Light Fortress
Chapter 147 - 135 Tomb Ghost

Chapter 147: Chapter 135 Tomb Ghost

Early the next morning, Cui Zhongcheng brought Gu Shen to the Huazhi Building.

Sublevel nine.

On the previous visit with Gu Shen, Cui had taken him to sublevel seven, where valuable Extraordinary Sealed Objects were kept. Although the highest grade was only C, it was still breathtaking.

This time... they were headed to sublevel nine.

Clearly, in the eyes of Zhao Xilai, the implementation of the Awakening Bill was an extremely important and confidential matter at present.

The elevator opened, revealing the ninth sublevel’s facilities—clean and orderly with huge electronic screens, large desks, and dozens of cubicles stacked with paper documents like mountains.

"These are the paper drafts of various revised versions of the bill," Cui Zhongcheng led Gu Shen through the corridors filled with paper stacks, "The ’New World’ is an organization created by the senator himself, operating in secrecy beneath the Huazhi Building. At the moment, the enforcement of the legislation is meeting resistance at every turn, and no one can see what the future holds because the battle has not yet come to Da Du."

"Those working here are the cream of the crop from East Continent’s legal personnel. Among them are industry leaders who have successfully pushed through numerous bills. They represent an elite force that cannot be overlooked. Once the council tosses the stone to Da Du, they will explode like a heavy bomb."

Cui Zhongcheng paused before continuing, "Actually, their reason for joining ’New World’ is quite simple..."

"Once the bill passes, the world will be changed," Gu Shen murmured.

"Exactly right, they joined New World to fight for a new world," Mr. Xiao Cui spoke softly, eyes lowered.

He led Gu Shen down the corridor, finally stopping in front of an office door. After knocking three times, there was no response, but Cui Zhongcheng politely waited a few seconds before entering directly with Gu Shen.

"Hey."

He greeted succinctly.

The subject of his greeting was a thin man buried in a sea of documents, wearing a loose white shirt, hunched over his work without lifting his head. But from the scant details that were visible, the man’s health seemed poor, thin and pale. Between the mountain of documents on his desk, three monitors stood awkwardly, each displaying a different work interface.

"Old Xing, let me introduce a new member," Cui Zhongcheng said, "Judgement Institute’s special envoy, Gu Shen."

Old Xing, who hadn’t reacted to the knock, furrowed his brow slightly upon hearing "Judgement Institute" and "special envoy," slowly lifting his head. He squinted at the young man in front of him.

His vision blurred,

until Cui Zhongcheng crouched down, stood up again, searched through the papers to find a pair of glasses, and helped him put them on; then the world before Old Xing suddenly became clear.

The frail man spoke slowly, "Under certain circumstances, the Judgement Institute has considerable law enforcement powers, but when it comes to the enforcement of the bill, the Judgement Institute has no say. So the presence of a special envoy is actually of no help to the bill’s progress, unless he himself is a special existence with certain influence and status... This young man is too young, he doesn’t seem to be one of the noble descendants from Changye, and he’s dressed simply and authentically, clearly not from Central Continent."

"The only explanation I can think of for this special envoy," Old Xing glanced at Gu Shen, quite discerning yet neither servile nor overbearing, "is that he’s connected to some important figure, placed in ’New World’ to gain experience."

Connected to some important figure?

Quite a descriptive term.

Before Gu Shen could speak, Cui Zhongcheng made the introduction for him,

"Gu Shen, the senator hopes he can witness the glorious moment when ’New World’ enforces the bill."

Someone arranged by the senator to take the backdoor route...

Xing Yun was a bit surprised, but then seemed to understand.

He said quietly, his eyes gradually alight and speech quickening, "The senator wouldn’t extend an olive branch to a young man from the Judgement Institute for no reason... Obviously, there’s someone significant behind Mr. Xiao Gu, and the people in East Continent who can catch the senator’s eye are far too few. Within the Judgement Institute, the only one I can think of is the Grand Judge ’Sky-reaching Tree’."

"Gu Shen is Zhou Jiren’s closed-door disciple," Cui Zhongcheng joked rarely, and said, "Stand up and shake his hand; that’s akin to indirectly shaking Mr. Shu’s hand."

Xing Yun suddenly stood up from behind the desk buried in paperwork, his presence overwhelming, startling Gu Shen.

But when Xing Yun advanced towards Gu Shen, the frail man’s demeanor changed.

He bowed slightly, extending both hands, humbly saying, "Mr. Xiao Gu, your revered teacher is one of the predecessors I admire the most... I was fortunate to witness Sky-reaching Tree in action during that war in North Continent, as a survivor."

What the hell.

So figures as unreliable as Zhou Jiren also have fervent fans scattered across the continents?

This was indeed beyond Gu Shen’s expectations.

He displayed expressions of "astonishment" and "flattered surprise" just right, shaking hands with Xing Yun, who had a firm and warm grip.

