly reminded him.

Zhao Yao took Yan Rouyun's hand, gazed gently into her eyes, and nodded softly again:

"I understand."

"This person was an unofficial member of the Reception Department. After his death, people from other Heavenly Dao Departments will surely come to investigate the cause of death. It's just unknown which department will come."

Yan Rouyun let him hold her hand, quickly looked around, and then said:

"When this person arrives and knows I am nearby, he will surely inquire about me through the jade pendant. At that time, you can simply reply with the excuse of it being a token of your love... After this matter is over, with this jade pendant in hand, you can also serve as an unofficial member of the Daoist Bureau for a day."

"Okay, I understand."

"But you gave me your token, is that alright?"

Zhao Yao nodded, made a note of it, and then asked her with concern.

"My lord, there's no need to worry. The tokens of the Heavenly Dao Division are naturally interchangeable among us unofficial staff, and they all serve the same function."

Since this demon is dead, his token should, in principle, be taken back... My lord, just give me this demon's token, and I'll use it.

Then we just need to revise the information on the jade plaque.

Yan Rouyun reached out and took the jade pendant from Zhao Yao's hand from Song Angran, having already thought everything through.

After saying this, she took Zhao Yao's hand and led him to some items, turning to introduce them to him:

"My lord, please take a look."

These are the elixirs I bought for my beloved to increase his vital essence.

This is a weapon I found for you, my lord, that is perfectly suited to you.