Chapter 154: Chapter 59: Northern Army Governor’s Mansion

The Market Steward gathered forces from several Foundation Establishment Clans. Under Yu Mingjing’s cautious lead, they headed for the mountain ravine. Although Yang Jing had scorched the area with Bing Fire, his only goal had been to incinerate the Demonic Qi, so plenty of traces still remained.

The Cultivators soon unearthed charred skeletons from the scorched soil.

The Void Creation Mirror soon detected traces of Demonic Qi on the skeletons.

“These are really Demon Cultivators! So many of them died here!”

The skeletons belonged to many different Demon Cultivators. The more the Cultivators on site examined the remains, the more horrified they became—at least thirty Demon Cultivators had died here.

A Cultivator cried out in alarm. He had found a finger bone, and the residual Magical Power on it belonged to one of the Lengquan Three Friends.

Only then did they dare to believe that the Cold Spring Three Demons, who had terrorized the Liao Kingdom for decades, might have truly been slain.

By this time, Yang Jing had already flown past the border of the Liao Kingdom. His destination was the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion in the Yu Kingdom.

To command the Demon Suppression Armies of the Six Sects, the Six Great Sects collaborated to form a military alliance: the Five Armies Governor’s Mansion. Its purpose was to maintain peace and stability among the Sects and to collectively resist the Demon Countries and Demon Sects.

The Northern Army Governor’s Mansion and the Western Army Governor’s Mansion were the two most powerful branches within the Five Armies Governor’s Mansion, commanding the most troops.

The Northern Domain remained under the control of the Six Great Sects precisely because the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion served as its linchpin.

The Yu Kingdom was situated in the center of the Northern Domain Seven Kingdoms. With the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion there to keep order, Demon Cultivators were not as rampant as in the Liao Kingdom. At the very least, Yang Jing didn’t see a single one out in broad daylight during his flight.

Aboard his Five Clouds Pouch, Yang Jing soon arrived at the location of the Five Armies Governor’s Mansion.

The entire Northern Army Governor’s Mansion was a massive fortress, a Celestial Gate constructed from Iron Essence mixed with various Spiritual Materials. It was over a mile and a half in length and width, with towering walls that rose more than three hundred feet high. A No-fly Array had been established, allowing only Golden Core Cultivators and Flying Boats with special Restrictions to take flight.

While still about a third of a mile away from the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion, the pressure from the No-fly Array forced Yang Jing and his Five Clouds Pouch down, leaving him to skim just above the ground.

Soon, a squad of Demon Suppression Army soldiers approached on a Flying Boat.

“Who goes there?”

“I am a Demon Patrol Envoy from the Five Elements True Spirit Sect, here to report for duty.”

As he spoke, Yang Jing presented his Sect Jade Token.

Although the post of Demon Patrol Envoy offered a great deal of freedom, new appointees were still required to report to the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion at the start of their term. The Governor’s Mansion would verify their identity and Imperial Decree, then hold the decree for safekeeping. It could only be retrieved once their service was complete.

“Oh, an esteemed Cultivator from the Five Elements True Spirit Sect! Please, come aboard!”

The Demon Suppression Army soldiers’ attitude warmed considerably once they heard Yang Jing was a Foundation Establishment Cultivator from one of the Six Great Sects. They used their small Flying Boat to ferry Yang Jing and his party into the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion.

Inside the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion, the atmosphere was one of stern military discipline. The soldiers escorted Yang Jing directly to a side hall before departing on their Flying Boat.

A Minister from the side hall had already come out to greet them.

“You must be Fellow Daoist Yang Jing of the Five Elements True Spirit Sect. I received the notice from the True Spirit Sect three days ago. My name is Wu Siming, and I am a disciple of the Profound Pure Sect.”

“Senior Brother Wu.”

Yang Jing offered a salute. ’The Profound Pure Sect’s Power isn’t considered exceptional among the Six Great Sects, but they are masters of Secret Techniques related to the Divine Soul. This makes their disciples less susceptible to possession by Outer Celestial Demons, which is why so many of them serve in the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion.’

