Proofreader & Editor: Lotas
Outside the Inspectorate's office, a throng of citizens had already gathered.
They stared into the distance, many weeping inconsolably, grateful for the life Li Hengsheng had afforded them over the past months—a life they had never dared to dream of.
Not only had he provided them with jobs, but he had also reduced their taxes by ninety-five percent.
At last, they could live like normal people.
Many had nearly sold their daughters to the Ghost Clan, saved only by Li Hengsheng's intervention, reuniting their families.
The bridge over the river outside the city and the potholed roads had been repaired under Li Hengsheng's leadership.
The entire atmosphere of Tushan City had improved; business was booming, and the Inspectorate had nearly eradicated the extortionists and bullies from the streets, arresting countless offenders.
Li Hengsheng had personally executed many of the more serious criminals.
The city was much safer, and no one dared to cause trouble.
But just as things were looking up, Li Hengsheng was dead.
How could they accept this?
"Make way, make way!"
At that moment, a commotion arose from the back of the crowd, as people were shoved aside, some even falling to the roadside.
They were about to curse at the disruptors but fell silent upon seeing who it was—the Huas.
Hua Zheliu.
Hua Zheliu, as effeminate as ever, held a handkerchief to his nose, looking disdainfully at the commoners, clearly bothered, while his entourage pushed through the crowd.
The Hua family was overjoyed to hear of Li Hengsheng's death and had sent Hua Zheliu to confirm it.
"It seems he's really dead," Hua Zheliu said, squinting outside the Inspectorate.
"What are you Huas doing here? Get lost!"
Lin Qizhu, standing at the Inspectorate's gate, saw Hua Zheliu and shouted angrily.
"How dare you, you dog of the Inspectorate, speak to Master Hua like that!" several lackeys retorted angrily.
"I think you're the one courting death!" Lin Qizhu was about to strike.
But then, another voice came from behind, "Lin Qizhu, at such a time, you still act so tyrannically. Do you really think your Inspectorate can last much longer?"
Lin Qizhu looked up to see that the Mu family had also arrived.
It was Mu Jing, the Mu family's steward, a man of considerable power within the family.
Lin Qizhu glared at Mu Jing, "What does the Mu family want?"
"What else? To pay our respects to your master," Mu Jing said with a smile.
"We don't welcome you here."
Lin Qizhu glared at Mu Jing with hatred.
He had no fondness for the Mu family.
"Is that so?"
Mu Jing sneered, "What if I insist on paying my respects?"
"You little Inspectorate, now without an Inspector, still so arrogant. It seems you really don't know what's good for you!" Hua Zheliu added disdainfully.
"Let's see who dares to step half a foot into the Inspectorate!"
Lin Qizhu bellowed, and seven or eight guards emerged, standing behind him, ready to block the Huas and the Mus from entering the Inspectorate.
"Just with these rotten fish and shrimp?" Mu Jing was unimpressed.
He was a master of the Acquired Realm himself, and with Hua Zheliu at his side, breaking into the Inspectorate would be a piece of cake, wouldn't it?
"And me."
At that moment, Wan Guifeng appeared, leaping down from a rooftop to stand before Lin Qizhu. His presence startled Mu Jing and Hua Zheliu.
Wan Guifeng!
Although Mu Jing had heard of Wan Guifeng's arrival at the White Snake Path, he thought that with Li Hengsheng dead, Wan Guifeng would surely have left. Why was he still here?
That shouldn't be!
"The Inspectorate does not allow outsiders to enter, and you are no exception," Wan Guifeng said, looking at the two men. "Those who trespass will be killed without mercy."
His words made the two reconsider their actions.
They had been ordered to come here to see if Li Hengsheng was truly dead, which would put their minds at ease.
But now they couldn't see for themselves, what should they do?
"Wan Godcatcher sure puts on quite the show, but don't forget, this is the White Snake Path, not your Jiangxue Path!"
At that moment, a carriage approached slowly, and a woman's voice came from within.
Everyone looked towards the sound to see that the carriage belonged to the Mu family.
The coachman hurried down and lifted the curtain.
A woman in red descended from the carriage.
The appearance of the red-clad woman shocked all the onlookers—it was Mu Hongxue, the current head of the Mu family, and Mu San's sister.
They hadn't expected her to come in person.
"That's true, Wan Godcatcher, you do seem to be overstepping," another voice said as several fast horses galloped in, the citizens quickly making way. A man in white with two followers arrived at the Inspectorate's gate.
