Chapter 971, Barging In

Translator: Jon

Translation Checker: Silavin

“I’m Zhou Ze of the Zhou Family. I’m an Elder who is responsible for external affairs,” the goateed old man said with a smile. “What are your names?”

“Niu Meng.”

Zhou Ze nodded. “I see. You’re Cultivator Niu. You seem to be a sedate person with a powerful aura. Where are you from? Where do you work?”

“Both of us are independent cultivators,” Lu Ye lied.

Zhou Ze kept a smile on his face. “I see. Despite your age, you’re already fairly powerful. It seems there are some brilliant people among the independent cultivators. Since you’ve come to Dingtian City as visitors, why don’t we go somewhere else and have a talk?”

Lu Ye squinted his eyes and nonchalantly swept a glance over the surroundings before replying dispassionately, “You’re pretty hospitable.”

Many cultivators were hiding around them and keeping an eye on them. Lu Ye could easily detect them by scanning the surroundings with his Divine Ego. Although Xiao Xinghe had a less sensitive perception, he realised they were besieged as well. That was why he was vigilant.

Zhou Ze laughed. “We’re known for being hospitable to brilliant cultivators from everywhere. You’re aware that it’s harder for a family of cultivators than a Sect to survive in Jiu Zhou.”

Lu Ye nodded. “In that case, I’m sorry for bothering you, then.”

“This way, please.” Zhou Ze stepped aside and extended his hand.

Both Lu Ye and Xiao Xinghe wrapped their hands around the hilts and walked past the old man without sparing him a glance.

A moment later, the three of them landed in a large manor in the city. Zhou Ze led them to a side chamber. After they were seated, a servant came to serve them tea.

Lu Ye and Xiao Xinghe were seated while Zhou Ze said hospitably, “I’m a straightforward person, so I won’t beat around the bush. I was elated to see brilliant cultivators like you two, so I decided to invite you to come here. Since both of you are young and powerful, your future is bright. Although the Zhou Family is located in a remote area, we love befriending outstanding cultivators from everywhere. Are you willing to work for the Zhou Family?”

“Both of us have merely passed by this place. We’re leaving soon. I’m sorry I’ll have to disappoint you, Elder.”

Zhou Ze said, “Don’t turn me down so soon, Cultivator Niu. Although I’m from a great family, I know life is difficult for independent cultivators. If you’re willing to work for the Zhou Family, you’ll be treated well.”

Following that, he clapped his hands.

The next instant, two beautiful young ladies respectively entered the place with a tray. They walked up to Lu Ye and Xiao Xinghe before placing the trays with Storage Bags on top of them on the tables. Then, they saluted them respectfully and turned around to leave.

Lu Ye arched his brow. “What’s the meaning of this, Elder?”

Zhou Ze said with a smile, “Why don’t you have a look first?”

Lu Ye picked up the Storage Bag and opened it. The bag was full of High-Grade Spirit Stones and Spirit Pills that were helpful for cultivation. There was also a Spell Artifact.

“You’re pretty generous.” Lu Ye put down the Storage Bag. Although he had seen many splendid items before, he was still shocked by how generous the Zhou Family was. There were many valuable items in the bag which were attractive to any Real Lake Realm Master.

“We’re not generous to everyone.” Zhou Ze ran his fingers through his beard. “Both of you have a bright future. Even if you’re not willing to work for the Zhou Family, we’d still want to be friends with you. We’re a family of cultivators, so we’re fully aware of our disadvantages. Naturally, we understand that having more friends might help us survive.”

“You have a point.” Lu Ye dipped his head.

“Do you agree with me, Cultivator Niu? It seems that Zhou Kui is right.”

“Zhou Kui?” Lu Ye frowned, wondering why the other party suddenly brought up an unfamiliar name.

“Zhou Kui is from our family as well. Now, he’s a team leader of the Law Enforcement Hall in the Ministry of Laws.”

Lu Ye put on a smile. [It’s no wonder this old man has suddenly brought up Zhou Kui. He’s trying to intimidate me.]

Since Zhou Kui was a team leader from the Law Enforcement Hall, the others from the Ministry of Laws had to show him some respect. Moreover, the people from the Zhou Family were hospitable. Even if some teams had accepted the task and come over in the past, they could only give up on the task in the end.

The law enforcers wouldn’t always achieve their goals. In the entire Bing Zhou, there were countless cultivators, and many of them had broken the rules. No one would report their crimes to the authorities, so they wouldn’t be punished. Many cases got stuck in the Hunting Pavilion and were never settled. In such a situation, they naturally wouldn’t be determined to capture Zhou Wang.

Even the local Nightingale had been bribed by the Zhou Family. In that case, there was no way Zhou Wang would be brought to justice.

Lu Ye picked up the teacup and took a sip of tea. “Is this how you’ve always driven off members of the Law Enforcement Hall who are here to carry out their tasks?”

The smile on Zhou Ze’s face faded as he stared at Lu Ye. “I don’t understand what you’re talking about, Cultivator Niu.”

“I don’t care whether you understand what I’m saying.” Lu Ye put down the teacup and told Xiao Xinghe, “Third Senior Brother, the Zhou Family has tried to bribe the law enforcers who are here to carry out a task. They’re caught red-handed. Keep these things and inform the Commander about it later.”

“Yes!” Xiao Xinghe immediately picked up the two Storage Bags and kept them inside his clothes.

Zhou Ze stood straight up. “Cultivator Niu, you’d better be cautious in everything you do so as not to invite trouble to yourself!”

