Chapter 60 Inspecting the Black Register and Summoning the Merit Officer

These were the secret maxims left behind by the master of the True Immortal Temple before his death.

The two martial brothers had always kept them deeply etched in their hearts, terrified of forgetting them after reincarnation, and thus had engraved them upon a stone tablet.

Only by cutting off the seven emotions and six desires, forgetting the karmic ties of the mortal world, could a practitioner attain their true self, catch a glimpse of the mysterious gate, forge the false into the real, cast off their old husk, and achieve the Dao of Immortality!

Huang Meimei—no, at this moment she should be addressed by her name from a past life: Xu Qingshan.

Having undergone reincarnation, Xu Qingshan’s intermediate state had detached from Huang Meimei's physical body, appearing illusory and indistinct like the hazy form of a young maiden, bearing a five-tenths resemblance to Xie Yali.

He extended a finger and gently tapped the space between Huang Hotu's brows, drawing forth a flickering, golden flame.

The golden radiance was so seductive that an expression of obsession welled up in Xu Qingshan's eyes.

He pressed the flame directly into the center of his own brow.

His ethereal body became infused with the golden firelight, gradually solidifying. Every sense in his being experienced an indescribable pleasure, and unable to contain himself, he cast his head back and burst into wild laughter: "Hahaha, my Dao is accomplished!!!"

Having had his golden flame extracted, Huang Hotu collapsed and fell straight into a dead faint.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Several flashes of snow-white brilliance cut through the air!

Xu Qingshan whipped his head around to see several razor-sharp blades suspended less than ten centimeters from the center of his brow...

A look of knowing amusement crossed his features as he chuckled lightly and said, "Your speed is remarkable, but unfortunately, I am a step ahead of you! Huang Hotu is already dead, and his daughter's shell bears the double-pupil destiny and the killing karmic burden of my pitiful junior brother!

"They... have all fulfilled their missions! Aiding this poor Daoist in completing the grand undertaking of immortal ascension!"

Li Xuan stepped forward from the distance and said coldly, "It seems, just as I guessed, Xie Yali was merely a pawn of yours as well."

Unfazed and nonchalant, Xu Qingshan flicked his hand, causing the withered leaves on the ground to gather into the shape of a garment that draped over his shoulders. He remarked, "Heaven and earth are ruthless, treating all things as straw dogs. Seeking immortality is inherently an act defying the heavens. In the eyes of the Heavenly Dao, we mortals are no different from the paper dogs used in sacrificial rites. Only by exhausting every possible means can one transcend oneself."

Shifting his tone, he continued, "You have repeatedly obstructed my grand undertaking of immortal ascension, committing heinous crimes! Let me send you into the cycle of reincarnation here and now to be delivered from your suffering..."

In an instant, Xu Qingshan was right in front of Li Xuan, his right hand striking down toward the crown of Li Xuan's head!

Bang!!!

With a deafening crash...

Li Xuan swung the Mount Tianpeng Ruler to parry the blow, the web of his right hand splitting open with a trace of blood, sending a wave of excruciating pain through his wrist.

As expected of someone who had "achieved immortality," he was far more powerful than Xie Yali. Yet compared to the traditional immortals capable of moving mountains and draining seas, this attack still felt somewhat diminished in class.

Xu Qingshan looked at his own hand in sheer disbelief. He actually hadn't managed to kill this fellow with a single strike?

Having deflected Xu Qingshan's assault, Li Xuan flicked his left hand, and a pistol materialized in his palm. *Bang, bang, bang!* Three successive shots rang out, the bullets piercing straight through Xu Qingshan's head and spraying forth droplets of golden blood...

Xu Qingshan vanished.

The forest filled with a dense cloud of silver powder. Li Xuan immediately held his breath, knowing an illusion technique was about to be deployed.

Right at that moment, Xu Qingshan materialized abruptly, splitting into two figures that launched a pincer attack from both sides. With fingers like sharp talons, they tore through Li Xuan's clothes, clawing bloody gasps across his abdomen...

Grimacing in pain, Li Xuan gritted his teeth and slapped his gourd: "Since I'm giving you some face, you really think you've got this magistrate cornered?"

The Mount Dongyue Token leaped out, flickering with a faint radiance!

Xu Qingshan was instantly knocked flying backward, overcome with utter shock and terror. What on earth was this supremely pure power?

Consequently, the moment he looked up, he saw Li Xuan pulling a four-foot square table right out of the gourd and setting it upon the ground. Yellow cloth, writing brush, inkstone, paper, incense, candles, cinnabar, a spirit tablet, and a peach-wood sword—everything was fully complete!

It was this damned, bizarre trick again!

Her scalp tingled with dread!

When they first encountered Li Xuan at the True Immortal Temple, it was that purplish-red gourd continuously spitting out blades and machetes that had prompted her to try and seize it, only to be badly burned by it...

She had assumed that was the limit of his capabilities.

Never did she imagine that he would carry an entire ritual altar with him wherever he went. This was simply... simply...

At this moment, Li Xuan held a thread-bound book with a pitch-black cover in his left hand, glanced at her sideways, and declared, "To achieve immortality, you bypassed good karma and instead practiced demonic, heterodox ways. Having fallen into the intermediate state, you remain unrepentant and have orchestrated schemes to endanger the lives of the common people! This magistrate once again invokes the *Black Code* to examine your crimes, and sentences you to the punishment of physical dissolution and soul annihilation!"