The man in white was elegant and noble, his Prenatal Realm aura oppressive and domineering!
In his hands, he held two jade beads.
"It's the Hua family patriarch, Hua Xianggu!"
Someone exclaimed.
The surrounding citizens were dumbfounded to see both the head of the Mu family and the Hua family patriarch arrive. Could the Inspectorate really not hold out today?
The guards of the Inspectorate were also terrified at this sight.
Were the Hua family and the Mu family serious?
But Wan Guifeng didn't care.
Although both Mu Hongxue and Hua Xianggu were of the Prenatal Realm, and fighting two against one would be disadvantageous, Wan Guifeng knew that the Inspectorate wasn't just relying on him alone.
There was also Xu Kui inside.
If Xu Kui took action, their chances of winning two against two were great.
So facing them, Wan Guifeng still calmly said, "Entrusted by others, I am loyal to my duty. As long as I am here, I will not allow you to enter."
"You have guts."
Hua Xianggu smiled faintly, then clenched his fist hard, and the two jade beads in his hand shattered with a bang!
Mu Hongxue also smiled and said, "I've long heard of Wan Godcatcher's reputation. Today, I'd like to see for myself."
Inside the Inspectorate, they were all too aware of the commotion outside.
Xu Kui, who had been guarding Li Hengsheng's coffin, also snorted and walked out.
At such a time, with people causing trouble outside, Xu Kui had to take action!
Suddenly, the area outside the Inspectorate became chaotic.
Wu Santong knelt before Li Hengsheng's spirit tablet, offering incense, his feelings complex. Li Hengsheng had treated him very well these past days, and he had always regarded Li Hengsheng as a brother. Now that Li Hengsheng was dead, Wu Santong's heart was filled with grief and anger.
Wu Santong decided that after Li Hengsheng's burial, he would do his best to find the murderer and avenge Li Hengsheng!
"Brother, I will find out who killed you and avenge you!"
"I know I can't beat him, but I will always find an opportunity, then think of every possible way to kill that person!"
Wu Santong sobbed, snot and tears mingling.
Drip, drip.
Li Hengsheng didn't know how much time had passed.
He gradually became conscious.
It was very quiet around him, with only the sound of his footsteps. Li Hengsheng walked aimlessly, not knowing how long he had been walking. He only knew that the road ahead seemed endless.
It was a long corridor.
While his consciousness was muddled, Li Hengsheng felt himself walking endlessly, forgetting time, even the sense of space becoming blurred.
And at this moment, as Li Hengsheng slowly regained consciousness, he realized how strange his surroundings were.
There was no wind, no heaven and earth, just an ancient road he was walking on. Beside the ancient road was an endless void—if he fell, he would have no idea where he would end up. The road ahead was winding and twisting.
It was like a rugged mountain path.
"Where am I?" Li Hengsheng tried hard to recall why he had come to this place.
After a long time, Li Hengsheng remembered.
He was dead.
He had been killed by Lu Qiaoqiao.
Stabbed in the heart by the Heavenly Maiden Sword.
Li Hengsheng subconsciously touched his heart, to his horror, finding nothing there.
He looked down and saw his heart was empty, with nothing inside.
"I really am dead."
Li Hengsheng calmed down, knowing that without a heart, he was certainly dead.
But where exactly was this place? Could it be that after death, one would end up here?
Where did this road lead?
This road was so long, it would probably take years, decades, or even a hundred years to walk?
When Li Hengsheng looked up, he suddenly found the road ahead had changed. In front of him, there was a clearing that seemed to appear out of nowhere.
Li Hengsheng stepped forward slowly towards the clearing and found it wasn't large, but there was nothing there, just a tree at the edge of the clearing.
This tree felt unfamiliar to Li Hengsheng, as if he had never seen such a tree before.
Just as Li Hengsheng was curious about where he was, suddenly, a divine bird flew from the distant sky!
The divine bird dragged long flames behind it, the flames stretching across the sky, twisting the space with its immense body, almost like a mountain.
It was like a sun!
Despite the distance, Li Hengsheng felt the heat, as if the real sun had descended.
Li Hengsheng was dumbfounded when he saw the divine bird.
"A phoenix!"
Li Hengsheng never expected to see a real phoenix!
How could this be!
Dragons and phoenixes, these were legendary sacred beasts.
The dragon of the Void Dragon Island had appeared in the Cangyuan Realm hundreds of years ago, but the phoenix seemed to have only appeared once in the entire history of the Cangyuan Realm, and that was an unknown number of years ago.
