The First Lackey Under The Empress

“Can’t I look for you if there's nothing going on?”

Zhao Du'an revealed a warm, friendly smile, as if they had a great relationship.

Jin Jian silently took two steps back, her hands subconsciously covering the pouch at her waist.

“……” Zhao Du'an sighed, thinking, where is the most basic trust between people?

He helplessly assured her: “I'm not here to collect debts; I need your help with something.”

The young priestess silently breathed a sigh of relief, her face showing a relieved expression, and the corners of her mouth even slightly turned up:

“Speak.”

She didn't resist helping Zhao Du'an, because he would pay.

“It's like this, regarding the recent Thousand-Faced Divine Lord…” Zhao Du'an explained the general situation.

Jin Jian frowned: “You want me to find him? I can't do it.”

The girl was very honest about this.

Zhao Du'an asked: “Is there anyone in the Celestial Master's Mansion who can do it?”

Jin Jian nodded as a matter of course, proudly saying:

“If the other party is at the Divine Chapter Realm, and to be on the safe side, any Worldly Realm priest with suitable techniques can do it.”

Immediately, she shook her head again and said:

“However, this exceeds the rules. The Celestial Master's Mansion can only assist the government in a limited scope. This matter is not within that scope. The imperial court has already asked before, but rules are rules.”

To avoid being drawn into dynastic struggles, the two major cultivation forces have always adhered to the rules… This is not a secret.

Zhao Du'an was also well aware of this.

As expected… He silently sighed, not surprised, but instead, suddenly asked:

“Can Old Wang do it? Don't worry about the rules for now; just tell me if he has the ability.”

Old Wang… Master?

Jin Jian paused for a moment before realizing who Zhao Du'an was talking about, nodding as a matter of course:

“Of course, he can do it!”

Zhao Du'an revealed a satisfied smile, clenching his right fist and striking the palm of his left hand, looking confident:

“That's good. Old Wang owes me a debt that hasn't been repaid yet. You go and tell him that he doesn't need to take action personally. As long as he can help me find the Thousand-Faced Divine Lord's hiding place, we'll call it even, how about that?”

Jin Jian was stunned, not knowing when her master had also owed this guy a debt…

So, this guy is actually a common debtor to her and her master?

The girl couldn't help but feel a little timid, then she woke up and said sternly:

“I said, the rules of the Celestial Master's Mansion…”

“I know,” Zhao Du'an interrupted her with a smile:

“The Celestial Master's Mansion has rules and cannot help the imperial court beyond the specifications, but… I'm asking for personal help this time, which doesn't represent the imperial court.

That Thousand-Faced Divine Lord wants to kill me, and I want to avenge myself, so I'm asking Old Wang for help… This falls under mutual assistance between friends… The Celestial Master's Mansion wouldn't have any rules that prohibit priests from helping friends, right?”

Jin Jian's small face was stunned.

She lowered her head and thought seriously:

“It seems not…”

She always felt that this guy was spouting fallacies, but she couldn't refute him, as if she was stuck in a bug and felt uncomfortable.

Helping a friend doesn't violate the rules?

“Then it's settled,” Zhao Du'an said as if they had reached an agreement:

“You go back quickly and tell Old Wang. Speaking of which, Old Wang wouldn't want the world to know that a dignified idler of the Celestial Master's Mansion is hiding to avoid repaying debts, right?”

“……I'll go ask and come back to tell you later.”

Jin Jian felt that she didn't need to worry about this matter; she should let her master make the decision.

“Go quickly, go quickly, I'll wait for good news.” Zhao Du'an urged with a smile.

… …

Celestial Master's Mansion, in the deepest courtyard.

“Master, that's what he said.”

Jin Jian stood under the large banyan tree, relaying the words verbatim.

After speaking, she carefully looked at her master.

Wearing a black priest robe, tall, with narrow eyes, Zhang Yan, who was sitting in a recliner under the tree.

Originally carving a small wooden figure, he fell silent after listening to the whole thing.

“Master? Do you really owe him a debt too? Hiding and not repaying it?” Jin Jian asked tentatively, both timid and bold.

Zhang Yan:

“Master, he said that if you don't agree, he will go around saying that you owe debts and don't repay them.” Jin Jian whispered indignantly, “He even dares to threaten you.”

