Twin Dimension Yin-Yang Mirror: Attaining immortality through the martial path
Chapter 440 - 390: The Head in the Box, The Tea in the Pot

Chapter 440: Chapter 390: The Head in the Box, The Tea in the Pot

The first time Zhou Ping’an met Director Cheng, the man was on a video feed, a face of iron and blood, his authority exceptional, a figure high above others.

This time, meeting him again, the man was just short of bowing deeply.

Not only was he offering the position of Dongjiang Police Commissioner, but he was also afraid I might be somewhat reluctant, a trace of unease in his eyes.

Indeed, times change, things are different now.

A sigh rose in Zhou Ping’an’s heart.

He wondered if his senior sister Tang Tang would be envious if she heard the news...

And his mother, she would certainly pretend not to care too much, yet inside she’d be so delighted she might go crazy, and she would even secretly hide in her room, light a few sticks of incense for his father, and chatter on and on without sleeping through the night.

As for Zhou Lan.

Better not to say too much to her.

That girl, other than using her older brother’s name to show off and boast outside, wouldn’t have a second reaction.

Fortunately, Zhou Lan had a gentle nature, so even when she was showing off or boasting, it didn’t make others despise her too much, so Zhou Ping’an never said much about it...

"Dongjiang Police Commissioner, huh? That’s really something."

Zhou Ping’an nodded in agreement.

Accepting this gesture of goodwill.

In this day and age, Ferocious Beasts were the greatest enemy, and regardless of one’s profession, having martial power was what truly provided a person with status and recognition.

Fighting beasts outside the city, maintaining Police Security inside.

These roles naturally made it easier to do many things, as they put one in charge of martial force.

Even allowing one to get involved with the governing authorities.

Everything Zhou Ping’an had done before was merely usurping authority. Essentially, it was an overstep, and there were some things that, if scrutinized too closely, could become muddy.

But with this title of Police Commissioner, whatever he did in Dongjiang would be proper and justified.

After all, that was his hometown city, which he truly couldn’t just ignore.

With this identity, it was all good.

Thus, rather than Director Cheng asking him to take the job of Dongjiang Police Commissioner, it was more like giving him a favor.

"Zhou Ping’an."

"Zhou Ping’an..."

From all around, more and more people were shouting Zhou Ping’an’s name loudly.

Perhaps some people didn’t know the reputation of Zhou Ping’an beforehand.

Nor did they see clearly how those wolf beasts died before...

But there was the live stream.

Word of mouth spread quickly, and everyone knew just who Zhou Ping’an was, how he came to Linhai, and crucially, someone had recorded the segment where he slew the Wolf King and played it over and over.

The Sky Splitter slash was stunningly brilliant.

Slicing through both heaven and earth, slaying the Wolf King not far from the West City Gate.

It was also the act of one man, one blade, completely erasing the threat of the Northwest Linhai Mountain Wolf forces, with profound implications that may benefit every person.

How could anyone not chase after such prestige?

And by this time, the live stream room had surged with a full fifteen million concurrent viewers.

Ceaseless chatter filled the space.

Subtitles cascaded like a waterfall.

[That was the Wolf King, the Silver Wolf King. In the past three years, it hadn’t often made moves, but when it did, it broke through three city walls, and under its claws lay the lives of a full million people.

Not to mention the tens of thousands of wolf beasts that come and go like the wind, cunning and brutal. This time, Zhou, King of Hell, has really done a great service.]

[It seems we all underestimated Zhou, King of Hell. His strength is far beyond the previously assessed S-level; he must have reached the King Level long ago. It’s just that he has always been benevolent towards others and never showed it.]

[Is it really that mystical, or is it because his weapon is too strong? Maybe it just took the Silver Wolf King by surprise, and with a sudden attack, decapitated it. Perhaps Zhou, King of Hell’s true strength hasn’t reached King Level?]

Someone raised doubts.