It could have been thousands or even tens of thousands of years!
That part of history had been forgotten.
And now he was seeing the divine bird phoenix!
Li Hengsheng couldn't believe he wasn't dreaming.
But he was already dead, so how could he dream?
As the phoenix approached, its majestic body began to shrink, becoming smaller and smaller, until it finally landed on the strange tree.
The phoenix looked down at Li Hengsheng, and just those eyes alone made Li Hengsheng feel an immense pressure.
It seemed as if the phoenix was the lord of all spirits!
The bloodline suppression made Li Hengsheng feel so insignificant, as if he was a mere grain of sand in the ocean, as if nothing in this world could contend with this being.
This made Li Hengsheng think of the despair those human experts must have felt when facing the dragon of the Void Dragon Island!
"Hello?"
Li Hengsheng said cautiously.
But the phoenix did not respond, suddenly flapping its wings, its body turning into blood-red flames and rushing towards Li Hengsheng!
Li Hengsheng cried out, trying to dodge, but it was too late. The flames engulfed him on the spot!
"I'm done for!"
"I'm going to die!"
"No, wait, I'm already dead."
As Li Hengsheng was puzzled, he felt the endless flames enter his body, and at the same time, boundless pain spread to every cell in his body.
The pain was as if every cell was being torn apart, making Li Hengsheng feel like dying again!
"Why…"
"Why is it still so painful after death."
Li Hengsheng felt as if he was being devoured by countless ants.
But at the same time, a voice echoed in Li Hengsheng's mind.
"Merge with the will of my phoenix ancestor, I bestow upon you the Divine Phoenix Bone!"
"To be reborn from the ashes, to be reborn from the fire!"
In an instant, Li Hengsheng felt his body constantly breaking apart, his organs completely burned to ashes by the flames.
His bones also shattered instantly, turning to dust in the blood-red flames.
Everything was burned to nothing.
Even his Sun-Moon Immortal-Demon Divine Body was suppressed by the phoenix's nirvana fire, unable to move.
Li Hengsheng felt he was left with only a shell.
But miraculously, he still had consciousness.
Before Li Hengsheng could understand what was happening, he saw a powerful force of vitality burst from the nirvana fire!
The power of that vitality was boundless, containing the majestic force of creation.
Li Hengsheng's organs reappeared.
His bones slowly grew back.
But unlike before, Li Hengsheng's new bones were golden, not white!
"Is this the Divine Phoenix Bone?"
Li Hengsheng was astonished.
He wasn't sure what the Divine Phoenix Bone was, but he could feel that it was many times stronger than his original bones!
The Divine Phoenix Bone was filled with an endless power, like a vast ocean, unfathomable.
More importantly, as his body was reborn, Li Hengsheng clearly felt his root bone undergoing a tremendous transformation!
Before, Li Hengsheng's root bone was the biggest stumbling block on his path of cultivation!
Li Hengsheng's two months of progress might not even match someone else's one day.
But now, as his body was remade, Li Hengsheng's root bone was also reversed. Although he didn't know how strong it was, he felt like he had gone from a bicycle to a motorcycle.
Taking a deep breath, the internal energy in his body completed a small circulation.
Such a cultivation speed made Li Hengsheng a bit overwhelmed.
Wasn't this a bit too exaggerated?
Is this what it feels like to be a genius?
Not only that, Li Hengsheng felt his divine body evolving.
The Seven Treasures Crystal Pill in his body had not been fully absorbed before, mainly because his body was too weak to absorb so much power.
But at this moment, as his body was remade, Li Hengsheng felt his divine body was also advancing to the next stage!
Boom!
It was as if a huge explosion occurred within his body, and Li Hengsheng's divine body completely entered the minor completion stage.
His own realm also leaped from the Acquired Great Perfection to the Acquired Great Perfection!
This transformation was exhilarating for Li Hengsheng!
At the same time, Li Hengsheng guessed that such a huge change was probably because he had previously comprehended the phoenix wood carving.
That phoenix wood carving was such a treasure!
Why would Xu Muhai give him such a precious item?
Perhaps it wasn't Xu Muhai's, but someone else had instructed Xu Muhai to give it to him.
But who could it be?
At that moment, Li Hengsheng felt all the nirvana fire rushing to his heart, slowly transforming, and eventually forming a strong heart!
Thump, thump!
The heart beat rhythmically.
