Chapter 32: A short section at the beginning of Chapter 32 fills in the gaps in the world-building...
Even Xie Baoqiong, who lived far away in Sishui Mountain, had heard of this name.
It was established during the founding of the Dasheng Dynasty and continues to this day.
Most of those holding positions are monks and sorcerers, but unlike the outside world where monks are ranked first and sorcerers second, all positions are held by the most capable and the most accomplished.
According to surviving historical records, the founder of the Bureau of Extermination of Evil was a mortal who lacked spiritual roots and was unable to embark on the path of cultivation.
Compared to today, the world thousands of years ago was a purgatory for mortals.
Cultivators refine humans into objects in order to achieve immortality, demons devour humans for nourishment, and humans kill humans in order to survive.
Human life and non-human life are treated as worthless as weeds.
Although it's like an ant trying to shake a tree, there are always people among us who don't want to see this happen and try to change it.
Some are lucky enough to embark on the path of cultivation, but after gaining power, they vent their suffering on ordinary people like they used to be.
Some people are unfortunate, trapped by their desires and unable to achieve their goals, wasting their lives and dying on the path of seeking the Way.
But there are always people on the road.
Until one day, the first person to use a mortal body to draw upon the power of heaven and earth appeared in the world.
For the first time, mortals possessed the power to resist "immortal magic".
The power was borrowed from heaven and earth, not cultivated by oneself. In order to distinguish himself from cultivators, the man called himself a sorcerer.
He became the first sorcerer in history, and when he died, he used himself as a catalyst to influence the laws of heaven and earth, leaving behind a constraint that cultivators must not kill mortals indiscriminately, so that mortals could survive.
This person was the one who established the Anti-Evil Division.
Xie Baoqiong tried to recall the name of that senior, but found that the name seemed to have been erased. If Meng Rui hadn't suddenly mentioned the Bureau of Extermination of Evil today, he probably wouldn't have known that he had never seen or heard of the title of the number one sorcerer.
Strange indeed!
Clearly, so many of the techniques researched by that person have been passed down, yet that person, as the foremost sorcerer, has not had his name passed down.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but seek answers from others to verify whether his memory was faulty:
"Meng Rui, you mentioned this Anti-Evil Division..."
Before he could finish speaking, Meng Rui's expression involuntarily turned to shock: "?! Where did you live before? You've never even heard of the Criminal Investigation Division."
Xie Baoqiong, born and raised in the mountains: "I have naturally heard of the name of the Anti-Evil Division, but I seem to have never heard of the name of its founder."
Meng Rui, with an expression that made it seem like nothing was wrong, explained to Xie Baoqiong: "It's normal not to know that senior's name. He's just too powerful. Some cultivators hate him but can't change what he did, so they erased his name from their records."
"Many people in the Anti-Evil Division are still researching what their ancestor's name really was."
After speaking, Meng Rui noticed that Xie Baoqiong also seemed interested in the Anti-Evil Division, as if she had found a like-minded confidante:
"I originally wanted to join the Anti-Evil Division in the future, but my parents, older brother and sister always felt it was dangerous. They insisted that with my abilities, I would only be a burden to others if I went in."
"Ah-Jung, why don't we become colleagues in the future? There are four positions for Junior Envoy in the Anti-Evil Division. When I become a Junior Envoy, I will recommend you."
Meng Rui was happily making plans when a question from the depths of his soul suddenly came to his ears:
Are you no longer afraid of ghosts?
Xie Baoqiong spoke sincerely, her eyes clear and curious.
Meng Rui stared at those eyes for a while, then closed his mouth, drooped his head, and became as wilted as a dehydrated leaf.
Seeing Meng Rui's dejected appearance, Xie Baoqiong belatedly realized she shouldn't have brought it up. Before she could even offer a word of comfort, Meng Rui regained his spirits and consoled himself:
"Who knows, in a few years, I might not be afraid anymore."
Xie Baoqiong seized the opportunity to encourage him, saying, "Last time you caught the 'ghost' with your eyes closed."
Encouraged by this, Meng Rui's confidence soared: "That's right, I dared to catch a 'ghost' with my bare hands last time." He automatically ignored the fact that he had his eyes closed.
For the rest of the time, Xie Baoqiong listened to Meng Rui's plans on how to become the Junior Envoy of the Anti-Evil Division.
Even after the carriage stopped at the entrance of the Marquis's residence, Meng Rui was still somewhat unsatisfied. He sipped his tea to moisten his dry lips before leaning out of the carriage window to watch Xie Baoqiong enter the residence.
