Chapter 265 - 123: I, Yang Mo, Am Going to Slap the Demon Monarch’s Mouth Rotten

Chapter 265: Chapter 123: I, Yang Mo, Am Going to Slap the Demon Monarch’s Mouth Rotten

’I’m already lucky to have snagged that opportunity with Alchemy.’

’Forget it!’

He led his men over to the task book for the Ministry of Justice.

For a moment.

The only sound in the Imperial Clan Court was the rustling of pages. Everyone had lost the desire to provoke one another.

But it couldn’t be helped. The War God Tower was opening six months early, putting immense pressure on all of them.

And...

More importantly...

Zhao Ci flipped through the task book, his eyelid twitching uncontrollably. ’This year’s missions are brutal!’

A slew of new missions targeted the various outlaw gangs.

Taken on their own, they didn’t look like missions at all.

’This is clearly a hit list!’

The Cao Bang, the Salt Gang, the Horse Gang, the Five Poison Sect, the Corpse-Driving Sect—and even the Demon Sect.

All of them were on the chopping block.

An ordinary person might not know about the shady dealings of these outlaw gangs, but half of the Mansion Officials present were from major clans. How could they be completely in the dark?

In the past, the Imperial Court’s stance on these gangs had always been ambiguous. But this time...

The signal carried too many underlying implications.

It forced them to take this with the utmost seriousness.

Zhao Ci smirked. ’That Old Deng is a wily one. If he’d made this move before, the Imperial Clan Court would probably be buckling under the pressure.’

But now, with Ying Rui’s appearance, national morale was soaring. It was indeed the perfect time to strike.

He glanced around.

As luck would have it.

His eyes met Zhao Xie’s.

[Zhao Xie’s Current Wish: Ally with the Crown Prince Faction and eliminate Zhao Ci first. Reward for Completion: Comprehension Points +1000, Kick Ass Talisman x1.]

When Zhao Xie saw Zhao Ci looking at him, he hastily averted his gaze. Clutching a task book, he slowly approached Zhao Yong, but to his surprise, Zhao Yong simply stepped away, found a Junior Official, and registered for several missions concerning the Salt Gang and the Horse Gang.

Zhao Xie’s face fell. He rushed to report several cases of his own, related to the Cao Bang and the alchemy black market.

[Zhao Xie’s Current Wish: So much for the Crown Prince Faction! Going back on your word, are you? If I don’t completely dismantle your precious Cao Bang, then I’ll take your family name! Reward for Completion: Comprehension Points +1000, Name Change Token x1.]

Zhao Ci: "..."

’Going back on their word?’

’So those two had already agreed to team up against me?’

’In that case, I guess Old Deng actually did me a favor.’

’Otherwise, with both groups ganging up to make my life difficult, it would’ve definitely hurt my ability to earn points.’

Looking at the missions the two of them had registered for,

it was clear they were ready to tear each other apart.

They were all C-rank missions worth ten or more merit points—a very aggressive move.

But it couldn’t be helped.

In the current situation, anyone who wasn’t aggressive was just waiting to die a slow death.

The War God Tower offered a massive boost to one’s physical body. It was a now-or-never opportunity. Falling behind this time would likely create a snowball effect they could never recover from.

The casualty rate for this mansion competition was probably going to be high.

Just then.

"Huh?"

Someone suddenly cried out in surprise. "Hey, look at the last mission! It’s to capture the Demon Monarch! For a full one thousand merit points! Whoa... doesn’t that mean whoever catches the Demon Monarch is guaranteed a top-three finish in the competition?"

Zhao Ci: "???"

’Geez, this guy is even more ambitious.’

Hearing this, the crowd immediately broke into an uproar.

"Pfft! If you could actually capture the Demon Monarch, you’d be promoted straight to a Third-Grade Official at least. Who gives a damn about finishing in the top three of some competition?"

"If I had that kind of skill, why would I even bother with this competition?"

"Huh? Hasn’t the Demon Monarch been missing for over twenty years? He’s probably dead by now. Where would anyone even start looking?"

"No idea! But if the Imperial Clan Court posted the mission, they must have found a lead on his whereabouts."

"This mission was probably just posted for show."

"Let’s just stick to our plans. No need to throw your life away."

Zhao Ci quickly flipped to the last page and, sure enough, found the mission to capture the Demon Monarch. It wasn’t restricted to the new mansions; any mansion could accept it. The mission would be considered complete as long as one provided the Imperial Clan Court with valid information and assisted in the Demon Monarch’s capture.

He subconsciously glanced back and, as expected, a line of text appeared above Zhang Da Yong’s head: "Don’t let the Saint Monarch get caught."

That wasn’t surprising.

However, Yang Mo was trembling slightly. It looked as if a line of text was about to appear over his head, but it quickly vanished.

Zhao Ci asked, a little curious, "Lao Mo, what are you trembling for?"

Yang Mo’s breath hitched. His lips trembled as he spoke, "I really want to catch the Demon Monarch and smash his fucking mouth in!"

Zhang Da Yong: "???"

’How audacious!’

’To dare disrespect the Saint Monarch!’

’He’s courting death!’

’There’s no way someone like this could be the Saint Monarch’s reincarnation, right?’

Zhao Ci: "..."

’Did Lao Mo just get triggered by the Demon Monarch’s sayings?’

He waved his hand. "Let’s not worry about all that for now. We need to assign our official posts and pick our missions. We’ll stick to the plan we discussed and get to work as soon as we’re done here!"

"Alright!"

Everyone responded in unison. They had already discussed most of the details over the past few days.

Otherwise, if they’d truly expected to devise a strategy on the spot, they’d be left eating dust.

「Fifteen minutes later.」

The group efficiently assigned their official posts, submitted their mission and roster list, and immediately departed from the Imperial Clan Court.

Immediately after.

They split into two groups.

One of the groups left Lingge City at once, heading north.

...

「North City Gate.」

After watching Kan Luotang leave with three Civilian Mansion Officials, Zhu Li shot a plaintive glance at Zhao Ci. "Boss! I want to be a high-ranking official, too."

One element of the Tenth Prince’s Mansion’s strategy was for Kan Luotang to accept a Junior Ninth Grade official post and lead the relatively weaker Civilian Mansion Officials to the Northern Three Prefectures.

Although the task book now included numerous high-reward missions targeting the outlaw gangs, their difficulty and the time they consumed were directly proportional to the payout.

The other mansions were being more aggressive, picking all the hardest missions, but they really had no other choice.