Cultivation: From Poor Peasant to Celestial Lord

Chapter 255: Chapter 144: River Patrol Officer, The River God is Assassinated

”Lord Chu! The County Captain has summoned you for an emergency! Report to the Evil Suppression Department at once!”

When Chu Bai rushed to the duty room of the Evil Suppression Department and pushed open the door, he was met with an extremely oppressive scene.

Zhang Cheng sat at the head of the room, his face ashen. His normally neat official robe was now somewhat disheveled, a vein throbbed at his temple, and the red emergency dispatch in his hand had been crushed to dust.

Below him, Han Xingmo, recently promoted to River Patrol Officer, was slumped in a chair, his face deathly pale. His eyes were vacant; the teacup had fallen from his hand and shattered on the floor, yet he seemed oblivious to the tea that had splashed all over him.

”Master.”

Chu Bai strode in, clasped his hands in a salute, and asked in a grave tone, ”Is the news true?”

”It is true.”

Zhang Cheng spat out three words through clenched teeth, his voice terrifyingly hoarse. ”At Threadline Gorge, the waterway hub just before the border of Anping County, the Water Uncle’s Divine Ship was torn apart. Not only was the Water Uncle’s body and soul annihilated, but his entire escort—six elite members of the Water Department and two Junior Ninth Grade Judges—all perished. There were no survivors.”

Chu Bai’s heart sank.

A Regular Eighth-Grade Water Uncle, even if not skilled in combat, was protected by the nation’s providence within his domain. He was also bound by Cause and Effect; a Divine Spirit couldn’t die so easily.

Moreover, this happened within the territory of the Great Zhou Immortal Dynasty, on a waterway covered by the Law Net.

Such an act was clearly not the work of any ordinary Demon.

”Who did it?” Chu Bai asked calmly.

”I don’t know.” Zhang Cheng slammed his hand on the table in frustration. ”The scene was wiped clean. All traces of Qi were erased by an extremely sinister Evil Power.

According to the initial readings from the Prefecture City, the Water Uncle didn’t even have time to send out a Dharma Decree for help before he fell.

’This means... the enemy either possesses the terrifying strength to instantly suppress a Divine Spirit, or they used some kind of forbidden artifact capable of severing the Law Net.’”

At the side, Han Xingmo finally caught his breath. He grabbed Chu Bai’s sleeve, trembling, his voice choked with sobs. ”Junior Brother... It’s over.

The Water Uncle has fallen, and the Water Veins of the Sanmu River are in complete chaos.

A tear has appeared in the Law Net over that stretch of water. If this isn’t handled properly, our entire Anping County will be implicated. This isn’t just about losing a promotion... we’ll likely be held accountable!”

Chu Bai gently patted the back of Han Xingmo’s hand, his gaze shifting to Zhang Cheng.

He had a sharp sense that this incident was not merely the work of a rampaging Demon.

A True God, a being who could have stabilized the situation in Anping, had been assassinated. This happened at a critical juncture: just as Anping County’s reforms were showing results, just as Zhang Cheng’s faction had solidified its iron-fisted rule, and just as he, Chu Bai, had broken through to Late-stage Qi Cultivation. The attack was tantamount to overturning all their previous efforts.

”What’s the situation in the Prefecture City?” Chu Bai asked.

”Dayuan Prefecture is furious. The Celestial Decree Department and the Celestial Observatory have already dispatched people overnight to the scene.

And as the Water Uncle’s intended post, our Anping County will bear the brunt of it.”

Zhang Cheng stood up, a ruthless glint in his eyes. ”Chu Bai, you were planning to enter seclusion to cultivate, but now... I’m afraid that’s no longer an option.”

Zhang Cheng walked up to Chu Bai and said, word by word, ”The Prefecture City has ordered the Anping Evil Suppression Department to immediately dispatch all elites to cooperate with their investigation team and lock down the Sanmu River. Every single person near Threadline Gorge, especially the Wild Wanderer Cultivators and the Noble Races, must be screened.”

”I want you to lead the team personally.”

Zhang Cheng clapped Chu Bai on the shoulder with surprising force. ”Handle this matter well. Don’t let anything go wrong.”

Chu Bai looked out the window at the darkening sky. From the direction of the Sanmu River, he could faintly hear the sound of waves, like a mournful lament.

’The Water Uncle was assassinated...’

Chu Bai touched the Jade Treasure Gourd at his waist, his eyes turning exceptionally sharp.

’To think someone would dare to hunt a Divine Spirit in broad daylight within the Great Zhou Immortal Dynasty... The waters of Anping County have finally been muddied by this.’

”Your subordinate accepts the order.”

A moment later, a palpable Slaughter Qi surged into the sky above the Evil Suppression Department’s Martial Arts Arena.