Zhang Yan:

“Master…” Jin Jian wanted to say more.

Suddenly, Zhang Yan raised his hand to interrupt her.

This person, whose cultivation has suppressed the world for countless years, is the most senior celestial being in the world today, cleared his throat and said:

“What this child said is not without reason. Helping a friend privately does not violate the rules after all. Well, since you want to help him, go and tell him that the so-called Divine Lord will be hiding in Niwa Street before dark tonight and will not leave.”

Jin Jian tilted her head, wondering:

“It's not that I want to help him; he's looking for you, Master…”

“Go quickly.”

The old Celestial Master waved his sleeve, and an invisible force sent the girl into a illusory state, instantly retreating several miles.

“Sha sha sha…”

Overhead, the mysterious banyan tree swayed.

Inside the huge canopy, there seemed to be faces, making cheerful laughter.

… …

“The priestess is back so quickly? What's the result?”

Pear Blossom Hall.

Zhao Du'an waited for a while and suddenly saw Jin Jian appear out of thin air, staggering as she stepped out of invisibility.

Jin Jian was silent for a moment, pretending not to have been thrown over, expressionless, and relayed the old Celestial Master's words.

After that, she left gracefully, disappearing into the sky.

“Niwa Street?”

Zhao Du'an silently chewed on the name, his eyes shining:

“Old Wang is amazing, as expected of someone who mainly cultivates the Dao of Heaven, he can predict things like a god…”

Two hours have passed since the fight at noon, and it is not far from evening.

“I must go and capture him before dark… and bring enough manpower…”

Zhao Du'an didn't dare to delay, immediately got up, pushed the door open, and headed to the Governor's Hall.

Governor's Hall.

“The Thousand-Faced Divine Lord is hiding in Niwa Street? Are you sure?”

Ma Yan suddenly stood up from behind his "desk", his thin, cold face staring at Zhao Du'an in astonishment.

Zhao Du'an's expression was serious:

“Absolutely sure! At least before dark, he should be there all the time.”

Ma Yan pressed, "How did you find out?"

Zhao Du'an hesitated, then explained, "I have a very good personal relationship with Divine Officer Jin Jian…"

"Impossible, she simply wouldn't…"

Ma Yan shook his head subconsciously, wanting to say that Jin Jian couldn't do it, but then he stopped abruptly, thinking of the girl's identity.

If Jin Jian was willing to help and find someone to assist with the location, it would be easy… Was it because of their 'personal relationship?'

So she secretly violated the rules?

Ma Yan was very experienced and knew that such things were better left unsaid.

Rules are made to be broken, but it was important to know that breaking the rules could never be spoken aloud.

Immediately, he looked at him with an appreciative gaze, his spirits lifting:

"Good! Very good! Someone… summon the heads of each hall's constabulary!"

He was prepared to personally take action and capture the rebel.

But to prevent accidents, he planned to bring the Imperial Court's elite forces with him to seal off the scene and avoid affecting the common people.

"Brother, this thief is extremely cunning and has extraordinary means. Although your martial arts are powerful, even Eunuch Hai was deceived by him at noon…" Zhao Du'an reminded softly.

Ma Yan nodded slowly, feeling that it made sense.

To escape from Eunuch Hai, even if he was only at the Divine Seal Realm, he should not be underestimated.

Most importantly, he had finally obtained the location, and if he failed again due to insufficient preparation, the entire imperial court would lose face.

With this in mind, he summoned his personal attendant and said:

"Take my waist牌 (waist牌, a kind of identity tag) and go to the palace to find Imperial Guardian Hai, and ask him to come here again."

He also drafted a letter and summoned a second person:

"Go to the Celestial Master's Mansion and, with my authority, request at least five Divine Seal Realm Divine Officers to assist in the battle."

The monks of the Divine Dragon Temple were somewhat "specialized," with most being "martial monks" who were not skilled at dealing with spells.

And the "mages" who were skilled at spells mostly had higher status and the Buddhist spells were limited.

It was better to have the Divine Officers of the Celestial Master's Mansion who specialized in restraining them.

So he still chose to summon Divine Officers to assist in the battle.