Whenever he had spare time, he would read and study the *Northern Yin Fengdu Supreme Profound Demon-Subduing Black Code Spiritual Book*. Beyond various behavioral constraints imposed upon magistrates, it contained extensive classifications and a multitude of distinct protocols targeting wandering ghosts, demonic gods, malevolent sprites, and more.

The Black Code might be a trifle strict, but as long as one grew accustomed to it before reaching the third tier and sixth grade, it ceased to be any real problem.

The precepts a magistrate had to observe numbered only a dozen or two. Several of these were directed specifically at Buddhist monks and nuns, while the rest simply mandated maintaining proper daily decorum and strictly avoiding any insult to the Fengdu Black Code or the Northern Emperor...

After all, the existence of the *Black Code* was meant to uphold justice and light, not to destroy magistrates.

Li Xuan possessed the authority of "expedient action." Precepts such as dodging out of the sight of "women, cats, and monks when carrying an imperial decree" could be disregarded as long as he harbored no malicious intent.

Right then, through their brief exchange, Li Xuan realized he still had a considerable gap to bridge compared to Xie Yali's older sister. He made an instant decision to invoke the Black Code to investigate her offenses, and then... summon reinforcements to jointly eradicate this evil!

Are you kidding me? Having pledged himself to the Northern Emperor's lineage, if he didn't call for backup when he knew he couldn't handle things alone, wouldn't that be equivalent to looking down on his powerful backing?

The pages of the Black Code fluttered rapidly in his hand. Placing the Inspector of the Three Realms Ghost and God Seal upon the table and grasping the Nine Springs Command, he spoke in a resonant voice: "Disciple Li Xuan, an initiate of the Supreme Three-Five Evil-Slaying True Scripture Esoteric Registry, concurrently holding the posts of Right Magistrate of the Fengdu General Records Court and Prefectural Inspector of the Six Heavens Palace Ghost and God Affairs! Exorcising demons in the mortal realm and encountering evil practitioners committing atrocities, I hereby petition the Black Code to jointly examine their wickedness!"

A sudden, violent gale whipped up around the ritual altar!

An inexplicable sense of unease welled up in Xu Qingshan's heart. Why did this wind feel somewhat reminiscent of the cave where the Patriarch had passed away?

The Patriarch's shattered remains scattered across the floor, along with the twelve-centimeter craters radiating an icy aura upon the walls—these images surfaced unbidden in her mind...

Could this have something to do with this person?

Her subconscious was screaming at her that if she failed to disrupt the ritual, she was dead meat!

However, the gale encircling the altar was shaped like razor-sharp blades. The moment she drew even slightly close, her temporarily formed "immortal body" would rupture with countless tiny cuts, leaking trickles of golden blood.

The Black Code states: *Whenever a magistrate desires to inspect the Black Code and issue decrees to ghosts and gods, they must first face the Northern Dipper, burn incense, and petition the Purple Micro Northern Dipper, the Dipper Ladles, the Four Saints and Three Officials, the Great Emperor of Fengdu, and the Three Heavens Preceptors. They shall state their petition and the guilt of the ghosts and gods, pay homage to the Northern Emperor, and only then publicly inspect and execute the punishment. Violators shall have three years of their lifespan revoked and be cast into the Great Iron-Enclosed Mountain upon death; repeat offenders shall have an additional grade added and be cast into the Mountain of Knives Hell in Fengdu!*

However, Li Xuan possessed the Northern Emperor's immunity personally granted by Grand Marshal Tianpeng, allowing him to streamline and expedite these procedures somewhat.

He completed the rites in a single minute, then took a deep breath facing north, blew across the incense and candles, and intoned in a clear voice: "By order of Tianpeng, the Merit Officers shall descend. Lu Jian and Wang An, arrive with utmost urgency! Summon the Earth God immediately to descend upon the ritual altar together. Hear my command and arrive with fiery speed! Led by Tianpeng, let none violate the statutes. Swiftly, as commanded by Grand Marshal Tianpeng, summon the two Merit Officers Wang An and Lu Jian, and the altar-guarding Earth God to the front of the altar without delay, hasten."

The Nine Springs Command lightly tapped against the Inspector of the Three Realms Ghost and God Seal.

Just a single tap.

The violent gale instantly ceased. The tips of two incense sticks in the censer flared with a bright light. The ash drifted, scattered, and coalesced into two hazy human figures standing respectively to the left and right of the altar, with a speed that left one gaping in astonishment.

The incantation Li Xuan had chanted was the Summoning Merit Officer Spell.

He didn't dare summon any higher-ranking officials. Last time, when he tried to summon the Lord of the Nine Hells, the primary entity hadn't shown up, but Grand Marshal Tianpeng had dropped by instead. Before he even caught a glimpse of the divine being in person, he took a sword strike first—just thinking about it made his chest ache faintly.

And then he remembered.

Another passage in the Black Code specifically targeted the ghost and deity officials of Fengdu: when a magistrate in the mortal realm called upon you for help and you failed to respond immediately, retribution awaited!

Take summoning Merit Officers, for example!

*If a magistrate wishes to summon the two Merit Officers for service, they shall strike the seal with the command, whereupon the two deities shall appear. If either fails to arrive upon a single strike, beheaded. If the magistrate strikes in error, death.*

This was precisely why the two figures on the left and right of the ritual altar had arrived with lightning speed.