[That’s naive talk. A surprise attack? You try attacking one to see? Did you see how Zhao Wenxun of the Zhao Family and Elder Tang Chenggong of the Tang Family fared against the Silver Wolf King? They couldn’t even withstand its breath and nearly got swallowed whole by the beast.]

[Right? The Wolf King isn’t something you can kill with a surprise attack.

When the Lord Protector fought the Wolf King atop Mountain Wolf, he wanted to kill it, but couldn’t succeed.

Worried about the beast’s revenge afterward, seeing that it couldn’t be killed, he merely intimidated it for a while and allowed it to occupy Mountain Wolf, leaving people feeling stifled...]

[That’s not right. If Zhou Ping’an’s strength is so formidable, he might be even more powerful than Chu Wenli, the Southeastern Town Defense Commander. Then, wouldn’t our Southeastern Three Provinces have two King Level Town Defense Commanders?]

[Yeah, yeah, with another King Level Town Defense Commander, the anti-beast situation in the Three Southwestern Provinces might greatly change. If the Silver Wolf King can be killed, so perhaps can the Blood Scorpion King, the Purple Vine King, and the Black Dragon King. Maybe there will be an offensive tide, reclaiming the lost cities...]

These were the major issues related to the quality of life for millions of citizens.

It’s said that some states in the Northwest are planning counterattacks and have already achieved some success. People inside the cities don’t all have to cram into pigeon coops, have freedom of movement, and don’t have to stick to just their own small plots of land within the city.

And no longer worried about Ferocious Beasts suddenly appearing and attacking citizens in the city...

[Elsewhere I’m not sure, but our Dongjiang City is definitely going to undergo a huge transformation.]

...

Messages flooded the live stream room.

This time, the public opinion had suddenly shifted. The trolls that previously made up more than a third of the comments, like mud smashed by the surf, blended in and disappeared.

Mostly praises appeared that even made Zhou Ping’an himself blush.

It was imaginable that since Master Dong participated in the excavation of General Wenshan’s Tomb, the palpable threat that once loomed over him was finally beginning to fade.

"The bigger picture, indeed, is a good thing."

"With this, even if there are powers from Zhuxia coveting the find from General’s Tomb, they’d better tuck away their scheming."

"Because, to make a move openly, they’d first have to face the public opinion of Zhuxia’s citizens. Leaving aside the advantage in strength, even finding a good excuse has now become hard."

"The only worry is that under the guise of righteousness, someone may lift me high up and make me voluntarily give up my find. It’ll still be quite displeasing, but the means will seem much gentler. There won’t likely be another incident like the Path Guide cleansing again."

With this thought, Zhou Ping’an felt greatly relieved.

Even the murderous intentions in his heart had somewhat faded.

Especially when he saw the severed head of Governor Li Wantang.

The last trace of killing intent also disappeared.

"The Governor, driven by personal interest, colluded with others, issued orders, and launched two Path Guides, nearly causing a major disaster. Hence, at the recent joint meeting, he personally apologized to the people of Linhai City and to Chief Zhou, and then, on the spot, he committed suicide."

"Suicide..."

Zhou Ping’an’s expression flickered slightly.

He simply didn’t believe that those who held high positions in this world had the courage to take their own lives.

If they had that courage, they would never have come to this point.

Indeed, had they known today’s outcome, why did they ever begin.

There is also a saying, "One won’t give up hope until faced with utter despair."

Therefore, the only reason was that he was forced by someone, and the consequences of not committing suicide were ten times more severe than suicide itself.

Who took the initiative to act first?

Looking at the situation, it seemed to lack any malice.

And it did not look like a murder to silence someone.

Because, along with Li Wantang’s head, five other heads were presented.

They must be all the personnel involved in the case.

"Has the Lord Protector returned?"

Cheng Guangyao obviously understood this as well, his face full of excitement at the time.

"Did he say anything?"

"His Lordship also rushed back hastily. Upon hearing the news of the Path Guides being launched, he became furiously angry and also vented on behalf of Chief Zhou. His Lordship’s exact words were, ’Zhou Ping’an is a hero of Linhai, and we cannot let the hero shed blood and tears. Some unpleasant matters, we have taken care of for him.’"