Good heavens… Imperial Guardian Hai, a powerhouse of unfathomable strength, coupled with the Worldly Realm martial artist Overseer Ma, along with the constables of the nine major halls, and ten Divine Officers from the Celestial Master's Mansion…

This lineup was enough to flatten the main altar of the匡扶社 (Kuangfu Society, a fictional rebel organization), right…? Zhao Du'an opened his mouth.

Suddenly, he had the feeling of using a cannon to kill a mosquito…

This showed how much of a headache this assassin's assassination had caused to the figures in the imperial court.

"Thousand Faces ah, Thousand Faces, if you still don't die this time, Ma Yan will take your surname…"

Zhao Du'an sighed silently.

……

……

Tile Street was in the eastern city.

It was a stretch of buildings. In a certain residence, inside a厢房 (xiāngfáng, wing room).

On a bed, a man of medium build, ordinary appearance, and twisted expression, his chest bare, his arms propping himself up on the bed, was rising and falling repeatedly.

Accompanied by the shaking of the wooden bed and the sobbing wails of the mistress of the house.

Finally, he collapsed heavily.

The room quieted down.

After a while, the man got out of bed and casually put on a coat.

On the bed behind him was the mistress, who had fainted, her face pale, as if she had lost her vitality.

"呜——呜呜——"

In a corner of the room, the master of the house was tied up with ropes.

At this moment, his mouth was stuffed with a褻衣 (xiè yī, underclothing), and he stared with wide eyes, as if wanting to kill him, accompanied by falling tears.

But what was surprising was that the man, who had just recovered a little energy through the method of采补 (cǎibǔ, a kind of cultivation method by absorbing essence from others), was extremely similar to the bound master of the house in terms of both figure and appearance.

The only difference was the cold and violent expression between his eyebrows.

"Hehe, have you enjoyed watching enough? Do you want to kill this Divine Lord?"

Divine Lord Thousand Faces smiled and walked over step by step, pressing his hand on the master's head.

Then, before the other party could react, he twisted his hand, and with a "咔嚓 (kāchā)" sound, the master's neck snapped, and he died on the spot!

"Boring."

Divine Lord Thousand Faces spat and walked to the window.

From the gap in the window, looking at the gradually falling afterglow of the setting sun, his eyes were filled with lingering fear.

Even though several hours had passed, and what died was only a "替身 (tìshēn, substitute)" controlled by a secret method, the scene of Imperial Guardian Hai casually suppressing and killing him was still deeply imprinted in his heart.

Just recalling it made him tremble all over.

And… that… Zhao Du'an!

Divine Lord Thousand Faces's eyes were full of hatred.

This time, losing the fake god and the maidservant was nothing, the key was that his镇物 (zhènwù, a kind of magical object used to suppress evil) black umbrella was damaged, and his哉生魄 (zāishēngpò, one of the three hun and seven po in Taoism) was broken.

However, even with such anger, he still decisively fled and hid in this courtyard.

"Now the city gates must be sealed off. Even if I disguise myself, it will be difficult to leave the city. I can only hide for a while to recover from my injuries."

"Fortunately, the capital is very large, and the two major cultivation forces abide by the rules and will not take action, so I will not be caught."

"Hehe, when I recover from my injuries…"

Thinking of the female relatives in Zhao Du'an's family in the information, Divine Lord Thousand Faces's face twisted, revealing violence.

However, he still suppressed the anger of revenge.

He quickly put on his clothes, found some food to fill his stomach, and prepared to leave.

To change to another place.

He could not stay in any one place for long, even if it seemed safe - this was the experience he had gained from wandering the world for many years.

It was getting dark.

Divine Lord Thousand Faces walked out of the small courtyard and headed towards the end of the street along Tile Street, thinking about where to hide next with a natural expression.

His shadow was stretched long on the ground.

Suddenly, he stopped abruptly.

Squinting his eyes, he looked towards the end of the street.

In the setting sun, the figure was walking straight towards him.

Due to the backlight, the figure's face was blurred and unclear.

But it gave him a strong sense of familiarity.

Finally……

As the other party approached, Divine Lord Thousand Faces's pupils suddenly contracted, his body tensed, as if he had fallen into an ice cave!

Zhao Du'an walked from the blood-red twilight with a smile, surveying the man opposite him who was obviously in an abnormal state, and said:

"You have already chosen the path to your death."