This must be a very passionate man.

"I will convey that for you," Gu Shen said earnestly. "If my teacher... if he knows, he will be very pleased."

"Thank you," Xing Yun regained his composure and asked with a solemn expression, "I’ve heard about the impeachment incident before, many in the Council are eyeing the position of Grand Judge... Is Mr. Shu doing okay now?"

Gu Shen hesitated and then said, "He’s... doing alright."

"But in fact, the situation isn’t that easy, right? Otherwise, he wouldn’t have reached out to Elder Zhao, who isn’t part of the Judgement faction." Xing Yun spoke with a smile, elaborating confidently, "In fact, I’ve been thinking for a long time about how my revered master should knock Zhu Wang out of the next vote for Grand Judge. This issue is both practical and actionable, and it would be even better if you could convey this. I look forward to working with Mr. Shu."

"Wait a moment..."

Gu Shen was a bit dazed upon hearing this.

He looked towards Cui Zhongcheng, who had a faint smile on his face, evidently not planning to say anything, only wanting to watch the excitement.

"This is my business card, and my contact information is on the back. I will have some free time after the bill incident." Xing Yun said earnestly, "As I said before... I look forward to working with Mr. Shu."

"That’s enough. Don’t pitch your business now."

Cui Zhongcheng said indifferently, "Bullying this kid for being a newbie who hasn’t heard of your notorious ’Tomb Ghost’ reputation, and you even dare to hand out your business card. Gu Shen is a bona fide ’S’ class; with his authority, he could look up your ancestors’ records in Deep Sea."

Xing Yun offered an awkward smile without a hint of shame on his face.

"Tomb Ghost..."

As Gu Shen took the business card, he heard Chu Ling’s voice in his ear.

"Xing Yun is his real name, he was previously working in Changye City, and he was the promoter of several important bills in the Council, but he lacks real power and status. The reason why he’s known as ’Tomb Ghost’ is because he once proposed the bill to establish ’Qingzhong’, a burial site for those who’ve made special contributions, that is, powerful Transcendents."

Before stepping outside, Gu Shen would place an electric mic the size of half a fingernail in his ear.

He could clearly hear Chu Ling’s voice, which also made it convenient for Chu Ling to establish a link with him at any time.

Qingzhong... I’ve heard of it more than once.

It seems to be a very special place, but what exactly makes it special?

"Those dead Transcendents, ordinarily their Extraordinary Essence dissipates more slowly than that of common Transcendents. Once they are buried in Qingzhong, that Essence undergoes an incredible transformation, no longer dissipating but instead defying the laws to autonomously converge."

The first part was still within Gu Shen’s understanding, and he believed it to be so... the more Extraordinary Essence one carries, the slower it dissipates upon death.

But the latter part, that was unexpected.

In Qingzhong, Extraordinary Essence does not dissipate, but instead, it intertwines and entangles?

"The establishment of Qingzhong has solidified Changye City’s position immensely, possessing a vast amount of Extraordinary Essence... Some heavy Transcendent weapons that require the consumption of Essence, for Changye City, the cost of use has become negligible. It has always been a city renowned for its valor and prowess in battle," Chu Ling used the archaic term "city" to describe Changye, "What’s more... Gu Changzhi is still slumbering here, and the bill’s convoluted implementation over the years is for this very reason."

"East Continent Council’s decisions cannot avoid Changye."

"And Changye has always been vague in its stance, with Da Du being cautious and observant... Everyone is waiting for Gu Changzhi to awaken, but as the years pass, the likelihood grows increasingly slim."

"Without Qingzhong, perhaps there would have been much less controversy over the bill."

"In the end, everyone began to resent the person who pushed for the ’Qingzhong’ bill," Chu Ling said. "That’s the man in front of you, Tomb Ghost. The Qingzhong bill affected many people’s interests, and there are many in the Council who despise him, wanting him gone."

So... Tomb Ghost has run off to Da Du?

And Zhao Xilai has taken him in.

The genius behind the Qingzhong bill is now here to deal the final blow to the ’Awakening Bill’."

The right time, the right place, and the right people.

The promotion of the bill... it seems all the necessary elements have been assembled.

"Actually, looking at the current progress, the Awakening Bill won’t face any more setbacks," the Tomb Ghost, now seated behind the desk, said softly, "We’ve already arranged for substitute Council members to be nominated internally. Mrs. Lu Nanzhi just needs to accept this nomination and express her attitude towards the Awakening Bill at the critical moment... And this war will be as good as settled."

The Tomb Ghost brought his hands together in a gesture.

He stared at the document before him, blowing a light breath.

A sheet of paper, precariously balanced and staggering on the edge, struggled to stay level.

That breath of air caused the document to completely lose its balance—

"The flames of war have been burning too long, and now everyone has reached the point of exhaustion. Just a little push is all it takes to tip the scales of victory."

(A new year~asking for monthly tickets~)