Cultivation: From Poor Peasant to Celestial Lord

Chapter 189: Chapter 118: Merit Achieved

Behind him, the enormous corpse of the Bloodthirsty Black Wolf was piled up like a small mountain, radiating a lingering Evil Qi.

Beside it were several chests containing the confiscated, low-quality Demon-Attracting Incense, forged account books, and the pathetic common fox used as a prop.

With a low thud as a Killing Rod struck the ground, Zhang Cheng, clad in the crimson official robes of a Regular Seventh Grade, strode out from the back hall. He took his seat beneath the plaque inscribed "Bright Mirror High Suspended."

His gaze was like lightning as it swept across the hall, and his natural air of authority, imposing without any anger, instantly caused every heart to tighten.

To his lower left sat Vice Director Li, his expression as dark as still water.

This man, who usually represented the interests of the Noble Faction and held immense sway in the department, was now sitting on pins and needles.

His hands gripped the arms of his Master’s Chair so tightly his knuckles turned white. His venomous gaze was fixed on the kneeling Wang Sanshui, and he looked as if he wanted to subject the incompetent fool to death by a thousand cuts with his glare alone.

CRACK!

The gavel slammed down hard, and the sharp sound made every heart in the hall leap.

"Bring forth the accused official, Wang Sanshui!"

Zhang Cheng’s voice, resonant as a bell, echoed throughout the great hall.

Wang Sanshui trembled but lacked the strength to even lift his head, remaining sprawled on the floor like a dead dog.

"Wang Sanshui, as the Deputy Captain of the Third Team of the Evil Suppression Guard, you neglected your duty to serve the Court and slay Demons. Instead, you colluded with Demons, filed false reports, and embezzled military funds!"

Instead of having a clerk read the charges, Zhang Cheng personally picked up the case file that Chu Bai had prepared overnight and began to list the crimes, one by one:

"You used low-quality Demon-Attracting Incense to fabricate a demon infestation, used a wild fox to pad the numbers and embezzle funds, and treated Liu Family Village as your personal cash cow! This is your first crime!"

"You neglected your duty, causing the Demon-Attracting Incense to attract a real Demon—a Bloodthirsty Black Wolf. This led to the tragic deaths of two of your comrades on the spot. If Patrol Banner Inspector Chu Bai hadn’t arrived in time, the entire Third Team would have been wiped out because of you! This is your second crime!"

"For each and every charge, we have both witnesses and material evidence! Do you confess?!"

Every word was like a heavy hammer blow, making Wang Sanshui’s body tremble.

He opened his mouth, about to offer a few excuses and try to shift the blame to his two dead subordinates.

"Bring in the witnesses!"

Zhang Cheng gave him no chance to speak, simply waving his hand.

Several dispirited and injured Evil Suppression Guards were brought forward.

They were the surviving team members who had followed Wang Sanshui to Liu Family Village the previous night.

After witnessing Chu Bai’s thunderous methods and Wang Sanshui’s incompetence, they didn’t dare hide a single thing, desperate to save their own lives.

"Lord Director! We are guilty! We are willing to testify!"

One of the team members dropped to his knees with a thud, pointed at Wang Sanshui, and cried out, "This was all Deputy Captain Wang’s idea! He was the one who told us to buy the low-quality Demon-Attracting Incense, saying it would save money! And our two dead brothers—he pushed them into the wolf’s jaws to cover his own escape!"

"It’s true, my lord! He also told us to cut our own Inner Armor so we could claim repair fees when we got back!"

"And that common fox! He stole it from Old Man Wang’s place at the village entrance! It wasn’t a Demon Fox at all!"

Each heart-wrenching accusation was like a sharp knife, tearing away the last of Wang Sanshui’s defenses.

The crowd in the hall was stunned into silence. Many of the hot-blooded men in the room showed expressions of contempt and fury.

’Embezzling money is a minor offense, punishable at worst by dismissal and a fine. But to invite disaster and then use your own comrades as shields... that was an act despised above all else!’

Wang Sanshui’s face was ashen. As if his spine had been ripped out, he collapsed completely onto the floor.

"I... confess."

With his confession, the tension in the hall reached its peak.

Everyone’s gazes, after glancing at the ferocious wolf corpse, turned in unison to the green-robed youth standing at the front.

The story of last night’s events had only spread by word of mouth, but now, seeing this mountain of iron-clad evidence and the calm expression on Chu Bai’s face, the crowd’s shock was beyond words.

"So that’s the new Patrol Banner Inspector, Chu Bai? I heard he single-handedly killed that Bloodthirsty Black Wolf, a beast at the Middle Stage of Qi Cultivation?"

"That’s terrifying... Wang Sanshui is at the Qi Cultivation Third Layer, at least, yet he was so scared he pissed his pants. Chu Bai looks so gentle and scholarly, but he’s actually that ruthless?"

"Shh! Keep your voice down! Didn’t you see even Vice Li is watching his expression? This guy is decisive and merciless. We’d better never get on his bad side!"

The troublemakers who had been unconvinced by Chu Bai, this Patrol Banner Inspector who had been "parachuted in," now all shrank back.

Awe is the natural prerogative of the strong.

Zhang Cheng took in the entire scene, feeling a secret satisfaction. Then his gaze shifted, sharp as a sword, and stabbed toward Li Gou, who was seated to the side.

"Vice Director Li."

Zhang Cheng’s tone was grim. "I seem to recall that you were the one who pushed aside all objections to single-handedly promote this ’trusted lieutenant,’ Wang Sanshui. In fact, you personally approved many of the Third Team’s accounts."

"Now that such a scandal has occurred, what does Vice Director Li have to say?"

’The dagger was finally revealed!’

All eyes in the hall swiveled to Vice Director Li in an instant.

This was a blatant power play! A public humiliation!

Vice Director Li’s face twitched violently.

He desperately wanted to slam the table and rise to his feet, to protect Wang Sanshui.

After all, Wang Sanshui was his confidant, his money bag. If he was executed just like that, it wouldn’t just mean a loss of income; it would also sow panic and discord among the Noble Faction that relied on him.

But...

His eyes flickered to the wolf’s corpse, then to Zhang Cheng’s aggressive glare, and finally, his gaze came to rest on Chu Bai.

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