Chapter 350: Storyteller

Li Huowang looked up and saw a black pigeon watching him from above. It was Tuoba Danqing's messenger pigeon.

As Li Huowang untied the letter from the pigeon's leg and read its contents, he immediately forgot about his meal and turned towards the door.

Li Huowang had never imagined that Supervisor Ji was still in Yinling City! Not only had he not left, but he had also specifically requested to see Li Huowang. This was an opportunity.

To Li Huowang's surprise, Supervisor Ji had not chosen a grand or impressive location for their meeting, but rather a rather simple study.

It seemed his working style was completely different from the ostentatious Tuoba Danqing.

Upon entering, Li Huowang's gaze was immediately drawn to a shriveled tongue.

It was a somewhat withered human tongue, its base nailed by a coffin nail onto a decaying wooden *ruyi* scepter.

The moment he saw it, Li Huowang immediately remembered that Tuoba Danqing had previously boasted about it being a magic artifact made from the tongue of a Xinsu.

Taking a slow, deep breath and exhaling, Li Huowang performed a Taoist bow to the pale-faced old eunuch who was working an abacus.

"Greetings, Supervisor Ji."

"Hehehe~ We're not in the palace, and we're all family here. No need to be so polite. Please, sit."

Following Supervisor Ji's gesture, Li Huowang saw that tea had already been prepared on a side table.

Li Huowang did not sit. Instead, he got straight to the point. "May I ask, Supervisor Ji, do you have something important to discuss with me?"

He remembered how panicked the eunuch had been when he rode off, but now he sat calmly. Something Li Huowang didn't know must have happened.

"Oh, hehe~ No rush, no rush. I hear you're quite capable, young man?"

Being scrutinized by an old eunuch made Li Huowang feel uncomfortable.

"Hong Da said the three of them couldn't hold you, and you still managed to escape? Appointing you as a mere Renwu seems like a waste of your talents."

Li Huowang didn't take it as a compliment; instead, his guard went up. "Supervisor Ji, please speak plainly."

"Alright, you're direct, and so am I. I reckon you've probably guessed what I was doing before, haven't you?"

Seeing Li Huowang stand silently, Supervisor Ji continued, "That's right, my task this time was to retrieve the Xin Zhuo hidden in the Buddha Bone Temple. But this mission failed! What do you think I should do?"

"Going back directly to face punishment is certainly not an option, so we must compensate for it!"

Supervisor Ji, who had been sitting, suddenly stood up. "I'll be frank with you. This matter is no small thing; we absolutely cannot mess it up again!"

As he spoke, he plunged his finger into the mahogany desktop, carving a distinct line.

"If we fail this mission, our entire network could be uprooted!"

After hearing all this, Li Huowang finally understood. "Supervisor Ji, are you saying... we need to find another Xin Zhuo to turn in?"

"Clever! That's precisely the kind of talent we need in the Bureau of Celestial Monitors!" Supervisor Ji's plump face broke into a smile.

"It doesn't matter where the Xin Zhuo comes from. The higher-ups want a Xin Zhuo, so we'll give them one. The difference is, the one from the Buddha Bone Temple was dead; this time, we're going to catch a living one."

Hearing this, Li Huowang's heart immediately began to pound. "A living Xin Zhuo? An existence similar to my living Xinsu?"

For some reason, even without knowing its name, Li Huowang already felt a pang of sympathy for the Xin Zhuo.

As Li Huowang was still pondering, Supervisor Ji's words landed like a bombshell in his ears.

"I understand that this isn't a formal task from the Bureau, nor is there any reward, and catching a living Xin Zhuo will certainly be dangerous. I'd understand if you're unwilling to go."

"Danqing told me you've always wanted to read the texts about the Zuowang Dao in the Siku Quanshu, haven't you? If you can handle this beautifully, I'll personally go to the Siku Quanshu for you, even risking my position, to memorize the texts for you!"

Li Huowang's breathing became heavy. On one hand, there was a Xin Zhuo he had never met; on the other, information crucial to ridding himself of the Xinsu. The choice seemed obvious.

Li Huowang performed another Taoist bow to Supervisor Ji. "Yes, Supervisor Ji!"

Seeing Li Huowang agree, Supervisor Ji immediately smiled like a blooming flower. He could only entice him; with an independent practitioner like Li Huowang, if he disagreed, there was nothing Supervisor Ji could do.

Moreover, he'd heard the young man had a bad temper, and coercion might backfire. Fortunately, Li Huowang eventually agreed, which increased their chances of success.

Looking at the eunuch in front of him, Li Huowang's mind stirred. "Supervisor Ji, back at the Buddha Bone Temple, our Xin Zhuo was intercepted. Will that person not come again this time?"

"By the way, what's his background? He dares to intercept something belonging to our Bureau of Celestial Monitors."

Hearing this, Supervisor Ji looked indifferent. "Xin Zhuo isn't like anything else; one is enough. Zhuge Yuan won't try to take this one again. If a living and a dead Xin Zhuo were to combine, it would be more than he could handle."

"And you can rest assured, the Zuowang Dao profited immensely from the deaths this time. Before new gains emerge, they certainly won't cause any more trouble."

"So this time, apart from the living Xin Zhuo, we don't need to worry about anything else."

Supervisor Ji chuckled as he reached out and patted Li Huowang's shoulder, which made Li Huowang subtly frown.

He had talked for a long time, yet he completely ignored Li Huowang's questions. Li Huowang still couldn't tell whether Zhuge Yuan was good or bad.

"Supervisor Ji, what exactly is Zhuge Yuan's background? This person is so peculiar; I'm afraid of encountering him again in the future. Please enlighten your subordinate further."

Li Huowang raised his head and met Supervisor Ji's gaze, his eyes reflecting a hint of persistence and determination.

Since Supervisor Ji was asking for his help, Li Huowang feared there wouldn't be another chance to ask.

Hearing Li Huowang's persistence, Supervisor Ji naturally couldn't pretend not to hear. He sighed faintly.

"It's bad luck to even mention him, but since you insist on knowing, I'll tell you."

"Do you know Zhuge Yuan's nickname? Everyone calls him 'The Storyteller'."

Supervisor Ji slowly sat down, fiddling with his jade archer's ring.

"He's a very strange man. Although he dresses like a scholar, he never pursues official examinations. Instead, he likes to tell stories in bustling places."

"The stories he tells aren't about romance or generals going to war; he only tells historical accounts."

"Historical accounts?" Li Huowang was momentarily stunned.

"Yes, historical accounts, but they're entirely fabricated by him. He talks about how nine hundred years ago, the State of Qi had no internal strife, and the Emperor of Great Qi unified the world. He claims that today, a new emperor of Great Qi ascends the throne, with the reign title 'Yinghui,' and auspicious signs descend from heaven. A hundred birds flock to acknowledge the young lord, and the chamber flashes with red light."

"It's utter nonsense! If Great Qi hadn't fallen into chaos, where would the current State of Daliang have come from? And where would the Four Qi have come from?"