Chapter 410: Bureau of Celestial Supervision

Chapter 410: The Heaven-Spying Bureau

“What did you say?” Nan Gong stared in astonishment at the terrifying man before him. Although the man’s skin was gone, his copper coin mask and the badge in his hand were enough to reveal his identity.

The man had appeared here once a few months ago, and since then had not shown his face again. Nan Gong had assumed something had happened to him.

And now, upon his return, this man spoke of all the members of the Forgetful Way being in Shangjing.

“Er Jiu, you mustn’t speak such nonsense! Do you realize the weight of your words? If they are false, you might find yourself imprisoned!” Nan Gong warned Li Huowang with caution.

“Of course! Brother Nan Gong, it is absolutely true. Not long ago, I personally saw Bei Feng!” Li Huowang said gravely.

If what Bei Feng had said was correct, and the entire Forgetful Way had indeed come to Shangjing, that would mean one hundred and eight ordinary tiles, plus sixteen wind tiles—four directions—plus twelve dragon tiles, and a total of one hundred and thirty-six tiles from the Forgetful Way!

It would be nearly impossible to deal with such an unpredictable force as the three-element four-wind tiles, even if they were just common Forgetful Way tiles, they could overwhelm anyone when united.

Even more alarming was that Bei Feng had mentioned that the leader of the Forgetful Way, the dice, had also arrived.

Li Huowang wasn’t very good at mahjong, but he had seen his mother Sun Xiaoqin play during the New Year when he was young. From what he knew, mahjong was usually played with two dice!

With so many formidable enemies, fighting alone would be nothing short of delusion. He needed to bring the massive Heaven-Spying Bureau onto his side to stand a chance.

Only then, while they clashed, could a lone wolf like himself gain advantage.

He had gone through great hardships to join the Heaven-Spying Bureau, and now the time for rewards had come.

“Brother Nan Gong, this matter is of utmost importance. How could I lie? That Forgetful Way has come en masse to Shangjing; they wouldn’t simply stroll through and leave. They have ulterior motives! You know how far they’d go for entertainment—they’ve even caused the downfall of nations for fun!”

These words made Nan Gong, who had been hesitating, make up his mind instantly. “This matter is too big. I’ll report to the higher-ups. Wait here.”

With furrowed brows and a solemn expression, he stepped out from behind the wooden cabinet and hurried toward the left side door.

Watching Nan Gong leave, Li Huowang exhaled slightly in relief. But the matter was far from over. He knew Nan Gong was merely a messenger, unable to handle such a large issue. The real key lay in whether he could convince the Heaven-Spying Bureau to get involved—the important figures next.

Li Huowang paced back and forth in the empty room, thinking deeply about what argument he should use to persuade them.

“Has the Forgetful Way all come?” A deep voice suddenly came from the screen on the left.

Li Huowang turned to look at the broad shadow reflected on the screen. He didn’t answer. In the Heaven-Spying Bureau, he had no friends.

The voice from behind the screen continued. “Heh. Shangjing is truly a time of trouble now. Looks like we’ll all have to flee to the Later Shu. Fortunately, there’s still time.”

The tone reminded Li Huowang of Tuoba Danqing and the eunuch Ji Xiang’s actions. Looking back, these seasoned veterans seemed to have sensed the signs beforehand.

When he had arrested Xin Zhuo, he had mentioned planning to leave after finishing the job and head to Qingqiu to avoid disaster. But he never returned.

As for the old eunuch Ji Xiang, he had even given him the house in Shangjing, choosing to escape by the thirty-six stratagems.

“Brother, do you know why the Forgetful Way has come to Shangjing in such force?” Li Huowang asked the screen.

“Heh. Don’t you know what the Emperor is doing? If you don’t, it’s better that way. In this world, it’s rare to be blissfully ignorant,” the voice said. Then silence followed.

Li Huowang refused to let it go. With the winds of change stirring, he couldn’t help but wonder what lay within those clouds.

But when he stepped toward the screen, he found no one inside. Only a root-carved bag-shaped Buddha statue sat on the low table, about the size of a human head.

The upper half of the Buddha was smiling joyfully, with a big belly that looked comically round. But the lower half was unfinished, revealing twisted, thick black roots exposed.

The ordered upper part and the chaotic lower part joined together in an awkward manner.

“Er Jiu!! Where is he?”

Hearing Nan Gong calling from outside, Li Huowang glanced once more at the Buddha statue and walked out from behind the screen. “Brother Nan Gong, I’m here!”

“Hurry up, the Director of the Bureau wants to see you!” Hearing Nan Gong’s anxious voice, Li Huowang’s spirit perked up. He nodded quickly and followed.

He didn’t understand the hierarchy of the Heaven-Spying Bureau, but whoever could handle the Forgetful Way issue must be someone of high standing.

“Here, put this on. When you meet the Director, you can’t appear like this.” Nan Gong handed him a gray robe to Li Huowang, whose clothes had been burned away.

Li Huowang took it and wrapped his scarred body tightly.

“When you meet the Director, tell him only what you know. Don’t fabricate anything. He can see right through you.”

This made Li Huowang startle. Could he really read minds? If he thought something wrong, would he detect his true identity?

“May I ask, which sect does this Director belong to?”

“The Director is different from us. He is a Confucian disciple. Confucians respect ghosts and spirits but keep their distance. They don’t cultivate any supernatural powers.”

“So he’s just an ordinary mortal?!” Li Huowang almost thought he heard wrong. The top official of the Heaven-Spying Bureau, overseeing all of Daliang, was just a normal person?

“You think you can solve everything with those invisible arts? Underestimate it. Some people are born extraordinary. Even without such methods, they can solve problems by reading hearts. The Director has already deceived the members of the Forgetful Way.”

Li Huowang had interacted with the Forgetful Way many times. He naturally understood how cunning and near-supernatural such a person must be to deceive them.

Now, facing such a person, Li Huowang grew nervous and began calculating how to approach him.

Following Nan Gong through several wooden corridors, they reached a grand gate flanked by stone drums. Two guards in uniforms stood like guardian deities, silent and solemn on either side.

Their intense aura confirmed their status.

After passing through several doors in the sternly guarded chamber, they finally stopped at a study door.

“Report to the Director: Er Jiu has arrived,” Nan Gong bowed respectfully to the wooden door.

(End of Chapter)