Lu Ye landed a palm on the table and rose to his feet before lifting his military token. “We’re from the Law Enforcement Hall. According to the rules, whoever dares to stop us from carrying out our task will be killed mercilessly!”

He wasn’t sure if such a rule existed. In fact, he wasn’t even familiar with the rules. However, everything the law enforcers did was offensive. Zhou Wang had affected many commoners when he was in a fight. Since he had slaughtered so many people, he couldn’t be spared the punishment.

Lu Ye had accepted the task, so he had to complete it no matter what.

It was obvious that Zhou Ze was aware of who they were. Since Lu Ye lied that he was an independent cultivator named Niu Meng, Zhou Ze happily played along.

Although Lu Ye could be more tactful, he wasn’t willing to waste more time in this place. Since he had to get it done quickly, he had to make it very clear to them about his intention.

A myriad of expressions came over Zhou Ze’s face as he looked at the military token in Lu Ye’s hand. He had never expected the law enforcers this time to be so stern.

There had been two law enforcement teams in the past, but Zhou Ze had resolved the crisis using a similar way, thus saving Zhou Wang’s life.

Regardless, cultivators were only Humans. Even if the law enforcers had no regard for the Zhou Family, they had to show some respect to Zhou Kui.

Certainly, Lu Ye didn’t know who Zhou Kui was. It had only been a short time since he joined the Ministry of Laws. The only people he knew were the members of Team A3.

After a growl, Lu Ye stepped out of the hall and fished out the Tracking Disc. Upon identifying the direction, he flew further into the Zhou Family’s compound. Xiao Xinghe followed him closely.

Zhou Wang was somewhere in the depths of the manor. The Nightingale might not have lied that he hadn’t seen Zhou Wang in the past year. The Zhou Family members knew that Zhou Wang had committed an atrocious crime, so they had hidden him in the deepest part of the manor. As long as he refused to show up, the Nightingale would never see him. However, the Nightingale must be aware of Zhou Wang’s location.

The two of them moved forward and came across many cultivators from the Zhou Family. These people had received an order. Knowing the consequences of stopping the law enforcers from carrying out their duty, they didn’t make things difficult for Lu Ye and Xiao Xinghe. They only glowered at them and followed them.

Soon enough, the two of them were followed by around 100 cultivators from the Zhou Family. Even more nearby cultivators heard the noise and came over as the number of cultivators increased.

It wasn’t until they arrived at the courtyard that the cultivators started stopping them.

Lu Ye stopped in his tracks. As his aura surged, he bellowed, “Who dares to stop the law enforcers from carrying out our duty!”

Although there were only the two of them, they were majestic. Many cultivators seemed to be in a dilemma.

Naturally, the Zhou Family had no regard for two Real Lake Realm Masters, but Lu Ye and Xiao Xinghe were from the Ministry of Laws. That was the reason the Zhou Family was in a tight spot.

They were not only facing Lu Ye and Xiao Xinghe but also the Ministry of Laws behind them.

Zhou Ze arrived and landed in front of them with a solemn expression. “Guys, this is a forbidden area of the Zhou Family, so please don’t barge into it. We’re fine with you carrying out your task, and we’ll be cooperative. However, if you dare break into the forbidden area, we’ll never allow that to happen.”

Lu Ye stared at him and scoffed. “If you don’t want us to barge in, hand over Zhou Wang to me, and we’ll leave right away.”

“Zhou Wang is no longer in the Zhou Family.”

“I’ve received verified news that Zhou Wang is hiding right here.”

“Are you accusing me of lying to you? Please show me the evidence, then. Otherwise, we won’t allow anyone to enter the forbidden area.”

“This is the evidence!” Lu Ye lifted his hand and shot the Tracking Disc from his sleeve.

Zhou Ze took it and became shocked, for he could recognise the item. He didn’t expect the law enforcers to be so wasteful as they even used a Tracking Disc to search for a target. The incident was unheard of.

“Get lost!” Lu Ye strode towards the courtyard.

Seeing that Lu Ye truly intended to barge into the place, Zhou Ze growled, “Stop them!”

The next instant, someone charged forward and extended his sword towards Lu Ye. His majestic aura showed that he was a Seventh-Order Real Lake Realm Master.

“How dare you!” Lu Ye snarled and unsheathed the Inviolable Saber before launching a counterattack.

As the two weapons clashed, one of them grunted and was sent flying away with blood spurting from his wound.

The Zhou Family cultivators were astounded as the Seventh-Order Master was the defeated one following the exchange of moves.

They were so shocked that they were rooted to the spot.

Lu Ye never stopped in his tracks as he wielded his saber and pressed on. Wherever he went, the cultivators in front of him would leap away.

Xiao Xinghe followed Lu Ye and assisted him as he cast out some Sword Lights.

“Surround them!” Zhou Ze ordered.

That was the only thing they could do. Even though Lu Ye never held back his power, those from the Zhou Family wouldn’t dare to injure or kill them right there and then. If they did that, the Ministry of Laws would settle the score with them later. Even though the Zhou Family was of the Third Tier, they couldn’t possibly withstand the Ministry of Laws’ wrath.

In an instant, the Zhou Family cultivators surrounded Lu Ye and Xiao Xinghe to ensure they couldn’t continue moving forward.

Zhou Ze shouted, “I’m sorry, but you can’t barge into our forbidden area. We’ll explain ourselves to the Ministry of Laws later. The two of you please go back right away.”

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