“And these…?”

After ushering Yang Jing and his party of five into the hall, Wu Siming curiously sized up the four who looked no older than children.

“They are all my disciples, and they have been assigned official posts for this journey. This is Yang Tietou, who will serve as Judge. This is Yang Yinjiao, the Secretary. This is Yang Chiyu, our Military Officer. And this is Ji Feng, the Scribe.”

The other appointments were one thing, but when Wu Siming learned that the pint-sized Chi Yu was to be a Military Officer, he almost lost his composure. However, Yang Jing was not a disciple of his Profound Pure Sect, so he had no choice but to bite his tongue.

’A trace of contempt grew in his heart. ’Another Noble Son, here to coast through an easy tour of duty to pad his credentials. But this is just too blatant! He even got official posts for his own children. Is he treating the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion like a daycare?’

’It’s because of worthless Demon Patrol Envoys like him that the situation in the Northern Domain gets worse every year.’

Gritting his teeth, Wu Siming inspected the Identity Jade Tokens and the Imperial Decree for Yang Jing’s party. He then scanned all five of them with the Void Mirror to confirm none were possessed by Celestial Demons. Only after that did he stamp their Jade Tokens with the Treasure Seal and take the Imperial Decree for safekeeping.

He was already waiting for Yang Jing to ask about lodging within the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion. ’After all, he’ll need a place to hole up for five years while he coasts through his term.’

“Senior Brother Wu, we killed some Demon Cultivators on the way here. Would you be able to record the Merit Points for us?”

’Merit Points from the Five Armies Governor’s Mansion are recognized by the Five Elements True Spirit Sect. Plus, you can exchange them here for many treasures that aren’t even available within the sect.’

“Of course. However, if the Demonic Qi signature on these Demon Cultivators is too weak, I can’t accept them.”

Wu Siming said sternly, afraid that Yang Jing was trying to break the rules by killing innocents to fraudulently claim Merit Points.

“Of course,” Yang Jing said.

Wu Siming waited for a long while, but Yang Jing made no move. He grew irritated.

“What are you waiting for, Junior Brother? Bring out the heads. Or did you not take any? If that’s the case, there’s no way I can award you Merit Points!”

Yang Jing replied awkwardly,

“It’s just that… there are quite a lot of them. I’m afraid I’ll dirty your office, Senior Brother.”

“What kind of person do you take me for, Junior Brother? I’ve been stationed at the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion for over thirty years. What sort of carnage haven’t I seen? A few heads are nothing!”

Hearing Wu Siming’s words, Yang Jing simply took out his Storage Bag and upended it. In an instant, heads came tumbling out like ripened fruit, pouring from the bag in a grisly cascade.

Having been a Minister for so long, Wu Siming had long since committed the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion’s wanted list to memory. In just a brief moment, he recognized several heads belonging to Demon Cultivators who had committed monstrous crimes.

The Northern Army Governor’s Mansion had bounties out on them for years, but they had remained at large.

“Is… is this… sixty-one heads?!”

His eyes bulged like copper bells, and he paid no mind to the foul blood seeping everywhere. There was almost no need for verification; these grotesque heads could only have been severed from the necks of Demon Cultivators.

The Void Mirror in his hand sensed the dense, chaotic Demonic Qi, and its surface began to flash incessantly.

“More than sixty-one. There are four more.”

As he spoke, Yang Jing took four Ice Silk Bags, each containing a head, from his Storage Bag and placed them on the desk.

Wu Siming opened one of the Ice Silk Bags and instantly recognized the head covered in greenish-blue scales.

“This is the Green-Scaled Demon, Xu Qi! I can’t believe he died at your hands!”

Seeing the heads of the Lengquan Three Friends in the remaining Ice Silk Bags, the last few words of his sentence shot up into a tenor’s shriek.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep