Chapter 204 - 125: Incense Fire Will Power, a New Curse Technique

Chapter 204: Chapter 125: Incense Fire Will Power, a New Curse Technique

Inside the grotto, the once-violent hurricane of Karmic Force had subsided, but a strange, heavy, and viscous feeling still permeated the air.

Chu Bai stood quietly in place. The gold-and-red interwoven emblem on his right palm flickered, like a greedy black hole, silently siphoning all the residual Incense Fire Will Power that once belonged to the Sanmu Fairy from the grotto.

It was a very peculiar sensation.

Through the vision of his Golden Eye Shattering Illusion, this Wish Power manifested as faint, grayish-gold streams of energy.

They were the thoughts of countless fishermen from their prostrations: prayers for wealth, for safety, for survival. These thoughts, as if alive, tried to burrow into his skin and squeeze into his Sea of Consciousness.

’Incense Fire Will Power...’

’If it were an ordinary Cultivator, their mind would have already been flooded with these stray thoughts. At best, their Spiritual Power would fall into chaos; at worst, they would go mad on the spot.’

Chu Bai understood perfectly. Although this Incense Fire Will Power contained the magnificent power to alter reality, it was, in essence, a mottled and impure collection of mortal thoughts.

Living people cultivate the Immortal Dao, seeking absolute freedom and a true spiritual nature. If their Spiritual Power were to be contaminated by these worldly concerns, their Dao Foundation would be ruined.

But his new Fate Chart, [Golden Seal Decree, Jade Scroll of Heaven], acted like a storage tool.

It erected an invisible barrier outside Chu Bai’s body. The moment the Incense Fire Will Power entered his Sea of Consciousness, it was forcibly cleansed of all greed, anger, delusion, and hatred. The impurities of Cause and Effect were stripped away, and it finally transformed into droplets of Divine Power, as pure as Golden Liquid, which accumulated within his Sea of Consciousness.

’A living person can’t directly absorb Incense Fire Will Power, but I can accumulate it...’

’If I save up enough, I could probably become a Heroic Spirit Mountain God after I die.’

’Of course, that isn’t my path, so I won’t consider using it that way.’

Chu Bai was lost in thought as he felt that dense energy.

’This, then, is a ’Pardon Order’ waiting to be issued. Once I’ve accumulated enough, I can, in a mortal body, wield celestial authority and appoint the gods of mountains and rivers.’

This was an astonishing amount of authority.

This meant that, if Chu Bai wished, he could personally build up a pantheon of Divine Spirits who answered only to him.

In the Great Zhou Dynasty, Divine Spirits were appointed by the Court and governed by its laws. But Chu Bai now possessed the authority to appoint gods, entirely independent of the Court.

’If I get the chance in the future, I could give it a try. I’d like to see what difference there is between a Divine Spirit I appoint and one appointed by the Court...’

’But I must be careful with this matter.’

Chu Bai slowly clenched his fist, and the emblem on his palm faded away.

He looked up at the stone statue of the Sanmu Fairy, which had now completely lost its Spiritual Light.

The statue was covered in cracks. Its once-benevolent face now looked exceptionally sinister in the darkness.

The divine seat was empty; the river was without a master.

"Banner Inspector Chu? Brother Chu?"

Pang Song’s voice, tinged with alarm and uncertainty, called out from behind him.

Chu Bai turned around. The darkness and divinity in his eyes instantly receded, and he once again became the gentle, composed young Cultivator he was before.

He looked at Pang Song, who was directing the guards to clear the scene while sneaking glances at him, and gave a slight nod:

"Captain Pang, what is it?"

Seeing Chu Bai back to normal, Pang Song breathed a sigh of relief. Wiping the cold sweat from his face, he glanced at the pile of white bones with lingering fear:

"This... this battlefield... I’ve already ordered it sealed. These remains must be taken back to the department for the forensic doctor to identify, so we can try to have their families claim them. As for this evidence..."

He turned to Chu Bai, his eyes filled not only with admiration but also an unprecedented gravity:

"Banner Inspector Chu, if not for your meticulous attention to detail today, who knows how many more years the injustice here at the bottom of the Sanmu River would have remained buried.

Leave the rest to me. The men of Squad Three will turn this grotto upside down. The ledgers, the letters, the Tokens... If anyone was pulling the strings, I won’t let a single one of them get away!"

Chu Bai nodded. "This is hard work, Captain Pang. I’ll be counting on the men of Squad Three to be meticulous in clearing the scene and identifying the victims. This is all criminal evidence, so there can be no mistakes."

"Don’t worry! I’ll oversee it personally. If anyone dares to mess with this stuff, I’ll tear them apart with my bare hands!" Pang Song guaranteed, slapping his chest.

Meanwhile, Han Xingmo was holding a specially made Water Spirit Brush, rapidly writing on a scroll of Cyan Silk that emanated a faint, watery mist.

He was from the Water Department, and it was his duty to sort out and report on the changes to the riverbed, the residual Divine Power, and the true form of the Demon.

His expression was extremely serious, even containing a hint of suppressed fury.

"Junior Brother."

Han Xingmo finished writing, rolled up the Cyan Silk, and walked over to Chu Bai. His gaze swept over the empty divine throne as he said in a solemn voice:

"I’ve already informed the department of the situation here via Secret Sound Transmission. With a disaster of this scale on the Sanmu River, none of those incompetent freeloaders in my Water Department will escape responsibility. My supervisor is probably trembling in his boots right now."

He turned his head and looked at Chu Bai with a complex expression, then reached out and clapped him heavily on the shoulder:

"If you hadn’t uncovered the truth today, Junior Brother, and lent me your considerable aid, I, Han Xingmo, would not only have been kept in the dark, but I might have become an unwitting accomplice to this evil. Words can’t express my gratitude. In the future, if you have any trouble on the waterways in Anping County, just let your Senior Brother know."

Chu Bai returned the gesture with a smile. "Senior Brother, you’re too kind. We are fellow disciples; it’s only right that we support each other."

The three of them discussed for a few more moments. Pang Song needed to stay behind to handle the large amount of physical evidence and the victims’ remains, a task that would require a great deal of follow-up work.

Meanwhile, Chu Bai and Han Xingmo, as the case’s key discoverers and main combatants, needed to return to the city first to formally submit reports to their respective Government Offices and prepare for the aftermath.