Very powerful.
***
Outside the Inspectorate, a great battle had begun.
Wan Guifeng and Xu Kui joined forces to fight Hua Xianggu and Mu Hongxue.
Hua Xianggu and Mu Hongxue were also strong, but they had no advantage over Wan Guifeng and Xu Kui.
Hua Zheliu and Mu Jing, on the other hand, caused the Inspectorate's people a lot of trouble.
The two Acquired Realm pinnacle masters joined forces, and Lin Qizhu couldn't resist.
He was already at a disadvantage.
At this moment, the entire Inspectorate was in turmoil.
"Make way, let us pay our respects to your master, and we will leave!" Mu Jing said cheerfully.
"Shut your mouth!" Lin Qizhu's axe whirled, stirring up a storm.
But faced with the two of them, Lin Qizhu had already suffered many injuries, yet he still did not retreat.
Just then, an astonishing aura erupted from within the Inspectorate!
Inside the house, a beam of light shot up from Li Hengsheng's coffin, breaking through the coffin and the roof, even piercing the clouds in the sky.
The power was so shocking that everyone in Tushan City was taken aback.
"What is that!"
"What's going on!"
Just as everyone was stunned, they heard the sound of a phoenix's cry, piercing through thousands of miles, echoing far and wide!
Everyone stopped their battles and stared dumbfounded at the Inspectorate, wondering what had happened inside.
The most confused was Wu Santong.
Wu Santong was about to offer another stick of incense to Li Hengsheng when the coffin suddenly exploded.
Even the incense burner was blown away, landing on Wu Santong's head.
Wu Santong stared blankly at the scene before him, realizing that Li Hengsheng had actually stood up.
"He's come back to life…"
Wu Santong muttered.
Li Hengsheng looked at the scene before him, stepped down, saw his own spirit tablet, and then saw Wu Santong kneeling on the ground, as well as the white cloth outside. Li Hengsheng understood that this must be his funeral.
They all thought he was dead.
But Li Hengsheng understood, not just them, he thought he was dead too.
But when he stepped out and saw Lin Qizhu looking at him in shock, as well as Hua Zheliu and Mu Jing nearby, Li Hengsheng knew that the Hua family and the Mu family must have come to make trouble during his funeral.
Just right.
Li Hengsheng reached out, and the Chasing Immortal Spear on the spirit hall flew into his hand.
But seeing the Chasing Immortal Spear, Li Hengsheng was also surprised.
Wasn't the Chasing Immortal Spear lost?
Who found it for him?
Never mind, it's not important!
"He's come back to life!"
The guards inside the Inspectorate all exclaimed.
They had all seen it before, Li Hengsheng was dead, even his heart was shattered, how could he come back to life?
"Causing trouble in my Inspectorate, a grave crime!"
Li Hengsheng said indifferently.
Mu Jing and Hua Zheliu were also stunned at the sight.
Li Hengsheng wasn't dead?
They turned to run.
But how could Li Hengsheng give them a chance?
With a flash of Thunderous Movement, as the two turned around, Li H Hengsheng was already waiting behind them!
Such speed!
They were shocked at how fast Li Hengsheng was, so fast they didn't even notice.
Li Hengsheng didn't waste words, his Chasing Immortal Spear sweeping out, striking both their knees and forcing them to kneel on the ground!
They had no power to resist.
"Take them away!"
Li Hengsheng commanded loudly.
"Yes!"
Lin Qizhu replied joyfully, realizing that Li Hengsheng had somehow come back to life.
No matter the reason, it was good that he was alive!
Good that he was alive!
The other guards were also overjoyed, rushing up to subdue the two men, binding them tightly with thick ropes.
Li Hengsheng's gaze turned outside, where two more troublemakers of the Prenatal Realm were causing chaos.
Hua Xianggu and Mu Hongxue, upon hearing the screams and the command to take them away from inside, were puzzled.
What had happened inside?
Had Hua Zheliu and Mu Jing been captured?
Impossible, they were pinnacle masters of the Acquired Realm. Who could have captured them?
Wan Guifeng and Xu Kui exchanged glances, equally clueless about the turn of events.
But as they were distracted, they suddenly noticed a figure had appeared before them!
Such incredible speed!
Wan Guifeng hadn't sensed a thing.
Xu Kui was shocked, recognizing the familiar silhouette.
The Chasing Immortal Spear in his hand trembled slightly, as if excited.
Li Hengsheng!
Alive?