The middle-aged man with glasses parroted a sentence, then grinned at Zhou Ping’an and extended an invitation, "If Chief Zhou isn’t too busy, His Lordship also said he’d like you to meet him on the mountain, saying that he has a great gift to thank you for saving Linhai City."

Just got back?

Putting aside whether it was true or not.

Zhou Ping’an felt somewhat comfortable with the way Elder Chu Wenli conducted his affairs.

Had the other party personally come to invite him, he would have suspected some ulterior motives.

But just right, playing the role of the "senior predecessor" was perfectly appropriate.

The message was clear.

I’ve handled the matter for you, to keep you from being blemished with the blood of officials and critiqued afterward.

I also approve of your position as Chief, and furthermore, I’m assigning you to manage Dongjiang City.

I don’t covet anything from you, and besides, there’s a big gift waiting.

Give some face, and come to meet me.

That was probably the gist of it.

"In the past, I’ve only seen the Lord Protector on television, never face-to-face. Our generation owes him a lot, so it would be right to obey any instructions he has."

Zhou Ping’an politely said.

Under Cheng Guangyao’s envious gaze, Zhou Ping’an followed the middle-aged man with glasses around the Governor’s building, past a street, and then came upon a small hill.

It was called a small hill, but in fact, it was an ancient and elegant estate.

With mountains, waters, houses, and fields...

The stream babbled, thatched cottages and fences outlined, and in the paddy fields, an old man wearing a straw hat made of wheat, with his sleeves and trousers rolled up, was using a Yong Knife, trudging through the mud and water harvesting rice.

"Ping’an has arrived. I’ll come over after I finish harvesting this ridge. There’s tea on the table, help yourself."

"Alright, Elder, you carry on with your work. Don’t mind me."

Zhou Ping’an smiled amiably, not minding the coarse tea bowl and the bland tea under the arbor.

Pouring a bowl of water, he gulped down a big mouthful.

Really, after the previous events of killing and slaughtering beasts, and rushing thousands of miles with murderous intent, he hadn’t broken a sweat, but his heart was truly tired...

Right then, the scent of fresh rice filled his nose, the sight of farmers harvesting brought a sense of peace, and for some reason, a feeling of calm settled in his heart. It seemed as if the bloodshed he had encountered over the past days were washed away with the breeze and a bowl of tea.

"There’s something off about this tea."

It wasn’t poisonous, but the fact that it could make someone of his strength feel so tranquil was quite remarkable.

Even the high-end elixirs crafted by Elder Qing from Another World didn’t have this effect.

He quietly waited, not noticing the middle-aged man with glasses quietly leave, but simply closed his eyes and silently savored the profound, vibrant essence within the tea.

Bit by bit, his spiritual power in his mind slowly grew stronger.

Although this growth was nowhere near as fast as when he directly consumed the Karmic Fire Red Lotus from the Red Lotus Holy Maiden, it was a genuine growth from within, unmarred by any external spiritual power interference.

"Eh..."

Zhou Ping’an was slightly surprised in his heart.

Just a bowl of tea had increased his spiritual power by one-tenth.

What was this thing?

Given the strength of his spiritual power, a ten percent increase was no trivial matter.

His finger twitched slightly, but he chose not to pour another bowl of tea; instead, he filled a bowl across from him with tea, weighed the pot, and found it empty, just enough for two bowls.

"All for you to drink, a guest from afar. This tea is of no use to me anymore."

The elder washed his hands and approached with a smile, pushing the tea back toward him.

Zhou Ping’an noticed that even when sitting close, he still couldn’t feel any fluctuation of energy from the man.

But his Spirit Perception could sense that he was no mere old farmer.

And having seen plenty on television.

He recognized him as well.

To call the Southeastern Town Defense Commander an ordinary person would be a massive joke.

To retract all one’s energy and control it to such a degree that even one’s peers couldn’t detect it was no simple feat.

...