Xie Baoqiong waved to him, "You should go back soon." Seeing Meng Rui still peering at him through the window, she chuckled, "I'm already at the Marquis's gate, how could I be stolen away? You should go home early too."
Meng Rui said reluctantly, "Then I'll come to the Marquis's residence to see you again in a few days."
The carriage gradually drove away and disappeared around the corner. Xie Baoqiong, carrying the fox lantern, turned around and walked towards the gate of the Marquis's mansion.
Before even stepping onto the steps, I saw a furtive figure peering around at the alleyway corner of the courtyard wall.
I recall hearing people in the bustling city say that a notorious thief had broken into the eastern part of the city. The Marquis's residence is not far from the east side of the city. Could it be that the thief was planning to steal something?
Faced with the choice between asking someone to investigate on her own, Xie Baoqiong chose the latter without hesitation.
It's just catching a petty thief; there's no need to make a big fuss. Too many people will scare away birds, and the same goes for thieves.
Xie Baoqiong observed for a while and saw that the thief took two steps in place. Just as he showed signs of walking towards her, he stopped in his tracks, as if he was struggling with something. Then he took two steps back.
Is this about choosing a good starting point?
Taking advantage of the moment the thief turned his head, Xie Baoqiong temporarily placed the lantern in her hand on the steps in front of the gate, and used her spiritual power to quietly sneak up behind the thief.
As he expected, the thief was completely unaware, but why did that back view look so familiar?
"Qi Gui." The moment the words fell, the figure in front of him trembled at the mention of those two words, slowly turned around, and after seeing his face clearly, lowered his head again and softly called out:
"Ah-Jung".
"Why are you here all alone?" As the question was asked, the head in front of him lowered further and further down; Qi Gui, who was already shorter than him, was even shorter.
"The school is closed today, so I came to the Marquis's residence to return this to Young Master Xie."
A neatly folded handkerchief.
Even without Qi Gui saying anything, he could recognize that it belonged to Xie Rongjing at a glance.
Whenever he got covered in dust in the courtyard, Xie Rongjing would wipe him with a handkerchief before allowing him to eat snacks. If he got covered in dust again that day and Xie Rongjing caught him, he would no longer receive a gentle wipe, but rather a furrowed brow and the act of shoving the handkerchief into his hand, and staring at him until he was clean before relaxing his brow.
He couldn't very well return the soiled handkerchief to Xie Rongjing, so the handkerchiefs belonging to Xie Rongjing in his courtyard kept multiplying and increasing in number.
The handkerchief in front of him was remarkably similar to one in his courtyard, likely made from the same piece of cloth.
Looking at the handkerchief in front of her, which was being treated with such care by its user, Xie Baoqiong felt a pang of guilt.
His mind was racing with thoughts, but in the blink of an eye, he turned his gaze back to Qi Gui: "Then why don't you go in and find him?"
"I heard from others that you should present a visiting card before you make a formal visit..."
Qi Gui paused for a moment, her gaze lowered as she rubbed the handkerchief in her hand instead of her fingers, and said shyly:
“I… I don’t have the money to buy paper for the visiting card, so I plan to return the handkerchief to Prince Xie when he leaves the mansion.”
Xie Baoqiong was unfamiliar with the trivial rules among mortals. She glanced at the completely darkened sky and asked, "You've been waiting all this time?"
Qi Gui nodded, his head bowed.
"What if my brother never leaves the manor? Will you still be waiting here?" Xie Baoqiong didn't know when Qi Gui had arrived, but judging from the listless appearance of the person in front of her, he must have been waiting near the Marquis's manor for a long time.
"..." Qi Gui opened his mouth, but in the end, he weakly defended himself: "No, I was thinking of waiting a little longer before leaving."
"Keep the handkerchiefs yourself." Xie Rongjing had lost so many handkerchiefs, yet he never asked for them back or investigated where they went. He simply ordered his men to make a new batch.
The Qi residence is a bit far from the Marquis's residence, and Xie Rongjing doesn't seem to care about the missing handkerchief, so Qi Gui might as well keep the handkerchief and go back sooner.
As soon as he finished speaking, Qi Gui's hand holding the handkerchief trembled, but he loosened his grip in an instant, afraid of leaving a wrinkle on the handkerchief.
"Thud"
"Thud"
Two tiny, almost illusory, water droplets splashed on the bluestone surface beneath our feet.