Over a hundred elites of the Demon-slaying Team stood armed and armored, like silent statues in the biting, cold wind.

Chu Bai, dressed in a dark cyan official robe with his Demon Slaying Order hanging from his waist, swept his gaze over the elite soldiers he had personally trained.

”You must have already heard about today’s events.” Chu Bai’s voice, amplified by his Spiritual Power, rang out across the arena like the clash of metal on stone. ”A Regular Eighth-Grade Stream Water Spirit was assassinated at the edge of our county, his body and soul annihilated. This is a blatant trampling of the Great Zhou Law Net and a disruption of our Anping’s Water Veins!”

”A hundred men, assemble! You will follow me out of the city to lock down the Sanmu River!”

Without any further nonsense, Chu Bai immediately selected a hundred elites at the Qi Cultivation Third Layer. The remaining dozens would stay behind as the garrison.

Then, Chu Bai turned to the grim-faced Pang Song standing to the side.

”Captain Pang, I’m leading the team out of the city. I’m entrusting you with full authority over the security within Anping County and the movements of the Noble Races.”

Chu Bai handed him a temporary supervisory Hand Order, his tone heavy. ”With the Water Uncle’s assassination, there are bound to be rumors in the city. Demons might even take advantage of the chaos. You must not overlook any sign of trouble.”

Pang Song accepted the Hand Order. His usual cynical and carefree demeanor had completely vanished, replaced by an unprecedented seriousness.

He knew very well that with the Water Uncle assassinated on his way to his post, if any more trouble broke out in Anping County now, everyone present would lose their heads.

”Rest assured, Lord Chu.” Pang Song cupped his fist, his voice booming like a great bell. ”With my Demon Suppression Team here, anyone who dares to cause trouble at a time like this won’t live to see tomorrow’s sun. Even if it’s the Noble Races, if they make a move, I’ll grind their bones to dust.”

Chu Bai nodded and swung himself onto his horse.

At the city gate, Han Xingmo was already waiting with several dozen River Patrol Warriors from the Water Department.

The Warriors were all bare-chested, their bodies wrapped in water-repelling Rune Chains.

”Senior Brother Han, begin,” Chu Bai ordered in a low voice.

”All members of the Water Department, hear my command!”

Han Xingmo waved the Water Banner, his voice shrill. ”Lock down the thirty-li stretch of the Sanmu River, upstream and downstream of Threadline Gorge! Deploy the spirit-locking nets! All passing merchant ships, fishing boats, and Wild Wanderer Cultivators are to be detained for inspection! Those who defy this order will be killed on the spot!”

Dozens of River Patrol Warriors leaped in unison into the icy Sanmu River. Their Magical Power linked together, and massive nets shimmering with blue light unfurled beneath the surface, forcibly halting the river’s raging current.

Meanwhile, Chu Bai led his hundred Demon-slaying Guards like a black torrent, galloping along the riverbank.

He didn’t rush directly to the heart of the incident. Instead, he fully extended his Divine Thought to its full range of two hundred and twenty zhang.

As his Divine Thought spread out like a tide, Chu Bai sensed an extremely oppressive, deathly silence.

The Sanmu River, originally vibrant with Spiritual Mechanism, now showed a dark red distortion in the direction of Threadline Gorge.

A True God had shed blood, after all.

His Junior Eighth Grade Status was roughly equivalent to Qi Cultivation Perfection, meaning he held a measure of real authority.

”Spread out! Form groups of five and use your Soul-Searching Talismans to sense the soil on the bank.”

Chu Bai issued the command from horseback. ”Find any residual Evil Power, any debris from the fight, even the droppings of frightened Demon Beasts!”

The well-trained Demon-slaying Team dispersed into the dense forest and onto the riverbank.

Chu Bai personally went to a cliff less than a hundred zhang from Threadline Gorge.

Since the investigation team from Dayuan Prefecture had not yet formally arrived, the scene still retained its tragic, post-attack appearance.

A massive, golden Divine Ship was impaled on a reef in the middle of the river. Its broken mast, like a fractured bone, was faintly visible through the sinister, black mist that still swirled and refused to dissipate.

Chu Bai stood on the bank, sensing the power that had erased the Divine Spirit’s life force.

’This is no ordinary Demon Technique...’

Chu Bai’s eyes narrowed. He considered probing the black mist with his Divine Thought, but on second thought, he dismissed the idea.

’If there were any residual traps, they would be difficult to handle. Besides, the investigation team would inevitably discover that I had probed the scene.’

’I must hold this place until the people from the Prefecture City arrive.’

’I can’t let any Wild Cultivators or Demons disturb the scene, or else I’ll be held responsible.’

Chu Bai looked toward the shadowy forest on the opposite bank. His Divine Thought caught a few faint auras that were about to pry, but they instantly fled the moment they sensed the sun-like pressure of his Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer.