The golden light in the duty room gradually subsided, but the air remained so thick with moisture that each breath felt heavy.
Zhang Cheng stared for a long time at the remnant of the Water Uncle’s soul, which giggled like a child above the Seal. He finally heaved a long sigh and recalled the County Captain’s Official Seal, which had been hanging in mid-air, radiating the solemn authority of the law.
"This is it for now."
Zhang Cheng wearily rubbed his brow, his voice hoarse. "We won’t get anything out of it from a short interrogation. As for this case... although we didn’t catch the true culprit on the spot, at least half the burden is off Anping County’s shoulders now."
He turned and looked at Chu Bai, who stood to the side with a calm expression.
"Chu Bai, you did an excellent job this time."
Zhang Cheng’s tone carried a mix of lingering fear and relief. "If you hadn’t risked life and limb to seize the Seal and preserve the Water Uncle’s Status, then after Wei Chuan forcibly took over today... not only would we have been charged with dereliction of duty and losing evidence, they probably would have fabricated the truth behind the Water Uncle’s fall and pinned it all on us."
Chu Bai cupped his hands. "I only did my best to preserve the scene, Director. I don’t deserve such high praise."
"To dare seize a Seal under a Foundation Establishment Decree... That’s more than ’doing your best.’ You’d be hard-pressed to find another at the Qi Cultivation Stage in all of Qingzhou who could pull that off."
Zhang Cheng waved his hand, his expression complex. "As for the Prefecture Inspection Department... Wei Chuan came out on the losing end of that exchange, so he’ll certainly go running to the Lord Commander to file a complaint against me."
"However, now that the Seal and Ribbon is here and the Water Uncle’s remnant soul survives, I hold the moral high ground for having preserved a Divine Dao Seal and Ribbon. Even if this case goes all the way to the Prefect of Dayuan Prefecture, I have nothing to fear from him."
At this, he turned to Shi Guanqiao.
"Director Shi, since the Water Uncle has been revived—though he has lost all his wits—his Status remains intact. He falls under your Water Department’s jurisdiction, after all. The task of soothing and providing for him now falls to you."
Shi Guanqiao had now calmed down from his earlier shock and anger. He gave Chu Bai a deep, formal bow, one colleague to another, his tone utterly sincere.
"Lord Chu, this time, you didn’t just save the Water Uncle; you saved my life and career. Words cannot express my gratitude. From now on, here in Anping County, if you ever need anything from the Water Department, you need only ask."
"You are too kind, Director Shi. It is only right for colleagues to help each other," Chu Bai replied politely.
"Good."
Shi Guanqiao took a deep breath. His gaze fell on Qii Pan, who was collapsed on the floor, his face ashen. A vicious glint flashed in Shi Guanqiao’s eyes. "I will take this man back to the Water Department’s dungeons. He dared to betray the Immortal Dynasty and collude with rogue cultivators to assassinate a True God. I will make him learn the taste of the Water Department’s Bone-Transforming Spiritual Spring. As for the Water Uncle..."
Shi Guanqiao formed the hand seals for the Water-Invoking Technique. A gentle stream of the Power of Dao Foundation enveloped the witless divine phantom and the shattered Seal.
"I will temporarily place him in the Water Department’s Spirit Realm and nourish him day and night with Incense Fire and a Spiritual Spring to see if we can’t awaken some of his old memories. When the investigation team from the Prefecture City arrives, they can take this hot potato off our hands."
Zhang Cheng nodded. "That’s for the best. This case involves rogue forces at the Foundation Establishment Realm, which is beyond Anping County’s authority to handle. The political games to come are a matter between Dayuan Prefecture and the Inspection Department. As long as we’ve protected the peace here and secured this Divine Seal, we’ve done our duty."
Shi Guanqiao delayed no further. He took his leave, taking Qii Pan and the weak remnant of the Water Uncle’s soul with him.
With the departure of the people from the Water Department, the damp, oppressive atmosphere in the duty room gradually receded, and the air grew dry once more.
Zhang Cheng looked at Chu Bai, remaining silent for a long moment before suddenly speaking. "You’ve been at it all day. Go get some rest. You’ve caused enough of a stir this year. For the time being, unless something truly major happens, just go back to your Qingfeng Courtyard and focus on your cultivation. There isn’t much time left before the Celestial Examination."
"Yes, sir."
Chu Bai walked out of the Evil Suppression Department. The night was now deep, and the streets of Anping County seemed quiet and vast under the faint glow of the Law Net.
He pressed a hand to his chest, where the lingering warmth from the Divine Seal’s eruption still seemed to remain.
The days that followed were the liveliest Anping County had seen all year.
Despite the undercurrents swirling around Threadline Gorge—a True God falling, inspectors maneuvering against each other, and even a Divine Seal nearly shattering—the County Yamen deliberately suppressed and whitewashed the events. These truths, explosive enough to shake the entire Prefecture City, were locked away tight in the dungeons of the Evil Suppression Department and the Secret Realm of the Water Department.
To the hundreds of thousands of commoners in Anping County, all they saw was a long-planned and unprecedentedly grand "God-Welcoming Ceremony."
「Daybreak.」
Both banks of the Sanmu River were carpeted in red felt, and for miles, colorful banners fluttered along the waterway. The crisp sound of gongs and drums, accompanied by a sky full of exploding firecrackers, was so thunderous that it sent fine ripples across the cold surface of the river.
County Magistrate Qian Shen personally led the officials of every department to the newly renovated southern docks to burn incense and offer prayers.
Surrounded by dozens of River Patrol Warriors, a statue of the "Water Uncle’s Golden Body," carved from sandalwood and draped in a Golden Silk Divine Robe, was slowly and reverently placed onto a divine palanquin.
Since the real Stream Water Spirit’s Spirituality was damaged and his Divine Soul was muddled, he was unable to manifest his divinity. So, Shi Guanqiao used a Secret Technique from the Water Department, placing the broken Divine Seal inside the Golden Body.
Illuminated by a faint yet pure golden light from the Divine Dao, the Golden Body appeared magnificent and solemn. Its features seemed to exude a hidden majesty, as if it were looking down upon all living things.
"Look! The Divine Spirit has manifested!"
"May the Water Uncle bless us! May the Sanmu River be free of floods next year, with favorable winds and timely rains!"
A dense crowd of commoners knelt along the riverbanks, their devout prayers rising and falling in waves.
The Incense Fire Will Power, born from the faith of countless households, transformed into streams of faint golden smoke invisible to the naked eye. It flowed on the river breeze into the Golden Body, ultimately converging within the crack-covered Seal.

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