Xie Baoqiong looked up at the sky. It was cloudless, with no sign of rain, and even the stars were shining brightly. Tomorrow would most likely be a good day.
Another glistening drop fell onto the bluestone brick.
Xie Baoqiong followed the trail of the water droplets and looked up. Qi Gui's eyes were filled with tears, and round beads rolled down his cheeks one after another, hitting the bluestone bricks.
He saw Qi Gui twice, and both times the other person was crying. Last time he didn't know why Qi Gui was crying, and this time he didn't know either.
Xie Baoqiong, who had never seen a human cry in his short demonic life, did not know where human tears came from. And now, with only him and Qi Gui present, no one could answer his question.
Why are you crying?
The tears rolled down her cheeks even faster.
Xie Baoqiong suddenly understood why Xie Rongjing always carried a handkerchief with him.
Oh, and the handkerchief.
His gaze fell on the only handkerchief present, which Qi Gui held cleanly in his hand, without a single tear on it.
But for some inexplicable reason, he felt that if he told Qi Gui to use the handkerchief to wipe his tears, the tears flowing from the latter's eyes might actually soak the entire bluestone brick beneath his feet.
Thinking of this, his thoughts suddenly froze. Hiss, could it really be because of that handkerchief?
"Don't cry." Xie Baoqiong offered her sleeve to wipe away the tears on the other person's cheeks. "I'll take you into the mansion to find my brother. You can return the handkerchief to him."
Qi Gui's face was slapped hard, and for a moment he forgot his sadness. He stood there stunned, a half-drop of tears still clinging to the corner of his eye.
After Xie Baoqiong withdrew her hand, she caught a glimpse of the half-drop of tears, and with a stern face, she reached out to wipe it away again.
As soon as he put his hand down, the blush spread from Qi Gui's fair cheeks, which were only red around the eyes, like ink spreading on the surface of the water when the tip of a brush touches the brush washer.
Qi Gui raised his face, his eyes trembling but with a faint glimmer of light. He nodded, "Thank you..." Before he could finish speaking, his timid eyes noticed the scene behind Xie Baoqiong, and his pupils suddenly dilated:
"Watch out!"
He rushed forward and grabbed Xie Baoqiong, pulling her aside.
Reminded by Qi Guiyi, Xie Baoqiong pulled Qi Guiyi away, barely avoiding the strong wind coming from behind, and secretly gathered a ball of spiritual power in her hand.
After regaining his footing, he looked back, but the person who had attacked him earlier had vanished without a trace.
Apart from him and Qi Gui, he couldn't sense the presence of anyone else around him.
Xie Baoqiong grabbed Qi Gui, who was following beside her, and said in a low voice without turning around, "Let's go back to the Marquis's residence first. Stay close to me."
Upon hearing this, Qi Gui grabbed his hand, which was hanging by his side, to prevent the two from being suddenly separated.
He had sensed the fluctuations of spiritual energy from that attack. The enemy was in the dark, while he was in the light. Making a rash move might not be a good thing.
Moreover, if they go out in public, those hiding in the shadows will likely hesitate and dare not act rashly.
But a fog had risen in the alleyway, the white mist enveloping the surroundings and obscuring part of the view, even making the stars overhead less clear.
The timing of the fog's appearance was unusual. Xie Baoqiong squeezed Qi Gui's palm with her fingers and whispered:
"This fog is strange; don't separate from me."
"good."
To avoid the attack, the two retreated into the alley, only to find themselves caught in a trap.
But we're currently very close to the alley entrance; all we need to do is get out of the fog first.
Xie Baoqiong held Qi Gui's hand tightly and walked towards the alley entrance, observing the surroundings.
He had only taken two steps when Qi Gui suddenly leaned closer to him:
"Ah Qiong, I feel a little dizzy." As she uttered each word, Xie Baoqiong felt the weight on her body gradually increase.
He suddenly realized that the fog might also have a dizzying effect.
However, since his physical form is essentially an inanimate object, the effects of medicines and similar substances on him are often less than half effective.
Furthermore, he had not used his spiritual power or practiced breathing exercises, so he naturally did not inhale much mist.
The pressure on his shoulder suddenly increased. He looked down and saw that Qi Gui beside him had fallen into a coma while he was thinking.
Xie Baoqiong led her people forward a few steps quickly, but footsteps suddenly echoed in the quiet alley behind them.
There was more than one person. After assessing the situation, he slowed his pace, and his body began to sway.
Before falling to the ground, the force dissipated, pushing Qi Gui out of the alleyway.
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